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Scene: School Hallway at night. Moonlight pours in from an expansive wall of windows glints off the white tiled floor. Through the window, we get a glimpse of the expansive grounds. Unlike other schools, Aspire Academy does not have lockers lining the hallway, as textbooks are all expected to be accessed through the student’s tablets. Suddenly, one of the classroom doors flies open, and a balding man in a brown suit and eyes wide with terror stumbles backwards through door, falling onto his butt. Without getting up, he frantically pulls himself away from the door. Then, he tries to turn over and rise to his feet, but he just ends up falling onto his face. A shadow falls on his prone form. The camera looks down at him just as he turns his head to look back up at whatever is casting the shadow. A hoarse, offscreen voice says, “Fool.” The man screams. The screen cuts to black. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Roll Opening Credits! *A violin version of Aspire Academy alma mater plays over a sweeping shot of the grounds as the show title fades in* “Aspire’s Angels” *Hard cut to a door being kicked in at night as the cast look through the shattered doorframe at the camera. The electric guitars kick in, and the energy of the song jumps up to an eight.* * (TEXT: Alicia Cole) Alicia walks through the crowded halls of Aspire, heads turning as she passes. Alicia coyly whispering something to a teacher as her eyes gently glow Alicia’s face on a computer screen, talking about makeup as she vlogs. Alicia’s hands glowing as she slings magical bolts off-screen. *Pool of blood spreading across the school floor...* *(TEXT: Becky Donegal) Becky thrown up on a perfect basket toss followed by a perfect front flip. Becky pouring over a tome opened to a page labeled “Charm of the Mountain Hair” Becky daydreaming in class. Becky in a letter jacket, sitting at a desk while she points to a can of Diet Coke in her hand, causing it to visibly frost up. *Black cat with emerald eyes* *(TEXT: Halla Petersen) A fully armored Halla standing upon a hill, overlooking the Academy, practicing her sword strokes Halla in her world, battling a monster in the middle of the street Halla delivering a brutal tackle in lacrosse Halla looking puzzled at a make-up compact in her hand *Flash of beings chasing other beings in a graveyard* *drumroll* *Runic circle with glowing candles and a shadowed figure in the middle* *(TEXT: Keely Donovan) Keely spinning a spear around while wearing a mish-mash of chainmail and modern clothes Keely in normal school clothes, barging into someone off-screen with an awkward cringe followed by a smile. Keely performing a divination under the moonlight Keely charging up the lacrosse field and scoring *Scary monster to be seen later in the season* *(TEXT: Bianca Deveraux) Bianca sits crosslegged, headphones on, eyes squeezed shut as the other students pass her by Bianca nursing a drink during a legacy party Bianca’s hair standing on end as she has a powerful vision Bianca rocking out on drums with her band as strobe lights flash *Group slow-motion walking down the dark school hallways with a go-get-em feel. (TEXT: Directed by Capfalcon) __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Everyone, the whole school has been talking all day about the news. By the sounds of it, there was a break in last night that went bad. Poor Mr. Kindle, the philosophy teacher, was working late last night, and from the sound of it, they wheeled his body out this morning. The north wing of the second floor has been roped off, and a security guard has been posted to make sure that no one goes down the hallway. Were any of you taking Philosophy as an elective? If so, what made you want to do that? Either way, classes are over for the day, and you're in the School Safety Committee room. What do you do? Keely, Also, you get an e-mail saying: "Received word that abomination present at your assigned vigil. Retrieve sample for ritual library." Is that a normal request? What was one of your previous missions?
