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MAGE 20 - The Tomorrow Unknown - By Moonlight Pale and Blue


MAGE20 ST

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The magic was fresh and unfolding, and Triessa had little time to try to understand what it was doing exactly beyond what her eyes told her. Fortunately, magic was delicate in those first moments. You didn't have to understand it...you just had to know how and where to cut it.

She produced her athame, a cute thing of hammered iron with swirly embossing in the little crossguard. Contrary to its appearance as a knife, it was normally used to control and shape magic. However, it could be used to define boundaries, and to 'cut' as well.

Into it, into the spell, into the world, Triessa's Will pulled back the veil of mundane matter and energy to see the universe as it was; a dance of primal, generative energy. Not molecules or atoms or any particle even the largest accelerator would ever find...though those things mirrored the truth in many ways in an endless fractal reiteration. Mages, and those whose senses permitted them to apprehend this subtler reality called it simply 'Prime.' The very stuff of creation. Of magic.

The Pattern of the spell flared in her eyes, though she couldn't grasp it entirely. She reached out with her dagger, with her magic, with her Will, and divided it...spell from victim. Magic from power.

"I deny you the power to harm," she said to the incipient spell. "I deny you form. I deny you existence. So mote it be."

 

(OOC - rolled in chat counter spell attempt; 2 successes)

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Perception becomes focus, reality bends to wills, both ancient and new. Time seems to stand still.

Boggie screams as the ancient coin in his hand pulses with energies he could never comprehend his hand, no his very being alters becoming, no not becoming, but rather being replaced by something hard and cold. Stumbles from the car the transformation almost done, the cold dark mind that is not his slithers in and begins to supplant his own will...

The ether warps the house awakens it sees what is and how it should not be. It must protect, it must aid.

Each mage sees and reacts in his or her own way. Cade pulls a gun and intones a rote spell preparing it, Akemi works her own magick enhancing her body  and reflexes centering her Do. Montrose seem shocked and The tall teenager whips weapons out as she enhances her own body and leaps out ahead of everyone. But only two act against the menace directly and they are both successful in achieving their goal however the results are not what they expected.

The woman's athame slices the air in intricate pattern and her magick severs those strands she can perceive while Aja has used his to strike directly at the intellect

The strands of power th force of vibration reality bends and then snaps back into place only to be torn asunder by a magick far far older than any these young mages have ever seen.

Boogie screams again as his head feels like it is being microwaved the dark evil intellect that was consuming his identity is dazed and confused as the magick of his brilliant spell is broken. Boogie falls to the ground hurling the medallion away from him Kait skids to a halt as it lands less than five feet from her.

Everyone stops the only sound is the driver from the car sobbing as he lies there on the ground obviously no threat to anyone.

There is a sense of anticipation.

It couldn't have been that easy? 

Ccould it?

Kait standing there unsure what to do can hear a sizzling pop and feels a tremble through her feet. She looks at the coin and watches as it shatters and dissolves into the ground and then that ground erupts, sending her reeling As a monstrous form fully eighteen feet tall, composed of dirt, rock, and all the things that make up the earth rises it's bellows challenging all within hearing distance.

Kaitlin needs to make a defense roll

Everyone else needs to make their initiative roll.

Anyone can also make an appropriate lore roll to determine what the are facing.

we are now in combat turns.

 

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Kaitlin was confused and feeling somewhat unsatisfied when the guy collapsed to the ground, his spell (?) unraveling, his medallion landing by her feet. Her Flight-Or-Fight response firmly in Fight Mode, she wanted to pound something and the guy writhing on the ground wasn't a worthy target in her mind.

The tall, tensed and taut, young woman was about to reach over and down to haul their assailant up with one hand when the ground exploded in a shower of dirt and rock. Almost faster than the eye and with instinctive grace, Kaitlin rolled away from with monstrous figure rising from the ground, riding the almost seismic wave as easily as walking down the street.

Kaitlin flowed back into a ready stance several yards away from the creature, hopefully out of its immediate reach. Her hair back under the force of its rumbling bellows as she glared uncertainly up at it. Turning from a creepy, ephemeral apparition to face a grey-skinned Hulk creature the size of a werewolf was one thing. Coming face to thigh with a creature composed of dirt and rock was something else.

"Okay, what the fuck is this thing, now?"

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"Okay, what the fuck is

this

thing, now?"

"That... is an excellent question for which I have no adequate answer..."

Seriously. Montrose was all about new experiences, but this took the cake. The fucking hulk just arrivedand Kaitlin leapt like a fucking panther which in foresight won't be as surprising as might be expected and Aja did something and the guy just exploded like they do in Doom when you blow up the barrel which seems appropriate since Cade is some sort of hitman action star who was apparently expecting the surprise to act so quick and now Triessa had caused the explosion with what looked like the world's most powerful letter opener and what the ever loving fuck was this pile of brick-

Think!

Right. Think. Did this thing think?

He pulled on his pendant, breaking skin and using the twinge of pain in his fingers to loosen his perceptions, trying to reach out to whatever was on the other side of the moving bricks.

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Boogie lays there horrified at the scene playing out not sure if he is alive or dead having felt his very being being twisted and consumed to suddenly finding himself whole and (relatively) unharmed he screamed and scrambled crawling under the camaro as the Elemental burst from the earth and rages at the collection of hated mages.

Reality twist turns shuffles each mage present feels the surge of magick as he or she understands it wrap around themselves becoming pliant, becoming what they want it to be. Their wills command like never before and reality bend to the shapes they desire.

