Got a green light got a green light yeah But I'm going no where Got a green light got a red light yeah No cop no stop I don't care Every one of you could be the same Every one of you could be play the game Got a green light, got a green light yeah But you're going nowhere You know the best things in life aren't for me You know the best things in life aren't for free Got a new life, got a new plight yeah And it's going nowhere Got a mountaintop like a pin drop yeah No God no fun I don't care Every one of you could be the same Every one of you could play this game Got a new life, got a plight yeah And it's going nowhere Got a new find got a new crime yeah And it's going nowhere Like a broken glass like a car crash yeah No cop no stop he don't care Every one of you are just the same Every one of you will play this game Got a new find, got a new crime yeah And it's going nowhere You know the best things in life aren't for me You know the best things in life aren't for free
Red Lonewolf feels the sunset, senses it from the sanctum of his bed and the depths of dream. He�s not sure in which Gold Dust truly is, but he sees her, silhouette, bending over him, gently kissing his forehead, thanking him, telling him they will meet again. Then, she is gone. Persephone and the Rat awake, and after a period of ambiguous uncertainty, decide on their course of action, which will be to make their way to the mansion of the Asatru.
Jimmy adequately conveys them to their destination and they enter. Lonewolf and Persephone wait in Navidson�s office as he escorts the Rat out into the hall, seeming none-too-pleased with her uninvited presence. She nearly takes an unfortunate spill out of a window, but eventually convinces the discontented Navidson to allow her to stay for a gathering he is holding that night. Navidson�s assistant shows the Rat to where she will change and wait. Oddly enough, the Rat waits in the unlocked room and does not venture out to steal or gain information. What an unexpectedly well behaved girl.
Red Lonewolf delivers the promised information to Navidson, who seems suddenly much happier. He instructs Persephone to show Lonewolf to the room of records where he can find the information he seeks. Lonewolf realizes that he has a Herculean task of record-searching before him. He sets himself to it as Persephone returns to Navidson. Lonewolf decides, of course, to break the lock on the door, which he does successfully, just as Persephone returns to make sure he is locked in. After washing up and calling Jimmy to bring him a new jacket, Lonewolf returns to pouring over records and Persephone wedges the door shut with a chair. She goes now to prepare for the gathering.
Hercule awakes from a sleep so deep he thought he may have been dead. He only vaguely remembers returning home the night before, stumbling through the streets, still high on the blood of the Garou, wandering into his rat-hole apartment and collapsing onto the soiled mattress he calls a bed. He has little time to contemplate this, though, as he realizes that someone is fleeing from his apartment. He wastes no time in giving chase. He is not quick enough to catch the mystery man, but he is lucky enough to make it outside before his apartment promptly explodes.
Hercule has few options. He makes one last visit to the former HQ of the West Side Killaz, and amidst the broken glass, ejected bullet shells, heaps of ash, and broken furniture, he finds Pete, the only other survivor from the Killaz. Hercule, at first, seems prepared to simply move on with his life, before several realizations come to him. First, that the Slugs still seem to want him dead pretty badly. Second, that if he were ever to strike back at the Slugs, it should be now, while their numbers are also greatly depleted. And third (most importantly), Pete knows where Smith-comma-Jones�s secret stash of weapons and explosives is.
Hercule and Pete promptly stock up on munitions and firearms, then set themselves to the task of deciding just how to go after the Slugs.
Meanwhile, the Asatru gathering has begun. Jimmy has arrived with Lonewolf�s coat, though it makes little difference now, as Lonewolf has just finished searching the records and found the information he wants. Alabaster is his sire. Lonewolf�s appetite for lore is now wet, and he forcefully breaks out of the records room, taking advantage of the fact that no Asatru are to be found about, and heads for the library.
