Tag: sasquatch

#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 #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 #60 – Supers Month #29 – New Heroes in Sentinel City!

 

From the files of Cyber Seer…

 

New Heroes and Heroines

Okay, dudes, this one’s gonna be quick, cause things are heating up and changing in Sentinel City like, superfast!  Here’s some quick info on new faces in town that have come onto the scene over the last few weeks!  Reach out to these guys and gals if you can, get to know’em and maybe we can form up our own big superhero league or whatever!  

 

Wrench Witch and Squatch – Talk about your oddball pair, and no, it’s totally not because they’re from the South!  Wrench Witch drives a tricked out late-70s era Ford pickup and somehow makes it work as her primary weapon dealing with criminal types; hell, there’s even video of her driving over the river in that thing!  Daddy Cyber Seer would be envious!  She also packs what looks like a cobbled together battery-powered drill and nailgun combo, but that thing shoots lightning bolts and can pin people to the floor!  Like wow, low tech, but super advanced!  She knows how to shoot guns, too, and looks to be pretty mean with a shotgun!  She’s also got a mean right-hook and isn’t afraid to get in a scrap right beside her bro, either; total tomboy energy!

And Squatch, well, he’s…a sasquatch.  Like, literally, that’s what he is.  At least, that’s what Wrench Witch has said in interviews, though she is adamant he’s her little brother, and has been since her family found him in the woods and adopted him.  All he says is is his name, but she’s totally able to understand him on a completely different level, even translates for him.  He’s big, he’s strong, super-hairy, and he’s apparently a book nerd, and pretty dang smart to boot by all accounts.  

Also, the pair run moonshine into Sentinel City.  Like, not what I’d call a real crime, but the Feds say its illegal, so whatcha gonna do?  I’m not calling them out for it, though; gotta make a living somehow!

 

Kinbaku and Lovely Angel – OMG, now here’s a pair I could totally hook up with!   I mean, Kinbaku’s name would be enough, but these ladies are going to make it big in no time, I’m sure!  I mean, they’re totally hot, like wowza!  Kinbaku, the mysterious catgirl swordswoman with some super-tricked out rope bondage techniques, and Lovely Angel in that stripperiffic outfit, doing those sexy pole dances in the middle of fights?  Ohhh, I’m totally looking forward to seeing a lot more from these chicks!  They can tie me up and give me a lap dance any day of the week!  

 

Silverstreak – Oh, I think he might be on par with Clean Sweep in terms of sheer speed!  He’s hard to catch on camera because of it, but this silver wolfman can leave afterimages behind him, and he can run circles around the opposition, or probably anyone else for that matter.  I’d say reach out to him, but I don’t know if any of us can catch him!  He’s not one to stick around after he’s done wrapping up the bad guys, and certainly hasn’t sought out any kind of fame or recognition as of yet.

 

Rad Wolf – Well, if it’s one thing I can say about Rad Wolf, it’s that he’s totally got a latex fetish.  Like, full-body latex suit (complete with a VERY impressive bulge) and gas mask, and it’s definitely build around wolf-like features (pretty sure that’s a real tail and wolf-like muzzle behind that mask).  And I think he’s totally got radiation powers, though I get the feeling he’s keeping them in check, or is just starting to manifest them.  Like, he’s got those glowing green radiation symbols all over the suit for a reason, right?  I think he might be still refining his style, though; I mean, why use just a steel pipe for weapon?  So far he’s come off as a bit of a goofball in the few interviews he’s had, but he’s just getting started, so we’ll see what becomes of him, huh?

 

Lawdog – This guy just showed up during the last full moon, and I don’t even know what his name is, so I’m just calling him Lawdog, cause that’s like, the vibes he put out.  That was the night that outlaw biker gang was causing trouble all through the city and had us running ragged.  This guy just appears on a rooftop like some mysterious werewolf gunman out of an old western, howling at the moon and unloading his six shooters at the gang.  He even wears a duster and cowboy hat, hell, I think he even has a tin star on his costume!  So yeah, totally going with Lawdog here.  He’s shown up a time or two since, seems to have a thing for putting some fear into his targets before confronting them, so he’s got some style!  

(Side note:  Totally just an off-the-wall theory on my part, but I’m seeing a pattern here!  Female supers tend toward feline traits, and males toward lupine or canine traits!  How crazy is that?!)

 

 

Comments

Pink Pussy – Hey, chica, Kinbaku and Lovely Angel?  They’re guys.  Just thought you should know 😉

-Reply from Cyber Seer:  WHAT?  No, you’re pulling my leg here!  I’m a connoisseur of this kind of thing, an expert!  I have a finely tuned eye for traps!  There’s no way they’re dudes, dude!  Like, how do you even know that?

–Reply from Pink Pussy:  The nose knows 😉  And I may have just flirted with them a couple of times now and gotten Angel a little hot under the collar.  

—-Reply from Cyber Seer:  No way, I still don’t believe it!  Best traps ever!  You totally have to introduce me sometime!  

 

Gun Bunny – I’ve met Lawdog once.  He’s quite the gentleman, really, and is absolutely going for the classic western hero.  I daresay Sentinel City could use more men of that kind of character.  He’s also very much a cop, or at least, used to be one before putting on the duster and six guns; the way he carries himself, refers to the criminals, some of the observations he had, definitely has had training as a detective.  Early impressions, yeah, I’d trust him in a firefight.

-Reply from Cyber Seer:  Neato!  You seem to know a lot about how cops act too, GB!  Bet you watch a lot of those shows on TV, huh?

–Reply from Gun Bunny:  Guilty as charged 😉

 

Mecha Musume – In spite of her more crude methods, I am confident in saying that Wrench Witch shares some of my own talents with mechanics.  I managed to catch the tail end of that fiasco on the freeway tonight, and thankfully she and Squatch were there to keep all those logs from causing serious harm to people.  She didn’t hesitate to use her truck as a shield, and he was easily able to grab them and toss them off the bridge into the river.  That truck is built more than “Ford tough”; it barely had any scratches to the paint let alone dents after slamming into those huge logs.  

-Reply from Cyber Seer:  Black Cat called what y’all do being an artificer, btw.  But yeah, caught some drone footage of that mess, and did some sniffing around, pretty sure I’ve found the cause of that.  Looks like Rampage got out of Edgewater somehow and is loose again, so expect things to get nuts sooner rather later.  Funny how they’re keeping that quiet, huh?

–Reply from Mecha Musume:  Absolutely suspicious, or perhaps Jennifer Tempest couldn’t handle the fact that someone broke out of her facility and doesn’t want to admit failure?  Either way, we need to get the word out to be on the lookout for this guy!

—-Reply from Pink Pussy:  Consider the word out!  I freakin’ hate this guy!  It’s like all those video games where you drive around and shoot up the city and cause chaos got embodied into one nutjob!  Madre de Dios, don’t let him get wound up too far, or we’ll have a city-wide mess on our hands!