Veil of Smog, Chapter 1

[Charybdis1618]

“For now, just pay attention. Call me if you ever see it. Let me know what you see. Let me know if anyone is injured in an attack, or if things otherwise just get worse.”

She types something on her phone briefly, then raises an eyebrow. "Refuse to believe that a group of powerful people can influence events and perceptions of the public at large to maintain their power, solely on the grounds of association with certain racist people, but accept that a dream eater from Japanese myth that looks nothing like what I saw is terrorizing this hospital. Pay attention, but not too much attention. You got it. Anything else?"

[Esprit15]

“No, there’re absolutely people doing that, just not lizard people. That particular conspiracy was just someone laundering old bigotries against people. One could call it its own conspiracy, actually.

Spoiler

Show

Trying to as apolitically as possible explain that is quite difficult, but I’m happy to just push past it rather than dwell.

“Regardless,” she says, checking the time, “I think that’s all I can give you to do on your break given my own lack of information. I do hope to speak to you again outside of the hospital. I have some additional questions for you.”

[Charybdis1618]

“No, there’re absolutely people doing that, just not lizard people. That particular conspiracy was just someone laundering old bigotries against people. One could call it its own conspiracy, actually.

Spoiler

Show

Trying to as apolitically as possible explain that is quite difficult, but I’m happy to just push past it rather than dwell.

“Regardless,” she says, checking the time, “I think that’s all I can give you to do on your break given my own lack of information. I do hope to speak to you again outside of the hospital. I have some additional questions for you.”

"I see. Well, my next day off is day after tomorrow. I'll be downtown that afternoon running errands. I'd be happy to meet you at a tea shop I know. I'll email you the address after work. Speaking of, I'm nearly out of time. We'll resume this then."

Spoiler

Show

Yeah, I know. The thematic point here is that some people with magic who don't have enough of a framework to understand why they're seeing the world differently often devolve into conspiracy types to retain their sanity. It's better than assuming they're schizophrenic, especially if the other symptoms don't manifest.

[Esprit15]

Sarah nods. “Sounds good. And stay safe.” She parts ways from the nurse. And now… hm. With a set of eyes on the inside, there was far less reason to stick around here.

When nobody is around, she speaks up, in Japanese. <Yume, anywhere you want to scope out?>

[Charybdis1618]

"Do you know who else might be sick in this building? Anyone you usually see out and about strangely missing?" Leif asked.
Maaybe these people weren’t evil.

"I don't think so? No, the few we see regularly aren't precisely-"

"What about that one maintenance guy?"

"Oh, right, Chuck! Don't know his last name or anything. He came through here two weeks ago, I think?"

"19 days."

"Right. Anyway, he was replacing the smoke detector. He looked sick." He gestures to the ceiling of the kitchenette.

"Sick how?"

"Not like a cold or anything. He looked ... drained. Like he wasn't all there, you know?"

"Distracted?"

"Distractible."

"Is that why he dropped it initially?"

"Yeah, I think so."

"Why did you let him do the work, then?"

"It's a smoke detector, Jimmy. You just mount it. I could have done it myself, but he was providing it anyway."

[Batcathat]

Rufus sat up slightly. Finally they might actually be coming up with something useful. "This Chuck... is he a regular maintenance man for the building or did he work for some contractor?"

As he spoke, Rufus slightly adjusted his glasses and focused on the smoke detector in question, in case it rather than the unfortunate Chuck was the source of things.

Spoiler: OOC

Show

All-Seeing Eyeglasses, activate!

[Charybdis1618]

Rufus sat up slightly. Finally they might actually be coming up with something useful. "This Chuck... is he a regular maintenance man for the building or did he work for some contractor?"

As he spoke, Rufus slightly adjusted his glasses and focused on the smoke detector in question, in case it rather than the unfortunate Chuck was the source of things.

Spoiler: OOC

Show

All-Seeing Eyeglasses, activate!

Spoiler

Show

There's nothing magical about the smoke detector. If any of its effects could be argued to detect radioactive material, claim so now.

"I'm not sure. He doesn't talk much. He's around all the time, at least."

[Batcathat]

"Very well, perhaps we should check up on this... Chuck." Rufus stood up, looking around as if a clue might have manifested itself in the last minute. "Can you think of anything else that might be of help? If not, perhaps it is time to leave you to..." He cleared his throat. "...what you were doing."

[Charybdis1618]

"Very well, perhaps we should check up on this... Chuck." Rufus stood up, looking around as if a clue might have manifested itself in the last minute. "Can you think of anything else that might be of help? If not, perhaps it is time to leave you to..." He cleared his throat. "...what you were doing."

They quickly exchange glances.

"Nothing comes to mind, at least not regarding the symptoms you described. Thank you again for agreeing to help with the floor. I really don't know how that happened."

