(IC 2) San Francisco by Night: A Requiem in Fog

[Bennosuke]

Bernardo follows Aisling to the back of the line. The pair are stuck behind a group of girls who reek of stale alcohol, and who seem completely unaware of the their shrieking and slurred voices. The one closest to Aisling is somewhere between an angry rant about an ex-boyfriend and breaking down crying. Stranger still, is despite their giggles and gibbering, all four girls seem to spend more time entranced by their cellphones than making any form of eye contact.

Standing stiffly next to Aisling, Bernardo whines between gritted teeth, "Wasn't there something you could do back there? Some kindred trick? I mean, we are going to be stuck here foreeeeeveeer."

Just then the girl closest to the front of the line stands bolt upright, eyes suddenly wrenched from her phone. Her face goes pale for a second before she throws her head back and projectile releases her stomach contents, which is pink in color and mirrors the toxic smell that hangs over the pack of girls. The pink chunky emesis lands with an impressive splash all over a pair of fashionably dressed men.

The sight causes Bernardo to moan uncomfortably.

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“I was thinking, we could tail him after he leaves one night, see where he lives,” Anna said as they walked away from the building.

She scanned around to make sure they weren’t being watched, then glanced back at the building to see if she could identify any windows leading to the office, and how easy or difficult they would be to access.

[Erulasto]

"Most of my gifts would not be pertinent to the situation, sweet Bernardo." Aisling says, brow crinkling in frustration. "I could take the form of a bird or a beast, but I cannot fathom how that would get me in any easier. Unless...." Pondering for a moment, Aisling looks up in disgust as the girl vomits all over the men in front of them.

"Forgive me, Bernardo....please wait out here for me. I will be as fast as I am able." Aisling gives Bernardo an apologetic look and begins to shout for help from the bouncer. Calling that someone is having an emergency.

If Aisling is able to create enough of a ruckus, she will slip out of sight of the line and call upon the power of her Beast and the vitae in her veins to shift into the form of a small, scruffy-looking alley cat.

Then she will try to slip into the club as swiftly and silently as her small, furry self is capable.

Spoiler: OOC

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I forgot all about the third tier ability of Protean. Hehe

That costs two vitae to use and she could maintain the form indefinitely. I'm going to have to remember this for the future. I can totally see Aisling lazing around as a cat or whatnot.

To sneak in!

Dexterity 3 + Stealth 3 (+2 Move Silently)

(8d10)[4][8][10][5][6][9][5][1](48)

[Bennosuke]

Anna remembers that there was a row of windows in the office that overlooked the same alley through which she and Karl entered the bathroom. The windows had all been closed, and locked from inside. Theoretically, if one was athletic enough, he or she could climb down from the roof, or up from the ground and break in, but otherwise she cannot identify any better form of entrance.

************************************************** ************

It is not hard to draw everyone's already focused attention on the spectacle of of the drunk partyers and the men now stinking of and dripping with pink stomach contents. As bystanderds point and whip out their cellphones, Aisling slips down the street into the darkest corner.

The transformation starts with a tickle deep inside Aisling's chest. The sensation reminds her of when she would ride horseback as a child, pushing the animal to faster and faster speeds as the wind rushed through her hair and blurred her eyes, and a funny sensation gathered in her chest and groin. It was also a little like falling. The tickle grew stronger, spreading through Aisling's entire ribcage till it branched out to become a pulsing pleasurable sensation that spread from all the way behind her eyes down to the skin at the end of her toes. The pulsing sensation moves faster and faster till all of a sudden the world is spinning and growing.

Then, just as quickly as it started, Aisling has transformed into a mangy black cat. Moving swiftly on silent paws, Aisling moves back down the street, passing Bernardo and the line of would-be clubbers. Just as she reaches the door, Aisling comes upon the wooden stool that where the bouncer had rested. Dully reflecting the neon lights of the club, are a ring of keys resting on the stool.

Jumping several times her height, Aisling deftly lands on the stool and picks the keys up in her mouth; the metallic taste a dull annoyance, before bounding down and entering the club.

As Aisling enters, her feline senses are overwhelmed by the throbbing music, whirring smoke, flashing strobe lights and the smell of tightly packed humans. The dance floor is a small throbbing mass of human forms moving and grinding against each other indistinctly in Aisling's blurred and overwhelmed vision. A stairway leads along the side of the dance floor up to a small terrace with a bar. Down the hall past the dance floor is a hallway with several bathrooms and a line of frustrated looking mortals, waiting for their turn to relieve themselves.

