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Post by Anthony Cartwright on Dec 28, 2021 19:42:59 GMT -8
Gavin and Henley got the sleep they needed, or didn't, while the Ogre's mundie connection stayed up most of the evening to practice recreating the sigil. Even Icarus' dank weed wasn't enough to knock Ivory's kid out when a magical guillotine was hanging over his head. Henley made good on his people eventually finding a means of getting around protocol with accounts and narrowing down the neighbourhood the pictures were sent from. Anthony took the information and conducted his own investigation, tapping social connections and asking the questions he had picked up from Aello and Kai's experience in the field. An update hit Gavin and Henley's phones at the same time with a name and the address of a basement suite based out of Student Living. 3:06 PM I think I got who it was. Xavier Dodson
A screenshot of an address followed by the image of a brunette second year holding up a bottle, with the rest of the party-goers cropped to avoid confusion.
3:06 PM I barely know him. He doesn't have a death wish or a bad rep
3:06 PM Probably got convinced by a friend or something
3:06 PM Or spooked enough to fuck someone he isn't close to
The rapid-fire of the nervous student's running thoughts went radio silent, with a lack of app not allowing Gavin or Henley to ascertain whether they had been left on Read when they responded.
3:48 Sorry knocked and door was locked but I'm not sure seems weird
3:49 Nvm just a sticky doorknob
3:51 Please come I think something died
3:51 Cats fine
4:00 Definitely dead
4:00 who doing call?
4:01 who*
4:01 do I(
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Post by Henley on Dec 28, 2021 19:48:46 GMT -8
Anthony was called immediately as Henley hit the road, casual clothing on with his pocket sand and cell phone ready. The Bluetooth caught as he drove through to catch Gavin, a three-way call opening.
"Tony? Are you all right?"
Pause.
"What's happened?"
Corpses had a way of fucking over the best laid plans of mice and men. He moved the car quick to the fastest routes, the Tesla crushing miles as he weaved his way through traffic to cover the gap as quickly as he reasonably could.
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Post by Gavin Graves on Dec 28, 2021 20:31:43 GMT -8
Gavin waited for the emotional back and forth and reassurance to run its course before chiming in. "We should probably call Victor. We're going to want to keep this on our own rails. Met him at Mabon. He seems a good sort and was assigned to a cleanup detail. He should be sensitive to our ritualistic problem solving requirements." He didn't think a Sunbanisher would take a less than complete or certain approach to cleaning up a Faerie problem when it came to messes with mundies. An Autumn cleaner would have greater understanding for managing risks when the occult was involved, and might be less prone to snip loose ends, he surmised. The Beast veiled his words tightly and hoped Henley would read his meaning.
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Post by Anthony Cartwright on Dec 28, 2021 20:55:15 GMT -8
"Yeah."
A door slammed as the receiver ground with the sound of a phone being run across fabric as the student buckled. Henley's prompt for details got a half-hearted grunt, followed by the sound of a cat purring as it butted against the object that was currently distracting the visitor from feeding time. Henley arrived in record time as Gavin tagged in Victor, finding the front door of the basement suit indeed unlocked after some jimmying. A quick glance to the driveway and the lack of interest coming from upstairs told the Ogre that the upper floor was likely away for the holidays. There was indeed a distinct smell coming from the ground floor that only intensified as he opened the door, followed by a trotting ginger tomcat that rubbed against his spindly legs. An annoyed chirp followed as he ignored the cat and kitchen; cutting to the still mortal, hood up and knees tucked with his back against the closed room, as if to guard it. The feedback from his phone indicated that he hadn't thought to hang up even as Henley made himself obvious.
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Post by Henley on Dec 28, 2021 21:30:21 GMT -8
Henley pulled off his sunglasses as he entered the suite, noting the silence of the place which made all of this a lot easier. The smell told the Ogre precisely everything he needed to know about what had happened here. After all, the stink of death wasn't easy to miss. The cat brushing up against his legs earned nary a glance as he took a knee next to Anthony. He gently hung up the kid's phone with a press of a single finger, and placed a gentle hand on Tony's shoulder.
"I'm here now, Tony. We're going to take care of this, and you. You're going to be okay."
It didn't help poor Xavier. Why had Tony looked? He called Gavin again, his Bluetooth headset in his earbud.
"Gavin, it's all clear. Bedroom, door's shut. I'm afraid Mr. Dotson is deceased. I'm not going to disturb the scene. Just get Victor here and let him know there's a gold coin in it for him if he wants it for taking care of this. I'm going to take Tony and this cat back to my place to rest, if that's all right with him?"
That last was said with a glance to Anthony, a chance to get away from all of this and just stop for a minute. This had to be some fresh hell for the mortal -- and frankly, Henley had no interest in seeing whatever was on the other side of that bloody door.
Fuck that. Let the spooky kids handle this part. He owed Tony his support.
"You want to get out of here?"
