Nazareth Awakened - Chapter 02: Wives of Solomon

[GlassEye]

Harper, Thyrsus mage

[section]

Harper isn't ready to give up on the biker yet. He continues performing CPR on the man and, though he hasn't seriously thought about his spirituality in months, finds himself mouthing a quiet prayer to whatever being is out there. He believes now that it isn't the god he learned about as a child but there is something out there, something he caught a glimpse of during his awakening, that he believes has put him on the path that has ended up with him here at this place and time.

"C'mon, dammit!" he mutters as he works.

​

[/section]

 

[Rubberneck]

(OOC :: Oops I meant to use mana as well)

"Alright bud we almost have you out of there."

Law will look around the area quickly for something with some heft to it to try and bust the padlock. If he can't find anything he'll resort to trying to stomp on it/brute strength. If that fails he'll use the spell a 3rd time using his magical tool, willpower, and mana.

(OOC :: Is using Willpower even a mechanic in this game or am I confusing it with something else?)

 

[TillForPie]

(OOC :: Is using Willpower even a mechanic in this game or am I confusing it with something else?)

OOC: Yes. If you check the spoiler you'll see you got 3 bonus dice from using Willpower. You rolled 1 die from Gnosis, 2 from Death, and 3 from Willpower for a total of 6 dice, which netted you 1 success.

Law finds various odds and ends in the kitchen, but nothing with, say, the weight and strength of a brick that might make shattering the lock easier.[sblock=Damaging the lock]Roll: Strength 2 + Brawl 2 = Failure with 1 success
Law scores 1 success, not enough to overcome the object's remaining durability[/sblock]He tries to brute strength the weakened padlock, finally bashing it against the ground and then stomping it a few times. He figures he'd probably get through it eventually but the group doesn't have all night so he resorts to magic again, this time using mana to mitigate the chances of Paradox - though with the amount of vulgar magic he's used the danger is still very real.[sblock=Paradox]Roll: Base 1 + cumulative 3 - magical tool use 1 - mana expenditure 1 = Failure with 0 successes
There is no Paradox[/sblock][sblock=Spell: Decay]Roll: Gnosis 1 + Death 2 + Willpower 3 = Success with 2 successes
The durability of the padlock is reduced by 2[/sblock]Paradox is back in the kitchen with Law and Agnasci. The two mages can feel it pass through them like a wave. So much vulgar magic has occurred in this house tonight that it seems to be reaching critical mass. But Law burns some of the mana in his pattern, easing the spell across the abyss from the Supernal Realm. The lock crumples, as if imploding, until all that's left is a lump of rusty metal with the consistency of soft clay. Law tears through it with a grunt. Agnasci is free.

Harper, meanwhile, has been fighting a battle of his own. He recalls a line of John Donne's that his father quite enjoyed. No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or if thine own were; any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.

Rather than simply letting him die, Harper is attempting to save the life of a man whose death might actually be a convenience for the group. In the attempt he has invoked his faith and in so doing fulfilled his virtue and regained all spent Willpower. As he was already at full Willpower he'll instead be given a free bonus Willpower to be spent on the roll to stabilize BR.[sblock=Saving BR]Dexterity 3 + Medicine 1 + Willpower 3 = Success with 4 successes
Harper stabilizes BR[/sblock]The biker sputters and coughs against Harper's mouth, suddenly breathing. Harper leans back, taking deep breaths of his own from the effort. The bearded man rolls onto his side, coughing out some more water. He seems to be dazed and could probably do with hospital care, but he'll live.

Outside in the hard rain Chance is barreling down the street at a sprint. She gets to the end of the lane, at the edge of a small park, and hangs a left in the direction the fleeing biker had gone. Up ahead in the near total darkness she sees a light in the center of the street. It's hard to make out, but she knows it's the motorcycle, on its side about a hundred yards away. She approaches at a jog until she can make out a body 8 or so yards further down the street from the bike. With her mage sight she can see tendrils of magic licking at the air around the body, and every few seconds a spell briefly forms nearby before disintegrating. As she gets closer she confirms it's the leader - he's on his back, the side of his face shredded from the wipe out, blood on the asphalt drained away to nothingness by the rain. He's reaching out at the air with his left hand, trying to grasp at something Chance can't see.

Chance's phone starts buzzing in her pocket. She checks it, keeping the gun in her other hand trained on the biker. It's Faye calling.

It's been about a minute and a half since the group arrived at the house.

 

[Mosier]

The moment Agnasci is released from the chains, he sprints toward Big Rich. The man is in no condition to fight, but Agnasci is wary of him anyway. "Law, cuff this one!" he says on the way to Rich. "He's the worst of them. We should take him with us." If Rich has dropped his gun, Agnasci will pick it up, otherwise he'll take it from Rich when he reaches him.

When Agnasci reaches Rich, he searches the man. Any weapon he finds, he'll put in his own pocket. He'll also takes RIch's keys and wallet.

"This one is part of the ritual Mad Dog was doing. I think he was trying to summon something. Something big."

