"Mermaids... and all of the deaths were near water, were they not? Mermaids of lore lured unwary sailors to devour their flesh. A connection, perhaps?"
Sehkmet is going to slowly examine the apartment with her sense of smell. She is looking for any trace of the fishy person smell. She is going to especially concentrate on the small token but will go for the entire apartment
[dice=perception]1d20+8
She then turns to Nia
"Do you know how the Shirishama contact and communicate with the Yakaruna? Or any way to activate this token?"
There is something about the smell of the plants that were packed with the idol that reminds Sehkmet of the fishy smell, but they aren't an exact match.
Nia looks confused, like she has just woken up from a bad dream, or like she is still in one..."What do you mean? This is just a myth. There aren't any Yakaruna. Mermaids and fishmen? That is crazy. Oh, but you mean how do they do it in the stories...The Shirishama are matrilineal, and their shaman tend to be either women or two spirit people. These shaman can communicate with the Yakaruna by entering a trance by burning and inhaling a special plant. There is some of the plant here, in the box. You can take a look..."
Turning back to the woman in the bed, "Nia, what do you know of Dylan Foley or Dylan Rodgers? And, who else has seen or touched this idol?"
Helen nods at Henrietta. "Certainly aligns with what we've found so far, that possibly some water-dwelling creature had to do with these womens' deaths. Though I admit I was imagining it was a more monstrous perpetrator." A frown.
"I wonder if one of our missing persons is the perpetrator and not a victim... Perhaps not. All the bodies were found, were they not?"
Turning back to the woman in the bed, "Nia, what do you know of Dylan Foley or Dylan Rodgers? And, who else has seen or touched this idol?"
"Ugh, Foley? That security guy at the museum? What a creep. I don't know much about him. Big guy, pushy. Way into Dr. Wells, but she was not interested. He was always outside her office, or down in the basements near her lab. Making his rounds, he said."
"The idol, let's see. Me, Dr. Wells, Summer, I think."
Jonathan connects that Dr. Wells has been gone near the time of the first death. Perhaps, she needed someone who looks the same as her. He continues his questions with Nia, "you said that Dr. Wells has been gone for six months? How do you know that she is alive? If she was hiding in Boston, where would she hide?"
"Where exactly are her office and lab? When was the last time you were there?"
Sehkmet goes over to the box and takes out the plant material.
"This may come in handy at some point"
Jonathan connects that Dr. Wells has been gone near the time of the first death. Perhaps, she needed someone who looks the same as her. He continues his questions with Nia, "you said that Dr. Wells has been gone for six months? How do you know that she is alive? If she was hiding in Boston, where would she hide?"
"Where exactly are her office and lab? When was the last time you were there?"
"She calls about once every two weeks. Takes a boat out to a place where she has good satellite visibility. So she was alive a few days ago when we spoke. She said she was making some progress in getting the Shirishama to agree to use the courts. It was a setback when we lost Summer, but we have lawyers who are working pro-bono.
Why would she be hiding in Boston? She has important work to do, right? As for her office and lab, they are in the Museum. I am there pretty much every day."
Overhearing the conversation in the other room, Helen whispers to Henrietta. "I wonder if there are spare keys to her workplace in here..."
She looks around, careful to leave things as she found them.
Sehkmet is going to take out her phone and start investigating all of the packing material, especially the plants. Through academic data bases at first but then moving to the internet as a whole.
It doesn't take too long for Sehkmet to find that the packing material appears to be from the stems of a water lily. And as she is searching her phone, she notices that the plants have a faint ammoniac smell that reminds her of the fish man stink. Very faint.
Overhearing the conversation in the other room, Helen whispers to Henrietta. "I wonder if there are spare keys to her workplace in here..."
She looks around, careful to leave things as she found them.
[dice=Perception]1d20+11
Indeed, a cross body bag hanging near the door has Dr. Wells keys and id. She is out of the country and doesn't need them.
"Does anyone have any more questions before we visit the museum?" The vampire asks his companions. Tempus Fugit.
Helen grabs the whole bag, reasoning better to leave it at the lab and make anyone looking for it think Dr. Wells accidentally left it at work. "Not my favorite way of going about things, but we're trying to save a life, yes?" she whispers to Henrietta.
