The pickup (Jake, Wed. 4/4/07)

[Detritus]

After your dismissal from the master bedroom, it doesn't take long for you catch up with the Seneschal.

"Ah, you are looking for the cash, yes? Everything is in order for the delivery, then?"

[Chimaera]

After your dismissal from the master bedroom, it doesn't take long for you catch up with the Seneschal.

"Ah, you are looking for the cash, yes? Everything is in order for the delivery, then?"

"Indeed. I've got my back-up lined up and the location is set. I just need the cash and I can go and complete the transaction."

[Detritus]

Bonnie signals for you to follow her, and she leads you to a second-floor room that's about halfway in size between the master bedroom and Bobby's room. It's large enough to have a walk-in closet, and Bonnie enters, presumably to retrieve the cash for tonight's transaction. The room is pretty tidy; there's a simple but well-crafted dresser with a bottle of Chanel No. 5 and several strings of pearls on top of it, and a queen-size bed made up with linen sheets and a couple of thin blankets.

[Chimaera]

((Do you have dice rolls? Jake's got a twitchy urge and he's acutely aware that it would be a distinctly bad idea right now...))

EDIT -- ((Actually, scratch that -- Jake takes a peep around the room, then, as he looks about nonchalantly, appreciating his surroundings Toreador style, he'll filch a string of pearls.))

[Detritus]

((Do you have dice rolls? Jake's got a twitchy urge and he's acutely aware that it would be a distinctly bad idea right now...))

EDIT -- ((Actually, scratch that -- Jake takes a peep around the room, then, as he looks about nonchalantly, appreciating his surroundings Toreador style, he'll filch a string of pearls.))
((OK, he's able to do so pretty easily. Bonnie re-emerges from the walk-in closet with a briefcase about 20 seconds after the pilfering.))

"Here we are," she says, opening the briefcase. "The agreed upon amount. Good luck." The Seneschal closes the briefcase and hands it to you, none the wiser about anything that has just happened in the bedroom, to the best of your ability to determine.

[Chimaera]

Jake nods acknowledgment and goes to round up/wait for the rest of his crew.

[Detritus]

((I'm going to say that the arms delivery will occur at a dock, instead of at sea. Logistically, this makes a bit more sense to me. Since there isn't a good way to tell that the vehicles are armed or armored from casual nighttime inspection, it's safe to just have them dropped off.))

About five idle minutes pass before Dee Dee catches up to you with Zack in tow. You sense an undercurrent of tension between them, though it doesn't show at all on either of their faces. The trip to the docks is uneventful, but tensions boil over a little bit while you wait for the delivery to arrive.

"So you just sent him back to Memphis like that?" Dee Dee asks Zack, obviously picking up a prior conversation.

"I felt it was the best thing to do, lass," Zack replies. "The Prince was acting a mite bit irrationally last night. Erik was known to be a brood mate of Jack's. I don't know if she'd have lashed out at him, too, but there was enough of a chance that the principle of 'better safe than sorry' seemed a wise course to follow."

"Assuming Erik wasn't a raging Aspie case like Jack, I don't think it would have been an issue. Not unless Erik made it one himself."

"That might've happened, too," Zack admits. "I get the sense that Erik hasn't spent too much time at court, like most Gangrel, but even he knew how big an overreaction that was."

"It's certainly not what I would have done, but there's no place for the witless and the insubordinate in a time of war, either."

"Insubordinate, was he? Just for not answering you when you were needling him?"

"I was reminding him that he needed to watch what he said. I mean, he compared one of the Justicars to Hitler, in a city with German Prince, while holding a bug that several of the Justicar's blood bound offspring are psychically attuned to." The Sheriff motions vigorously to reinforce that last clause. "A bug that I had to explain to him three different times in the space of a few minutes that that was one of its functions. Dude was a loose-tongued moron with ADD, at least when he wasn't being an insubordinate clam."

"Neither of those things is a capital crime."

"Maybe not, but letting your gums flap sure as hell is a good way to get people killed." Zack harrumphs and is about to have more say when Dee Dee cuts him off.

"No, no. We're not talking about this any more. Done is done, and we've got a ton of stuff to do tonight."

"You brought it up this time, lass."

"That's right, and I'm ending it, too." The Sheriff takes a deep breath and turns to you. "Sorry, this is no time to lose focus. It'll be your show when the shipment arrives. Is there anything specific you'll need either me or Zack to do once it does?"

