Tag: investigation

#Lore24 – Entry #305 – Sentinel City by Night #31 – The New Jyhad

From the Journal of Sheba O’Rourke, Private Investigator

“Sometimes I just hate it when I’m right.

Knew it had been way too damn quiet.  After I’d spoken to Sokolova and Grim about my suspicions, it was all tense for a couple weeks, each side just waiting for the other to drop the hammer.  The drug operation had packed up and moved somewhere else; guess they’d gotten wind that I’d sniffed them out and cleared out before the Hound pack and Conway’s SWAT team had swept in on them.  Sokolova’s people had reached out to the Kuei-jin, but diplomacy there was sketchy at best, and there had been little more than informal talks at this point. 

My search for more on the mastermind had come up with nothing but headaches.  I had more vague hints, but that was it.  Couldn’t get even a single solid lead, like whoever it was knew our methods and had already taken them into account.  I couldn’t even track down the new site of the drug operation, even though Vamp Out was flowing through the streets more and more now.  Almost seemed like the stuff appeared out of nowhere for the dealers to hand out, they said.

Then, after all the nights of silence, it all came down at once in an absolute catasterfuck of a night.  Never did care for snow, and it was already piling up by the time I awoke that night.  Should have taken that as a sign to stay in bed.

I’d gotten called in by the PD to consult on a heist at the museum…the same museum I’d spotted the mysterious Kitsune-masked kindred at multiple nights.  Someone had managed to bypass their security and slip past the guards, stolen some ancient relics that had just come into town for a big winter showcase, some dagger and staff and some jewelry from somewhere in the Middle East. 

Just as I was getting my bearings on the scene and starting to take in the nature of the magical auras lingering about the place, the police got the call that a riot had broken out at a Christmas party uptown…then they’d started getting a few more, all over the city.  People going crazy, attacking like wild animals.  I knew what it was immediately and started making calls and sending texts.  All that Vamp Out Grim’s people hadn’t managed to confiscate had just been activated.

I’d just gotten in touch with Sokolova when the line went dead.  It was about that same moment that I saw the explosion in her office building across town, followed by a few more in different parts of the city.  It seemed that my suspicions had been correct.  I couldn’t get a call through, nor could any of the PD, even their radio network was down.  Didn’t sit well at all with me that I hadn’t gotten a single reply to my texts before the network went down. 

Think I actually felt some honest to goodness fear in those moments when everything went pear-shaped. 

Then the cold realization hit.  I had just found myself in the middle of another war, and the Sabbat had just struck with one hell of an opening salvo.

With no clue who amongst the Kindred were still standing after that first strike, with the police trying to organize in the midst of a communications outage and city-wide drug-induced violence, and me counting the seconds until the inevitable appearance of the Fiends’ war ghouls, I could only speculate on just how bad things were going to get going forward. 

This new Jyhad had just gone from cold to hot, and here I was with just my .45 and my wits. 

It was going to be a long night.”

#Lore24 – Entry #304 – Sentinel City by Night #30 – A Mastermind in Hiding

From the Journal of Sheba O’Rourke, Private Investigator

“Well, after taking my licks for the past week, I’ve learned that I’m just going to have to resolve myself to not get caught.  Fighting is not an option.  I’m a much better shot than I am a brawler, but as was pointed out numerous times by the likes of Ramos and Winters, a gun is going to be worthless in a fight with a Fiend.  Duly noted. 

I’ve been pondering my corkboard since I’ve finished up my impromptu training with the Hounds, for now; got me scheduled for another round in a few nights.  Unfortunately, nothing particularly helpful was jarred loose while I was getting tossed around, but I’m still working on it.  I’m absolutely convinced there’s a mastermind controlling the Sabbat’s actions here.  They’re being far too careful.  Getting some echoes of San Diego going here, and I’m not liking that.

Maybe it’s something to do with Grim’s presence here keeping them at bay, but my gut is telling me otherwise.  They’re setting up something much larger than we expect, I’m certain of it, but I don’t know what that is.  It’s more than just striking fast and hard and taking over the city.  Something sorcerous, maybe?  That warning the Tremere gave me when I visited their chantry is nagging at me.  Where does the Lasombra, Delgado, fit into this, and how much of her clan is involved?  Aside from that altercation between the Hounds and the Lasombra ghouls a few weeks back, they’ve been almost a non-entity in town aside from when Delgado and the war ghouls attacked me.  Couldn’t get much out of Ramos about Delgado but doesn’t seem like she’s the type to think things through this thoroughly.    

