Session 18

← Session 17 | Session 19 →

The party checks up on some old friends and does a few murders.

## Characters

* The Party, sans Kuno
* Benjamin Richards
* Nate
* Pax Furyk
* Arlo Briar
* Zacharie Toure
* Hollis Tucker
* Naberius MacLaughagan
* Fiorella Fells
* Kitty Vance
* Silas Vance
* Anthony Wilson
* Freya Sane
* Stone Dominguez
* Ramona Walz

##### **Tuesday, January 19th, 543:**

Sam buys tea-making supplies, and when he returns home he can hear Ben talking on the phone. By the time he's back in the apartment, Ben is no longer on the phone. Sam makes tea, and learns that the hunt for a new apartment is going well. Ben's parents found a new place, and they'll be moving in soon. Sam offers that some of his friends could help move in, which Ben turns down. When Sam offers to try to explain everything that's been going on, Ben shuts him down, saying he trusts Sam to take care of his business. Sam promises to be better about being there for dinners if Ben wants him to, and Ben accepts, as he doesn't have the time to cook for himself.

##### **Wednesday, January 20th, 543:**

One afternoon, Colby visits Nate at his apartment. They catch up, with Nate saying the job hunting is still rough and Colby explaining he does some work at a local church. Nate suggests the two could visit the local park, and then a low-quality pancake restaurant. The two have a nice afternoon out.

#### **A Host of Trash Children in Various States of Aliveness**

The same afternoon, Asa goes in search of Pax. He finds the upyr in a dumpster, where Pax has recovered his backpack but is still wearing his bloodstained hospital gown. Asa asks after Devereaux, which Pax refuses to talk about, saying only that they should never go there again. Pax says he is pursuing other leads, but doesn't elaborate.

With his visit to Pax having yielded nothing of use, Asa goes to the anti-supernatural organization he joined. He is greeted by Arlo, who has been worried about Asa. Before Asa can ask anything, Arlo starts explaining Asa's initiation job: there are two upyr, with an approximate location, and it's better if Asa brings them in for processing. Bladez and Zola have offered to accompany Asa if he wants it, but these kinds of jobs are usually done solo. Asa takes the information, and says he'll have it done as soon as possible.

Nyx, having had a vision of Zacharie dying, is out looking for him. She checks all the usual spots, and then combs further, ending up out past sunset. She is in a rougher part of town when she is confronted with five ghouls. She tries to run, calling for MacLaughagan's help, but stumbles on the street. She is swarmed by the ghouls, but they don't manage to hurt her--instead, four of them were torn apart by one that Nyx recognizes as Zacharie. Nyx bolts, heading home, and drinks herself to sleep.

#### **Grocery List**

##### **Friday, January 22nd, 543:**

At some point over the week, Nyx posts a notice on the board used to get in contact with Dusk Radio. She says they met at the Gala, in an effort to arrange a meeting.

##### **Saturday, January 23rd, 543:**

The next morning, Sam texts Colby, asking to use his oven. Sam makes brownies at Colby's apartment, and then the two deliver them to Hollis. Hollis accepts the brownies, and listens to Sam's stumbling apology, but doesn't invite them in.

That night, Asa goes to the location from Arlo in search of upyr. He doesn't find anything.

##### **Sunday, January 24th, 543:**

Some time in the next afternoon, Sam tries to have a conversation with MacLaughagan, but the demon ignores him.

#### **Daddy's Calling**

At roughly the same time, Nyx calls the demon, who picks up, and the two have a short conversation. She asks about the violin she heard at the Gala, and MacLaughagan explains that Sephtis does that sometimes. According to the demon, Sephtis is the embodiment of vengeful destruction, though he's been having something of a depressive episode recently. Nyx mentions that she convinced Sam to do his murder, and MacLaughagan fires back that she should convince Sam not to report the demon to H.R.

