Difference between revisions of "Logs: Bigfoot and Other Mysteries"

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<center><font size='3'>'''''Portents'''''</size></center>
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<center><font size='2'>'''''Portents'''''</font size></center>
  
 
''The Ritemaster has dreamt the last week. The dreams are all different but there are some common themes amidst the imagery. A bloodless heart, the thick white membranes and muscles pulse around the black coils of a horned serpent. Flashes of a coastal town, mountains, and giant redwoods with spots of decay, moldering wood and motes of black flit through the air unseen by the residents. It's the sound though, a lowing on a frequency that Russ understands is Banespeak. Though low and distant it sings to Russ and even in his waking hours, it needles at him. A low hum under everything else he hears that gets louder when he faces north.''
 
''The Ritemaster has dreamt the last week. The dreams are all different but there are some common themes amidst the imagery. A bloodless heart, the thick white membranes and muscles pulse around the black coils of a horned serpent. Flashes of a coastal town, mountains, and giant redwoods with spots of decay, moldering wood and motes of black flit through the air unseen by the residents. It's the sound though, a lowing on a frequency that Russ understands is Banespeak. Though low and distant it sings to Russ and even in his waking hours, it needles at him. A low hum under everything else he hears that gets louder when he faces north.''
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      Blowing a big bubble the size of her face and popping it, Emi scrunches her nose as it lands all over her face. "I forget are Uktena the Indian's with the feather or the dot?", she asked while cleaning her face and scooping gum back inside her mouth. Listening to Russ, "Yeah, what he said.", nodding along. Blowing another bubble, "Very exciting and scary. Big banes sleep for a reason. But we all gotta die. Them is da rules.", snapping the bubble into her mouth. Emi grins, "Could you imagine being a gross vampire. Living forever. That's true punishment. But their blood tastes like candy."
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Blowing a big bubble the size of her face and popping it, Emi scrunches her nose as it lands all over her face. "I forget are Uktena the Indian's with the feather or the dot?", she asked while cleaning her face and scooping gum back inside her mouth. Listening to Russ, "Yeah, what he said.", nodding along. Blowing another bubble, "Very exciting and scary. Big banes sleep for a reason. But we all gotta die. Them is da rules.", snapping the bubble into her mouth. Emi grins, "Could you imagine being a gross vampire. Living forever. That's true punishment. But their blood tastes like candy."
 
   
 
   
 
Stefan is also smoking in the back seat. But he is rarely without a hand-rolled cigarette or joint hanging out of his mouth. "I need to learn more about how to deal with spirits." He looks over at Emi, "Candy? I heard it was addictive or some shit."
 
Stefan is also smoking in the back seat. But he is rarely without a hand-rolled cigarette or joint hanging out of his mouth. "I need to learn more about how to deal with spirits." He looks over at Emi, "Candy? I heard it was addictive or some shit."
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Pembroke fishes into his bag, and there's a clinking of bottles and rustling of fabric. "Well, I can puppetmaster a local or two, but I need to be in the line of sight, or at least where I can hear 'em, to keep hold. Though if they have useful info, I can yank it out. Scouting... I can't /quite/ go full mouse or bat, but I can come fairly close." and he waggles a finger at Emi. "I am not for eating."
 
Pembroke fishes into his bag, and there's a clinking of bottles and rustling of fabric. "Well, I can puppetmaster a local or two, but I need to be in the line of sight, or at least where I can hear 'em, to keep hold. Though if they have useful info, I can yank it out. Scouting... I can't /quite/ go full mouse or bat, but I can come fairly close." and he waggles a finger at Emi. "I am not for eating."
 +
 +
 
<Atramentous Union> Russ says, "You know your kinfolk better than I do, are we prepared to take on a whole hive of Uktena tonight?"
 
<Atramentous Union> Russ says, "You know your kinfolk better than I do, are we prepared to take on a whole hive of Uktena tonight?"
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 +
 
<Atramentous Union> Eris says, "No. But we're equipped for scouting. One's a Mind Reader, the other can pretty much do anything with technology.."
 
<Atramentous Union> Eris says, "No. But we're equipped for scouting. One's a Mind Reader, the other can pretty much do anything with technology.."
 
   
 
   
 
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Eyes wide, Emi looks at Stefan, "Have you never had candy? It's totally addictive, we need to get you hooked on Sugar-Banes. It's a white powder you must inhale with a straw through your nose. Very popular out here.", grinning at the team. "I got a hoverboard you can use. I'm a very stealthy fox.", licking her teeth. "Why use magic to become a mouse? Did Long Tails talk to you?", shrugging. "So don't get caught, no combat. Spy and observe?"
      Eyes wide, Emi looks at Stefan, "Have you never had candy? It's totally addictive, we need to get you hooked on Sugar-Banes. It's a white powder you must inhale with a straw through your nose. Very popular out here.", grinning at the team. "I got a hoverboard you can use. I'm a very stealthy fox.", licking her teeth. "Why use magic to become a mouse? Did Long Tails talk to you?", shrugging. "So don't get caught, no combat. Spy and observe?"
 
