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[Rebel Script ⍺] Midnight Hunt - The Hand of Oblivion

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Posts

  • mrpakumrpaku Registered User regular
    "Hmmm," Lynch mills over Leopold's response. She had some thoughts developing, some very disturbing thoughts...but maybe it was for the best to leave them out of the daylight hours, and certainly to keep them out of Church.

    She cheerfully tries to change the subject, "Whelp, I'm headed around the block to meet my associate next...Dr. Albert Farkas. You coming with? Or you headed elsewhere?" Lynch tries to think of anything they hadn't covered. "...and where we all meeting up tonight? I'm worried, about Emmett..."

  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    "No, I have other errands to run." Leo responds. "Let's meet at Crawley's. Give us a place to ask questions we may not want others hearing the answers to."

    Leopold heads off towards Rosewater Lane. He hadn't had a specific intent of things to get done today but also wanted some space away from the other two to sort out the thoughts in his head.

    What would I find around here? Anything of note? If not, the other thought I had would be heading towards the Old Bridge (maybe not fully there) to see if he can spy anything from the Garrison that has peaked people's interest.

  • Endless_SerpentsEndless_Serpents Registered User regular
    Lynch
    “Sh! Shut up! I mean, welcome, get in shut up!”, the esteemed doctor jabbers as he sets all six locks behind you, “Did you see two tall blonde chaps while you were out and about? Heavy on the tan? No? Good. Welcome. How can I help you?”

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    “Did you want tea?”, he asks, “Coffee?”

    Albert Farkas is usually erudite, almost witty, but he’s very much not on a winning streak with his gambling this week. Before you ever asked he told you all about the scars, and says it gives him an excellent poker face. Above all, he’s immaculately clean, and his little apartment smells of bleach and medicine, which makes him pretty trustworthy in your eyes—at least at his job, if nothing else.

    Leopold

    For choosing to take time to rest and consider the hunt, you gain +2d6 to your first challenge during the midnight hours!

    A one-legged man snoozes under a couple of coats. A thin rake of a woman smokes out of a blasted out window above you. A man about your age tips his hat to you as he leans into the slope of the lane, carrying a mandolin.

    There’s not much going on, you think, until you hear heavy steel on stone; there’s two, no, maybe four, Langleich soldiers marching nearby... they’re about to turn the corner. Will you hide, walk towards them, or stay put?

  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    Leo walks casually, looking about and observing those who find themselves on the Lane, his mind wandering as he nods to the man in the hat. The stomping of boots catches his attention, though. Soldiers nearby could be nothing, or it could be everything. He glances around quickly, trying to determine how everyone else around him is reacting to the presence of the soldiers.

    Still, with a guilty mind, Leo isn't sure what they are after but assumes it might be the events of last night. So, instead of trying to avoid them and seem suspicious, or walk towards them and possibly get in their way and trigger questioning, he finds a building to lean against, attempting to seem like he was casually loitering. He was young enough, it might even be believable.

  • mrpakumrpaku Registered User regular
    "Thanks fer' agreeing to see me on such short notice, Al- I mean, uhm, Doctor Farkas. I'll take a tea, if you don't overly mind."

    Lynch walks over to the "operating" table and plops down her satchel. Albert's manner occasionally put her ill at ease, and talk of men looking for him had the hairs on the back of her neck standing up. But she had precious few other options, and couldn't afford to let her condition persist if she had any intention of keeping up her nightly activities

    "It's the ringing again, Doctor. Came back hard last night, during some... strenuous activity. Got hit with some loud noise too, like...siren loud. Wondering if you'd take a look?"

    Lynch clutches the satchel protectively with one hand, the strip of skin and feather held securely inside. "...And there's a couple other things I'd like you to take a look at fer me when you get done with that, if you don't mind..."

  • Endless_SerpentsEndless_Serpents Registered User regular
    edited March 2021
    Leopold
    The one-legged man heckles the soldiers as they march by him, and one looks at him with pure distain.

    “Do not... my friend, rise to it.”, a voice emerges, speaking your language clearly, slowly, with purpose, “Now... would you kindly rest a moment.”

    The soldiers march a little more, not used to such softly worded orders. One of them break in, “Hualtt!”

    They slam their feet down with intense finality. Four soldiers, and one... ambiguous figure in a (brand new) trench coat.

