2019.08.31 Murder Most Foul

Murder Most Foul
On patrol, a homeless man is found killed.
IC Date	When it happens
IC Time	Night
Players	Cait O'Connor, Alessio as the ST
Location	Prospect, Industrial / Office district
Prp/Tp	St Judas Home for the Homeless
Spheres	Garou, Gaian

xxxxxCait in Blue, ST in Black

xxxxxThe City of Prospect is a large city and covering all the neighbourhoods is all but an impossible task. But one does what one can and to ignore the streets altogether would be anathema. Especially to such groupings as the Glass Walkers and the Bone Gnawers. The Cities are their homes. The people living on those streets, theirs to protect. The best way to handle such things are through the standard Patrol. Live on those streets long enough, and things will eventually happen. For Cait, it would appear to be just another silent patrol. Oh, sure, there were the occasional mugger or back alley scuffle. A woman saved from her date and would be rapist. Nothing happening that would fill your soul with joy, but nothing out of the ordinary either. On one particular street, however, something would feel .. amiss. She has found herself somewhere near the areas by the waterfront. The street she is on is mainly industrial. Lots of office spaces and small storefronts. All of them closed at this time of the night. The street is empty, though. There is a strange sort of silence in the air. A certain tension that is hard to quantify. Down in one alley, there is a strange noise. A strange gurgling, like someone choking.

xxxxxPatrolling with a chain wrapped around her waist, Cait has deigned to leave the axe at home at least. She'll glance to and fro as she moves, a stalking gait, and then pauses as she senses something amiss. Those odd feelings she has been trained to not ignore and she'll look around slowly. Frowning, she'll turn towards the strange gurgling, and the fact it sounds like someone choking causes her to begin to trot in that direction. She doesn't outright run, because it might be a trap, but she does go much faster to approach this alley.

xxxxxFor the most part, the lights on this street are on. Your standard traffic lights, really, giving off that pale, artificial light that gives the street that particularly industrial feel to them. A clear mark that Here There Be Humans. But once she makes it to the alley, all that changes. There is a strange darkness to it that starts just a few feet in. Its not constant, though, the darkness. It flickers, as if the lights in there are turned on and off. Each time the darkness flicks back on, she can see the shape of a man leaning against a wall, quite far into the alley. He has his hands around his own throat. The lights go out. Darkness. They turn back on, and she can see him slowly sinking down to sit on the ground. The darkness returns. A heart beat later, and it is as if someone pops a baloon. The darkness disappears and it is as if whatever was here just .. goes away. The strange feel to the air dissipates. The lights remain on.

xxxxxThere is a brief hesitation as she sees this strange darkness and the shadow of a man. "Is he... chokin' himself?", she'll mumble to herself before she strides into the darkness, into that alley to see this man. "Hey.", she'll call out strongly, confidently as she approaches and she'll frown, her adrenalin spiking at the potential danger. She'll sniff the air and gauge if there is anyone around as she closes the distance.

xxxxxStepping into the alley is much easier once the darkness is gone. With the air cleared up, it is as if the street itself comes back to life. That weird taste to the air, that strange pressure that could be felt before is gone. But what remains is the man, sitting with his back to the wall, behind a dumpster. Taking the area in, she will easily deduce that there is no one here. The alley appears clear and free from danger. As she comes closer to the one on the street, the quality of this man would be unmistaken. A homeless man, without a doubt. His clothing is ragged, dirty and none to nice to smell. His face is ragged, harsh with a long shaggy beard. He's not dead, but he looks rather out of it. Around his neck she can easily spot red marks, as if someone had been strangling him. Or trying to. He's still breathing.

xxxxxCait glances around again and then moves to kneel next to the homeless man. She'll sniff the air and then sniff the man as she reaches out to touch him, "Hey man, you okay?", she'll ask him quietly, trying to get him back to reality. She can't do much to heal him, but she can at least get him somewhere that can help him. Right now though, she's just trying to get a sense of what is going on and uses scent of the true form on the guy.

xxxxxShe tries to get his scent, but the man seems to defy that. All she gets from him is human. There is no hint of Kinfolk or Werewolf about him; not even a wiff of Fera. When she reaches out to touch him, he suddenly snaps awake with a very bad sound coming from his throat. His eyes turn to the woman, staring at her a few moments, "Bright.." he wheezes out, "..you." he gasps, "..you are bright. Such.. an aura.." he tries to lift his hand up, "..such anger." he gives a cough, his entire body all but convulsing from it, "They.. killed. Killed the others.." he lifts his hand once more, trying to grab her clothes, "S..stop them. Killing us.." to which he gives another violent cough. His body gives up at that, muscles giving up as he slumps over on the side. There is no doubt about the fact that the man dies in that moment.

xxxxxCait's eyes widen and she'll frown in worry as the man coughs out and wheezes. "Hey hey take it easy.." But then he'll cough more and speak haltingly, which causes her to look concerned. "Who, who is...", she's about to ask, but then he coughs again and slumps over, which causes her to reach out to make sure he's upright. Reaching for his pulse, she'll listen for a moment to make sure he's dead and then sighs softly. "What the heck is going on here..", she'll murmer as she will slowly lay him to the ground and then begins to reach for her phone to call someone.

xxxxxJust as she takes up her phone to make that call, Cait sees something sticking out of one of the mans pockets. It looks like a brochure, but that alone might not be enough to catch her attention. What makes her eye draw to this particular piece of brochure is the red fingerprint mark on the edge that is sticking out; like a blood smear.

xxxxxPausing at her phonecall, Cait will reach down and delicate pull out the brochure. Looking at it slowly, she'll look at the man's hands to see if they have blood on them, and then she'll read the brochure curiously.

xxxxxThe brochure, once she has it free from the mans pocket, seems to be meant to be distributed to the Homeless. It speaks of St Judas Sanctuary for the Homeless. It promises free food and housing, Bible studies and assistance with health checkups. It lists and address.

xxxxxCait looks over the brochure with a frown and then she'll pad the homeless guy down a bit more to see if there is anything else useful. Finally, she'll rise and then make that call, a kinfolk of hers to help connect the police to finding this body and handling it. She'll walk off though, sniffing at the blood and then closing the brochure to put it into her pocket. "Fuck.", she'll murmer. Next stop, investigation of this Sanctuary!