Aja is first to react, his own mental acuity seeking and finding the new mind behind the thing rising from the ground, different from the one he had confused just a few seconds ago. With just a few adjustments and applications he altered his mind clouding illusion to fit this new intellect.

As the illusion unfolds into the mind of the newly freed elemental already confused by its sudden freedom after millennium of imprisonment, it finds itself unable to discern its reality, past and present as such it does not see the puny human female mage as she resumes her forward charge bending the forces of her own magick, she launches a spinning magickal enhanced kick which catches the lumbering behemoth square in the abdomen. Her close proximity to the elemental allows her to see that the things is not fully formed and still seems to be..gathering itself. She recovers and is set to defend against the elemental as it shudders under her forceful blow it lashes out at the human in its direct front its massive arm made of dirt and stones whisks over the girls head as she easily sidesteps and ducks the blow.

As Kait thunder kicks the newly formed elemental, Akemi has gathered her own forces and whipping her swords from their sheaths leaps upon the van using it as a catapult to launches herself flipping end over end at the 12 foot tall monster of rock her blades slashing at the things head and shoulders sending dirt and chips of rock fly as she land behind the elemental in a perfect stance facing it and ready to attack its unprotected back.

Triessa realizes with some despair that the creature is no longer alive, and is thus beyond the greatest thrust of her power. But...did it seem angry? Emotional? Perhaps it wasn't just some mindless spell. Perhaps it had volition...a vulnerable point in that wall of stone!

She gathered her will and concentrated, forming her thoughts into a jagged barb...an astral construct of gnashing teeth and grasping claws. It was an awful, destructive thing, and it made her wince a little just to imagine it. But after seeing what this thing had done to the man, she could justify it. This creature had invited great vengeance upon itself. She was merely the conduit for that.

Ugh. Justification. This was to protect herself and her friends. She'd accept the consequences.

She turned the curse loose, sending it burrowing digging seeking shredding. A whirling wheel of dissonance and anti-thought, snuffing out the light of its target's consciousness.

Montros seems to stand still almost as if he is in shock but the swirl of magic around him shows those who can sense that he is indeed taking great action as his magick again focuses on the intellect of the giant and reveals it mental weakness showing him exactly where to aim his next precision strikes.

The sounds have been muted only the rumbling grinding of the elemental has broken the quiet of the yard, then all sound is drowned out by the reports of Cade's gun shattering the silenc as the monster reels from the magickal mind blast which have cause it true pain and damage, in slow motion the bullets, glowing with fire and forces invisible, streak at the elemental tearing so close to Kait that she feels the air as they pass over her and penetrate deep into the chest of the elemental. The force of the bullets lift the heavy creature off its shaky legs throwing it backwards as lances of fire explode from its chest and it crashes to the ground writhing in the pain of its pattern is torn and burned by the magick.


 

 

The elemental is heavily damaged and confused.

It has taken bashing damage from both Kait and Akemi while Cade and Triessa have both scored Aggravated damage

The Creature is at a – 2 dice penalty from Aja's spell and Montros has a +5 sux to divide between his  attack and damage next round.

None of the mages were damaged. All of you feel the warping of reality within the confines of the Node upon which the house is built.

Please roll and post your next round initiatives in the combat thread.
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Cade takes aim again, not really wanting to let this thing get a shot off at anyone and squeezes the trigger with the practiced hand of an expert marksman, looking to put down this magical monstrosity.  "Someone, see to the guy from the car, please, he may need treatment, and certainly needs to forget this ever happened."

Akemi, takes advantage of the Elemental's prone state to make an astonishing series of whirling flips that defy gravity her blades slashing down on the elemental eliciting sparks as the bullets from Cade's gun seem to weave between the spinning figure of his companion and her flashing swords.

The Elemental jerks and writhes under the impact of bullet and sword and then as if propelled by the very earth itself its rises to its feet with a speed and fluidity something of it's size and nature should not have.

Triessa is for a moment at a loss for what to do. This thing had taken her best shot, ALL their best shots, and it kept coming! What did you do with something that wouldn't stop?!

Maybe the answer was not to attack it directly?

She concentrated not on the creature, but on the earth beneath it. The concrete and asphalt of the street had been ruptured by its emergence. The soil was bare. And in it slumbered points of life. Seeds and shoots and spores, all waiting for who knew how long for their chance to grow.

It was time.

Triessa reached down to those sleeping pods and filled them with power. Grow she said to them, magic ripping through the ground at her feet and racing in fractal lines to where they were buried. A light like the sun. The warmth of spring. Grow.

Magic like this, she knew, would normally be dangerous...but she'd felt something different about this place. It seemed to accept magic easily. Perhaps something about the house? It was something to look into. Later. When the fight was done. As she chanted and made her symbolic motions with her athame, she suddenly felt something grip her wrists twisting her movments, she felt the slicing pain as the blade of her instrument cuts into her wrist and then slashes outward sending a spray of blood to land yards away at the feet of the Elemental lord. Out of the corner of her eye , for a briief flicker of time she sees something else she has only read of in books. A tall spindly matchstick figure which cannot be described bu she know what it is ... a Paradox Spirit griping her wrists. Then it is gone and reality shifts.

Kaitlin's flesh is tingling with the warping of reality within the node, and is still bewildered fighting a fucking elemental. This time, she stalks in low and quick ducking under Cade's fire with feral grace to slashes at the things Knee with her knife. But before she can land her blow the Ancient Elemental Shoves its left arm at her and it explodes hurling dirt and rock with the ferocity of a shotgun blast! Kait twists and flings herself to the side as she strikes feeling the sting of rocks and dirt pelting her left side. She hits the ground and rolls to her feet a scowl as she realizes her blow just glance off the stone of the monsters leg.