[Chimaera]

"The transaction should go smoothly -- I know this guy and I let him know that if he plays his cards right, he stands to do well for himself in terms of repeat business. That said, keep your eyes open and all of that obvious stuff I likely don't need to mention. You guys play the muscle while I check out our goods and then we drive off with our stuff. This should be pretty straightforward."

[Detritus]

"OK, can do," Dee Dee says. Zack gives a nod of his head after a look from the Sheriff.

A few more minutes pass, and you start getting the sense of being watched. You're able to study your companions for a bit when the feeling first begins to come over you, and when you do, you see that Zack isn't really affected by whatever it is you're feeling, but Dee Dee occasionally glances towards the sky, and makes the occasional sweeping look behind her.

Then you hear the sounds of the vessel bearing the delivery as it begins its approach to the dock, and the feeling goes away. Docking is a procedure of 15 minutes or so from the time you first hear of the ship's approach. A hefty boom with cabling for a large winch stands near the stern, presumably directly over a cargo elevator. A gangplank lowers to the pier, and then Mick comes down by himself.

"Ah, you brought friends," he says, then breaks out in a grin and his eyes flick to Zack for an instant. "Your date seems a little on the hairy side."

[Chimaera]

Jake grins back.

"Oh he's not my date, he's the friend with the 'nice personality' that I brought for you."

As Jake approaches, he engages in the customary complex fist-bumping greeting ritual.

"Good to see you again. Everything ready to go?"

[Detritus]

"I don't like boys," Dee Dee says.

"Bummer," Mick replies.

"I do like men." The Sheriff sidles up to Zack, who thumbs his nose with a smirk.

"Aw, you're killing me, babe. Let's go, Jake. Everything's just as ordered."

[Chimaera]

"Lead the way, bro."

[Detritus]

As you follow Mick aboard, Dee Dee and Zack take a couple of steps toward the boat, then look to you for guidance.

((I'm not sure whether the plan includes for everyone to go aboard or not...))

[Chimaera]

As you follow Mick aboard, Dee Dee and Zack take a couple of steps toward the boat, then look to you for guidance.

((I'm not sure whether the plan includes for everyone to go aboard or not...))

Jake nods for Zack and Dee Dee to come along as he follows Mick.

[Detritus]

Mick leads everyone below decks, where the two armored vehicles are waiting. There are a number of people from his syndicate that are there, too, several of whom are visibly, heavily armed. A number of them show some interest in Dee Dee, and the Sheriff studiously ignores them all while she looks around the hold.

"It's just as you ordered," Mick says, "armored vans, pop-up turret, .50 cal guns. All the accessories are in the other van over here. Must be quite a party you're going to."

One of the vans is ready to be moved up to the deck and craned onto the dock. The ammo and flak jackets are in "the other van over here." So far as you can tell, the vans are perfectly up to spec.

[Chimaera]

Jake, maintaining an aspect of good humour and bonhommie, gives things a quick once over.

((The WP ammo is there too? Everything seems in order?))

"Awesome, Mick. Let's get these bad boys unloaded and settle up"

[Detritus]

((When will the actual transfer of the cash occur?))

[Chimaera]

((When will the actual transfer of the cash occur?))

((I plan on handing over the cash when the vehicles are on the wharf and ready to drive away))

[Detritus]

Jake, maintaining an aspect of good humour and bonhommie, gives things a quick once over.

((The WP ammo is there too? Everything seems in order?))
Yeah, the WP ammo is there. Mick will point out all the armor mods for the vehicles, including some clear bulletproof plastic behind the windshield. Windows and windshield are also darkly tinted viewing in the direction from outside --> into the van. He'll also give a quick demo on how to operate the pop-up turret.

"Awesome, Mick. Let's get these bad boys unloaded and settle up"
"Sure thing, chief." Mick sets his crew into motion to unload the vehicles, after which you head back onto the dock.

You watch as the first van is unloaded with no problem. The second van has just gotten over the side of the boat, about to be lowered, when something collides violently with the ship. The second van starts to sway on its line.

[Chimaera]

Jake whirls, looking around.

"What the fuck is that?"

[Detritus]

Jake whirls, looking around.

"What the fuck is that?"
The Sheriff gives you a "fuck if I know" look after you've all turned, and then a couple more things happen. There's a scream from the deck of the ship, and a large splashing sound from the water. Something big and dark is emerging from the water's surface.

[Chimaera]

Jake briefly considers soiling himself, thinks better of it, then draws his pistol and quickly double-checks it.