Who is this mastermind running things?  I’ve not been able to track down anything on them, but all the signs are pointing to someone or something pushing the pieces around the board.  Someone was cluing Emmerson in on Kindred society to try and destabilize the Kindred power base in the city.  Likely that same someone managed to find out I had a backdoor and got it cleared off.  Whoever it is has also managed to deal with the Kuei-jin; they had a big presence on the west coast when I was in San Diego, and though I couldn’t prove it, I had plenty of suspicions they were involved in some of what went down there.  Same groups in town now, maybe?  Maybe they’ve worked with this mastermind before, saw a way to profit, to further their own agenda while staying out of the way of the Sabbat…

I’ve spoken to Becky about this too; she was getting knocked around alongside me this week.  Apparently, she’s not much for hand-to-hand combat either, total keyboard jockey.  Said she’d look over what I could give her, but so far, even she’s not come back with anything probative on the matter.

After thinking on the problem nearly all night, I’m now wondering if maybe they’ll repeat what they did in San Diego.  Sentinel City doesn’t have a primogen to bomb, though, at least, not a formal one like most Camarilla cities, but there is a meeting place where plenty of Kindred meet up… I’d better call Grim and Sokolova on this one…”

#Lore24 – Entry #303 – Sentinel City by Night #29 – The Sheriff

From the Journal of Sheba O’Rourke, Private Investigator

“Hadn’t expected a full gathering of the local Kindred community last night, but that’s what I got when I showed up at Sokolova’s office.  Knew something was odd when she ushered me into the meeting room.  Never was one for public speaking, always feel awkward up there in front of everyone, all those eyes on me.  Always been a bit of a lurker. 

Still, turns out there’s some Kindred I hadn’t met yet, most specifically the Brujah clan.  Not sure where they hung out, assumed the Red-Light District given how they were dressed, looked like a bunch of whores to put it bluntly.  Didn’t get all their names, just the head of the clan, Tara Lynn Harper, and she didn’t look so happy to be there.  Or maybe she’s just always pissed off like that.  Don’t know her well enough to say.  Few other faces of other clans showed up that I didn’t recognize, too.  Even the Tremere sent Abigail and Liz tonight, hell, even Misha Kyle was here, sitting with Ankara. 

Hush came over the crowd when Sokolova came in at last, but I knew it wasn’t because of her.  Grim Fucking Jacobs was with her tonight, as were his Hounds, but all eyes were on him.  Looked like some of the locals hadn’t seen him in person till then, if I’d read their reactions right.  Can’t say I knew him that well, we’d done some work together back in San Diego, but I’d done some research into that reputation he wore so proudly.  Reckon he dated back to the American Civil War, had been fighting one battle or another, in some form or another, ever since.  Still had the same cocky grin, still wore the gray calvary hat, and still proudly wore that big silver knife on his belt, the one he’d taken off a werewolf some time in the past when he’d been sheriff elsewhere; knew that thing was magical, didn’t need to read his aura to see it.  Not just anyone could come into an Elysium packing something like that, but nobody was speaking up to tell him to take it off, either.  He made sure to meet the eye of anyone who eyed him, and never once was he the one to turn away.

Couldn’t say I knew exactly what he was all about, but I knew he was a dangerous enemy to have.  Woe be to whoever got on his bad side.

Managed to pull myself back to the moment once he’d taken his seat and kicked his boots up on the corner of the big table, and with Sokolova’s introductions done and the meeting called to order, I got to work presenting what I’d been digging into for the last few weeks, and my latest set of photos from the old distillery.  The sight of that thing I’d nicknamed Sasquatch caused quite the stir in the crowd, and the way the Tremere’s faces darkened when they looked at the woman with the fancy tattoos pretty much confirmed my theory that she was one of the Fiends’ sorcerers.  Saw some suspicious eyes turn toward Misha, too, but they didn’t linger long, maybe because of Ankara’s proximity to her.

Gave the lowdown on the Vamp Out drug, and its component sources in the Chinatown smuggling operation, as well as the Kuei-jin I’d photographed while I was there.  Think I might’ve gotten a few people nervous when they finally realized exactly where I’d managed to sneak in and out of.  Told them about my run-in with the ghouls and the mystery Lasombra that night, too.  That got Ramos’s fur ruffled.