Then she spies the spray of blood and the world turns inside out at her feet.

Thunder shatters the air deafening everyone as lightning strikes not once, nor twice but at least a half dozen times in an instant the mages and the Elemental are drenched by a torrential downpour which turns to ice and snow between breaths then the season changes and spring is here the ground at the Elemental feet heaves as the grass grown from barren earth and the trees surrounding the estate send their roots deep into the earth and the forces of reality call and the veil is torn asunder and a thing none of them had ever thought to witness explodes from the ground. A Spirit of Life! Taking material form it bursts from the ground tossing Kait and Akemi away from teh elemental as its own roots and branches wrap them selves around the Earth Elemental and the two struggling sink back into the earth!

Stillness

Silence

Then the twisting of time and space and the Mages find themselves as they were in a clearing, but it is changed.  No longer is it unkempt and home to a decrepit ruin of a house. No the lawn is verdant and healthy the House majestic and pristine there is no sign of the elemental nor the Spirit of Life. The scraps and bruises remain and Triessa bleeds from a wicked slashed wrist. And at the end of the drive sits a camaro with a tall Bald young Black man who is stepping out of the car with something in his hand...

Kait has received 2 levels of bashing damage. Triess has taken 1 level of lethal damage

Aja Your action as well as Montros' against the Elemental were interrupted

Aja you may make a will roll Diff 6 or spend a point of temp will to take an immediate action against boogie if you desire.

Everyone else is stunned by  what just happened.

If Aja elects not to take his will action we will go into round three

btw that was very very vulgar lol
 

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Aja blinked as all reset. That was.... remarkably benign Paradox. Well, that simplified things. He caught up with the recovering black man and cleared his throat. The man turned and Aja stared at him.

Boogie paled. Oh, crap. They're looking at him. I'm fuuuuuuuuuc--

 

Boogie collapsed in a heap Aja caught him and set him on the ground as he examined him the man had no injuries and in his right hand he held a cracked and blistered coin which looked very very old.

 

The feel of the place was different, it felt alive as if the pall of decay had vanished. Kait picked herself off the ground and immediately notices that the apparition she had seen was gone.

Triessa clutched her bleeding wrist and leaned against the van.

 

Combat is over post and spicific actions in a normal thread i will wait a day or so if no one posts I will move forward

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Cade holstered his pistol and moved to Triessa's side.  Of course there were others who might heal the wound with magic, but his first reaction was to put his first aid skills to use.  In the van he had a small kit, and fetched it and then looked at her.  "Let me see it.  While not Magical, I can treat minor wounds easy enough with mundane means, if you like."  He waited for her to agree, as in truth he really didn't know her, or any of them, aside Akemi, and didn't want to presume too much.

[Long6] 2:50 pm: administering first aid
[Long6] 2:50 pm: intelligence and medicine then
Long6 *rolls* 5d10: 6+5+8+9+3: 31 3 successes

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Triessa gave Cade a grateful smile and let him see her wrist.

"I appreciate it, but I'll be all right. At first I was worried it might be a paradox-wound but..."

She produced a deep violet crystal from her pocket; framed in silver on a silver chain, and passed it over her bleeding wrist.

"It's just the knife, I think. I don't think the paradox was actually trying to hurt me. It seems like it was actually trying to -help- the spell somehow. I've never seen that happen before."

(Casting a Life 3 Healing spell! Roll!

[SalmonMax] 5:27 pm: Just need a quick roll for MAGICK MOST FOWL
SalmonMax *rolls* 3d10: 4+9+5: 18
[SalmonMax] 5:27 pm: Aye, that'll do.)

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He seemed to lurch forward, tearing himself out of the strands of magic that he had conjured. For a moment, he had to look down at his hands, to make sure that they were flesh and blood and not stone and earth. The sense of raw frustration and vindicated anger had given way to... to...

Montrose blinks and looks around.

"Okay... note to self... do not try to share the senses of a spirit as old as time or somesuch..."

Pinching the bridge of his nose, he tries to take in the surroundings. At the very least, this evening can definitely be construed as a New Experience.

"So wha'd I miss? Aside of..." he looks around, sheepishly, "Everything?"

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"That's a way of putting it." Aja knelt on one leg as he looked over the unconscious thug. "So aside from all the already unusual matters at hand, it's clear Tobias Gaunt, whoever he is, is trying to kill us. So, we have one prisoner to deal with, and a mansion of mutable nature to investigate. Straws, anyone?" The last thought was a joke.

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Kaitlin stood up and stretched, her arms above her head and took several slow, deep breaths. She could feel the tightness and stiffness along her ribs on her left side, and her shoulder and upper arm were red and abraded but it wasn't too bad. Sensing the arcane adrenaline surging through her muscles beginning to ebb, the tall, athletic woman deepened her breathing, focusing inward. There was an entire world of magic inside one's body, in meat and bone and blood, and she called upon it to increase their efficiency and speed up her natural recovery capabilities.

Using Meditation Instrument and Life 3 to increase the rate at which she heals instead of instantly healing her wounds.

Diff. 3
Asarasa *rolls* 3d10: 2+4+5: 11 = 2 successes.

Kaitlin shook her head, bewildered by the various spirits appearing and the complete change in atmosphere of the area. In New Orleans for just two days and she'd already seen more and crazier types of magick than she had experienced in the last five years. She glanced over at the unconscious guy on the ground, the guy that had summoned the elemental in the first place - she thought - and felt a bit of regret that she hadn't gotten a chance to beat his ass. It would likely have been far more satisfying and effective than tangling with the mound of animate earth.