Persephone and the Rat make their way into the reception hall, which has become a strangely tawdry mix of aristocrats, debutants, and many of the sorts of people who hate aristocrats and debutants. Blood flows like wine and the Rat takes heartily of it. She seems to be getting used to drinking blood, though she has never had the experience of hunting yet. We�ll see how she fares�
Persephone speaks telepathically with Navidson, who instructs her to keep an eye out for sneaky people. The Rat wanders elsewhere in the reception hall, and is approached by an unsavory young man who seems to know her as Kitty Boom-Boom, from a strip club known as the Two Nuggets. The Rat, in an utterly bizarre twist of behavior, is all but completely uninterested in her unremembered past. Oh well.
Hercule proceeds on the mission he has decided on. He begins to formulate a plan for taking out Jackson, leader of the slugs. He knows that Jackson operates out of a grandiose night club. The obvious solution is to simply blow it up, however, there is a chance that Jackson is not inside, and Hercule cannot take that chance.
Hercule and Pete make their way through the slums to the haven of Exclamation Point, a Goth bitch with whom Hercule has had some favorable contact in the past. His contact with her now is less than favorable, but he does manage to apprehend her. She is rather indignant and uncooperative at every turn, however, he tames the shrew just enough to keep her under control for his purposes. The three head to the club and park a distance away. Hercule slips about alone, setting explosive charges outside. When he is done, he takes Exclamation point, and heads inside.
Most of those inside are humans. Hercule slips by any guards because he has Exclamation Point in front of him. He makes his way through a sea of bobbing heads and hands, thankfully avoiding the gaze of a familiar looking sword-bearer� Finally he finds his way to Jackson�s office and is promptly captured. However, Jackson�s victory-tirade is cut short as Hercule speaks both to he and Pete, with a simple phrase to change everything. �Ten seconds.�
Pete detonates the explosives and all hell breaks loose. Hercule breaks loose and chases Jackson onto catwalks, blasting with pistols as the mob below rages to escape the burning building. Jackson falls, bleeding and blasted, down into the tidal waves of mortals. Hercule has little time to relish this before the sword wielder attacks. Hercule survives� barely. Losing a forearm, falling to the floor, still he survives. Between the fires raging and the ceiling collapsing and the mobs screaming and Jackson still alive, Hercule frenzies. He chases his enemy down and crushes his skull with his boot. He manages an escape, though when he goes to find Pete, he sees only a heap of ash, and Jonas, making an exit. He finds his motorcycle and a young would-be-thief... He's hungry.
Red Lonewolf reaches the library and finds himself overcome with feelings that, to most people, would be considered strange. He simply assumes that he is beginning with his usual hallucinations, but is pleasantly surprised to realize that the woman talking to him is, in fact, Gold Dust. She helps him and guides him into the restricted section, where he finds Navidson's latest acquisition, before Gold Dust's voice disappears. Red finds a tattered and singed piece of paper that sems to be auguring the end of the world, and which, according to the tag, was written by his grand sire, Sebastian. He decides to keep this little nugget of lore, and shuts the case.
Persephone has been on the lookout for sneaky people and finds one who looks rather sneaky, despite how much she stands out in the crowd. Blurry approaches intent on manipulating Persephone. After some bargain and banter, they head off in the general direction of the library, precisely where Blurry wants to go... however, Persephone decides to take a slight detour. After a scene that does not need to be recounted here, Blurry stakes Persephone and takes her clothing. Donning it, Blurry displays her uncanny ability to mask herself with another's face and body, and leaves Persephone lying staked on the floor.
Blurry arrives at the library and sets herself to obtaining the information she wants, which we know is the location of the gate to the Nosferatu underground city. Red Lonewolf catches her in the act, and is quick enough to easily see through her charade, knowing that this is not Persephone. Blurry playfully assumes Red's identity as they talk, mocking him, and he attacks. Red soon finds himself thrown against the opposite wall, and Blurry takes her information and flees. Red, of course, pursues.
The Rat is still in the main hall of the Tremere compound. There, suddenly, they all watch as Blurry, wearing the form of Red Lonewolf and an Asatru dress, barges in, downs several goblets of blood, and charges out. Navidson, enraged, sends the guests away, and the Rat chooses to leave with them. The real Red Lonewolf is not far behind the Nosferatu shape-shifter. He charges through, screaming information to the Tremere before finally losing Blurry in the halls. Navidson meets Lonewolf and partners him with a Tremere so that Lonewolf may aid in the search for Blurry.
