2022-02-07

INVOLVED PARTIES

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INCIDENT REPORT

Archer Investigations...

• Aradia awakens in her penthouse bedroom, naked and cleaned up from the following night. Kira is sleeping beside her. Upon awakening, Kira informs Aradia that she removed her torn and bloodied clothing, and bandaged up her stigmata wounds. As thanks, Aradia feeds from her, fulling healing her superficial wounds. She then moves to feed from another "follower" who is still asleep.

• Kira relays that the coven has been unable to find anything related to Lavinia in their search of the penthouse. In fact, most of the space appears to be heavily staged — as if it was for show, not habitation.

• Aradia can't find her car keys, and vaguely recalls leaving it parked up on the sidewalk out front of the building. Kira goes down to look for it, but returns with no further understanding of its whereabouts. Instead, she attempts to call High Regent Sturbridge, at the Barnard College Chantry. However, her call is screened by Giselle, upset that she cannot simply pass on a message.

• Justine awakens in her plush bed above Club Medea. Her boys are quick to attend to her needs as Jacques, victorious in rock/paper/scissors, bares his wrist to be fed from. Justine finishes her evening ritual by pulling a single tarot card — the Seven of Swords.

• The phone rings at Justine's haven — it's Aradia. Justine is updated about what generally happened the prior night, at Hess Triangle. The two agree to meet at Aradia's and go from there.

• Lina and Josi awaken within the walls of the Center for Thanatology — Josi in her bed, and Lina in a chilled morgue drawer. Josi takes a golden goblet of blood to Pius, and helps him step out of his stone sarcophagus. He chats about his plans to continue watching The Day I Died marathon, being presented by the "prismatic peacock" on television.

• The pager that Josi was given by Anatoli Petropoulos goes off. It simply reads: "elysm mdnt bitrswt". Lina and Josi then head out, with plans to hand over the keys to Archer's new business.

• Justine gracefully passes through Club Medea, making polite small talk with passing patrons on her way to Demaris' office. Justine apologizes that she won't be able to perform this weekend. Then the two catch up, speaking largely in vague allusions to the Kindred world. Demaris hasn't felt threatened by anything from that world, though she does worry about Justine's safety — she really has jumped headlong in with a seemingly active group.

• En route to Aradia's penthouse, Justine steps into a small bodega and purchases a hotdog each for Jacques and Didier. She folds the top of the bag over tightly, and "entrusts" it to one of the two of them — stressing that they are not to be consumed before she says so.

• Justine comes upon Aradia as she's speaking with the doorman of her building. It seems as though Aradia's car was towed earlier this morning. A couple of plainclothes officers looked it over pretty thoroughly before the tow truck showed up. Aradia instructs Kira to look into it, and try to get her car out of impound.

• Justine and Aradia hail a taxi — making room for the gimps in the trunk by subtly removing the spare tire, leaving it cast aside the curb.

• Archer arrives at his new office/apartment, where Lina and Josi are waiting... Josi, who is lounging across a desk, playing up the femme fatale. Archer takes the keys to the Archer Investigations, and while being shown around, is caught up on the "trouble" that Nathaniel Ballard is causing. Josi suggests that perhaps the detective agency's first order of business — aside from finding those responsible for Leah's death — should be to divert attention toward Mr. Ballard.

• James Clarkston arrives, and is given a more condensed tour. Josi explains that both he and Archer will received a salary, and be considered as "on retainer", but are also free to take on auxiliary cases as time permits — the fee for which are theirs to keep. She gives them the first month's salary in cash.

• James is thrilled, and almost immediately begins to outline his belief that the city is being controlled by a rich and powerful cabal of cannibals. He was ousted from his job with the NYPD for digging into his partner's violent murder at their hands, but he hasn't been deterred. He has a buddy at the FBI's Special Activities Division, who has access to this new tool called ViCAP. The guy owes him a favor or two from their days at Quantico.

A Tale of Two Chantries...