Becky had been typing furiously on her laptop from the moment I’d started my presentation, and jumped in to continue with some information her people had managed to find that went beyond what I had on offer. 

I was good, but the Nosferatu were something else.

She had the name of the Tzimisce sorcerer, AJ Tibideaux, confirmed Sabbat shit-stirrer going back decades, was likely involved in the blitz that took the east coast back in ’99, helping to work on all the war ghouls and create new shovelheads for the assault.  Apparently, the big monstrosity was her brother, or at least that’s what word had been about it; the name she had on it was Gugwe, apparently another type of Sasquatch, a much more bloodthirsty variant.  Guess my call had been a good one on that nickname.  She even had the name of the Lasombra (no photos, obviously):  Selena Esperanza Delgado.  Ramos didn’t hide her growl well.

As for the Kuei-jin, Becky had much less information, given the usual wall of silence and close familial bonds of the east Asian culture they sprang from, but she was fairly sure she had at least the names to go with the faces I’d managed to capture.  Emiko Koike was the Japanese schoolgirl, and the twins were Chao Feng and Qaio Lihun Teng, suspected to be heading some of the Triad groups operating all over the world.  Unfortunately, that was pretty much all she had on that front; Mr. Wong and his family were known smugglers working for the Triads, running anything illegal, up to and including human smuggling operations, but his ties to the Kuei-jin had only been suspected until now.

Grim took the floor after our info-dump, speaking every bit like the military commander he was.  A lot of faces didn’t like the idea of taking a militant stance on matters, but he was adamant, and quite right, that when it came to the Sabbat, a no-tolerance policy and dropping the biggest hammer with as much force as possible was absolutely required.  He related that he’d seen what they can do to a city firsthand, had to retreat from DC in the ’99 blitz in fact, not to mention the mess in San Diego.  He was right to call the Sabbat terrorists.  He didn’t go into all the details, but confirmed he was already working with his people and Sokolova’s security force, led by Laura Conway, to build their own forces in town. 

The way Grim suggested everyone get very good at defending themselves very fast left no room for argument, however many people wanted to.  He’d be working up a rotation for even the likes of Kyou to spend time with his Hounds training.  Once some voices finally spoke up against it, Sokolova stomped them right down.

On the one hand, I was glad to see such decisive action being taken.  On the other, I could only hope it would be enough.  The Sabbat sure seemed awfully damned organized already; couldn’t help but feel like we were trying to catch up.  For a wonder, the Tremere were eager to help.  Suspected some bad blood between them and this particular line of Fiends, but Abigail and Liz related that their chantry was already working on countermeasures to known Tzimisce methods, and trying to come up with some for those they didn’t know. 

Once all the complaints had been addressed and the meeting adjourned, Grim pulled me aside out in the hall and told me I was first in line to get some hand-to-hand training from Ramos and Winters; if I was going to be skulking around as a scout in this war, I’d damn well better be able to defend myself.  He asked me if I was still carrying my “peashooter”, and then handed me a pistol case when I confirmed it.  Inside was a new 1911 pistol and a quartet of magazines, already loaded; he told me to get started practicing with it too.  Wasn’t much against a vampire, but would do well enough against some ghouls, and packed more of a punch than my .38. 

My next few nights were booked up, it seemed.  Couldn’t exactly say ‘no’ to Grim Fucking Jacobs, could I?”

#Lore24 – Entry #302 – Sentinel City by Night #28 – Watchers in the Dark

From the Journal of Sheba O’Rourke, Private Investigator

“Off to one side of my board were three unknown entities that may or may not be related to the larger conspiracy I had set myself to unravel.  They’d shown up in Sentinel City during the last couple weeks, so the timing seemed far too suspicious to outright ignore, but whether or not they were related to the Sabbat and their drugs, I didn’t know, not yet anyway.  Shit like this is why I detested the Kindred intrigues; how could they have survived hundreds or thousands of years of this insanity?