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Post by Gavin Graves on Dec 28, 2021 22:14:42 GMT -8
Gavin crept up on the place feeling a bit out of place. It was one thing to play at esoteric rituals and curses in theory. Here he was about to run up against the cost of failure. It wasn't often he wanted to smoke. This was one of those times. It was a tough thing to forego, but walking into a presumed murder scene was not a place you wanted to introduce new contaminants into. He tucked it behind his ear instead, a promise for later.
Victor had been updated with the location and the offer of payment by way of Henley. Gavin added that the scenario was related to the other place and its residents and there was a live cat, figuring the man might need to bring a different kit when the otherworldly was involved.
"Heya," the Razorhand offered sheepishly in the shadow of the scene.
Glancing around, a bit to take in the lay of the land before Henley suggested he and the rattled young man take off. It was clear from the look of Tony, he'd looked in the room, but it was unclear whether he had to open the door to do so. "Just one question then, and you can go. It's very simple, was the door to that room open or closed when you got here?" He directed it at Nate, but nodded toward Tony.
"The cat, uh. Hmm. Lemme just take a quick look around and get a read from Victor," in a mystery it was generally not wise to remove a part of it before it had been examined; in a supernatural mystery all the more so. He looked for the obvious signs a cat actually lived in the place and wasn't just present. "If you do end up taking the cat make sure it isn't LoJacked somehow." The Beast texted Victor, 'The cat, what are you going to want done with it?' while scoping for the creature's amenities or signs it had made mess.
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Post by Victor on Dec 29, 2021 20:12:51 GMT -8
Victor must have had his phone on standby, or else maybe he had some sort of pre-cognition. Either way, his answer was near immediate.
4:10 Can be there in five.
4:10 Big white van okay? I can take the little car, but if its a real sloppy mess the van makes it easier.
4:14 The cat's just a cat? If it isn't, or you don't know, you shouldn't let it go. If its been sniffing around the mess I might need to give it a bath. Otherwise I'll leave it up to your judgement. You're the one with all the details right now.
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Post by Anthony Cartwright on Dec 30, 2021 23:06:23 GMT -8
Tony didn't jump, simply nodding and focusing on the Nymph's words as his jaw worked. His legs didn't want to cooperate, and he really didn't trust his ability to keep the vomit down once he moved. From what Gavin could tell, there was a bowl for the animal and a few stray toys with telltale damage to some of the furniture. Henley's intern did jump when the Razorhand's Mantle washed over him,
"It was op-"
He reflexively tried to stop anything from getting on the carpet but it ended up making more of a mess. It seemed to break the seal, however, with the mundie swearing loudly and rolling into a stand and freezing again as he was stuck on whether going anywhere was just making a crime scene harder to clear or incriminating him. He was as white as his draconic guardian, stammering apologies and asking for direction so he didn't make it worse.
"The- I brought the- um, what do I do if the person..."
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Post by Gavin Graves on Dec 31, 2021 11:24:57 GMT -8
The Beast had been looking around for a litter box and knew the direction to send Tony toward the toilet, he pointed first with his arm in the direction of travel and then bent his wrist sharply toward the direction of turn, "the one on the left." He knew directions with words could get lost in a moment's panic and didn't want to leave it to chance. He followed the young man at a distance to witness where and if there was a containment breach. Victor needed to know if there was somehow a surprise in the right side hall closet.
His phone was already buzzing with answers. The speed things that could get done when no one is looking.
"Yeah, with the door having been opened, and this cat looking hungry and a bit of a mess around the paws and muzzle, you don't want to take it with you until its had a bath. It has to stay for now." He offered a grimacing smile to Henley. The whole thing wasn't ideal.
While Tony was occupying the bathroom, he needed to get a rough assessment for Victor's choice of vehicle. It was not a task he relished. A quick held breath, door open, lights on, lights off, close door, walk away and breathe again sort of operation.
The maneuvering had gone to plan and he kept his cheap noodle house ramen in place. He forwarded his judgement to Victor as the others cleared out.
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Post by Henley on Dec 31, 2021 16:44:44 GMT -8
"Sure, that's fine," Henley replied to Gavin, deliberately not looking into the room. He had no desire to see that shit. "I'll take the cat after he's done. Just make sure Victor preserves the electronics so we can trace who the deceased got his curse from."
He just stayed with the kid, pouring him a glass of water to rinse his mouth out.
"Don't worry about the vomit. Just the toilet. We've got a cleaner coming, a real professional. Breathe, my man. You're going to be okay."
He left the glass next to Tony on the counter. He was speaking loudly enough for Gavin to hear him.
"We're going to rest, and Gavin's going to figure out how it's all going to work. You just focus on right now. Deep breaths."
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Post by Krakenbox on Jan 2, 2022 12:57:40 GMT -8
Tony mumbled a 'thanks' for the water, feeling surreal using the guy's old dishes when he was dead in the other room. He seemed in a hurry to get over it and move on, schooling his expression and feigning calm until his body betrayed him with another retch.