• Justine and Aradia arrive at the Barnard College Chantry. First thing, Aradia meets up with Yuki to go over her research into the "Path of Levinbolt." Yuki seems genuinely sad that Aradia's "Avatar is dead" and can never be fully integrated with the God-Machine. Still, she goes through the ream of continuous paper. There are many mistakes that Yuki crosses out and corrects, or annotates within the margins of the page. A few surprisingly insightful pieces also receive comment, each flanked by a slash and an asterisk.

• When Yuki is finished, she quickly goes over a few things with Aradia, ensuring that she fully understands the principles of Levinbolt. She also asks if she had put any thought into her sacrifice for the culmination of the comet ritual. Apparently, Yuki has spent the past year reconstructing the assembly language code of an IBM BIOS, essentially making a clone operating system of her own design. She intends to format the drive as her sacrifice.

• Aradia finds Justine outside of the computer lab, perusing the art studio. Justine gifts her a "brand new" sketch book as the two head into the great hall below Sigma Delta Tau (ΣΔΤ) to find High Regent Sturbridge. Aisling is leading the room in chant as part of the comet vigil. The ritual seems to have grown louder and quicker since last night, with additional sigils now sprawling across the floor — and more gore to be found within their lines. Aisling steps away when Aradia catches her eye, joining her and Justine off to the side of the ceremony.

• Aisling has little knowledge of the figures who attacked Aradia at Hess Triangle, but knows that terms like "nergal" and "namtaru" are fragments of truenames — ars geotia that should not be spoken lightly. As such, it is not unreasonable to assume that another group is trying to harness the ley lines for themselves... perhaps to awaken one or more of the Children of Outer Dark.

• Aisling tells Aradia to be careful, and asks where she might reach her should more duties arise. Aradia carefully deflects, giving Aisling no actionable contact information.

• Josi and Lina head to the old Jewish Museum Chantry, now under the domain of Primogen Khalid of Clan Nosferatu. On the phone, Emily said that Alter could be found there, advising the cleanup crew on the cultural significance of items. Upon arriving, they find that the museum is temporary closes for "renovations" and "new exhibits" — so Josi makes a show of herself at the delivery door. After a few moments, a voice echoes out from the shadows, asking her and Lina what their business is.

• A group of five Nosferatu, all in matching black fatigues with blood red accents, emerge from the shadows of the alleyway. They know Josi's reputation, and agree to take her inside to speak with Alter. Once inside, in the depths of the museum's labyrinthine warehouse, they instead find Rico Conway. The disgraced Sheriff is incised to see none other than Josi, the Kindred who flogged him before the Court. He growls and spits, dressing Josi down with his words — calling her and her fellow neonates "soft" and "gullible" for allowing Clan Lasombra a foothold into the city after decades of bitter war with the occupying Sabbat force.

• Lina notices dozens of rats slowly amassing at the invisible perimeter surrounding Rico. Then, without warning, Josi headbutts Mr. Conway, bloodying his nose. She grins, remarking "who is weak now?" as Alter laughs in the doorway. He tries to lighten the mood as he ushers Josi and Lina out of the room. Once out of earshot, she asks Josi "what the fuck was that?" in a desperate tone that betrays his previously cool demeanor.

• Josi explains that her coterie keeps coming across the number "98" in regards to their investigation of Leah's death. At the suggestion that it might be gematria, and could thus be explained by a tome within the Jewish Museum. Alter is unsure, but does offer to introduce Josi and Lina to Tariq, the Ashirra thaumaturge that came to assist with lingering Tremere wards.

• Tariq is found within the depths of a large library, meditating within a perimeter of chalky sigils and arcane seals. As he stands, the surrounding candles illuminate his face, and there in the dancing orange hue, Josi and Lina can see that he has no eyes — in fact, his eyes appear to have simply grown over with the ragged flesh of a Nosferatu.

• Tariq regards the question, pondering out loud on the nature of the number 98 and its possible meanings — HSL (eat or consume) and TzDD (support a cause). He is then prompted to consider the number 86, breaking it down within a magic square to reveal possible meanings — AL AB (God the Father) and HEVIE (Angel of the 7 Cups).

THE CONCLAVE

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