the S.S.S. V.A.S.C.U NWoD crossover

[horus42]

She lets out a sigh, and turns to the others. "Can any of you tell whether he actually sees something, or if it's just another of his... "quirks?" In that moment, she finally makes the decision, knowing that Agent Lovegood won't be there to back her up any more, that she should at least try to get along with her charges.

[Exthalion]

"For a bit of context, I can see the photons singing the hymns of freedom after their captivity in the sun and their joy at uniting with the earth as they complete the expression of the love of the daystar.

I cannot see anything external to him."

[horus42]

Agent Stayer nods at him. "Thank you." She keeps an eye on John, in case he lunges at her again, but relaxes slightly.

[GFawkes]

John scrambles to his feet, still wielding the shard, and runs around the room shouting many variations of the general phrase "When I get you...". He makes another dive, and moves his free arm to resemble a headlock. He stabs the space where a neck would be several times, stopping to make a punching motion occasionally. After a few minutes of stabbing, he slows down, releases the phantom headlock, and drops the shard.

John then makes a grabbing motion on the floor a little behind where he stopped, then holds his arm up as if holding a flag. "Sahmeone toike ah pic'cha a' this beauty. Definitloiy a keepah for tha woll, he says in a thick Australian accent.

[horus42]

"...Right. Well, at any rate, I'd like for you all to be ready to go within the next ten minutes. We'll be leaving as soon as we can." With that, she turns around and heads toward her own office, to prepare her things for the investigation.

[Aux-Ash]

One of the great advantages of being undead was the lack of necessary grooming, it really did save time not having to clean up every day. Marcus had stepped out of his room (after carefully removing the duct tape covering the fracks around the door). As the agent had informed them of their mission he had simply nodded.

The deathly pale and unnervingly still vampire had then made no move as the changeling had done it's quirky act, merely studied the whole thing with a expressionless gaze.

"Something tells me that should we ever find out what makes him tick, he'll be the most productive member of this team.

Regardless, will we be expecting to meet people?

[Nyt]

Daes smiles throughout the show, only moving to step out of the way when the changeling runs nearby. "I doubt we'll be alone at the scene, Marcus. I expect there will be limited interaction between them and us, but yes, there will be police there, so I would try to look a bit more.. alive, if I were you.

[Nyt]

The team arrives on scene to the hours-old crime scene to find four men awaiting them. Two of them were wearing the blue-black uniform of the Police department, standing in the hallway just outside the door, which is sectioned off with that ever-present crime scene caution tape.

The older policeman stops the team at the door, looking angry and not at all happy to be there. "Who are you?" he practically growls at Stayer, looking more at the crew behind her than at the Agent herself. He has salt-and-pepper hair, greyish blue eyes, and seems like someone used to giving commands, not taking them. The younger of the two has brown hair and eyes, and seems uncomfortable and out of his element.

The two plainclothes men standing just inside the door seem much more at ease, though not entirely so.

[horus42]

She flashes her badge. "Agent Stayer, FBI. These killings are related to a case we've been investigating for some time now. I'd appreciate your cooperation, Officer."

[sdream]

The smaller plainclothes man with short curly hair and full beard inside the building notices the notices the team through the door, and opens it.

"Here are the specialists I've been waiting for. Come on in guys, and watch your feet."


He introduces himself to the team as Samual, on loan from a neighboring office for this issue, as he is familiar with "hairy" situations like this. He shows the badge of a special agent.

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I assume he would have been notified as to your descriptions, and we can all get the description of the crime scene together.

Samual is more of a troubleshooter and facilitator than an investigator, but he's also got some experience with security systems, machinery, and occult.

[horus42]

Agent Stayer walks past the officer, a smug smile on her face.

"Thank you, Samuel. Have you managed to take a look at the scene yet? What can you tell us about it?"

[Aux-Ash]

As they travelled towards their destination, Marcus let life slip into his skin again. Colour slowly returning, lips flushing, eyes widening and narrowing as emotions were displayed and beginning with a deep breath a casual breathing. It took and effort and he felt how it took blood to sustain it, nothing he had not done before though.

Stepping out of the car, he adjusted his clothing and studied the scene. The officer barking at them set his beast awake, he felt the inner longing for putting the pathetic man in place. But he kept his cool and just looked down at the man with a slightly superior gaze. Following the agent and Samuel into the crime scene.

[Nyt]

Samuel's warning to watch where the team steps is clearly warranted as the team scrutinizes the scene. the floors and walls are soaked with foul smelling ichor, and the ceiling even has some human remains sprinkled here and there. Of the bodies that are relatively intact, there are two male, and two female, the males appearing Hispanic; dark hair and eyes, darker skin. the female corpses are more mutilated than the males, deep gouges on their ribs, back and legs, along with each missing a throat. The males have some struggle wounds; tears along the forearms and shoulder, also having their throats torn out, in a similar fashion to the ladies'.

