PrP-BaF: CSI Sacramento

[Helen Kingsley]

"A few times. But then, I sorta think this isn't your first rodeo either, or is it, Padre ?"

Helen's part of the search doesn't turn up anything too spectacular, but then, she didn't expect it to, really. Still the cuts in those tents ? That's off... She can think of few reasons why somebody would slash those up that aren't too good for their line of investigation. As Conner waves her over, she squats down next to him at the chalk outline.

"Yah, figured as much. I mean, if he would've been killed here, that'd have been the bad klind of messy."

But yeah, she hasn't seen the marks. Her eyes follow Conner's pointing gesture down to the former lived in spaces. She adresses Conner with a somewhat lowered voice.

"Maybe. On the other hand, we don't know if the Police would've found those marks. If you ask me, that attack might have been a feint. Not really aimed at fucking up those fellows, just pushing it at 'em enough to scare them off and make sure they won't come back anytime soon. No more easy scapegoats, sure, but also means no surprise witnesses when the cops roll in.

Also, two more things. One, I don't know if we're being watched, but you might want to keep that pointing around down a little. Dunno, just in case. Two, in case we get separated out there, where do we regroup ?"

Asked about the smell, she tilts her head to the left a little with a look as if she's thinking about something.

"Yeah, I know what you mean. Smells like diabetes sneaking right up."

Helen once more affects her trademark frown and nods shortly after.

"Let's go."

[Drakken]

Conner and Helen follow the trail down the street, under the dim glow of streetlights blurred by the drizzle that has overtaken the night. Rounding the corner they pass by a closed office building, and find themselves in an alleyway between the office building and a dive bar by the name of "Babylon." Here, that sweet, sanguine odor pervades the air; a scent that might be ignored by Kine, but to a Kindred it means nourishment...satiation. Without seeing anything, the predators know that the kill happened here.

What do you do?

[Conner Wells]

Conner is a bit surprised by Helen's interest, but indulges just a bit. "My Sire and I worked on investigations together. I was the navigator and lookout, she was the muscle. Though he'd been working to bulk up his physical skills since he'd arrived in Sacramento. "Sometimes I wish I could turn my sensory abilities down though." ​He nods in agreement with her assessment of the collateral damage. "Yes, that would explain why the area was abandoned."

As they follow the trail, he takes in Helen's suggestions. Paranoid? Maybe, but it couldn't hurt to be cautious. "Fair enough. There's the bus stop we met at earlier, though we may want someplace indoors..."

2 successes

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2021-11-03 23:30:14	Conner Wells rolls 3 to Rack Brain for Rendezvous Locations (Int + Streetwise) (10 Again)	5, 10, 1, 8	2 successes

Conner runs through his memory of the nearby area, trying to think of someplace open this late while still inconspicuous.

As they approach 'Babylon', the irony of the name not lost on Conner, that scent returns more clear than ever. Someone fed here. "It was here". He says, snapping a quick photo of the alleyway for their investigative partners.

5 successes

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2021-11-03 23:34:00	Conner Wells rolls 7 to Examine New Crime Scene (Wits + Investigate) (10 Again)	7, 8, 5, 5, 10, 9, 6, 10, 10, 4	5 successes

Conner's focus now turns to speed and precision. Now that they'd isolated the crime scene, he wanted to glean what information he could before they entered the dive bar. "You up for a drink or two?"

[Helen Kingsley]

"Looks like little has changed then, lucky you."

Helen chuckles behind Conner and follows him. As he brings up the bus stop, she shakes her head, but then remembers that he can't see that.

"Bus stop's too close to the scene, we have to shake someone off, they just need to linger." she adds. She's already got an idea, but doesn't mind if she doesn't have to pop it, so she waits if Conner is able to come up with something. At their final destination she gives the alley a good once-over. "So it happened here and the body got from here to there without kicking up a fuss... Not bad for an average night, eh ?"

2 successes

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2021-11-04 20:06:33	Helen Kingsley rolls 6 to Investigate suspicious alley (Wits+Investigate+Specialisation) (10 Again)	9, 8, 6, 2, 7, 3	2 successes

After having another look around, she starts to inspect the alley and the stuffs inside of it. Trash cans or containers if there are any, other obstacles that mioght have provided sight cover and ways to get overhead, like fire ladders and those sorts of things. However, interrupting what she's doing every now and then to take a photo and looking whether someone's coming to meet, she's not getting results as quickly.

"Depends on what that place is like inside. I will, if I have to, but if I can get through the night without puking my guts out, I'll happily do that."