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# ? Apr 16, 2019 04:34 |
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# ? Apr 26, 2024 07:02 |
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Halla Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 I was indeed quite taken aback that I was unable to attend Philosophy class this morning. When I overheard the reason for such, I must admit I was given over to all manner of thoughts as to what, precisely, a footpad would be after in Mr. Kindle's room. Perhaps Philosophy professors were given to great excesses of wealth and my relative unfamiliarity with their existence blinded me to the ostentatious displays that Mr. Kindle kept in his office. But I somehow doubted it. My unfamiliarity with the world was primarily the reason for my interest in the class, after all. When I had asked about the various electives to be given to the students, philosophy had stood out to me. A class devoted to the learning of learning? Well, I had much to learn about how the people here thought, so I considered it a twofold purpose. First, apparently electives were mandatory here? Which seemed counter to the point but my understanding of this Earth's English was less than perfect so perhaps I misunderstood. Secondly, it allowed me to understand, to a certain extent, the thoughts of many who were considered exceedingly intelligent in this realm. And in fact, my confusion in this case was encouraged. Mr. Kindle had even stated that my acknowledgement that I knew nothing was close to a "Platonic ideal" for whatever value that provided me. I still struggled in the class, but it provided me ample opportunity to ask questions about this version of humanity's thought process, and here, at least, such questions were encouraged. Which made his death all the more frustrating, to me. Even if it was not a matter for the School Safety Committee, I had decided upon hearing the news that I would indeed be investigating into this death. When I found the scoundrel who had brought Mr. Kindle low, I would indeed visit all manner of harm upon him, a true culling as was proper. Such villainy couldn't be tolerated, after all. The room accorded to the School Safety Committee for after-hours assembly wasn't much different than the other offices given to the Professors of the Academy, at least to my eye. But there were of course nuances that I had yet to truly comprehend. Such as the use of flannel - which I had been coerced into wearing - primarily by Alicia and Becky who seemed to have a vested interest in making sure I "blend in", as it had been put to me. Whatever the reason, it was a confusing pattern - like the tartans of highland warriors, but belonging to no house. I was picking at the corners of the shirt regardless as I sat in the room, considering how best to begin my investigation into the death of Mr. Kindle. "What is the best method by which one may skirt the local constabulary? I have a need to see the scene of the crime." I stated, relatively unprompted, to the club at large. quote:Look:woman, warrior's body, hastily scavenged modern clothing, mystical amulet LifeGetsWorser fucked around with this message at 06:29 on Jun 11, 2019 |
# ? Apr 16, 2019 06:26 |
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Bianca, the Spooky Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 Good news, no classes today. That's an upside. That's the kind of thing Mister Kindle would have encouraged us to think about - the "secondary and tertiary lives of primary events". Doubt I'll ever think of that phrase not in his voice. My thumb angrily dismisses the hearing alert. The whole school's sad, all the emotional waves syncing up and peaking at the same time running the risk of swamping me. My hand shakes when I adjust my headphones. Getting into the academic part of school helps, with most of the distraught students over in the dorms or the rec areas. Some distance. Head hunched, I skirt around the back of the room and jump up into one of the big window sills that doubles as a heater, scooting to settle and half-lean against the window. "Pretty obvious when a rent-a-cop's been sword-murdered," I tell Halla. quote:Name: Bianca Deveraux
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# ? Apr 16, 2019 22:21 |
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Alicia Cole | 7 Luck | 0 Harm (Stable) | 0 XP Well, it's never good to hear that someone bit it. Especially not around here. I mean, it's really on two levels: first, that means that there's a monster on the loose. The dangerous kind. Second? It means that I'm going to be up late running through the halls again. I post a quick tweet about how Mr. Kindle will be missed and retweet a few of the more authentic reactions. Some of the people here actually took philosophy, I guess. That done, I scoot up next to Bianca on the sill, sneaking an arm around to hold her close. I can tell that she's been getting some vibes off the whole thing... can't really imagine what it'd be like to be so in tune with the negative. I whisper, "How are you holding up, babe?" More loudly, to the room, I say, "Well... I have a better idea that murdering him. Give me a minute or three and I can talk him into letting us by — and forgetting that we were there." quote:Name: Alicia Cole
