[nWoD] Campus Vigilantes 2: Halloween

[savior indra]

"Adam what should we do then? She's the only lead we really have at the moment. I won't go if you think it's not the right tactic but someone has to get answers from her. " said Kale as he acquiesced to Adam and moved away from the door.

Kale then started pulling up maps of Tyler Hall up looking for the exits and trying to decide how many people it would take to safely cover it. He also sent an email to Zach asking what type of security and how much they were packing would be provided.

Have to remember to check out Allison's daily schedule, see if anything suspicious comes up... thought Kale as he continued to try and determine what risks the party would pose.

[Odentin]

"Then let someone with a gentler touch handle it. I see her at archery practice tomorrow, and Semira might know her. She's a psych major."

He sighs and loosens his posture, "Michelle went off on her, earlier. You questioning her would probably send her over the edge."

He shakes his head and leaves his position at the door, walking towards a chair and slumping into it. Twice in one day. Allison, you'd better not be the one behind this...

[savior indra]

"Thanks for reminding me. I need to meet with Michelle. I hope she's alright," said Kale as he dialed her number into his cellphone, while taking off his gloves and boots and putting his suit back on.

"Michelle, it's Kale. Are you alright? I have a bottle of wine if you want to talk," said Kale forcing his voice to be light and joking.

[Sir_Gabes]

Patrick took the lock picks gratefully and deftly pocketed them. He grimaced at the idea of Kale breaking into her home. Patrick thought carefully, he wasn't willing to visit her face to face today. She needed at least a day before it would tactful to visit in friendly circumstances. Patrick took out the book he was scrawling in earlier.

"There's no harm in doing a stake out, I suppose. Keep an eye on her and see what she gets up to. I also want to check out Michelle. She seems to resent the idea of Ian having a memorial and while unlikely to be our vandal, she acted... Out of character... Also there is Ellen and Jaime, she seemed delighted when she got her "big scoop". Who knows this could be an elaborate ruse, thought up for the sake of providing an awesome story. I also want to dig up Ian's grave, if he has one and check it for supernatural tampering. Let's face it guys, we know what's out there. Double check Zach, he's too "uninvolved" but it can't hurt and lets not forget who wanted the haloween party. Does anyone have contacts or favors with the police. I wouldn't mind if we got a chance to analyze the crime scene ourselves or at least see what evidence they pick up. Anyone have any objections or anything to add?"

Patrick spoke excitedly and quickly. Patrick was thinking with cold logic now. No person would escape his scrutiny if he had a say. Patrick felt a little excitement bubble up inside. He wasn't trying to lead or be the boss. But, he thought he came up with some pretty good ideas.

[SurlySeraph]

Semira stays at the defaced memorial as the crowd begins to leave, looking it over. She sits down in the front row, thinking carefully about how Michelle and Allison acted. After a moment, she writes down "R spray paint," "mask," "W rose" and "hammer?", then steps over chairs to make her way to the front row.

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First, Composure + Empathy rolls to try to figure out if there was anything strange about Allison or Michelle's behavior, if one of them had more in mind than it seemed. (Pool's 6, 7 if Motives specialty applies).

Then, Wits + Investigation roll. (Pool's 5). If the police don't cordon the memorial off, I'll take a closer look. If they do, I'll just do the best I can with what I can see from the seats, pretending to be writing down my thoughts, then leave to go find any local florists. I'm specifically interested in checking how fresh the rose is and whether the damage is indeed consistent with a hammer or with something shaped differently.

[McGonigle]

“No I stopped filming right around the bit when Michelle broke down, and probably the most Alison has ever said in public.” She commented to Ellen her voice dripping with sarcasm. “It’s all on there, not sure how smooth the transitions are but the audio will be fine at least and the rest can be tidied up.”

