Dragon Ball Z Uncensored

[Jason]

CAST OF CHARACTERS:








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Last edited by God on Fri Apr 05, 33 4:00 am; edited 1 time in total

[Jason]

Nauset, a northeastern American city. Most of its citizens divide it between uptown: the richest and wealthiest financial district; midtown: the residential, blue collar area; and downtown: a thriving red light district of bars and night clubs. There is also an outlying suburbia running along its border. It is firmly controlled by the Camarilla.

Richter Belmondo, a Ventrue lobbyist, lives in a high rise apartment uptown. He has helped a few mortals into minor office, for profit and influence, including getting Vance Cunningham elected to the city council. He may only feed on Aryans, which compose his staff.

Wetzel Henning is a middle-aged veterinarian turned Malkavian, born and raised in a small, rural town about two hours outside of Nauset itself. When out hunting one day, he stopped to assist a man who needed medical attention. That man was a vampire, who frenzied, killing Wetzel, then embraced him out of guilt. Wetzel's sire belonged to Nauset, but was banished by the Prince for creating a childe without permission. Wetzel now lives in Nauset, keeping himself busy with a job at a nearby slaughterhouse.

Zoe "Zero" Lockett is a Brujah drug pusher, with several contacts downtown. He frequents a popular night club called Matador's, whose patrons he considers family. He suffers from an addiction to cocaine.

Kang, the Nosferatu in the mansion, lives in a grand estate on the edge of the city. He inherited it from his late family, and promptly abandoned the sewers in which all Nosferatu live to take residence there. He lives quietly, never exiting his home but to feed. In a former life, he was actually a college professor.

In the last week, mortals have been abuzz with the vicious sex scandal in which the mayor has been caught. Meanwhile, the more savvy vampires throughout the city have noticed that the Sabbat, while never a strong presence in Nauset, seem to have been vanishing without trace with every night.
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Last edited by God on Fri Apr 05, 33 4:00 am; edited 1 time in total

[Fagzilla]

I distinctly remember being called gay, on Fagtown, merely for being associated with RPGers (namely my brother and his friends), mockingly accused of playing with them, etc.

[Theldorrin]

That was probably just a coincidence.

Anyway, I wouldn't have guessed at a ton of those abilities.

Kang is really wealthy!

Also, why does Calvin have a different sheet?

[Servbot]

I have a different sheet? It appears the same as everyone else's.

[Servbot]

Oh nevermind, I guess the top portion is different.

[Theldorrin]

Now I understand why you guys were so bad in combat.

[Servbot]

Is your team just a bunch of savages?

[Theldorrin]

It's weird how there's a big niche that no one made a character to fill.

[Jason]

Chapter One: New Year's Eve

Glory to God in highest heaven,
Who unto man His Son hath given;
While angels sing with tender mirth,
A glad new year to all the earth.
- Martin Luther

December 31, 2008.

Jason: Dogs.
Jason: Rabid, heinous dogs. They snarl, and drool, and their eyes are a blood red. They're gnawing on bone, tearing flesh and tendons away from it, swallowing the sinew and howling. They're beasts. They're ripping bones from a corpse, and you can hear the hideous cracks as the rib cage is dislodged.
Jason: They feast. They bite and chew and spit out what's inedible. And you're being drawn closer, and closer. And lifted, up and up. Until finally you have a complete overhead view of the gruesome scene. And you're looking at the body.
Jason: And you're looking down, down, down.
Jason: And it's alive.
Jason: Its eyes shoot open, and so do yours.
Jason: Roll Willpower, difficulty seven.

Wetzel: 8 7 3 5 9 8 3 10 2

Jason: Your eyes open, and they look at nothing but the ceiling of your home. A small apartment in midtown Nauset. Habitually, you try to steady your breath although your lungs no longer function as anything but dead slabs of meat. You raise a hand to your brow. You're sweating blood. But at least you woke up.

Wetzel: I look at the clock to figure out if it's time to go to work.

Jason: It's 6:53 PM. If you look outside, you can see the sun setting. You always were an early riser. It's December 31, 2008, a Saturday, and you've insisted to your boss that you work tonight, even though the slaughterhouse would normally shut down on New Year's Eve. Work begins at eight o'clock.

Wetzel: I hop in the shower to rinse off the blood.

Jason: The hot water rushes over your body, naked and as pristine as it was the night you died. The water pools in the shower a shallow shade of pink, and as the reverberation rings in your ears, you hear a scream.
Jason: It's been happening frequently over the last week, a chilling, but familiar scream that sounds in your head like a church bell, and it's louder every time.

Wetzel: I jump at the sound but give up quickly trying to find the source. They said my mind would go, and it's been going for a long time. I get dressed and decide to head to work early.

Jason: You exit your apartment building and are immediately hit by a chill breeze. The snow is falling lightly, peppering the surprisingly large amount of humanity walking through the streets. No one's headed in any particular direction, a party here, a nightclub there, some head to the bank of Nauset River, where the fireworks display will begin at midnight. It's a three block walk to the slaughterhouse (you chose your apartment only for its efficient proximity) and when you arrive you can smell cold meat and dripping blood.
Jason: You see one of your co-workers on the side of the building, making out with an underdressed, middle-aged woman.
Jason: "Oh, hey Wetzel. You, uh, you working tonight?"

Wetzel: "Yeah ... I need the money" I lie. I paw at my patchy beard awkwardly, taking any excuse to cover my face while I talk. I can't remember what it feels like to be comfortable talking to someone.
Wetzel: I trace the bones underneath the skin. My face is deflated and gaunt.

Jason: "I thought you said this place would be empty," the woman whines. "It's OK, it's OK," he says, "how about your place? Your kid's asleep by now, right?" You walk past them and into the factory floor. It's colder here than outside, and every time you enter you're greeted with the site of hundreds and hundreds of dead, skinned cattle hanging by hooks from the ceiling. You're qualified to perform several jobs here, but the one you seem best at, and that no one else envies, is unhooking the slab and butchering and separating its parts.

Wetzel: I put on my uniform - boots, gloves, mask, hairnet, apron. The killers are all off tonight, but there are slabs left over from the last shift.
Wetzel: I fire up the saw and start working. As my thoughts disappear for the duration of my shift, I'm thankful that at least they don't bleed.

Jason: You get to work, alone. You leave the lights in the factory floor off, you can see well enough in the dim. You saw off streaks, and chop out ribs for an hour, until you start hearing the carcasses moan. First the one you're dissecting, then the one next to it, and the one after that. It's almost operatic as they begin to beg for mercy in cannon.

Wetzel: My thumb turns off the saw for me as I drop it to the floor.
Wetzel: I back against the wall and tear off my mask, reflexively, thinking I'm breathing hard.
Wetzel: I yell "STOP!"

Jason: The wall you backed into is the chicken wall, a row of dead chickens strung up by their feet. One is close enough to your head that its blood-stained feathers tickle your cheek. Give it a minute, and it too will beg for its life.
Jason: And then, the whispering.
Jason: Other Malkavians, scheming, plotting, calling out to their creator. It happens in moments of duress that your mind opens up to the Malkavian network and you can hear them, stretched out across the city. They're all gossiping, and insulting, and babbling nonsensically.

Wetzel: I clap my palm over my face and groan. As long as it's just this, it's fine.
Wetzel: Madness is none of my concern. It's the sights and sounds of death I can't stand.

Jason: And then, it all stops. Silence, overwhelming. But there's something you're certain of, even though you can't see. Someone else is in the room with you.

Wetzel: I open my eyes and think about the distance between me and the saw. It's a pneumatic circular saw, fit to be held in one hand, hanging from the ceiling with just enough leeway to reach the floor and a few feet more from a green cable. It makes me sick to think I might need it.

Jason: There's a man, standing ten feet directly in front of you, between two slabs of meat. Literally so. One slab is swaying back and forth inside of him. He's transparent, and monochrome, a pale, moonlit white. He's staring at you without expression. He's a bit younger than you, in his mid-thirties, but very well-kept, very rich, very strong. He's dressed in the most unimaginably expensive suit, although it too is not quite there. From his navel extends a long, silver cord, which lays on the floor and travels out, out, out through the wall of the factory.
Jason: His arms are folded, he doesn't stop staring.

Wetzel: I don't go for the saw.
Wetzel: It doesn't look like that sort of situation.
Wetzel: I point at him in false bravado as I ask "Who are you and what are you here for?"

Jason: He smiles, coldly. He says, "You'll find out, Wetzel." And then he's gone, and you're alone once more.

Wetzel: I stare in disbelief.
Wetzel: I don't trust my eyes. I have no idea if he's really gone or if he was ever there.
Wetzel: I yell "HEY!" but get just my own echo.
Wetzel: I decide I'm not feeling well, so I finish off the slab and rack the rest. The next shift will be on in a matter of hours.
Wetzel: I clock out and hit the street again.
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Last edited by God on Fri Apr 05, 33 4:00 am; edited 1 time in total

[Jason]

Jason: Your eyes slowly open. The first thing you notice is a momentary feeling of satiation: you've fed recently, and slept off the effects of the cocaine. You rise from your bed peacefully, the adjacent digital clock lets you know that it is just past ten in the evening. It's December 31, 2008. You can already hear the noise of the street outside of your downtown studio apartment.

Zero: I have a feeling tonight is going to supply me with plenty of opportunities to pawn off my new surplus of pills and powder.
Zero: I'll head to the pub directly below my apartment to grab a pint and sell a few dime bags to the bartender.

Jason: The pub has a separate entrance, so you exit the apartment building and are immediately surprised by simply how much humanity is shuffling through the city. No one's going anywhere in particular, Nauset has no ball to drop, so to speak, but in this part of town, there's more than enough to do to celebrate an occasion.
Jason: You enter the pub and it is relatively subdued. A few scattered couples and one group of office workers, and a piano man playing not exceptionally well in the corner. One man is at the bar, pouring drinks.

Zero: I walk over to the bar and ask Vizzi to pour me a pint and a shot of whiskey.

Jason: "Comin' right up, Zero," he says, and gets to work. A sorry, already drunken man on the closest stool nods pathetically to you.
Jason: Vizzi gets you your drinks and lays them down with a napkin. "Happy New Year's," he says with a soft smile.

Zero: Same to you Vizzi *I hand him a dollar bill with two bags of coke underneath*, you can thank me later.

Jason: Vizzi looks down at the offer, then looks back at you, a worried expression on his face. "Sorry, mate, I can't," he says, and slides it back across the bar.

Zero: I quickly take the bags and put them into my pocket. "You've never turned down my product before. Don't tell me you're going clean?"

Jason: "Look, I promised I wouldn't talk about it, but... well..." he bites his lip, and nods his head downward, indicating something below the bar.

Zero: "Vizzi, you know my patience is nearly non-existent so let's not play that game. Is someone else selling on my block?"

Jason: "I..." he starts, but is cut off by someone at the end of bar slapping the counter with his palm for Vizzi's attention. "Two more," the man says. Vizzi turns to you, sad and scared, and says "Look, there's a party going over at Matador's. Maybe you can find someone there." With that, he pours two beers and limps over to other man.

Zero: "Fine." *chugs beer and walks out* It's still early but I always end up there anyway, might as well be now.
Zero: I take off and head towards Matador's.