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

Anna looked up and over at Karl.

“I’m a little concerned about Gabrielle,” Anna said, “nobody’s seen her all night, and I don’t know if she’s bonded to Aisling yet. And Aisling is new to this city, with two already under her wing.”

She sighed deeply.

“If she was abducted, that’s a problem, but even if she wasn’t, I don’t like the idea of her running off and not answering her phone, especially if she isn’t bonded to Aisling yet; someone else could get to her,” Anna said, “I think we should suggest to Aisling to bond her as quickly as possible, and give Gabrielle something to do, maybe plan the memorial to Estella, give her some closure. Otherwise she could become a liability. What do you think?”

[Daishain]

Karl shrugs, "That could work. Did you wish to attempt and see if we cannnot lend some assistance?"

"As to his place of residence, chances are that's easily found. He certainly didn't hide where he worked from the public record."

[Thundercracker]

“Can’t hurt,” Anna replied.

She wondered if she had time for a quick hunt on the way home.

[Erulasto]

Things were going much smoother than even Aisling had anticipated, especially with the added bonus of the key ring now in her possession. The smells of all the sweaty throngs of humanity dancing, the heavy noise and flashing lights weren't going to do her any favours.

Still as a cat, Aisling slipped further into the club looking for a quiet, out of the way corner where there was no bystanders - difficult as it would be in a packed club such as this. But Aisling was unable to get a good enough look at the patrons to find out if Gabrielle was here if she were only a foot off the ground.


As soon as she was able, Aisling fired off a quick text to Bernardo to let him know she had been successful in slipping aside, with an accompanying apology for leaving him outside once more - even trying to add a heart emoji to the message. People did that, right? That was part of popular culture? Aisling supposed it made a manner of sense. Trying to put some emotional context in the rather...artificial means of communicating. Though she was able to see the benefit of such convenient methods, something about the thought of the old parchment letters her father often received brought a pang of sadness. How the world had changed. Finally, the Gangrel pushed through the club trying to spot Gabrielle, hoping she wouldn't need to resort to fueling heightened senses with the dwindling vitae in her veins.

[Bennosuke]

(OOC: So assuming Aisling transitioned back to human form to text...)

Returning to her original shell was a process equally unpleasant and reminiscent of of the dying process that Aisling had experienced when she was Embraced. Though the process was over almost immediately, Aisling was left standing on unsteady legs as her head spun and her stomach ached with hunger. The pounding house music (completely alien to Aisling's sensibilities) and overwhelming smell of pumping blood and mortal did little to ease the growing discomfort. Deep down, Aisling could feel The Beasts fury, almost as if she could hear its growls and gnashing teeth.

Pushing down her animal panic and fury Aisling surveyed the club, looking for Gabrielle. After about 15 minutes of prowling the dance floor, she found the ghoul nearly passed out on her feet, gyrating like a whipped slave to the dominating music. Gabrielle was dressed in a dark red dress, perhaps something she had picked up while shopping with Aisling. The girl's black hair was slick with sweat and hung in long ragged clumps to her face, neck and bared bosom. Her eyeliner was smudged and smeared impressively, and Gabrielle was practically held up by a writhing mass of maybe ten men and women. The pack seemed to be enthralled with Gabrielle, practically bound to the Ghoul like she was to the music. Even from a distance, Aisling could hear just how hard the Ghoul's heart was racing, the pulse thready and rapid. Gabrielle was clearly unaware of Aisling's presence, if she was truly conscious of any of her surroundings at this point.

[Thundercracker]

Anna decided she would stop off at the best most likely place to find some vitae on the way home. She’d give it an hour, and if not she would have to wait until tomorrow.

Spoiler

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presence + socialize: (4d10)[8][7][10][6](31)

[Erulasto]

It was taking an effort of supreme will to keep the Beast at bay surrounded by the press of humanity, but the Gangrel bit down on her lip to distract her from it as she finally spotted Gabrielle dancing in the crowd.

Aisling began to push through the crowd towards Gabrielle as firmly as she could. Despite her diminutive size, she wiggled and wormed her way past those she couldn’t simply push past. The heat was sweltering, and the throbbing of the pulses of all those around her felt like she was being swallowed whole. That intense beat of music seemed to blend into the heartbeats, until the Gangrel couldn’t distinguish one from the other.