"I think we need to kill that thing coming out of the water. How 'bout you guys?"

[Detritus]

When the thing fully emerges from the water, a close look reveals a creature that's something like a cross between an orca and a shark, but with a hide more like an elephant's or rhino's. Its ventral fins and tail begins to take the shape of legs.

"Um, yeah," the Sheriff says. You all scramble out of the way as the creature looks to be landing on top of you. You and Dee Dee are on one side of the creature, along with Mick, and Zack is on the other side. Suddenly a bolt of what seems to be pure sunlight shoots from each of its eyes. Neither bolt hits, but it draws the full attention of all Kindred involved.

((I'll need a new set of ~ 20 3d6 rolls for Jake, and then I'm going to roll Courage for him from the list before we get to any shooting.))

[Detritus]

OK, Jake makes his Courage roll, as do the other Kindred at the riverside.

There's a crashing sound behind you as the second van drops in free-fall from about halfway between the boat's deck and the pier. Hard to tell how good of shape it's in just from the sound of its landing.

What would Jake like to do?

[Chimaera]

Jake would like to get his ass to the dock with his goods and avoid the beastie if possible...

[Detritus]

Jake would like to get his ass to the dock with his goods and avoid the beastie if possible...
OK, so to be specific, you're going to hop in one of the vans and drive it towards terra firma, then?

[Chimaera]

OK, so to be specific, you're going to hop in one of the vans and drive it towards terra firma, then?

Is that feasible? Also, can I scoop my contact into the van too?

[Detritus]

Is that feasible? Also, can I scoop my contact into the van too?
It's certainly feasible. Also, there are two vans that need to be gotten away from the battle area. You can do some quick signaling to get Mick to toss you the keys to one van, and he'll get in the other and follow you.

Just go ahead and give as much or little description as you want for Jake's retreat from the riverside. When I know where he ends up, I'll know what I can put in my next post in this thread.

[Chimaera]

Jake catches Mick's eye and points to the remaining vans, as he runs towards one, holding his hand out to catch the keys.

"C'mon!", he calls, pulling his escort along into the van as he catches the hastily tossed keys out of the air and scrambles into the driver's seat. He starts up the van, guns the engine and makes for the dock and, hopefully, cover.

"Zack! These things have turrets and machine guns! See if we're loaded and get ready!"

[Detritus]

Jake catches Mick's eye and points to the remaining vans, as he runs towards one, holding his hand out to catch the keys.

"C'mon!", he calls, pulling his escort along into the van as he catches the hastily tossed keys out of the air and scrambles into the driver's seat. He starts up the van, guns the engine and makes for the dock and, hopefully, cover.

"Zack! These things have turrets and machine guns! See if we're loaded and get ready!"
Zack doesn't come to the van immediately, as he and Dee Dee seem to be trying to coordinate to engage the beastie in melee. Jake can if he wishes drive the van and check the machine gun himself (it's loaded), and fire it off after driving to a more remote position.

[Chimaera]

Zack doesn't come to the van immediately, as he and Dee Dee seem to be trying to coordinate to engage the beastie in melee. Jake can if he wishes drive the van and check the machine gun himself (it's loaded), and fire it off after driving to a more remote position.

Make it so... Jake won't jog Zack or Dee Dee's arms if it looks like they know what they're doing. He still peels out hell-bent for leather and looks for a safish spot from which to deliver machinegun fire.

[Detritus]

OK, Jake can put a little distance between him and the fight. It'll take a few more seconds to get the pop-up turret deployed.

Zack does hear you, and directs movements so he and the Sheriff are between the critter and the boat. It turns a little in their direction (to Jake's left), and that presents a firing solution that minimizes the threat of friendly fire to either your confederates or the boat.

You do notice that there's a somewhat oily-looking Garou in the hybrid man-wolf form on the deck of the boat moving away from the crane controls, and the human crane operator bears a series of deep furrows along his torso. Mick spots the Garou at about the same time you do, and kind of quietly panics out upon seeing it.

((The Gunnery skill defaults to any gun skill at -4. You can spend blood to raise the skill by +2 per BP spent for one turn. A .50 cal may not need such a high score to hit, but higher skill will further minimize stray fire.))

[Chimaera]

((OOC: Burning 2 BP to offset the penalty. Also, I try to direct Zack and/or Dee Dee's attention to our canine pal, if I can. Also, do I know about The Delerium?))