[Drakken]

The alleyway is relatively sparse, containing only 2 dumpsters and some loose garbage bags. At the end, it turns left behind 'Babylon.' The buildings around it are made of off-white and gray brick, possibly limestone. Both Conner and Helen find small spatters of blood on the pavement, slowly being washed away by the rain. They both instantly know that this is not enough to warrant the nearly overwhelming strength of what they are smelling. A mild mist begins to envelope the ground, trapped in the confined spaces of the alley, and still their search carries on.

Rounding the corner of the alley they know they've found the source of the blood they smell. Painted on the back wall of 'Babylon,' slowly melting away in the shower from above, was a message. The scent was overpowering; enough to drive a hungry Kindred to frenzy. The message reads:

I saw the proof of my power over the mortal sheep; I kept the hungry wolves in the boiling cauldron of my heart.
And the mixture is a miracle, and has raised the Predator over Prey.

1 success

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2021-11-05 11:29:13	Drakken rolls 6 to Something (10 Again)	5, 1, 2, 8, 6, 4	1 success

[Conner Wells]

Conner observes the gruesome display on Babylon's wall with a palpable fury building in his gut. This...this is obscene! Such waste! Such arrogance. A low, rumbling growl creeps out of his throat and for a moment it looks like he's about to punch the wall...but he doesn't. He takes a long, shuddering breath. "This...this was the purpose of the kill. To send a message. But for whom?"

failure

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2021-11-05 21:10:18	Conner Wells rolls 5 to Is the Quote Familiar (Int + Occult) (10 Again)	7, 7, 7, 5, 2	failure

Conner grimaces further, unable to discern for the moment whether the writing is a quote from some Kindred religious text, or just some inane babble. "Maybe we'll find answers inside?" Conner nods again towards the Babylon bar before snapping a quick picture of the writing. They now knew this killer...this monster clearly believed himself above the laws of Man. And where the laws of Men failed, the wrath of Monsters was sure to follow.

[Helen Kingsley]

The blood drops prove for one that they're on the right track, that's something at least. Helen only pokes at the trashbags, but doesn't really feel like dumpster diving, so she just hangs over the ledge ot get some look at the inside and the inside of the lids with the light. It also doesn't yield much, still, that smell has to come from somewhere, doesn't it ? And how it does... The backside of Babylon provides all the proof they need, with a nice spatter of irony to boot !

"Son of a bitch..."

Helen has seen worse but this still ranks high on her index of fucked up things. The struggle between her, who is being appalled and that other thing inside her that is attracted, if only to the paint and not the message, is real and it feels weird. Still, in the end, repulsed wins out and she keeps her distance to the wall. Perhaps they're dealing with a religious nutjob ? Most people go straight to the Revelation of John, but Helen dimly recalls a few choice words the Prophet Jeremiah had for Babylon and those that dwelt within. But then, what if this is a direct quote and not some interpretation ? Its been a while, but sh still tries to recall if she ever heard something like it before...

3 successes

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2021-11-06 10:34:59	Helen Kingsley rolls 4 to Recalling scripture ? (10 Again)	5, 8, 10, 2, 10, 3	3 successes

[Connor OBrien]

The writing continues to run as the rain washed down on it. The individual letters run together as it becomes unintelligible.

Helen

The message comes from the Testament of Longinus, specifically the first book; The Malediction of Longinus.

failure

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2021-11-07 13:23:39	Drakken rolls 6 to Something (10 Again)	4, 6, 7, 5, 4, 1	failure

The Flash of Conner's camera goes off, and scrambling can be heard though the rainfall coming from the roof of 'Babylon.'

[Connor OBrien]

did it again, removing marble

[Conner Wells]

Conner's gaze shoots to the roof. "Above." He whispers to Helen. He scans the area, quickly finding a roof access ladder.

failure

Date	Action	Roll	Result
2021-11-08 01:19:15	Conner Wells rolls 5 to Jump to Roof Access Ladder (Str + Athletics + Vitae) (10 Again)	1, 5, 6, 1, 2	failure

Conner pours stolen power into his legs as he backs up down the abandoned alleyway and attempts a jump, but overshoots by inches. He lands just short and snarls. "I'll be a moment. Think you can scale that?" Easy now...let's have a cooler head on this.

per ST description

The distance to the roof is about 20 ft. Scanning around near the rooftop, Conner sees a roof access ladder that hasn't been dropped. Think the bottom of a fire escape (jump distance of 10ft vs 20ft). There is also the nearby dumpsters (14ft jump, round to 15ft if needed)