Jason: You work your way through the throngs of people in the street, partying drunkenly and merrily. It's a cold, six block walk to Matador's and the snow continues to fall. You can hear the music coming from the club before you can even see it. A soft red light exhales from its doors and illuminates the street. Walking in, you see a familiar DJ scratching a bunch of classic holiday songs at his turntable. The place is nearly filled to capacity, but your usual booth is empty, isolated from the rest of the club by a velvet rope.

Zero: (Is it okay if I use my Presence ability to make everyone in the club notice me?)

Jason: If that's what you want to do.
Jason: Roll Charisma + Performance, difficulty 8 due to the many distractions of the club.

***Zero rolls a d10 4 times: 3, 1, 8, 4, total: 16

Jason: You exude charisma, but everyone in the club is too busy dancing, drinking and socializing to notice.

Zero: I head over to the DJ. "What's with the music dude? Christmas was over five days ago."

Jason: "You wanna get me a vinyl of your favorite five-days-after-Christmas songs?" the DJ yells at you over the music, "I still see snow on the ground, and stoned people in Santa hats, so fuck off."

Zero: "Actually I have that album right here in my pocket, let me get it for you." *takes hand out of pocket revealing middle finger*

Jason: The DJ laughs coldly, then tells you to fuck off again.

Zero: *grabs a random record from the DJ's stash and breaks it*
Zero: "You notice anyone pushing in here besides me?"
Zero: "Oh, sorry about the record by the way."

Jason: Scritch! The music stops. The DJ lowers his headphones and looks at you, "Yo, man, you just fucked up." He signals for the bouncers, but before they approach you, Stephen, the club owner, walks out of his office to see why the place went silent. He sees you, and the entire club staring, so he grabs you by the arm and pulls you aside and shouts at the DJ to start the music back up, and so it does. Stephen brings you into his office and asks "Are you causing a scene?"

Zero: "What the hell is up with the new DJ?"

Jason: "Jeremy? I brought him in for the party, he sounds fine. Everyone was dancing," Stephen says, and lights a cigarette. He sits back behind his desk and rubs his forehead. He's in his mid-thirties, with sweaty black hair. He used to be pretty hip. "Look, Zero, you're my friend, and I like having you here, but please don't start a commotion on New Year's Eve." He laughs nervously, moving his eyes between you and his computer screen.

Zero: "You're not excited to see me Stephen? What are you doing over there, you didn't re-activate your Everquest account did you?"

Jason: His office is not a bad set-up, a trendy fuchsia couch for guests and a dim mood light, as well as a private bar. On his screen is a complicated, multicolored Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. "Real funny," he says. "I'm just looking at the year's expense reports. This is how I'll ring in 2009."

Zero: *walks over to the bar and pours two glasses of scotch* I'm not really paying you a visit to wish you a happy new year, Stephen. Vizzi was scared shitless from buying two bags from me tonight. What's got him spooked? Is someone pushing in on my territory?"

Jason: Stephen laughs. "Vizzi? That run down middle-aged mick? I can just imagine." He inhales deeply on his cigarette, then taps it into an ashtray already filled with several butts. He takes another drag and leans back in his chair, facing you. "I have heard some things, though. Some new gang, that just sprung up overnight. I figured it was nothing. Hell, I've seen you run out worse. These guys are just some punks."

Zero: "Any clue what their MO is? They slinging dope or just roughing up crackheads?" *I down my glass in one gulp*

Jason: "You tell me. Have you sold anything tonight?"

Zero: "Not a single ounce..."

Jason: "Then I'd say there's probably some market competition."

Zero: "No one fucks with my income."
Zero: "I can't imagine they'd be selling anything purer than my stuff."
Zero: "You haven't seen any new faces in here recently have you?"

Jason: Stephen stands up and grabs the glass you just downed and tosses it into the sink on the other side of the room. "Sometimes it isn't about product, Zero, it's about aggressive penetration. So to speak. Now, Matador's is the best nightclub in this district, no one's disputing that, but I wouldn't have gotten shit if I didn't send out guys to every other hot spot in Nauset to bring in the clientele." He sits back down, and thinks. "It's been a busy night, but no, I haven't seen anyone who looks like trouble." He pauses. "Besides the one in this room."

Zero: "I guess you're right. I am only one man, but I didn't cause a monopoly downtown by letting the small fries do whatever the hell they like." *I pour myself another glass and down it just as fast* "I'm gonna run some "errands" if you have anything else to share, ring me up."
Zero: *I nod to Stephen and walk out of the club*

Jason: Roll Wits + Streetwise, difficulty 6.

***Zero rolls a d10 6 times: 8, 4, 5, 3, 2, 5, total: 27

Jason: It occurs to you that there might be someone closer to the action that you could check with.

Zero: *I whisper "Chappy" to myself.*
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Last edited by God on Fri Apr 05, 33 4:00 am; edited 1 time in total

[Jason]

Jason: You awake in a luxurious bed and from your first conscious thought of the night, all-pervading is your hunger. Your lips are dry, and the need to feed claws at you with great ferocity. As your head progressively clears, although the hunger does not subside, other senses come to you. You hear a rumbling outside, and in the cool dim of your expensive high rise apartment in uptown Nauset, you can make out the red, steady flash of light on your answering machine.

Richter: I check my answering machine for messages.

Jason: A soft beep, and Trevor, one of the senior members of your staff is asking for the night off, on account of it being New Year's. They've been conditioned by now from working for you to wait patiently for your rise in the evening, but you have a sense that tonight they may have already left in order to beat the rush to midtown for the riverside fireworks.
Jason: Another beep, another staff member to ask you for the night.
Jason: Finally, your third and final message, the machine tells you. It's the voice of a city councilmen whom you've lobbied for in the past, Vance Cunningham. His voice sounds excited, and he says: "Richter, this is it. This is our chance. We need to talk, tonight."
Jason: As your eyes wander, you notice the day's issue of the Nauset Times under your door. Its headline reads the following: MAYOR RUCKLIN RECALLED.

Richter: I pick up the paper and set it down so I can read the article as I get dressed.
Richter: I skim the article for the highlights.

Jason: Jeremiah Rucklin has been mayor of Nauset for two years, and his public opinion polls have been dropping steadily in that time. He's failed to make a serious dent in the crime statistics and most of the population takes it as granted that Nauset is now one of the most dangerous cities in America.
Jason: Everything came to a head last week, however, when Rucklin was accused of raping and brutally assaulting a young girl found in his home, whose identity has not been disclosed.
Jason: The mayor has been recalled in dishonor, and a crunch election will take place in three weeks' time.

Richter: I check for Vance Cunningham's number in my cell phone and call him as I head out the door of my apartment locking it and heading for the street.
Richter: I also attempt to hail a cab.

Jason: The streets are very busy tonight due to the holiday and it takes you more time than you'd like to hail a cab. In the meantime, you phone Cunningham and he answers:
Jason: "He ... o ..." he says, the reception is unusually poor.

Richter: I say.
Richter: "Hello, Cunningham? it's Richter can you hear me?"

Jason: "Ri ... r, I ... nan ... va ... call ... ew minu ..."
Jason: The phone goes silent.
Jason: On the street corner, a cab finally stops, before a well-dressed woman whom you could have sworn you were here earlier than. She's shuffling a number of shopping bags inside as she works her way into the vehicle.

Richter: Is the woman aryan?

Jason: Her eyes are shielded by sunglasses, even at night, and her hair is auburn.

Richter: I say
Richter: "Excuse me miss I believe I was here first, and I have an urgent New Years appointment perhaps you could get the next one."
Richter: I try to sound as persuasive as possible while still being condescending.

Jason: Roll Manipulation + Expression, difficulty five.
Jason: Specialty roll.

***Richter rolls 5 10-sided dice: 4 9 5 1 2

Jason: "Look, pal," she says, "I'm not gonna stand on the corner at night carrying a bunch of Voirant bags. You want the cab, you can pay for half."

Richter: Is she making eye contact?

Jason: She's preoccupied with her things, so you might have to try harder to get her attention.

Richter: I snap my fingers to get her attention looking irritated that she doesn't pay attention as I talk to her.
Richter: If she looks at my face I lock eyes and say.
Richter: "Miss the polite thing to do is "wait" for the next cab."

Jason: Manipulation + Intimidation, difficulty six.

***Richter rolls 6 10-sided dice: 7 5 7 3 10 5

Richter: Wow she has a high permanent willpower.

Jason: (She's anorexic.)
Jason: She backs away, slowly, and stands below the corner streetlight obediently, leaving her bags in the cab.
Jason: By now, the frustrated cab driver calls out "Someone just get in the fucking thing!"

Richter: I pull out her bags and set them by her.
Richter: And get in the cab and tell him to take me to the nearest bar where I can find someone to feed on.
Richter: I do this quickly.

Jason: "Perry's on eighty-second OK?" he asks.

Richter: "That's fine."

Jason: He begins to drive. After a minute or so, your phone displays a text message from Cunningham.
Jason: "I'm at your office. Meet me there?
Jason: -V.C."

Richter: I tell the cabby that I need to go somewhere else and give him the address of my office.

Jason: Your office is located at a towering gray skyscraper, an extremely refined building which sublets to a number of national and global companies. The night guards let you pass as usual, wishing you a Happy New Year as you go, and you take the elevator up to the twenty-fifth floor. The building seems deserted for the holiday.

Richter: I head to my office and look for Cunningham.
Richter: I also check for staff but don't necessarily go out of my way to see if any are around just glancing around the office as I head to meet with Cunningham.

Jason: You open door 2507, greeted to the familiar lobby of chairs, empty and the front desk, left with a yellow Post-It note saying:
Jason: "I let Mr. Cunningham in and left to go meet some friends. Call me if you need me," signed your receptionist. Past the desk is a wall of beautifully taken monochrome photographs of Nauset's uptown skyline, painting the city as one of financial esteem. To your right is the conference room, a long, polished mahogany table surrounded by empty black leather chairs. To your left, your personal office, and the only soul inhabiting the room: Vance Cunningham, waiting impatiently.

Richter: I enter my personal office and with a smug politician's smile say.
Richter: "Now Cunningham, what was so important that you had to see me on New Year's Eve?"

Jason: He holds up the same issue of the Nauset Times that you read in your apartment, smiling like Truman holding the headline that said he'd been beaten. "It's time, Richter. I can do it. I can make a run for this seat."

Richter: I say.
Richter: "You think so, huh?"
Richter: I pause and adjust my tie.
Richter: "Well I prefer my politics low key, but I can see the advantages."
Richter: "I certainly wouldn't mind seeing it happen."
Richter: "I can see the possibilities with you as mayor my friend. We could make a lot of great changes to the city."
Richter: "Of course you're going to need a lot of help."

Jason: "Low key is great to start out with, but I've been getting on the news almost every week for the past four months, thanks to spearheading the crackdown on the police department, and with the Rucklin scandal, forget it, I'm gonna make the goddamn front page pressing his ass," he says, grinning ear to ear. Vance's hair is well-cropped, fashionable, a shiny jet black. He's a perfect image of the kind of enthusiasm and ambition that dies in a Kindred on the night of his embrace. His face is still young, his eyes still eager.
Jason: "And you're the best damn lobbyist in the state. No one else can get the things done that I've seen you do. You get me on top of that ballot, and we can get you anything you want."