There are bits and pieces of someone or something all over the room. In one corner, you'll find an arm, a leg, etc.

[horus42]

"Oh God..." She fights down the urge to vomit, and surveys the scene with a clinical eye. After clearing her throat, she says, "Alright, Gentlemen. Do your thing."

[sdream]

"Yeah, the crime scene is pretty tough to miss. I did have a look around at how they got in though..."

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Wits 4 + Larceny 2 = (6d10)[8][4][5][2][9][8](36)
10 agains (5d10)[8][10][9][7][4](38)

Pity I didn't get any 10s, but I enjoy 3 successes nonetheless.

Now that the team he was waiting for has arrived without incident, the small man seems unusually comfortable surrounded by person pieces.

[Exthalion]

"No one enter for a few moments please. I will see what I can see."

He didn't seem particularly affected. One had to wonder what he had seen to desensitize him so. A brief glance at his gloved hands might bring the story to mind for those who had read his file.

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Scrutinize Resonance with Prime 1 Supernal Vision. Just keep accumulating success until there is nothing left to scrutinize.

[GFawkes]

After Saturn does his stuff, John enters, not particularly minding where he walks or what he steps in. Scraping what looks like a spleen off his shoe, he stands before the microwave. "And how was your day, good sir? It must have been very interesting with all that's happened," he says, placing one hand on it and attempting to scrub any external biomatter off with his sleeve.

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Activating Animation 3: Inannimate Communion. Costs 1 Glamour, unless the microwave hasn't been used or handled in 1 year or more. Wyrd (2) + Empathy (2) + Cleaning/Polishing the item (1) + Willpower (3) = 8 dice pool, normal rerolls

Success: Learn about the last few times it was used/moved/handled. Can only see those who touched it.

Exceptional Success: Can see events from the objects point of view, radius 5 yards

(8d10)[10][3][8][5][5][5][5][6](47)

Rerolls. read left to right as needed:
(6d10)[3][3][3][3][1][9](22)

[Aux-Ash]

Marcus heeded Samuels warning regarding to watch where he stepped, getting the shoes clean after stepping in that would have been a nightmare. He walked around the scene carefully, scrutinizing the whole thing with an icy look. While he had never seen something quite this bad before, he had four decades as a vampire and had seen many gruesome things.

Looking over the blood splatter, Marcus tried to see if it all had congealed by now. If he'd find any that wasn't completely he'd fish up a handkerchief from his pocket (after first ensuring no outsider saw it),dip an edge in the blood and then bring it up to his mouth and taste it. Trying to see if he remembered the taste.

After that, or possibly failing that, the ventrue searches the apartment for signs of animals. Cats or rats most likely, but bird nests outside would be acceptable too.

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Rolling Intelligence + Investigation: 4 dice.
(4d10)[5][6][5][2](18)

Rerolls if necessary:
(4d10)[10][9][10][2](31)

[Nyt]

Saturn:

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The place is overflowing with negative resonance, a deep, bloody rage, profound terror, horrible agony. Bestial rage-lust and an emotional violation hovers over the corpses of the women. Death is in the air, and so are the death spirits. Another aura which you can only describe as the after-trail of power has settled on the windowsill. As you study, you notice one more thing: the corpse that paints the room was made this way by means you recognize as magic, not unlike your own.

Samuel:

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You repeat your check of the apartment and re-affirm your findings: The initial aggressors came in through the now shattered door, but something doesn’t seem right, so you search the room for more. You check every possible second entrance, and even lean out the window to check around. That’s when you see it. Light claw marks scratched into the windowsill, and outside the building.

Marcus:

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Marcus can taste the familiar sensation of terror on his tongue as he licks his fingers clean from the man on the floor. Beyond that, the blood fails to provide information. As he searches the house for animals, he comes to stand at the window, and spots a bird’s nest in the tree by the window.

John:

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Johns communion with the microwave reveals visuals of the last one to have used the microwave: A large, well-muscled man with ice-blue eyes and black hair: someone not present amongst the corpses.

[sdream]

The small man recounts for the team what he found before they arrived:

"The only unusual entries and exits were that unalarmed and clearly insufficient door over there, and something odd on a side window I'll show you when you're done getting your first impression here."

[Aux-Ash]

The familiar and slightly sweet taste of adrenaline. Marcus rose from his crouched position, wiping the blood of his hands and face thoroughly. Wouldn't want any outsider to get the correct impression after all.