After Agnasci is confident that Rich doesn't have anything dangerous, he turns to Buddha-man. "Come with us," he says, and then gestures at the wreckage all around them. "Or, you can stay here and talk to the police." Hopefully he has used simple enough terms to snap this waste of humanity out of his hysterics. If not, he'll try helping Buddha-man to his feet, and steering him toward the vehicle. If Buddha doesn't immediately comply, Agnasci will simply leave him there.

"We have to get out of here," Agnasci says to Law and Harper. "This is probably one time you don't want to see your pals come to back you up, Law."

Finally, Agnasci will take a few seconds to look for any mail that has been delivered to the house. Hopefully this is Mad Dog's place, and he can find something with a name on it.

 

[Rubberneck]

Law heads to his rig, looking for Chance, who is not in sight.

"Damnit, she went after the leader alone, let's move it."

Law goes to the glove box for the handcuffs but only finds one set. He shrugs it off and slaps the cuffs on BR, dragging him to the Tahoe. Once everyone is in Law heads around the corner to where the leader wiped out.

 

[Shayuri]

"Hey!" she barked. "You hold still!" She wasn't sure if he could really understand her, but she felt it was her civic duty to offer him that option.

Not taking any chances, so to speak, Chance aims her pistol at the fallen biker and hooks her cellphone from her pocket with her left hand.

"Hey, it's Chance. We got here in time, sorta. Agnasci's okay. There was some serious...we're gonna hafta see Penrose though. Like A-S-A-sap, once we're done pickin' up the pieces around here."

As she talks she concentrates on her expanded senses, trying to scrutinize the faltering magic around the biker. Surely that couldn't be the same spellcasting that had flooded the bathroom...could it?

 

[GlassEye]

Harper, Thyrsus mage

[section]

Harper is relieved he managed to save the man even though, according to Agnasci, this one was the worst of the lot. He'd let Law deal with him and maybe they would be able to get an answer to what was going on here and in the desert. Now, however, he shambled towards the Tahoe; clothes nearly saturated with water from being in the house. He helped corral the bikers into the vehicle and hoped they stayed docile a while; they were big and he'd hate to get into a scuffle with them.

"Up to the left," he says directing Law to where he senses Crow.

​

[/section]

 

[TillForPie]

Agnasci, Harper, and Law

Agnasci can't find BR's gun in the hall: It may have fallen from his waistband in the bathroom, which remains dark and gravity-reversed. Rich does have keys, a wallet, and a phone, though the phone has been crushed and submerged in water. Agnasci pockets the keys and wallet. When Agnasci addresses Buddha through the bathroom doorway, there's no response. Sleeper reactions to vulgar magic seem unpredictable - BR was able to try to flee, but Buddha-man has been paralyzed. If Agnasci wants to try to pull Buddha to his feet he'll need to cross back into the bathroom.

Agnasci finds a small pile of unopened mail addressed to someone named Elsa Graves on the kitchen counter.

Law retrieves his spare cuffs from the Tahoe and slaps them on Rich, though with the biker regaining his senses it takes a few tries. Corralling the man is more difficult.[sblock=Moving BR]Roll: Strength 2 + Brawl 2 + cuffs/advantageous position 2 vs BR's Strength + BR's Brawl = Failure with 2 successes
Law is having trouble moving BR[/sblock]At 6'4 and over 300lbs BR isn't an easy man to move by force. He pushes away from Law, splashing back down into the water of the hallway. "Whu-whut the hell?" he demands groggily, seemingly with no memory of what's happened.

Chance

The biker looks over at Chance when she calls to him, eyes wide with recognition. He makes a pained sound, unable to talk.

"Fine," says Faye from the other end of the call, "but you guys need to make sure you leave nothing there that can be connected to you." Chance hears Penrose say something in the background. Faye responds to him in the affirmative before continuing to Chance. "Penrose hijacked the police frequency but there are a lot of calls coming in, he can't keep them away forever. They're gonna be there soon."

Chance scrutinizes the spells as best she can - it's difficult with them disappearing so quickly after forming, but it's obvious these aren't like the spells back at the house. These are being formed by a novice. A sub-novice, even.[sblock=Recognizing the phenomena]Roll: Gnosis 1 + Intelligence 2 = Success with 1 success
Chance realizes what's happening[/sblock]The truth of it hits Chance suddenly. He's awakening. Right now, right here.

Lightning flashes, revealing Crow on a nearby park bench.

 

[Rubberneck]

Law continues trying to force BR to the vehicle,

"We're going for a little ride. Just make it easy and comply, we just saved your life, don't make me kill you."

Law will make sure to retrieve any pieces of his gun that remain in tact, he'll also look around to make sure no one else left anything behind.

 

[Mosier]

Seeing Law struggle with Rich spurs Agnasci to action. He runs to Law's side, and helps him to stuff Rich into the vehicle.

"You're coming with us, one way or the other," Agnasci says. He's not even sure why he wants Rich prisoner. Maybe it's just the hate guiding him. He knows it would probably be more sensible to just leave him here, but the logical part of Agnasci's mind is overwhelmed by his desire for revenge.

He's not stupid, though. If Rich successfully continues to resist, he'll suggest to Law that they take the cuffs off and just leave him here. The man is in no state to witness against them, anyway.