Jake preps the turret, deploys the machine-gun and makes sure it's loaded. He takes a moment -- if her were still mortal, he'd take a deep breath, but instead, he reaches inside and burns some of the vitae he consumed earlier that evening. He feels the bright, sharp spark, which subsides into a gentle warmth.

And he then proceeds to try and feed the beastie all nine yards.

[Detritus]

((OOC: Burning 2 BP to offset the penalty. Also, I try to direct Zack and/or Dee Dee's attention to our canine pal, if I can. Also, do I know about The Delerium?))

Jake preps the turret, deploys the machine-gun and makes sure it's loaded. He takes a moment -- if her were still mortal, he'd take a deep breath, but instead, he reaches inside and burns some of the vitae he consumed earlier that evening. He feels the bright, sharp spark, which subsides into a gentle warmth.

And he then proceeds to try and feed the beastie all nine yards.
Re: The Delirium, I'm going to say Jake does NOT know about it.

You can get the attention of the other vampires easily enough. I need to refresh my memory on how auto fire works in GURPS before giving an in-game reply, but I'll be sure to include their reaction in that post, too.

[Detritus]

OK, there are many modifiers involved in full-auto fire, so I want to break it down before proceeding with the narrative. Also, I want to check on the range of the encounter. This is something I'll get to at the end of the post.

Auto fire gets grouped into four-round bursts. The .50 cal has a rate of fire of 8 rounds per turn, so it has two bursts per round.

Recoil penalties start being applied with the very first burst, so that's a little different than with handgun and semi-auto fire. Every burst increases the recoil penalty by the recoil rating of the weapon. That rating is -1 for the .50 cal. So in this first round of shots, there will be a -1 recoil penalty to the first burst, and a -2 recoil penalty for the second burst. Recoil penalties will continue to mount in this manner until Jake stops shooting and aims the weapon again.

The Acc bonus is a whopping +16 for the .50 cal. I'm going to assume that Jake aims for a turn, both because of the huge Acc bonus and high Snap Shot (20) for the .50 cal. Note also that if the shooting goes to a second round, Jake would have to spend 1 BP per turn to get the full Acc bonus. In the shooting rules, the benefit from Acc is limited to the base ranged weapon skill in question, and Jake's effective skill is 14 before any expenditures of BP. The bonus for the 2 BP he spent get used up after this turn.

The critter is about 8 yards long, so there's a +4 to hit it. I'm going to say that the end of the pier/beginning of the dock is 30 yards away, which is a -7 range penalty. That's a net -3 for size/range combined, however, maybe another way to think of it is that Jake's still only four body lengths away from the critter. You may set the range closer if you wish, but keep that last point in mind.

For damage, the 12d+ means that any damage gets through DR is treated as cutting damage, normally. In this particular case, the beastie has some injury tolerance, though, so that anything that gets through its DR is only doing half damage. Still, half of (12d - DR) is going to do a fair amount of damage to this critter, especially as there's a pretty good chance that all 8 shots hit it.

[Chimaera]

I will do my very best Rambo impersonation from right where I am, thank you very much. :) I will also spend BPs as necessary to offset the relevant penalties as you've outlined above.

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!

[Detritus]

OK, turns out all 8 rounds hit the critter. This is enough to stop it in its tracks. It begins to bleed a dark, somewhat tarry substance. There's a bit of a distortion effect near the critter, sort of like if steam were rising, or like the oasis illusion in the desert.

Dee Dee and Zack head up the gang plank and double-team the Garou. For the moment, it's a standoff. In one instance, Dee Dee manages to stab it with her steely knife, but she just can't kill the beast. ((OOC: :grin:))

What would Jake like to do now?

[Chimaera]

Zoinks!!

Sorry, I missed this somehow!

Jake takes aim and lays another salvo into the monster -- I want to make sure it's out out, not just wounded and such. Also, what are my odds of picking off either of Zack or Dee Dee's opponents?

[Detritus]

Zoinks!!

Sorry, I missed this somehow!

Jake takes aim and lays another salvo into the monster -- I want to make sure it's out out, not just wounded and such. Also, what are my odds of picking off either of Zack or Dee Dee's opponents?
OK, would you like to spend any blood before squeezing off the next set of rounds? I'll assume the aiming is done while continuing to fire (i.e. Jake is tracking the creature's movements and adjusting accordingly), so there'd be a +2 and +3 to the next two bursts of four rounds, and no new -4 penalty for using the untrained machine gun skill. It would take an expenditure of 1 BP to continue receiving the full Acc bonus of the .50 cal.