The click of the door indicated Gavin was taking a wee peak.
The rot wafted, and so did the smell of chemicals as the bright orange eye roved around the room. Streaks of tissue and bone were lodged into the softening drywall underneath the general spray of blood and fluids. Flies buzzed from both the corpse and the half-eaten plate of chicken and broccoli, where the boy looked like he had been rent apart from the chest area where the ribs were blown open. The skin was partial charcoal, and streaks of burns ran like cracks along the walls and carpet.
Someone had been roasted until they popped.
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Post by Victor on Jan 2, 2022 16:41:55 GMT -8
It was barely five minutes before Gavin's phone chimed again- Victor had sent him a message to say that he had arrived, and wanted the clear to enter the suite. He was a professional, after all, and you don't knock at the doors of crime scenes that you want to keep covert. The front door squeaked open the moment he got a response. Polyester, metal, and heavy rubber boots all heralded his approach well before he rounded the corner and found Gavin standing at the precipice of his jobsite.
He was still wearing the familiar leather and flannel hunting jacket, but underneath were a pair of plastic coveralls in the classic blue-collar blue. a large camping bag was slung over a shoulder, hollow sloshing and metal clinks giving hints as to what he had in store.
"Right! The mess is straight ahead, I presu-"
The retching from the bathroom cut him off. The chimera jolted his head in the direction, hesitating a moment before his brows knitted into something resembling pity, or perhaps disappointment.
"...Do we need an extra set of clothes?"
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Post by Gavin Graves on Jan 2, 2022 19:01:42 GMT -8
The man had appeared as if he were the Flash and was almost charging into the work right away. Johnny on the spot. "Right, yeah, it is, but you need to know some stuff first, okay?" as much as he appreciated the no questions asked professional comportment, it wasn't necessarily going to be the right approach for the job.
"We've been working on countering a curse unleashed by one of Their agents. I know how it works pretty much top to bottom except for apparently the gruesome end where we don't get there in time. You'll see what that looks like shortly. Given how quickly you got here, and how fast you've responded to all messages, I expect I won't be able to be in the room with you to make observations as you do your work," This was not the Beast's first time encountering someone with the Boon of the Brownies in their corner. It wasn't even the first time this week. "So I'm going to need you to have a look out for anything of interest and perhaps take some samples for later analysis. Origin point, apparent cause, ToD, and the like. Best guesses are fine," Gavin was no forensic pathologist anyway and it was of interest to see how the theoretical patterns of the curse manifested in the real. "This person was going to be the test person for the counter curse ritual, but it seems he didn't keep up with either of the means to prevent this outcome."
"The curse is spread like an evil chain letter, by phone calls. We need people to be afraid enough they are willing to use our counter curse ritual, but not so afraid they start turning on each other and either spreading it further or getting revenge on the one that cursed them. I'm open to suggestions on that front, especially since you're in the best position to control how the place appears when you're done. Maybe mysteriously disappeared is the best way, I don't know." He knew people would be terrified if charred exploded bodies started appearing en masse and react poorly, but was uncertain how to manipulate them into the ideal response: using the counter curse.
"We also need any electronics that are still in working order to trace contacts and follow up on their vectors," the more work the Razorhand and Siren got done the less the Chimera would have to do. If it got too far, Victor would not be the only one involved on the clean up factor.
"We need to get ahead of the exponential curve ASAP." With Victor's line of work, he was sure at some point there would be a judgement call that would lead to hitting up Fawkes or Roger. "Tony, the young man making the porcelain phone call, is involved in a Bargain, sees behind the curtain, and is caught up in the curse. Anything you do that will support saving him from the curse's outcome has fate on your side, so long shots become possible, and skilled work becomes incredibly effective." If all Victor did was clean up, fate might not intercede on Tony's behalf, there had to be some tie toward helping him and the cleaner needed to know that in order to weave it into his work.
That really was the short version, but Gavin expected there might be some follow up questions despite being quite thorough.
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Post by Henley on Jan 3, 2022 16:01:00 GMT -8
Henley piped up from the washroom.
"I don't know that this is the curse. It's a service curse, like you said. Exploding students doesn't sound like service. What would cause that? If you two can figure that out, that would be very helpful. If we've got a third party involved, we need to keep our heads on swivels."
He poked his head out.
"Here's my thinking. Give me the electronics. I'll work that angle. Victor can make this place look like you want it to. Gavin, you can give Victor suggestions while you figure out how the death of this guy changes things for the counter-curse, if it does at all. Tony, you come with me. You can clean yourself up, shower, food, and if you feel up to it, help me out. Everyone cool with that?"
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Post by Krakenbox on Jan 4, 2022 21:45:51 GMT -8
"Is his family going to know what-...?" Tony mumbled cautiously, hauling himself up.
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