  
 
   
 
   
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Pembroke does as suggested and hops out for a little leg stretching. "At least this beast has some legroom, and I'm not riding in the trunk."
 
Pembroke does as suggested and hops out for a little leg stretching. "At least this beast has some legroom, and I'm not riding in the trunk."
 +
 +
 
<OOC> Eris says, "https://goo.gl/maps/vZktw99HzXqKL2D7A"
 
<OOC> Eris says, "https://goo.gl/maps/vZktw99HzXqKL2D7A"
 
   
 
   
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      Emi goes silent, Russ needed to concentrate and she knew her prattling could be inane. Blowing another large bubble and popping it as loud as possible, it was her final way of shutting up and getting serious. Eyeing, Pippin the mouse with a grin and rubbing her belly. Emi's spirit emoji speaking for her as a figurine of death sprinkled out the words, "Not Today, little mouse", before slowly vanishing. Emi slowly getting out of the car as Eris had to refuel it. Blowing another bubble, "Do you think Bigfoot has a big dick? They say you can tell by the shoe size.", looking at the statue from a distance.
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Emi goes silent, Russ needed to concentrate and she knew her prattling could be inane. Blowing another large bubble and popping it as loud as possible, it was her final way of shutting up and getting serious. Eyeing, Pippin the mouse with a grin and rubbing her belly. Emi's spirit emoji speaking for her as a figurine of death sprinkled out the words, "Not Today, little mouse", before slowly vanishing. Emi slowly getting out of the car as Eris had to refuel it. Blowing another bubble, "Do you think Bigfoot has a big dick? They say you can tell by the shoe size.", looking at the statue from a distance.
 
   
 
   
 
Russ pops out of the car when they get to the gas station and he does his creepy Theurge thing, stalking off into the distance to stare at the sky and listen to voices no one else can hear.
 
Russ pops out of the car when they get to the gas station and he does his creepy Theurge thing, stalking off into the distance to stare at the sky and listen to voices no one else can hear.
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Emi seems to be talking and listening to the spirits, it just appears like a crazy Asian girl talking to herself. No way was she listening to the stories of the past and how dull they were, no wonder spirits fell asleep - Emi, almost fell asleep. Listening to Big Foot talk about ancient Native American cultures and planting trees just wasn't fascinating for her tiny fox brain. "Skip.", she whispers to the statue blowing through countless years of boring minutiae. "Oh wait... wars. Sure...", listening to another fifteen seconds. "Skip.", and nodding with diligence. No one might truly know how bad Emi was at her job, but Russ-but even then, he was doing his own research. "Skip...", blowing a bubble while probably annoying the hell out of the spirit. "Oh, drugs. Yeah... which ones? Skip.", taking the expedient cliff notes version of the local history. Giving a thumbs up to the others like it was going well, from a distance.
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Emi seems to be talking and listening to the spirits, it just appears like a crazy Asian girl talking to herself. No way was she listening to the stories of the past and how dull they were, no wonder spirits fell asleep - Emi, almost fell asleep. Listening to Big Foot talk about ancient Native American cultures and planting trees just wasn't fascinating for her tiny fox brain. "Skip.", she whispers to the statue blowing through countless years of boring minutiae. "Oh wait... wars. Sure...", listening to another fifteen seconds. "Skip.", and nodding with diligence. No one might truly know how bad Emi was at her job, but Russ-but even then, he was doing his own research. "Skip...", blowing a bubble while probably annoying the hell out of the spirit. "Oh, drugs. Yeah... which ones? Skip.", taking the expedient cliff notes version of the local history. Giving a thumbs up to the others like it was going well, from a distance.
 
   
 
   
 
Eris hums and looks confused at Pembroke as she stuffs her armload of unnecessary supplies into the SUV and checks to see how far the pump is along. "I don't know anyone around here, no. Curious though that a place like this apparently has a high murder rate and ... I think I hear Emi over there talking to Bigfoot about drugs.. so either she's on some or.." She tugs her pale ear a little and casts about before spotting Russ. She watches him a moment before glancing at Pembroke and Stefan. "So it's a tourist trap with a high murder rate and Bigfeet and we're less than a dozen miles from a Reservation which always makes /me/ comfortable. Luckily this place looks touristy as shit."
 
