Tag: Toreador

#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 #288 – Sentinel City by Night #14 – Meeting in Elysium

From the Journal of Sheba O’Rourke, Private Investigator

“Few nights later, I finally took Kyou’s offer to meet him in person.  Didn’t know he was a he till I’d met him, not that I could really tell much of a difference even then; looked and sounded just as feminine as any woman.  Don’t usually feel attracted to most people but think I might’ve felt something stirring when I finally met him.  Must have been that Toreador thing they do. 

Turns out, he’s the Elysium keeper in Sentinel City, and a rather famous, if elusive, fetish artist who does a good amount of work with “classy” kink photos and videos, most of it involving living people in various themed shoots and whatever other strangeness that kind of thing entails.  The kink scene isn’t my thing.  Outfits might be sexy sometimes, but I’ve got other things to do with my nights.

When I showed up at the arthouse that was one of the Elysium locations in town, he was in the midst of preparations for a big party.  Must have been a couple dozen humans and ghouls around, all of them in various kinky outfits and states of restraint, forming different living scenes.  Apparently, this was just the practice session before the big thing.  Modern art.  Pfft.

Kyou was very thankful that I’d helped in finding Kinzie, who was surprisingly absent, but Kyou assured me he was “quite secure” and nearby.  Didn’t ask anything else on the matter.  Still, even with my lack of interest in the things going on around me, I found it hard not to enjoy Kyou’s company.  He had a way of being absolutely charming, seemed to know exactly how to make you feel like it was something special just to be around him.  We chatted for a while, shared a little of his “special” vintage wine.  He owed me a huge favor he said.  Never a bad thing to have in this kind of society.  He invited me to his big event, but I didn’t commit to anything; might be good to network a little, but I’ve never been one for social gatherings.

I had more work to do, anyway, so I couldn’t spend too much time with him.  Car was finally in the shop, so I was on foot or relying on public transport for a few nights.  Figured I would be looking in on Emmerson more tonight.  Think our unexpectedly quick capture of Dollface threw a wrench into the narrative she’d been crafting.  Her latest article covering the takedown sounded almost spiteful, hinted at there being a larger cult at work, to expect more killings in the same manner; I’d seen where she’d originally wanted to go with her tale, and was pretty sure that wasn’t going to happen.  Her mystery source had continued feeding her information about the Kindred, however, and she was shifting her focus.  The fake information I’d been feeding her had muddied the waters, so she wasn’t entirely sure who to believe now. 

That source was proving elusive.  I couldn’t verify any real details about whoever it was; what information I could pull from the email headers was different each time, no doubt using a VPN and other methods to hide their locations.  Couldn’t exactly subpoena the email provider’s records, either, given the sensitivity of the information they were peddling.

I’ll just have to keep an eye on the situation and work it as things develop.  Maybe I can convince Emmerson to cut ties with the source and drop her whole investigation.  Could be pretty simple if I’d ever managed to learn how to control minds, but that just wasn’t in my blood.  Still, got an option to use on her if it comes to it; don’t usually rely on that, but if she pushes things too far, well…”

#Lore24 – Entry #287 – Sentinel City by Night #13 – Rapid Response

From the Journal of Sheba O’Rourke, Private Investigator

“Thankfully whatever noise I might’ve made once I was inside the warehouse was covered by the girl’s screams.  For me, not for her.  I was moving fast, but as long as the screams and whimpers and pleading kept coming, that meant I didn’t have to worry about the killer noticing me.  Spotted the van we’d seen on the security footage, doors were still open; guess the killer had been too anxious to get to her work.  Took a minute to pop the hood, pulled the wires off the battery; if she tried to run, she’d have to work for it.

Started my way upstairs toward the torture room.  I tried to hurry without moving too fast; delicate thing.  Just to be sure, I double-checked that I’d silence my phone.  Would’ve been pretty embarrassing to be caught by something like that.  Didn’t take me long to get where I needed to go, smell of blood was getting thicker.  Door wasn’t locked, but I eased it open slow, after I’d hit the hinges with some spray lube I kept in my coat pocket for just these kinds of occasions. 