Anyway, first on my list of known unknowns was an as-yet-unnamed Kindred I’d spotted several times around the Museum of Antiquities up near in the university campus during my attempts to source a dealer for the Vamp-Out.  Hadn’t thought of her as suspicious at first glance, just another of our kind looking for a meal perhaps.  She wore a mask at the time, one of those Asian fox-spirit masks, a kitsune; considering it was Halloween night when I’d first spotted her, that wasn’t out of the norm, though maybe it was a bit odd after the whole Dollface incident.  She rose on the list of suspicious persons when I’d spotted her at least three more times, each time lingering around outside the museum, still wearing that mask, but there weren’t any more slayings, and she seemed to be intent on just lingering outside the place, so for now, I’m classifying her as just another mental case, maybe another Malkavian.

Second, higher up the threat list, is a federal agent that showed up just after Blumenthal’s people ID’ed the Johnson clan members.  Don’t know what she looks like yet, only that her ID said her name was Momoko Chan; seemed an odd name for a government agent but given that she was still hanging around the city, not getting involved more as of yet, had me on alert.  What was she after?  Did she suspect Kindred involvement?  Did she have other reasons for getting close to this case?  Hadn’t even laid eyes on her yet, but something about her had me on alert.

Highest threat just arrived a couple nights ago; Sokolova had actually clued me in on this one, a tip from Becky’s people.  Bonnie O’Hara was in town, and that couldn’t be a good thing.  Nobody had spotted her yet, couldn’t figure on who this Assamite’s target was, but it had all the Kindred community on edge, especially the Prince.  Hadn’t heard that name since San Diego, after the entirety of the Primogen got wiped out in that bombing.  No proof she’d been in on it, had been a lot of deaths back then, any number of them could have been on her tab, but no proof of it. 

As dawn came on, I could only say with certainty that a right proper shitstorm was brewing, and it was only growing stronger by the minute.  Sentinel City was about to have some very interesting nights.  Suppose I’d better get up with Sokolova tomorrow, get her up to speed on what’s been going down, what else I’ve found out since my last briefing.  My gut told me that whatever was building up here would be popping off soon.”

#Lore24 – Entry #301 – Sentinel City by Night #27 – The Flesh Witch and the Sasquatch

From the Journal of Sheba O’Rourke, Private Investigator

“The driver of the truck got out first, and for a wonder, she looked pretty much normal from what I could tell, aside from those nasty black streaks in her pale aura.  She had a darker complexion, dark brown hair in a loose ponytail, dressed kind of like a trucker with that coat and ball cap, on the muscular side, kind of looked like she could handle herself in a brawl.  Had some scars on her face; thought they might’ve been natural, but they were too symmetrical, likely more ritualistic.  One of those Tzimisce sorcerers, maybe?  She spoke tersely to the Pillbilly as she went around to the back of the truck, but I couldn’t get anything out of it since I didn’t comprehend the language.  Didn’t even get any names out of it.

The whole truck shifted as she pulled the rear hatch open, the suspension creaking as something huge moved around inside.  Then I saw the massive hand grab the door frame, claws maybe a foot long on each finger, covered in bony plates and spikes, and the arm that followed was as thick as something you’d see on a gorilla, maybe thicker.  What pulled itself out of the truck was hideous, all muscle and bony exoskeleton, glowing red eyes over a wicked fanged maw.  I knew the Fiends could take on a battle form, but why was this one just riding around with it active?  Or…was this NOT its battle form?  Was this just its normal state?

Even the two war ghouls seemed on edge around this thing, whatever it was, to say nothing of how the more normal-looking ghouls backed away from it.  Don’t know why, but the word “Sasquatch” suddenly popped into my head, one of those mythical things you always heard stories about but never saw.  Whatever it was, its aura was just as stained as the other Fiend.  Well, I got this one on camera at least.  I silently thanked my foresight in adopting a mirrorless setup as soon as I could a few years back; the silent photo mode was a real blessing in this profession. 

The way the monstrous thing sniffed the air and peered around the drug lab told me it was time to clear out.  For all I knew it had sharper senses than a damn lupine, might’ve already had my scent tickling what passed for a nose.  I eased out the way I’d come, moving extra carefully to make sure I didn’t make any sounds that shouldn’t have been there.  Once I was clear of the building and beyond the outer fence, I took off at a run, and didn’t stop till I was safely in my car.  Then I narrowly avoided a speed trap on the way back into the city proper in my haste to get back to the apartment, the lingering scent of the cooked meth still all over me. 