[Izzarra]

Yume Tsukiyomi Kitsune Shrine Maiden Conditions: None

When nobody is around, she speaks up, in Japanese. <Yume, anywhere you want to scope out?>

Sarah hears a whisper "<Perhaps we should check if there are dark places where something could hide under this building.>"

[Esprit15]

<A basement of some sort, perhaps? Should be doable.> The huntress heads to a stairwell to try and find one that leads lower down.

[Charybdis1618]

The primary basement is a brightly-lit area, used mostly for storage of larger resources like scrubs and bedpans. No one pays attention to you as you pass. The few people down here are too busy fetching whatever is needed or stowing laundry carts. You soon find a door lacking an exit sign, labeled "Utility." It is locked.

[Esprit15]

Sarah frowns. “Chotto matte kudasai…” Sarah says as she takes a pair of bobby-pin out of her hair. She kneels down by the lock, and her body seems to blur as she spends a few seconds fiddling with the lock.

From her perspective, sounds fade away as time slows. She goes about bending one of the pins into a roughly key shape, pressing lightly on the inside of the lock. Using the other pin, she begins pressing on the pins of the lock.

Spoiler

Show

Not sure whether I should take 20 (for a total of 15 after penalties) or roll a couple times, so doing both. Assuming a pick attempt takes 1 minute, she can make thirty attempts in six seconds.
(1d20-5)[5]
(1d20-5)[2]
(1d20-5)[15]
(1d20-5)[8]
(1d20-5)[4]
(1d20-5)[8]
(1d20-5)[-3]
(1d20-5)[14]
(1d20-5)[12]
(1d20-5)[11]
(1d20-5)[4]
(1d20-5)[3]
(1d20-5)[-2]
(1d20-5)[11]
(1d20-5)[-3]
(1d20-5)[15]
(1d20-5)[2]
(1d20-5)[6]
(1d20-5)[8]
(1d20-5)[6]
(1d20-5)[0]
(1d20-5)[1]
(1d20-5)[-1]
(1d20-5)[7]
(1d20-5)[4]
(1d20-5)[5]
(1d20-5)[2]
(1d20-5)[5]
(1d20-5)[-3]
(1d20-5)[6]

[Charybdis1618]

Sarah frowns. “Chotto matte kudasai…” Sarah says as she takes a pair of bobby-pin out of her hair. She kneels down by the lock, and her body seems to blur as she spends a few seconds fiddling with the lock.

The lock clicks open after a while. The bobby pin breaks from the strain thereafter. The stairs beyond lead down. This building's subbasement is dimly-lit, due to half its light fixtures being burned out. Electrical panels whine, massive HVAC motors vibrate, and water pipes rumble all around you. The smells of dust and various machine oils hang heavy in the air. A few shelves of tools huddle against one wall, at the extreme edge of the lit floor.

[Esprit15]

Sarah grabs whatever the sharpest, most brandishable tool is and begins to look around the area. Signs of a nest or other animal activity are her main goal. She searches quickly, but not as though in a rush.

Spoiler

Show

Let’s say ten times as fast as a normal human. One minute per six seconds.

[Xihirli]

They quickly exchange glances.

"Nothing comes to mind, at least not regarding the symptoms you described. Thank you again for agreeing to help with the floor. I really don't know how that happened."

Leif takes out his gas station phone and starts pushing buttons, calling people he knows who might have met Chuck.

Spoiler: Investigation

Show

17

[Charybdis1618]

Leif takes out his gas station phone and starts pushing buttons, calling people he knows who might have met Chuck.

Spoiler: Investigation

Show

17

A guy who knows a guy who manages a nearby hardware store knows the maintenance man known as Chuck. His real name is James Charles Han. He has a standing account with the store to expense tools and materials for jobs. He rents a ground-floor apartment in this very building, which (allegedly) is the only one in the place whose door hinges don't creak.

[Charybdis1618]

Sarah grabs whatever the sharpest, most brandishable tool is and begins to look around the area. Signs of a nest or other animal activity are her main goal. She searches quickly, but not as though in a rush.

There's a large metal file that's shaped almost exactly like a dagger you wielded several hundred years ago. Nothing looks like a nest, as far as you can tell. Of the dirt and dust in the corners and under various objects, some look a bit like animal droppings. None of it shows up as magically active.

[Esprit15]

She was a bit rusty at hand to hand, but an impromptu dagger beat nothing at all. She thinks for a moment… Are there any air ducts? The creature was last seen in the ducts.

[Charybdis1618]

She was a bit rusty at hand to hand, but an impromptu dagger beat nothing at all. She thinks for a moment… Are there any air ducts? The creature was last seen in the ducts.

Not only is there an air duct, for all intents and purposes there are all the air ducts! You can tell from a diagram posted nearby that the massive motors here drive the ducts that provide ventilation to the entire building. The intake vents are nearby, their filter banks visible on the wall. The exhaust stacks are on the roof. Their filter banks are accessible from the top floor, it seems.