Pushing as fast as she could, Aisling sought to approach Gabrielle in the crowded club, reaching out with pale fingertips far cooler than the rest of the club and tried to just lay a hand upon the Ghoul. To draw her attention to Aisling.

A swell of panic bubbled in her gut as she thought of her growing family fracturing so soon.

”Gabrielle!”

[Bennosuke]

It was late at night, even for China Town. Anna had headed for the touristy trap of narrow streets festooned with tiny street level novelty shops knowing it was Ordo territory. Corny red paper lanterns had been strung up and lit with cheap bulbs, strung between the cramped one story buildings. Their light gave the side streets a garish illumination.

But Anna was surprised when, standing on a street corner with a clip board held tightly to her chest, a Chinese teenager dressed in a bright blue t-shirt approached her. Her breath stank slightly of cheap alcohol, but her voice was almost annoyingly chipper. It was maybe an hour before sun up, a ludicrous hour for this sidewalk prosthelytizer to be up. But as Anna approached, the girl cheerily says, "Hey there, you're up late!" This is somehow not an accusation, but instead a cheery observation. "Have you let the light of Jesus Christ into your heart?"; the question is asked as if the girl were asking for the time, a childish smile spread across her face.

(OOC: Don't worry about rolling. Anna already has 2 successes, so assume Anna's conversation goes well, unless you want to do something truly ludicrous.)

************************************************** **************

Reaching Gabrielle was like trying to swim up river. It took a lot of shoving and elbows, and Aisling nearly got knocked off her feet once on the way. When Aisling's dead hand finally caught the Ghoul's upper arm, Gabrielle's eyes locked on hers. The gaze was far away, with almost no recognition at first, and the girl continued to move herself to the pounding bass line. When realization finally did strike Gabrielle, her eyes narrowed, and suddenly Aisling could see that the girl had been crying.

"Go away!" Gabrielle's voice nearly drowned out in the music. When Gabrielle stopped dancing, suddenly the eyes of her mob, and of many of the other surrounding figures on the dance floor were on Aisling. It was as if Gabrielle's anger had cracked whatever spell had captivated the many nearby club patrons. Gabrielle's arms were crossed over her chest, and a man nearby was reaching out his arms to embrace and comfort Gabrielle. Again the ghoul howled, "Go away", and suddenly the patrons were moving to separate Aisling from Gabrielle.

[Thundercracker]

Anna Wu

“Not so much,” Anna replied, “I’ve actually been feeling kind of depressed lately.”
Anna let the girl talk for a little while.

“It’s a little chilly out here, but I know a place nearby we could talk more,” she said, “it’s quiet.”

[Bennosuke]

At first the girl seems a little weary, but after taking a long discerning look at Anna, she nods her head. "You look like you've been through a lot," she says sympathetically, "You kinda look like you may be coming down with something." Seeming to lack better judgement, there girl follows Anna, only raising concern if the location suddenly becomes dubious.

[Daishain]

On a hunch that maybe something could come of the battered individual taken to the hospital after all, Karl heads in that direction after Anna goes her own way. He tries to find out about the man in question. If he has lived so far, Karl will tell a nurse responsible for the patient that he is working on a case related to those responsible for the man's injuries. He leaves them a card and asks that she give it to the man when she feels he has recovered enough to speak.

[Thundercracker]

At first the girl seems a little weary, but after taking a long discerning look at Anna, she nods her head. "You look like you've been through a lot," she says sympathetically, "You kinda look like you may be coming down with something." Seeming to lack better judgement, there girl follows Anna, only raising concern if the location suddenly becomes dubious.

Anna took the girl to one of the Ordo run establishments in the area, whichever one is the most upscale. On the way she asked the girl what she was doing out so early, and she also willed blood through her body to take the edge off her appearance.

She hoped to get the girl into a booth, with the girl on the outside, and from there subtly move into a Kiss from behind.

[Erulasto]

The moment when the crowd had begun to turn against the diminutive, youthful-looking Gangrel was the moment when Aisling’s frustration and anxiety had begun to fray away at the last vestiges of self-control she had. Glacial blue eyes darkened in anger, and her face twisting into a snarled scowl.

