(INC) Magicka Subversions

[EdgeGrinder]

Spoiler: Daniel and DM

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The Reverend's eyes stared at the donut. "No thanks. Say, what happened here anyway? We came to speak with Delarosa, but she appears to have closed shop in a hurry" he asked in concern.

Insight
(1d20+3)[22]

[Andrew Markham]

Spoiler: And so I said

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"She's got work? Work is good- what kinda work??"

[Darius Vibrtrar]

Spoiler: Dave and Daniel

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The man looked between the two of them and decided to take a swig from a nearby bottle of Wild Irish Rose, He burpped before responding.

"Just odd jobs, help her with errands, picking up her kids from daycare, dropping off her car, helping board up her window, she says a storm is coming so gotta protect it. She even had me test out my work by throwing some glass bottles at the window. She pays in food, which is alright cause her food is... the best."

He stretches.

"Im not sure where she is now, she said she wouldnt be around here for a few days."

[Andrew Markham]

Spoiler: Oh yeah?

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Morgan raises an eyebrow. "Kids? Didn't realize she had kids. How many?"

[EdgeGrinder]

Spoiler: Daniel and DM

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"I see..." The Reverend said. "How long ago did she leave?"

[Darius Vibrtrar]

Spoiler: Dave and Daniel

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The man shrugs.

"I dunno. They were getting into the back seat with her, 2 at least, maybe 3 kids, I drove like she said"

The man eats another donut, the look of extasy on his face.

"She only left a couple hours ago"

[EdgeGrinder]

Spoiler: Daniel and DM

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The Reverend's eyes widened. "I see..."

He walked over to Thomas and turned his back to the man. "Do you have photos of the kids?" He asked in a whisper.

[Andrew Markham]

Spoiler: I whispered

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Morgan shook his head subtly at the reverend's question, then continued, "You can drive, huh? Neat. How was the traffic? Sometimes driving in this town can be crazy." Morgan licks his lips, realizing his eyes are lingering on the doughnuts.

[Darius Vibrtrar]

Spoiler: Dave and Daniel

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The man shook his head.

"Naw, Its not so bad, I used to drive for a company that went belly up a few years back, I know the city, Got her to central park with the kids, and parked her car in a parking deck off 77th."

He ate another donut with a glazed look on his face of pleasure.

[Andrew Markham]

Spoiler: Concerned

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Morgan looks over his shoulder at Blackthorn significantly, then asks, "Did she tell you when to come back for them? I'd sure love to know when she's gonna be back around."

[Darius Vibrtrar]

Spoiler: Dave and Daniel

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He scratches his head.

"Not really, she said shell come get me if she needs more help. Shes a really nice lady ya know?"

He drinks more of his cheap liquor, the stench on his breath. The night air is growing more chill as the snow begins to come down a bit stronger.

"Gonne be a big one..."

The sound of hounds baying can be heard in the very far distance. A sound that causes a shiver to go down morgan and the reverends spines.

[EdgeGrinder]

Spoiler: Daniel and DM

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A lump formed in the Reverend's throat. "I had my suspensions but it's all coming together. I suspect we're dealing with a Wild Hunt. A fae Yule tradition. It's an otherworldly hunt and mortals often have an unwilling role in it. I believe the kidnapped children were changed into the dogs we just heard." He explained.

The Reverend started heading back to the car. "The car our friend here left will most likely be our kidnapper's. The Boss Maw angle was a distraction to misplace suspicion and get us out of the neighborhood." He sighed. "Where do we go from here? Check out the car or straight into the Wild Hunt? I am going to need my rifle so maybe I get the Sisters of the orphanage call me an Uber back to the church lodging me and you check out the car? Meet back at the shop and prepare?"

[Andrew Markham]

Spoiler: Back this thing up

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Morgan rises quickly and follows the priest out of the alley, barely following his rushed speech. "Whoa now, slow down, Reverend! You're going a mile a minute!" The private investigator takes a deep breath, then says, "Okay, so Wild Hunt. I have questions. So the kids are already gone? And they've been turned into hounds, that we now have to hunt?" Suddenly, Morgan freezes in his tracks as his mind takes several intuitive leaps forward. He snaps his fingers and says, "Son of a bitch. Reverend, I have a confession to make. Delarosa's not a witness; she's my client. I've been wondering why, if she was behind this, she'd bring me into it. THIS is why- because mortals have to be drawn in to do the hunting. She WANTED me to track this down, so we'd finish the hunt for her."

Morgan ponders further. "But what does she get out of this, Reverend? Does she gain if we succeed, or if we fail? And what happens to the kids?" Morgan pulls out his cell phone. "Let's get Ray and the cop on the line. We need to loop them in pronto. Come on, get in the car." Morgan leads Blackthorn to his truck, then pulls out Maria's card and dials her number. He turns on the speaker phone so Blackthorn can hear the conversation.

[Darius Vibrtrar]

Spoiler: Daniel, Dave, and Robert

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As Maria is settling down, her cellphone begins to ring.

[Erealyn]

Spoiler: Dave, Daniel, DM

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Maria was settling down at her table, going over the map of Central park again. "these spots seems like it would fit the bill, but I wonder if..." Maria started talking out loud before her thoughts was interrupted by her cell phone ringing. she picked it up and answered it. "Yello Officer Maria McCarthy speaking."

[Andrew Markham]

Spoiler: Ring ring ring ring

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"Officer, it's Morgan Thomas." Morgan's voice sounds rushed. "Is Ray still with you? We've got news, and we need his input."