"All you missed Montrose..." Kaitlin said wryly, fluttering her fingers in the air then running them through her chestnut hair, "... was spirits doing spirit-type things. But 'sides all that, the creepy-fuck-as Apparition that was standing on the porch of the house is gone." She looked over at Aja with a crooked grin and jerk a thumb over her shoulder at the mansion. "I call mansion."

She wasn't much of a people person anyway.

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While Cade tended to Triessa then watched as she used her magick to accelerate her own healing, and Kaitlan watched the house suspiciously, the rest of the mages moved to the unconscious man.

 

“How bad are his injuries?” asked Akemi in a soft accented voice.

Aja Looked up at her and shook his head “Doesn't appear to be hurt at all.”

“What about the thing in his hand?” Questioned Montros.

Aja passed his hand over the semi-melted bronze coin, then shook his head again.

“Nothing now its destroyed.” He picks it up the others flinch back a bit. “The markings are unreadable now, pity.”

 

They discuss what to do with him some wanting to leave him in the van other suggest taking him into the house with them. During the discussion after Triessa, Cade, and Kait join then they decide that taking him into the house probably would not be a good idea. Montros goes to the camaro and gets the keys out of the ignition and opens the trunk rummages around and then returns with some rope.

 

“There's a bunch of other stuff in the trunk of that car as well. Kind of crap you see in a Tarantino movie if you catch my meaning.”

 

They tie him up and place him on the porch. Cade tries the door and curiously finds it unlocked.

“Akemi, stay out here and watch him and our backs.”

 

She nods affirmative and kneels in the corner of the porch as the rest prepare to enter the house.

 

 

Make a small post telling how you prepare if you are doing any prep. I will give  a day or so lets say by the end of WEd. I will post after that taking the group into the house.

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A quick check of his weapons, noting that the rounds left in the clip still carried their enchantments and had done no further damage.  He gathered up the medical supplies back into the kit and looked to the others.  "I've got everything."   He carried the kit in his off hand and shrugged.  it was better to have it on hand than not, even if most could heal.   There were limits on how much magic could be called upon at once, and the mundane was always a good fallback.  Despite his ability to use magic to enhance his senses, he wanted to stay mundane, because he figured the others would not.  He was so used to that approach, to needing to appear mundane when he was not.

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Carefully pushing open the door, he scans back and forth. He's used to facing things head on, but this most recent engagement where he'd been confronted with a creature of magic and hate had shaken his world view.

Be honest. It would have killed you. You thought you were ready for anything and how'd that work for you, eh?

Trying to keep his breathing steady, he ponders shutting himself off from his own fear. But then, if he did that, how would he know he was alive?

"So, Hitman Cade," he whispers as he looks around, "That's clearly not the first time you've fought some sort of magical... monster based on your reaction. Any pointers?"

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Kaitlin checked the blade of her survival knife for any nicks than sheathed - hands and feet would suit her well enough in the closer confines of the mansion, especially with others nearby. As she strode soundlessly up the steps of the porch, she could already the pain in her side starting to fade.

The tallest among the group of mages, the fit, leggy woman brought up the rear, able to see well enough over their shoulders and heads. Awakening while young during a traumatic encounter, Kaitlin had unabashedly used copious amounts of magick over an extended length of time to ensure that puberty had been more than kind to her, but she hadn't limited herself to purely to enviable physical development.

All her senses her keen, near as sharp as any animal's and she kept herself attuned to the Node and the warp and weft of other Primordial Energies threaded through the uncanny mansion. She couldn't decipher all the flavours of Magick she could see, but perhaps she'd still get an intimation of danger by the way the threads thrummed.

The danger that posed by the Elemental was acknowledged, but wasn't dwelled upon. She could have died, she was sure, but she could have died a hundred times before from a simple slip while free-climbing the mountains and cliffs that ringed her home-town in Montana. What you did was keep moving and learned from your mistake.

She nodded in agreement with Montrose's question. Simple steel hadn't be enough, even backed by more than human strength, when facing the elemental. Not the same as a werewolf, not at all... She'd have to make sure she was quicker on focusing her chi, her mana, whatever name you chose to call it, to make her strikes more devastating, penetrating.

"Yeah, Cade - I haven't dealt with things like that... thing, before, either," Kaitlin admitted. "Sometime, you're gonna have to give a crash course in Monster Slaying 101."

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Cade nodded.   "We all have much we could learn from each other, of this I'm sure.  We're going to be together alot, so there will be plenty of time for that.   When we get home, perhaps we can set up a schedule for it."   His tone was friendly, he meant what he said.  "I've nearly been killed by a number of things, part of what I chose to do with my life.  One big thing is to find the weakpoint and strike it with everything you have.  When your life is in danger, to do less will only lead to failure.  If you lack the ability to strike, then communicate what to do with others.  Clear concise communication is essential when operating in groups, almost as much as trust." 

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"It wasn't a monster," said Triessa, looking up as she finished healing her wound. She quickly scanned the faces of the others as they looked at her, and realized she wasn't getting much support on that statement. "It was being used...as a weapon. It was a spirit, and I'm not sure why it was hostile, but it could have been under a compulsion or... I'm just saying we shouldn't dismiss it so lightly. Whoever sent this man, and that creature, obviously places no value in the existences of thinking and feeling beings."

She joined the others in walking up towards the door.