“I’m try to get some wider reactions, mainly for the podcast but I’ll make sure you get a transcript quickly. Oh and give me an e-mail when you decide what angles the main piece is covering, it will help with the editing.” She didn’t mention that she was pretty sure she would be talking about it in her column and wanted avoid topics covered well in Ellen’s main article.
“Anyway I have work to do I barely have any footage of the memorial itself, on the basis that it isn’t moving anytime soon, so I need to film that and some reactions.”

Still she sat down for a few moments, it wouldn’t hurt to let anyone in a rush depart people still milling around would be easier to question and sent off a text to Semira.
“Assuming we are looking into this, it might be worth meeting up so I can show you some of the footage of the crowd I have.”

With that sent, she rose, adjusted the microphone slightly, and moved towards the students who were still milling around, she was mainly looking to see what they thought of the confrontation between Alison and Michelle, but she wouldn’t start on that question, she would ask some safer question like ‘what did you think of the ceremony,’ then move onto the question she really wanted to ask.

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I'm not entirely sure what roll would make sense for the gathering of opinions, but I’m pretty sure it’s manipulation + something (Either investigation or Persuasion so I’ll go with the lower one.)
[roll]1d10[roll] [roll]1d10[roll] [roll]1d10[roll] [roll]1d10[roll] [roll]1d10[roll]

Also a wits +Investigation roll [roll]1d10[roll] [roll]1d10[roll] [roll]1d10[roll] [roll]1d10[roll] [roll]1d10[roll] [roll]1d10[roll] as she is also going to get a good look at the damage to the monument, as well as filming and taking pictures of the damage.
I thought I should roll it now on the basis that she’s going to be doing it after she talks to the students, and it may as well be resolved at the same time.

Oh and some extra dice for possible explosions [roll]1d10[roll] [roll]1d10[roll] [roll]1d10[roll]

[Odentin]

Adam pulls his cell again and sends another text to Leon, Safe now. Any info you can get is appreciated.

Once sent, he rubs his eyes with his fingers, slumping a little more, mentally exhausted.

[-Sentinel-]

Leon smiles. "The name's Leon. I'm not offering pity, though I do offer my sympathies. I just can't stand seeing someone act like Michelle was. Makes me wonder who the real monsters are, sometimes. Where are you heading next? Would you like some company on the way?"

Allison hesitated. A slight smile appeared on her lips. "Okay then. I was just going to the library though... The way's not long." Indeed, they were already halfway there. "You know, Michelle was a bit bitchy, but I can't blame her for being in a bad mood over the vandalism. Who'd do something like that? That's just sick."

---

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Semira and Jaime

Based on what Semira knew of Allison, she was being her usual self – quiet, determined, touchy where her brother was concerned, but willing to back down if it was just not worth it. Michelle, though, was showing a new face... certainly not the face of a student council president. Semira suspected that side of her had always been dormant underneath all the layers of dignity and poise. Michelle had always been an obstinate and confrontational person, used to having her own way; it was part of what made her a natural leader. She had just pushed it one step too far today.

Knowing Michelle, she would be holding grudges towards everyone who had defended Allison.

Semira and Jaime both took a close look at the desecrated monument. The white rose was not quite fresh – possibly bought or cut yesterday. The spray can of red paint was lying in the middle of the still-dry pool of the fountain. It was empty if the weight was any indication. Strangely, the vandal had chosen water-soluble paint, easily washable. As for the damage to Gavin's pillar, it was impossible to tell what instrument had caused it. It could have been any sufficiently heavy blunt object, possibly with the help of a chisel.

Jaime's poll about the vandalism yielded predictable results – mostly disgust and anger, though a majority seemed to think it was only an assh0le trying to shock people, not a genuine threat. A couple expressed suspicion towards Allison: “I mean, who else brings flowers to that bastard?” Another suggested Wayne Borden, the skinhead pushing for looser gun laws: “Seriously, that guy's a real wingnut, he's always complaining about immigrants and gays. Wouldn't surprise me if he'd drawn those swastikas.” One implied that Ellen might have done it for her documentary film. Another mentioned Eric Leigh, an artist who gauged the success of his works by how much of a scandal they caused; he had been expelled from the art department last year for skinning a dead dog and hanging it from the library's belltower, and his next project supposedly required an aborted human fetus. Zach was mostly concerned about his Halloween party: “Hell, for all I know, the vandal could be someone trying to get it cancelled. We can't let them win.” His friend Jamie Price had no suspect in mind, but seemed very interested in finding out who it was; he listened attentively as Jaime polled students.