Richter: I say
Richter: "That's an awfully tempting proposition because I can sure think of a lot of things I want."
Richter: "But I can get you on that ballot no problem."
Richter: "Hell I can probably get you the office."
Richter: "But you're going to have to remember your end of the deal later."

Jason: Cunningham starts to speak, but suddenly his watch begins beeping sharply. He looks at it, then back at you. "Jesus, it's eleven already. I want to be seen at the fireworks display, start getting my face associated with the community. You start making a list of everything a mayor could do for you, and I promise we'll mark 'em off one by one in three weeks."
Jason: He puts his coat back on, and leaves.

Richter: I leave to go to the fireworks show as well.
Richter: Since I'll most assuredly find an aryan there.

Jason: As you make your way down to the street, your hunger spikes again. No Aryans in the vicinity, and your body is crying out for sustenance. The Beast is at the gates. Then: the ring of your cell phone grounds you once more.

Richter: I grab my cell phone and answer it while still hurrying and looking for someone to feed on.

Jason: The number is unknown, and blocked. A voice on the other end says "Meet me at Harbor Valley Cafe in fifteen minutes, or else I bring it all down."
Jason: Roll Perception + Alertness, difficulty six.

***Richter rolls 2 10-sided dice: 1 1

Jason: Try as you might, you cannot identify the voice.

Richter: I respond in an intimidating tone.
Richter: "I'm not easily intimidated, perhaps you should give me more than that when making demands of me in the middle of the New Years festivities."

Jason: Charisma + Intimidation, difficulty seven.

***Richter rolls 5 10-sided dice: 1 9 9 2 2

Jason: The voice falters a bit. "Tempt not a desperate man, my bloodsucking friend," it says. "All I want is a conversation."

Richter: I attempt to set aside my hunger and make my way to the Harbor Valley Cafe.
Richter: I continue to look for someone to feed on.
Richter: However.
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Last edited by God on Fri Apr 05, 33 4:00 am; edited 1 time in total

[Jason]

Jason: Your eyes open slowly. You're lying in bed on the top floor of your family's estate. A large grandfather clock, dimly lit in the corner of the room reveals that it's almost eleven o'clock. It's December 31, 2008. Your room is still and silent, a faint breeze blows through the window, slightly ajar, and you can make out a light snowfall outside. The only disturbance is the distant sound of banging, coming from the ground floor of the mansion.

Kang: I'll head downstairs.
Kang: I'll assume that my guy is dressed!

Jason: Does Kang sleep naked?

Kang: No way.
Kang: Fully clothed.

Jason: In normal clothes or pajamas or leisure wear (like, an expensive bathrobe)?

Kang: Normal clothes.

Jason: All right.
Jason: You slowly walk down the two flights of stairs to reach ground level. Your home is immaculate, dimly light by the moonlight coming through its grand windows. On the first floor, you walk through a stunningly decorated den, centered around a very large and expensive television. To your left is a large dining hall, to your right, a well-equipped kitchen. The house is possibly the most enviable in the entire city of Nauset, although if one looks closely, one would notice a thick layer of dust over nearly every object inside of it.
Jason: The banging is coming from the front door, you realize. A demanding knocking that shakes it at its hinges.

Kang: My door has a peep hole, right?

Jason: Yes.

Kang: Okay, I want to look through that.

Jason: Roll Perception + Alertness, difficulty 7.

***Kang rolls 7 10-sided dice: 2 8 3 9 3 7 6

Jason: You can make out a silhouette outside, a bald head, and possibly one more behind him. Their features are indistinct, though.

Kang: Hmmm
Kang: All of the lights in my house are out, right?

Jason: Yes.

Kang: I'll back off from the door
Kang: I guess to a decent hiding spot
Kang: Hahaha, behind a couch!
Kang: My guy is a paranoid douche.
Kang: And call out, "Who is it?"

Jason: "It's a bunch of fucking Christmas carolers bringing good cheer, you nervous son of a bitch!" comes a gravely voice. Although it's muffled behind the door, it's unmistakably Nosferatu.

Kang: "Uggh, what do you want?"

Jason: "I ain't talking to you from behind a goddamn door!" shouts the voice. "Open up or we'll break it down," he says, and you can hear the wheezing, rasping laughter of a few more Nosferatu beside him.

Kang: Hmmm
Kang: My mansion ...
Kang: I want my guy to start slinking towards a back exit.
Kang: He's not going to say anything.

Jason: There's a (remarkably dead) garden exit through a patio near the stairs. You begin moving toward it, as the voice comes out again "Ah, c'mon Kang, we brought the keg an' everything! Now I'm gonna give you to the count of five!"
Jason: "One!"

Kang: I'll keep heading towards the exit.
Kang: If they want to break through the door then whatever.
Kang: Also
Kang: Wait
Kang: Does my guy recognize the voices at all?

Jason: Perception + Alertness, difficulty 5.

***Kang rolls 7 10-sided dice: 3 6 8 10 6 1 7

Jason: You know them, the guy talking was a fellow sewer dweller, before you received your inheritance. His name is G... something. George, or Greg, or something.

Kang: Were we on good terms?

Jason: As good as two Nosferatu can be.
Jason: "Two!"

Kang: Yeah, I'm going to keep heading to the back exit.
Kang: I'll go slowly enough, though, so I can see what's going to happen
Kang: I'm trying to stick to the shadows the entire time

Jason: "Five!" he shouts, and three Nosferatu burst through the large double door entrance to your mansion, followed by G(...). He looks around for you and sees nothing. He's about six feet tall, give or take, lanky, and his lips are torn apart. They resemble some putrid kind of gelatin more than flesh. "Sorry about that, mate," he says with a sickening smile, "but you can't really expect a pack of sewer rats to stand out in the open for five whole seconds."

Kang: My guy will hesitate as he reaches the back door or whatever.
Kang: And say, "Okay what do you want? Why are you bothering me?"
Kang: I'm assuming they'll get a general idea of where I'm at because of my voice, but I'll try to stay out of view regardless.

Jason: If you are at the door now, they're out of eyeshot. Do you want to press yourself against the door in order to ease your escape, or stay at the corner of the wall between you so that you can see them?

Kang: I'll stay at the corner of the wall.

Jason: G(...) looks around, still trying to sniff out your location. "Because it's fuckin' New Year's, you stupid prick," he says sounding relatively innocuous, "And none of us have seen you in God knows how long." You can hear more footsteps entering your home, much more. "And frankly, we were all thinkin', why should we ring in twenty oh nine down with the shit and the rats when there's a perfectly good castle up here?"

Kang: Oh Gawd
Kang: My guy will stay where he's at.
Kang: Hmm
Kang: My guy sighs and says, "You don't really plan to try to live here do you?"
Kang: Can my guy tell how many of them there are?

Jason: Once more, Perception + Alertness, difficulty 7.

***Kang rolls 7 10-sided dice: 1 7 10 10 3 3 1

Kang: Oh jeez
Kang: Lots of botches there.

Jason: Maybe ten or so? They're all cloaked in shadow and remaining relatively still as they let G(...) dialogue with you.

Kang: I'll wait for G to respond, I guess.

Jason: "Live here? And give up the goddamn luxury of a stained bed parked in a stream of sewage?" he asks, hiss-laughing, and you notice that his voice is starting to get closer. "Listen, mate, you may have a good thing going with the whole lonely king on a lonely hill image, but my mother raised me to respect a man's haven," he says, and you can tell at this point he's just making conversation, as the moonlight hits him through a window and you see that he's drawn much nearer to you. Probably only ten feet away.

Kang: I'm going to move towards the exit
Kang: As stealthily as possible.

Jason: As your back hits the garden door, you hear G(...)'s footsteps increase at a rapid pace. He instantly rounds the corner of the wall and grabs the collar of your shirt and pulls you forward. Only an inch between your two faces, he smiles hideously and whispers "Found you." Then, just to be an asshole, he pauses for a beat.

Kang: Uggh

Jason: Once the moment passes, though, he wraps his wrinkled arm around your shoulders and nuzzles your head with face in an odd gesture of friendship. "You're a paranoid fucker, you know that?" he laughs. Then says "Come on, man, let's get drunk" and tries to lead you back down the hall to the rest.

Kang: I suppose I don't really have a choice at the moment.
Kang: I'll follow him.

Jason: The other Nosferatu see you coming and react with what could be an almost genuine appreciation. They, in turn, offer you twisted smiles and a few come closer and shake your hands, not impossibly because there's no harm in endearing yourself to a rich man. "We love what you've done with the place," G(...) says, and pats you on the back, pushing you into the center of the den, where they've all congregated. There's between fifteen and twenty Nosferatu in there, with more continuing to seep in. There's more than a few faces you recognize from your sewer days.
Jason: A buzz comes over the crowd, though, as one Nosferatu slowly makes his way through the door, struggling to carry a very large keg into the room. With a great strain, he lifts it, and places it on your kitchen counter. "That's spiked, right?" a Nosferatu asks the one who brought it in. "Of course," he responds. "Where'd you get it?" another asks, licking his lips.
Jason: "Let's say I knocked over a bank," the Nosferatu replies and laughs strongly at his own joke.
Jason: Roll Perception + Alertness, difficulty 8.

***Kang rolls 7 10-sided dice: 10 10 2 2 10 6 10

Kang: kekekeke
Kang: It's difficult to state how upset Kang is right now.

Jason: You can't say what the problem is precisely, but something is becoming clear to you the more the keg-bringing kindred speaks. Even though he looks like one and acts like one, that is NOT a Nosferatu.

Kang: Do I get that VIBE from anybody else?

Jason: No.
Jason: The keg is uncorked, so to speak, and another Nosferatu slaps down a few things of red plastic party cups. Meanwhile, the trickle of Nosferatu has finally ceased, and if you cared to, you could count just over thirty, all told. The entire Nosferatu population of Nauset has made its way into your home tonight.

Kang: Kang turns to G and says, "Who is the one who brought in the keg?"

Jason: A few of them sadistically and ironically start singing to each other "Let old acquaintance be forgot and never brought to mind..." and laugh as they make themselves comfortable on your pristine couches. The keg begins filling cups with blood and the keg-bringer starts passing them around, while graciously noting "Now hold on, you rat-fucking bastards, until we can make a proper toast."
Jason: "Dunno," G(...) responds, taking his cup and handing you yours. "I heard he heard we were planning this party and offered to bring the blood. He might be some new bastard embrace tryin' to ingratiate himself."

Kang: Kang will nod and take the cup.

Jason: Soon enough, everyone's got a cup in hand. The keg-bringer raises his and says aloud "All right, everyone, I'm sure you're all thirsty so I'll make this simple. Thanks to Spindelheim here for graciously supplying us with this party venue. Thanks to God for making all of you such disgusting freaks," which elicits a round of coarse laughter from the crowd. "Farewell to 2008!" he says, "May 2009 bring peace to your souls!"
Jason: Intermittent "Here here!"s ring from a few lips, and everyone starts taking swallows.

Kang: Kang will pretend to drink.

Jason: Roll Perception + Science, difficulty six.