As he looked over the place for animals, he said in a emotionless and curt tone, not turning his eyes towards the other members of the party. Throughly looking under furniture and behind shelves.
The victim's were scared out of their wits and likely awake as it happened, but we already knew that. But they weren't on any stronger medication or drugs, I can tell you that much. Nor were they anything other than ordinary humans.

Stopping by the window, he looked out of it for a moment before grinning smugly.

... but if that is still inhabited... I may have found a possible witness.
He stressed the last word, as he turned his attention to the agents, to try to emphasize that he did not mean it in the ordinary sense of the word.

[Exthalion]

"They died in fear and pain. Their killer was full of a rage which consumed reason. The women were likely raped. The destroyed man was killed by sorcery similar to my own. I may well be able to follow the path the killer took."

His voice was deadpan. This graphic reminder of what this curse did, what those who had it did, was not welcome. Am I doomed to follow in this path?

[GFawkes]

John rejoins the group, walking with the fingers of one hand tucked into his pants. "It's worse, chief. Some baby blue decided ta nuke a ticker. Can't say whose, but ya only nuke somethin' fa' one a' two reasons: ya don' evah wanna see it again, or ya gonna eat it, and seein' as we ain't got cancah I'm inclined ta think da latah," he tells the group, using a 20s gangster voice.

[sdream]

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I would try to talk the other plainclothes guy into leaving when the team started investigating in their own weird ways.

Wow, they are every inch the dox promised.

Samuel nodded at Marcus and Saturn "Would you need assistance to follow those leads... and do you have any idea what he means other than someone used the microwave?"

[Aux-Ash]

Marcus turned around and faced Samuel, casting a glance towards John as he did and then returning his attention to the agent. It wasn't very hard to decipher what John had said, he'd grown up with movies where they spoke like that.

"He said that someone fried a heart, and in the context I think he means a human one, in the microwave oven. He also thinks that that someone ate the heart, but that is just speculation on his part. He suggests that the alterative is that they simply fried it until it was gone, but finds it less likely.

As for my witness I merely needs to see if the birds are home and preferably no witnesses that has not been informed of our special... tricks.

[horus42]

Agent Stayer looks like she's going to be sick. "God, of all the things I've seen in this job... Eating a microwaved heart? What kind of sick son of a bitch are we dealing with here?"

She takes a look around the scene, adding her own investigative eye to the effort.

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Wits+Investigation, I assume?

(5d10)[5][3][8][3][6](25)

[sdream]

"That is a pretty... unique... action."

Samuel wracked his brain for references to heart baking...

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I suspect it's rare enough that I would need many successes, but here's an Int 3 + Occult 1 roll to see what I can recall (might also recall stuff not related to this heart eating case):

Int 3 + Occult 1 (4d10)[5][2][2][9](18)
10s (5d10)[9][1][8][8][7](33)

"I think I remember a shifter that did something similar, but I'll need to dig up that case file and compare the details."

[Aux-Ash]

Under the oversight of the handlers, Marcus stepped outside to the tree outside. The vampire looked around carefully, intent on ensuring that noone noticed. Content with his privacy, he projected the Beast onto the tree. Letting the commanding nature wash outwards as the did his utmost to imitate a crow. Cawing a few times at the tree, with his eyes positively radiating dominance. Gesturing at the window as he did so.

"Bird song"

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Tell me, there was violence inside, behind this window. Describe what happened, who was the predator?

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Feral whispers
Manipulation 3 + Animal Ken 3 + Animalism 2
(8d10)[9][5][7][3][7][2][5][9](47)

[Nyt]

The flighty animal clutching close to it's unborn progeny is easily cowed by the spectacle of a crow so clearly in charge; Seeing the crow will not eat it's young if it gives the information it wants, it answers quickly.

Bird's Reply:

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I'll tell you, just don't steal my eggs! I didn't see much, I tucked down on my clutch after the cat-beast entered the window. I heard the dying screams of the men and women within, and then nothing. The cat-beast never came back out, but I did see two men in black attire leave with a man in sweatshirt and pants, and sandals. Please, leave me and my eggs go.

[Aux-Ash]

Turning away from the tree the vampire walked calmly back into the building, looking the group over before relaying the message:

"Our suspect is apparently a "cat-beast" that entered through the window and killed the occupants in a brief flash of violence. The bird never saw it leave, it did however see two men in suits and a man in a sweatshirt and sandals leave shortly thereafter.

It won't hold in court and we won't get much more detail than that. Small birds don't tend to pay notice to facial features much. You probably shouldn't treat "cat-beast" as literal... anything landbased and dangerous is a cat to a small animal. "