Bay 12 Games Forum

Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Advanced search  
Pages: [1] 2 3 ... 5

Author Topic: World of Darkness (test campaign) Scene 1  (Read 7056 times)

Dwarmin

  • Bay Watcher
  • Where do we go from here?
    • View Profile
World of Darkness (test campaign) Scene 1
« on: September 29, 2015, 01:17:46 pm »

OOC Thread-->http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=153197.msg6515881#msg6515881

[You hear the tender click of a recording machine being turned on. An antiquated device, but it's likely anything more sophisticated would not work in the Presence.]

You want to know the story? About how you came to be born? It is a long tale...one that could last many nights, or just one. Depending on which mirror you glance through.

In one mirror, four strangers enter a dark building owned by no-one at all, and...they vanish forever. No one hears of them ever again, and in truth, few bother to look. They leave dark holes in the lives of the people they left behind, questions best left unasked, and certainly never to be answered. The World forgets about them. It's like they were never here. In this mirror, you're never born. And the World, ignorant of this potential, is grateful for that small blessing.

Of course, that's the opposite of what you were asking for-a happy ending. You want a tragedy. A great and dreadful tale of how such a thing as yourself came to be, by the unwitting actions of a few good (and not so good) folks, but a small taste of the horror you intend to sow. A story of the great and miserable irony of a handful of genuinely well meaning people managing to bring about the end of everything they knew and loved.

Very well. I shall be your Scheherazade. It's quite apt, don't you think? Only, I suppose the whole world is at the mercy of your bowstring.

[There is a momentary sound you first liken to static, but as it continues you begin to think it sounds more like a voice. An electric saw that somehow learned to laugh, I have heard it described-I admit the subject lacked imagination, and that was probably better for him. It is a sound that fills one with deep, unrelenting despair. It is the end of all things. Many people openly weep. Or laugh. Most shut the recording off at this point, even if not instructed to, even if instructed not to under threat of pain. Others, are driven to physical violence against the machine, striking it over and over till their fists bleed, or drawing weaponry (If provided) and attacking it. If restrained and forced to listen over a length of time exceeding one hour, my studies show a man or woman will attempt to destroy themselves, at least 80% of the time. The rest suffer long term, if not permanent, mental trauma.

I have not listened to the recording myself, but I have been able to piece together a somewhat incoherent narrative from the words of my patients.]


...

The three people I was talking about before-Madeline, Agris, and Diane-they first met, waiting for an elevator. Fairly dull for an opening line, I admit. They were all feeling that sense of lazed detachment and bitter, deep seeded depression-poetically, you could call it doom-that had been infecting them ever since they saw the damned ad, and to be honest for their entire lives. Three persons who couldn't be more alike, despite their physical differences...in some mirrors, they spoke to one another, formed a bond, that helped them later...well, 'helped' is a relative term...

The deepest shadow can still flinch, do you know? It can draw back in the face of a bright, hot light...even, if it's not defeated entire.

...

I know you don't want to hear that.

[I have not been able to make any sense of what I have heard here. Something about a door? A Key? And a flower?]
...

In another mirror-they remained lost in their own thoughts, watching the blood-red, electronic numbers run down the elevator door, feeling nothing, waiting for the end, waiting to be called. They kept their distance and didn't look each other in the eye. After all, they might be competing for the same job. Of course, that's when the first twinge comes. That sense of wrongness, of deep regret, of profound, heartless inevitability. What sort of job were all they looking for, anyway? It's hard to hold onto...and, discouraging to try. Better to not think too hard about. Better to keep your eyes to yourself, and wait to be called.

Spoiler: Madeline (click to show/hide)

...

Spoiler: Agris Bezverkhy (click to show/hide)

...

Spoiler: Diane Ceres (click to show/hide)

Let me tell you what they did next. (Player Actions)

...

Of course, we shouldn't forgot the 4th character in out little vignette.

Spoiler: Alice Konicek (click to show/hide)

...

Well, to business. You want action, excitement! Enough exposition. More explosions. Fine. You really are a child, aren't you? Somehow, that makes this so much worse.

...

Alice
is blind in many ways, but she sees further than the idiots waiting for the elevator, like so much cattle in a feed chute. She sees the telltale tingle of dense, ambient magic, spun like a spiderweb around the building-and for much the same reason. She sees the guards, no one else saw-standing stock still on either side of the door, hands loose around their wastes, not moving an inch. Inhuman, her senses warn her. Not right. She remembers why she is here...

