Deathknell Chronicles IC, Chapter 1: Eyes Open

[daelrog]

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It is odd, isn't it?
By all means do the honors.

[Strawberries]

Amy

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Yeah, leave me to do all the hard work, why don't you?

Alright, I'll try. Apologies in advance for how it turns out: this is a HARD scene to write, and I'm a chemist, not a writer.

Amy keeps perfectly still for a second, eyes fixed on the painting. She's looking at it, but she's not really registering what it is. There is a fleeting fragment of a thought, for a second, in her mind, perfectly clear, as she finally concentrates on her own face looking at her from the frame Why would Slick be bringing me in front of a mirr... the question is perfectly calm, until she realises. It's a mirror. She knows EXACTLY what is going to happen next... the pain, and the screaming, and worse of all, the feeling of being completely, utterly alone to deal with all that I will try to call for Mike, but he wasn't here...won't be here... has this already happened or is it going to?.

Amy makes a little frightened sound at the back of her throat and takes a couple steps backwards, towards the exit. She's not registering anything else except what she thinks is a full length mirror in front of her, and the sickening smell of paint in her nostrils. Her back hits one of Slick's cupboards and she just stands there, shaking. Any moment now, there'll be Madonna on the radio, she knows. And then it's going to begin.

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Annnd...done. Full blown panic attack. With my most sincere apologies to people suffering from real PTSD. I tried to be as respectful of the condition as possible.

Now, Daelrog, you know what happens. Whoever tries to get near her to help her gets Dementated right to his or her face. Let's start with Dementation 1, at the moment, amplifying emotions....do you want me to roll for it, or are those special circumstances and we'll go with pure storytelling?

[dancrilis]

Danielle

This night which had started out so poorly had turned out reasonably well, she was sane again - she kindof felt like going to a late club and seeing about checking if she could enjoy some dancing, maybe even have a human conversation with no ulterior motives or concerns.

Sure the body reminded her of the reality of the situation but it seemed far away - she could pretend to herself that she had found a drunk and was trying to help him, half true even.

Ditching him on the doorstep seemed the easiest option they would come out spot him and take him away - her conscious clean, but cameras would spot her here and she might be asked why she didn't wait around, and asked why she had dumped it on them to start with.

She sat him on the ground and hunched down beside him "Hey, you awake?" it was important to keep him awake he had 'lost' blood and could go into shock or something, it also made it look realer that she would be concerned - and despite her more upbeat attitude she was - if he died it was on her and that reality never dulled in her mind.

[daelrog]

Amy

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First of all perception check. Will edit this post with something for Amy, Danielle, and Erica.
(4d10)[3][10][3][4](20)
Edit: That is Slick's perception + alertness. Would've been funnier if he failed.

Slick noticed something was wrong, though he couldn't tell what. "Hey Evaz, everything okay." He quickly wobbled over to Amy to see what was wrong...

Danielle

He wasn't awake, and hadn't been sicne she drew too much blood from him. Danielle had been all alone and she pulled him to the door, but now, now something was there. Behind her. An icy chill crept up onto her shoulders.

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Courage roll if she turns around.

Erica

Erica found that the major hospital, and a few of the smaller ones had services for the insane. There were some small, private practices, some which had home visits, some which were pretty much retirement homes. There was one larger insane asylum. It was located outside the town proper, maybe thirty, forty minutes drive from what Erica could estimate. It's name was Tallow and Marx Mansion.

[dancrilis]

Danielle

She would have to check a pluse and maybe get to a payphone for a ambulance.

It was then she noticed the presence. Her mind was sharper than the beginning of the night there would be no grab for a knife as a reaction now.

Still she had to react quickly, it may just be someone obfuscated - Desmund perhaps, taking him out was likely beyond her but it would be a nice capstone to the night. Or it could be the Jackal - which was much more worrying.

She turned her training taking over as she fell into a defensive stance, what ever was there she wanted to be prepared - with luck it would be just something innocent.

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Courage: (4d10)[4][5][6][3](18)

[daelrog]

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Passed... barely.

There, in front of her is something not completely corporeal. It looks like a person almost, but it's gaunt, and its face is almost featureless with no nose, no eyes, no ears, only a mouth without teeth. A long spindly finger points to the person at the door.

"He will live." The voice seems to come from around Danielle, not from the ghost itself. It glides back slightly from her. "It comes for you."

It continued to float away from her, she'd have to run to be able to catch up to it.