If this lady wasn’t a Malk, she could’ve definitely passed for one of our nuttier brethren.  First thing I saw when I peered in was the trophy rack; saw all the peeled faces of the previous victims staring at me from across the room.  Crazy bitch hadn’t just preserved their heads, but had gone full on Leatherface, made masks out of them.  Guess she’d used the additional flesh she’d taken as extra material.  She wore the Sidney Clark mask now as she paced slowly around Carly Greer, who was secured to a tilted surgical table, scalpel in each hand, making slow, deliberate cuts, seeming to pause to savor the sounds the poor girl made, then to lap at the blood that was coming out of her. 

The name “Dollface” popped into my brain at that moment.  Strange what comes to mind in situations like these.

Kinzie wasn’t far off, on his knees with his wrists and ankles chained behind a support beam, big gag ball in his mouth as he watched with a look of absolute horror on his face.  I would’ve thought him another young woman if I hadn’t known what he looked like before hand from his master’s description. 

Thought for a second there about playing hero, but I didn’t know what this vamp was capable of.  For all I knew, she was as dangerous as one of those Brujah you always hear about that can tear up a whole city block with one hand tied behind their backs.  I eased the door open a little wider, carefully, took a quick gander around the room.  Wasn’t huge, might’ve been the offices back when this place was open for business.  Some side rooms, couldn’t see much about those from here; pretty sure there was another set up stairs leading down on the other side somewhere, though, possible escape route.  Windows were blacked out or boarded up, aside from two that were raised to let in some air and what little moonlight there was, right behind Dollface’s torture rack.

Figured that SWAT team might stand a better chance than me if they could get the drop on her.  Dollface wasn’t going to kill the girl just yet anyway; sucks for her, but not a chance I could risk taking.  I skulked back and eased the door shut, then got off the upper level before I started hammering at my phone, sending what I’d seen to Walsh.  Time like this, maybe having a smart phone would have been better, or maybe if I knew how some Kindred moved so damn fast.  Still, managed to spit out what I had to tell him eventually.  SWAT was already inbound and he was talking to them.  Said one of my kind was with them, and to just stay out of their way.

By the time I got outside, I saw the SWAT van pulling up down the way, outside the fence where Walsh had parked.  Didn’t look like a standard SWAT unit to me, not enough of them, only seven of them, but I could tell they were dangerous.  Hit them with my aura sight as I approached.  One vampire, the one with the big rifle, and the rest were ghouls.  They covered the rest of the ground on foot after a quick word with Walsh, the sniper breaking off to the adjacent building, the others breaking up into two squads of three as they entered the warehouse. 

From the screams, Dollface hadn’t realized they were there yet.

Guessed these guys were military-trained by the way they handled themselves.  I asked Walsh about them while we waited, made him nearly jump out of his skin when I revealed myself.  Bad habit, I know.  Least I didn’t get shot for it.  Said he didn’t know much about them aside from all of them were veterans, though he wasn’t sure about the sniper.  Conway was her name, said she came in with Sokolova’s people, started hanging out with the SWAT team after the mayor and police chief worked out whatever “fucked up arrangement led to me working with you.”

Didn’t take long.  Couldn’t have been five minutes since I’d passed the SWAT team before that big rifle let loose.  One shot.  Some shouts from inside, then silence.  These guys were very good.  All clear came in over Walsh’s radio a minute later; they’d taken Dollface intact, victims secure.  EMTs were there in a flash, taking care of Carly and Kinzie, and were gone just as quick. 

SWAT bagged up Dollface to go, had her staked out, one gnarly head wound marring the Sidney mask.  Conway met up with them, finally got a look at her without her helmet and mask.  Pale, platinum hair cut short, had an intensity about her, the kind that comes with a lot of combat.  Shared a smoke with her men, figured they were her ghouls by how comfortable they were around her.  We didn’t speak much, but she said she’d be in contact with Sokolova shortly with a full report, and that she’d let Kyou know his ghoul was safe.  Said I did good for my first job, glad to see that I was a team player. 

I stuck around long enough to gather what other details I could for the sake of completing my case notes, but since I wasn’t there in any official capacity, I made myself scarce.  I let Walsh and his team handle cleaning up the scene and left any glory that might come from it to them.  I worked better in the shadows, after all.  For a wonder Emmerson didn’t show up on the scene till I was already on my way out, along with the rest of the media types.  Guess even her sources weren’t able to keep up with how quickly we’d moved tonight.  Would definitely be looking into that before long.”