Eris hums and looks confused at Pembroke as she stuffs her armload of unnecessary supplies into the SUV and checks to see how far the pump is along. "I don't know anyone around here, no. Curious though that a place like this apparently has a high murder rate and ... I think I hear Emi over there talking to Bigfoot about drugs.. so either she's on some or.." She tugs her pale ear a little and casts about before spotting Russ. She watches him a moment before glancing at Pembroke and Stefan. "So it's a tourist trap with a high murder rate and Bigfeet and we're less than a dozen miles from a Reservation which always makes /me/ comfortable. Luckily this place looks touristy as shit."
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[[Category:Werewolf Logs]][[Category: Wyrm]][[Category:Logs]]
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[[Category:Shifter]][[Category: Wyrm]][[Category:Logs]]
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[[Category:Emi]] [[Category:Russ]] [[Category:Stefan]] [[Category:Pembroke]] [[Category:Eris]]

Latest revision as of 13:05, 2 August 2020

Cast
Setting

Northern California: May, 7 2020
::All day

Log

Bigfoot and Other Mysteries

“Bigfoot was interviewed on The Patty Winters Show this morning and to my shock I found him surprisingly articulate and charming.”
- ― Bret Easton Ellis, American Psycho


Portents

The Ritemaster has dreamt the last week. The dreams are all different but there are some common themes amidst the imagery. A bloodless heart, the thick white membranes and muscles pulse around the black coils of a horned serpent. Flashes of a coastal town, mountains, and giant redwoods with spots of decay, moldering wood and motes of black flit through the air unseen by the residents. It's the sound though, a lowing on a frequency that Russ understands is Banespeak. Though low and distant it sings to Russ and even in his waking hours, it needles at him. A low hum under everything else he hears that gets louder when he faces north.


Russ is wearing a battered old fedora and a pair of mirrored aviator sunglasses over his eyes, he has a rawhide sack bag slung across his chest and he is dressed for a quest. A black hoodie, black jeans, and black combat boots set a tone for his attire. Under the hoodie, his forearms are covered in fresh bandages with small blossoms of blood over either wrist.

The Ritemaster is standing in the desert outside his ranch home, a dark parsonage just a few miles from the entrance to the Pit of Shattered Souls. He is facing the north and he has a pensive expression on his face as he waits there, glancing at the sky as if to check the time as he waits for.... something. An answer to the question in the north. Judging by his expression, he may just start walking north if he doesn't get an answer soon.

It takes some time for Eris to get from the city to the Pit. Something she may at a later date attempt to remedy with some sort of Moon Bridge but for now...

Eris pulls up in the SUV and parks it behind one of Russ' buildings before hopping out and snagging a couple of things from the back of the vehicle. Sebastian and Stefan are left to get their own things as she trots out to meet the waiting Ritemaster. Practically leaping on him and nuzzling into his cheek.. as always she's so happy to see him she has to annoy him. "Hi. So what's this about?"

Pembroke hops out of the SUV, traveling light, an old doctor's bag about all he has to drag out. He gives the pair their moment to nuzzle and get reacquainted

Stefan gets out slower, patting his pockets as he double-checks that he has all of his current toys. He runs a hand through his hair as he walks over to stand by Eris.

"I was wondering if you heard me..." Russ cuts a look over her shoulder and she nuzzles in close to greet him, he glowers at the other people arriving and admits much more quietly, "I've had this-" He gestures to his temple, "When I'm awake it's like a humming... under everything.. making it hard to concentrate on anything else." He inhales seriously and peels her off of him to get a better look at her reinforcements. "You're telling me you haven't heard it?"

Russ takes a few steps away from Eris and he lights a cigarette, he moves at an easy pace despite his paranoia and holds a hand up reverently as he asks, "Has anyone else felt the Spiritual disruption in the north? It speaks in the tongue of Our Father, I see flashes in my sleep of giant redwoods with spots of decay and a coastal town..." He turns with a finger up and pointing until he settles on a direction in the northwest, "That way."

Pembroke looks in the indicated direction. "My ties are pretty much to this world. I leave the other world to the pretty lady here. But if you're seeing rotting redwoods, whatever we're needed for sounds like it'd be on this side of the Gauntlet."

Eris shakes her head, "No. Not a thing." Eris replies, "Well other than you. YOu're the only other voice I want in my head." She coos sticky-sweet before laughing and stepping back to check that Stefan and Pembroke are as prepared as she'd like. Once the Kinfolk are all checked and Eris has fixed Stefan's hair for him she nods towards the SUV. "I'll drive, yeah, and you can tell us more about it on the way."


Stefan remains still for Eris' administrations. He shakes his head slightly as Russ speaks, "I haven't felt anything. But I'm not exactly a sensitive either."


