Mei moves up and fires her Plasma Pistol once more, the whumpf of superheated plasma striking the demon fills the air. Mei's superheated plasma bolt scorches a hole in the Countess...Tristan feels relieved of his compulsion.
Rasheed charges straight at Bernard, and puts him down with extreme prejudice.
Victoria slashes at the Cultist, staggering him back with the ferocity of her blows.
Tristan
Andrej
Carl
Cultist and Devil Dogs
Having been relieved of the compulsion as the Countess fell, Tristan shakes his head to regain his wits. The fight inside the lodge is handily in their favor, but there'd been shouting about allies, so he moves outside, sword cane raised to fend off any further attackers.
I hope lead bites on these things. Andrej braces himself and shoots at one of the onrushing beasts.
Mei moves up and fires her Plasma Pistol once more, the whumpf of superheated plasma striking the demon fills the air. Mei's superheated plasma bolt scorches a hole in the Countess...Tristan feels relieved of his compulsion.
Rasheed charges straight at Bernard, and puts him down with extreme prejudice.
Victoria slashes at the Cultist, staggering him back with the ferocity of her blows.
Tristan moves out of doors and prepares to defend himself from the Demon Dogs of Hell that approach!
Andrej adopts a shooters pose, and waits to shoot the Devil Dogs because its dark out and he cannot target something further than 10' with any accuracy.
Carl moves in and unleashes a stun on the remaining cultist.
Cultist simply elects to defend himself and Devil Dogs the one on Tristan's side charges straight at him! Tristan skewers the thing as it gets close with wickedly accurate jab! the cane sword seems to inflict a wicked wound on the creature, but the slavering beast rushes on! Tristan easily evades the beast's teeth.
The Devil Dog on Andrej side rushes at the Russian with a hellish growl. Andrej fires as the creature comes into view! The small caliber bullet strikes the beast, but it attacks anyways!
Round 3
Devil Dogs
1 attacks Tristan hit but not a raise hellishly sharp teeth bite into Tristan's thigh. (1 Wound and Shaken)
2 attacks Andrej hit but not a raise Andrej is bowled down and bleeding! (I think he's taken his final wound and will be rolling for incapacitation? Any Bennies left?)
Cultist still stunned the Cultist simply waits for death, embracing it even.
Rasheed
Andrej
Carl
Tristan
Victoria
Mei
Initiative Draw
Mei Four of Clubs
Tristan Nine of Clubs
Andrej King of Diamonds
Carl Ten of Diamonds
Victoria Seven of Clubs
Rasheed King of Hearts
Devil Dogs and Cultist Ace of Hearts
Tristan grunts as his sword connects with the beast, but when it lunges forward regardless, thrusting its form forward on his sword to snap on his arm, he gives a gasp of pain and shock. He recovers quickly, though, and with just as speedy thought he drives the dagger into the creature, pounding it in with all his left hand and all his might.
Seeing the monstrous dogs engaging his allies, Carl elects to stay back and wait for the more martially inclined of the group to clean them out before he tries to tend to their wounds.
Round 3
Devil Dogs
1 attacks Tristan. hellishly sharp teeth bite into Tristan's thigh. (1 Wound and Shaken)
2 attacks Andrej. Andrej is bowled down and bleeding! Andrej is unconscious and hurt, his ribs are broken from last bite. (Your injury is Agility down to d6 until all your wounds are healed)
Cultist still stunned the Cultist simply waits for death, embracing it even.
Rasheed drops the sword and draws the dagger, he dashes to Tristan's aid. He lashes out with the Cold Iron blade and the Hellhound feels its sting. His blade slices clean and the Devil Dog yelps in pain as it's throat is slashed. The Hellish beast bleeds out in the grass.
Carl
Tristan rams his dagger using his off hand in the beast's eye as it bites on his sword arm. The Devil Dog dies making a piteous noise.
Victoria
Mei
Victoria slams her claws into the stunned cultist before giving Andrej a worried look; however, she ultimately decides the others can help him more than she can, and instead takes off in a mad dash for the back of the lodge, looking for the Countess's captive. "Nahtaniel? Are you alright?" she calls, stopping for a second to survey her surroundings. "Where the hell are you?" she mutters, looking through the rooms with the cold iron dagger in her off-hand, ready to strike if either the Countess had somehow survived or if she runs into any of her demonic minions.