Diane Ceres. Her father, a wealthy man. Old money and old friends. Diane's father got a warning. Diane's father, desperate, enlisted the help of a local scumbag (though a talented one) by the name of Alice Konicek to retrieve her from whatever pit his daughter has gotten herself into. Money has been promised, a great deal of money. It's straight work, as straight as can be. Find Daddies little girl. Don't hurt her more than you have to-bruises can be lied about, a missing head not so much-get her in your piece of shit car, drive to the pickup spot. Don't get caught. Don't embarrass the Family Name. Keep it quiet. Above all, get the girl. Get the girl.

To think, if she'd been a bit faster-might have nabbed the bitch outside the door, been off without seeing whatever no doubt terrible things are hiding inside what her tentative research has shown is to be a building owned by no one at all. Well, the first she saw of Alice, she was too close to snatch. Too close to those stiff, statue like men with the splayed hands. The ones she is concerned about.

Nothing to do about it but think on her feet, try to figure a plan...or, tell off, call Daddy and send flowers-tell him to buy a nice satin coffin. Hah. Alice is many things, but a she does have a sense of right and wrong. Of justice. Of what is owed and what is to be paid. Her old friend, rage, rises like smoke in the back of her mind. They're doing this. Them. In her city. It's not right. It's never been right.

And she's being paid, of course. That helps quite a bit to motivate her.

She had a plan. Or die she? Let me tell you what happened next. (Player Actions)
« Last Edit: September 29, 2015, 05:26:02 pm by Dwarmin »
Logged
Dwarmin's fell gaze has fallen upon you. Sadly, Your life and your quest end here, at this sig.

"The hats never coming off."

Fniff

  • Bay Watcher
  • if you must die, die spectacularly
    • View Profile
Re: World of Darkness (test campaign) Scene 1
« Reply #1 on: September 29, 2015, 02:20:09 pm »

Maddy was bad at dealing with awkward silences. When she was young she hummed showtunes to distance herself. In her old age, she went in the  opposite direction: she nattered.

"I wonder," she said with a nasal voice. "Are these elevators made to be slow? You go to some buildings and there they are in a jiffy, but with these... Ugh! It's like they want you to wait."

She shook her head at the ground. Remembering she wasn't alone, she looked at the other two. Her eyes took in the young lady and the handicapped fellow, the images flowing down the optic nerve and into her braincells where her subconscious went to work like a criminal profiler. This efficient (if spotty from age) service was unknown to Maddy: to her, she was a 'bit psychic' about people's intentions.

"Oh, listen to me bellyaching and I haven't even introduced myself," said the old woman. She did a little curtsy - with cargo pants and minor arthritis, this is an achievement. "I'm Maddy Myers, pleased to meet you."
Whilst making somewhat bizarre conversation, read the body language and demeanor of Diana and Agris. This won't result in anything too surprising... But hey, practice makes perfect and it's all new from an in-character perspective.

Twinwolf

  • Bay Watcher
  • Probably hanging around Forum Games and Roleplay
    • View Profile
Re: World of Darkness (test campaign) Scene 1
« Reply #2 on: September 29, 2015, 02:27:45 pm »

"I know. It's worse because you know elevators can go faster, but they just didn't seem to care on these ones." Diane says, relieved for something to take her mind off that sense of dread and a break in the awkward silence.
"Diane Ceres, likewise." she said, mirroring the curtsy- minus the arthritis, of course.
Logged
Sigtext!
Of course, Twin is neither man nor woman but an unholy eldritch abomination like every other Bay12er. The difference is they hide it better.
Quote from: Caellath on IRC
<Caellath>: Twinwolf, your thirst for blood has been noted.

Fniff

  • Bay Watcher
  • if you must die, die spectacularly
    • View Profile
Re: World of Darkness (test campaign) Scene 1
« Reply #3 on: September 29, 2015, 02:36:28 pm »

"Diane, what a lovely name," said Maddy. She rubbed her chin, wispy with light hairs. "I think it means heavenly. You can tell a lot about a person by their name!"

GiglameshDespair

  • Bay Watcher
  • Beware! Once I have posted, your thread is doomed!
    • View Profile
Re: World of Darkness (test campaign) Scene 1
« Reply #4 on: September 29, 2015, 05:41:36 pm »

Alice was never going to be a beautiful woman. She took after her father - hard, angular features, a tendency toward the bulk that isn't fat but isn't defined muscle. Her coat was thick but shabby, a thick fur rim lining her shoulders, the old brown leather worn.

Alice brushed back her unruly hair, pushing away the blonde strands from the bandanna that covered her missing eye. She regarded the false-men and scowled. She'd have to remember those were there.

Instead, she drifted around the sides of the building looking for a fire escape, a open window, a broken one... or even a thin one she could shatter without too much noise.
Logged
Old and cringe account. Disregard.