"And I don't know if you guys sensed anything, but I think something in the house, or in the area was helping us somehow."

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"It wasn't a monster," said Triessa, looking up as she finished healing her wound. She quickly scanned the faces of the others as they looked at her, and realized she wasn't getting much support on that statement. "It was being used...as a weapon. It was a spirit, and I'm not sure why it was hostile, but it could have been under a compulsion or... I'm just saying we shouldn't dismiss it so lightly. Whoever sent this man, and that creature, obviously places no value in the existences of thinking and feeling beings."

"Fair enough. But it was sure trying its damndest to end us. I got a sneaky suspicion it wouldn't'a shown you the same consideration."

"And I don't know if you guys sensed anything, but I think something in the house, or in the area was helping us somehow."

"Hadn't escaped my notice. Normally when I try to join senses with something it takes some jiggering, poking, prodding, what have you. Like trying to squirm into a suit sized for someone else."

The compact lump of a man carefully advances past the doorway, trying to stay light on his feet and not extend his center of gravity too far in any one direction.

"...this time was more like... I dunno. Falling into a bathtub. Full of gravel." His fists involuntarily curled in sympathetic frustration to his brief, vague memory of touching the elemental's mind. An honest scrap was one thing, but actual malicious violence was something he deeply abhorred, simply because his style of magic was to share the experiences of the people and places around him. What had been done to the spirit seemed to fit very firmly into the second category. Someone puts a slave collar on you for eternity, think you'll care too much about what you do when you finally shuck it off? Triessa's right.

"So, anyway, this is likely a place of power. Think this... 'Gaunt' fellow is trying to claim it? Or did we just trip the alarms that our benefactor put into place?"

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The first thing to strike the Keyholders upon entering the house was how comfortable it was. Outside the temperature was over ninety and the humidity fairly close to that, making for a hot steamy mess, but inside it was cool and fresh, a faint scent of mountain flowers tickled the nose. There was no way that this house could have been closed up for seven long years it looked and felt lived in. The electric light came on startling some and revealed what at first seems a very cluttered large living room space. The furniture, unlike that at the Astrarium House, was all of different and decidedly non expensive styles and looked well used but clean and cared for. The cluttered feeling was from the books which were stacked everywhere.

Books, of every imaginable subject, text books, novels, biographies, occult and religious subjects, science fiction, fantasy, westerns, mysteries, etc. but there was order to them . They might be stacked every where but the were ordered by subject, type, even by author. There were at least a thousand books stacked in the living room, each stack neatly  resting on on the floor, but on a handcrafted small pallet. The shelves of the living room were full as well but not with books but with collectables again of all different things from tiny  blown glass animals to  transformer toys and Dungeon and Dragons miniatures. Tiressa spotted a rack of what appeared to be magick wands only to discover that it was a full collection of the wands used in the Harry Potter movies. They would find this scene in every room of the house except the kitchen, stacks of books and shelves of collectables and curiosities.. There were no television and no radios.

In the living room surrounded by shelves and the fantastic stacked library was a large rustic looking fireplace with a  huge oak mantle. Above the mantle was a large embroidered sign reading Mis Casa Su Casa. The embroidery was exquisite and mesmerizing if one stared long enough it seemed to move and shimmer in the light. Below the sign was a cat.

The cat was large and at first easy to imagine that it was just another collectable until it's tail twitched or it's tongue darted out for a quick lick. The cat was a blondish grey in color and very furry but not fluffy, it had green eyes and it's left ear bore a notch to the  just below the tip and to the rear. From the size of it  it looked to weight twenty to twenty-five pounds easily if not more. the cat followed it's guests about the living room with its eyes never once moving any portion of its body and only twitched its tail once the sign was noticed. Once attention was turned upon it it lightly, for its obvious weight, hopped from the mantle and trotted through a partial opened door into another room ignoring the humans.

Following the cat the Mages found them selves in a dining room which would easily seat twenty. The floors and shelves were as they had been in the living room. The cat was not seen in the dining area but another door, closed this time was across the room and had a large cat door built into it. Opening this door revealed a very modern kitchen.

The kitchen was outfitted for a professional chef and was pristine. There were fresh herbs hanging and the cabinets and pantries were fully stocked, the large walk in freezer as well, and the refrigerator was full of fresh food that looked as if it had been placed here this very morning. No stacks of books or shelves of oddities in this room, although there was a small book shelf on one of the counters with cook books and a small shelf of prepared spices. In one corner by a door leading outside was a large dish and bowl for the cat, where it was currently  lying down. both bowls were full of obviously fresh water and food. The cat watched them a smug expression on its face.

Further searching quickly revealed no immediate dangers and that all the other rooms were normal except for the stacks of books.

After ascertaining the safety of the house Akemi and the prisoner who was still unconscious were brought inside. It was obvious that this house was inundated with Magick and those with keen magickal sense could determine the various enchantments using the spheres of Correspondence, Entropy, Time, and Forces. They could also feel the power of the node which was much stronger and clearer within the hose than it had been outside. While the mages continued there search for clues the cat had rejoined them in the living room. It jumped up onto the sofa upon which the prisoner had been put and sat there staring at the unconscious man.

The mages did a systematic search a of the house and could find nothing which would answer any question only more questions. The moved as fast as they could but careful lest they miss something, always mindful of this mysterious Gaunt character who had already apparently tried to kill them.

It was Montros who found it, a well hidden door in the rear of the pantry. The door was small and great pains had been taken to mask its presence with non-magickal means as well as magickal. But before the mages could open the the door a Yowling wail sounded through out the house.