Mei exists the lodge, her gun drawn and primed, but lowers it when she sees that Tristan and easheed have Handled things. She looks woridly at Andrej, but knows she's not qualified to help. "Herr Jung, Andrej is down, might you tend to him? I'm going to aid Victoria in her search." With that she moves along, just a few steps behind the Englishwoman.
Seeing Andrej on the ground, Carl races over, hoping that he can treat his wounds properly this time. "Broken bones... bleeding... I would say hold still but I don't think you can hear me right now..."
Victoria and Mei discover Nathaniel Thornton laid on a bed in a back room, his skin is pallid and all life seems to have been leeched from him. As she approaches, he feebly tries to lift his head.
Angel...Angelina... he croaks.
Carl looks over Andrej's injuries and determines the man will live, however he is badly wounded and could use a *real* Doctor.
"Oh, hell," Victoria says, hauling the man up off the bed; she helps him stand if he's able, but otherwise she hoists Nathaniel over one shoulder and heads out to the others, relieved when she sees Carl looking over Andrej. "She's gone now, Nathaniel. It's time to get you... we're gonna get you back to your real wife, now. Perhaps after we get some life back into you, though." She grunts once, shifting the man's weight again, and looks to the group with a somber expression. "We ought to collect Mr. Marsh's body. The man deserves a proper burial, if nothing else."
Andrej struggles back to consciousness, coughing wetly. "Where is Gospozha Mar--ah, Thornton?"
Nathaniel struggles against Victoria's grasp feebly, his has no strength and so must be carried or propped against someone. He just moans and calls out for Angelina.
"Inside. You will be staying here until we can get you to a doctor who's better at treating wounds than me. You are in no condition to be walking around." He looks to Rasheed. "Can you carry him, gently, inside so he can lay down somewhere that's not the hard ground? And preferably carry him out once we find young master Thornton."
"No need for that, Carl," Victoria says, carrying Nathaniel through the door over her shoulder. When Andrej asks about Carolina's whereabouts, she thinks for a moment. "I'd imagine she's at her home," Victoria says, pausing when Nathaniel calls feebly for the Countess from her shoulder, before sighing. "He's still enthralled by her, looks like. I'd have thought that would end once we killed her... Carl, you might want to see what you can do for him once we're back at the Lodge. I think he's snapped."
"I'll do my best once we're somewhere safer."
Edit: Yes, Jacob believed that something had been done to Carolina. However, she isn't here. (She wasn't in danger, it was a Red Herring)
"I dare say, Natty my lad, that you've had the experience of a lifetime. And quite the social scandal to go along with it!" Tristan tries to maintain a cheery air despite the injuries done to Andrej and the weakness of young Thornton. "Once all is set and done, we'll have to cook up quite the story to explain all of this. I imagine something to do with anxiousness over the marriage, a certain temperament of the blood--if we mention your father that'll go a long way, old Thorny's vigors were an open secret for most of us..."
The Rippers take their wounded, and the body of poor Mister Marsh, and return to Thornton Manor. Tristan spins a tale of a violent attack at the Hunting Lodge by the previously escaped lunatics from the St. Mary's Asylum located near Staithes. Poor Jacob Marsh and a visiting Spanish woman by the name of Angelina Delgato were among the dead in the vicious attack. The Rippers are officially thanked by local officials for stopping what could have been an unsolved series of murders.
Carolina Marsh arrives at the Thornton residence, complete with a signed marriage document proving that she and Nathaniel were indeed married BEFORE his sham marriage with the Delgato woman. The Barrister George Langhem is present to witness and swear that the marriage was secret, but legal. This entire affair is now considered bad form to speak of and the society of Staithes has much to gossip about for years...