Had some work to do when I got back; new faces to add to the wall, but not a whole lot of progress on the mysterious web I had been weaving.  There were even some mysterious players that may or may not be related that I’d picked up on around town that seemed just a bit too suspicious for their own good.  Course, that could just be me being paranoid.  I’d been experiencing a lot of that lately.”

#Lore24 – Entry #300 – Sentinel City by Night #26 – The Threat from the South

From the Journal of Sheba O’Rourke, Private Investigator

“I’d been on the case for another couple of weeks when I finally caught a break; Sentinel City had its first big snowfall of the season as the year wound down.  In that time, I’d seen the rollout of the Vamp-Out drug in full, but so far there had been no further incidents like the first one.  Think maybe that was a case of an overdose, or a batch that was way too potent.  Still, what was the bigger play here?  Why spread this stuff around the city if it wasn’t going to spark up like it had that first time? 

I’d asked that very question to the Tremere, but so far hadn’t gotten a response.  The apprentice, Elizabeth Powell, had been made my official contact, but so far she and her clan had been of little value in my investigation.  Figure they needed to get out more, but who am I to try and convince the Warlocks of anything?  Even after all the shit that had happened over the last twenty years, you still couldn’t trust them.  Some things never change.

Anyway, I’d not sensed my Lasombra shadow for some time now.  Wondering if they thought I was dead, or if they thought I’d just gotten the warning to stay away.  I had been more careful in my stalking since my beatdown.  Think that’s what allowed me to finally get close to the old brewery tonight, see their operation up close.  Could smell the meth cooking from a block away.  Took plenty of pictures on the way.

Once I got inside, saw the two war ghouls acting like forklifts, spotted the other Johnson clan members directing the workers.  Finally spotted the mysterious Pillbilly, grabbed some photos of him, too.  Couldn’t tell he’d been modified, but my aura sight picked up some hints that he wasn’t entirely stock anymore.  He came in with a fervor, though.  Snapped everyone to attention.  Not sure what he told them, guess Cajun is another language I need to brush up on.

Didn’t have to wait too long to find out, though.  Heard a big V8 rumble up outside a few minutes later.  An old late 70s model Ford pickup pulled in once the garage door was opened up, had a big camper in the bed; no, not a camper, more like a modified refrigeration setup, patched together with extra sheets of metal.  First thought was that it was loaded with more gear or supplies for the drug operation, given how the back end squatted down.  That thought didn’t last long, though.  I was about to get my first look at some full-blooded Tzimisce.”

#Lore24 – Entry #299 – Sentinel City by Night #25 – A Growing Conspiracy

From the Journal of Sheba O’Rourke, Private Investigator

“Blumenthal’s people came through on some IDs on the mysterious Johnson family, even if it took a little help from the FBI; reckon they’re big-time drug smugglers down south, known for their use of the Louisiana bayous in their distribution operations.  Five brothers, with some rather…thematic…names:  Harry, Richard, Willy, John Thomas, and Peter.  The “Pillbilly” remained anonymous, though the alias was a known element.  Which meant the FBI probably knew who it was but wasn’t saying.  Still, apparently, they’d gone quiet over the last few months, assumed to have been laying low, though now it seems they were shifting operations a few states north.

Not sure if they were part of the Tzimisce’s operations before now or not, though.  I’d only seen three of the brothers so far, and those two war ghouls that had torn me up looked awfully similar once you peeled back the layers of thickened bone and exoskeleton.  They had a Lasombra with them lurking in the shadows too, apparently with ghouls of their own if Ramos was to be believed. 

Then there was the eastern connection, the Kuei-jin and the triads or yakuza or whatever is running out of that district.  They seemed to have quite a bit of information on the Sabbat, and were working with them to some extent, though how far that would go, who could say?  Despite her appearance, my gut told me this Koike girl was dangerous, and whatever plans the Kuei-jin had for Sentinel City couldn’t be good.  They’d apparently kept to themselves for a good long while though, and I don’t think Sokolova is ready to try and push them out of town on my suspicions, especially with them having that massive underground operation going.

My corkboard was filled with names, photos, and a web of red string, and I couldn’t make it all make sense, not yet.  Too many question marks, too many unknowns, too many uncertainties, a big one being that “Sabbat leader” hinted at by the Kuei-jin.  Who was it?  One of the big names that had been involved in the taking of the east coast back in ’99?  Had they survived whatever it was that happened twenty years ago, or were they just as scattered and disorganized as the Camarilla had been after the reckoning?  Gehenna?  Whatever it was we were calling it; had we even come to a decision on that?  Had anyone even cared?