Its origin the cat in the living room.

 

Anyone with lore or other applicable skills about animals or cats may attempt to id the breed diff 4( if no skill no roll), also rolls should be made by all mages. Using the following skills if you have them diff is 6

Occult _ Int

Esoterica - Int

Cryptography -Int (if you do not have Esoterica substitue an awareness roll Diff of 8

If you have rolls you wish to make about something let me know.

If you have specific questions ask in OOC, PM or Chat

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Kaitlin was an experienced hunter and tracker. She knew what the passage of living creatures looked like and could interpret them. The mansion was definitely not one that had been abandoned for seven years... Though who knew with Mages that might be able to play with Time like Play-doh. Someone or something at least was feeding the pure-bred Maine Coon prowling about the place.

Wandering through the place with the others, her gaze kept sweeping over the stacks of books and the knick-knacks on the shelves. There was something... deliberate, deliberate and repetitive about them. Then hadn't just been placed where they were casually. "Guys, be careful about touching anything. The books, the things on the wall, there's a pattern to them, some reason why they are exactly where they are."

While Montrose was finding the secret door in the pantry, Kaitlin was in the living room, staring unblinkingly at the embroidered sign above the oak mantle of the fireplace. It was slow and subtle, but there were images and sigils appearing and changing in the intricate embroidery, and she was sure the word and images symbolizing 'Key' were appearing more than once.

It might be a bit cliche, but Kaitlin stepped onto hearth and reached above the mantle with a long, athletic arm to see if she could remove the embroidered sign from its hanging hook. There might be something behind the sign or on its backside, maybe even physically hidden inside the embroidered sign itself. Could be too much movie-reality, but the world was far more fantastic than most would ever believe.

But as her fingers pried at the edge of the sign, her arms corded with hard muscle and veins popping into sharp relief, she couldn't seem to move the sign an inch. She gave it one more ineffectual shove, then dropped to her heels with a 'harrumph' of disgust and glared at the sign.

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The Cat immediately stood out to Cade, and careful observation and abit of insight pointed him to the true nature of it,  "A familiar.   until now Kandal's is the only one I've actually met."   Vaguely as he took in the surroundings, he noted the organization of not just the books but the whole room.  "I think you're right, there's some sort of pattern in it all.  I cannot put my finger right on it though."  Then he saw the symbol on the sign, one he'd know anywhere, it was "Key" and he looked at Kaitlin.  "There's the symbol for "key on it.."   He spoke more slowly as he looked at they symbol and then turned his head, Slowly regaining control.   "There seems to be some sort of enchantment upon it too, so I recommend a degree of caution."

he wouldn't stop them from doing anything short of destructive activity, but this group seemed to not be that sort, so while still on guard for threats, he was abit more relaxed than he normally would be.
 

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"Oh, we're so far beyond the pale in terms of enchantment here, it's a wonder any of us can see straight."

There were most assuredly patterns at work here. The books were stacked and the sign was enchanted. Like... like a lock... the stacks as tumblers, the sign as the lock? Or was it a pin?

And the cat. He'd never been much of a cat person, so there wasn't perhaps as much significance to the animal having enchantments of its own. Just another magical pet.

At least the pantry was well stocked. Spices, breads, baking supplies. There was definitely a homey sense of-

And what have we here?

Carefully, the lumpy man moves a sugar jar away from a seam in the wall. Although made to look like nothing more than the segmentation between two wall decorations, it went deeper. Maybe this was the door that would be opened when the lock was-

The sound of yowling feline broke his reverie.

"Oh, what now?" Abandoning the secret door, he heads out to see what this ruckus is all about.

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The place may have been a complex mess of magick and riddles, but the hidden door seemed as clear a lead as ever. Aja focused on the space, the indentations, figuring out how to get it unlocked and open. The cat sounds were a strange surprise, but others were going to look, so Aja would keep on this one.

That actually reminded him of the black poodle his family used to own. He'd loved her, but honestly, it might be more his style to get a cat - if they had time to do so and safely keep one in the Atlantis House or the Plantation.

Perception + Awareness
Jeremy *rolls* 4d10: 8+10+2+7

Per+Investigation
Jeremy *rolls* 6d10: 8+7+6+3+7+10

Don't forget Mind, Entropy, Matter, Data, and Life 1 are all active due to Hyperfocus for sensory effects.

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The yowling stopped as everyone made it back to the living room There they stand saw the cat standing over the prisoner and Akemi watching intently. She looks up as the mages file in.

"It seems our guest is coming around. The cat sensed it first and made that horrible sound."

Boogies eyes were open and darting about from face to face but there was no recognition and the only sounds her made were a gurgling humming sound. Montros stepped up and  looked at him thru the lens of his Magick.

"He is still befuddled."

"Aja cast the spell," Cade says looking around,"Where is he?"

 

                                                                                                                                            ***************************

 

Aja had not followed Montros, instead he had continued investigating the secret door in the pantry. It was easy for him to suss it out.and applying the proper pressure to the right panel and voila the door popped open and he saw a set of stairs going down into what appeared to be a cellar. Aja frowned at this Louisiana was generally under sea-level a cellar would be hard to maintain in this enviroment, indeed it should be impossible. But here it was.

Aja looked back out of the pantry then down the dark stair. He weighed his options.

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"You're right!" Triessa exclaimed to Cade, crowding in closer to see. Her face broke out in an incredulous grin.

"But look, there's more. These here..."

She reached out to trace a fingertip across other symbols. "It's not just Key. It's Keys. Holders. It's us! These are..."