Poor Nathaniel is now a bedridden infirm with a shaky grasp of reality...Carl does what he can for the man, but the unholy unions and sacraments he participated in as part of the sex cult of a demon have nearly shattered his body and mind. His wife Carolina now rules Thornton Manor with an Iron Fist, it seems she was inspired to a greater role in life by a certain female Ripper she thought intriguing. Her status as a Baroness coupled with the money and fishing fleet her father left her with his untimely demise means that Mrs. Thornton nee Marsh is a force in Staithes. She also promises to assist Tristan in his "good works" because she knows something was "different" about the circumstances surrounding her Father's death and she believes Tristan and his friends are working to ensure things like this happen less and less in England.
The Rippers convalesce in Thornton Manor for a week until Andrej is well enough to travel (he heals a wound) and then they head back to London.
Andrej spends most of his time either chafing at being bedridden or trying to do too much too soon, injuring himself, and having to rest again.
Still, he keeps himself busy, and none less than with the new master of the household, Carolina Thornton. Her willingness and eagerness to assume control of the estate is a thing of beauty and wonder to the elderly gentleman--"A capital idea, and I mean capitol with an 'o' as well. And think of the head-turning they'll do in London at the news, my heavens, your father is chortling in heaven I'm certain, dear, now as for these accounts..." Although he must maintain the secrecy of the group's true cause, Tristan certainly appeals to Carolina's sense of justice and her desire to see no more of these strange and terrible events. When the week is up he bids the newlyweds a fond farewell, promises to write and ensures they do the same, and returns to London with a lighter step and a passionate flame in his eyes.
It's all coming together, yes, and things are starting to look up, perhaps, for the new Lodge he seeks to form. But the most recent outing was also a painful lesson in the dangers of the job, and Tristan dwells on its teachings late into the night. The trouble was preparation: the group didn't have the proper equipment or training in some ways, and while they pulled through in the end, had they been quicker to identify and combat the evil things might have gone differently. Within a week of his return to London, Tristan sets about with orders and preparations.
First is equipment. He makes an order for new sword canes, one in cold iron, one mixed in its composition with a silver head and tip and a cold iron blade; he throws in a regular steel-bladed decorative piece as well, to expand the collection and perhaps keep up appearances. He also hunts out a pawn shop he visited in his foolish younger days, and much to his delight finds they still possess the items he pawned them: his military revolver and a finely-made hunting shotgun. He also purchases a derringer for additional protection in social situations, and begins practicing with all these weapons to refresh himself in their use. By the end of the month, he's a familiar sight with some of the local gentleman-hunters, and he's also acquired a store of special ammunition for the shotgun kept in his lodgings.
Of course, Tristan also makes certain to keep in close contact with the others, and happily advises or assists them in their own goings-on, whether with words, influence, or funding. It's a busy month and a good time to be alive, and Tristan intends to make the most of it in order to keep everyone else alive as long as possible.
In the time the group spends at the Thornton manner, Victoria spends most of her time with Carolina, watching over the other woman as she takes up the reins of running the Thornton estate. Unnerved by what she saw in the hunting lodge, Victoria is jumpier and keeps looking over her shoulder, the cold iron knife clutched in her hands as she waits for a non-existent danger. She speaks with Tristan a few times when both he and Carolina are visiting Nathaniel at the same time; while she exchanges a few words, she seems more withdrawn than she did even when she met the rest of them. When Carolina leaves for her father's funeral, Victoria accompanies her wearing a borrowed dress and stands guard over her for the entirety of the service. On the ride back, she does her best to tell Carolina how her father died fighting to free Nathaniel, and while she keeps the occult details to herself, she does her best to make sure the other woman knows her father died a hero. On the train ride back to London, Victoria sleeps heavily for perhaps the first time since the events at the lodge; a few hours after they leave, she awakens in a cold sweat and nearly screams before catching herself. If any of her compatriots are around at the time, she locks eyes with them but says nothing, before finally drifting back to sleep.