[Erealyn]

Spoiler: reply

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"Naw we parted ways, he should be back at his place. Did you find out anything important?" Maria spoke quickly.

[Andrew Markham]

Spoiler: Ring ring ring, banana phone

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"Shiiit. Let's get him on the line then. The Reverend and I think we've put together what's going on." Morgan uses three-way calling to call Ray while still keeping Maria on the line.

[Darius Vibrtrar]

Just as Ray is getting home Ray's burner phone begins to ring.

[paladin_artea]

Raymond waits until he is in his apartment, door closed and locked, before answering, "This is Raymond," he greeted.

[EdgeGrinder]

Spoiler: Daniel and DM

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Before Thomas dialed his phone, Reverend Blackthorn got to the questions. "If my assumptions are correct, the children were taken to Central Park and then turned to dogs which will help the hunters, ie Delarosa. She might be hunting us, but had no idea a freelance exorist, a police officer, and a shop owner would get mixed into this as well. Perhaps there is something else in play here. As for her gain, I have no idea exactly. Maybe it's for sport, power, revenge. Fae motivations can seem... flighty to us, mortals. I just worry if we can turn the children back and whose side we fight for? Hunter or hunted."

[Andrew Markham]

"Ray, it's me, Morgan. I'm here with the Reverend, and I've got Maria on the line. We think we've figured out what's going on. Have you ever heard of the Wild Hunt?" The investigator asks. "It's apparently a fae ritual where you turn some kids into wolves or something, then wrangle up some mortals to hunt them. At least that's the impression he gave me. We got a witness who drove Delarosa and the kids to Central Park while we were busy with Maw, then parked the car in a parking deck off 77th. Then we heard howls. The Reverend and I put it together from there. Apparently this ritual can empower a fae, but we're not entirely sure how. Ray, what can you tell us?"

[paladin_artea]

Raymond moved to the easy chair in his living room before replying, "Yes Morgan, I've heard of the Wild Hunt. It's not going on at the moment but it will come Yule. However I do think they are preparing. After Maria and I split up to search the park, I did hear the sounds of the hounds just before I called it a night. It would have been very foolish of me to investigate that alone. As for what they're hunting, it could be anything or anyone to be honest, but if that's what happened to the children we need to solve this case fast because the 'prey' of the Wild Hunt will only survive if they can evade the hunters until sunrise."

[Andrew Markham]

Morgan shakes his head and says, "Wait, wait, I'm confused. Are the kids- the hounds- the hunters or the prey? Or do we even know? And the only other people that Delarosa knows directly, to my knowledge, are myself and Maw."

[Erealyn]

Maria listened to the conversation, "I can confirm that I too heard some form of howling in the distance. It made my dog Airam get excited, which worried me a bit." Maria spoke up when the opportunity arose. "As for this 'Wild Hunt', sorry I know nothing bout it. However if you can get me the color, make and model of the car. I can get the surveillance camera footage and hopefully be able to track the movements of all those involved. It might be able to point us in the right direction of where those involved are hiding."

[paladin_artea]

"No, no, no...sorry the hounds are the ones hunting in the Wild Hunt," Ray replied, "And I think we're going under the assumption that the abducted children are the intended prey, but I thought Delarosa was untrustworthy too..."

[Andrew Markham]

Morgan looks sharply at Reverend Blackthorn, then speaks into the phone, "The kids are the prey? We're thinking the kids are the hounds. Are you sure about that or is that just your assumption? I think, since we all heard the howls from different parts of town, we've been marked as the prey somehow."

[paladin_artea]

"You may be right if we all heard the hounds...I have no idea what will happen to the kids after the hunt if they're the ones who have been turned into the hounds...assuming we're the targets and survive until sunrise..." Ray chimed in.

[Andrew Markham]

Morgan considers for a moment, then says, "Well it seems to me like this. If the kids are the prey and Delarosa is summoning hounds to chase them, then why draw us in? We would only interfere in the hunt instead of being a part of it. I think it's most likely that the kids have either been used to summon the hunt or have been transformed INTO the hunt. But we need to be sure, and before the hunt finds us. Well," Morgan says, reconsidering, "I think it's like this: if we're the prey, then we have to survive until Yule. If we're the hunters, then we need to track down where the kids are hiding. And we need to know what conditions keep those kids alive. Guessing would be...haphazard. We could possibly ask Maw, or find some other fae source to contact. Or we could just find Delarosa. If she instigated this, I doubt she'd hesitate to tell us what conditions she wants to meet."

Spoiler: Rolls

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Investigation: (1d20+4)[8]
Intelligence: (1d20+2)[15]

[Erealyn]

Maria listened in deep in thought. she let her right hand drop down and Airam instinctively came up and nuzzled her head under Maria's hand causing Maria to scratch the dogs head. "Hold on Morgan, one part of that logic is flawed... I think," Maria started trying to wrap her head around this. "I don't think we're dragged in BY Delarosa, or at least I didn't. The nun from the orphanage is who got me, and by proxy the NYPD, involved in this. If I was the target for this hunt that seems like a risky play. I mean anybody on the force coulda been the one who took this case. Even in the Occult division there are four of us." Maria paused, grabbing a cracker from the box and began nibbling on it, still trying to gain any mental footing she can. "Let's take a step back, go back the "Wild Hunt". You all say it empowers the fae, does it work if the prey is captured or escapes? Also if we are the 'prey' in this. How would we be marked, could it have been in those donuts?"