"Fine, good. Let's drive then, I don't know the way exactly- only have a vague idea of the direction. Suppose I'll point!" Russ speaks with a Scottish accent that just gets thicker with annoyance when he finds out he's the only one hearing voices today. He goes to get into the passenger seat of Eris' ride, calling out to them, "One of you got a Siri?" He has no idea how the technology works and he normally doesn't condone the use of it, "Ask that dumb bitch if any newspapers 'round here reported dead redwoods. Those trees are old as fuck... someone's apt to notice when they up and get a fungus." He sighs and settles into his seat in the car, "I'm going to see if I can't figure out what's calling to us. Might be something older than the redwoods if it's feeding on them."


"We'll just get on the coastal highway and take the 101 up towards the redwoods. I mean that's easy enough." The Ragabash says before heading back towards the SUV. Once she's in and settled in for the luxury road trip she lights herself a cigarette and starts off on the highway, west and then north. "Siri?" She laughs the question before considering her Alpha for a moment and then glancing at the rearview to check the Kinfolk. She leans back into the drive since it's going to be a long one. She's quiet though so that Russ can try and figure out what his brain is trying to tell him.

Pembroke fishes his phone out of his pocket. It's a flip phone. Powered down. Doctor? Sure. He has a service for answering calls when he's busy, "Depends on how big the fungus is. That's a lot of space out there and a lot of ignorant people. I get the feeling we aren't sure if this is 'help out' or 'cover veil breach' levels yet?"


Stefan pulls his cell out of his pocket. "I have it," he tells Russ. He glances down at the device and it unlocks and responds to him. Any with Awareness probably sense a tingling as he controls it without bothering to tap on it.

Stefan says, "According to what I'm finding.. there have been 'outbreaks' of tree fungus for years in the redwoods and surrounding areas. They usually quarantine the trees by cutting the ones around the outer edges down and then do a clean sweep of all infected trees including tilling the earth. But it's not 'unusual', especially along the California coast.?


"Precisely." Russ says over his shoulder to Pembroke, "If the masses already know about it, I want to know what they know... there might be damage control on the Veil later." He nods to Stefan, "Tell us if you find out anything about it." He then sits up straight in his seat and looks dead ahead, leading them North West at first and then North when they reach the coast. "Something is calling out in the voice of a Bane, it could be a place? It seems like such a large distance for a spirit to cry." Russ then listens when Stefan elaborates and he narrows his eyes at some of the information, "In my dreams, I also saw a bloodless heart and a horned serpent..."

Eris rolls Intelligence(3) + Cosmology(3) (6 dice) vs 6 for 3 successes.

Russ rolls Intelligence + Lore Spirit vs 6 for 5 successes.


Pembroke is risky. No seatbelt. He leans forward to poke his head between the trueborn to look at where they're going, "Maybe it just likes you for some reason. Empathizing with some athlete's foot or something."


Eris's brow lifts, "Like... Horned Serpent Cerastes, Bashmu, Cerrenous' Ram Horned Serpent or like.. Uktena?" She lifts her hands from the wheels and makes moose horns with them before setting her hands back down. Good thing she has a great alignment. Pembroke's words gain him a /long/ look followed by a bark of laughter. "That's not all Russ has in common with Banes."


Russ rolls Intelligence + Lore Garou vs 6 for 3 successes. 1 1 +6 +6 +9 10 10


Stefan nudges Pembroke in the side. "Sit your ass back so I can see." The cell continues to swipe as he looks for any additional information. "Horned serpents were seen a lot in Native American cultures, linked with water."

Russ snaps his fingers a few times, "Antler-Serpents, Native Americans-" He smacks the dashboard with an open palm when it clicks, "Its Uktena. We're going run into some fuckin' Uktena out here." He gives a hearty toss of his head and snaps his hat off to smack it into his lap. Below it are short Puckish horns poking out of his hairline, "Its much worse than athlete's foot, lad."

Pembroke checks out the horns for a moment... "Nice rack," he comments. "Should I be ready for a fight, or scouting, or wait and see?"

The Ragabash's phone giggles like an anime girl and Eris plucks it up. "Hit me. You got it, I'll swing by and snag you." And she does, a quick detour and she snags up an Emi.

And then they're on the way in Eris' expensive ass tricked out SUV.

Eris chuckles quietly as she drives but her expression goes a bit sour. "Uktena? Great." She sighs quietly as she drives along. It's a long drive.. a long, -long-asss drive north. Thankfully once they hit Sonoma County and Santa Rosa and the coast from there the view is gorgeous and the windows roll down to let in the cool air in. It gives some time for folks to catch Emi up and then some. Eris stops at a couple of places along the way for food and a bag of saltwater taffy at a surf town.