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    This person evidently outranks the men. They turn lightly and regard everyone, “Good morning. I would first... like to detail my dissatisfaction at the continued condition for which you... fine people, are forced to live. However, I guarantee our efforts to reconstruct this fair city will continue... as our bond grows, and it will grow.”

    “I am...”, they gesture around, as if trying to catch the words, “special information officer from beautiful Langleich. Please call me Alyss. Do not be alarmed. We are merely inspecting the streets, to foresee later construction. You might see many of such groups today...”

    One of the soldiers drums their fingers along their rifle. The one-legged man is still grumbling at the soldiers.

    Alyss smiles and waves over to you Leo, “Good morning! Perhaps you will aid me in recording the problem areas... so we can build a better future?”

    What do you do?

    Endless_Serpents on
  • Endless_SerpentsEndless_Serpents Registered User regular
    edited March 2021
    Lynch

    The doctor pours out steaming hot water into a cup, and then the rest into a bucket. He throws in a few instruments, to boil the bacteria off them as best he can. He bobs a tea bag in the cup as he considers your request.

    “You really should avoid loud noises, but if you are doing factory night shifts”, he’s added in his own details, as if he’s a detective, “Might I suggest wearing ear protection? You won’t be young forever, you know?”

    For now, he gives you a mild pain killer, and a general once over. He’s done the best anyone could without getting invasive. Once he’s finished, he takes a swig from a hip flask.

    “You’ve been fighting again, eh? Your left eye is bloodshot to Hell, bet you didn’t even look in a mirror this morning. You’re lucky you didn’t have a concussion!”

    He painfully pokes the back of your head, a bruise hidden under your hair.

    “If I were a betting man, and I am, I’d say it’s not long until you get seriously hurt if you keep this up. Feel like telling me who it was?”

    Remove a tick from your deafened condition.

    Endless_Serpents on
  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    Leopold swallows nervously. "Uh. Yes, uh, yes sir." he stammers out. He would like to pretend that it was an act, an attempt to lure the soldiers into thinking him a simpleton, but really, he was just damn nervous to be speaking directly with them. Especially this newcomer, dressed so differently than the rest.

    "The streets, um, could use repair. Hard to get around if you can't travel easily." He swallows again, his throat suddenly drier than he remembered it being, his heart racing. There was something about this one that set him on edge, which he didn't understand, but just instinctively made this situation feel like it was more dangerous.

    "Uh, I guess, um, maybe some of the business likely need some help. We all needs jobs, don't we. Can't get good work if no one can go and buy anything. Right?" he trails off as he asks the question, now staring at Alyss and trying to keep his hands by his sides.


    I can't explain why, but that picture just weirds me out.....

    Also, so much for the brave war boy.

  • mrpakumrpaku Registered User regular
    A Chattering Gremlin and a Demon-Dog-bird, she stops herself from saying.

    But Lynch doesn't miss a beat. She laughs, pretending to be caught-out. "Shit, ya got me Doc! Poachers. It was poachers! At least, that's who I think they were... was walking home from the eh', factory last night, and next thing I know, I come upon a couple blokes trying to force an, ape, into a cage! Someone's pet, probably. Anyway, you know how much I love animals, so! Thought I got the jump on em' an' put em down....was in the middle of letting the animals out of their cages, and then turns out hadn't hit one quite as hard as I'd thought! Turned around and let me have it pretty good, tossed me out the carriage! Probably lucky I got away with my life..."

    Lynch reaches into her bag. "Which brings me to the other thing I had fer' ya! Wasn't able to get to all the animals...but I did find some parts I must've kicked out of the carriage? Thought maybe if you could take a look, I'd be able to ahh, get an idea of what they stole, what I should be looking for?" Lynch grins broadly and presents the lizard skin and the corvid feather. She knows the practiced poker player will see through several of the lies she'd just told, but she hoped his interest was piqued enough in the exotic animal parts to not question her further...

  • Endless_SerpentsEndless_Serpents Registered User regular
    edited March 2021
    Leopold

    Alyss keeps a fairly neutral expression as you talk, then nods when you’re done.

    “Very good.”, she says, “Perhaps I will make arrangements for you, so that you might find employment under me? We shall see.”

    Happy with your report, she waves at the soldiers vaguely until they form a squad and begin to march again. They don’t seem to be waiting for your reply, but you could shout after them.

    The one-legged man continues to cuss them out as they leave, but he’s in floods of tears. He hammers his fists against the ground.

    Thanks, I tried to invoke that vibe. Anything else you intend to do here?.

