[Day: Thursday, May 12. Time: 11:00 p.m.] [As per Mr. Madrax's request, you went to his sister's house and destroyed a poltergeist. Yay. Her husband may also be dead, but whatever, a deal's a deal. So presumably you returned to his club after (unlessyou're sticking around to talk to the cops? Wouldn't reccommend it, though.] (... is he dead?) ( Are you sticking around to find out? ) (You said everyone's okay!) (It doesn't take long to figure out if someone's dead.) ( I said you failed a diagnostics roll :P ) ( Or rather Dicey said that. ) (I failed the first one.) (Post-combat?) d2 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Brett (d2) and gets a natural 2 for a result of 2. (Your closing brackets were, in response to me asking about checking if people were alive, [Everyone's ok! End]) ( You told me to say that :P ) ( Gimme a med. (diagnostics) roll ) 2d6+6 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Michel (2d6+6) and gets a natural 7 for a result of 13. ( Oh crap, 3E! D: ) (Yeps.) ( Uh... ) d16 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Brett (d16) and gets a natural 11 for a result of 11. [He's not dead! Yay!] [ANYWAY, it's really pretty irrelevant in the long run, since upon your return to Madrax's club, you find it somewhat on fire.] [Start] Oh my... [The cops and firemen are already there. They're trying to put out the fire, but it's not going well.] * Eric blinks at the blazing building and emergency services. * Michel didn't get someone killed through failed diplomacy rolls earlier today, so that's good! He squints at the club and rubs his face, before saying, "I am way too old for this... see if you can find Madrax in the survivors, huh Doc?" He steps out of the car. (And I'm not even that old?) * Eric nods and searches through the survivors. [Paramedics are there, too! And so is Louis Franchek, who's apparently the only detective on the police force in the city. Or at least, the only one I feel like using :P] [And several onlookers. Looks like the Elvis impersonator made it out ok.] ( .067% chance that it actually is Elvis! ) [There's a FWOOM! as the a backdraft causes the flames to suddenly surge.] * Michel walks up to Louis and tips his hat slightly. "Good to see you again, Louie. Think the firefigh--" he winces, then finishes, "--need any help?" [He chuckles humorously. "Not unless you're good at sorting out which pile of ash used to be who.] * Michel sighs slightly, then mutters, "We had a contact in there... on trackin' down the roommate." Just convenient enough timin'. [He frowns, actually looking genuinly concerned. Maybe it's just the light... "Damn. Well, looks like someone didn't want him talking. This was arson, no question about it."] * Eric searches the area, not that he can find much what with the fire and loads of people around. [Eric doesn't spot any immideatly obvious vampires. Neither Madrax nor any of his henchmen can be seen.] * Michel nods a little, then runs his hand back through his hair. "And that puts us all out of leads." [Louis pulls out a cigarette and lights up. "At least, it would make sense if that was the case. But we know Madrax dealt in drugs. There were plenty of people who could have had a grudge against him."] [He offers a cigarette to Michel.] ( Don't worry, they won't be bad for you for 20 years! ) ["Sorry. Wish I could help ya out, if only for the kid's sake."] * Michel takes one from him and nods, getting his flame off of Louis. "We tracked him down through another dealer..." * Michel then waves the cigarette holding hand, before taking a drag. "Thanks." [He nods. "Madrax has people selling his drugs all over the city."] ["Been stepping on a lot of people's fingers, carving out his empire at the expense of other dealers."] * Michel is silent a moment, then says, "The names Carmilla or Harrington mean anything to ya?" [He frowns. "Carmilla runs a few bordellos and Harrington's in charge of some Jap subsidary. Why? What do they have to do with Madrax?"] * Michel replies, "He mentioned them first time we met." He takes a drag. "Might be involved with the killing." [He raises an eyebrow. "How so?"] * Michel is silent a moment, then, "You know the method he was killed?" All three of 'em share the MO. * Michel takes another drag. "Them n'their people." ["We don't know for sure he's dead yet. All we've got are some bodies so badly burned that they're nigh unidentifyable. But if Madrax survived the fire, he didn't stick around here."] * Michel shakes his head. "The kid at the campus, I mean." * Eric eventually comes back round to Michel and Louis, since there's noting to find. ["Oh, that case."] Yeah. * Michel glances to Eric. "Find anything?" ["Sorry. We've still got nothing."] "I'm afraid not..." (... Michael was trying to hint that Carmilla and Harrington might be involved by saying that those two share that method of killing.) (He figured they had nothing. He's passing along the hint Madrax gave him.) ( Ah. :P Well, he wouldn't know. ) ( He still has no idea how the killings were performed. ) ( Killing. :X ) (... he didn't even see the needlepricks?) (Oya.) ( He did. Doesn't account for the body being entirely drained though. ) (No, but