Their first day back at the Lodge, Victoria goes about and requisitions new weapons and armor for herself. Having found a cold iron dagger while hunting the Countess, she requests a matching silver blade to match it in style and function, and two finely carved wooden stakes. Her next request is more unusual; she purchases a heavy coat, but specifically requests to conceal fine chain armor within the coat itself, being hidden from view and the sound of the chain links muffled by the coat itself. Once her requests are sent in, she wanders the halls before finally knocking on Carl's door hesitantly. "Carl, are you... can I come in?" Assuming the doctor doesn't turn her away, she takes a step through the door and closes it behind her, sitting in the psychologist's study. "You were--are, I mean--a doctor, right? You studied in Austria... you deal with people's heads, their minds." She leans in closer, and Carl can clearly see the dark circles under her eyes. "I keep seeing her, Carl--The Countess, in my dreams. Every time I close my eyes she's there, feasting on Nathaniel... on everyone. I can't make it stop, I've tried everything. I've barely slept in a week." Her voice drops to a whisper, and her hands shake as she grips the arms of the chair. "She and Jack--" she starts, before shaking her head, willing the last thought away. "I need help. Please."
Upon returning to her lodging at the London lodge, while much of her time was spent cooped up tinkering with this and experimenting with that, she found time to send a few letters. One was to her pseudo-adoptive father and leader of the Shanghai lodge which told him of her time and experience in England. At least half of it was filled with creative curses, answering the question in his last letter that yes, she was still angry about him sending her away. But the whole thing was wrapped up with well wishes, and though it was left unwritten, it's implied that she missed him and the others dearly.
Her other letters however were sent to some of the contacts she's established within the Rosicrucians. Mei informs them about the odd trinkets discovered on the bodies of the cultists, inquiring to their use and what they could mean. Mundane pictures were included of the objects in question, as well as assurance that they were being kept safe for the time being.
Near the end of the month, between improvements to her two primary devices, she finally feels as if she's created a stable camera capable of normal though pristine photographs. Feeling ecstatic about her success, she feels it's only fit to try and gather the others for a group portrait. She suggests to them that they should have it taken in front of their new lodge, in order to commemorate their recent success. Something they could look back upon for years to come.
Back at the Lodge, he sets to work cataloging everything he managed to get from Nathaniel. Hopefully his notes and observations will help in treating the minds of others who are driven to madness by demons or other creatures of darkness. He's more than a little surprised to hear Victoria knocking on his door. "Yes, yes, come in Fräulein Lawson." He purses his lips and starts to make a soothing cup of tea for the both of them while she tells her story. "I believe I can offer you some help. Suffering from sleep deprivation and hysteria isn't an uncommon reaction to traumatic incidents. The mind does not like to remember the horrors of the past, but by its very nature it cannot forget. So it falls to us to find a way to cope with these events." He sets the cup of tea down beside her, smiling slightly at her unconscious slip. "I want you to try to sleep as best you can tonight, and if you awaken from nightmares again, I want you to write down everything about then in as much detail as possible. Make special note of anything different or inconsistent with your memories. That will help us uncover the reason why this event has effected you so deeply. Then come back to me tomorrow and we'll begin discussing what's troubling you in detail."
|
The week in Staithes was calm, even boring if you believe having to fight for your life is the kind of fun every person should have.
With his friend Andrej bedridden, the sikh spent a moderate amount of time studying the trinkets they found as well as thinking about proper rituals to dispose of the evil imbued dagger.
Once he was sure nothing new could be learned, the sikh took a different aproach to spending his time: forcing the poor Andrej, who couldn't escape, to play chess.
Back at London, the first thing Rasheed decided to do was sleeping. Like, for a full day. Even if he was jaded by his travels, witnessing the abominations at the Manor took a toll on his sanity.
Once fully recovered and with no mission at hand, the Kangra Lion asked the Lodge's armory for a pair of curved swords, akin to his own, but made of cold iron and silver inlaid steel.
While his requisition was on the way, Rasheed paid a couple visits to DeViejo, both to thank him for his help and to know more about the artistry scene of London.
The next stop on Rasheed's hard earned vacation was visiting different places, asking subtle questions, meeting varied people. All of this geared towards finding the trail of the djinni that years ago tricked him. He was looking for miraculous recoveries from sickness, men and women who went from poverty to richness, common soldiers that became true heroes overnight.
And last, but not least, the sikh enjoyed himself. The man accompanied DeViejo to art galeries, offered his Lodge's companions assisting to theatres and simply kept exploring the otherwise rich culture of victorian London.