You don't think it's feasible to shoot into the melee with the Garou without giving Dee Dee and Zack a heads up about it. It would also require another round of aiming and the -4 penalty to Jake's pistol skill comes back, since it'd be a shot at a new target.

[Chimaera]

OK, would you like to spend any blood before squeezing off the next set of rounds? I'll assume the aiming is done while continuing to fire (i.e. Jake is tracking the creature's movements and adjusting accordingly), so there'd be a +2 and +3 to the next two bursts of four rounds, and no new -4 penalty for using the untrained machine gun skill. It would take an expenditure of 1 BP to continue receiving the full Acc bonus of the .50 cal.

You don't think it's feasible to shoot into the melee with the Garou without giving Dee Dee and Zack a heads up about it. It would also require another round of aiming and the -4 penalty to Jake's pistol skill comes back, since it'd be a shot at a new target.

I am spending zee blut to keep that Acc bonus. I'll see how Zack and Dee Dee's situations develop and if they'll need my help.

[Detritus]

OK, you concentrate, burn a BP, and let rip another full round into the critter. In its impaired state, you have little trouble guiding all your rounds home. The creature seems to have expired. It continues bleeding; the shimmering heat effect intensifies, and its thick blood might be spreading a bit faster than such viscous liquid normally would, you aren't sure.

A guttural howl of pain draws your attention to the deck of the boat. You see the Sheriff extract the blade of her dagger, aglow in a brilliant orange, from the Garou's abdomen. The Garou lashes out wildly, landing what seems at first to be a glancing blow, based on the angle of contact, but it sends Dee Dee stumbling, the impact ultimately leaving her sprawled against the deck's rail.

The Garou then dodges a blow from Zack, grabs one of the crewmen still on the deck, and jumps. The boat is left bobbing up and down in reaction. You think the Garou will land in the puddle of the shark-whale's blood in a few seconds, based off a hurried tracking of its flight. The haze coming off the blood seems to lighten. You can't make out any details (yet), but you get an impression of an ambient light level appropriate to sunset, or perhaps shortly thereafter.

Now what?

[Chimaera]

Okay, I'm going to burn one more BP and try to nail that fuzzy bastard where he lands...

[Detritus]

Okay, I'm going to burn one more BP and try to nail that fuzzy bastard where he lands...
How worried are you going to be about collateral damage? The Garou has his "guest" trapped in a kind of half-side/half-front hug, such that the innocent covers most of one side of the Garou's body.

[Chimaera]

How worried are you going to be about collateral damage? The Garou has his "guest" trapped in a kind of half-side/half-front hug, such that the innocent covers most of one side of the Garou's body.

Hmmmm. I'm kind of curious about why he snagged the guy, but dropping wolf-boy strikes me as priority one. I'll take the chance.

[Detritus]

OK, Jake is going to be able to get one burst of four rounds off, as explained later. I've determined his effective skill to be 13, as follows:

18 base skill in Guns (pistol)
-4 for unfamiliar weapon type
+2 for 1 BP spent
+16 Acc bonus
-8 for effective Range/Speed of 45 yards (range 30 yds + speed 10 yards/sec)
-4 for one intervening person between Jake and the Garou
-4 for effective size of target (12-18 inches, essentially the Garou's half-width)
-2 for watching one hex
-1 for Recoil

Adjusted skill: 13

I rolled a 17 to select Jake's die roll on this burst, and that resulted in an attack roll of 13. This means two of the four rounds hit the Garou.

Of the two rounds that missed, I rolled an 11 and a 9. The 9 means that one of the rounds hits the Garou's captive.

This is how it goes down:

Jake does a pretty good job of aiming at the Garou's landing point. His first two rounds go into the hip and abdomen of his intended target. There's enough of a sideways component of the Garou's velocity, though, that his third round goes right through the hostage's sternum. Splat. The fourth round misses everything.

The Garou doesn't stop falling when its feet hit the puddle of blood. It instead sinks into the blood as if it was diving feet first into a swimming pool. You're not sure where it goes, but it isn't on the pier any more, nor is its hostage. You definitely feel bad for shooting an innocent, but have an inkling that you might have spared him a fate worse than death. ((OOC -- Jake got a 9 on his Conscience roll, so no loss of Humanity for accidentally busting a cap in his ass.))

Mick is still stunned a few seconds after the Garou plunged into the (still-spreading) blood, then turns to you and says, "What the...?"