Stefan says, "Any advice on how to deal with the Uktena? Other than the normal??


Pembroke naps listens to music and comments. "I wonder how long it'd take me to get a helicopter license..."


Russ purses his lip, "They're supposed to be one of the Gaian tribes but I've heard rumors that keep large Banes held prisoner as power sources, building ritual sites around them like nodes of a Caern. It isn't natural and they don't respect the power that they steal... we need to do something about this.." He is sitting in the front seat chain-smoking cigarettes and occasionally sipping out of a flask for most of the drive.


Pembroke snags a butt of whatever he's smoking to check out if the Theurge has something special, or just normal smokes. "So we're there to bring some pain, unlock a door, and keep the rubes from getting too curious in the process?"


Blowing a big bubble the size of her face and popping it, Emi scrunches her nose as it lands all over her face. "I forget are Uktena the Indian's with the feather or the dot?", she asked while cleaning her face and scooping gum back inside her mouth. Listening to Russ, "Yeah, what he said.", nodding along. Blowing another bubble, "Very exciting and scary. Big banes sleep for a reason. But we all gotta die. Them is da rules.", snapping the bubble into her mouth. Emi grins, "Could you imagine being a gross vampire. Living forever. That's true punishment. But their blood tastes like candy."

Stefan is also smoking in the back seat. But he is rarely without a hand-rolled cigarette or joint hanging out of his mouth. "I need to learn more about how to deal with spirits." He looks over at Emi, "Candy? I heard it was addictive or some shit."

"About a third of what she said-" Russ begins, gesturing at Emi before adding, "The big Bane is asleep for a reason and we very well might all die fuckin' around with something this big and scare but-" He rolls a hand through the air charismatically (his cigarettes are always cloves) and the smoke follows along after it, "We also might not die if we are careful, the plan right now is show up and scope the place out... if it looks heavily guarded we scout and leave."

Eris listens as they drive and her brows loft a little bit. She's focused on the drive mostly though and only just listening as they fly up the Highway. AS they pass the cities and vineyards of north-central Cali they start driving so close to the coast they're literally a stones throw from the water. Mist ebbs and flows through the various cities and towns that they pass as they drive up, passing Rockport and the Humboldt Redwood state park. Massive trees launch into the sky like giants and are so thick at times they blot out the sky completely.


Pembroke fishes into his bag, and there's a clinking of bottles and rustling of fabric. "Well, I can puppetmaster a local or two, but I need to be in the line of sight, or at least where I can hear 'em, to keep hold. Though if they have useful info, I can yank it out. Scouting... I can't /quite/ go full mouse or bat, but I can come fairly close." and he waggles a finger at Emi. "I am not for eating."


<Atramentous Union> Russ says, "You know your kinfolk better than I do, are we prepared to take on a whole hive of Uktena tonight?"


<Atramentous Union> Eris says, "No. But we're equipped for scouting. One's a Mind Reader, the other can pretty much do anything with technology.."

Eyes wide, Emi looks at Stefan, "Have you never had candy? It's totally addictive, we need to get you hooked on Sugar-Banes. It's a white powder you must inhale with a straw through your nose. Very popular out here.", grinning at the team. "I got a hoverboard you can use. I'm a very stealthy fox.", licking her teeth. "Why use magic to become a mouse? Did Long Tails talk to you?", shrugging. "So don't get caught, no combat. Spy and observe?"


The drive takes them through the redwoods, a winding drive through mountainous hills and seemingly vast endless trees. Some so big most cars, but not this SUV, can drive through them. North and north they go until they pop out on the other side of the redwoods in Humboldt County. Roadsigns indicate that over the next 40 miles there are places like 'Patrick's Point', 'Eureka', and Trinity. A roadside suggests an exit for route 299 or continuing up the 101. There are also all sorts of signs here for various Indian Reservations and attractions including one 'Bigfoot Collection Museum'.

Stefan pulls out his little mouse-like creature and double-checks him, "Pippin can help with the scouting." Laughs at Emi. "I can deal with drugs. I just don't want to become addicted to a vampire."

Pembroke makes a little round hold with his thumb and forefinger. "To squeak through small openings. Or to burrow in a pinch."

Russ waves a hand at all the talking happening in the car, "Shh.. everyone, just for a moment, shut the fuck up." He puts his head in his hands and then lifts it and gestures to the east, "I can hear its cry, so strange to hear a Bane crying... in pain?" He has a furrowed brow and he needs another long swig of booze before he remarks, "I think we have to take 299..." As they zip past a sign for it and he glowers out the window at it. Pembroke has reconnected. Pembroke has partially disconnected.