[Batcathat]

As Leif was preoccupied with his phone, Rufus leaned against the wall of the stairwell, restlessly tapping his cane against the floor. By the time Leif was finished, several fist-sized diamonds were inlaid into the floor.

Rufus briefly considered leaving them as a reward for someone who actually paid attention, but with a final tap the floor was transformed back into remarkably non-precious stone. "Did you learn anything about our mysterious Chucky?"

[Charybdis1618]

She was a bit rusty at hand to hand, but an impromptu dagger beat nothing at all.

If you want something throwable, so you can use your ranged attack, you can give me a Perception check to keep looking. I assume Yume's weapons are compact enough for her to have them ready to hand.

[Izzarra]

Yume Tsukiyomi Kitsune Shrine Maiden Conditions: None

Two sandals appear on the floor and Yume steps into them as she becomes visible. She covers her nose with her sleeve as the industrial smells offend her sensitive senses. Such mechanical contrivances are beyond her understanding and experience. "<Lots of hiding places down here.>"

[Esprit15]

If you want something throwable, so you can use your ranged attack, you can give me a Perception check to keep looking. I assume Yume's weapons are compact enough for her to have them ready to hand.

Sarah makes a quick search around the room for something more useful than the knife.

Spoiler: Perception

Show

Though I don't think that matters since her ranged attack bonus is archery specific - (1d20+10)[11]

Not only is there an air duct, for all intents and purposes there are all the air ducts! You can tell from a diagram posted nearby that the massive motors here drive the ducts that provide ventilation to the entire building. The intake vents are nearby, their filter banks visible on the wall. The exhaust stacks are on the roof. Their filter banks are accessible from the top floor, it seems.

Sarah looks over the diagram. She was hardly an HVAC technician, but she'd seen enough diagrams in her life to be able to at least make heads and tails of it. Lief had run into something near the observation room... This central duct is connected to the furnace and so would be way too hot for anything without an affinity to fire...

Spoiler

Show

Not gonna ask you to draw a whole diagram of the layout, but would she be able to narrow down a section of the hospital that the creature would be more likely to hang around? Most duct systems are roughly tree-like in shape, so narrowing it down to a wing is probably the best she could do. Or any other areas that the ducts run through that seem like places nobody would usually go that would hence make a good hiding place, in case it doesn't actually hide in the ducts?

<Miss Yume, I do believe this creature is one of your region's youkai. I am curious,> Sarah asks as she looks over the diagram, <know you anything about baku that might assist us in this endeavor? Whether they are cooperative with humans, perhaps? I found the doctor's behavior earlier today to be rather unusual, but whether that was out of secrecy or he himself being a victim is difficult for me to say.>

[Xihirli]

As Leif was preoccupied with his phone, Rufus leaned against the wall of the stairwell, restlessly tapping his cane against the floor. By the time Leif was finished, several fist-sized diamonds were inlaid into the floor.

Rufus briefly considered leaving them as a reward for someone who actually paid attention, but with a final tap the floor was transformed back into remarkably non-precious stone. "Did you learn anything about our mysterious Chucky?"

Leif nodded. "I learned he lives on the first floor of this apartment."
He heads for the stairs. "Nothing more specific than that, we might have to trial and error it… or go ask the landlord about James Charles Han, but I don’t like that guy."

[Charybdis1618]

It's unclear exactly where the baku would want to hang around in the vents. That said, you can reasonably assume the flow would be heavier towards the main branches. Also, the ducts converge downstream at the exhaust plenum, where the filter bank is indicated. If you wanted to "go with the flow," so to speak, you'd end up there. Yume, go ahead and offer what you have.

[Batcathat]

Rufus nodded. "Yes, while I am sure our friend the cantankerous caretaker would have many colorful things to say about Mister Han, I think we'll make do on our own for now. Let's go to the right floor and I will have a look around", Rufus said, tapping his glasses before heading for the stairs.

[Charybdis1618]

Rufus nodded. "Yes, while I am sure our friend the cantankerous caretaker would have many colorful things to say about Mister Han, I think we'll make do on our own for now. Let's go to the right floor and I will have a look around", Rufus said, tapping his glasses before heading for the stairs.

There are no other blatant examples of magic. Not even a flicker of the supernatural hides behind any of these doors. Of course, there are plenty of the basic rituals sold in artificially aged books begging to be called tomes, with factory cut crystals and mass-produced candles, plastic jars of common herbs and smoke calling itself incense. None of it shows any sign of the flows of energy indicative of actual magic. You might have caught a glimpse of something at one point, but focusing on the point thereafter shows nothing.

Before you need to knock, you can see through the wall that Chuck is not home at this time.

[Batcathat]

"No one's home." Rufus paused, tapping the lock with his cane without actually doing something to it. "Should we... take a look?"

The burgling mentality was remarkably easy to slip into, Rufus noted not entirely displeased.

[Xihirli]

Leif nodded.
"Yeah, something forgiveness, something permission." He looks around to see if anyone’staking an interest.