"Hmmm, yes, that's what I thought. The countess's little adventures aren't the cause of your nightmares. Rather, they're merely triggering your traumatic memories of your parents' deaths. It seems to me that you've never truly dealt with their loss and you're projecting your personal demons on to the demon we've just slain. If you can comes to terms with that, I believe it will start to settle your nightmares, at least for now." He tries to smile encouragingly. "But I believe that we should continue these sessions until we've dealt with the underlying trouble as well. You have to strength of will needed to move past this, but it's not going to be a short process." He pulls out a notebook and a pen. "Now... what was your relationship with your father like?"
"I loved my father, and he's... he's gone. I had it taken from me, by that f*ckin' rat bastard--" he starts, feeling her hands curl into fists. "I want to kill him, Carl. I've never wanted to kill a person, but I want to kill him. I want to watch the light fade from his eyes by my hands and no one else's, just like he... just like he did to my parents. Like he tried to do to me." She shudders once, some color leaving her face. "If you really think we need to deal with their deaths, if this isn't just about the Countess... fine. We'll do it." Victoria seems stand-offish, but she seems to be willing to take the time to fix her problems. "Let's get into this, then." She spends the next month with Carl going over her nightmares and engaging in psychological techniques to ease her anxiety and fix the root of her issues. It's a long and arduous process, but Victoria tells Carl she feels at least a bit better after the month has passed.
@Rasheed The Favor rules boil down to spending favors to gains things what "things" you can gain depend on your status. Most of you are all Status 2, this means you can spend a maximum of 2 favors per "request" examples of a 2 favor request include a) the assistance of two Irregular Extras for one game session (one scene) b)money or equipment equal to 10s or less. A Sword is 2 pounds, a silver sword is 6 pounds, far more than your favor. Your entire monthly salary is 8 pounds, and you do still have to maintain a lifestyle. (However, I'm sure Tristan has plenty of cash since his salary is 80 pounds)
Hooks for the party to investigate whichever they prefer...
“Christopher never stopped gambling, despite promising many times that he would. He gambled away everything, most of it at the Umbral Rooms (an exclusive gentleman’s club in Mayfair.“When everything seemed lost, the owner, a Frenchman called Monsieur Blanc, offered him one last bet, a single spin on the roulette table. If it came up red, all Christopher’s debts would be wiped out. However, if it came up black, Christopher would forfeit his soul. “I tried to talk him out of it, but Christopher was adamant. This time he was going to win, he just knew it. He said would return the next night with a clean slate, and would never gamble again. “Three days have passed, and Christopher hasn’t returned. I’ve spent that time looking in all his old haunts, but it’s as if he has
vanished off the face of the earth. I have been to the club, but they refused me entry, saying my husband hadn’t been there for weeks. I know they are lying.”
"We... probably ought to deal with Johann's request. Not only is her leading the London Rippers, and the Slayers as a whole--a good enough reason on its own--this hits a little too close to home to ignore. Someone else could probably deal with it, but the sooner someone deals with this the better. If they've got information on us in any way we ought to deal with it soon; the best case scenario, other than a coincidence, is that he's simply seen too much. The worst case? Well, I think we can all guess."
Mei gives a stiff nod of agreement, before starting to speak something foreign. Catching herself before it got too lengthy with a cough, she continued. "I do not like the implications either. As much as I find a Persian expedition to be a fascinating venture, I fear that it might be best to nip this in the bud as it were. Though we must also exhibit caution, this could easily just be a Cabel trap to lure in unsuspecting Rippers. But it might also be someone who is simply learned about our world and yet not clever enough to hold their own tongue. Really, as if changing a couple words would truly make it their own..."
"If it's a Cabal trap, we'll just kill them and be done with it. Either way, it's something we should take care of."
"Simple and straight to the point as ever, Miss Lawson." She comments with humour.
"Well, someone has to be," she says, cracking a slight grin. "Tristan, I do understand if you want to help your... acquaintance. I don't know that we'll have time to do both; if not we could hand it off to another team or pass this Night Guard business along if we have to." She shrugs, looking over at the others. "That Night Guard business reeks, though. I don't like it."