    Lynch
    “...Young lady, have you considered journalism? You can bend the truth rather too well.”

    He pokes them with a scalpel. He frowns. He gets up and grabs a torn old book on zoology.

    “Not really my field. See how big these scales are though? The only thing like it I know of would be a crocodile... not the weather for it around here. Poor thing might die if it’s kept in the city. This feather though! I’ve no idea. A condor? Not that I’ve seen one.”

    He holds up his hands.

    “The flesh from this reptile, it’s rotten, right? Soft. It shouldn’t be like that. The feather by contrast looks shiny, healthy, so at least that might survive.”

    You can’t be sure anything he’s just said is useful.

    Endless_Serpents on
  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    Leo only nods silently at Alyss, and stands still as they leave. Finally, without them in sight, he lets out a breath. They didn't seem all that interested in him, so it probably was just a random occurrence on the street. Still, he wasn't looking to stick around. No telling how the people on the street felt towards soldiers (though he could probably guess) and he didn't want to be seen as helpful in any case.

    Leo leaves Rosewater Lane behind him, walking a little too quickly as first before he catches himself and slows down to a leisurely pace. He still has time, so he decides to wander a bit more. He was curious about the garrison, but the encounter he just had makes him shy away from appearing to seem suspicious. He didn't want to be anywhere near the boat club given people were probably looking into it right this moment. So instead, he headed towards the Clock Tower, intent on just looking around and observing the area.

    No real purpose or goal here, just more of a "wander towards the clock tower, see sights along the way." If you want to say Leo saw nothing of interest, that's fine, he can wait until midnight hours to pick it back up. His interaction with the creepy blonde would stop any real investigations for today.

  • Endless_SerpentsEndless_Serpents Registered User regular
    It’s approaching noon. There’s a few spots of rain, but it’s mild enough. Folk go about there business in a half hearted manner, but remain polite, and tip their hats to each other as they cross paths.

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    Busy one today! I’ll make a proper update when I can!

  • Endless_SerpentsEndless_Serpents Registered User regular
    edited March 2021
    Leopold

    zx12hmd7ubls.jpeg

    ‘Time is on your side!’, a billboard says, ‘Buy Hoffman watches and clocks!’

    Always a weird image, because you’ve never seen their goods, or their makers for that matter. Something from a bygone era as far as you’re concerned. It was clever though, to advertise nearby the square that surrounds the clock tower.

    There’s some old legend that the birds will leave the tower when the world is set to end, but if the war didn’t drive them off, what would? You see crows, pigeons, the cockatoos (brought over when the nation had a mad king, which tends to happen) and a few fat ravens brooding in the dark above the clock face.

    There’s a few ropes slung across the open arch into the tower. You’re supposed to keep out, but there’s nothing really stopping anyone.

    Do you check to see if anyone can see you? Would you even want to sneak inside?



    Lynch

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5EJPVCiQpjQ&list=PLjbK8kGHP7BZtA9bxbuzWZxNMF6OvHRWa&index=4

    Crawley's Bar is up next, and like the church it’s full of familiar faces. At this time of day it’s just two old geezers, that crazy woman with the sheepdog, the owners (married, greying, patriotic, jolly), and the barmaid, who currently has her head in a book.

    You know these lot, so pose your questions freely.

    The bar has tons of warship emblems nailed to the walls, and flags are slung along the ceiling. Behind the bar is a shotgun on display, circled by some crude but interesting paintings from around the world. The owners both had dreams of becoming artists some decades before the war.

    On the bar are a number of papers and envelopes, bills maybe.

    What do you sense in the atmosphere here? What isn’t here today that should be?

    Endless_Serpents on
  • mrpakumrpaku Registered User regular
    Lynch strolls up to the bar and takes possession of the snacks bowl, chowing down several handfuls before the barmaid has even noticed her. Grinning sheepishly, she greets the bookish woman. "*Heya Frances!* Nice and quiet so far tonight from look of it, yeh? Grab me an ale if'n you would?"

    She takes the drink and flicks some of the foamy head off before taking a small sip. "Got two fellas coming in behind me tonight, Frannie my-lady. Old, rather pensive guy and a young fellow, kinda springy. You'll know em', when you see em'. Point em' back to my usual booth when they get here, yeh? Might be here awhile tonight..."