telling him that they use that MO for their killings should help him?) (Aaaanyway.) * Michel nods slightly and exhales smoke upward. "Great. And I have no idea where he'd go to ground." [He shrugs. "Can't help ya there."] (*realizes what you meant, wraps the log*) * Michel nods a bit, then rubs his face and says, "Alright, well, thanks." [He nods.] * Michel turns away from Louis and takes a few steps away, to talk to Eric. "Well, that's damn perfect. Now we're back to Brody, and the mysterious oriental." "Perhaps we should check out this woman then. Unless you think we can 'shake' some more information from Mr Brody. Is that the right term of phrase?' * Michel mms, then says, "Close enough." Drag, exhale. "We don't know where she is either, though. Although if she's a... uh, hunter... she'll probably find her way to one of the other two Madrax mentioned eventually." Since I figure that's what he means. "Hmm..." * Michel then flicks the cigarette away. "On the other hand, Brody might be able to give us a little somethin' on her. Maybe hearin' his supplier got lit on fire'll get him talkative." He heads back towards the car. "Sound good, doc?" "Fair enough...the only other option would be to flip a coin on where she might be likely to go, after all." * Michel nods and slips in the car. They're running out of night. To Brodyland! [Time: 11:30. You return to Brody's apartment building. The light is on in his flat.] * Michel parks and gets out. He knows where it is this time, and so heads up. hands in his pockets... well, once the doc joins him. * Eric gets out of the car, patting his shoulder holster and following Michel. * Michel heads up, then! [You go to Brody's apartment! The lock on the door is broke. No surprise there. What may be a surprise is the place is trashed. Again. And this time there's no Brody.] * Michel pushes his way in with his elbow, draws his gun, and looks around. Without touching anything. [Yep. It's trashed. That's twice in one day.] (The glamorous life of a drug dealer.) * Eric searches the room. * Michel says, to Eric, "Too bad everyone's asleep. Nobody's gonna have seen nothing." ( Mmm.. Gimme sight rolls ) 2d6+5 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Michel (2d6+5) and gets a natural 9 for a result of 14. 2d6+8 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Eric (2d6+8) and gets a natural 7 for a result of 15. ( Actually, smell would have worked too ) [Because both of you notice that while Brody might be gone, whoever took him didn't take the weed.] * Michel frowns, then says, "This definitely ain't about drugs." "Evidently. Though that still doesn't bring us any closer to finding the boy..." * Eric checks out the window. [All's quiet.] * Michel nods slightly and replies, "Yeah. Yeah it doesn't." * Michel rubs his face, then looks at Eric. "It's late. Been a long day. We're out of leads. You want me to drop you off at home?" * Michel looks around. "Maybe pick this up in the morning? 'Cause otherwise, it's a coinflip and a stakeout." (There's two places and two of us, we could call one another if...oh wait, if only someone had invented mobile phones already. -_-) (Telephone booths!) (Wait, we still can't call eachother.) (Yup) * Eric frowns, "I suppose so." [There must be something we're missing here... ] (Yeah, but what?) (We have 5 locations: the murder scene, brodyland, the (ruins of) Black Dawn, the office, and the non-haunted house.) (We have three leads: the (missing) Brody, the (missing) woman, and the (missing) Madrax.) ( Want me to cut to the next day, or you got more to do? ) (Cut to next day, I guess.) IThink we're goin' with next day.) (+() [Day: Friday, May 13th. Time: 9:00 a.m.] (This looks slightly like a game of Clue...) (It's pretty fun!) (I just wish the spirits would talk to me more.) (Well, Michel doesn't.) [Once more, you return to the offices of Mystery Club. Well, really, it's just one office. The broken squeaky fan isn't doing much to save you from the heat, and you better believe it's another hot day.] * Michel 's got coffee again today. Heat doesn't mean no coffee! He's actually scribbling on a piece of paper, probably in an effort of trying to spark a thought. Who knows, maybe they'll get a useful phone call. * Eric goes over the evidence they have so far, and searches his memory for anything they might have missed. * Michel taps his pencil on the desk a moment, then says, "Well, at least we took care of that ghost in the middle of all that chasing, huh?" He chuckles faintly and leans back with a slight groan of his chair. "Everything you ever hoped for, Doc?" [There's a knock on the door, and then it's opened! By a tall gentleman in a nice brown suit. He's got blue eyes and wavy, somewhat long blond hair. "Greetings, gentlemen," he says, his voice having a slight accent.] "Hello, Mr...?" * Michel blinks and sits back upright to look at Mr. Aryan. [He removes his hat. Did I mention he has a hat? Well, he does. A fedora, in fact. "I understand you take on unusual cases. I'd like to hire your services. The name's Tavin von Haupt."] (... oh, what the heck.) * Michel frowns a touch, before saying, "Yeah, unusual's about the way to refer to it." * Michel