***Kang rolls 7 10-sided dice: 1 9 9 10 9 3 3

Jason: And this is your specialty, so:

***Kang rolls 1 10-sided die: 5

Kang: While he's doing this, he tries to non-chalantly back to the periphery of the group.
Kang: Well, edge his way there.

Jason: Something about the drink lights up a very dormant part of your brain, even reaching back to your days of academia. You definitely do not want to drink this.
Jason: A few things happen at once. First: the sound of hissing. It's the sound of impatient plastic cups beginning to disintegrate. Next, a pain in your hand as the "blood" eats through your own cup, and you reflexively drop it. This is followed by thirty Nosferatu all falling to the ground in perfect silence, save the sound of the limp thud of their body. It happens gradually. First one, then a few more, then a few more after that, like popcorn popping, until you are the only one left standing.
Jason: And the final thing to happen, is that you notice that the keg-bringer is still upright as well, and staring right at you, annoyed.

Kang: "Tell me what is going on right now."

Jason: "You didn't drink," he says menacingly. His voice has lost its Nosferatu snarl, it's lighter, more whimsical, almost childlike, but still threatening. He begins advancing toward you.
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Last edited by God on Fri Apr 05, 33 4:00 am; edited 1 time in total

[Jason]

Jason: It's four blocks away if you choose to walk.

Richter: I choose to walk.

Jason: All right, to hunt on your way, Perception, difficulty eight.

***Richter rolls 2 10-sided dice: 9 4

Jason: On your way, you find a lone Aryan waiting on the side of the road, presumably in search of a cab. There are several other people in the immediate vicinity, so you cannot feed outright.

Richter: I activate awe and make my way towards the Aryan.

Jason: Charisma + Performance, difficulty seven.

***Richter rolls 4 10-sided dice: 9 8 9 3

Jason: Everyone on this block is instantly subject to your will.

Richter: I tell the Aryan to stay with me.
Richter: I tell the rest if they really want to make me happy they will go see the fireworks show and support Vance Cunningham for mayor of Nauset.

Jason: The other people look at one another and nod, probably heading that way anyway. The Aryan man smiles and walks close to you.

Richter: I take him to a nearby secluded place and feed.
Richter: Or to feed.

Jason: He blissfully introduces himself as Syl.

Richter: I introduce myself as a Friend and tell him that I'm going to make him very happy so to just let me do what I need to do.
Richter: I then bite a spot on him that will decrease the likelihood of killing him.
Richter: And drink at least a couple points of blood and hopefully leave myself enough time to get to the cafe.

Jason: All spots are equally dangerous, however, an Awed character's entrancement will break at the sign of danger.
Jason: If he sees your fangs, he's going to run.

Richter: Well presumably I make it seem like I'm kissing him.
Richter: So I guess Richter fags it up.

Jason: As you press him into the shadows and stand above him, your cell phone rings again.
Jason: Syl remains fascinated, but breaks eye contact with you in expectation.

Richter: I tell Syl to wait.
Richter: And answer the phone.
Richter: Or check the caller id then answer.

Jason: The caller ID is once again a blocked number. The voice on the other end is the same as before. "I am NOT in a patient mood, Belmondo. You get over here now, or the whole city finds out what you are."

Richter: I get persuasive.
Richter: "I'm on my way there. You just need to have some patience. I'm aware of the threat you pose to me, and I want to be able to address with all of my faculties."
Richter: "So if you can wait a few moments I will be with you shortly and able to respond to your demands to the best of my ability."

Jason: Manipulation + Expression, difficulty seven, specialty roll.

***Richter rolls 4 10-sided dice: 7 4 4 8

Jason: "You have ten minutes," comes the voice on the phone, then silence.

Richter: How long will it take me to get to the cafe from here?

Jason: Walking to a secluded area took time, you should just make it if you have no further complications.

Richter: So basically just enough time to get there.
Richter: Probably not enough time to get blood.
Richter: I tell Syl to follow me and I head to the cafe.
Richter: I tell Syl to wait in a spot in the cafe where he'll still be under the influence of my awe.
Richter: And I scan the place for the person looking for me.

Jason: It's a risk. You're going to have to roll Charisma + Subterfuge to feed from Syl without frightening him or him calling out for help. If you succeed, you can make it in time. If not ...
Jason: Oh, hm.

Richter: It's a risk either way but I can put it off until later.
Richter: Actually
Richter: I just tell him going to the fireworks show and supporting Vance Cunningham for mayor would make me happy.
Richter: And I head to the cafe.
Richter: To meet my blackmailer.

Jason: "I'll do it, for you," he says.
Jason: You make it to the cafe in time, but your hunger is becoming nearly debilitating. You can't go on like this. As you enter the warm, bright one room coffee shop, you look around. There, in the corner, is a familiar face and his eyes are transfixed on you. He's wearing a dark gray hoodie, sunglasses, and his mustache covers what little face is left - but you're en vogue enough to recognize him all the same. It's the recalled mayor, Jeremiah Rucklin. He's sitting next to one of the wide windows that wall the shop.

Richter: I move over to meet him and in an angry intimidating tone tell him
Richter: "Make it snappy tell me what you want I'm too important to waste time on trash like you."

Jason: Manipulation + Intimidation, difficulty six.

***Richter rolls 6 10-sided dice: 5 7 3 8 7 10

Jason: Rucklin's hand, holding a coffee cup, begins to shake. He's realizing what he's gotten himself into and lowers his sunglasses to look you in the eye. "P-please... sit down," he says.

Richter: I sit down and say
Richter: "Tell me what you have to say."
Richter: But I maintain eye contact.

Jason: "I've been talked down to a lot over the last few days, Mr. Belmondo. You may frighten me, but my wife is divorcing me, my children think I'm a monster. My city wants me to burn at the stake."

Richter: I interrupt him.
Richter: "Perhaps you shouldn't have been so incompetent."
Richter: And then motion for him to continue.

Jason: He hits the table with his fist, spilling the coffee in his cup, "I did my best for Nauset!" he tries to shout while still keeping his voice down. "The only reason I'm being crucified as a monster now is because I was set up by the real monsters. You, and your kind."

Richter: I say.
Richter: "Then my speaking to you is a far more dangerous proposition for me than you can possibly imagine."
Richter: Maintaining a stern angry look and tone.
Richter: "So perhaps it would be best if you remembered your place. I make deals so speak your part and drop the pathetic sob story."
Richter: "You aren't the only politician in the room, and I can smell your bullshit from a mile away."

Jason: "This is no bullshit. I'm not a pervert, I know that you planted that poor, innocent girl in my home. But she was no girl, she was a monster, like you, she was just... disguised," he says, and tears are forming in his eyes.
Jason: "I am a powerful man, Mr. Belmondo. I have pictures, people all over this city... that drink blood, like vampires. Occultists. Murderers. All in secret. And you are one of them. You're trying to force me out so you can put in someone whom you can control."
Jason: "But I'm a smarter man than people give me credit for. And I have one of you."

Richter: I smile and say.
Richter: "Now we're bargaining."
Richter: "Sure I want you to not release this information you have on me."
Richter: "And perhaps I can help you in exchange for that."
Richter: "But I'm not just going to want that."
Richter: "I'm going to want everything you have."
Richter: "EVERYTHING."

Jason: He stares at you, and a tear falls from his eye, down his cheek. "You people are the Devil," he whispers.

Richter: I laugh and say.
Richter: "You know it better than anyone that information is power."
Richter: "The problem is that you sat on your power when you should have been at the bargaining table."
Richter: "You could've achieved so much more but you wasted it in some vain attempt to hide up your pathetic fort at city hall."
Richter: "Now you're going to give me the opportunity you had, and I'm going to help you keep your fort."
Richter: "In the end you should be happy. It was the only burden you ever wanted."
Richter: "Otherwise we wouldn't be here now, and you wouldn't be weeping like a child."
Richter: "Now quit being a child. Suck it up. You need to learn to be a man and play ball if you ever want to survive in this world."

Jason: His eyes drop, his head is down. "No... Not after what I've seen..." He pauses, breathing heavily. Then he looks up at you again, his eyes bloodshot with tears. "I stabbed one of you through the heart. I cut off his limbs, and I hid him. And as I walked away, I could still hear him shout. Do you even care? What ARE you people?"

Richter: I get very serious.
Richter: "Don't ever speak of such things out loud if you don't want end up suffering something worse than the possible nightmare you could imagine."
Richter: "If the kindred suspected you of such a crime, far far worse would've happened to you by now."
Richter: "And no one can ever know this."
Richter: "If you run they will know,"
Richter: "But perhaps I understand your position."
Richter: "And perhaps you can help me even further."
Richter: "You no longer wish to be mayor correct? You just wish to be left in peace to rebuild your pathetic life?"

Jason: "I thought that I wanted to bring you to justice. Now I don't know. I want my family back. And I want to hear it from your own lips, how you could be so heartless to ruin me so severely."

Richter: I sigh.
Richter: "Don't hide behind pathetic claims of justice."
Richter: "You're a blackmailer."
Richter: "I'm sure you did it long before now, and you'll probably continue to do it after this."
Richter: "I don't really care. I've seen worse. Trust me."
Richter: "You were ruined because you were a threat."
Richter: "You could've avoided it if you had even remotely up to the task of your position."
Richter: "Instead failed."
Richter: "And you were punished for failing."
Richter: "We can't tolerate failure."
Richter: "Now I'll get you your family back."
Richter: "But you get me what I want."
Richter: And you use the last of your pathetic connection to ensure that Vance Cunningham takes your place."

Jason: "Is that all you want from me?"

Richter: What else do you have other than your information?
Richter: "I'm not interested in your life or your family."
Richter: "I want your political capital."
Richter: "The rest is worthless to me."
Richter: "Unless you have something else to offer that you are holding back."
Richter: I become manipulative and say.
Richter: "Now would be the time to say something."

Jason: "The pictures. The captive," he says, looking lost in thought. "I could support Cunningham..." he whispers.
Jason: Then he looks at you with more conviction than he has shown all night. "Were you the one who put the 'girl' in my room?"

Richter: I ask him.
Richter: "Does that even matter now?"
Richter: and laugh.
Richter: "I want the pictures. I want you to get Cunningham the office without attaching your taint to him, and as for the other thing well..."
Richter: "Tell me what you know about that now."
Richter: "Consider it an offering of good faith."
Richter: "I'll get you your family and name back."

Jason: Roll Perception + Alertness, difficulty eight.

Richter: Wait can I use willpower.
Richter: Because I will if I can.

Jason: All right.

***Richter rolls 2 10-sided dice: 6 3

Jason: In the shadows outside of the window, you notice a slight movement in the corner of your eye.

Richter: I say
Richter: "Well I've just been informed we need to leave. Now."
Richter: "Get me what I want, and I'll work on getting you what you want."
Richter: "But remember I can't help you if you die."

Jason: He looks up at you. "If I d-" he says, then is interrupted by the sound of a gunshot and breaking glass. The entire window shatters, and collapses as a bullet passes through it and into Rucklin's temple, killing him instantly. The shadow outside has taken shape. A gunman appears clear as day. He pauses for only a second, then takes off running. It might be possible to follow him.

Richter: I will attempt to follow him.

Jason: Extended roll of Dexterity + Athletics, you need one success per roll to stay on him, five total to catch him.
Jason: Difficulty five.