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# ? Apr 17, 2019 02:06 |
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Keely, The Initiate Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 I hate e-mails. Always like some sort of bad spam, coming to sell me magical ways of... Right, nevermind. Samples are rare, most of the time they just want things done. Occasionally scouting out, usually just protecting someone from something or taking some monster out of things. Most memorable task they gave me was keeping up with what they told me was a Jersey Devil. Did you know those things could fly? Well, now you do. I mean, luckily for me, they don't fly very well, but it involved tracking it down to a.. nest? Whatcha call a horse-bat home? One of those. Tagged it, mission complete. Don't think those things are actually all that harmful unless you piss them off. Hell, at least I heard about Mr. Kindle first. I don't take psychology, but he seemed like a good teacher from the few times I had to talk to him. No one deserves to get torn up by monsters. Well, okay, nearly no one. No one here for sure. Main reason I didn't take it was because I couldn't take it and the.. Life skills class at the same time. Look, now that I'm pretending to be into cosplay with at least one person, I better figure out how to do that stuff. Anyways, not important, there's a monster murder and it's time to switch to game face. Gym clothes are the order of the day, not because I'm making some sort of fashion statement, but because I was expecting more of a run than looking at a corpse. But I guess we gotta know what we're up against first. I sit across from Halla, not trying to intrude on Bianca and Alicia. "I mean.. I appreciate a good.. you know what, that's a little gross given the current situation. So, we're already using some magic? We could just run him around then lock him in a closet or something. Don't think anyone wanted to cut him anyways. Well, not really." Keely Donovan, The Initiate posted:
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# ? Apr 17, 2019 03:01 |
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Bianca Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 I stiffen my back at Alicia's touch. We're doing this? We're being public? Serious? "I want to stab everybody in the temple," I hiss into her ear. "Or my own for efficiency." "You could just drug his coffee," I say, with the same tone I told that foster mother who'd run around the house searching for the keys that were in her hand. "Or just switch him to decaff."
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# ? Apr 17, 2019 03:15 |
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Becky Donegal | 7 Luck | 0 Harm (Stable) | 0 XP "We're supposed to be a secret society, Keely, we can't just go around locking people in closets and handing out concussions. Those have like, serious long term affects." I take a seat at the end of the table, half flipping through my phone. "Alicia should be able to charm him no probs, and if we need to do a little extra mind wiping, whatever. You know what's REALLY weird about this whole thing, though? I haven't heard a single credible rumor. Nothing about blood drained or looks like he was scared to death or eyeballs missing. Makes it SUPER hard to prepare anything when it could be ANYTHING." I pointedly ignore Bianca and Alicia. The Fae are known for their allure, but Bianca can hold her own... probably.
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# ? Apr 17, 2019 03:23 |
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Location: Second Floor Hallway The hall is deserted aside from all of you and "Officer" Huey Moss. Past the yellow caution tape used to rope off the hall, you all see a large white sheet on the ground outside the Philosophy classroom, presumably where the body was found. It looks like there's nothing under it but the ground. Officer Moss is a portly man in his late thirties with a white polo shirt with the Aspire logo on the chest and a security officer badge pinned to his belt. He's one of the multitude of security guards that stalk the grounds of the school, even though they're usually in force like this only at night to prevent townies from getting up to mischief. He's only armed with a radio and pepper spray. When he sees you all approach, he hoists his pants up and then puts up a hand in a stop gesture as he says "Sorry ladies. I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to move along. It's a beautiful day outside. Surely you'd like to be out on the grounds on a day like this, right?" What do you do? Capfalcon fucked around with this message at 04:04 on Apr 17, 2019 |