The Rat is hungry. So hungry, in fact, that even though she has never before fed on a mortal, she hardly gives it a second thought. There is something else inside of her now, something starved and needing blood. She finds it, and crafts illusions to keep herself hidden as she feeds and takes a woman's clothing. Then, she decides it's time to find out something about who she is, and heads to the Twin Nuggets.
Hercule and Exclamation Point fly through the city, Hercule firing backward at the police, until finally they lose their pursuers and reach the slums, reach Smith-Comma-Jones's stash warehouse. There, they decide, if for no reason other than exhaustion, to end their feud. And if they needed other reason, each one is really the only friend that the other has at the moment. And so, it's time for weapons.
Red Lonewolf and his new Tremere pal search for Blurry in the mansion. What they find first, however, is Persephone, lying naked and staked on the floor. They decide to leave her as such, and once they find another Tremere, start an undoubtedly very long information grapevine that may eventually lead to Navidson being informed of Persephone's situation. They continue their search and find a woman who is clearly not Tremere. Lonewolf tackles her, to his buddy's shock and chagrin. The woman is enraged and insists that they leave her alone. Lonewolf senses something is amiss here� Eventually, they begin to take her to Navidson, but she slips away into a trap door. Lonewolf knows where this trap door leads and heads the woman off, but as he finds her, she blasts him into the wall with blood magick and escapes again.
Moving through the slums, toward the Twin Nuggets, the Rat meets up with Hercule and Exclamation Point. After some dialogue and arming, they decide to head to the Twin Nuggets together. As they move, they realize that they are being followed. By what, they have no idea, but as they watch shadows flit about and lie where they do not belong, they know that it is not human.
Luckily, they soon reach the Twin Nuggets. Where these three go, we know there will be trouble, which begins with Hercule punching out the bouncer. Once inside, the Rat goes to talk to her former boos, who promptly fires her, but she manages to find her name, Laura Love, and her address. By the time she does this, though, her companions have already started getting into trouble. Hercule discretely feeds on a man in the bathroom, but Exclamation Point feeds on a stripper, in a private room as she gets a lap dance. The cameras see her, and by the time she leaves, the two security guards are upon her. This phases the Brujah very little, though, as she whips out her magnum and promptly blasts one of the fuckers in the chest, not at all caring as his piddle n' shit gun pops a tiny hole in her abdomen. Hercule shoots the guard's head off, just to be sure. The other guard opens fire but misses as they run. The three escape into the street where the guard unloads on them but does very little good in the effort. He rushes back into the club as he runs out of ammo. The trio of rule-breaking mother fuckers retreat to Laura Love's apartment to regroup.
Red Lonewolf and his buddy continue their search, now periodically finding Tremere lying about staked. They run into another Tremere, and Lonewolf has the heebie jeebies about him. The man gets away, but as he does, Lonewolf distinctly hears female laughter. They track Blurry to the third floor. There, the power is out and the only light comes from flashes of distant lightning through the grand windows. After a bit of walking about and uncertainty, Blurry attacks. In a flash of lightning, Lonewolf watches Blurry decapitate his new buddy, and then he attacks. The pair duel, swords slashing and ripping through dead flesh, walking about in pitch blackness, straining for some piece of sensory data, anything to clue them in to the location of their adversary. Finally they commence again and Blurry is wounded. In response, she lets out a flurry of telekinetic bolts of force, breaking a wall, shattering a window, until Lonewolf leaps forward and soars right through one such bolt, feeling the force wash over him, to tackle Blurry. She grips him with her mind and he loses his weapon. She prepares to drop him out of the open window, but as he drops he grips the edge. It seems that Red was moments from death, but Navidson arrives, and blasts of Hellfire tear through the place, striking Blurry and sending her flying outside, climbing down a tree and fleeing.