Nyx calls Sam after talking to MacLaughagan. She is surprised Sam doesn't have the demon's phone number, and promises to provide it. Nyx proceeds to schedule when the two should go to murder Anthony, and Sam protests her presence before begrudgingly scheduling that they can meet at the church at 10 in the evening.

Having received the demon's phone number, Sam calls MacLaughagan. The demon isn't the most fond of hearing from Sam, and demands details of Sam's visit from Valefor. Sam reassures him with the fact he didn't say anything too damning, and tries to ask about demon politics.

Unhelpfully, MacLaughagan is contractually bound and unable to talk about the demonic hierarchy, but he is against people who hold higher ranks from him when he thinks they don't deserve them. The demon behind the cult based out of Saint Anthony's is a specific example of this kind of grudge. Sam tries to ask if Raum is involved, but doesn't get anything definitive. He also stumbles his way through asking for help getting revenge against whoever broke into the apartment and came after Ben, which MacLaughagan agrees to in exchange for Sam doing his original murder as soon as possible.

#### **Things Get Worse**

Fiorella Fells has been mentioning television in very general terms a lot recently, and making Colby nervous.

With some time before she has to meet Sam, Nyx visits the Vances. She asks them for any information they have about the people they know who have disappeared. The Vances are concerned that she's looking into this, and imply that people with more power than Nyx haven't been able to find anything, but give her some names. Based on those names, Nyx is able to tell that a subsection of the missing people had minor magical skills before suddenly improving. This has mostly been written off as arrogant apprentices leaving once they've improved drastically. It's a distinct possibility that the rest of the missing people also experienced the same spike in power, but would have known how to be discreet about it.

#### **Oopsies! Sam Did a Fucky Wucky so Now his Not-Dad Has to Get in the Forever Box!**

Sam proceeds to not wait for Nyx, his plan all along, and visit his church. It's a weekday afternoon, and there's a small Bible study group meeting. Sam loiters at the back of the building, and listens to the sermon, which is drastically different from what he's used to hearing from Anthony: it's full of references to demons.

Once the service is over and everyone else has left, Sam makes his way into Anthony's office. Anthony is surprised to see him, since Sam was known to be dead. Sam tries to confront Anthony, but the priest quickly becomes a blubbering mess. He did manage to reach his gun, which goes off when Sam takes it out of his shaking hands, but Anthony quickly ends up on his knees, mumbling Matthew 12 to himself. Sam drives his knife between the man's ribs, and ends up covered in his blood.

Sam is a wreck after this murder, and can't help the sinking sensation that something is irrecoverably wrong. The creeping realization that the Anthony who killed him isn't the man he just killed drives him to contact MacLaughagan. The demon doesn't immediately pick up, but Sam makes the urgency clear, and finally gets in contact.

MacLaughagan is astounded by the fact that Sam managed to screw up his one job, and impresses on Sam the consequences of his actions: demons can only be killed on the Prime Plane when in a vessel, though blessed weapons help, as well as the fact this has halved the timeline of the demon's scheming. When pressed, MacLaughagan says the universe is at stake. Disgruntled and having been handed more work to do by this occurrence, MacLaughagan hangs up, leaving Sam alone in a church with the body of one of the men who raised him.

Nyx's doorbell rings, and she opens the door to reveal MacLaughagan. The demon declares his need to get absolutely drunk, and Nyx wants to know why. He explains the bare bones of the situation, mostly that Sam managed to mess up the one job he had. Nyx accepts this, and the two go on a tour of the City's bars.

#### **A Follow-Up**

Asa, on the lookout for upyr again, spots two familiar figures: Freya and Stone. They look worse for wear, but give no indication they're up to anything beyond survival. The two recognize Asa as soon as he attacks them, and Stone takes the lead in fighting him, protecting her girlfriend. It's a rough fight, and Asa gets a set of claws torn across his face, but he manages to down the two. Stone, with her last dregs of consciousness, tells Asa to not be a coward and to kill them, saying they won't be dragged away. Asa does as she asks, leaving the two upyr ashes. He texts Arlo, letting him know he completed the job but that the two died. Arlo takes it well, disappointed to hear they died but quickly moving on.