#Lore24 – Entry #286 – Sentinel City by Night #12 – Rapid Escalation

From the Journal of Sheba O’Rourke, Private Investigator

“Things got real interesting real fast tonight. Was at the PD with Walsh, going over the security footage they’d gotten earlier that day.  Spotted a panel van, abductor’s vehicle of choice, leaving the scene, but couldn’t get a read on the plates.  His people were trying to track it but had lost it when it had passed through Chinatown heading east; seemed like the people there weren’t too fond of cooperation.  Better than nothing, though.  Could be hiding there; none of the bodies had been found too close to the district, but I suspected there were other reasons for that, though I hadn’t taken a drive through there myself just yet.

Before I could consider possible hiding places, I got a call from a number I didn’t recognize.  The lady on the other end was frantic when I answered.  Once I got her to slow down, she introduced herself as Kyou, one of the local Kindred.  Name rang a bell, think I’d heard it regarding one the Elysium locations in town.  Anyway, she was all in a huff because her prized ghoul, Kinzie, had gone missing earlier this evening.  The way she described him, he was the most beautiful thing walking, so I guess that qualified him for attention from our killer.  Hadn’t expected her to grab another one so soon; guess this Kinzie just hit all the right buttons and she couldn’t stop herself.  Might not be related, but my gut said otherwise.

Thankfully, we caught a break; Kyou had a nanny app installed on Kinzie’s phone and had an exact location of where he had been just before the phone had been turned off an hour or so ago.  Worked for me.  Took a ride with Walsh on this one, was a lot quicker getting through town when you’ve got the flashing lights and siren on your car.  Crap, forgot to call the mechanic again.  Maybe tomorrow night.  Noted.

Place was a high-end sex shop, dealt in real fancy gear for really rich kinksters.  Didn’t take long to track Kinzie’s movements; he was a regular, always picking up something or other for Kyou.  Kyou was an artsy type, dealt in fetish photography and living art.  Should’ve guessed she was a Toreador from the way she got all dreamy describing Kinzie to me, even in the midst of her panic.  Whatever.  We found Kinzie’s car in the garage next door, still locked up tight, keys laying on the ground next to the trunk. 

We hit the security office next, pulled the camera footage.  Same panel van came up behind Kinzie as he loaded up the night’s purchases.  Driver spoke to him, and he got right in the van without a fuss.  Classic vampire domination.  Makes it real easy to get your victims from one place to another.  Couldn’t get a good look at the driver, but we had the plates, and Walsh got on it immediately.  There were plenty of cameras in this part of town, traffic and otherwise, but that would take time to sort through them all. 

I made a call to Becky while Walsh was pulling info on the plates.  Won’t go into specifics, but I owe her a favor now; she seemed pretty pleased by this.  Bound to happen sooner or later; it’s just how her kind are.  By the time Walsh had determined the plates were stolen from a sports car that had turned up chopped a few weeks back, Becky was sending me texts with the direction the van had gone.  Walsh and I hit the trail hard and fast, headed eastward. 

Few miles later, we pulled into a dilapidated section of warehouses near the docks, the most likely place our target would have gone given the last hit Becky had sent us, an ATM camera at a liquor store a few blocks from the docks.  Could have been plenty other places for them to hide, but between the gang bangers, druggies, and other types the typically hung out in places like this, a serial killer would very likely go unnoticed.  Didn’t miss the fact that Walsh loosened the catch on his gun in its holster as we started into the area.  Decided to check my piece too.

Kept the windows cracked as we patrolled around.  I focused on what I could hear over the engine.  Got lucky after a little while, heard some screams that sure sounded to me like someone was getting tortured.  We headed in that direction, keeping the lights off as I guided us closer.  Came up to a particular warehouse that seemed a little nicer than the others around it, even had fresh padlocks on the fencing outside.  I stopped Walsh here, told him I’d go in alone to scout the place alone.  He didn’t like it, but then he figured I might be a lot quieter than him.  He said he’d get word back to the PD to get the SWAT team on standby just in case.  Seemed prudent.  I shot off a quick text to Sokolova to fill her in on what was going on. 

Then I stepped into the night, quickly picked the lock on the fence, and headed into the darkness, towards the screams.”