# ? Apr 17, 2019 03:57 |
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Alicia Cole | 7 Luck | 0 Harm (Stable) | 0 XP Bianca may be playing hard to get, but I bet she appreciated the moral support. Dunno why she's so antsy, though! I mean, Halla crashed date night when she tried to, y'know, cleave me in half. It's not like we're an SSC secret item! Ah well, I bet I just need to keep working at her. Maybe I do need to ask Mom for some of the really fun Fae treats... that'd loosen anyone up. As we rally and head towards the cordoned-off area, sure enough, we've got local legend Officer Mossy Rock (or something) on the case. I wave at him and flash a brilliant smile as our eyes meet. I'd talk up his willpower a bit, but c'mon. It's over before it starts. I've met marshmallows that put up more of a fight. As he falls under my thrall, I say, "Aw, no need for that, Officer Moss. We're supposed to be here, since we're helping with the investigation! It's hush-hush, though, so don't tell anyone we were here." I grin back at Bianca and the girls. "While we're here, why don't you get us up to speed? Tell us what you know about what happened to Mr. Kindle." quote:SidekickBOTToday at 8:01 PM Tricky fucked around with this message at 17:41 on Apr 17, 2019 |
# ? Apr 17, 2019 04:32 |
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Halla Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 After my initial thought had spiraled off into the other girls discussing what to do and then just...going forth and doing it without additional pre-amble (or input from myself, I should add), we found ourselves before the constable. I frowned a bit at his patronizing tone - it was an unfortunate constant of my existence in this realm, something I had become rather used to, at least so far as I was used to the annoyance of it. I supposed that if Halla Petersen had indeed exchanged places with me she could at least consider herself lucky to not be forever more talked down to by her peers and fellows - though as she lacked my experience in hunting demons perhaps she was being patronized to...bah! I banished the idle thoughts from my mind as Alicia set about hypnotizing the constable. The Changeling had assured me that she was indeed on the side of good - and I chose to believe her if only because her boon companion Bianca had seen a glimpse of my world - if Alicia had much in common with the Faerie-folk from Ebonmire surely she would have said something? So instead I crossed my arms, feeling rather exposed without armor or a blade, but ready to defend my fellows nonetheless if it came to it. LifeGetsWorser fucked around with this message at 05:38 on Apr 17, 2019 |
# ? Apr 17, 2019 05:22 |
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Location: Second Floor Hallway Officer Moss' eyes cross for a second as he tenses up, then he relaxes and smiles. He says, "Makes sense to me." He lifts the tape for you all to let you through. Once you're all through, he casually continues, "It's a shame how Mr. Kindel went. Looked like he was scared to death, but of course, I'd be scared too if I was clubbed to death." He shakes his head as he talks, continuing, "Whoever broke in really had it in for him. I mean, he must have had a half dozen broken bones before he finally kicked the bucket." His unnatural smile returns as he says, "Anyway, I'll let you girls get to work. Let me know if you need anything." He drops the tape after you've all passed and returns to standing guard. Anyone who looks under the sheet finds a tape outline of the body, with a large dent in the tile where his head was. The dent in the floor has cracks spiderwebing out through the surrounding tile. It's been mostly cleaned up, but blood has seeped into the cracks. Location: Philosophy classroom. The classroom, though, is trashed. All the windows are cracked, with a few broken. The normal circle of desks is broken as a number of them are overturned. All along the walls is written "FOOL" in large, red letters. The papers on his desk have been haphazardly stacked, making you think that they were previously scattered across the room in a struggle. For those of you who haven't been here before, the classroom seems very spartan, as there is very little in the classroom other than desks, chairs, an old overhead projector, and a shelf of philosophy texts in the corner. Those who have taken this class know that Mr. Kindel was not a big believer in tablets, preferring the feel of a book in his hands when he lectured. Investigation Start! Capfalcon fucked around with this message at 14:26 on Apr 17, 2019 |
# ? Apr 17, 2019 12:03 |
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Bianca Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 Becky's right, Alicia could charm anybody. That should make me more nervous than it does. I wink quickly at Alicia when she smashes a smile towards us. Moss...well, how's he to know? He doesn't do magic, he can't read minds, he's not...whatever Halla is. He just thinks we're silly teen girls. I pull my head down a bit as I slide past and into the classroom. It feels different, the entire vibe. This used to be a place of learning, now it reeks of death. I stand in the middle of the room, amid the circle of desks - Mister Kindle encouraged us to be Socratic - and take in a deep breath. "Let's see if there's more than one word here," I say. SidekickBOTToday at 11:09 AM @Platonicsolid: 2d6+1 Investigating the Classroom, with Telepathy and The Sight = (6+4)+1 = 11 Holding 2. Spending 1 to asking "What is being concealed here?"