Hercule stays at Laura's apartment, nursing his nub of an arm and watching Interview With The Vampire and Dogma. The Rat and Exclamation Point head out into the city, which they find is full of angry cops. And once they find a street not full of cops, they again feel that they are being followed. This time, they are lucky enough to track down a voice. Crafting illusions to hide themselves, they manage to get close enough to hear the conversation of a man sitting on a fire escape. He is explaining to someone that despite what someone may think, the person he is followed can't be "the third one" as she simply is not respectable enough. Among the smattering of information seems to be that this man and his companions were somehow involved in the incident at Alabaster's the previous night, as well as an incident quite some time ago that led to the death of Chicago's prince at that time, Donovan. He then begins to talk about someone who could only be Hercule. Somehow who apparently is not very well liked by those whom this man is speaking with. The man hangs up and leaves, heading for Hercule.
Red Lonewolf and Navidson discuss what has transpired. They decide that Blurry is indeed the Diablerist. They also realize that she is heading out of the city, by means of the Nosferatu underground city. She was looking for the location of the only gate into that city, which she now has. They then discuss Persephone, who has disgraced her sire and the cult. Persephone's penance is to track down the Diablerist and destroy her. Lonewolf agrees to assist, by taking Persephone to the gate. Beyond that, he has no obligation to help.
The Rat and Exclamation Point fear for Hercule and set themselves to go and help him. However, they fear that the man they overheard speaking may now be following them back to Hercule, and thus they put themselves on an elaborate, zigzag course to attempt to throw him off.
Lonewolf decides that before he takes Persephone to the gate, he will attempt to relocate his friends. He goes to his home and employs his contacts to find out that the Rat is in fact Laura Love, and discovers where she lives. He takes Persephone and goes to find his friends.
The Rat and Exclamation Point find trouble before they reach the apartment. Exclamation Point makes it into an alley to hide, but the Rat is stopped by the police, who take her identification and proceed to question her about the Twin Nuggets incident. Exclamation Point is hardly in a better position, as she is being accosted by five vampires who don't seem pleased. She grapples with one and takes him hostage, even as another walks right past her, and out to the street, proceeding to murder both police and force the Rat into the same alley. On the other side they find a pair of vans, and the cop-killer introduces himself as the new sheriff. They speak for a time, and among the things learned by the two neonates is that Bismarck and Alabaster have disappeared, that Alabaster has set himself after the diablerist, that Hercule is wanted, and that Exclamation Point at least, if not the Rat as well, are soon to be dead.
Lonewolf and Persephone attempt to lose their pursuers to no avail. They soon find themselves trapped, boxed in by men with rifles. Jimmy rushes out firing but is quickly subdued. Persephone begins torching. Lonewolf is stopped by a man looking like a Catholic Priest fallen from grace. The man then attacks Persephone, slicing and dicing as tentacles of blackness protrude from his torso and retrain her. Soon she is incapacitated and lying on the pavement. Jimmy sits and pisses himself. The man introduces himself as Black, and he and Lonewolf begin to discuss matters of mutual interest.
Luckily for The Rat and Exclamation Point, the police arrive, and through a deft series of maneuvers, they manage to evade both the cops and the vampires. Once again, Exclamation Point proves that she don't take no crap. Boom.
Lonewolf engages Black in enough conversation to learn many things of interest. Thing the first: Black knows werewolves and orchestrated the werewolf attacks that killed prince Donovan and wiped out so many vampires at Alabaster's compound. Thing the second: Black is after Gold Dust, and she was the objective of last night's events. Thing the third: Bismarck was working for Black. Thing the fourth: Black is looking for a new mercenary. Then, Persephone's moans disturb Black, and he moves to her and lops her head off. While Black is busy with that, Lonewolf makes a call to Thomas and orders him to come immediately. Black returns to Lonewolf, and when he decides that Lonewolf is of no more use to him, he attacks. Lonewolf is getting badly cut up until suddenly, a white van flies from down the street, crashing through the limo that had boxed Lonewolf in, and pulls up for him to get in. Thomas wields an assault rifle and fires out the window as he high tails it out of there, rescuing his master.
