(On the Hunt) Intelligence Gathered

[Aaron van Valen]

Aaron's laptop is hardly finished powering up, before the room bursts with activity. Everyone apparently has useful phone calls to make. Meanwhile, the Lord remains quietly seated.

He asks Twist for the USB.

As everyone is out gathering more information, he is curious what's on the tiny electronic device. He plugs it in, hoping there's no security on the thing. As it loads, he looks up at Lina while she makes changes to the whiteboard.

Occultists? That seems like a group no one was talking about, but Aaron would feel very comfortable with. Something for later.

[Twist]

Pulling out the USB, Twist hands it over to Aaron. Settling into a seat near where she had drifted to, she watched the group around her. It had been many nights since she had last seen this type of event and in some ways it was enjoyable just to see it's return.

"I have a few allies from my theater work. Let me know if we still need more along those lines."

Sorry guys- playing catch up after a surprise visit from friends.

[Mable Wood]

"Mr. Davis, I have heard he works for the police time to time also. So be extra careful when dealing with him that you know which side he is on." Mable thought this might be info he should know.

[Blackbird]

Blackbird had entered as the Black Sheep, 'cousin' John had begun his loud, public phone call.

Ah... so he's that kind of cousin. He should learn discretion.

She gave John a side-long glance, her face marked with light irritation, but this quickly dissipated as she turned her attention to Lina and her board. The neonate waited until Rebecca had stated her findings, offering the Doctor a small smile. She seemed capable and respectful of her Priscus. Moreover, she had tact. Once Rebecca had finished, Blackbird took another step forward, clasping her arms in front of her as her lips parted.

"My... friends indicate Lindasfarne lives locally. Alone." A small smile decorated Blackbird lips as she spoke, the information was fruitful, after all, "He works with both the police and less-legal elements here in the city. However, they warn that he's... strange. His usual compatriots are conspiracy theorists. Considering these factors alongside his reclusive nature, I think its safe to say the man may be unstable."

She let the initial findings sink in before delivering the diamond she had uncovered, "It should also be known that Yusuf has a soft spot for him. He keeps an eye out of Lindasfarne and my sources indicate he will bring forces to bear if he feels the safecracker is in danger."

Then she looked to John Davis, "If you were able to successfully arrange your meeting, I suggest you bear that in mind, Alder. Strong as you may be, Hunters are not known for their honor and are known for their love of flame. Especially here." The advice was kept a neutral tone. There was no reason for her to put John's existence at risk. He had a use, especially if he succeeded in drawing the safecraker out. Therefore, it suited Blackbird's own purposes to ensure he was protected. For now.

Turning back to Lina, she pondered for a moment, carefully constructing her closing statements, "If I may make a suggestion, honorable Priscus... My sources indicate that Lindasfarne has no family in Sacramento. Likely he relies heavily on his relationships with the aforementioned theorists and Yusuf. If worst comes to worst, real threats to these individuals may draw him out."

A cold smile decorated the little Daeva's lips, holding for a few long moments before retreating back to form Blackbird's familiar smirk. Her eyes then turned to the room as a whole, letting them share their own information. If any withheld anything, she would know whom to distrust.

[Clara E. Verne]

Clara watched and listened. A still statue in a mermaid dress in Elysium focused and took in the flurry of activity around her. Most of it washed over her but that didn't matter. She would know what was important when it was said. Doctor Simmons pulled up info on Cochrane. Krieg seemed frustrated with his contacts. Mabel shook down her police contacts. Blackbird was focused. Lina updated her board. Aaron and Twist were uncovering just what the USB held. John pulled strings and arranged a meet with Lindasfarne. That brought a smile to Clara's face.

She clapped her hands in front of her and exclaimed at John "Well done, well done!" She eyed Blackbird as she chirped up with more insight into hunters. Had she had a run-in on her short trip to Sacramento? Clara dismissed the notion and instead re-focused on Blackbird's information.

She blinked and lost track. So when Lina put the updated information on the board she leaned forward and took in the web of connecting information.

Clara took stock of the cracks in the alliances that had formed around these hunters. A plan had formed in her mind. All of a sudden the cheer and jubilation seeped out of her voice and she spoke in Lina's direction with clinical dryness and assuredness. "Priscus Moretti. I'm going to use a few nights and with them I'm going to undercut Harcourt's grip on the Gang Task Force. They will prove a vital tool in protecting the First Tradition when free from Harcourt's bribes."

[Yumyumcrow]

The USB boots up and perhaps surprisingly is not password protected. Either some people are not very tech savvy, or else the information committed to the drive was of the 'read / transfer once, then destroy' category.

The information turned out to be eclectic and would only have made sense to the Hunter's themselves:-
*A couple of word documents providing brief notes on a few criminal gangs with interests in human trafficking.

*A word document detailing the variations of gang tags in Sacramento - with photographs for comparison

*A word document giving thumbnail descriptions / possible locations of a number of graffiti artists and taggers from the greater Sacramento area

*A word document detailing some of the stranger signs and tags that have appeared in Sacramento over the years (this does include some Kindred related tags, including several used by Belial's Brood; where to find them; and notes of the possible secret origins of these signs - which range from the eerily accurate to the wildly implausible).

*Various maps of the sewers and tunnels under Old Sacramanto

*Notes (word documents and some PDFs) relating to MK-Ultra operations reputed to have occurred in Sacramento; alien abductions and UFO sightings in the area; and some detailed case notes regarding amnesiacs who were found wandering the streets of the city over the years.

*Notes (word documents and PDFs) relating to possible cases of human experimentation conducted in the wider Sacramento area. These notes include information pertaining to a start-up Biotech company that allegedly had a break through with synthetic blood (bought out by a conglomerate after some industrial espionage; the start-up's last holdings where bought up by a San Francisco based Holding Company and a local mafia donna) and the strange case of a dying Mexican matriarch bought to Sacramento for some decidedly unethical blood transfusions.

[Yumyumcrow]

QUICK SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION. POSTS LOST DUE TO ROLLBACK CAUSED BY TECHNICAL GLITCH

I'll wrap this scene up. We have lost about a page of posts, but I think the main points have survived.

Information retrieved after a night spent in a frenzy of phone calls, the Kindred set down to working out the next phase of their plans.
Krieg , Clara E. Verne , @Mabel Wood , Rebecca Simmons were to turn their attention back on Elk Grove, and in particular the Hunter known as Derrick and his Tribulation Militia. If they were to set the Hunters at each others throats, they needed to know more of this relatively unknown group.
Clara E. Verne was going to start investigating Bruce Harcourt and where he fitted into the great scheme of things.

Colonel Davis John Davis was to continue to scouting operations in the sewers and tunnels beneath the city with the assistance of Krieg and @Mabel Wood .

ST NOTE - this will blend into the Secret Sewer plot for now...

Colonel Davis' master stroke was to lure the Hunter known as Lindasfarne out of hiding with the possibility of security work / consultancy. Aaron van Valen John Davis Blackbird Lina Moretti . The plan was to be simple: capture and control the Hunter once he turned up to meet with his new customer.

If I have missed anything, let me know. A lot happened here