Harry Baldman

  • Bay Watcher
  • What do I care for your suffering?
    • View Profile
Re: World of Darkness (test campaign) Scene 1
« Reply #5 on: September 29, 2015, 06:01:03 pm »

Agris looks somewhat chipper today. Feeling dread while ascending an elevator isn't that much different than feeling dread while wheeling oneself down a street. One gets uncomfortably used to it over the years. With a good bit of mouthwash in him for both courage and comprehensive freshness, he's now got his obsequious game face on. The humble, yet hardworking invalid, an invaluable asset in any diverse workplace.

"Agris Bezverkhy, ladies," he nods. "Very good to see you. Here for the job?"
Logged

Fniff

  • Bay Watcher
  • if you must die, die spectacularly
    • View Profile
Re: World of Darkness (test campaign) Scene 1
« Reply #6 on: September 29, 2015, 06:11:42 pm »

Maddy nodded. "Yessireebob!" she said with a yellow grin. "Six months of looking and this is the only one I found. What happened, did someone nab all the jobs when I wasn't checking?"

Twinwolf

  • Bay Watcher
  • Probably hanging around Forum Games and Roleplay
    • View Profile
Re: World of Darkness (test campaign) Scene 1
« Reply #7 on: September 29, 2015, 06:13:22 pm »

"Yep, here for the job."
Logged
Sigtext!
Of course, Twin is neither man nor woman but an unholy eldritch abomination like every other Bay12er. The difference is they hide it better.
Quote from: Caellath on IRC
<Caellath>: Twinwolf, your thirst for blood has been noted.

Harry Baldman

  • Bay Watcher
  • What do I care for your suffering?
    • View Profile
Re: World of Darkness (test campaign) Scene 1
« Reply #8 on: September 29, 2015, 06:23:21 pm »

Maddy nodded. "Yessireebob!" she said with a yellow grin. "Six months of looking and this is the only one I found. What happened, did someone nab all the jobs when I wasn't checking?"

"The economy, you know," Agris shrugs. "That is how it is in the world."
Logged

Dwarmin

  • Bay Watcher
  • Where do we go from here?
    • View Profile
Re: World of Darkness (test campaign) Scene 1
« Reply #9 on: September 30, 2015, 12:44:06 pm »

Alice was never going to be a beautiful woman. She took after her father - hard, angular features, a tendency toward the bulk that isn't fat but isn't defined muscle. Her coat was thick but shabby, a thick fur rim lining her shoulders, the old brown leather worn.

Alice brushed back her unruly hair, pushing away the blonde strands from the bandanna that covered her missing eye. She regarded the false-men and scowled. She'd have to remember those were there.

Instead, she drifted around the sides of the building looking for a fire escape, a open window, a broken one... or even a thin one she could shatter without too much noise.

[Wits+Streetwise (2+2), -1 (Darkness penalty), -1 (Vision Penalty)=2

8, 6]


Alice was careful not to attract attention as she sidled around the front of the building, though in truth she personally doubted the guardians were the sort to take any sort of initiative against a wandering vagrant like her-a battle tank could have rolled by and they wouldn't have moved an inch. Alice had found, in many of her dealings, the supernatural tended to be somewhat predictable. These things were just dumb muscle, good for watching a door for hours and hours, but not at noticing someone skulking about, acting suspicious.

She stepped into a suspiciously clean alleyway, free of the usual litter. No ripe scent from a nearby dumpster, no stains on the ground. Alice momentarily considered lighting her torch to help, but decided against it. The darkness would hide her, since she wasn't much in the sneaking around department anyway.

(Flashlight added to inventory)

Alice's remaining eye had to do the work of two, and she quickly began to scan the area-she had long since learned to map out an area in her mind, plot it, then search each grid one by one...if I was telling a more heroic sort of story, I would say her street-rat senses were tingling at the prospect of paid larceny...from long experience, she was fairly skilled at noticing weak points in any sort of structure. It's just one of those skills she picked up.

Bingo.

Situated about fifteen feet above her head, a small, rectangular window had only been half shut. She could just see the tips of a ceiling fans dark blade, spinning under a nasty white plaster ceiling-the sort that Alice immediately associated with kitchens and laundry rooms. Otherwise, the angle and the shadows hid the rest of the room from her...it wouldn't be a rough climb, though it would be indirect-the brickwork a few feet away, near the corner of the building, would allow her to ascend, then she would have to grip the ledge (too narrow to stand on) and haul herself over to the window. The fit would be a bit tight, Alice thought with a bit of unpleasant self reflection-she would have to edge the window open a bit, to fit herself all the way through, while clinging to the ledge. Falling would be more embarrassing than fatal, unless she happened to alert someone, or something.