Views about the confrontation between Michelle and Allison were mixed. Many said that it was stupid and insensitive of Allison to come with her flowers just after the ceremony, but added that Michelle had overreacted and could have been more diplomatic about it. Even Michelle's usual supporters did not condemn Allison too harshly, for the most part, but their comments were somewhat patronizing: “Poor girl, she still believes her brother wasn't so bad...” Not many outright took Allison's side, at least openly, but there were a few, including Sara Crawford and Marco Alvarez.

---

1

"Michelle, it's Kale. Are you alright? I have a bottle of wine if you want to talk," said Kale forcing his voice to be light and joking.

Michelle's voice was weary. “Thing is, if I start drinking now, I won't be able to stop. Thanks all the same, Kale. Hey, uh... don't do anything stupid, alright? It was... kind of scary, the state you were in. People will talk. They already think you're a bit... unstable.”

---

1

Jonah

According to Jonah's search, a number of crimes had happened recently around Maxwell University, but the same could be said any other day in this neighborhood. Two assaults against gang members; enemy gangs suspected. Attempted rape; culprit rushed to hospital in critical condition. Convenience store robbery; culprit arrested. Carjacking; culprit not found, a masked male with a foreign accent. Bar trashed; drunken fratboys blamed. Some graffiti around Adams Boulevard, mostly gang signs. Burglary; TV and computer stolen, culprit not found. The usual cases of domestic violence, DUI and drug possession. Only one unsolved case of animal disappearance reported in the past few weeks: an old lady's African grey parrot.

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Seriously though... All the crimes in the last two years is a bit ridiculous. Maxwell University is in a crime-ridden area, which is why the vigilantes were set up in the first place.

[SurlySeraph]

Sem thanks Jaime for her help, and goes off to find the nearest florist.

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If this is relatively easy to do, she asks the cashier "Hey, do you keep customer records? Somebody left me a rose and a note last night, and I'm trying to find out who."

Semira reaches across the counter and lightly touches the cashier's arm. With a playful grin, she adds "It wasn't you, was it?"
Manipulation + Persuasion (flirting) + Striking Looks: (11d10)[7][7][9][10][4][4][3][1][8][3][6](62)

Rerolls in case of 10s: (5d10)[9][5][6][1][9](30)

[Lycan 01]

Jonah groans, and lets his head fall forward onto the RPG club's table with a loud thunk. "Ow..." he mutters. "Well, crap. That turned up jack," he muttered out loud to no one in particular. "Nothing concrete, nothing that screams psychopath..." he mutters. "I mean, what kind of psycho steals a freaking parrot? Bah..."

He then looks down at his smartphone for a moment, before shrugging. "Okay, lets get non-traditional."

He then starts searching for recent reports of paranormal or occult activity. Strange happenings, supernatural occurrences, rumors and speculation. In particular, he's looking for anything that may have to do with cult activity, demonic possession, or other things that could possible be associated with a lunatic killer.

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Secrets rolls again, I assume.

[Misaat]

The front door to the RPG club opens with a loud push as a student comes barging in. His long brown hair is really from his mouth hangs a half eaten doughnut and his arms are occupied with a bunch of pieces of wood and lead pipes. He also carries a small toolbox on his right hand and a laptop on his left.

" FEFFO EFRIFAFY! "

He says as he rushes towards the small "stand" on the corner of the room. He throws everything behind the counter and licks his fingers as he finishes the doughnut.