[Strawberries]

Amy

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Hang on, you want a perception check from me, do you? Perception is (4d10)[6][4][6][1](17) If it's perception + alertness, add to the previous roll other (3d10)[6][10][5](21)

Amy snarls... a facial expression that, as far as she knows, hadn't been in her repertory till a couple of minutes ago. She doesn't register anything that Slick is saying... she doesn't even realise that it IS Slick, actually. She just knows that she has to get away from the room and away from the mirror, before the pain begins.

She slides to the left till her back loses contact with the cupboard, which, since she had kept her eyes fixed on the portrait in front of her, makes her lose her balance and fall backwards on the wooden floor... which adds just the last bit of the memory that was missing. She's now lying on a wooden floor, in a helpless position, in front of a mirror... anytime now, it's going to start...but not if Amy's got something to say about it. She's terrified, but she's not helpless. She flat out refuses to be helpless again. There's something you can do, someone that's not her thinks in her head, and she clings to that thought, using it like a weapon. Something I can do. Someway I can avoid this....

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You still haven't told me if you DO need a roll for the Discipline bit or if you want to go by pure roleplaying. By the way, poor Slick.

Just in case you want one, here it is.
Cha+empathy, isn't it?

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(5d10)[6][4][10][7][4](31)

EDIT: Whoa... THAT is definitely a pass even if Slick's humanity is 10... Poor Slick, really.

Also, I've got a pretty good idea to one thing it could take to snap Amy out of it... but I'm going to make you guess. Cause it's more entertaining that way.

[daelrog]

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No perception from Amy necessary. The roll was for Slick to see if he knew how bad it was for Amy. One success means he knew something was up, but not what. A botch and he would have thought she was happy.

And who says I WANT Amy to snap out of it???

Slick wails as a discipline he didn't expect coming hit him. He shook his head as his concern for Amy turned into absolute fear for her. He starts running around like a headless chicken waving his arms around.

"Save Amy! Save her! Oh God she's in trouble!!" It would be almost comical if it weren't for the terror in his eyes.

From down below Amy can hear a female voice start to laugh, echoing from downstairs.

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It'll be another minute or two before anyone else comes up.

[dancrilis]

Danielle

Fear caught her it ran through her like an electronic shock and it broke her stance - it didn't knock her out but had she been alive adrenalin would have flooded her for either flight or fight.
But she was dead and it passed quickly even as she backed up, if it wanted to attack you it would have she rationalised given that if something is coming they are not together sure it could be a trap but everything could always be a trap.

The decision of whether to run away or after it was made based on the most random of thought - if it is dead it might be able to tell you where Katrina is, casting one look back at her victim she took off after the apparition - hopefully she wouldn't be reading about him dying.

Was this the thing she thought she saw from her bike? was it following her? was it even real? or just her hallucinations getting worse now that her mind was clearer? could you trust your own damaged mind?, if not who could you trust?
These were the questions she could not wrap her head around as she chased after ... whatever it was.

[daelrog]

When the thing noticed Danielle running after it, it moved into an alley. When Danielle looked in, there the things was, still in plain view. There wasn't anyone else in there, just a floating, incorporeal thing that glowed a pale white-blue. She had a better look at it now. It was dressed in rags and chains, and seemed to be patiently waiting for Danielle to say something.

[Strawberries]

Amy

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Of course you wouldn't want that... By the way, I think the roll you wanted for Slick wasn't Per+alertness, it should have been Per+empathy. But hey.

Now... I could spend a WP, but I don't want to. Bring it on.

That's not going like she remembers, and it's just confusing her more. Amy tries to get up and run away, but her head is spinning too much for that, so she just scuttles backwards, as away from Slick and the painting as she can.

[daelrog]

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Ah you are right in that. Would have been one more dot for Slick, no biggie.

After a couple minutes, Slick eventually finds his way outside. It's a few minutes more before Mike comes in, his real face showing. "Amy? Amy!" His voice is stern as he isn't sure what's going. He doesn't go straight up her. "Amy! What's going on?"

[dancrilis]

Danielle

Ok it stopped, she noted and it seems willing to listen now all she had to do was figure out what she wanted to say. What are you, who were you warning me about, all important ... but were not her core concerns.

"I don't know what you are, but thanks for helping me ... I think" she paused "but ah ... " no she couldn't just blurt out randomly about her sister "can you tell me why you showed yourself to me", that might be more important than anything else really - it's intentions would be a measure of everything else "and what It is that comes for me", and how I can repay you but that would wait on the other questions.

