Nazareth Awakened - Chapter 02: Wives of Solomon

[GlassEye]

Harper, Thyrsus mage

[section]

Harper puts the bear kachina on a stack of books when everyone is finished examining it. "I'll get this when I get back," he tells Faye. Following the others out to the alley he stops and whistles for Crow. He waits to see if the spirit shows up. If it does he'll settle it on his shoulder and crawl into the backseat of the Tahoe.

​

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[Shayuri]

Chance pulls her red hoodie's hood up over her head the moment she's out the door. With a quick step she crosses to Law's car and settles into the backseat alongside Harper, leaving room for one more back there.

 

[TillForPie]

Everyone in the group feels the swell of magic as Agnasci casts Third Eye to examine the two dolls. As Chance and Harper had surmised, neither of the kachina are magical, and further, there's no sign of psychic tampering with them.

The four mages step out into the cool evening and are immediately greeted by Harper's bird companion landing on him. When they've all climbed into Law's Tahoe (Law and Agnasci up front, Chance and Harper in the back) the crow squawks and flaps in annoyance at the confined space but calms quickly, settling in Harper's hood.

The drive through Nazareth is a quick one. Down Main Street and then north under the Route 60 overpass. Then east down Rattlesnake Road, passing the J. Waters Station where Chance works during the day. This part of town is particularly shabby and rundown and even the streets themselves are poorly maintained. Rattlesnake continues northeast out of Nazareth as a dirt road, in the direction of the Superstition Mountains in the distance.

Lights from Nazareth in the distance can still be seen through the Tahoe's back window but everything else out here is utterly dark. The truck rumbles violently down the uneven road and Harper's familiar makes plaintive sounds when it's squished between Harper and the seat.

It's about 10:05 PM when the truck comes to a stop at the end of Rattlesnake Road, a small and dilapidated church caught in the truck's headlights. The exterior walls are covered with spray-painted graffiti and the two shuttered windows stare back at the group like the black eyes of a tattooed face. Crumbling and uninviting steps littered with empty beer bottles and cigarette butts lead up to a chained door. The ground around the church itself is paved to provide parking but the lot is as decayed as the church itself, cracking and overrun by invading weeds.

[sblock=Perception]Agnasci's Roll: Wits 2 + Composure 2 - Dark 2 = Failure with 0 successes
Chance's Roll: Wits 3 + Composure 3 - Dark 2 = Success with 3 successes
Law's Roll: Wits 2 + Composure 3 - Dark 2 = Success with 2 successes
Harper's Roll: Wits 2 + Composure 4 - Dark 2 = Failure with 0 successes
Chance and Law spot the fallen steeple.[/sblock]Chance and Law are each able to make out the outline of the church's steeple, topped with a crucifix, collapsed against the roof. The building may not be completely structurally sound.

 

[Rubberneck]

Law turns off the vehicle and steps out. He pops the back hatch to the SUV, pulling a flashlight out of his duty bag. He tosses it to Harper, then draws his weapon, which has a light attached to the bottom.

"That's all the light I have, wasn't prepared. I should have grabbed the lights off Faye, oh well."

He looks back towards the church.

"Place is falling apart, look at the steeple. I don't think we should go in there. Everyone do your thing, see if we can figure this out and get home to sleep."

Law casts Grim Sight.

 

[TillForPie]

Law lets the grim sight's shroud fall over his eyes. He can't detect any magic out here but there's a weak pulse from within the church: It's the fading fingerprint of an old death. Law knows the owner killed himself in the '90s but he has no idea where the suicide itself took place. It could have been here.

 

[Mosier]

When Law directs his attention to the steeple, Agnasci glances up.

"I'm not an engineer, but if the place has been standing this long I bet it'll last another fifteen minutes. I'm going inside."

Agnasci casts Third Eye and cautiously steps toward the front door. He's very curious to see just what a "hallow" is supposed to look like. The only one he has ever seen is Penrose's place, and he wasn't allowed to really study it. There's something comfortable and appealing about the old, worn-out and decaying building. People probably don't ever bother looking twice at this thing.

Agnasci will wait to see if anyone else wants to go inside before opening the door.

 

[TillForPie]

A wrinkled lizard skitters out of its hiding place beside the steps and into the darkness away from Agnasci as the mage approaches the church. The building looms over Agnasci like a hungry beast as he climbs the steps to the front door, his body casting deep and black shadows against the bright headlights.

The doors have been chained shut but the chains themselves have a good deal of slack and one of the doors is hanging open by half a foot or so, revealing a sliver of utter darkness beyond. The door could be pried open further and Agnasci could try squeezing through the gap - it wouldn't be comfortable and it would take a minute, but he thinks he could make it. Alternatively, while the chains are sturdy, the doors aren't, and could perhaps be broken down. Or, if Agnasci is having second thoughts about the front entrance, he could look elsewhere to try to find another way in.

 

[GlassEye]

Harper, Thyrsus mage

[section]

Harper steps out of the Tahoe and takes a deep breath as Crow escapes the confines of his hood. "Take a look around," he says to it. "But be careful, you don't know what kind of predators are about." He stands there, basking in the scents of the area. The wilderness makes his blood race with exhilaration and while this isn't the wilderness it's wilder than anywhere he's been lately.

In his distraction he almost misses the flashlight tossed his way by Law but manages to catch it without dropping it. "Thanks." He clicks the light on and moves to follow Agnasci.

​

[/section]

 

[TillForPie]

Harper's familiar gives an affirmative CRAAAAWK! and disappears into the darkness above the group. Though already separated by probably dozens of yards Harper can still feel... something. Penrose had told him to expect something like this when he'd learned the young mage had formed a familiar bond with a curious spirit: He'd said Harper would be able to register the creature's emotions, and perhaps even its surface thoughts, once their bond had matured, and the spirit would likely be able to sense his just as easily. The connection has been slow in the growing, but Harper can definitely feel its presence tonight.

With the help of the flashlight Agnasci and Harper can see a bit of what lies beyond the gap in the front doors: The corner of a carpeted hallway, impossible to look down from their current angle (perhaps if one of them stuck their head through...), and another door leading off from it to the right. It's labeled CLASSROOM in block letters.

 

[Shayuri]

"The hallow's probably inside," Chance said, coming up along with Law and Agnasci, "So we've got to go in, but...lets not break the doors down. Big shocks moving through the old place aren't going to do it any good..."

"I could try to squeeze through," she suggested as she eyed the chained doors. "Or there could be another door, or a cellar or something we could get into."