    Lynch takes another small sip and leans across the bar, taking in the mood of the place. She frowns. "Down right morose in here tonight, Fran, doncha think? Like, *who died*, emiright? Say, and what happened to the suit of armor? Display kinda looks empty without it...they take it out for cleaning, or something?"

    Lynch wonders if her favorite bar might be facing financial difficulties. She persues the papers on the bar subtly when Frances is looking elsewhere

  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    Leo stares up at the tower. He had always wondered what people saw when they looked up at it, if they saw wonder or maybe even a mechanical puzzle of construction. Leopold just saw a big building covered in birds. He never really understood the fascination with the thing.

    Still, as he eyed the open arch, he wondered, maybe inside it was more interesting? Maybe there was something there that drew people, whether they actually knew it or not. And maybe, he thought as he looked around the area to identify any who might be looking in his direction at the moment, maybe he could find some interest in just having been somewhere that most people never were.

    Eyes peeled for onlookers, he creeps towards the open arch, and with a quick jump, bounds the ropes and slips into the tower.

  • Endless_SerpentsEndless_Serpents Registered User regular
    I’ve just started a new job, so we’ll have to take a short break until Sunday! Sorry gang!

  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    I’ve just started a new job, so we’ll have to take a short break until Sunday! Sorry gang!

    Take your time!

  • Endless_SerpentsEndless_Serpents Registered User regular
    Previously, on Midnight Hunt
    Our heroes, a trio of hunters endowed with the ability to perceive a hidden world at comes into being at the stroke of midnight, investigated a murder under mysterious and gruesome circumstances. Though they slew all manner of horrors, their true quarry yet alludes them.

    Their city is occupied by a foreign force in the aftermath of a terrible war, and patrols have suddenly risen across the city in response to last night’s hunt.

    Lynch has entered a familiar bar. Leopold has snuck into a clock tower. Emmett considers whether they should intervene in an argument at a graveyard.

    Lynch
    She closes the book and takes a big breath.

    “Those two old birds can’t afford to renew their licence. Some new ‘law’ designed to kick out flavus people. Didn’t even know they were.”, she opens her book again, as if trying to put it all aside, “I shouldn’t matter, anyhow. We’ll think of something.”

    Even upside down you can read the general scope of the paperwork; the bar owners will have to pay a vast sum to stay open due to some vaguely defined racial or cultural thing. You can’t help but try to see what makes them different. Right now they are fussily taking down some heavy navy blue curtains together, perhaps to sell them.

    Leo
    Inside the clock tower is a thin spiral staircase that goes up at least a couple flights and down into the unlit unknown. It feels warm inside, the stone soaked in the noon sun. There’s a clearness to the air too, not a bit of damp rot or the passage of rats.

    Tell me what is wrong with this space...

    i2p2q9r3ja4k.jpeg


    Emmett
    You’re certain the younger woman is about to slap the older one! You can bridge the gap, if you so choose, or simply avoid getting involved. Their dress would pin them as undertakers or the like.

    For future reference, the pair digging the grave nearby are tall, tanned and blonde.

  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    Leo looked at the staircase in a bit of indecision. Up or down, both could be interesting possibilities, both could lead to nothing. That's when it hit him, however. This place was clean. Not clean, as in, someone had been through recently to sweep the place down, but clean as in, it didn't seem like anyone (person or animal) had ever entered this passage. That was definitely not normal, not for any city, but especially not considering what happened at night around here.

    It put a bit of weight into a situation that he had lightheartedly entered into. Enough, at least, to make him decide that going down into the dark isn't worth exploring, so he started to travel on the stairs going up.

  • mrpakumrpaku Registered User regular
    The back of Lynch’s ears begin to *BURN* a crimson red. The young woman glares straight ahead, staring daggers at nothing. A stranger might even think she hadn’t heard what Frannie had to say…but the Bartender watches as Lynch tips her glass of ale back slowly, continually. In one solid, steady motion, the pint is completely drained. Wiping her mouth from the foam in a *most* unladylike fashion, Lynch hands the glass back to Frances with a thrust of her arm, and then takes a deep, focused breath as she closes her eyes. She exhales (at first peacefully), only to interrupt herself midway through with a *yell* of, “Oh, this is HORSE-PISS!”. The few patrons of the lazy bar look over in alarm, to the very little concern of Lizze Markovich.