[Chimaera]

"Dude, did you just see that? That is some fucked up shit!"

[Detritus]

"I know, but what? Did that guy jump in the river? I didn't hear a splash."

Mick looks toward the river. The shark-whale thing seems to have dissolved completely into a liquid that gives no sign of what it used to be.

"Is that a tree?"

Mick points towards the shimmering distortion effect, and there does indeed seem to be a tree visible through the dimly lit haze. Something leafy, maybe a sycamore tree?

[Chimaera]

"You know what? I don't care if it's a tree. I don't know and right now, I don't want to know. I want to get my shit and get the fuck out of here. You need a lift somewhere? Or do want to stick around and play arborist to the lethal and surreal?"

As Jake says this, he's scanning around for a) his homies and b) the other SUV.

[Detritus]

((For some reason I thought that the other vehicle was driven down the dock by Mick... And upon review I think that's correct. Basically, you are both parked at the end of the pier, each manning a machine gun, but Mick was too freaked out at the sight of the Garou to shoot.))

Your quick search reveals Zack tending to another crewman on the boat's deck. You get the sickening feeling that he might have been shredded by the Garou before it grabbed its prisoner. The glow from the Sheriff's dagger has died down, and she sheathes it and scrambles onto the pier and comes up to you. She takes note of the unnaturally fast-spreading blood and is careful to avoid it as she approaches.

"You guys OK?"

"How much did he see?" the Sheriff asks you mentally when your eyes meet.

[Chimaera]

"We're more or less in one piece, I think. How about you? And what the hell was that thing?"

He saw the wolfie dive into the the pool of blood and disappear -- nifty trick, that (I tagged him before he disappeared, I think) -- and sharkzila here. I'm not sure about the rest, but I'm pretty sure the wolves and the colossal boat-muncher kind of overshadowed everything else.

[Detritus]

"We're more or less in one piece, I think. How about you? And what the hell was that thing?"

He saw the wolfie dive into the the pool of blood and disappear -- nifty trick, that (I tagged him before he disappeared, I think) -- and sharkzila here. I'm not sure about the rest, but I'm pretty sure the wolves and the colossal boat-muncher kind of overshadowed everything else.
"We're basically OK, too. I'm not exactly sure what happened." The Sheriff looks back at the boat for a moment, then turns back to you.

"Do any of them know about you being Kindred?"

((I can't remember if the telepathic question has ever come up before, so let's say not.))

[Chimaera]

"We're basically OK, too. I'm not exactly sure what happened."

"Well, I think it's time to get the fuck out of Dodge, personally. Shall we?"

The Sheriff looks back at the boat for a moment, then turns back to you.

"Do any of them know about you being Kindred?"

((I can't remember if the telepathic question has ever come up before, so let's say not.))

"No. And I'm pretty sure the wolves and whatever the fuck that was occupied everyone's attention."

[Detritus]

"Yeah, let's get going," Dee Dee says. Just as she starts turning to head back towards the boat, she staggers. You feel a touch lightheaded yourself, then begin to experience... visions?

The first image is one of a mass slaughter in a village. No one seems to have been left alive in the town or the nearby cathedral and abbey. An impression of a psychic afterimage of several Garou momentarily appear to you as well.

The next thing you see is the Justicar crawling out of the ground, her knife at her belt as she emerges, and calling a sword and spear to her hand, seemingly from nowhere.

Then there is an image of the Justicar stalking a Garou, one that somehow feels familiar. She wounds the creature from range with knife and spear, and then closes to finish slaying the Garou with her sword, which exhibits a brilliant orange glow when she strikes.

You next see an argument between the Justicar and someone who looks exactly like Rosalyn; it must be Sidana. Sidana responds to a sharp retort from her sire by baring her fangs and lunging. The Justicar only just manages to dodge, and thrusts a bare wrist at Sidana's face, who drinks greedily from the proffered supply of vitae.

You come back to the present with a start. The sequence of images seems to have only lasted a few seconds. The Sheriff looks like she's just finished swaying on her feet after she started to turn away from the vans.

"Neither of you was looking very good there for a couple seconds," Mick says to you.

[Chimaera]

OOC Question: Is The Delerium in effect here for mortals and such?

[Detritus]

OOC Question: Is The Delerium in effect here for mortals and such?
Yes, it is.

[Chimaera]

Yes, it is.

OOC: Is Mick showing any signs of such ill-effects of having seen what he's seen?