***Richter rolls 3 10-sided dice: 7 10 10

Jason: You leap out of the window frame, crushing bits of glass under your feet. Hunger be damned, you fucking follow this guy like a bullet. If you reach out, you can nearly touch his shirt as he speeds through the city streets.

***Richter rolls 3 10-sided dice: 6 6 4

Jason: Easy. He races to a tall, gray building at the height of Nauset's upper district and his momentum propels him into the door, which he hits firmly and stumbles backward in pain, giving you more than enough time to close the distance.

Richter: He isn't looking at me right.

Jason: He's stunned, so you can turn him to face you with no penalty.

Richter: I turn him to face me and use mesmerize on him.
Richter: And I say.
Richter: "Drop your weapon, and stop right there, and tell me who you are, and who sent you to kill Rucklin and why?"

Jason: Manipulation + Leadership, difficulty four.

***Richter rolls 7 10-sided dice: 5 7 8 9 1 3 1

Richter: Damn botches.

Jason: He lets his gun fall to the ground and stutters out "M-M-Malik... I'm Malik... Anselme sent me. Anselme Pavel. He sent me to kill Rucklin because..." he trails off, think.
Jason: "Because he wanted Rucklin to die."
Jason: Intelligence + Politics, difficulty four.

***Richter rolls 6 10-sided dice: 6 5 2 3 7 6

Jason: You recognize the name Anselme Pavel. He's a well known entrepreneur in Nauset, writes a few political editorials and is a very, very rich man.

Richter: Okay I use Mesmerize again and I tell him.
Richter: "Continue to stand still looking at my eyes, and tell me how scum like you knows a rich man like Anselme Pavel."

Jason: Manipulation + Leadership, difficulty four.

***Richter rolls 7 10-sided dice: 2 2 7 10 10 4 8

Jason: Malik smiles broadly, and proudly says "I'm a key part of the revolution."

Richter: I use Mesmerize again.
Richter: "Keep standing still and tell me what the revolution is and how you're a key part of the revolution and how Anselme Pavel is involved."

Jason: Manipulation + Leadership, difficulty four.

***Richter rolls 7 10-sided dice: 8 4 6 6 3 5 1

Jason: Malik's eyes dart back and forth freely as he thinks. "Umm..." he says, sounding almost childlike, "The revolution is a new world order!" He's almost reciting, "We supplant the powers that be and create a new, prosperous age for all Kindred! I'm one of Anselme's senior officers," he boasts, "and he's leading the way."

Richter: I'll mesmerize again.
Richter: "Tell me are you kindred, what clan you are, and which clans are involved in the revolution."

Jason: Manipulation + Leadership, difficulty four.

Richter: I think it's safe to assume he is but you never know.

***Richter rolls 7 10-sided dice: 6 5 5 4 10 9 1

Richter: He could be a crazy ghoul.

Jason: "I'm a pure blooded Malkavian, and the revolution does not discriminate."

Richter: I mesmerize him and say.
Richter: "You will wait here and hide until I get back and then you reveal yourself and will stand still."

Jason: Manipulation + Leadership, difficulty four.

***Richter rolls 7 10-sided dice: 3 5 2 7 9 10 6

Jason: Malik struggles to comprehend the command at first, but soon straightens himself out and... vanishes from view.

Richter: Okay I check the time on my cell phone.
Richter: and then I go to find an Aryan to feed.

Jason: You look at your cell phone: 11:39 PM. As you walk away, the door of the building you were standing in front of opens. "What have you done to poor Malik?" asks a strong, rich voice.
_________________
Last edited by God on Fri Apr 05, 33 4:00 am; edited 1 time in total

[Jason]

Jason: You're on the street once again. The crowds are still there, and something catches your eye to your right. A middle-aged man, with an English bull terrier on a leash. He has it stopped at a square patch of grass featuring a thin tree on the sidewalk, and he's boorishly nudging his foot into its side.
Jason: Roll Perception + Animal Ken, difficulty six.

Wetzel: 3 8 4 2 10 8

Jason: The bull terrier looks up at you while his owner kicks him with increasing ferocity to get him to shit so that he can get out of the cold. As you lock eyes with the dog, your own voice in your head says "Help me."

Wetzel: "Hey ..." my mouth says.
Wetzel: I haven't thought about what to say next.
Wetzel: The owner looks at me.
Wetzel: "Is ... he feeling alright?"

Jason: "No, he's fucking constipated," the owner says bitterly, and firmly taps the toe of his boot against the dog's anus, making him squeal in pain and shudder.

Wetzel: I look at the dog which is still looking up at me.
Wetzel: It must be all the weird shit going on tonight.
Wetzel: The owner yawns and switches hands with the leash.
Wetzel: I look into the dog's eyes and use Feral Whispers.

Wetzel: 10 3 10 1 3

Wetzel: I tell the dog "run fast."

Jason: The dog bolts, dragging the leash behind it. As it passes you by, it yaps in gratitude. The owner looks at you and says "Damn it to Hell, help me catch him!" then runs after the dog.

Wetzel: The street in this industrial part of town is uncrowded by cars on this holiday evening, and the dog crosses the street safely.
Wetzel: I yell "I'll get him!" and take off, overtaking the owner immediately.
Wetzel: I intentionally close in on the dog slowly.
Wetzel: We both get way in front of the owner.
Wetzel: When the dog turns down an alley, I grab its leash and tug to slow it down, then pick the animal up under my arm and keep running.
Wetzel: It's stupid, but tonight I want this dog.
Wetzel: I make plans to pick up bran to help with his constipation.

Jason: You can ghoul it if you like, turn it into a blood bound servant.

Wetzel: Maybe later, I think.

Jason: There's no sign of the owner, although the streets are becoming increasingly abuzz as the night grows later.
Jason: Where would you like to go?

Wetzel: I'd like to take the dog back home, but I'm a bit lost.
Wetzel: If it were day I could at least tell which direction is north.

Jason: Roll Wits + Streetwise, difficulty five.

Wetzel: 2 6

Jason: You navigate your way home, made more arduous by the crowd so it takes nearly an hour, but eventually you open your door and invite the dog into your pale apartment.

Wetzel: The dog walks inside and I shut the door.
Wetzel: I don't need to check the cupboards to know I've got nothing for him to eat.
Wetzel: I try to think of a place open on New Year's Eve.
Wetzel: If I'm going to run off with another man's dog, I certainly need to take good care of him.
Wetzel: The dog will be alright while I go for some food.
Wetzel: I step back outside.

Jason: Roll Wits + Security, difficulty six.

Wetzel: 3 7

Jason: You're on the street once more, searching for a place that's open.
Jason: Roll Wits + Streetwise, difficulty six.

Wetzel: 6 5

Jason: After a half hour of searching, you finally find an all-night Duane Reade-like drug store, bright and humming even on New Year's Eve. You find a bag of dog food, the best quality in the store.

Wetzel: I also pick up two bowls and a toy. I almost forget the bran but pick it up and pay using a few bills I got as change back in summer.
Wetzel: It seems like a lot of trouble for a dog that will probably run away within a few days.
Wetzel: I hit the street and head back with the dog food under my arm and the rest of it in a bag.
Wetzel: I feel tired and, as always, hungry. I wonder what time it is.

Jason: You have no trouble making your way back to your apartment this time, but as you climb the stairs and approach your door, you see it gaping slightly ajar, and the knob has been bluntly bashed off. Someone's inside.

Wetzel: I freeze. I think about what I've got in my hands, in my pockets; no weapons.
Wetzel: Why am I still afraid of death?
Wetzel: I drop the bags and slide up to the doorway to see what's going on.

Jason: You hear the sound of water running from your sink faucet and your cupboards opening and closing, but the activity is taking place on the wrong side of the door, so you can't see anything but empty room from the gap.

Wetzel: I use Auspex and search for anything my senses other than sight can detect.
Wetzel: Specifically, Heightened Senses.

Jason: Seeing nothing, you close your eyes and try to tune into your other senses. Just then, you hear the water shut off from your faucet - the tiny screech of the metal handle, the interrupted whoosh of water. You hear the deep, bass sound of someone drinking water and the long, moist exhalation of air when they're done. Their breath, while ridden with odorous bacteria that tickles your nostrils, has a extremely distinct aftermath of vampire blood still coating the esophagus.
Jason: Oh, and your dog's still there. His fur is still damp from the snow.

Wetzel: Vampire blood ...?!

Jason: Additionally, a sixth sense of premonition resonates in your chest. You definitely feel an air of menace from this intruder, however you do not feel threatened.

Wetzel: I think about hitting the circuit breakers, but I don't know what the dog would do with the lights out, and I don't know what the intruder would do to the dog.
Wetzel: I don't know what to do except trust that my feeling of non-threateningness is genuine.
Wetzel: Not for the first time, I miss my guns. What's wrong with me? I'm certainly not rich but I've got the money.
Wetzel: I pick up the bags and stand in the doorway. I look at the dog, trying to make eye contact, but the dog doesn't see me.
Wetzel: "Hi," I say.

Jason: Without opening the door?

Wetzel: I do open the door the rest of the way.

Jason: You see a man sitting on your bed, rubbing your dog's head sardonically. He has a flask between his legs. He's in his mid-twenties, Hispanic, with sweaty black hair. He looks at you, up and down, and laughs: "I can't have the right place."
Jason: "Are you Wetzel Henning?" he asks, improperly pronouncing your first name with a W sound.

Wetzel: "Yes. I don't want any trouble."
Wetzel: I set down my groceries just inside the door and take a few steps inside.
Wetzel: I want to tell the dog to run but I don't think he'd make it if the intruder decided not to allow it.

Jason: "Pendejo, you sure don't look like no Kindred I've seen. You're a little rosy in the cheeks, aren't you?"

Wetzel: I don't know what he's talking about.
Wetzel: "Who are you?" Pause, then: "Are you involved with the ... umbilical cord man?"

Jason: He stands.
Jason: He pockets his flask and raises his hands in a manner of shrug. "I don't know nothing about no umbilical cord man, bro." He laughs again, and smiles thinly. "Man, you have got to be the strangest errand I've run tonight."
Jason: He's walking toward you now.

Wetzel: "You smell like vitae. I wonder what kind of errands those were?"

Jason: "Relax, pendejo. I'm a ghoul. I've been a ghoul for a very, very long time. You ain't got nothing to fear from me, OK, rosy?" he says, and playfully pats your cheek.
Jason: "I came here to give you a gift from my master," he says, and reaches behind himself into the waistband of his jeans.
Jason: When his hand appears again, it holds a small, paperback book. Beat up, like it had years of public library use to its credit. He presses it against your chest and holds it there until you take it.

Wetzel: I turn it over in my hands, peering at it, not yet opening it. "What's this?"

Jason: Its old, black cover identifies its title as The Book of Nod. "He just thought you should have it," the ghoul says, and walks over to your doorway. He stops, and turns back to you. "Oh yeah, he also says: Happy New Year." Then he starts down the stairs.

Wetzel: I walk after him, standing at the top of the stairs.
Wetzel: "What's your master's name?"

Jason: The ghoul grins. "Anselme Pavel," he says, then leaves your line of sight.
Jason: I'm making a secret roll of Intelligence + Politics.
Jason: You've heard the name before, it's someone of note, and power, but you can't put a face to it.