Eris says, "Towards the Reservation? Shocker." She laughs but she turns onto the 299. It's a broad bit of highway that starts to wind upwards into the mountains following a river valley. Redwoods still dominate the landscape but up here there are other types of trees and even sweeps of meadow across the wide-open wilderness. Willow Creek lessens to little more than a trickle that used to be a river dominating this part of the valley and they pull into a little community area. There is a bigfoot museum, a few small mom and pop hotels. Places to eat and little boutiques that sell hand made craftworks from the Hoopa Reservation to the North. Eris pulls into a gas station, "Why don't you folks stretch your legs while I gas up this beast." It's got a 50-gallon tank.. it takes a bit.?

Pembroke does as suggested and hops out for a little leg stretching. "At least this beast has some legroom, and I'm not riding in the trunk."


<OOC> Eris says, "https://goo.gl/maps/vZktw99HzXqKL2D7A"

Stefan quietens as he checks the camera in Pippin's eye. As they stop for gas he shrugs, "I can hit the toilet."



Emi goes silent, Russ needed to concentrate and she knew her prattling could be inane. Blowing another large bubble and popping it as loud as possible, it was her final way of shutting up and getting serious. Eyeing, Pippin the mouse with a grin and rubbing her belly. Emi's spirit emoji speaking for her as a figurine of death sprinkled out the words, "Not Today, little mouse", before slowly vanishing. Emi slowly getting out of the car as Eris had to refuel it. Blowing another bubble, "Do you think Bigfoot has a big dick? They say you can tell by the shoe size.", looking at the statue from a distance.

Russ pops out of the car when they get to the gas station and he does his creepy Theurge thing, stalking off into the distance to stare at the sky and listen to voices no one else can hear.

Pembroke glances at the museum... "Depends on if the internet porn is about a male human and female bigfoot, no. If it's the other way around, yes."

Eris rolls Intelligence(3) + Streetwise(4) (7 dice) vs 6 for 4 successes.

Umbrally this place is as it should be, the Gauntlet is thin and Naturae are heavy in the area. This little city, for as 'modernized' as it is is still just a small pile of webs in comparison to the overwhelming spiritual presence here. Banes are here but most of them are as they would be expected to be rather than swayed by the influences and glutting on the pain and toxicity of the city.

"Huh.." Eris muses, "Humboldt County. Isn't there like a fuckton of weed grown here... lots of murders and kidnappings too along the coast...?


Stefan comes back loaded down with brochures, maps of the area, and souvenir booklets, flipping through them quickly and absorbing every word in them.

Russ walks off into the trees and slips off his mirrored sunglasses, flipping them around, and looking into them he shifts across the Gauntlet into the Umbra. He whistles sharply, calling the closest Bane with at least an ounce of intelligence out of the ether of the forest. <<Come forth my children, who have heard the cries of pain in the night? Tell me of them!!>> He shouts in Wyrmish Bane-tongue as he wanders through the Umbral forest.

Russ rolls Manipulation + Leadership + 4 vs 6 for 0 successes.


Pembroke leans on the front of the vehicle, watching the people coming and going, especially anyone that seems ... rustic, Less so to families on vacation.

Emi rolls Perception + Occult vs 4 for 5 successes.


Stefan rolls Intelligence + Investigation vs 6 for 2 successes.


Pembroke rolls Perception + Investigation vs 6 for 5 successes.

Emi rolls Perception vs 8 for 1 successes.


Stefan looks to the others as he gets back to the vehicle. He starts into one of his long information dumps, his voice rattling on as he barely takes a breathe, "Interestingly enough... Humboldt is best known for its magnificent coastal redwoods, the tallest trees in the world, and two of its major attractions are Redwood National & State Parks, and Humboldt Redwoods State Park along the Avenue of the Giants. And hey, it is also the state's top spot for homicides, Kern County, recorded 101 homicides at an 11.1 per capita rate for an area of 906,563 people." He chuckles, "Sounds like there might be a serial killer around here."


The Ragabash continues to gas up, going inside to get herself various snacks and drinks while the gas-guzzling SUV continues to soak up money. Russ on the other side finds no Banes that pay attention to him. Maybe his mic isnt on?


Pembroke glances toward Eris.. "Friend of yours?" and he nods toward the various 'roads closed' signs, "We seem to be outside tourist season. A lot of the traffic is local. More than I'd expect someplace this remote,"

Russ rolls Manipulation + Leadership + 4 vs 6 for 2 successes.