[Detritus]

He froze with terror (never fired any shots, and so forth) upon seeing the Garou, and hasn't given any indication that he recognizes any of the recenlty encountered supernatural elements for what they truly are. Are there any other symptoms you're expecting him to exhibit?

[Chimaera]

OOC (I don't know that Jake would know this), IIRC, the Delerium basically fugues out the memory of the entire werewolf-related episode. The very existence of werewolves is so traumatic, that the mortals just kind of shut down. I was wondering if Mick was showing any signs of passing out or confusion or such. For the time being, I'm presuming Jake doesn't have a compelling reason to know about the Delerium and Mick doesn't appear to be acting strange at all, so I'll roll with how he's acting.

[Detritus]

As written up in the GURPS Werewolf source book, there's mention of mortals freaking out, but not passing out as such. I think the best way to treat this particular instance is that at the time when the shooting was happening, Mick was freaking out, which amounted to him freezing with terror. A little time has passed for Dee Dee to approach you, so he's collected his wits a little by then, although I still have tried to put in something about rationalizing the encounter into terms he can deal with better, e.g...

"I know, but what? Did that guy jump in the river? I didn't hear a splash."

...from a few posts up.

[Chimaera]

As written up in the GURPS Werewolf source book, there's mention of mortals freaking out, but not passing out as such. I think the best way to treat this particular instance is that at the time when the shooting was happening, Mick was freaking out, which amounted to him freezing with terror. A little time has passed for Dee Dee to approach you, so he's collected his wits a little by then, although I still have tried to put in something about rationalizing the encounter into terms he can deal with better, e.g...

"I know, but what? Did that guy jump in the river? I didn't hear a splash."

...from a few posts up.

(Still OOC) Oh, absolutely -- no criticism was implied in my question, only my own lack of clarity.

[Chimaera]

"Yeah, let's get going," Dee Dee says. Just as she starts turning to head back towards the boat, she staggers. You feel a touch lightheaded yourself, then begin to experience... visions?

The first image is one of a mass slaughter in a village. No one seems to have been left alive in the town or the nearby cathedral and abbey. An impression of a psychic afterimage of several Garou momentarily appear to you as well.

The next thing you see is the Justicar crawling out of the ground, her knife at her belt as she emerges, and calling a sword and spear to her hand, seemingly from nowhere.

Then there is an image of the Justicar stalking a Garou, one that somehow feels familiar. She wounds the creature from range with knife and spear, and then closes to finish slaying the Garou with her sword, which exhibits a brilliant orange glow when she strikes.

You next see an argument between the Justicar and someone who looks exactly like Rosalyn; it must be Sidana. Sidana responds to a sharp retort from her sire by baring her fangs and lunging. The Justicar only just manages to dodge, and thrusts a bare wrist at Sidana's face, who drinks greedily from the proffered supply of vitae.

You come back to the present with a start. The sequence of images seems to have only lasted a few seconds. The Sheriff looks like she's just finished swaying on her feet after she started to turn away from the vans.

"Neither of you was looking very good there for a couple seconds," Mick says to you.

"Sorry, Mick -- this isn't my first time at the dance, but that was a little fucked up, no?"

Jake shakes his head to clear it, wipes his face with his hands and looks at Mick again.

"Heh. Well, I guess we just did a nice little bit of QA there. You need a lift anywhere? We're out."

[Detritus]

"I was going to just hop back aboard ship," he says, a bit unsteady but otherwise none the worse for wear, apparently. "We'd better split quick, if we don't want to get tangled up with the authorities." The Sheriff turns as if to head towards the boat, then lets out a cry, after which several things happen in rapid succession.

A split-second after her yell, Dee Dee is face-to-face with another large Garou. A pair of Garou emerge from the pool of spreading blood, coming to either side of the first Garou. Before you can bring your weapon to bear on any of your new foes, three streaks pass by the vans. Two of the streaks resolve into Brooke and David, and the third into an extremely large man, easily six and half feet tall and 300 lbs. of solid muscle, whom you assume must be Crusher.

There is a brief but pitched battle in hand-to-hand combat. Crusher takes one flank by himself, and the other newcomers each take one of the Garou on the other flank. It's fairly clear that the Garou are trying to capture their opponents. There really isn't an opening to shoot safely, and you're quite sure that, unlike the mortal you shot, your fire wouldn't bring your Kindred comrades to a merciful end.