Go for it? Look for something better? Her mind spun like a rat wheel, playing out the chances.

She stood for a moment with indecision, and then...(Player Action)

...

Ding.

The Elevator finally stopped, and slid open with mechanical chirp-completely empty. A red leather and mirrored interior, fairly classy.

It beckoned them to step in, and they all did.

...

The small group noticed, or doesn't, that there are no buttons inside the elevator. This should bother them, that the Elevator can only go to one place, but they are of course...somewhat distracted.

It opens a short time later with a pleasant chime.

Welcome to floor who knows?

...

The interior of Twinview Corporations Job Fair seemed more like a trendy restaurant, than a waiting room for prospective employees. Comfortable red leather seats, a well polished hardwood bar-the tender notably absent from his usual post-a soothing atmosphere lit by those scentless candles on the walls and tables. Black bladed ceiling fans spun in well oiled silence above them. The low lighting made ghosts of everyone’s faces and forms, and shadows danced on the walls intriguingly. The place they came from, unimportant. The wide double doors, the ones made of the same wood the bar is, those are important. Surely they will be calling names soon.

It was hard for them to tell with the darkness, but there must have been about two dozen other people there, talking in low, desultory voices. It seemed, for no particular reason, everyone was somehow apprehensive about speaking too loudly. And, why not? This was a place that had the air of the Holy, of the sacred. Something special was going to happen here. It’s not surprising there are so many people, is a thought that occurs to many of them. What with the economy, right? They can’t help but once more feel that moments despair, a gnawing sense of wrongness about the entire situation…then, it again passes, like the cool shadow of a cloud over the sun. I doubt I need to mention it again, but safe to say it never left them. Ever.

They all felt, as that moment the strong need to sit down, relax, and wait to be called. Maybe chat with the others…share stories.

They stood for a moment together, as if uncertain of parting each others company so soon (Player Actions)
« Last Edit: September 30, 2015, 12:47:35 pm by Dwarmin »
Logged
Dwarmin's fell gaze has fallen upon you. Sadly, Your life and your quest end here, at this sig.

"The hats never coming off."

Harry Baldman

  • Bay Watcher
  • What do I care for your suffering?
    • View Profile
Re: World of Darkness (test campaign) Scene 1
« Reply #10 on: September 30, 2015, 02:22:04 pm »

Quite impressed by all this, Agris immediately regretted not dressing a bit nicer for this. Maybe his suit would have been more appropriate. Wheeling himself out of the elevator first of all, he took a careful look around, instinctively bowing his head as he proceeds inward.

Agris proceeded closer, attempting to mingle with the others, greeting them in a low voice.

"Hello. Are you here for job, too?"
« Last Edit: September 30, 2015, 02:31:42 pm by Harry Baldman »
Logged

Twinwolf

  • Bay Watcher
  • Probably hanging around Forum Games and Roleplay
    • View Profile
Re: World of Darkness (test campaign) Scene 1
« Reply #11 on: September 30, 2015, 02:30:24 pm »

Diane also leaves the elevator. She's not particularly impressed by the décor- her house was decorated better than this- and so goes looking for some open seats.
Logged
Sigtext!
Of course, Twin is neither man nor woman but an unholy eldritch abomination like every other Bay12er. The difference is they hide it better.
Quote from: Caellath on IRC
<Caellath>: Twinwolf, your thirst for blood has been noted.

GiglameshDespair

  • Bay Watcher
  • Beware! Once I have posted, your thread is doomed!
    • View Profile
Re: World of Darkness (test campaign) Scene 1
« Reply #12 on: September 30, 2015, 02:48:34 pm »

Hmmph. Worth a chance. She didn't have much of a ego left to bruise (though god knew she had a pride).


Go through the window
Logged
Old and cringe account. Disregard.

Dwarmin

  • Bay Watcher
  • Where do we go from here?
    • View Profile
Re: World of Darkness (test campaign) Scene 1
« Reply #13 on: September 30, 2015, 03:11:25 pm »

Quite impressed by all this, Agris immediately regretted not dressing a bit nicer for this. Maybe his suit would have been more appropriate. Wheeling himself out of the elevator first of all, he took a careful look around, instinctively bowing his head as he proceeds inward.

Agris proceeded closer, attempting to mingle with the others, greeting them in a low voice.

"Hello. Are you here for job, too?"