Emi seems to be talking and listening to the spirits, it just appears like a crazy Asian girl talking to herself. No way was she listening to the stories of the past and how dull they were, no wonder spirits fell asleep - Emi, almost fell asleep. Listening to Big Foot talk about ancient Native American cultures and planting trees just wasn't fascinating for her tiny fox brain. "Skip.", she whispers to the statue blowing through countless years of boring minutiae. "Oh wait... wars. Sure...", listening to another fifteen seconds. "Skip.", and nodding with diligence. No one might truly know how bad Emi was at her job, but Russ-but even then, he was doing his own research. "Skip...", blowing a bubble while probably annoying the hell out of the spirit. "Oh, drugs. Yeah... which ones? Skip.", taking the expedient cliff notes version of the local history. Giving a thumbs up to the others like it was going well, from a distance.

Eris hums and looks confused at Pembroke as she stuffs her armload of unnecessary supplies into the SUV and checks to see how far the pump is along. "I don't know anyone around here, no. Curious though that a place like this apparently has a high murder rate and ... I think I hear Emi over there talking to Bigfoot about drugs.. so either she's on some or.." She tugs her pale ear a little and casts about before spotting Russ. She watches him a moment before glancing at Pembroke and Stefan. "So it's a tourist trap with a high murder rate and Bigfeet and we're less than a dozen miles from a Reservation which always makes /me/ comfortable. Luckily this place looks touristy as shit."


Russ continues to pace through the local Penumbra while keeping an eye on the Tellurian to make sure he doesn't miss his ride or lose track of what's happening on the other side. He calls out the Banes, finding them less than receptive but weaving a threatening oration for any of them close enough to listen, <<You're all cowering when I call you to aid... that's how you want to die? That's where you want to be when your last moments wash over you?>> He snarls at the shadows, adding, "You can come to help us now or you can wait until its too late."


A couple of small rot banes and some lingering pain and addiction banes approach Russ submissively. <<We come. We come...>> But still no -significant- bane presence. Certainly not enough for what is now a gnawing shriek in the back of his skull.


While things are happening on the other of the Gauntlet Russ spends his time grilling the little Banes to get their impression of where the sound is coming from and going so far as to order one of them to act as a guide.


The little banes are torn. Their fear of Russ is immense but their fear of what waits to the north... They agree to lead but only as far as the boundaries of the reservation. They also confirm they hear the cry too it started a few months ago very faint and has become a maddening wail in the last few days. Only the banes though, they say the rest of the spirits seem ignorant.

<<That is because it is speaking a Wyrmish tongue that don't know how to hear..>> Russ explains to the Banes adding, <<Lead the way, I'll be watching your Airts, we'll follow you.>> Then he crosses back over to find out where the rest of his traveling companions have gone in the meantime.

Emi nods and eyes Russ, good thing she didn't have to chew out the banes. Her spirit sight observing the area as she trotted over to Eris, "Hey sexy mama. This place is weird. Everything is acting off. Too much peace in the pipe, or something in the water. I don't know how to describe it. Don't know the right words.", shrugging a bit. "It feels like when a wolf goes dog, but for the spirit.", looking at any of the snacks that might potentially become hers. "They planted a lot of trees, back in the day and they seem weak to natural destruction. Like alcohol or marijuana. Whatever we do, maybe a Wyld disguise would be smart. Good for thought?", not actually wanting Eris's feedback but trying to barter and get snacks in exchange for food. She probably didn't understand the phrase and what it truly meant.

Pembroke sticks near the van... "Whatever we do, we should get moving before the locals wonder why we're lingering."


All Stefan has is interesting information; aside from all of the tourist stuff he also has facts about the Reservation and the area's pre-history. "You think that whatever is killing people around here might have anything to do with this?" He looks over at Russ as he shows back up.

Eris listens to Emi thoughtfully and mulls it over while Emi theives snacks off her. "Hmm, yes we might want to go in quieter. There's probably someplace to pull off up a ways and we'll do that and continue on foot from there. We don't have the numbers for a fight tonight but I want to see what we could be dealing with. Also, I very seriously doubt the Garou are /on/ the actual reservation so we should keep our wits about us." Eris throws a candy bar at Pembroke. "Let's go then.." After a quick chat with her packmate over their link she nods, "He says he's following the Spirits. I'll follow him... It could be, I know jack shit about dreams. That's the Theurges and the Mages.."


Russ came back across the Gauntlet to let them know they could follow the spirits the rest of the way and that if they set off on foot its another ten miles but they can cover it quietly and quickly, "Night should give us some cover when we get close and get the actual scouting done." He then nods to Stefan, "Could be, a big Bane could do lots of things to the land around it if it's being corrupted. Drive men mad, even. Make 'em kill." He looks around to make sure none of the locals are listening before he stalks off in the lead.