Wetzel: I stare for a few moments at where he was standing, then return to my apartment and wedge the door shut.
Wetzel: I give the dog food and water. A teaspoonful of bran seems about right for a dog this size, but I can't even remember what a teaspoon looks like. I dump a bit into my hands, decide it looks about right, and mix it into the food.
Wetzel: I sit on the dirty couch and watch the dog eat. He needs a name.
Wetzel: "Sigmund."
Wetzel: I look at the clock.

Jason: 11:46 PM. Time flies. It's nearly 2009.

Wetzel: I sit down with the book and begin flipping through it.

Jason: What catches your eye first are the frightening illustrations accompanying the text. They're all black and white, hand drawn, occasionally maddening. Your eyes finally stop on a passage:
Jason: In the singing… midnight
Jason: By the coral …… of time
Jason: Through the …… gates of heaven ...the ... in my mind
Jason:
Jason: Bring about the change so quickly
Jason: Bring about the terror’s night
Jason: Bring about the blood of lovers
Jason: Bring about the smell of fright
Jason:
Jason: I see you watching where I walk
Jason: Through the moonlit jasmine field
Jason: Listen closely as I talk
Jason: About the stars and their lovers past
Jason:
Jason: Past fields of poppies, burning bright
Jason: Into towers of Blackened Bone
Jason: Follow me, Bastard of Caine
Jason: Come with me, I have no home
Jason:
Jason: As I drain your live’s blood sweetly
Jason: As you sigh into my warm hands
Jason: As I suck your madness nearly
Jason: Streaming down like crimson bands
Jason:
Jason: I dance the dance of the fool
Jason: And pray you find me mad
Jason: For if you lay hands upon the root
Jason: You’ll know me without illusion
Jason: And find me guilty of the truth.
Jason: You get no further before you hear that familiar scream in the back of your mind once again. Perhaps you've left yourself alone with your own thoughts for too long again.

Wetzel: The scream bothers me. I feel like a cat with a clothespin on its tail, to know that it's coming from inside me.
Wetzel: The sound remains in my conscious mind. I play it back.
Wetzel: For me, screams have a way of sticking with me. In general I remember the sound.
Wetzel: I think of when I died, back home, and I'm filled with shame, over some things I chose to do and some things I couldn't stop.
Wetzel: The book isn't helping. I put it down and put on the dog's leash. For the first time I check the nametag on its collar.
Wetzel: It's one of those super small ones where you have to open it, pull out the paper and unroll it. I decide I don't want to know and toss it.
Wetzel: Sigmund and I walk outside.
_________________
Last edited by God on Fri Apr 05, 33 4:00 am; edited 1 time in total

[Jason]

Kang: Kang will use Vanish from the Mind's Eye

Jason: Charisma + Stealth, difficulty seven.

Kang: I'll use a willpower point
Kang: To get an automatic success

***Kang rolls 5 10-sided dice: 10 8 7 7 9

Jason: Wow.

Kang: *strength*

Jason: Six successes. You instantly become perfectly invisible, as you look back at the keg-bringer, he's no longer looking at where you were. In fact, he's no longer looking threatening at all. He's looking very, very pleased. "Got you, you smelly toads," he says gleefully.

Kang: Oh wow
Kang: Hmm
Kang: What is the stranger doing?
Kang: Just standing there examining the bodies?
Kang: Hmm

Jason: He's beginning to giggle and claps his hands playfully as he dances around the room, gracefully stepping over the bodies. As he dances, his body gradually shifts... morphs... until he's no longer a Nosferatu in appearance. He's younger looking, although you can't say how much, he has a wild head of hair with curly locks that bounce and sway with his movement. He's still wearing the same clothes, though, and he reaches into the back of his pants and pulls out an object you can't quite make out.

Kang: How long would it take Kang to go and grab a camera?

Jason: Where's the camera, in his room?

Kang: Yes, he has one there.
Kang: Also, do I recognize the vampire since he's changed?

Jason: No points in Athletics, you'd have to climb up and then down two flights of stairs. Between four and six minutes, unless you want to roll for it.
Jason: And no, you don't.

Kang: Oh wow
Kang: I didn't realize the house was that large and sprawling.

Jason: It's possibly the biggest in the city.

Kang: Well, this is interesting.
Kang: I want to get some solid proof that it was THIS PERSON who committed the crime.
Kang: So I can show the prince.
Kang: I would assume he pulled out a cell phone.
Kang: I'll get closer until I know what it is.

Jason: Also note that the house is dark, and you'd be taking your chances using the camera without a flash.

Kang: Yeah, I was thinking about that.
Kang: Another thing
Kang: Are all of the Nosferatu dead?
Kang: Can I tell?

Jason: (Secret roll.) They're not moving.
Jason: You inch closer to him but you don't have to go far. He's already putting the object to use and squirting its contents on all the bodies.

Kang: Ahh
Kang: Well, before he burns the place down
Kang: I'm going to go to the kitchen
Kang: And grab a knife.
Kang: Wait, a meat cleaver
Kang: I HAVE ONE OF THOSE
Kang: Then I'm going to head back into the room with the bodies and the guy
Kang: I'm obviously doing this as quietly as possible
Kang: Then I'll get directly behind him
Kang: Has all of this happened so far?

Jason: You head into the kitchen and retrieve a meat cleaver, and begin to skulk toward him, but his dancing is making it difficult to ready yourself. At the moment that you finally corner him, two more shadowy figures appear in your doorway.

Kang: I'll skulk back into the shadows and observe them.
Kang: And pray that they haven't seen me.

Jason: "What the hell's taking so long, you lunatic?" comes a gruff voice from the larger of the two. The smaller one steps foot inside and sniffs, "Ugh," he says, scratching his coarse beard, "they all stink like shit."

Kang: This is so awful!
Kang: I'll keep observing.

Jason: "Almost ready!" cries the keg-bringer and reaches into his pocket, pulling out something small. He walks over to smaller one and pokes him on the nose. "YOU'D better step back, Timothy," then looks over his shoulder at the larger one. "You too, Brutus."
Jason: And then, a flame appears in his hand.

Kang: Unfortunately, there's nothing I can really do to stop this.
Kang: I want to get ready to follow them.
Kang: I'll position myself so I can exit behind them as soon as they leave.

Jason: You're in the corner nearest your front door in an alert crouch. Unfortunately, your keen alertness has your eyes follow the non-Nosferatu as he makes one more dance around the room, this time dropping a flame on every last Nosferatu.
Jason: The other two have stepped outside of the house while your cohorts begin to burn.
Jason: Roll Courage, difficulty seven.

***Kang rolls 4 10-sided dice: 8 3 4 9

Jason: I'm sorry, it's a frenzy check, so it's an extended roll.
Jason: You've bought two turns of restraint, out of the five necessary, if you want to act now.

Kang: I'm going to head outside as soon as I can.
Kang: To get away from the blaze.
Kang: I'm running under the assumption that none of the three can see me, but I'll be as stealthy as possible.
Kang: I'll hide as soon as I get outside if I haven't been spotted.

Jason: You step outside and pass by the two men, standing with their backs to the house on opposite sides of the door frame. You can't resist looking back at them, and now in the light of the flame you see that the larger one has a shotgun over his shoulder, and they both seem to be looking right at you.

***Kang rolls 4 10-sided dice: 5 10 3 4

Jason: But you stave yourself and continue to slink backward, down the stairs to your mansion until you're on street level. They look right past you.
Jason: The one inside comes out and shouts brilliantly "I love it when a plan comes together!" and the three begin the descent down the same steps.

***Kang rolls 4 10-sided dice: 9 3 1 9

Jason: The 1 cancels out the 9, so you're at four successes. You need one more to quell the frenzy. The three of them are walking away, and the first floor of your home is brighter than it's ever been. Thirty separate bonfires roast inside.

Kang: Hmm
Kang: I'll try to get further away from the fire, but I keep my eyes on the three.
Kang: Is there a vehicle on the street that I don't recognize?

Jason: You're at the gate that separates your mansion from the street at large. It remains permanently closed, your back is to the cold, black metal of it, and snow is beginning to accumulate on your head and shoulders. There are vehicles on the street, but you recognize none of them. You take one last look at the fire, then close your eyes for a final attempt at regaining your composure.

***Kang rolls 4 10-sided dice: 10 5 9 8

Jason: The Red Fear dissipates, and you collect yourself. The three men are almost at the gate now, closing in closer to you.

Kang: I'll move off to the side
Kang: Away from the gate
Kang: And let them pass through
Kang: Once they exit
Kang: I'll follow

Jason: As the three of them reach the gate, the largest man helps the keg-bringer up, boosting him high enough for him to get to the top of the gate. When he's there, he tumbles over the other side, laughing as he falls down with a crack on the hard concrete. He makes no effort to lift himself up. Then, the larger man places the shotgun through the gate, resting it on the ground. He gets a foothold and strains, but pulls himself up with his bare hands, climbs over the top and hangs down on the other side before dropping down safely.
Jason: Finally, the smaller man leaps upward, clutching the top spikes of the gate quickly. He pulls himself, remarkably nimbly, and for a moment actually stands with his feet on the spikes, precisely what they are there to prevent. "Well hurry the hell up," the largest man says, but the smaller one remains still. Then, he begins sniffing the air.
Jason: "Something smells," he growls, and deftly skips from spike to spike, moving in your direction.
_________________
Last edited by God on Fri Apr 05, 33 4:00 am; edited 1 time in total

[Jason]

Jason: Chappy typically hangs out in an alley three blocks from here.

Zero: *I take my time walking over to Chappy and his "entourage", keeping an eye on those who could be possible meals later tonight if the opportunity presents itself.*

Jason: Chappy is huddled in the snow in his alley while some friends of his get a fire going in the trashcan. When he hears you approach, he looks up and smiles. He walks briskly over to you saying "Oh, Zero, Zero, my man, just who I wanted to see." You can see the blackened teeth in his head while he fixes the collar of your jacket in a gesture of friendship. "Looking young as ever, no doubt." It's not unusual for Chappy to look a bit unkempt, but tonight you can very clearly make out a black eye on his ashy brown skin.

Zero: *I grab Chappy's hands and push him into the snow.*
Zero: "We need to talk."
Zero: *Dangles a bag of crack over him. "The quicker you tell me what I need to know, the sooner you get to shove this into your veins."
Zero: "Who's pushing on my turf?"

Jason: He stares at the bag. "Dang, man, I already hit the rock tonight, you know, but I sure could put some away for a rainy day. Or a snowy day, as the case may be," he laughs and wipes a bit of drool from his lips. "They's, uh, they's some people over on Redmont Avenue, right, they say, uh, they taking over and that no one's gonna buy from anyone else now. I, I told them, this neighborhood got a good supply and they beat, they beat my ass."

Zero: "I guess someone's already beat me to the punch *I stop to laugh at my own stupid pun*. Thanks for sharing Chappy, I hope you and your friends have a happy new year. *puts the bag back into his pocket* I never said it'd be free."
Zero: *I turn to make my way towards Redmont*

Jason: "Hey, man, I can, I can show you where they be!" Chappy shouts.
Jason: (Redmont's a long avenue.)