The first man Agris spoke to, doesn't seem to notice him-the young, red haired man was staring into space and talking without emotion to a young, well dressed blonde woman sitting close to him. He noticed the distance in the mans eyes and lethargy of his movements. In any other situation, Agris might have suspected he was drunk, or on something...

[Wits=2
10!
3,2

(Clues Gathered by Agris: 2/10)]


That minor thought worried away at the back of Agris's mind tenaciously-but, when the young man spoke, it was blown away like an errant cloud of dust. Still, it left a grain of sand behind-much like in the bed of an oyster, that might form a pearl...if given enough time.

...

The fog seemed to clear as the young man addressed him-in those polite terms he is used to. The quick flick downward of the eyes to his missing legs, that uncomfortable shifting in place (As if Agris has some sort of communicable disease, or perhaps it was bad luck they were afraid of catching) he had seen a hundred times. To his credit, he rallied quickly.

"...Yes. I am...I was...a data analyst. I've been pretty desperate...aren't we all? I'd wish you good luck, sir, but that'd be sort of inimical to my purposes, wouldn't it?" He remarked, with a chilly smile. We don't need to know much about David-he's a fairly minor character-but, you could tell just from looking he's a man with a great deal of confidence. He seemed to have pinned Agris in place with his dark green eyes, measuring, calculating, thinking. "My name is David Goyter."

The blond woman also seems to be coming out of her own fog, speaking up from behind him-her slender arm looped around Davids shoulder, her own eyes a steady blue that men usually find intriguing. Otherwise, a bit plain looking, but that's coming from me. I have no eye for beauty, as you might have guessed, from how you look.

...

You wont understand body language, but this sort of thing is how humans speak to one another without using words. I'm sure you'll get the hang of it eventually.

...

She spoke, a pleasant, Southern lilt to her voice. No doubt practiced in the mirror.

"...And, I'm Max. We're together. Your name?" She said, a bit tersely. Protective of her mate, this one was.  Agris had the immediate sense that this woman had a streak of ruthlessness, of strong desires and the need to keep them hers. Unlike David, her look betrayed no pity, false or true. She just distrusted him, right away. It was plain in her face. She made no effort to hide it, either through lack of guile, or lack of discretion. There were only so many jobs, and she intended for this one to go to her own.

Diane also leaves the elevator. She's not particularly impressed by the décor- her house was decorated better than this- and so goes looking for some open seats.

At least a quarter of the tables on the floor were still unoccupied, and no one yet had the courage (or the dark sense of humor) to sit at the bar. Diane had no trouble finding a place to sit. As if that was her worst problem.

Hmmph. Worth a chance. She didn't have much of a ego left to bruise (though god knew she had a pride).
Go through the window


[Str+Athletics (3+2)+1 (Heavy Clothing)=6

4, 9, 9, 6, 6, 7]


[Dex+Stealth (2-1)=1

3

(Noise Generated: 2)


Not the quietest job, Alice thought to herself. Up the brickwork like a monkey, edge across the ledge on the tips of your fingers-and she's glad she wore nice thick gloves. Otherwise, she'd be chafed something fierce. Ow. Slipped a bit, there. Banged your leg. No one coming down the alley with claws or guns or tentacles drawn, so they probably didn't hear you. Probably. Work your way over to the window, careful now, this is the hard part. Alice doesn't lack for upper body strength. Her boxers build is well suited to this task, and she grunts with true satisfaction as she lifts the window up a crack with her right hand, while maintaining her grip on the ledge with the left.

In another moment, she's in like Flynn. The reference is a bit dated, I doubt you got it, but let's move on.

She was right in her original reckoning-it's a sort of cafeteria. Reminds her of prison, but, so does everything. Lines of stainless steel tables all around, a kiosk like a buffet line, sinks and such. Dark. Not much of interest at first sight, and thankfully no one heard her yet. A few paper plates and plastic cups scattered around, a scattering of utensils.

Two ways out of here.

Left, a swinging double door into what is no doubt a kitchen. Straight ahead, a wooden double door, probably into a hallway. Where, to go, where to go, she wonders. (Player Action)
Logged
Dwarmin's fell gaze has fallen upon you. Sadly, Your life and your quest end here, at this sig.

"The hats never coming off."

Fniff

  • Bay Watcher
  • if you must die, die spectacularly
    • View Profile
Re: World of Darkness (test campaign) Scene 1
« Reply #14 on: September 30, 2015, 03:31:19 pm »

Maddy did what she did best. Or worst, depending on how you looked at it.

"Why hi there," she said to some rando. "Is there real alcohol in that bar?"
Socialize! Also, see if there's anyone who knows more about the situation then the others. There has to be someone, right?
Pages: [1] 2 3 ... 5