    Lynch stomps across the bar directly towards the Owners, Patricia and Martin. She carries her leather pack with her, and crosses her arms *angrily*, brow furrowed when she arrives at the old couple. She brushes away the cloud of cigarette smoke from Patricia, and hisses at the both of them, “Why didn’t you just tell me? You *know* I would’ve…you *know* I’ve told you that can always ask for help! Martin!” she turns with a harsh but loving judgment upon the wire thin, quiet elderly gentleman (who reminded her so much of her own grandfather).”Martin? How long have they been hassling you both? Is this just the first time? Is it always the same guys?”

    The young woman stands with hands on her hips: a child attempting to handle frustrating “parents”. She rubs her temple between her fingers. “Ok…Ok. We’ll figure this out. You two are not alone. You’re *not* losing the bar, and you’re *not* going anywhere! Look, I might be able to sneak into an office somewhere, change a form or three…these bastards are *nothing* if not sticklers for their bureaucracy. But in the meantime,” The young thief is already kicking herself for what she knows she is about to do next. She finds herself shifting her satchel over her shoulder and in front of the Crawley couple. She opens the bag, just enough to show them the painting and the gold-trimmed military books within. Lynch whispers to them both now, “Put the curtains back up…here’s what you’re gonna do instead. You’re gonna have to trust me on this. Take either all the military stuff, or take all the paintings…and you’re gonna *hawk* them for me. For now! *Just* for now! Find you a Pawnbroker, most reputable one you can, and sell them at the best price they’ll give you. I know, I know, I hate it too…but gimme a month, and we’ll have the pencil pushers from Lanleich off your backs, and already be buying back your precious pieces! I promise you!

    “Now, I don’t have to tell you this stuff is very, very hot…but I’ve got a way around that.” Lynch pulls a rough, yellowing business card from a wallet with her satchel which contains her “Contact Book”. She hands it over to Patricia’s free hand. “Take it to this address. Be safe! They’ll get your collection certified by an appraiser, and officially catalogued. We can have it all on paper, signed-and-dated that these items are legally by-rights yours….property rights have been *spotty* this past year, if you haven’t noticed!…and after that, you can ask once-and-a-half, maybe twice the asking price when you go. Get you both a bit of a security net, just in case they pull something even worse next time.”

    ---

    Lynch would like to make a pull from her bag to offer the Owners of the bar a Business Card…which will contain the contact information of a person who can officially appraise and lend legitimacy to the Crawley’s Collection of either Art or War Memorabilia, to protect them legally/increase the payoff on sold items

    ---

    Lynch get serious with the old coots now. “Now, I need to say a couple things, before I just hand em’ over. One- Don’t give up the Art *and* the War Trophies…I know you love them, and it might just be the *death* of you both to part with them all at the same time! Two- if you feel uncomfortable, with any of this…of if you want me to try to see if I can move this stuff, and keep the heat off the two of you…just say the word! But next time you two get in a pinch, you’d better damn well have the good sense to let me know about it first!” Lynch, gathering all of her courage, swipes the cigarette from Patricia, and takes a drag, reveling in the sacrilege of the act, and enjoying playing “grown-up” to her found family…

  • Endless_SerpentsEndless_Serpents Registered User regular
    edited March 2021
    Leo
    dlzn0508z1iw.jpeg

    Funny thing, to see time ticking away from the other side. Your senses linger on how new the whole place feels, as if no one has yet to visit since it was built a few days ago. You mean, a few decades or more ago. Weird.

    On a peculiarly short table you find a hammer and chisel. Tools cast from raw iron, well used but robust and cared for. They’re placed in a cross right smack in the middle of the table, as if they’ve been waiting for you. Another thought strikes you; how strange the very idea of a clock is, to make time. Who makes time? Do people define it, or is it a matter of physics, like heat or friction?

    The room you find yourself in is very spacious. You wouldn’t have thought the clock tower was this wide from the passage and spiral staircase.

    I’d like a flashback please! Yours to detail! Then act as you please, there’s no threat here.

    Lynch
    Patricia and Martin’s dance from angry to fearful to embarrassed to grateful over the course of your speech. They’ll do as you’ve asked, and...

    “We owe you one. Bless your soul child. You shouldn’t have to help us out! Bless you, bless you.”, coos Patricia.

    “If you ever need to hide anything, or anyone, we’ll help you. I promise.”, Martin whispers, is arms full of curtain.

    I’d have made that a challenge of persuasion, but that was a grand post! Good use of the pull-out-a-item system.