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# ? Apr 17, 2019 16:10 |
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Location: Philosophy classroom Bianca: There's nothing else written on the walls. As far as other unseen things, you get a bit of a mental sucker punch as soon as you open your mind to the ambient energies in the room, but you're able to clamp down your guard before it does more than surprise you. But you know one thing: Whatever killed Mr. Kindle hated him. Truly, absolutely hated him.
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# ? Apr 17, 2019 16:33 |
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Bianca Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 Nothing as simple as theft, then. Personal. Very personal. My breathing's shaky. I can feel the sweat at my hair line. Spending the other Hold on "What sort of creature is it?"
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# ? Apr 17, 2019 16:42 |
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Location: Philosophy classroom Bianca: There's no sign of forced entry, and looking down, you confirm that there are glass shards down in the bushes. Combined with the fact that you're not sure a human is capable of hating someone that hard, and you're pretty sure that you're dealing with some sort of spirit.
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# ? Apr 17, 2019 17:10 |
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Bianca Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 The feelings fade as I let go of the channeling. A few quick stumbles and I'm leaning against the big desk, catching my breath. "Definitely not human. Spirit, I think. A very, very, *very* pissed off spirit."
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# ? Apr 17, 2019 17:20 |
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Becky Donegal | 7 Luck | 0 Harm (Stable) | 0 XP Becky blows her hair out of her face and snaps a photo of the FOOL on the wall. "Well, that's just fabulous. Think he pissed off a dead philosopher enough they came back?"
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# ? Apr 17, 2019 17:31 |
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Alicia Cole | 7 Luck | 0 Harm (Stable) | 0 XP I let Bianca do her thing while I shuffle through some of the papers. When she says her piece, I hop into the conversation and add, "Maybe, but I don't think Moss was kidding about him being scared to death... I bet all the damage happened after he bit it."
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# ? Apr 17, 2019 17:41 |
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Halla Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 "If it is indeed an unclean spirit," I began, "then we should determine what a man like Mr. Kindle would have done to have given such a creature cause to assail him so, and to slander him even in death. Has he any controversy surrounding him? As a philosopher, his was a trade in thought and ideas. Perhaps a rival had reason to see him brought low?" Personally, were it my world my entire line of reasoning would be laughable. But humans here seemed petty enough for such acts.
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# ? Apr 17, 2019 20:15 |
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Alicia Cole | 7 Luck | 0 Harm (Stable) | 0 XP "Controversy, huh? I haven't seen anything blow up on social media, but..." I flip out my phone and begin trawling through every relevant platform. Twitter... nothing pops. Likewise on Instagram. Facebook is a cesspit, but sometimes that's just what you need when you're looking for dirt. It takes a fair few minutes, but I start finding some promising talk in some more exclusive circles. Private groups and the like, the sort of place where Aspire trades the real dirt. My eyes widen a bit as I take it all in. I say, "Wait, scratch that. I think I've got something here." quote:SidekickBOTToday at 12:24 PM
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# ? Apr 17, 2019 20:30 |
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Keely, The Initiate Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 Of course. Gotta get a sample of a ghost, or spirit, or specter or whatever. Maybe next time they'll wait for me to tell them what we're up against. More likely to get an actual report, which'll happen half past never. Still, gotta focus on the job at hand. "How do ya piss off a dead philosopher?" Focus. "Is that blood?" I move up to the word written on the wall, looking at it closely but being very careful not to touch it. First rule of crime scenes and monster hunting. Don't touch things if you can avoid it. OOC posted:
The Lore Bear fucked around with this message at 00:46 on Apr 18, 2019 |
# ? Apr 17, 2019 20:36 |
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Location: Philosophy classroom Alicia: Even your keen eye for drama doesn't notice anything unusual. If anything, Mr. Kindel was the model teacher. Even students who didn't do well in his classes begrudgingly admit that he is nothing but fair. But you do detect some curious posts. There's a few panicked Facebook posts from his family that suggest a home invasion and vandalism. Mr Kindle posted an hour later that the police have assured him his house is secure at the moment. Keely: The words aren't blood, no. It isn't paint, either. It looks a lot like it. More interestingly, as you look closer, the words are identical to the point of the unnatural. No difference in strokes or anything. There is blood in the room, though. It looks like there are traces of at his desk, a small splatter where the desks were knocked over, a bit on the doorknob out of the room, finalizing where his head was clubbed on the tile. It doesn't look like there was much of a fight, but Mr. Kindel was beaten to death.