Zero: (Ah.)
Zero: "You could tell me "where they be", I don't plan on being cordial with them."

Jason: "Believe me, Zero, I know how you do. I was hoping I could be around to see you, uh, talk some sense into these young'ns," Chappy says as he stands up and brushes the dirt and snow off of himself. "I promise I won't get in your way or nothing."

Zero: "Fine, but don't expect me to hand over a bag until you hand over the cash." *I grab him and push him in front of me, signaling him to lead the way*

Jason: "I got you, man," he says, and starts walking. The streets are still a mess of people and it's a pain to keep up with Chappy, but before long, he stops on Redmont and 13th, and points down the road to three kids in their late teens, standing on the corner and looking like bad asses. One is just finishing up a transaction with a pedestrian, while the other two are making each other laugh.

Zero: *I walk over to the kids with my hands deep in my pockets* "Happy New Year's to you gentleman. Any idea where I can find something to help me enjoy the night more than I already am?"

Jason: The tallest one laughs through his teeth at your grammar, looks over to you and says, "Yeah, whatchu want, man? I got crack, I got weed, I got warzone, you know what I'm sayin'? Make it quick, business, business."

Zero: "You're kidding right? That's it? Some selection you have there. Top-notch. How about I make you guys a deal? I'd rather not discuss this in public though. How about we talk about upgrading your selection a bit in private?"

Jason: The tall one slaps his friends on the shoulder and starts laughing, "Haha, look at this skinny ass motherfucker trynna be a dealer!" They all cackle. "This guy's a hustler, nigga!" A shorter, younger, fatter one steps closer to you and says "Yo, we got our product, so why don't you buy it or step the fuck back?"

Zero: "I was hoping you could handle this like adults, but it's obvious I'm the one one that fits that description. I'm only going to say this once. Stop selling on my corner or you'll end up finishing your semester in a wheel chair."

Jason: The tall one steps forward again. He lifts up his shirt, revealing a gun tucked into the waist of his pants. "Nigga," he says, suddenly serious, "I don't think you get it. You stay at home now. This here's our city, we on every corner from here on out. Now step back 'less you wanna end up lookin' worse than yo crackhead friend over there," he says, indicating Chappy, standing nervously behind you.

Zero: "Where you'd get that piece? The toy store?" *I show my weapon as well.* "I'm okay with cleaning each corner one by one. I've done it more times than you can count, if you can actually count. And I'll do it again before this night is over."
Zero: "Chappy, running would be your best option right now."

Jason: The dealer spits on the ground and reaches for his weapon. Before he pulls it out, though, an older man, in his late twenties runs between you two. Chappy, meanwhile, just huddles to the ground in fear. The man pushes the kid back and starts yelling at them, you hear him clearly saying "What the fuck is the matter with you kids! That's the guy!"
Jason: The tall kid gets in the man's face and says, "Yo, Ricardo, seriously, let him pop this nigga," and Ricardo smacks him across the face. "Get out of here," he says. "Go stand over on Lafayette."

Zero: "Actually, you're all staying right here until I find out what the fuck is going on."

Jason: Ricardo turns to you and says "Look, forget about them. We need to talk."

Zero: "Fair enough, if I see you punks on my spot again we'll finish what we started."
Zero: "I'm listening, Ricky."

Jason: "All right, here. I know who you are. I know... what you are. I'd like to propose to you a deal." Ricardo leans against the old building on the corner and faces the crowd, passing by. "You see all these people? They don't know. They don't know you, they don't know anything about you. And they not buying your shit, neither. I'm gonna offer you the chance, to reel in every single one of these motherfuckers. We reach out, over this whole city. Limitless expansion, unbridled aggression. You get everybody hooked, make sure everybody comes to you when they need a fix. Everything you ever wanted can be yours... Zero."
Jason: Chappy stands up again and begins to stammer. "Yo man, yo man, what's this guy talkin' about? That don't sound right."

Zero: *I throw Chappy two bags.* "Go home, Chappy."
Zero: "How do you know my name, Ricky? I don't recall ever introducing myself to you and I try and keep a low profile."

Jason: Chappy holds the bags in his palm, and pockets them. But he stays. "N-no, Zero. You better than this, you ain't that kind of guy, these punks been, they been shooting crackheads, they murderers." Ricardo ignores him as he watches the three dealers escape in the distance. "I can't tell you that much now until I get your word that you gonna be a player, not some kind of prick." He inhales through his nose sharply, you can hear the mucus collect in his nasals. "But see, you come with me, you don't have to keep a low profile anymore. And you definitely don't need to stay friends with all these little clubgoers, neither. From now on, they your prey, and only your prey." He looks into your eyes, "'Cause you a predator, ain't you?"

Zero: "I'm not fond for working for someone else. I like to keep things simple. How about this. How about you and your crew stop encroaching on my territory and knocking off my clientele and I won't have to kill any of your "social workers"."

Jason: "That ain't gonna do, pendejo," Ricardo says, reaching into his jacket. Suddenly, he instantly has a gun in his hands, faster than the eye could have seen. "We need... full... authority," he whispers, as he extends his arms and fires - BANG! - into the crowd of people in the street. He looks at you with a half-smile, and drops the gun at your feet. "Have fun."
Jason: Ricardo runs down the block you came from. You can still see him in the crowd, it might be possible to catch him.

Zero: *I'll decide to pursue him, giving chase into the crowd.*
Zero: Actually
Zero: *Before running off into the crowd I quickly pick up the gun then run off in pursuit.*

Jason: You're going to make an extended roll of Dexterity + Dodge, difficulty 6. You need to score eight successes, and as long as you score one, you stay on the trail.
Jason: Make your first roll.

***Zero rolls a d10 7 times: 7, 7, 6, 9, 5, 10, 5, total: 49

Jason: You're hot on his trail, and closing in. He looks behind him and sees you following, and a flash of fear appears in his eyes. He speeds up as you deftly weave between the crowd and keep going.

***Zero rolls a d10 7 times: 10, 3, 8, 10, 8, 2, 4, total: 45

Zero: Awesome.

Jason: Ricardo ducks out of sight momentarily and you look and back and forth to spot him. There! The old bridge. He's running to the waterside below it. The spot is unique in that it seems to be the only isolated area in the whole city, no one else is around. How fortunate. He's hunched against a dead tree, catching his breath. You finally reach him and grab his jacket, throwing him to in front of you. However, he regains his footing and lurches forward, throwing a punch directly at your face.

Zero: I'll dodge!

Jason: Roll Dexterity + Dodge, difficulty six.

***Zero rolls a d10 7 times: 4, 3, 10, 7, 8, 3, 6, total: 41

Jason: Because this is your Dexterity specialty, you can roll one more die, since you got a 10.

***Zero rolls a d10: 2

Zero: k... kck

Jason: OK, four successes.
Jason: You move out of the way deftly and he stumbles forward, losing his footing. He's belly down on the ground in front of you, picking himself up.

Zero: *I kick him back into the snow.*
Zero: "Thanks for wasting my time and energy. Now, who do you work for and why are you pushing onto my turf?"

Jason: "You ain't finding out shit, pendejo!" he shouts, and pulls a knife out of his back pocket, advancing toward you.

Zero: "Have it your way..."
Zero: *I take out my gun*

Jason: He slices his knife at your arm.
Jason: The knife cuts into the flesh of your arm, stinging with pain. Blood begins to seep from the wound and stain the snow on the ground. He laughs as you step backward and shake our your arm reflexively.
Jason: You take three levels of lethal damage.

Zero: "K... kck"

Zero: Okay. I'll shoot at him with his gun.
Zero: I'll aim at his legs.

Jason: Roll Dexterity + Firearms, -1 die for being Hurt, difficulty 6.

Zero: Okay.

***Zero rolls a d10 6 times: 9, 9, 2, 9, 6, 8, total: 43

Jason: OK, he falls to the ground, his left leg is shot to Hell. He screams in pain and spits at you.

Zero: *Wipes off the spit.*
Zero: "I should shoot you again for that."

Jason: He throws the knife at your face.

Zero: I'll dodge the knife.

Jason: Roll Dexterity + Dodge.

***Zero rolls a d10 7 times: 1, 6, 7, 1, 3, 3, 1, total: 22

Zero: G... Guh

Jason: Oh man.

Zero: Am I stabbed in the face?

Jason: The knife slices through your cheek, opening it up like a ripe pear.
Jason: Roll Stamina to soak.

***Zero rolls a d10 2 times: 9, 4, total: 13

Jason: He's kneeling in front of you now, defenseless.

Zero: "Thanks to you wasting my energy, I'm going to have to take it back!"
Zero: *I go in to grab him showing my fangs*
Zero: (I'd have to make a clench roll, right?)

Jason: (You have Addiction, he's not on coke, you'll get nothing from drinking his blood.)
Jason: (You can still drain all his blood out if you want to kill him, though.)

Zero: (Okay, yeah my main focus is on killing him)

Jason: His eyes widen... just then, you both hear the sounds of the entire population of Nauset beginning to count down.
Jason: "TEN..."
Jason: "Wait," he says, desperately, seeing your fangs.
Jason: "NINE..."
Jason: "Let me live."
Jason: "EIGHT..."
Jason: The world is speaking in unison, and he's lowering his head to you in humility. "Don't let me die like this, please."
Jason: "SEVEN..."
Jason: "I, I serve a very powerful man..."
Jason: "SIX..."
Jason: "He can give you anything you want, anything."
Jason: "FIVE..."
Jason: "Just let me live, and I'll tell him, I'll tell him to treat you kindly."
Jason: "FOUR..."
Jason: He's nearly crying now, and the snow is falling on his pathetic face.
Jason: "THREE..."
Jason: "I can't die... I can't die..."
Jason: "TWO..."
Jason: He looks up at you pitifully.
Jason: "ONE..."

Zero: *I go in for the bite, ending his short-lived life for good*
Zero: "I gave you plenty of chances to give me answers, now I'm going to waste time hunting tonight."

Jason: "HAPPY NEW YEAR!!" erupts the city of Nauset as you drain every drop of blood from Ricardo. Of course, it's tasteless to you, so it simply sits in your dead stomach uselessly along with all the alcohol you drank tonight, waiting to be regurgitated before you slumber. Just, then, however, something you hadn't counted on: fireworks. Exploding in the sky. First one, then many, many more. They light up the darkness and the city's population roars with excitement. Your blood is boiling from the fight, and your injury, and it seems for all the world that the sky is on fire. Somewhere within you, you feel the Beast rising...
Jason: Roll Self-Control, difficulty 8.
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Last edited by God on Fri Apr 05, 33 4:00 am; edited 1 time in total

[Jason]

Kang: Kang will vamoose.
Kang: He'll head to the closest bushes or whatever as quickly as he can.

Jason: Looking around, you spot something interesting nearby. A large curbside opening to the sewer, downhill from your home, there to collect anything that washes down from your driveway. The gate has been disconnected, and tossed to the side. This is where all the Nosferatu climbed out of, on their way to the grave.

Kang: I'll head there.
Kang: Once I get into the sewers, I'll break into a sprint and get as far away from the opening as I can.