    Over the next hour you learn the requirement for new, expensive licences has hit flavus people over the past month, synchronised with several upper class restaurants and bars owned by Langleich nobility cutting into the city. You’ve saved your pals, but overall flavus people are being forced out of ownership. Pubs and the like are just the start. For now they’re picking on a minority, but anyone with any sense can see the Langleich intend to take control beyond military occupation. The future, you see, is one where they don’t need the military, your country will simply be their country.

    Do you have any questions? Perhaps you’d like to make use of Patricia and Martin’s good will somehow?

    Endless_Serpents on
  • mrpakumrpaku Registered User regular
    "Patricia?," Lynch says, handing the
    smoldering cigarette back to the older woman with reverence, and a certain apologetic nature. "....that old Shotgun you got hanging above the bar....does it still work, after all these years?" Lynch is *subtle*, but not very: she cracks her knuckles, and grins that devilish grin she has. "If yer looking for a buyer, making sure the hardware works, could buy you an extra...hundred or so. I'm not doing anything later, so *I* figured, if you had any extra ammo lying around to test, maybe I could...."

    Lynch wonders how open Patricia and Martin are to loaning out their Shotgun for the evening, with any spare ammo they have lying around

  • Endless_SerpentsEndless_Serpents Registered User regular
    edited March 2021
    Hit me with a roll!


    6, you get it, no questions asked.
    4-5, there will be a consequence... they’ll need some concrete assurance, or perhaps they’ll not lean the ammo.
    1-3, there is a twist... the shotgun is a tricky old thing, or, well, you don’t see a problem coming...

    Endless_Serpents on
  • mrpakumrpaku Registered User regular
    Geth roll 1d6 for Walk Tall, Carry a Loud Stick

    Walk Tall, Carry a Loud Stick:
    1d6 5 [1d6=5]

  • Endless_SerpentsEndless_Serpents Registered User regular
    Lynch

    Martin spies you with one eye, then has a split second conversation with Patricia with nothing but her raised eyebrows. They’ve decided.

    They hand over the shotgun, and 20 or so shells of bird-shot. Up close or aimed just right you can still do some awful maiming with these, but they’re not lethal.

    “The rounds got damp so I’m not sure how good they are. Hope you don’t mind my asking, but would you clean her up after use? It’s bound to get black with these cheap old shells.”, Patricia says with a sigh.

    You day is coming to a close. I reckon you could investigate one more place, meet up with another hunter at their present location, or spent the rest of your time modifying the shells into something approaching lethal, though if you do, I’ll give you a concrete number of shells to fire.

    s2a2m4uo8s7h.jpeg

    Outside a thin, chest high layer of fog has rolled into the city. Folks pull their collars up to their necks and keep moving. Looks like it’ll be a cold evening and a colder night ahead.

  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    Click, Clank, Click, Clank

    The sounds of the clocks from inside the tower are exactly what you would expect, only louder. Up close, it was just on the edge of uncomfortable. Yet, there was something mesmerizing about it, something that would draw you in. Leo walks to the table, looking down at tools laid in a cross on the table, and his mind goes backward.

    He opens the door carefully and quietly. His grandfather didn't want him coming into his workshop, too afraid he'd break something that someone from the village was paying him to make. Leopold couldn't contain his curiosity, however, and now he found himself sneaking into the wooden structure that was adjacent to the house his grandparents lived in. There were wooden slabs everywhere, pieces of wood reclaimed from other work, sanded down and reused in ways that their original owners would have never been able to do. There was a pile of scrap as well, wood found or claimed from different places around town where people didn't want it. The smell of sawdust permeated the air, with only the whiff of wood stain interjecting.

    Leo crept towards the workbench, a sturdy table against the wall where various tools were hanging above, and where a single piece of wood had been secured to the table with some wooden clamps. Leo reached up and ran his hand along it, feeling the smooth grain where his grandfather had been sanding it down. He didn't know what this piece was even for, but he had seen his grandfather working before so he could see the tools he would guess were being used. His hand drifts towards one of them, a piece of metal attached to a wooden handle with pointed edges. He should have known better, but in his childish innocence, he reached out to one of the edges, wondering what it felt like. A sharp prick, a stab of pain, and red blood now escaping his finger were his reward.

    "Sharp isn't it?" A gentle voice spoke behind him.

    He spun around quickly, holding his finger, the pain already having ended but the blood still escaping. His grandfather stood there, calmly watching. He moved forward, grabbing a rag off a nearby table.