" Saw you guys on the news... That was quite something... Did they catch the one who did it?"

[Odentin]

Adam instinctively reaches for his trenchknife as the door bursts open, but relaxes once he sees who it is, and slumps back into his chair. "No," he says in his usual soft tone, "Jonah's looking up information on possible suspects."

[Misaat]

" Is that so? I'll see what i can get as well "

With that says Matthew starts to search through the campus forums and news sites about people that left comments that supported what the killer did.

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Computer Skill:(7d10)[8][8][8][7][10][3][4](48)

He also sends a message to Mr X which just says " Seen anything interesting on the news lately? "

[ToySoldierCPlus]

Allison hesitated. A slight smile appeared on her lips. "Okay then. I was just going to the library though... The way's not long." Indeed, they were already halfway there. "You know, Michelle was a bit bitchy, but I can't blame her for being in a bad mood over the vandalism. Who'd do something like that? That's just sick."

Leon notices his phone buzzing, but opts to ignore it for the moment. He nods in agreement with Allison's assessment as they begin walking again. "Agreed. It's probably just somebody doing it for shock value. Which they seem to have succeeded at, so good job to them for that. Could have been a bit more subtle, though. Full disclosure, I've been a bit concerned about the Halloween party coming back this year, that we might see somebody try to capitalize on it. Either a copycat, or..." He lets his voice trail off, not wanting to say too much about his real suspicions. He shakes his head as if to clear it before continuing. "Anyway, the vandalism of the memorial just makes me more concerned. What about you? You think we should be worried about the party?"

[savior indra]

Kale sighed as he rubbed his face. The whole situation was not anything near what he had been expecting. He looked around the room before asking. He need to relax and take his mind off the situation.

"Anyone want a drink? I've got an $8,000 bottle of Pinot Seurat that I don't want to finish myself."

[Odentin]

Adam looks at Kale quizically, an eyebrow raised, as if not sure what to think. He shrugs his acceptance after a moment.

[-Sentinel-]

Leon

"Anyway, the vandalism of the memorial just makes me more concerned. What about you? You think we should be worried about the party?"

“If a copycat killer were serious about it, why'd he try to alarm people?” Allison pointed out. “It would only mean more security at the party, and less targets to kill if people were too scared to come. No, I'm pretty sure it's nothing to worry about. I do hope the vandal's caught, though, if only for the vandalism and hate speech.”

They had almost reached the entrance of the library.

---

1

Semira

The cashier, a pimply young man with glasses, blushed at Semira's touch. For a moment he seemed tempted to answer yes to her question.

“Uhh... I don't know you, sorry,” he said apologetically. “We been selling lots of roses lately, what with the second anniversary of the Halloween Massacre. As for customer records, um... I only have the names of those who paid by check or card, and I'm afraid it's not something I'm allowed to share except in a police investigation. Sorry. But if someone's in love with you, I'm sure he'll show up again.”

He smiled politely.

---

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Jonah and Matthew

It turned out that Maxwell's Esoteric Club was planning a Halloween séance to communicate with the dead, but the RPG Club had already investigated them and found them to be little more than a bunch of long-haired dilettantes who randomly amalgamated the most fashionable New Age and pseudoscientific trends into an inconsistent mess. They could not even agree among themselves over the existence of UFOs, the efficiency of homeopathy, the spiritual value of pot smoking and the validity of L. Roy Howard's Temple of Dianeticology. The séance would likely consist, as usual, of strange rituals from a dozen different religions, prayers in mangled Latin and Gaelic, drug use, group sex, and a conspicuous lack of anything remotely supernatural.

Other than that, there was a fundamentalist mother looking for an exorcist to cure her teenage son from his desire to become a woman, a clearly schizophrenic man seeking police protection from the Freemason conspiracy, and a homeless street magician threatening to unleash the Black Death upon the city if he did not receive $100,000 in cash by December 21.