gestures at the chair and adds, "Have a seat, Mister Haupt. What's your case?" [He nods. "Excellent." He sits down, crosses one leg over the other, and pulls out a photograph. "I'm looking for this man, Doctor Klaus Gutenberg."] (I assume no immediate recognition.) [The man in the photo is a balding 50-something. He's got beady eyes, glasses, and a head shaped like a balloon. You don't recognize him, no.] * Michel glances to Eric a moment, then back to Tavin. "He's a little odd lookin', sure." He chuckles slightly at the joke in that, then takes a sip of coffee. "What is your relationship to this man, Mr Haupt?" ["He is in your country illegally. In fact, he has been for decades now, and it would hardly be a problem, except East Germany is looking for him, too."] * Michel blinks, then says, a little lower, "... for somethin' in particular?" ["You could say that. The man has invented a virus that alters one's genetic structure in ways you can't imagine. Unpredictably, mind, but still... Try it on a thousand people, and even if 999 die, one might end up with abilities beyond that of any human. We believe the communists are willing to take that risk."] * Michel blinks, then slowly leans back in his chair. "Wow. That's... some story." * Eric gets that usual look of curiousity on his face, "Fascinating..." ["Herr Hitler himself was in support of the project. I'm sure you've heard of his plan to create a master race? It went far beyond mere selective breeding."] * Michel nods slowly, with a slight grimace on his face. "I think we heard, yeah." "I see...and you believe the man is here, in New Orleans?" [He nods. "Then you can see why we need this man found. We do believe he is here, yes. In fact, I've been to his apartment already." As is the reaccuring theme of this game, he hands Eric a note with an address written on it. "Unfortunately, our communist friends got there first."] * Michel squints slightly. "So you... want us to track him down before they put 'im on a boat, and tell you so you can sweep in?" [He nods. "I'm not asking you to fight our battles for us. We just need to find the man."] * Michel sucks in his lower lip a moment, then looks over at Eric, then back to him. "Got anything except Reds, the photo, and an address?" [He shakes his head. "Afraid not."] * Michel mms, before he looks over at Eric, looking for a nod or something indicitive! * Eric sighs and nods. ["So, do we have a deal?"] (Assuming money can be worked out!) * Michel looks back to Haupt and, possibly after some money discussions, replies, "Alright, we can take your case." You gonna leave us a number we can reach you at? [He nods. "Excellent. I hope to hear from you soon."] [He rises, slipping his fedora back on, bowing as he does. "Gentlemen." Then he leaves!] * Michel watches him go, and then he chuckles and looks over at Eric, saying, "Two cases in two days. When it rains it pours, huh?" "I suppose so...well, as long as we're stuck for leads on the Leblanc case, we might as well work on this one..." * Michel nods and replies, "I just wish we were getting real rain." He glances at the phone. "... and maybe a secretary, in case Louis calls." He stands up slowly. "He gave you the address, right? Only place to start." * Eric nods. * Eric gets up and puts on his holster and coat. * Michel gears up as well. "Didn't think I'd be lookin' for German scientists. That other Germans were lookin' for." * Michel downs the last of his coffee before heading the out. [Time: 10:15 a.m. You get to Gutenberg's apartment, a simple square 4 story building with red siding, on the north edge of the city.] [Gutenberg liveso n the 4th floor. No need to try to figure out which is his!] * Michel doesn't try, then, as he heads up. * Eric follows along behind. [The lock on Gutenberg's apartment is destroyed! It's Brody's all over again! Except without the weed. And the place doesn't really look trashed, either.] * Michel pushes in to search. "You ever get the feelin' we're doin' the same thing over and over, doc?" ( It's like the game rebooted! ) [The apartment is a pretty nice one. It's not the pigsty Brody lives in. It's neat and organized. There's a deck on the upper floor, and a balcony out the window.] ( brb :X ) "Well, one of my former students wrote a fascinating article on temporal recursi--" * Michel glances over at him as he tries to carefully rifle through stuff. "Yeah, Doc? Find somethin'?" (no, I was just expecting Michel to cut him off or tune out. :P) (brb2) (Ha.) (He probably did tune out!) ( Back. Sorry ) [The phone rings.] (... to the apartment?) ( Yep ) * Michel freezes a moment, glances to Eric, and then moves over near the phone. (I'm waiting on Eric, kinda debating whether he should be the one to pick up.) ( K ) * Eric picks up the phone, "Er...hello?" [On the other end, "Doc? Is that you? It's Jeff."] "Ah, yes...hello Jeff." ["Listen, Doc, those commies are still after you. I got a place to hide you, though.... Shit, I gotta go. Meet me at Johnny Flat in thirty minutes, ok?" He hangs up without waiting for a response.] * Eric smiles at Michel, "A friend of the doctor's will meet him in Johnny Flat in half an hour. Pity he got the wrong doctor." "Do you know where that is?" * Michel rubs his head, then nods slightly. "Good job holdin' your cool, there." (Do I?) ( Gimme an urban tracking roll! ) ( Or... Navigation ) ( Or.... Whatever it is in 3E >.