Hercule is awaiting the return of the Ravnos and his fellow Brujah, but before they arrive, he has another visitor, who does not identify himself, but merely plunges straight into business. Aside from diatribes regarding anarchy and order, the matter at hand seems to be that this man is looking to hire a new mercenary, and since Hercule killed three mercenaries who worked for him the previous night, the Brujah seems a good candidate. However, Hercule's feelings about this man incite a strong desire to never ever encounter him again, partially of course because of the man's rediculous ideas about rules and order, and partially for reasons that he doesn't understand. He simply knows that whatever this man wants to accomplish should never be done. The man is persistent, until Hercule reveals that when he killed the three last night, he was high on Garou blood. The man seems disappointed, and proceeds to try to kill Hercule. Hercule battles the man, then tries to escape only to find an inky black void outside the apartment. The man disappears into that void but Hercule avoids it at all costs, even as he blasts shotgun charges at tentacles that spring forth from unnatural shadows. Finally, though, the tentacles sieze him and throw him out of the window. The seventh floor window. He falls... and falls... and stops. Blackness is all around him, and he floats. No sight, no sound. Suspended in oblivion.
The Rat and Exclamation Point reach the apartment only to find that Hercule is long gone. The credits to Dogma are playing. There are bullet holes in the walls and blood is on the floor. The window is broken. They grab what equipment they can, then decide that this is not the best place to stay. They don't know what the best place to be is, but they know it is not here. They head outside.
Hercule has been wandering... He found the ground, and unloaded his shotgun at the nothingness all around him. He wanders, having never felt more lost, the black cloud still surrounding him. Visions flood his mind. Visions of death, tidal waves of blood, killing and destruction. And amidst it all, he doesn't feel like the strong gladiator he has always been. He feels helpless. Then, he is seized once again. The cloud has become more virulent, as it lifts him up and slams him down repeatedly against something which he still cannot see or hear, but can certainly feel, and it is the ground. His body is battered and broken, and then, as he lifts again, a glimpse comes to him. He sees before him the entire something which he knows he will soon slam into, and in the middle of it all, a hole. A hole of nothing. He directs himself for it and succeeds, and for a split second as he reaches it, he sees a city street around him, buildings on either side, and above him is the black cloud that had trapped him, and directly below him, a manhole. He falls through and splashes into the sludge. He looks about, and realizes that the cloud has not followed him, but doesn't doubt that it could, and he proceeds to run.
Lonewolf begins to contact his information sources to learn about this strange and violent Mr. Black. He learns much which he already knew. In addition to this he learns that Black is a Lasombra, a shadow master, a Sabbat clan. He also learns that Black is the master of a Gehenna cult, actively seeking to bring it about. Red asks about a location of Black's compound but his contact informs him that that information will be difficult to get, and will take time, days. Red agrees to call back, and soon reaches Laura Love's apartment, where Exclamation Point and the Rat are just exiting. They enter the van together and begin to decide on their next move.
The three of them examine the note from Gold Dust to the Rat. Gold Dust has said that these are sure to be troubling and confusing nights, and that, should the Rat desire help, she can come to Gold Dust, who is currently in the underground city. If they are in need of a key, they can seek out a vampire named Psidon, though they should be careful not to spook him. Red employs his contacts to learn Psidon's address, and together they decide that none of them wishes to remain in Chicago. Red is clearly in danger. The Rat wants answers. And Exclamation Point is now a wanted fugitive both in mortal and vampire society. Relocation is a good idea.
They leave Thomas as they near Psidon's haven. There, in a residential part of town, they find a house that, although looking fairly dingy, has a decent yard around it, surprising as this is. Other than the yard, the house does not look like anywhere one would want to live. Windows boarded up. Paint peeling. They decide that to avoid spooking Psidon, the Rat will go first and the others will wait. The Rat moves to the front door, but etched on it is "Fake Entrance". Rather than tempt fate, she makes her way around the side of the house, but soon is on the run from a gigantic, demonic looking hound. She manages to evade it and slips into the back door, which was marked "Real Entrance".