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# ? Apr 17, 2019 21:10 |
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Alicia Cole | 7 Luck | 0 Harm (Stable) | 0 XP I look thoughtful, "Huh, looks like something similar happened at his house before this. Guessing whatever spirit did this isn't chained to the school. Maybe it was anchored to him personally?" Tricky fucked around with this message at 15:05 on Apr 18, 2019 |
# ? Apr 17, 2019 21:15 |
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Keely, The Initiate Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 I tilt my head to the side, looking at the different bits of the words. Whatever it is made of, I definitely do not want to touch it. "Not blood. Not paint. Maybe ink? Can't tell. Definitely not going to touch it. Probably got something magic on it." I follow the blood patterns, all the way to looking back out the doorway. "Well, he definitely was bludgeoned to death. Unless the spirit stood him back up just to carry the fresh corpse and bash him in the head a few times. I'm going with Mr. Kindle trying to get away, not very well, then.. Yeah, I think the rest of you can fill in the blanks." I look over towards the others, then shrug. "If it was anchored on him, there'd be some sort of remnant, right? Or a line?"
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# ? Apr 18, 2019 00:52 |
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Bianca Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 "They haven't done that since the Greeks, Halla. You know Plato won Olympic medals?" Somehow I know I'm going to regret saying this. "Or...it's with the body."
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# ? Apr 18, 2019 02:22 |
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Becky Donegal | 7 Luck | 0 Harm (Stable) | 0 XP "Alright. Everybody stand back. Well, not everyone. For my next trick, I will need a volunteer." Okay, Becky. No need to panic just going to... ya know... open a window to the past and try to view a murder. There's probably a market for this on Craigslist now that I think about it. Just need my ritual knife. A scraping from the big Fool on the wall. That should have enough emotional energy. "And apparently Halla will be my lovely assistant. Rest of you scared of a little blood? Hold this will you?" I hand Halla the shaving with my left hand, and make a tiny pinprick with my knife on my right palm, and then take her hands in mine. "Repeat after me. Venta ao pasado, venta ao pasado, venta ao pasado..."
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# ? Apr 18, 2019 02:25 |
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Halla Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 Becky's preamble was entirely unnecessary. I was used to assisting her in her spellcasting, by now. It was a relatively simple thing, given the assistance she had shown me, both in fending off dangerous foes and in helping me adjust to this world - and it reminded me of my brother, besides. So, I clasped hands with her and listened to her words, doing my best to follow along. "Venta ao pasado, venta ao pasado..." LifeGetsWorser fucked around with this message at 04:14 on Apr 18, 2019 |
# ? Apr 18, 2019 03:33 |
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Location: Philosophy classroom Becky: The spell starts to get away from you, but Halla's tight grip focuses you. You feel a bit of excess energy of the spell flow into her, though. Have you ever tried to look back in time like this before? As the spell takes effect, you see the world go greyscale and start to rewind. Everyone quickly leaves the room, then there's no movement for a while until the body is discovered, then the body of Mr. Kindel is lying there, staring dead eyed in your direction. Finally, there is a blur of motion and Mr. Kindel is sitting at his desk. He hasn't noticed the word "Fool" on the walls of the classroom yet, but it doesn't take him long. Once he does, he almost falls out of his chair. As he scrambles to get out ofthe room, you see a tall figure, at least seven, almost eight, feet tall stand up from behind his chair. As it pulls itself fully erect from behind the too small chair, you see that it is wearing a brown duster and broad brimmed hat, and it has nondescript human features underneath the hat. Nothing you can really get a bead on. It's like your eyes just slide off it. The murder takes place as you companions theorized, with Mr. Kindel staggering through the circle of desks and the spirit brutally clubbing him and he tries to escape. The only unexpected part is when Halla pops into the scene after Mr. Kindel died. Halla, however, doesn't seem insubstantial like yourself. You think she actually got sent back a dozen hours. Then, as you have watched the scene you were concentrating on, the spell stops and time fast forwards back to the present. Also, you just watched a brutal murder. You... uh... you doing ok? Halla: As you hold Becky's hands, you feel an electric shock that clamps your hands tighter against hers. Then, you're holding on to nothing and your hands close into fists in the air. As you get your bearings, you realize that it's dark in this room, with the only light coming from moonlight. You look around and see a tall figure out in the hallway, standing over the broken body of Dr. Kindle. It's hard to make out in the moonlight, but you do see the figure wearing a long, brown coat with a broad brimmed hat. You can't see what is underneath the hat in the darkness. In one hand, it holds an axe handle made out of a dark wood. The handle is dripping with blood. Then, it sees you. You can't see any eyes under the broad brimmed hat its wearing, but you have enough experience as a warrior to know when you're being sized up. After a long moment, it seems to lose interest in you as it raises its axe handle over its shoulder and turns to walk away And then you pop back into the present. Everyone else:: Halla actually does blink out of existence for a few seconds, complete with a slight pop.