    "How about we clean you up, and then I show you how these work?"


    Leo returns from his moment, still staring at the tools on the table. He smiles wistfully, a happy memory. He had considered, for just a moment, grabbing the tools and leaving with them, but the memory of his grandfather's workshop reminds him how important tools are to their owner. He couldn't take these and possibly deprive an artisan of something they need. So instead, he casually walks around the room, finding his face on the other side of clocks, peering out into the streets through the thick glass that separated outside from inside behind the metal hands that told everyone the hour.

    Leo took his time in exploring, but carefully, not wanting to put something out of place in this pristine environment. Still, he did need to prepare for the night, so after some time listening to the clocks, he wound his way down the stairwell, carefully peering around to see if anyone was looking, then hopped back into the streets.

  • Endless_SerpentsEndless_Serpents Registered User regular
    Leopold
    The clock tower is now your safe house. Even in the Midnight Hours you’re certain it will remain empty.

    Meanwhile, Lynch is skulking about outside*.

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    *Even in broad daylight and in plain sight, ‘skulk’ just seems the appropriate word.

  • Endless_SerpentsEndless_Serpents Registered User regular
    edited March 2021
    The evening is drawing towards night. It is damn cold.

    Leopold is about to leave the clock tower. As chance would have it Lynch is just outside, carrying something conspicuous in a roll of brown paper. Emmett and and Tomos are no where to be seen.

    Ask anything else you wish, and feel free to narrate a little back and forth between each other, then we’re on to the hunt.

    Endless_Serpents on
  • mrpakumrpaku Registered User regular
    Lynch breaks from her crouch-walk when she sees Leopold emerge from the Clock Tower. She looks around, but the Older Hunter Emmett seemed to be missing. Maybe they pinched him? Would he talk, if they did? Lynch buries her worries for the moment. Looking around to make sure no one else is within earshot, she puts her fingers between her two front teeth and gives a short, sharp whistle at the young man. Resting the paper package up on her shoulder (whatever it is is heavy, and she struggles a bit adjusting under the weight), she waves at Leopold and trots over warily. "Heya, Leo! Howzit with you? Busy night?"

    Lynch would like to compare notes with Leo, and figure out where we should go for the evening to continue the case. With all the religious clues Lynch was thinking either the Nunnery or the Church, both of which should be utterly horrifying during the hour of the Hunt

  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    Leo is a little out of it as he leaves the clock tower, lost in past memories and a general feeling of safety that he hasn't felt in quite some time. He doesn't even notice Lynch until she is right up next to him, which causes him to blink a few times and shake his head. "Huh? Oh, yeah, hey. Just, um, looking around a bit there." he says guiltily.

    "Though, now that I think of it, I did run into someone strange earlier...."

    Just to save time, Leo will share the strange encounter, as well as what he saw/felt in the Clock tower.

    I think I'd go with the Nunnery to start as where we're looking into the religious clues.

  • mrpakumrpaku Registered User regular
    They walk and talk. Lynch growls at the description of Alyss: she sounded like some sort of Langleich Special Agent, the kind they called "fixers". Lynch couldn't help but feel her paranoia perk up (Alyss stumbling upon Leopold must've just been some sort of *horribly* unlucky coincidence; right?) She tries not to let her concern show. "Yeah...I bet they were gonna fix up the streets, the bastards! Sounds like you did good, keeping your head down. An' that tower (appreciative whistle)...well, you could do worse, for a squatter. Ha! I know *plenty* that have..."

    Time grows short; the minutes of the evening tick away. Shifting the paper package to her other shoulder, Lynch tries to keep pace with the young man. "Hey, not so fast!...So, Leo... thinking with all the God-talk around this case, we might swing by and see if the Sisters know anything. You game?"

  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    "Yeah, I didn't want to draw any attention to myself. It was just so...odd. Unsettling. That's the right word. I just felt uncomfortable just standing there, more than just because they were Langleich." Leo shivers involuntarily.

    He slows down when Lynch reminds him, silently chastising himself for not paying more attention to his companion. Walking fast was normal for him, but he was usually better about slowing down to meet other's pace. The reminder of his encounter with Alyss had distracted him enough to cause him to forget and speed up. "Sorry, habit." He responds. "Sisters? Yeah, that seems like a good lead. Not sure how religion is playing into all this, but it definitely seems like the clues are pointing that way."