Well you are speaking to a potential figment of your own imagination, but at least you aren't hungry she offered a weak smile.

[Strawberries]

Amy

Now that voice, she recognises, and it's exactly as she remembers. Exactly something that's happening again. "You..." she whispers, exactly like she had wanted to do that night. She's just not really sure what night this is, anymore. Everything's blurring together, except for one thought, which she gives voice to. "You friggin bastard, what the hell did you do to me?"

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Alright.... if I can, I will, if I can't, no biggie. Yes, I like to complicate my own life a lot, why do you ask?

Dementation 2 on the poor sod...er, Mike, I mean. Spending a blood point and rolling manipulation+subterfuge vs his perception+self control. If it works, he's not in for a pleasant ride. (5d10)[2][6][10][9][5](32)

That is always assuming you don't want to count it as an auto success for the sake of storytelling. (or an auto-failure, I guess)

EDIT: And, unfortunately for Mike, that's a hell of a roll to counteract. If he fails, your choice as a ST as to what may haunt him.

[Thundercracker]

Erica

It's far. I'd need a car to get there. Something to think about for the medium term...

She unwrapped the Portuguese lessons and stacked them neatly on the table, next to a small cassette recorder. Then she pulled Jon's number from her purse. She held it up for a moment, debating, then taped it to a blank card and inserted it into her rolodex.

"Now what," she said aloud.

Automatically, Erica's thoughts turned to work. Almost angrily, she shoved the thoughts from her mind. Overtime had its time and its place, but so did rest and recharging, and that was tonight. Already the sense of accomplishment at the night's 'victory' had begun to sour, and her mind wandered, searching for something to latch on to that wasn't finance related. Idly she considered calling the other fledglings to check up on them, but they'd probably be out and about.

"At least _try_ calling," she said to herself again.

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Erica will call the other player characters, which means at some point, the phone will start ringing over at Amy's scene, since she's the only other player character who is active, and at home. I'll let you guys decide when would be the most dramatically appropriate time :)

[daelrog]

Danielle

The thing looked at Danielle curiously, if she had to venture a guess. It was hard when it was lacking so many features. At first it just shrugged its gaunt shoulders. Then it floated close to her, passing through her and whispering as it did.

"I don't know."

Then it was gone, vanished into thin air.

Amy

Mike's eyes seemed to glaze over, but only for a moment. "What's gotten into you? Look, Slick is freaked out? What happened? You're glad Flat Face isn't around, if he found out something happened to Slick, he'd frenzy. You haven't seen the big guy frenzy, it's not pretty."

Mike flipped his phone open. "Look, I'm calling Donovon, she's the best to sort this out." He seemed genuinely annoyed. "Come on let's..." His voice trailed off as he saw something behind Amy. He took a slow step back. "Wh-what is that?" He pointed to a blank spot on the wall. "Okay... Evaz, let's slowly move out of here, nice and calm." Whatever he saw, it was like a man trying to move away from a mountain lion or bear.

Erica

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Start with Danielle. Amy still needs to finish this night, Rick is on hiatus, Andrew is busy with his sister, and Faruq is MIA.

[Strawberries]

Amy

Amy shakes her head. She's not going anywhere with him. Whatever is happening, it had been his fault, that much is clear. Get the frigging hell away from me she wants to say... then she realises something. Out of here, meaning away from the mirror and the paintings and the curtains. She doesn't want to go with him, but the perspective of getting out sounds good. She tries, she really does, but the few steps to the door may as well be a few kilometres. She shakes her head again, this time to signify that she simply can't move, and stays where she is, trembling.

[dancrilis]

Danielle

Ok she said to herself get a grip.

It makes sense that a figment of your imagination would not know any more than you do, right? although which question it had answered she didn't know; the why it took interest in her or what it protected her from.

"Well thanks anyway", there was an off-chance that she was not crazy, she had met vampires after all and whatever Harry was, and had been reading a bit on ghosts and spirits so they might exist - actually didn't that group the Giovanni have something to do with them.

Her instinct was to go back and make sure her victim was alright, but if something internal or external was telling her not to she would take it ... if he died she would know if she could trust it or not, and if not you will have been a murderer listening to madness like Desmund, she pushed the voice aside.

Her bike was in a parking lot hereby so she would circle around and pick it up, head home and then visit Jack, or that was the plan anyway.

She might have to review a bit at home and pick up some items actually.