Only thing I could say for sure was that this stank of a Sabbat destabilization operation.  They usually tended toward as much violence as possible, just overwhelming brute force and surprise attacks.  Here though…maybe whoever it was in charge now was using a different kind of cunning, was being subtle, elusive, careful.  Didn’t seem in character for them, but maybe even the Sabbat could evolve.  The Camarilla had evolved, or whatever it was that Sokolova was calling her experiment, at least here in Sentinel City. 

I could only be sure of one thing with any certainty:  I was in for some very long nights as I worked on this puzzle.”

#Lore24 – Entry #298 – Sentinel City by Night #24 – The Kuei-jin Element

From the Journal of Sheba O’Rourke, Private Investigator

“Knew the three that got out of the limo were Kuei-jin the moment I saw them.  Was hard to hear what was being said from my hiding spot over the din of activity in the place but picked up a few words here and there.  Even though the trio looked young, the old man referred to them as something like “most esteemed elders” or something like that.  I ain’t so good at the language, especially this far away.

The first one looked like a teenager; could easily see her in a school uniform instead of that business suit she wore.  Thinking she was Japanese, shorter than the others, dark hair cut straight and neat to her shoulders, the glasses she wore giving her a scholarly look.  Couldn’t quite get what the old man was saying to her, but think her name was Koike.  The other two were twins, man and a woman, not quite identical, but close enough that they might pass for one another had she not been a fair bit curvier than him.  Think they were Chinese, got the name Teng, but that was about all I got, damn truck drove by loaded with scrap metal.

I thought awfully hard about getting closer, but the way the guy kept looking around as if he were on high alert told me to stay put.  I had no clue what kind of extra-sensory abilities these three might’ve possessed, and I didn’t want to find out if I could help it.  The old man, Mr. Wong I gathered, began relating details of the operation I think, escorting the three atop a catwalk, swept his arm over all that could be seen.  Might consider getting a parabolic microphone after this, not that it would be easy to sneak in when I pulled these stunts. 

Still, managed to get some more bits of the conversation here and there, heard some very familiar words being spoken by the Japanese girl:  Cainite, Tzimisce, Sabbat.  Heard her say something about continuing the shipments, about letting them have their fun while it lasted I think, that whatever was going on wouldn’t affect their goals.  Think she might’ve mentioned something else about a Sabbat leader, but I couldn’t get any more cause they’d moved out of range.  The fact that the male twin’s gaze lingered in my direction a few seconds longer before he followed the others gave me plenty of reasons to not try and get closer.

Waited until they were out of sight before I made my exit.  Wasn’t real sure exactly where I needed to go, but going up seemed the best choice.  Wound up coming into the basement of a fancy Korean restaurant.  No Kuei-jin in sight, I slipped out unnoticed by the staff; saw a couple of familiar faces, two of the guys Mr. Wong had spoken to before the elders had showed up, yelling out orders in their native language. Figured this must have been his place. 

Got my bearings once I was outside, got on the first bus I found, left a trail as hard to follow as I could manage.  Don’t think I was followed but couldn’t be too sure.  Was nearly dawn by the time I got back to my apartment, so I’d have to leave my analysis of what I might’ve learned till tomorrow night.”

#Lore24 – Entry #297 – Sentinel City by Night #23 – Down, Down to Chinatown

From the Journal of Sheba O’Rourke, Private Investigator

“I admittedly had little in the way of knowledge about the Kuei-jin, having only met a handful very briefly and under peaceful, if tense, circumstances back in San Diego.  No doubt they schemed just as much as the Kindred tended to, though I could not begin to fathom their machinations in Sentinel City.  Hell, I didn’t even know what they were up to out west.  Playing a long game, maybe, or operating on some completely different kind of level completely.  Whatever the case, I wasn’t sure if the people they had running the chemicals through the city were ghouls or not, or if they even had ghouls.  Their auras didn’t read like ghouls, just regular humans, but I wasn’t entirely sure if my perceptions would even pick them up.

I was a little nervous going into Chinatown, especially when it was stowed away in the back of one of their delivery trucks.  Still, fortune favors the bold, so they say.  The guys in the truck chatted back and forth in Korean; since I’d started my surveillance, I’d picked up on that, Japanese, and several dialects of Chinese, and a few other languages I didn’t recognize.  Not that I’m particularly fluent in any of the others.  Probably something I should remedy one of these nights.