Sam gets his bullet wound bandaged by Ben, as well as giving a half-coherent explanation of the day's events. Ben isn't too pleased with this, and Sam apologizes profusely, but is also covered in blood and obviously in need of help.

#### **From the Windows to the Walz**

##### **Tuesday, January 26th, 543:**

A day or so later, Nyx hears a ruckus in the hallway outside her apartment. She can tell Pax is defending her apartment, and taking a beating in the process. Nyx calls Asa, letting him know the situation and telling him to bring backup. Nyx opens the door to her apartment, revealing a battered Walz and an even more battered Pax. Nyx fixes Walz in place with her gaze, and waits for the rest of the party to arrive.

When Sam, Colby, and Asa arrive some time later, Nyx is still holding Walz, and is obviously struggling because of it. Nyx asks Sam and Asa to restrain Walz, but she manages to break free. Sam tries to give chase, but Walz shifts to a wolf and escapes out a window.

Asa heals Pax, so he's slightly more functional. The gang heads into Nyx's apartment, and both Pax and Nyx have copious amounts of over-the-counter painkillers. Pax wants to know why five members of the mob came after him in an alley, and the party realizes Walz probably heard about him from Kuno. Nyx wants to know why there was a werewolf attacking her apartment, and Pax says there had been five, but he fought off four of them. The general situation with the drugs is explained, including Nyx's encounter with Zacharie and her hypothesis that the blood drugs are turning people into ghouls. He explains that consuming upyr blood is close to half the process of turning a upyr, and that given ghouls are upyr with all of the claws and life-drinking but none of the sentience, he thinks that's probably reasonable. Pax isn't a scientist, but after Nyx pushes the issue he says a non-feral ghoul might be restored to consciousness by completing the process of turning them.

#### **Graphic Tees and Alcohol**

Nyx refuses to let Pax wander the street in a bloody hospital gown and an old hoodie, so after some argument Asa and Sam go buy some clothes for Pax. They don't get the most fashionable clothes, but provide him with a reasonable set of clothes so he doesn't discover that until he's safely away from them. With the new clothes, and cleaned up from his fight with the wolves, Pax almost looks like a normal kid.

Pax, Asa, and Colby all leave, but Nyx holds Sam back to ask what happened at the church, wanting to know why MacLaughagan was so off-kilter. Sam explains, poorly, the situation, highlighting the fact that he's got to kill a demon as well as that demonic politics are causing the collapse of the universe. When Nyx hears he killed Anthony, she provides drinks, and the two get thoroughly drunk while Sam bemoans demon politics, MacLaughagan generally, and the fact the demon is being obstinate with information in particular. Nyx says she has an idea to get information out of the demon, but that neither of them are going to like it, even more than dealing with the flamboyant demon generally. She texts MacLaughagan, asking to set up a spa day, but gives Sam no particulars. She also mentions her plan to talk to Ollie about the end of the world, which Sam is skeptical of the success of.

## Quotes

**Kellen:** "Did you just accuse me of writing an RPG with unsolvable problems?"

**Ezra:** "I would assume it’s very feasible for Pax to be dealing with his own problems in a dumpster."

**Nyx:** "Ay, yo, asshole bird!"

**Nyx:** "Do you not have his number?" | **Sam:** "No, I just kinda yell at the sky and if he feels like it he shows up."

**Sam**, to Anthony**:** "I would offer you confession—but I don’t think it would do any good."

**MacLaughagan:** "I’m hinging everything I have on my dumbass Revenant’s ability to *think."*

**Kai:** "Sam: kills an old pathetic man, Asa: kills two upyr."

**Pax:** "Over my dead fucking body." | **Nyx:** "Well you’re already dead, so, let’s go."

← Session 17 | Session 19 →