The Rat makes her way through and is shocked at the incredible opulence of the place. The richest man in the nation could have decorated it. However, breaking the beauty of it, she finds a body hanging from the ceiling. She moves down the hall towards it, and as she does, she begins to hear music coming from a record player. As she enters the bedchamber at the end of the hall, she can hear it clearly, coming from a record player. As she observes dead bodies dangling from the ceiling, grotesquely disfigured and mutilated, she listens to Johnny Mathis sing Wonderful Wonderful. She explores the room at length but finds nothing useful. What she does find is that the music increases in volume, until it is deafening her and pain throbs in her skull. Finally, she turns the music off, and when her hearing returns, what she hears is a gun's hammer being pulled back behind her. Psidon states the obvious, "You turned off my music."
The pair speak for a bit, and the Rat realizes that Psidon has no idea who Gold Dust is. Psidon rants about obscure philosophy and none of it is very interesting. His entire persona changes from mania to rage, however, as the Rat states once and for all that she has come for the key to the underground city. Psidon flees upstairs.
Lonewolf and Exclamation Point decide to head inside. They make their way around the side of the house and see the same demonic hound that chased the Rat. Lonewolf stares it down and it vanishes. Inside, the Rat is having an infuriating time navigating what she has found to be a maze of distorting mirrors. Finally she discovers a workable route, but Psidon begins shooting at her, before finally leaping out of a window. The Rat leaps after him, and Lonewolf and Exclamation Point spot him as well. Now, all three pursue him into the streets.
They chase and chase, and soon find Thomas. Lonewolf hops in the van with him as the Rat and Exclamation Point continue on foot. Psidon proceeds to split into two people and run down opposite alleys. Exclamation Point chases one, while the Rat chases the other down the alley and Lonewolf orders Thomas to head around a corner to try to trap Psidon. Exclamation Point soon finds herself boxed into an illusionary alley with four brick walls. The Psidon she sees attacks, but as she fights back she realizes that this Psidon is indeed a fake. The Rat has begun to lose ground, but Lonewolf is gaining faster and faster in the van. The Rat slips away down an alley to attempt to get to Psidon first. Lonewolf and Thomas get closer and closer until Psidon pauses for a moment, and in the next, a massive brick wall seems to grow out of non-existence right before Lonewolf and Thomas. A brick wall spanning the distance between one side of the street and the other. Lonewolf knows this is an illusion and orders Thomas to floor it, but the ghoul lacks the willpower and jerks the wheel. The van tips and crashes, but Lonewolf manages to escape it. He attempts to chase, but realizes that he has lost Psidon.
The Rat, on the other hand, has not. She sees him and chases. More than chases, she hunts. Something is burning inside her that she has never felt consciously before. It is the thing that made her bite that woman's neck earlier the same evening. It is something primitive and primal and fantastic. It beats in her muscles and throbs in her temples as she gets closer and closer to Psidon. She has never felt so... alive. Psidon stops to throw open a manhole and leap down. The Rat chases him and tracks her prey into the sewers. Upon catching him, it takes every ounce of will within her not to rip him apart. After a short exchange of words, Psidon attacks her and runs again. This is the last straw. The beast within the Rat takes over and she attacks. She slashes with her knife, stabbing and hacking until she loses it to the darkness, which is when she uses her fists. She beats and pummels him mercilessly with her bare hands until Psidon is merely a collection of ashes and dust in the sewage. Then... she sits... control has returned... but she can do little but sit in shock.
Red Lonewolf and Exclamation Point join again, and decide to head to the entrance to the underground city. On the way, they feed on a pair of bums, one of whom identifies himself as Melvin... the real Melvin. They find the Rat and, among Psidon's clothes, the key they had searched for. They realize that they are in fact at the gate. Lonewolf uses the key and together they pass into a different kind of tunnel, one without storm drains or train tracks or sewage. This is a lucky thing, as they see that dawn is quickly approaching.
Shockingly enough, Hercule wanders to them, looking battered and very much afraid. And above both of these things, he looks exhausted. He insists on sleep, and the others feel their eyes growing heavy as well. They close the gate and decide to sleep in shifts, right there in the entrance to the tunnels, all of them knowing that whatever lives they had are now gone, and hoping that their new lives would not be particularly short.
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