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She could get a call from Erica when at home or hear a voicemail, she would call back (she is not in the habit of insulting the clans ... deliberately anyway).

[daelrog]

Amy

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PM received. Good catch.

Mike peered a bit closer at whatever was behind Amy, then shook his head. He looked about himself, looking around for any suspicious signs. He slowly walked to Amy trying to lift her to her feet, and help her out of the room.


Danielle

Danielle has no more trouble from any ghosts or delusions on the way back home. She's barely a foot into the door, when the phone attached the wall rings.
OOC: It's Erica.

[dancrilis]

Danielle

This was an odd day, first hallucinations, than more hallucinations, than a library with a secret occult room, than a poor performance, than some food - some delicious food - and than accosted by a ghost -or another hallucination - but she was beginning to think she wasn't crazy, which in fairness was a likely sign of being crazy.

Still she felt well enough all things considered - in fact better then well - which really should freak her out.

Still grab some blood, change clothes visit Jack ... and show some trust.

And than the phone rang, "dammit" her head hit the back of the door as she slumped for a second.

Reaching for the phone - this might be good news, she doubted it.

"Hello" she voice clear but curious as to who might be calling, Amy, Mom, someone else. Hopefully Amy or Mom.

[Thundercracker]

Erica

Well, it sounds like her, but politeness takes precedence.

"Hi, this is Erica," the voice on the line came through crystal clear, "could I please speak with Danielle?"

[dancrilis]

Danielle

Who, it wasn't that she didn't know an Erica, it was that she knew a few Erica's - and being bad with names didn't help. Ok think, to old to be from school, not likely to be a martial arts person, could be a manager, or maybe a lead on Desmund she had been asking around a lot, she brightened at the hopeful thought, and some people would have the number.

You have answered a phone before you know she chastised herself.

"Speaking" she said guardedly.

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Not trying to be difficult but she would have little reason to jump to the conclusion of it being Erica of clan Ventrue, as they haven't had much interaction.

[Strawberries]

Amy

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I'm quite firmly convinced that Dementation 2 IS one of the scariest disciplines in Masquerade, for the reasons I pointed out.

"Mike" There's surprise in her voice, as if she hadn't expected him to get near. She hadn't. That's not something that had happened, that night. It helps getting her a tiny bit more grounded. This is not then, this is now...is it? "Mike, I... I don't know what's happening." she half-whispers. She sounds frightened, way more frightened than she had the night of the Embrace. She allows him to help her up, but she grips his arm so tightly that she would probably have really hurt him if he had been still human. "Can we...can we just get out, please?".

[Thundercracker]

Erica

"Hey Danielle," Erica continued, "I was just calling to check up on you, see how you're doing. I would have called earlier but work has been keeping me busy. Are you free to meet up?"

[daelrog]

Amy
Mike helps her out of the Slick's studio, and outside, Mike's eyes dart around the entire time looking for unseen horrors. "Listen, I need you to be strong. Go downstairs, and call Donovon. Her number is taped to the underside of it."

Mike was heading back downstairs as well, but at a slower pace in case something jumped out and he needed to give Amy more time.

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Ignore my earlier comment of Mike "flipping his phone open", and other future silly references to cell phones.

[dancrilis]

Danielle

Now she was baffled which Erica knew her well enough for a social call - someone from school - maybe - but she doubted it in general and more so late at night, it was about 1am wasn't it?

"Ok" if this is a trap is is a fairly poor one ... if this was a vampire - or a ghoul she considered - that was being subtle than it wouldn't really do to insult them.

"We can meet at the" swings where I conduct all my meetings "Ellington Hotel" she decided on. Having done some gigs there it would be suitable for a meeting - they had a bar and it wouldn't be crowded but should be safe in case of attack. Truthfully a bit upmarket for her - so she would have to dress up a bit - which might be nice if this turned out to be purely mundane, and wouldn't hurt her with management to put in an appearance. She could at least combine this with business.

Of course it hit her then that it may not suit Erica (whoever she was) if she was not able to get in - "unless you have somewhere specific in mind?".

[Thundercracker]

Erica

"Ellington hotel," she said, "yeah, I know where it is. Okay, see you there in a half-hour?"

Assuming this is okay, Erica will hop onto a bus and make the trip back into town.

She arrived at the hotel lobby, made her way to the bar, and sat down at a high table.

Crap, she's underage, isn't she...