The truck came to a warehouse in short order now that it was empty, and I slipped out once it had come to a stop.  Didn’t see anything special at first, just a whole lot of stuff sitting around to be moved but didn’t take me long to discover a much bigger operation underground.  Saw several forklifts moving product out of a tunnel, so I decided to make my way down it.  Hadn’t spotted any cameras yet but kept my aura perception active in case I came across something supernatural. 

I had to admit, I was impressed with the operation they had going.  They had their own manufacturing operations going, must have been hundreds of people in this facility, making not only the chemicals, but their own drugs.  Looked like some smuggling operations too, given the huge shipping containers down there.  Spotted some larger tunnels with some rails going through them, maybe old subway tunnels that had been rebuilt and repurposed, likely leading all the way to the docks.  Had to hand it to them, they had one impressive setup going.  How it all operated with the number of languages and cultures I could pick out was probably the biggest mystery I’d ever encountered.  Did the Nosferatu know about all this?  If so, had they mentioned it to Sokolova?  How couldn’t they know?  More layers to the onion I needed to peel; would the core be rotten?

I slipped through the shadows on the edges of the operation for a good while, not exactly sure what I was looking for, but finally spotted something that seemed important.  Saw an old man, hunched with age, the classic wizened elder look about it, one eye in a permanent squint, yelling orders to a half dozen young men, who quickly scurried off to see them carried out.  Next thing I knew, a limo drove through one of the larger tunnels, coming to a stop near the old man.  He bowed low as the doors opened, and I got my first look at the Kuei-jin of Sentinel City.”

#Lore24 – Entry #296 – Sentinel City by Night #22 – A Disturbing Trail

From the Journal of Sheba O’Rourke, Private Investigator

“The direct approach hadn’t worked, so I had to resort to the not-so-direct approach.  Course, that was after I got myself back in proper working order.  Had to go dark for a few days.  The following night, once I’d dragged myself out of the sewers, only marginally improved, I found my car, remarkably still intact and undisturbed.  Guess the fact that it’s nearing thirty years old helps, and the “old rust bucket” camo is working as intended. 

Thought about visiting Ausar’s church but decided against it.  If I got antsy just being around her, don’t think I was quite ready to see her work a healing miracle on me, as much as I might’ve wanted it.  Instead, I got myself cleaned up, went out for a proper meal, then holed up in my apartment for a few nights, no outside contact, just me, myself, and I and a lot of pushing things back into place.

Got word to Sokolova about what happened, that I was still kicking, about what I’ve been hunting down.  Said she’d get Jacobs and his hounds in on the action, try to track down the ghouls, and whoever the Lasombra was that had pulled the trick with the shadows.  Told her to ask Ramos; had a sneaking suspicion she knew exactly who it was.

Still, I wasn’t put off the case, just had to switch tactics.  Was a little pissed off, maybe, and of course I wanted payback, however that came about.  So, I started digging into sources for the various drugs and chemicals that were used in making the Vamp-Out, started putting feelers out for where the local brewers got their supplies, if they knew about any new big shipments, that kind of thing.

Took a few more nights of work but started to piece together some supply chains.  Need to ask Sokolova for some extra expense money; paying off all these informants is getting expensive.  Still, looks like there are four groups handling deliveries of the various products used to create the drugs, running the shipping through local intercity carriers, delivering them to several locations outside the area where they’ve setup their manufacturing, where I’d ran into those ghouls, before they’re picked up by some good ol’ boys from down south to be delivered to the brewery.  Notably, all the deliveries were handled by companies based in Chinatown.

Got word to Blumenthal about trying to get some IDs using the photos I’d snapped at a good distance.  The name “Johnson” had come up a few times thus far, figured it was their family name given the resemblance between them. 

While he worked on that, though, I decided that it was time to track these chemical deliveries to the source, and that meant a trip to Chinatown.  Reckon I could be stepping on a whole other set of toes here if I’m not real careful.  Rumors abound that the Triads and Yakuza groups are operating out of that part of town, to say nothing of our eastern counterparts, the Kuei-jin.  Been a few Kindred who have gone missing in that part of town, and SCPD aren’t known to be too welcome there either. 

Should be an interesting trip.”