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# ? Apr 18, 2019 03:55 |
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Halla Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 Well, this was different. Though, I suppose, not entirely unforeseen. I had crossed space and time to get here to begin with, so I didn't spend more than a moment to get my bearings. Which was fortuitous, as the murdering footpad was indeed in the adjacent hallway. I could sense their gaze, gauging my abilities. I clenched my fists and lowered into a ready stance - if the villain thought me easy prey because I was unarmed and unarmored, it would be sadly mistaken! But then, it turned and continued on. Apparently, not considering me enough of a threat to spend time on. I would have been offended, but I recognized I had a rare opportunity here - either I was a few hours in the past and thusly in a fresh crime scene and would simply need to wait until I caught up with everyone else, or this was a temporary disruption, and I had moments. Either way, I glanced hurridly around the scene of the crime, and even attempting to memorize my foe's stance and movements, attempting to garner whatever information I could before... ...before the lighting changed back and the others were present again. "Well, that was interesting..." I mused. @LifeGetsWorser: 2d6+1 reading a bad situation = (5+6)+1 = 12 Would like to spend the 3 to ask: Are there any dangers we haven’t noticed? What’s most vulnerable to me? What’s the best way to protect the victims? LifeGetsWorser fucked around with this message at 06:18 on Apr 18, 2019 |
# ? Apr 18, 2019 04:29 |
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Keely Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 I march across the room, using all my self control to not step in anything important while glaring at Becky from about two steps away. "What the -hell- was that? Halla just went somewhere for a few seconds without warning. What happened?!" Look, I don't wanna be hard on my cousin but it isn't like we haven't shouted at one another before. Just.. well, not about anything that's mattered.
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# ? Apr 18, 2019 05:52 |
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Becky Donegal | 7 Luck | 0 Harm (Stable) | 0 XP "Oh, hakuna your tatas Keely. I just opened a tiny window to the past and, as it turns out, Halla isn't exactly well anchored to this reality. Just gonna file that away for later... But we saw it happen." Hoooooo boy, did we ever. I need to take a seat. It was just an echo... mostly. But seeing it happen in front of me... Several deep breaths later, time to lay it out while the memory is still fresh. "He was big, 7 or 8 feet. Dressed like a cowboy? No features... that's not quite right. He might have them but I couldn't see them. Or can't remember them? Beat him to death. It's no cover up, whatever killed him seemed ANGRY. Halla? Did you see the same?"
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# ? Apr 18, 2019 06:05 |
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Bianca Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 Magic. Right up there on the list of things I would never have thought I'd be involved with, along with 'reading minds' and 'making out with Alicia'. Life's strange. I edge back as the scene plays out. Edge back and I find myself bumping against Alicia, before I realize it, not having actually *planned* to. Then Halla disappears. "F..." I hiss. "Becky! Did you break time!?"