 

The yowling cut her off, and she looked around to see the man stirring.

 

"Hey, Aja!" she shouted. "We need you to cancel your spell on that guy! He's waking up!"

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Aja turned and came in, hearing the call from Triessa. "Okay, okay. By the way, I found the hidden cellar. It shouldn't really function that well below sea level in Louisiana, but..." He left the rest unspoken, as the obvious magickal elements that made it happen in this place were plain as day to deduce. The young man shifted and jabbed his foot into Boogie Jackson, breaking the telepathic disorientation effect. "Boogie buddy, time to talk."

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Cade chuckled.  "Well in Northern Louisiana I could see it easy enough, but here, you're pretty much right Ajah.   Still what about anything that's happened recently is "Normal?"  He turned his attention to their captive, and watched the cat as well just to be sure.    "It certainly feels like we're welcome in this place, though a part of me worries about him.   He is just a pawn in this, we might think hard about sending him away from here before issues begin to rear their heads.   Though conversely, I don't know exactly where to send him, and who sent him here."

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Great... Keys again, binding us to another house, it seems, Kaitlin mused sourly as she, Cade, and Triessa looked at the sign embroidered with thread and dweomer. But if it was the Key, or they were the Keys, where was the lock? Kaitlin peered at the sign, focusing on the magic infused in it and seeing if she could find a thread of Primordial energy leading from it to... somewhere else, a wisp, a direction, a sensation, something... but there was too much magic in the air and it muddied any arcane tracks she tried to follow.

"But look, there's more. These here..."

She reached out to trace a fingertip across other symbols. "It's not just Key. It's Keys. Holders. It's us! These are..."

Then the hippie-chick flitted off to look on their captive and yelled for Aja to cancel his spell.

"Hey, wait, these are what?" the tall woman protested in a mutter.

She turned around and noted the black man beginning to stir. Then she looked at the Maine Coon, whose yowling had brought Montrose from the pantry and Aja a little later, having found a hidden cellar. Her amber eyes glanced at the Pantry then back to the black man, a frown growing on her face and she nodded in agreement with Cade - nothing was Normal here.

"Then ask him who sent him and what he's doing here and why," Kaitlin said bluntly. "We can decide what to do with the fucker after, whether it's knock him out and toss him on a passing train or feed him to the 'gators? That's what you guys do done here, right?" The athletic woman didn't sound like she was entirely joking, her voice dark and dry. She nodded at Aja then tilted her head towards the pantry. "The cellar is in there?"

"I'm checking it out. I don't think this fucker needs five wizards who are quick and not so subtle in their anger to question him."

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Aja turned and came in, hearing the call from Triessa. "Okay, okay. By the way, I found the hidden cellar. It shouldn't really function that well below sea level in Louisiana, but..." He left the rest unspoken, as the obvious magickal elements that made it happen in this place were plain as day to deduce. The young man shifted and jabbed his foot into Boogie Jackson, breaking the telepathic disorientation effect. "Boogie buddy, time to talk."

You found- Y'know what? Sure, let's go with that. Doesn't really matter.

Montrose took a moment to examine the sensations of confusion and trepidation that seemed to have been his constant companion. It occurred to him that he was truly doing what he ostensibly set out to do: have new experiences. All the dodgy, dangerous things he'd done in the name of experience had been done from a relatively safe place. Even the risk-taking had been embarked upon with a cavalier sense of fun.

For the first time in a good long while, he was honestly afraid that he was out of his depth. He'd jumped into this situation without thinking and now there was at least one magician actively out for his life. It was certainly a new experience.

 

"I'm checking it out. I don't think this fucker needs five wizards who are quick and not so subtle in their anger to question him."

"Yeah, good call." With a grunt, the lumpy man turns to follow Kaitlin back to the secret door. "May as well see how far the rabbit hole goes. Which of us is Neo and which is Morpheus?"

That guy was clearly out to kill us... why am I worried that Hitman over there is going to kill him in the course of questioning him?

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Boogie focused his eyes on Aja and mumbles rather incoherently.

"I'mba ba whaa ta doon may?"

Triessa speaks up.

"We aren't going to hurt you, Boogie." She looks around at the others. "Is that your name? Boogie?"

"booogy yaaaaa"

"Who Sent you, Boogie? And why?" She continues her voice calming the man, the other mages content to let her ask the questions.

While they struggle to understand the mumbling, Aja sets up his laptop and types rapidly working his Magick.

"There I reconnected to his brain with different parameters. Ask your questions my laptop will read his thoughts and give us a much more meaningful and concise interpretation of his thoughts."

 

                                                                                                              ******************* Elsewhere in the House*****************************

Kaitlin and Montros entered the pantry and finding the door open and the stairs down that Aja had described they went down after first searching and finding a light switch. At teh bottom of the stairs they found not an open celler but a six foot by sif foot landing with a metal bound door set in the wall opposite the stairs. The door was covered with symbols and drawings, none of which meant anything to either mage. Both could feel the pulse of living magick and as Kiatlin reached out Montros stopped her.

"Wait! That symbol there I've seen it before."

 

                                                                                                         ************************ In the Living Room********************************

The mages stare at the laptop as questions are asked and the answers appear on the screen in both text and images.