”You are needed! I need you!” Aisling shouted into the noise of the club. ”But if you wish to be alone? To give up what we’ve been building? The answers you wanted?” The Gangrel was practically hissing at the Ghoul. ”To throw it all away?”

The Gangrel practically shoved one of the other patrons who had been crowding around her, trying to separate her from her Ghoul. Aisling was a mess of flailing limbs and barely-contained frustration as she tried to create an opening for herself amid the crowding, suffocating press of humans.

Spoiler: OOC

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I personally would have handled this a lot differently, but yay for teenage vampires with no emotional maturity!

I realize it’s unlikely given her own anxiety and whatnot, but is there any indication Gabrielle is acting like she may be under someone’s thrall?

[Bennosuke]

The music seems do hush as Aisling turns to exit, allowing her to hear the babble of the many staring Kine over the ringing in her ears. As Aisling shoves her way through the clot of bodies Gabrielle calls out, "You don't even care about her. None of you actually cared about her!" Her voice is filled with as much distress as it is with accusation, and a quick glance back shows that Gabrielle has suddenly fully come back, and that her face is twisted into a knot of grief.

[Thundercracker]

Anna led the girl to a restaurant, only to find it was closed.

“Damn,” she said, “honestly it just seems this is my life lately.”

She stood in the doorway and and wrapped her arms about herself.

“My boyfriend won’t even hug me anymore,” she said.

Spoiler

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trying to get the girl to come in for a a hug which is easy neck access.

[Bennosuke]

The girl stiffens initially at Anna's embrace, even going so far as to mumble, "Oh, you're so co..." before swooning as hard teeth breech soft flesh. Blood rushes in quick spurts filling Anna's mouth with a warmth and release that will never be enough. The girl... did Anna ever get her name... goes slack except to pull herself into Anna.

(OOC: Please finish off the scene and update with how much blood you are taking and an updated character box).

[Thundercracker]

Character Box:

Spoiler

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Vitae: 10/10
Humanity: 5
Willpower: 3/ 6
Health: 8
Beats/Exp: 9/0
Purchased obfuscate 1, safe haven 1.
Major boon from Ordo.
1st stage blood bond with Mobius
Tilts/Conditions:
Shaken (Gorman)
Aspirations:
1. Gain safety and security.
1a. Gain domain over a mental institution
1b. Gain trustworthy help during the day (ghoul, staff, etc). (Celestine)
1c. Create a safe haven for resting during the day (coven)
1d. Create a safehouse which can be fled to in times of trouble.
1e. Overthrow prince Gorman
2. End organized crime in the city.
2a. Eliminate Kindred reliance on organized crime in the city
2a(i). Discover the various Kindred needs which are filled by organized crime in the city and devise alternative methods by which they can be met.
2a(ii). Identify Kindred who need to be swayed in order to implement said alternative methods, and sway them
2b. Identify members of organized crime in the city
2c. Identify allies (among both Kine and Kindred) who share the same goal
3. Ensure the safety of younger cousin Katie
3a. Vet KT’s new bf.

Anna Wu

Sweet, intoxicating, Anna drew out the Kiss to let the moment last more than a few glorious seconds. Finally, she licked the wound closed and rested her chin on the girl’s shoulder. It was never enough.

She held the girl close in the alcove until her shuddering breathing normalized. Slowly at first, but then bubbling up, Anna was overcome with a feeling of revulsion. This could have been her ten years or fifteen years ago, or could have been her cousin today.

“What are you doing out here by yourself?” she whispered, now all but clutching the girl’s slight form to her, “what if it wasn’t me who found you?”

“I’m sending you home, go get some rest,” Anna said. She called an Uber, tipped the driver a bit extra, and put the girl in the back seat. Then she made her way home.

Spoiler

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3 bp to fill up.

[Bennosuke]

A quick hunt on the internet confirms that the only "level one trauma center" in or around the city is San Francisco General Hospital. The hospital was actually just East of The Mission District in a neighborhood known as Porteo Hill and couldn't be more than a ten minute drive away.

(OOC: Assuming Karl heads there...) The Hospital was a mishmash of two different buildings. The majority of San Francisco General (now garishly named Zuckerberg San Francisco General... according to the sign out front) was a a series of polygonal brick buildings of various ages, shapes and sizes that had later been interconnected with modernly stylized glass walkways. However, the entrance facade screamed silicon valley bad taste. A modern art sculpture of what was possibly rain drops falling up was comically back lit with blue gobe lights (it had also been sufficiently vandalized with pink and yellow spray painted genitals). This sculpture stood unnobily before the building entrance; a cylindrical spire of tinted green glass and plasticized metal that looked like it had been taken from a space colony out of a 70's science fiction comic.