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# ? Apr 18, 2019 13:35 |
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Philosophy Classroom: The Past Halla: Your eyes quickly scan the room as the figure retreats more gracefully than you would normally expect something that size to move. No extra dangers you notice at the time. It isn't a very subtle assailant, after all. The monster is technically the most vulnerable thing present, but that's only because nothing else is here. From the brutish strength evident in its attack, it might be more than a match for you. As far as protecting victims, the key would be getting to them before it attacks. From what you overheard from Alicia and her unnaturally keen sense of gossip, it isn't likely that this was the first time Mr. Kindle encountered the creature. If some of you find another victim before it reaches a fatal attack, you might be able to save them. Then, the room fades again until all is dark. And then you're back in the present. Capfalcon fucked around with this message at 14:29 on Apr 18, 2019 |
# ? Apr 18, 2019 14:12 |
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Alicia Cole | 7 Luck | 0 Harm (Stable) | 0 XP When Bianca bumps into me, I find her hand and give her a comforting squeeze. I always forget that she's, y'know, kind of new to all this. I mean, okay, I'm not used to murder either, but the magic is pretty routine now. And... luckily it looks like Becky didn't banish Halla to some hell dimension. I say, "So our spirit friend has a corporeal form? That's... a mixed blessing, I suppose."
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# ? Apr 18, 2019 15:36 |
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Halla Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 "It was armed. An axe, well, the handle at least." I state in response to the questions. "This foe may be beyond me, or any of you, it had no regard or worry about my presence." I pause, considering everything I had taken in. "Thankfully, it does appear to be working alone, but I do not believe, if it is a spirit, that it considers its task complete. I think it will strike again elsewhere - we should investigate Mr. Kindel's home for signs of the preliminary assault - if it has a pattern, that pattern is likely to repeat with a new target." LifeGetsWorser fucked around with this message at 22:10 on Apr 18, 2019 |
# ? Apr 18, 2019 20:12 |
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Keely Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 "Should probably check the morgue too." I say, keeping my eyes on Becky still and narrowing them so she still knows my tatas are definitely not hakuna. "Could be a thing making it target the owner. Cursed or haunted. We want to split up? Just focus on one?"
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# ? Apr 18, 2019 20:27 |
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Alicia Cole | 7 Luck | 0 Harm (Stable) | 0 XP I hmm and haw for a moment, then say, "I'm not gonna go to a morgue on a haunting. That's just bad news all around. I can talk to his family, though."
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# ? Apr 19, 2019 00:09 |
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Becky Donegal | 7 Luck | 0 Harm (Stable) | 0 XP "Don't be such a worrywort Bianca. I can't BREAK time. Well, I mean, maybe, but I'd need a full coven and the lunar alignment has to be just right and i'd need like, a big rear end diamond and WAY more blood. I just took a peek through a window. And Halla fell through. But she came right back! Time is kinda elastic like that." That... that was actually not super great. It takes a minute for my heart to stop pounding as the other girls squabble. And Keely is still staring daggers. "Even if we split up, nobody goes anywhere alone. This thing knows who Halla is now, and we still have NO clue what pissed it off."
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# ? Apr 19, 2019 00:55 |
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Bianca Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 My fingers twine with Alicia's, through some reflex I didn't know I had. Corporeal form. So we could hit it. Halla could hit it. Probably Becky, with a kick. Not me, though. "You'll keep saying that right up until you do, Becky," I say flatly. I look sidelong at Halla. "So....Halla could be bait?"
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# ? Apr 19, 2019 02:04 |
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# ? Apr 26, 2024 07:02 |
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Halla Luck:7/7, Harm:0/7, Unstable?:no, Experience:0/5 "Then I will accompany Keely to this 'morgue'. I fear no haunting." Whatever such a place was, it sounded like a repository for spirits. While I had no particular attunement to such entities, certain ancient graveyards in Ebonmire were possessing of a 'thin veil', as my brother put it - where even the uninitiated may speak to the long departed. If these morgues were at all like that, then there may be clues there. I chose to ignore the bait comment - because that did not seem to be a wise decision.
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# ? Apr 19, 2019 04:40 |