The spirits huddle up, roiling like a pack of hunting hounds or a school of fish to make themselves bigger against the fright that lingers in the distance. And they lead Russ along.. the road seems to follow the best route to get to the reservation following almost precisely along the same route that the Trinity River takes. The Trinity is a wide valley river that is for some parts of the journey almost side by side with the road and others it's a sharp drop off of about forty feet into the river There's a rest area about three miles before the Reservation roads begin and this is where Eris pulls off to meet back up with Russ.


Pembroke rolls Dexterity + Stealth vs 6 for 3 successes.

Eris rolls Manipulation(4) + Stealth(6) (10 dice) vs 6 for 4 successes.

Eris rolls Dexterity(6) + Stealth(6) (12 dice) vs 3 for 6 successes.


Russ rolls Dexterity vs 7 for 0 successes.


Eris rolls 10 (10 dice) vs 6 for 7 successes.


Emi hops in the back with a bag of Cheetos, spitting her gum on the ground so they can roll out. "There is lightning people involved?", grumbling. "Why do humans fuck everything up. We need to just kill them in mass again. Well, maybe leave some of the cute ones.", popping snacks into her mouth.

Emi rolls Dexterity + Stealth + 5 vs 2 for 14 successes.


Stefan rolls Dexterity + Stealth vs 6 for 2 successes.


Eris rolls Perception(5) + Awareness(4) (9 dice) vs 6 for 2 successes.

Eris rolls Perception(5) + Rituals(5) (10 dice) vs 6 for 2 successes.

Pembroke rolls Perception + Animal Ken vs 6 for 0 successes.

Emi rolls Wits + Lore Garou vs 6 for 3 successes.

Pembroke rolls Perception + Survival vs 6 for 3 successes.

Emi rolls Intelligence + Security vs 6 for 4 successes.

Stefan rolls Intelligence + Enigmas vs 6 for 2 successes.


The Reservation is wide and very little of it is taken up by homes. Most of them are tucked away in the forest off a series of winding twisting roads through the foothills. As expected most of these houses host large extended families and it's clear that no one here is rich; the most bougie part of this area they'd already been in.

The forest is dense, the undergrowth thick and it feels like one of the true untouched places when one finally moves past the paved roads and damaged dwellings of the Hupa. It is hard to sneak, hard even for the sneakiest. As dusk's shadows begin to lengthen and darkness and mist fall over the land they catch a glimpse high on a desolate ridge in the distance of fires dimmed by the everpresent fog. As they approach each of them can begin to feel it. Like tiny claws at the backs of their brains, scratching and scrambling like rats against a barrier with the occasional clatter of teeth. To Russ...though.. it is an intense low bugle of frustration and pain. /It Wants Free/... 

But it will be a very short time until the sun is completely set and they will be left out here in the dark unknown wilderness. And no smart Garou, Spiral or Not, ever gets caught on Uktena Lands after dark...


When they get close enough, "I'm going to keep an eye on the other side, I don't make a very good Ragabash anyway... but I've got everyone's back." Russ slides back across the Gauntlet and finds a place where he can watch the team move in from a safe distance on another plane of existence.

Russ rolls Intelligence + Enigmas vs 6 for 2 successes.


Russ rolls Intelligence + Investigation vs 6 for 0 successes.


Stefan rolls Intelligence + Survival vs 6 for 4 successes.


Emi is eating Cheetos with orange dust all over her lips and left hand, "It ain't easy.", she says to a magical trinket of a blurry fox. The Kitsune activating arcane and disappearing from sight and mind. The assassins stealthy sneaking quite amazing, if you had one. The team had an assassin, right? Some other fera in the group. Thomas or ... was it Kurumi was with them. Someone would have to do a headcount later if they remembered.

Pembroke looks around the trees and woods... "A body dumped out here wouldn't last long. Marijuana may run wild and we seem to be getting closer..."

Stefan crouches down to check out the soil and ground. He nods to what Pembroke says, "Russ is very right. This area's perfect for farming Marijuana. Tepid, moist, rich earth.. there's no doubt why Pot Farmers would want to come here. Killers too because.. there are hundreds of miles of prime body stashing territory and the way the forest is it practically would eat the evidence. The trees are rotting into the soil here."


Eris nods, "Sounds like a plan. Let's head back and regroup. Snag anyone you can in the next few days. I don't know how we're going to do this but I'd say these Gaians have got to go... fucking hell what is that." Eris rubs at the back of her head in annoyance.


<Atramentous Union> Russ says, "Yeah... you hear it too now?"

<Atramentous Union> Eris says, "Hear..no? It feels like a squirrel trying to burrow out the back of my head is all.."



Fin


(TBC...)