They learn that Boogie is a hired thug of one, Tobias Gaunt. The image of Gaunt, photo perfect, is of a Tall almost cadaverous looking white male. Cade remarks that he has seen vampires that looked healthier. Gaunt is a Voodoo Lord vying for control of the region from the Voodoo Witch Queen Lyinda Sarifinia. Cade and Akemi both confirm that Sarifinia is a powerful Mage  of the Bata'a tradition and one of those who along with the Choristers enforce the neutrality of New Orleans. Cade also confirms that the Voodoo trapping that Sarifinia uses are more for those who dont understand true magic and those sleepers in her local groups as well as tourists. She has a Website and reads fortunes and the like. According to boogies mind, Gaunt is the underground master of a prolific sleeper criminal organization specializing in all sorts of sordid vice as well as a Voodoo lord Those who cross him either vanish never to be heard of again or worse, get turned into zombies. When asked about Gaunts interest in Anson and Ms. Vail, He has no recollection or knowledge of Anson, and all he cans say about Vail is that she is a rival and is feared by those who know her and of her. The images in his mind of Mia Vail are very different than what the mages have seen of the woman, they are darker and highly sexualized. Boogies holds almost as much fear of her as he does his master.

 

                                                                                                       ***************************** At the Bottom of the Stairs*****************************

 

Kaitlin looks at the Symbol Montros points out, she to has a inkling she has seen it before, then it comes to her it was on one of the door in the hallway of Sanctums, the black door you were warned not to attempt to enter.

 

 

At this point you all have general information. those at the questioning of Boogie (Cade, Aja, Triessa) If you have specific questions for boogie let me know Either by PM or ask using the Combat thread.

Montors and Kaitlin are at the Door, post accordingly. If you have questions either PM me or ask them using the Combat thread.

 

 

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Cade turned his attentions to the familiar.   Something from long before, that Kandal told him in passing had come to the fore.  A Familar could only exist if bound to a living mage.  "Exactly who are you bound to?"  he asked quietly.  Turning his gaze to the cat to see if there were any special markings or coloration that he'd missed.

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"Of all the insanity that's befallen us recently, that its what you seem surprised by?"  He looked at her with a smirk, then gestured to the feline. "That Cat is a Familiar, something that can only exist when bound to a living mage.   The few Familiars I've bet can understand human language, and I know Kandal's can speak it well."   Animals weren't his specialty, sadly.  He knew enough to avoid getting bit,but more than that...he just didn't have the time.

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Kaitlin stared at the door and grunted, then looked over at Montrose and nodded. "The symbol on the Black Door back at the House." Kaitlin frowned at the door for a moment then glanced back and the shorter, fit man and shrugged. "This Door isn't black. And the weird sign upstairs was referring to the Key Holders, which could be us..."

The tall, young woman trailed off, then rolled her strong, sleek shoulders and shot Montrose a crooked smirk. "What's the worst that can happen?"

Not giving Montrose the chance the voice exactly what the worst could be, Kaitlin kept her senses attuned for any impending arcane catastrophe and took several long strides and reached for the door...

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"Not could be," Triessa said confidently. "Is. The symbols aren't just about keholders. They...oh, it's really hard to explain! They're us. There's a symbol for each of us. And then another one that names us Keyholders. Look, it's..."

She runs her hand through her hair, almost vibrating with eagerness to inform, but finding it hard to find the words. "In the den, there were books arranged in a sort of star shape, with the magazines in the constellation Pisces. That ties in to the foyer, where you have the fishing gear that points..." Triessa points her finger at the wall, "...at the arrangement in the dining hall where all the forks were angled to describe lines linking the candleholders to make a representation of...of some kind of towers... oh!"

Now Triessa stopped cold and her eyes widened.

"I get it! It's supposed to be...oh wow. That's amazing!"

She tuned back to the others, a blissed-out grin spreading over her face.

"It's Atlantis, guys! The whole house is laid out to be Atlantis! I mean, at least as Plato talked about. The plaza in the dining room, the great merchant's squares would be the...kitchen, I think. I'll have to look again. And the halls of learning in the study and den, under the stars..."

"And we're meant to be here. Those symbols were personal to us. I'm sure of it!"

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As Kaitlin reached for the door knob, Montros standing behind her held his breath and took a step back his fists clinching and his body assuming a defensive stance. Kaitlin made a quick glance back at him to reassure both him and herself then her hand closes on the knob and she turns it...

 

                                                                                             ***************************************UPSTAIRS***********************************************************

Everyone turned and listened to Triessa, as she spoke they all found themselves glancing around the room trying to spot the patterns, some of them did and some couldn't see it all.

On 11/1/2015, 1:05:47, SalmonMax said:

"It's Atlantis, guys! The whole house is laid out to be Atlantis! I mean, at least as Plato talked about. The plaza in the dining room, the great merchant's squares would be the...kitchen, I think. I'll have to look again. And the halls of learning in the study and den, under the stars..."

"And we're meant to be here. Those symbols were personal to us. I'm sure of it!"

Akemi gives Triessa a serious look.

"Atlantis? Like the Plantation?"

Triessa pauses a moment then nods

"Yeah like the same way the Plantation is laid out to resemble Atlantis. But really this one is much more detailed."

Cade, who has also been studying it and taking everything in finally sees  the pattern and more to the point begins to see the underlying magic of the pattern.

"It's a Spell, or at least part of one.  I don't know much about it but my mentor called it correspondence. But this is way more complex than anything i ever saw him perform."

"Can you tell what it does?" Asks Aja.

Frowning Cade shakes his head.

"No, I can't."

 

                                                                                        *******************************************************************************************************

The door opens easily and Kaitlin lets out the breath she didn't realize she had been holding. She whistles as her eyes take in the room the door has opened onto.

"We might want to get the others"  She says as her and Montros enter the Sanctum before them.

 

 

                                                                           

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