She is ready to rejoin the group and move on.
"Definitely," Henrietta replies.
Back in the limo, Benjamin is furiously typing at his phone.
"Yak... Is it a K? Not two Cs? How do you even spell 'yakaruna'?
"Have any of you types that don't need Google ever heard of a 'yakaruna' before? Because I've gotta tell you, a mystical, vengeful fish creature sure fits the profile of what's killed those three girls.
"(Ah, 'yakaruna Reddit'... here we go.)"
In the privacy of the limo, Helen holds up the bag. "I've committed petty theft to get the keys to the laboratory, so I'd like to make use of them. Maybe what she's studied gives us more insight on this yakaruna creature. Dr. Jekyll, you skimmed through the book about the mermaids, were they mentioned?"
Dr. Well's lab is deep in the basements of the Museum of Natural History, but with your powers of compulsion and her keys and ID, it is little effort to make your way there.
Helen taps the ID on the panel beside the door and the lock releases. A now familiar smell, herbaceous and acidic. The white tile floor beyond the door is shiny with a thin layer of water. A viny mass of plants reaches across the floor. The hallway before you is dark, but bright lights cut into it from open doors.
Sehkmet strides forwards, looking around for potential trouble
Jonathan dodges his solar nemesis and enters the museum. He follows along with his companions listening and smelling with his supernatural senses.
Hathway got them there, and as always limped in behind the others.
He took his time, liking the museum. He had donated to it more than once. As they used the ID, he checked to see if anyone could be paying note.
As Sehkmet moves into the hallway, the door to her left flies open. A massive wall of hair squeezes through the door, knuckle walking sideways like a shaggy gorilla. If it stood, it would be about 8 feet tall, but stooped as it is, it is only about 6 feet. A horrible smell of dank and musk rolls out from it.
But it moves slowly, and you all are well prepared for action.
"That's... not a mermaid," Henrietta says, her voice growing deeper as she shifts to Hyde. "Aren't you a big one," Ms. Hyde says aloud, not even certain the creature can understand her words. She assumes a defensive position but has not yet attacked.
Assuming that this is a stronger form of the smell that she smelled at the body site Sehkmet definitely is NOT going to wait and let it get the first blow in.
She tries to bite the big ugly thing
I somehow don't think I'll bother to tell you the damage if I hit :-) :-). Nor the grab attempt on a success :-)
Jonathan lets Ms. Hyde and Sekhmet engage the creature. This hallway could become a bottleneck, and they still didn’t know what was going on. So, the vampire dissolved into mist and floated beside the creature and into the room from where the creature was.
Helen joins in on the shapeshifting, clasping her hands together as phantom wrappings appear and wrap around her, and a golden burial mask encases her face. The eyes of the mask glow bright red at the creature.
"That's... not a mermaid,"
Sehkmet's teeth sink into the creature's hairy arm, but between the thick hair and thick rubbery skin beneath, her teeth don't penetrate skin.
Jonathan pours through the open door as a mist, finding a brightly lit but thoroughly trashed conference room. The smell hangs heavy hear, as though the creature has been here for long enough for the odor to seep into the pores of the furniture.
The conference table includes a display screen in the center. The glass is shattered, but the display still flickers with light. More doors lead onward into the complex.
The creature catches Helen's gaze for a moment, then averts its eyes in revulsion.
The yacaruna? howls like an immense howler monkey and swats at Sehkmet with a massive clawed hand, missing the agile woman completely.
"That's... not a mermaid,"
"Right?! It's a mystical, vengeful fish creature, like I said! Or ape creature, I guess!"
Benjamin doesn't have super strength or weird, crazy mind powers. Because of his ability, the main thing he has is the benefit of surprise. Sprinting down the hall, he darts past Sehkmet and tries to drive his heel into the yakaruna's knee.
You rush forward to attack. You move your speed rank in a mode of movement available to you in a relatively straight line towards your target. At the end of your movement, you perform a close attack against your opponent with a –2 circumstance penalty to the attack check.
You can combine a charge action with a move action, allowing you to move up to twice your speed (your speed rank as a move action, then your speed rank again when you charge).