Matthew's search of forums and social networks yielded nothing but scandalized reactions to the vandalism and creative suggestions to punish the perpetrator. Even Wayne Borden's far-right Twitter account had an tweet condemning the desecration of Nathan Rosenberg's pillar, claiming that “Jews should be shown the error of their ways, not hated”. Some insensitive idiot had already posted on YouTube a techno remix of Kale's I will make you beg for death shout.

[Lycan 01]

Jonah groans in frustration. "Damnation, I can't find anything..." he laments. He then pauses to look at the thing about the street magician. "Actually, I've got something we should look into later on, but it's a totally unrelated matter. Something about a homeless street magician threatening to unleash the Plague."

The scholar looks up and raises an eyebrow. "You guys know much about wizards? Just curious..." he shrugs.

[ToySoldierCPlus]

“If a copycat killer were serious about it, why'd he try to alarm people?” Allison pointed out. “It would only mean more security at the party, and less targets to kill if people were too scared to come. No, I'm pretty sure it's nothing to worry about. I do hope the vandal's caught, though, if only for the vandalism and hate speech.”

"Eh, you're probably right. I'm still concerned about a copycat, but that's probably just me being paranoid." Leon looked up at library building as they reached the entrance. "Well, here we are. It was nice talking to you, but I should probably get going. Gotta catch up with my friends, check on Kale, check on Karen..." He sighed. "It's gonna be a busy afternoon. Anyway, if you need anything, someone to talk to, someone to hang out with, help studying, help dealing with trouble, let me know."

[savior indra]

"Alright i'll go grab it from my car. Be right back." said Kale as he rose from his seat and headed out to his car.

Kale returns shortly with a bottle of Pinot Seurat and some plastic cups in his backpack.

"Not the classiest of drinking implements but they don't break during reckless driving." explained Kale with a shrug as he started pouring a cup for himself and Adam.

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Kale is currently dressed in a suit again, without the gloves or boots. He took them off earlier in the scene.

[SurlySeraph]

Semira sighs and runs a finger along the cashier's forearm. "Come on, it's not like you'll get in trouble. One white rose, sometime yesterday. I'll just take a picture of the names with my camera phone and figure out if any of them are in one of my classes. It'll take ten seconds, and - " she clasps his hand " - I'll be really grateful."

It takes Semira a little effort to sound sweet and pleading rather than detached and slightly irritated that the cashier is showing any spine at all - but not much.

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Same roll. (11d10)[6][10][8][4][10][9][9][6][6][6][5](79)
(5d10)[3][9][9][9][5](35)

[Sir_Gabes]

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Occult + Intelligence = 5 for any relevant surface knowledge.

"I know a fair bit about magic and the mythology that surrounds it. I study anthropology after all and I'm a hunter. Let me find some of my research material."

Patrick grabbed some heavy books from his bag. Some of them were for college others were inherited from his mentor. The college text books described old beliefs and ancient societies. The one's inherited from his mentor was a variety of poorly organized notes detailing supernaturals he encountered and what he knew.

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academics + intelligence + willpower = 7 I'm specifically looking for rituals that actually work that a group of eccentric college kids could find, with persistence.
Occult: [rollv]5d10[/rollv]
Academics: [rollv]7d10[/rollv]

[-Sentinel-]

"Anyway, if you need anything, someone to talk to, someone to hang out with, help studying, help dealing with trouble, let me know."

Allison considered the offer. "I'd like to ask you a favor." She handed Leon the red poppies she still held. "Can you bring these to the memorial? Michelle's no longer there to stand in your way. I'd really appreciate that."

(assuming Leon accepts)

Allison took a deep breath. She seemed to be gathering her courage. "One more thing. Are you free Saturday the 27th in the evening?" she asked quickly, as if eager to spit it out.

---

1

Semira

The cashier blushed even harder. "Uh... alright. But I could lose my job over this. Come over here."