Erica got up and sat down in one of the lobby chairs, facing the entrance so she could wave Danielle over when she showed.

[dancrilis]

Danielle

Having dressed for work earlier there wasn't much to change - she switched the jacket for a red leather one - her mother had gotten it for her for her birthday after seeing that she had a bike purchased along with a helmet, she suspected the helmet had been the more important of the two from her mothers perspective - but she did like the jacket.

The tie was abandoned, but the rest suited causal but respectable - or so the mirror said to her. as she did her hair into a quick bun with a small pony tail.
Of course with the taste of blood fresh to her she was tempted to go with a skirt, heels and see if anyone in the roughest part of town wanted to offer her dinner, or to see if she could get some more honestly in the at the hotel - she discarded both thoughts as unhelpful to sanity.
Was this what addiction was like after having a fix? you felt good but you wanted more and were willing to entertain stupid thoughts to get it. Possible but she didn't have much choice.

Grabbing some paper and a pen she grabbed a purse (not a particularly nice one but functional) and moved out to the Ellington, maintaining traffic laws and considering who Erica might be - she was getting more and more sure that it was someone related to the whole being dead thing.

Then it hit her dominate girl ... crap, if Erica had went on a dominate spree with mortals her first night out then moving up the the trash of vampire society would be a solid next step to test herself - and she had chosen somewhere she couldn't even defend herself without making a scene.

She could just not show up ... and offend one of the major clans, insult the 'daughter' of one of the primogen, and show herself to vampire society as getting above herself. It was no win, just don't look at her - you failed that with her clan mate she reminded herself. "How the hell did she even get my number" she muttered aloud as she drove.

Entering the hotel she stopped at reception momentarily to let them know that she was available to play if needed - but she was mostly here to listen.

Moving into the bar she felt her suspicions confirmed, the shorter woman was sitting at the bar and recognised her quickly, she moved over nervously and not making eye contact.

"Good evening Ma'am, what do I owe the ... " honour?, privilege? "invitation" looking around "would you like to get a seat? the music here can be good particularly if we get the acoustics right", if the woman accepted she would wave the bartender over "can I get a cranberry juice and a glass of still tab water with ice" she offered a weak smile as she took her jacket off - she would have offered to get Erica something for the sake of appearance but they wouldn't be officially allowed to serve her - and she likely couldn't really afford anything but the cheapest wine in this place.

She was nervous one misstep and who knew what the woman might make her do for the insult - she could understand the idea of exercising power, people with it didn't even think want they were to people without it.
The girls at school exercised theirs on the weak, she in turn had exercised hers on those that annoyed her. But she had never really been one of the weak before ... and she was now. Amy didn't get that she acted a bit like they were equals, but she suspected that this woman might understand very well from Amy's stories ... but she might act like that wasn't the case.

[Strawberries]

Amy

The smell of paint fades a bit as soon as they are out of Slick's study, and now that she' not able to see the paintings and the wooden floor anymore she feels slightly more aware of where she is and, most importantly, when she is. She stops for a second, breathing deeply and trying to calm herself: she had stopped breathing at some point, before, when she was panicking and hadn't even noticed. She feels like she should be feeling her heartbeat pound in her ears, but of course there's nothing of the sort. There is a metallic taste in her mouth, though. She's not sure if she's just imagining it. "I...okay. Okay, I'm going." The way she says it, it pretty much implies 'please come with me'. She looks in the direction where he's looking. There's nothing there. "Mike, what...what's wrong?" You stupid idiot she chides herself Just go call Donovon as he asked, you're in no state to be of much help. But it doesn't feel right to leave him up there on his own.

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Sorry to be a pain... but no way she's leaving up there all by himself, now that she's thinking a bit more clearly. Plus, she's not particularly keen of speaking with Donovon.

[Thundercracker]

Erica

"Ma'am?" Erica asked.

"Jeez, relax. It's just Erica," she said, "I wanted to catch up with you for a while now, but I've been crushed with work."

She turned to the bartender, who has been patiently waiting, but who was proceeding to grow less so as she ignored him.

"I'll have what she's having," Erica said.

She's not looking at me, Josef was right. Everybody knows.

It just didn't seem right to talk to someone without looking at them, but the rules were different in this social culture where looking someone in the eye could get you killed. Erica swiveled in her seat to face the bar.

"So how's everything working out for you?" she asked, gesturing at the word 'everything' to indicate the word was code.

I swear, I feel like a mobster in one of those bad mafia movies.