Benjamin drives his heel into the leg of the hairy monster. Not surpisingly, as he is pretty much a normal guy, he does no damage to the big shaggy monster.
The mist reforms into the British gentleman. The stench of the creature overwhelming any smell of the potential blonde doctor who he suspects to actually be the creature.
With Ms. Hyde and Sekhmet in melee, the vampire attempts to catch the creature's gaze, as Helen had tried. Physically subduing the creature appeared challenging. Again, the creature blocked its line of sight to the effect causing him to sigh.
Hmm. This office will be trashed. Maybe I should search the offices while the creature is distracted? He wonders to himself.
Ms. Hyde lashes out at the creature with a massive fist.
Damage is DC 25; if a critical, she will go for increased effect.
If at first you don't succeed ....
Sehkmet once again tries to get a grip on this things throat
Ok, that is getting silly.
In a state of complete embarrassment, Sehkmet turns into a cat and grooms herself as she CLEARLY intended to miss and let the others get the glory of defeating this opponent. CLEARLY
Hyde's fist slams into the creature's thick torso. Its thick hair ripples with the force of the blow.
Hathaway behind them had no idea what to do.
So he focused is mind and a shimmering skin of force seem to cover him.
But now what? the fight was up ahead and he was finding it hard to follow.
Ms. Hyde's hit dazed him and might allow an opportunity for Jonathan to end this fight. The vampire again attempts to catch the creature's gaze. And again, the creature blocked its line of sight to the effect causing him to continue sighing.
The Mummy's Bride lumber-dashes toward the fray, but waits to see the result of Jonathan's charms before giving it the old mummy one-two.
The Mummy's Bride attempts to slam into it with supernatural strength.
But she oversteps her mark and nearly tumbles over.
"Bloody bandages..." a supernatural voice softly echoes.
Benjamin drives his heel into the leg of the hairy monster. Not surpisingly, as he is pretty much a normal guy, he does no damage to the big shaggy monster.
Benjamin internally curses when his strike has no effect. But ultimately, he's unsurprised. He does notice Ms. Hyde's solid blow, however.
I need to make sure she gets the chance to do that again, he thinks.
If you are in position to attack an opponent, you can attempt to aid an ally engaged in melee with that opponent as a standard action. This is like a team check (see Team Checks in The Basics): You make an attack check against DC 10. If you succeed, you don’t actually hit or affect the opponent, but success grants your ally gains a +2 circumstance bonus on an attack check against that opponent or a +2 circumstance bonus to Defense against that opponent (your choice) until the end of your ally’s next turn. Three or more degrees of success grant a +5 bonus.
Darting under the creature's arm so he's off to the side, Benjamin waits for an indication that Ms. Hyde is going to strike again. When he sees it, he reaches up and slaps the side of the creature's head where he thinks its ear should be. Hopefully, the distraction will make it easier for her blow to land.
Hathway new he could pick up some 25 tones with his mind, now use used that force power.
"Enuff"
He says
TELEPATHIC-FORCEFIELD 10 {10p} {Protection} Range Skin to globe 10'r
Effect: Protection, Sustained • 1 point per rank You can surround your body with a protective field of energy or force, providing you with a Toughness increase equal to your rank. As a sustained effect, your ForceField is noticeable, unless you apply the Subtle modifier. Force Fields are often Impervious as well, immune to certain lower thresholds of Damage.
EXTRA: EFFECTS INCAPREAL 2 {ALL}{2p}
EXTRA: EFFECTS Others+Self {1p}
EXTRA: Impervious {+1r}
MODS: Subtle{1p}
This modifier reduces, and then eliminates, these traces.
MODS: Precise{1p}
You can vary your power at will as a free action: going from total to partial.
ALT POWER-DAMAGING-FORCE FIELD{1p} {TELEPATHIC}
DAMAGING FORCE 10 {20p}
You can damage other, objects with this effect.
The creature somehow takes the psychic blow in stride, as though it has experienced such things before.
The hairy creature is overwhelmed by facing so many opponents at once. It raises both fists above its head and slams them into the ground in an ape-like display. The tile floor cracks and the thin layer of water on the floor splashes outward. You can feel the blow in your footing.