The double-team on Crusher manages to get hold of him first and drag him through the pool of blood. Then Brooke is drawn in, and then the Sheriff. She manages somehow to set the pool of blood aflame with her glowing dagger, and the Garou on David cuts short his attack and retreats through the burning slick without a prisoner.

When you look over to the other van, Mick is passed out. You can hear the sounds of an anchor being drawn from the water as the fire spreads down the blood slick. The image of the tree in sunset abruptly winks out while the fire continues to burn.

"We'd best get out of here ASAP," David says. "I think the dudes on the boat are going to have to take care of themselves."

((This time, Mick failed a Delirium-related Fright Check by a big enough margin that he passed out.))

[Chimaera]

(OOC: GAH!! I missed this earlier!! Mea maxima culpa!!)

"Let's saddle up, then!"

Jake tosses Mick into his SUV.

(OOC: Are all the SUVs safe and accounted for?)

[Detritus]

((I realize I took the gun out of Jake's hand pretty abruptly, but I want to get as many PCs reunited ASAP at this point for story reasons.))

"Jake," you hear faintly, as if it were a memory of an echo, "find my sire. Tell her..."

The voice trails off at that. David has been shifting his eyes between you and the passed out Mick, but as of yet hasn't moved from where he battled with the Garou.

[Chimaera]

((I realize I took the gun out of Jake's hand pretty abruptly, but I want to get as many PCs reunited ASAP at this point for story reasons.))

"Jake," you hear faintly, as if it were a memory of an echo, "find my sire. Tell her..."

The voice trails off at that. David has been shifting his eyes between you and the passed out Mick, but as of yet hasn't moved from where he battled with the Garou.

"David? David? We gotta book, partner. Let's go!"

(OOC: Again, I'm not sure how many SUVs we've ended up with -- I intend to get Mick out of here and, hopefully, safe -- I'd prefer to keep him alive and happy, as he's a good contact and a we have a history -- if we've got only one, I'll try and make sure we leave with Mick and if there's more than one, I'll take him in mine. Where is the suitcase with the cash? Had we handed it over yet, did it get lost in the battle? Is it handy to grab quickly?)

[Detritus]

"David? David? We gotta book, partner. Let's go!"

(OOC: Again, I'm not sure how many SUVs we've ended up with -- I intend to get Mick out of here and, hopefully, safe -- I'd prefer to keep him alive and happy, as he's a good contact and a we have a history -- if we've got only one, I'll try and make sure we leave with Mick and if there's more than one, I'll take him in mine. Where is the suitcase with the cash? Had we handed it over yet, did it get lost in the battle? Is it handy to grab quickly?)
There are two vehicles, you're manning the turret in one, and Mick is passed out over the turreted machine gun in the other. David can drive the other vehicle after helping to move Mick to safety, and make it so he'll sleep long enough to not be awake during any emergency meetings involving other Kindred.

The money is already on the boat, so not easily grabbed in the present situation.

Having reviewed some of the past threads, the arrangement was that you and the others were to meet Uma and the other Brujah off site to drop off the weapons. Given the urgency that's arisen in the wake of the pickup, it's safe to blow that off and go directly to the cemetery. We'll say that Jake has looked at a map of New Orleans closely enough to know where he's going.

If there's anything else let me know.

[Chimaera]

There are two vehicles, you're manning the turret in one, and Mick is passed out over the turreted machine gun in the other. David can drive the other vehicle after helping to move Mick to safety, and make it so he'll sleep long enough to not be awake during any emergency meetings involving other Kindred.

The money is already on the boat, so not easily grabbed in the present situation.

Having reviewed some of the past threads, the arrangement was that you and the others were to meet Uma and the other Brujah off site to drop off the weapons. Given the urgency that's arisen in the wake of the pickup, it's safe to blow that off and go directly to the cemetery. We'll say that Jake has looked at a map of New Orleans closely enough to know where he's going.

If there's anything else let me know.

(OOC: Nope, looks good to me :))

Jake does a quick check of the SUVs, making sure they won't draw attention.

"We all ready then? I think we need to hit the cemetery directly -- it looks like things have gone sufficiently pear-shaped that we may in fact be riding in on cavalry duty."

Jake gets behind the wheel and making sure everyone is in accord, drives to the cemetery with all due haste.

[Detritus]

"Lead on," replies David, and you tear away from the dock like bats out of Hell, the scent of burning oil thick in your nostrils.

((Jake's next post will happen in the Only Nixon could go to China (http://forum.criticalfumble.net/showthread.php?t=26056) thread.))