He showed her his computer screen. "Yesterday, you said? Here's the list of transactions. It doesn't include the name of anyone who paid in cash, though. And most people would pay in cash for just one rose."

---

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Patrick

There were a lot of rituals in Patrick's books, but Patrick could not figure out which were most likely to be found about by college students. None, certainly, mentioned anything about desecrating monuments to the dead.

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Matthew

Mr X's terse answer did not take long to come; he was almost always online.

Can you be more specific? A place, a time, a type of event?

[ToySoldierCPlus]

Allison considered the offer. "I'd like to ask you a favor." She handed Leon the red poppies she still held. "Can you bring these to the memorial? Michelle's no longer there to stand in your way. I'd really appreciate that."

(assuming Leon accepts)

Allison took a deep breath. She seemed to be gathering her courage. "One more thing. Are you free Saturday the 27th in the evening?" she asked quickly, as if eager to get it out.

Leon takes the poppies and nods. "I can, and I am. Why do you ask?"

[SurlySeraph]

Sem nods. "I know, but it's at least a place to start." She takes a picture of the screen with her camera phone, warmly thanks the cashier, and begins to leave. Then she turns back and adds "You didn't see anyone particularly creepy buy a white rose with cash yesterday, did you?"

Semira sends the picture to Jonah along with a text message: "names of people who bought a white rose w/ check or credit yesterday. could you check if any are students, have arrest records, and/or wrote anything questionable about Ian Keating?"

[Misaat]

" This morning at the Maxwell University Massacre Memorial."

He quickly typed.

[-Sentinel-]

Leon

"I'm looking for a Super Smash Bros. Brawl opponent," Allison said with a shy grin. "I'm living in room 37 of dorm 2. Say, 8 PM on Saturday. Dibs on Link."

---

1

"You didn't see anyone particularly creepy buy a white rose with cash yesterday, did you?"

"I wasn't there yesterday, sorry," said the cashier.

Closer examination of the list showed Semira that none of the customers who had paid by check or card had bought for less than 8 dollars worth of flowers. Among them, half a dozen had bought a number of white roses, including Sophia Neveux's father and one Elizabeth Wade (a relative of Gavin's?). The other names were unknown to Semira.

---

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Matthew

Mr X paused. He came back after a minute or two:

Just looked it up. The memorial was vandalized. Nothing suggests there's supernatural stuff involved, though. Do you have any reason to think so?

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Besides the fact that this is a nWoD game. :P

[ToySoldierCPlus]

Leon

"I'm looking for a Super Smash Bros. Brawl opponent," Allison said with a shy grin. "I'm living in room 37 of dorm 2. Say, 8 PM on Saturday. Dibs on Link."

Leon smiles warmly. "Room 37, dorm 2; Saturday, 8 PM. Got it. I'll see you then." He turn heads back to the memorial. Once he reaches it, he leaves the poppies, saying as he does so, "A gift from your sister. I never knew you, Ian, and I don't why you did what you did. But something was obviously wrong, something obviously troubled you. I hope you've found peace, wherever you are now." That said, Leon turns and heads back to the RPG club, marking down an appointment on Saturday in his phone. Once that's done, he finally responds to Adam's texts. Sorry I didn't respond sooner, was checking on Allison. She's doing fine, as near as I can tell, and she's as disgusted about the memorial as anyone. I don't think she had anything to do with it.

[Odentin]

Adam takes the cup of wine with a smirk, "Cheers."

He takes a drink of the wine, though doesn't notice anything that makes it worth the ridiculous price Kale claimed it was worth. He shrugs, but doesn't say anything. After all, Kale's giving it away for free...

He paces a bit, looking over at the computer nerds, "Found anything?"

[Misaat]

" Im not entirely sure but its certainly the most interesting thing to happen on this days. Know anything about the Massacre from a few years back? Heard it was quite the thing "

Then he turns away from the computer for a bit to ask one of his teammates.

" Yo can someone please toss me a Mountain Dew from the fridge? "