Jason: The smaller man continues sniffing. Behind him, the large one, having retrieved his gun and holding it like a lost child, shouts at him impatiently - "Of course something smells, we just cooked up a bunch of rotten meat!" You don't have time to hear a reply. You crawl into the opening and fall down, down, down into the sewer, splashing in a warm stream of shit and sewage. You begin running through the tunnels, away from your home, and away from those murderers.
Jason: After a bit of time, you begin to hear something coming from the surface. It's a distinct rumbling, almost sounding like a chant. It takes a few beats, but by the time it counts down to "SIX!" you realize what's happening.
Jason: "FIVE!" shouts the entire population of Nauset above you.
Jason: Their voices echo through the sewer, annoyingly.
Jason: "FOUR!"
Jason: Everywhere, drunken party-goers delighted to add another year to the history of the world.
Jason: "THREE!"
Jason: Nauset is coming alive now, in stark contrast to abandoned, desolate Nosferatu lair.
Jason: "TWO!"
Jason: Fuck them all.
Jason: "ONE!"
Jason: As you hear the cacophony of sound, people singing, laughing, wishing each other a happy new year, and fireworks exploding far above in the sky, and as you wade ankle-deep through their waste, it occurs to you that nothing ever changes.
_________________
Last edited by God on Fri Apr 05, 33 4:00 am; edited 1 time in total

[Jason]

Jason: I'm making a secret roll of Perception + Empathy, difficulty ten.
Jason: The voice that's screaming, it leaves you with a feeling of complete and utter hatred.
Jason: Where would you like to go?

Wetzel: There's a street celebration downtown, but I don't want to be there.
Wetzel: Sometimes I feel like the only part of the city I know after all these years are the ones that take me to work and back.
Wetzel: It's that kind of night. We make our way to the nearest big street and just start walking.

Jason: You see more and more people heading to the river for the fireworks display.

Wetzel: I don't feel comfortable at the thought of so many people, but the dog wants to go that way.
Wetzel: I'm sure it'll be fine. There'll be people everywhere, no chance for mischief.
Wetzel: We go with the crowd.

Jason: It's a long walk to Nauset River, but you make it with a few minutes left before midnight. There's a tactile excitement in the air, and even Sigmund seems enthusiastic to experience the change. Someone at the head of the crowd shouts "Here we go everyone! Ten!" and the whole audience joins in at "NINE!"

Wetzel: It doesn't occur to me to join in. It's a chant for people.

Jason: And so it goes. Eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two and one.
Jason: The fireworks begin to explode overhead, to the delight of the crowd, eliciting an excited yap from Sigmund.
Jason: And then, they begin to metamorphose. What should be a firecracker of reds and yellows become horrific red eyes, staring at you, judging you for your sins. The fireworks aren't making quick popping sounds, they're recounting your crimes against humanity, and the sky is raining blood.

Wetzel: I blink hard at the fireworks, trying to make them go back to normal.
Wetzel: My stomach growls, and like Pavlov's bell it makes me nauseous.
Wetzel: "Come on ... come on," I insist, trying to remember the dog's name as I tug its leash.
Wetzel: We're getting out of here.

Jason: They're turning the sky an infernal red, and their embers start to land on the crowd around. They hit, and a person bursts into flame, crying in agony, begging to be saved. Soon the whole city is burning, like a circle of Hell. And Sigmund... Sigmund has grown two more heads, and they're snarling and salivating like the dogs from your nightmares.
Jason: Roll Self-Control, difficulty seven.
Jason: It's an extended roll.
Jason: You need five successes total, one success buys you one turn of restraint.
Jason: And the chance to roll again.

Wetzel: 3 2 5

Jason: It's no use. One of the embers is heading straight for you. You watch it get closer and closer and closer, like a comet falling from the sky, until it hits. But instead of lighting up like fire, it ignites your soul, and you feel the Beast overtake you and grab your reins.
Jason: Sigmund has grown, he's as tall as a house now, and you run, run, run from him. But he's trailing you with fail, biting at your heels. You scream in fear and agony, but there's no escape, so when you reach a scorched and soulless road, you grab Sigmund by his neck and stare into his evil, hungry eyes.
Jason: (If you like you may spend one Willpower point for one turn of restraint, before continuing to frenzy.)

Wetzel: Yes.

Jason: Momentarily, the world calms, and you're back in the snow, and the colors are muted, and you're holding Sigmund up at eye level, and he's looking at you with a pitiful curiosity.

Wetzel: I give him half to gravity and drop him harshly on his feet.
Wetzel: I turn away and dry heave on my knees.
Wetzel: I spit, get up, and run as hard as I possibly can away from the river.

Jason: You feel the Beast clutch at your chest again and you tense, and your legs stop moving. Then you hear the pitter patter of four feet scampering to you. Sigmund is there, catching up to you, sniffing you, wondering what's wrong. He finally sits in front of you, staring into your eyes. You only have a few more moments of clarity left.

Wetzel: I raise my foot to stomp the dog, hoping in an instant of helplessness to give it a quick death.
Wetzel: But I can't bring my foot down.
Wetzel: Staring into Sigmund's eyes, I use Feral Whispers, and as sincerely as I can, I tell him: DANGER!

Jason: Roll Manipulation + Animal Ken, difficulty nine.

Wetzel: 10 2 1 8 4

Jason: He doesn't understand and before you can try again, you lose eye contact, because his eyes have disappeared. They're replaced by gouged out sockets. Six of them, as his two other heads have returned and they're ravenous. No, you think. They're not ravenous. You're the one who's hungry. You can get out of this situation easily. All you have to do is extend your fangs... and so they are. You lean in closer, and closer, deciding which neck to bite into first, when something distracts you.
Jason: It's a smell. It's a wet, brown smell. Sigmund is releasing, finally. His waste is falling to the ground with a sick splash. In your red-tinted eyes, he's releasing a torrent of putrid shit on the ground, and it's beginning pool around your legs. You're revolted, not hungry, and you toss the dog away as the shit rises and rises until it's neck level. You frantically rush to your apartment and run up the stairs to avoid the rising level of feces and burst through your loose door and scream as you fall backwards into your bed.
Jason: There, your chest tightens like a cardiac arrest, although your heart is long dead, and the world grays and blackens. The pain of the Beast, and the pain of consciousness are both gone. Unfortunately, so is Sigmund, left out in the street with a leash around his neck. It's your final thought as you fall asleep.
Jason: End of Chapter One.

Wetzel: Now that's writing.
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Last edited by God on Fri Apr 05, 33 4:00 am; edited 1 time in total

[Jason]

Richter: I respond casually.
Richter: "I wasn't done talking with him, but I needed to get dinner, so he agreed to wait for me while I got a bite to eat. Why do you care?"

Jason: Do you turn to face him?

Richter: Yes
Richter: I suppose I should.

Jason: You see in the doorway a tall man in his mid-thirties, dressed in an unimaginably expensive suit (and you have a good imagination for that sort of thing), whose prematurely gray hair and dark eyes give him an air of great maturity and sophistication. It's a recognizable face. He's Anselme Pavel. "I care because he is my friend, you brutish thing." He walks up to where Malik once stood and perfectly steadies himself before him.

Richter: I laugh.

Jason: He whispers to Malik and the Malkavian reappears and heads inside the door. Anselme then turns to you, and says "Don't bother, everyone's gone to the riverside now. But I have something for you inside, Richter."

Richter: I say "Ironic that you call me brutish when you made that Malkavian dog gun down the city's former mayor in the middle of a coffee shop."
Richter: "But I'll accept your gift."
Richter: "One must respect one's elders."

Jason: Anselme smiles back at you. "I hope that didn't inconvenience you," he says. He walks into the building and beckons you: "Come."

Richter: I follow him into the building but try to be wary of my surroundings and look out for some sort of trap or ambush.

Jason: Inside is a vast, pristine lobby. Beautiful ivory decorations tie the room together immaculately. In the back of the room is a long, polished reception counter, but the place is ghostly empty at the moment. Everything shines. Anselme turns to you and says "Welcome to my home, Decimus Tower." He leads you to a large, silver elevator, calls it and enters, pressing the button for the highest level: floor sixty.

Richter: I'll enter the elevator and say.
Richter: "It's quite exquisite"

Jason: "It took a very, very long time to build," he says wistfully, watching the numbers on the elevator travel upward. When you finally reach the sixtieth floor, it opens into a room of pure white. Every object seems to meld into the floors, ceilings and walls. It's difficult to even spot a shadow, the room is so... illuminated. Around you, several people work at computers, at telephones, all busy and dedicated.
Jason: The only relief from the white is the array of panoramic windows facing out over Nauset. You can see a tremendous congregation of humanity at Nauset River, the view is spectacular.
Jason: "And this," Anselme says, "is my campaign room."

Richter: I ask inquisitively.
Richter: "And what might you be campaigning for?"

Jason: Looking over the city, he responds: "The mayoral seat that we worked so hard to have abdicated." He turns back to you and says strongly, "Now, I know you're with that councilman Vance Cunningham, but I've invited into my home to make a very real offer to you." He begins walking through the room, turning a corner around the elevator and stopping before a tremendously large, wall-mounted flat screen television.
Jason: Anselme leans down and picks up a remote control, aims it at the screen and presses a button. A graceful, helicopter shot of Nauset appears, and what follows is the most sublime campaign commercial ever devised. It's sleek, subtle and effective, and it ends with Anselme himself, looking straight at the viewer and saying with charm: "So pleased, on January nineteenth, vote Anselme Pavel."
Jason: Roll Perception + Occult, difficulty six.

***Richter rolls 2 10-sided dice: 1 4

Richter: Ouch spectacular failure.

Jason: And you are overcome by a desire to do exactly as Anselme asked of you. The ad shuts off and he turns to you. "I am going to win that chair in three weeks, Richter, and I'd like you by my side as I do so."

Richter: I say.
Richter: "I do feel inclined to help you, but you must understand that I don't come cheap."
Richter: "In fact my services can be surprisingly costly I learned tonight."

Jason: Anselme laughs. "Richter I wouldn't insult you by offering you monetary compensation. What I am talking about is complete and total upheaval. Imagine a world where human kind is inextricably linked to Kindred. Where they feed off of us just as we do to them. That is my revolution. I have the ability to infiltrate every aspect of this city, from its government, to its security, to its finances, to its addictions.
Jason: "It's time for a change, Richter. It's nearly 2009," he says. "There's a black man coming to the White House. And beginning here, in Nauset, and then growing and growing and growing, there will be Kindred on every level of existence. So that when we choose to reveal ourselves, humanity won't be able to cut us loose without severing off parts of themselves in the process."
Jason: Someone walks up to Anselme, then, and hands him a cell phone. "Yes?" he says. "They are? All of them?" Pause. "Excellent."
Jason: He hands the phone back to his employee. "It's happening already. We are on the brink of something amazing."
Jason: "But don't answer me yet," he says. "I still need to give you your gift."

Richter: I respond.
Richter: "Yes, I'm quite curious and eager to see my gift."

Jason: "Take the elevator to the forty-first floor," he says. And just as he finishes, and as an employee of his escorts you to the elevator, fireworks begin going off in the city behind him. He smiles, and laughs. "Happy New Year."

Richter: I'll follow his directions.
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Last edited by God on Fri Apr 05, 33 4:00 am; edited 1 time in total