> ) (There's area knowledge) ( Works! ) (Well, there's area knowledge, or urban tracking, yes.) ( Area knowledge ) 2d6+8 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Michel (2d6+8) and gets a natural 5 for a result of 13. (I know my city.) [Michel knows it! It's a bar that's not too far from Gutenberg's apartment.] * Michel nods slightly and thumbs towards it. "Yeah, it's a bar just down the way." We got a few bits, let's finish up here. "Well, we should check this place quickly and then head there then." * Eric nods, and starts searching. ( Sight rolls! ) 2d6+8 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Eric (2d6+8) and gets a natural 3 for a result of 11. 2d6+5 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Michel (2d6+5) and gets a natural 10 for a result of 15. (Whew, that was close.) (You got screwed on that roll.) [After some quick searching, neither one of you finds a lead on the doctor.] "Well, best head to the rendezvous then..." * Michel lets out a sighing breath, then goes, "Yeah," as he heads for the door. [Time: 11:00 a.m. You head to the bar! Which is really more like a tavern. It's a corner place that has a number of tables, as well as... well, a bar. There's very few people there right now: A bartender, a waitress, four men and an old woman. Two of the men are talking about football at the bar. They're both talking about different teams, not listening to each other.] [Occasionally they hiccup.] (Can't drink all day if you don't start in the morning.) * Michel heads in to find a corner table, so he can watch people coming in. Especially paranoid people. [There's also 40-something man at a table, reading a news paper, and a 20-something sitting in the corner. He looks up anxiously as you enter, then quickly turns his attention elsewhere.] * Wingdance is now known as Melanie * Eric sits with Michel, 'reading' a paper. * Michel looks over at Eric, saying, quietly, "Think it's that kid?" * Melanie , a short young woman with curly red hair tied up in a high ponytail, hurries over to Michel and Eric. "Hi there. I'm Melanie and I'll be your server today. Here are the menus... would you like something to drink?" (What age did the guy on the phone sound, roughly?) ( Late teens to early thirties. ) "Er...whiskey please." Single or double? "Single, thank you." * Melanie turns to Michel. "Anything for you, sir?" * Michel looks up at Melanie. He's a green-eyed guy in his late 30s. "Uh... a normal coke, thanks." * Eric nods at Michel to indicate it could be that guy. Sure. Be back in a jiff. * Melanie heads back to the bar and lets the bartender know the order. [He nods and starts preparing it.] * Michel lets Melanie walk off, then replies to Eric with, "You wanna handle him, or should I try to guide him back here?" [The 40-something calmly sips his tea.] * Michel does glancea at the menu a moment. Meat and potatoes, burgers, or what? "Hmm...no you'd better handle it. Acting on the phone is easy enough, but in person is a bit more difficult..." ( Yah, standard simple stuff. ) * Michel nods and says, "If she comes back and the guy hasn't bolted, get me the cheeseburger platter." He shifts sideways and stands up slowly to trundle over near the guy. [As Michel gets up, the door opens, and three men walk in. They're all wearing black pants and black jackets, despite the freakin' heat. They glance around a bit, then one of them points at the twenty-something guy.] Shit. "Oh dear..." [His eyes widen as they start walking towards him, then he bolts towards the back of the bar. The guys in black hurry after him.] * Michel puts his hand under his jacket and yells back at Eric, tossing the keys towards him, "Bring the car around back, Doc!" and then runs after the guys and the kid. * Eric nods and heads out to the car. * Melanie yells, "Hey, you didn't pay your bill!" after the fleeing guy. [Then he screams and trips as one of the guys fires a gun at his leg. The others also pull out guns, and one of them says in a thick Russian accent, "Americans, be calm! Lie on the ground with your hands over your heads and nobody has to get hurt!"] * Eric drives the car out to the back. ( Erm... ) (I'm not sure Eric made it that far!) (or he will) ( They would have stopped Eric. ) (oh, right.) (On his way out? I thought they were all, you know, chasing.) (Thought they'd be going past me?) (Yeah.) ( They don't have to. They shot him in the leg. ) (... you said they hurried after him.) (Did that not involve moving? ^^;) (I mean, if it didn't, then Michael didn't have to move, and he can just put one of them down as they draw their guns, because he was already drawing too.) ( Mmm... That's true. Still, does Eric wanna try to go for the door when they've got guns out? He can, but it's going to affect them :P ) (Well, uh, I was mid-draw, so I'm going to have my gun out too. And I'm not playing hostage games, which means I'm firing right after they shoot the kid.) ( K. Thennnnn... We should prolly end. ) (Okay!) [End!]