  • Endless_SerpentsEndless_Serpents Registered User regular
    The sun is not far off setting.
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    The nuns won’t be taking visitors at night, unless perhaps you concoct some story... A young couple in exile from brutal families? Runaway siblings, one of which is quite mad? Regardless, investigators of any stripe won’t be entertained at this hour, so perhaps you’d rather just break in during the Midnight Hours after some sleep back at Lynch’s place.

    For this hunt, I’ll be putting Leopold in the lead if a consensus cannot be reached.

  • mrpakumrpaku Registered User regular
    Lynch would be fine with Leopold taking the lead this evening (after his successful on-the-job training last night, she's eager to show that she trusts him). She would be on-board pulling the "runaway siblings and the sister is super kooky" ploy, *OR* simply heading back to her flat to rest until the Midnight Hours (possibly converting up that shotgun ammo to lethal shot, if there is time before bed!)

  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    Leopold has more confidence in his ability to sneak in to someplace than his ability to lie, so he'd rather not try any story. Plus...lying to nuns feels like a think that he'd want to avoid if at all possible.

  • mrpakumrpaku Registered User regular
    I think Lynch *loves* the trappings and blind faith and ritual aspects of the Church, but would have *very* little respect for most of the clergy and authority figures found in organized religion (plus, she almost certainly has a bad history with *at least* one nun)

  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    We can discuss that when we're breaking in, but if you're deferring to Leo on this one, he's going to say wait till Midnight.

  • Endless_SerpentsEndless_Serpents Registered User regular
    Six lethal shotgun shells are lined up like soldiers. The rest a birdshot, but that’s good enough to blindside someone, or some thing.

    The windows are frosted over. Snow falls slow outside, slower than you think it ought to—water has strange properties in the Midnight Hours.

    Street lamps remain unpowered as usual, save for one a couple houses down. Yellow light tempered some by burnt glass illuminating snowflakes as they pass.


    Lynch
    You woke up a bit before the nightly freezing of time. You’re in your room, curtains open to the snowy night, some yellow light occasionally filtering over your doorless closet and other poorly fitted furniture.

    Leopold
    You wake up cold. The floor is wooden and, yeah, your back is killing you. You think you’ve been shot for a moment—then you make coffee.

    Leo’s eyes only.
    You got up clutching The Katerina, an ornate pistol Emmett found.

  • AustinP0027AustinP0027 Registered User regular
    Leopold opens his eyes slowly, feeling pain in his back, briefly wondering what he did to himself. He sits up, feeling muscle stretch and contract, small movements driving stiffness away slowly, consciousness coming on more strongly to help him realize that he just needs to get himself some sort of bed, otherwise, this will be a regular occurrence. He went to raise his hand to wipe at his eyes, only to find it weighed down by something. Looking down, he blinks a few times as he realizes what he was holding. How did I get this? It was the pistol that Emmett had found, Leo had seen him using it. But, they hadn't seen Emmett in a while, and now this pistol was in Leopold's hand. It was strange, to say the least, and certainly something he would need to talk to Lynch about.

    Standing up fully, he sets the pistol down for the moment and bends and twists to loosen up his back further. Thankfully he was young, so he could rebound from this easily, but he made a double check on the mental note of finding some bedding material when he could. He started packing his bad now, it was close to the Midnight hours, and he needed to get ready to go and meet Lynch. Once he was content that he had everything, including the pistol that he still couldn't explain, he set out to meet Lynch close to her place. They had a nunnery to break into tonight, which he wasn't sure how he felt about as a general action, but they needed to track down whatever it was that had killed the actor, and unfortunately for Leo, the trail led them this direction.

  • mrpakumrpaku Registered User regular
    edited March 2021
    Lynch straps on her full armament, taking care to tick off from a list to make sure that she has each item in place before she leaves the house. She puts on her heavy coat last: given the busy day, she hadn't had time to get it properly clean, only a mild wash (and vigorous scrubbing) the night before. She grimaces a bit as she puts the duster on, and the stuck-on blood and grime *snap and crackle* disturbingly as she loosens up the material.

    She grabs her bag and procures one last thing: the shotgun, newly cleaned and neaty fitted with a strap. Slinging the borrowed boomstick over her shoulder and onto her back, Lynch takes a deep breath and prepares her mind for the Long Night ahead...

    Lynch will head into the night with her usual care to meet up with Leopold. She'd be assuming that they were going to make for the boat first, and then from there navigate as close as we can get on the river to the Nunnery

    mrpaku on
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