A similarly vandalized sign indicates that the ambulance entrance is around the side of the hospital, and Karl can see the overhang garage where EMTs can ferry critical patients directly into the Emergency Department.

************************************************** **************************************

The street-side proselytizer wobbles as she is released, her eyes unfocused with pleasure. "Oh," she half asks, half moans. She offers up little protest as she is ushered into an Uber, the black sedan disappearing into the morning fog.

[Daishain]

Karl heads within and attempts to find a receptionist that isn't incredibly busy. Whenever he has a chance to speak with someone without interfering with their work, he will step up and ask, "Greetings, I need to identify a particular patient that was likely brought here a few hours ago, a victim of a serious assault. Who would be the best person to speak with?"

[Thundercracker]

Anna

“This is so messed up, I didn’t even get her name,” Anna thought. Anna had her address, but she knew in her head that she shouldn’t follow up on the girl. Hell, she might still be in high school. This can’t continue.

The feeling of dirtiness refused to abate as Anna wakes back to her car. She decided she had to prioritize the hospital. The sooner she could get a stable supply of blood, the better.

[Erulasto]

"I did not know her!" Aisling hisses angrily. "But I still wanted to find out what happened. We all do. But these things take time, Gabrielle."

Forcing what would be a calming breath through her desicated lungs, Aisling stops in her flee through the press of bodies and turns back to her ghoul.

"Come. A chance to be part of our solution. Not a hindrance."

[Bennosuke]

Karl enters through the front of the hospital via large sliding glass doors. A folding plastic table has been set up inside at the doors, where a security officer in a navy uniform (complete with a mock police badge) sits reading a kindle. The man is African American, perhaps in his forties, with a tight crew cut and graying mustache.

Behind the security officer is a wide open parlor, filled with moldering plastic seats and dehydrated looking ferns. The chessboard tiled floor looks grimy. At the back of the entrance is a "Visitors Desk", though this area is unlit and no one mans the desk.

The security officer looks up from his reading, subtle disdain flashing in his dark eyes, and cuts Karl off mid-sentence. "Visiting hours are from 9am to 6pm," he says in a bored and rehearsed voice, his eyes practically rolling, "Otherwise only hospital staff are allowed to enter and exit the premise."

************************************************** *********

Arms still folded around her chest, Gabrielle practically howls the word "NO", shaking her head fitfully. She looks to one of the Kine in her throng, a waif of a man with platinum blond overly stylized hair, a fishnet stocking shirt, and thick black eye liner. Almost on command (and Aisling can feel the hot churning from Gabrielle as she calls on the Vitae) the man steps in front of Gabrielle protectively. "You stay away from her" the man says in a lilting protective voice. Lovingly he adds, "We will take care of her. You are clearly no good for our queen." This last bit is said without a hint of irony, though Aisling has to assume he is not referring to Gabrielle as royalty.

[Daishain]

"I am not a visitor, and I am not even asking to enter. I need to know if a particular patient was brought here, and if he still remains among the living."

Karl shows the rent-a-cop his card.

[Bennosuke]

The security officer grunts in frustration as he scan's Karl's business card. He raises an eyebrow at the vampire and says obstinately, "And what is the name of the patient you are looking for?"

(OOC: Did Karl even get the name of the guy?)

[Daishain]

"The man was too busy coughing up blood to give me a name. The hospital might not know his name either, those who left him for dead probably took his wallet"

"He should have arrived here shortly before midnight. Poor bastard was beaten to within an inch of his life and dumped in an alley. Multiple bone fractures and at least some internal bleeding. Probably some other injuries I did not see, I would suspect a concussion for instance."

Karl gives any other important details he can recall, such as a description of the man in question.

[Bennosuke]

The security officer grins, exposing big yellowing teeth. "I'm sorry," he says politely, "but I can't help you. The only thing I would be able to do for you is look a patient up by name. People are brought into and out of the ED all night, I don't know anything about that."

Without even waiting, the officer returns his attention to his book. Only looking up to make sure Karl isn't trying to break past the security desk.