Play@YSDC

Posted: **Wed Jun 29, 2011 7:36 pm**

Soon, your group is across the street from 224 Bay Street. No one is sitting on the stoop of 224 or the neighboring houses and there's no one sitting at the windows, unlike most places you've passed tonight.

Then, a pale face in the topmost window of the house catches Delores’s eye. It looks like a blond woman. After a moment she begins waving at the police officers.

"Look there!" says Delores.

Posted: **Mon Jul 04, 2011 4:12 pm**

Dex parks the car across the street from the address. When Delores mentions the woman's face, he shuts off the car and takes a glance. "Alright gentlemen, as they say, in for a penny, in for a pound. Time for us to deal with these rascals once and for all." He glances back at Delores as he makes sure his assorted firearms are in place. "You ready for this? Because this is your last chance not to be in the center of it all." He looks at the boys, nodding his head, and then once he receives an answer, he gets out, tossing the sling that was supporting/holding his arm to his chest back on the front seat.

"Esposito, do we have any plan other than charging in and rescuing the client, while shooting anyone who fires back at us?"

Posted: **Mon Jul 04, 2011 11:22 pm**

Delores swallowed hard and nodded. "Let's do it," she said, with a bravery she didn't quite feel. She checked the load of the shotgun for the umpteenth time, the stock damp from the perspiration from her hands.

Posted: **Mon Jul 11, 2011 5:49 pm**

Dexter Ford wrote:"Esposito, do we have any plan other than charging in and rescuing the client, while shooting anyone who fires back at us?"

"Plan? Yeah: don't get shot."

When everyone's ready we'll move. I'm going in first.

Posted: **Mon Jul 11, 2011 9:52 pm**

OOC: Ready as she'll ever be!

Posted: **Tue Jul 12, 2011 12:19 pm**

Franky walks up the four steps of the stoop and pushes open the outer door, which swings loosely on its hinges. In the small vestibule, he hammers on the inner door, Pat and Jerry backing him up. After a minute, the door is opened by a bent old man, eyes glittering in his withered face. He gabbles something in an unknown language. The light in the hall behind him is just a dim glow.

"Police," growls Pat Corydon, as Franky shoves the man aside. Inside, in place of the customary staircase, is a roughly plastered wall, an inscription barely legible on its surface:

O FRIEND AND COMPANION OF NIGHT,
THOU WHO REJOICEST IN THE BAYING OF DOGS AND SPILT BLOOD,
WHO WANDEREST IN THE MIDST OF SHADES AMONG THE TOMBS,
WHO LONGEST FOR BLOOD AND BRINGEST TERROR TO MORTALS,
GORGO, MORMO, THOUSAND-FACED MOON,
LOOK FAVOURABLY ON OUR SACRIFICES.

As you read it, you realize it is written in a script you don't know, but can read easily.

Those on the steps waiting to enter the vestibule are startled by a crash from overhead and a shower of broken glass. Looking up, they see a stool hurtle to the sidewalk behind them. Vilas sticks his head through the broken panes: “Come quick! They’ve taken her down—“ Rough hands drag him back into the room.

Posted: **Tue Jul 12, 2011 9:53 pm**

I put the muzzle of my piece up against the old guy's face and pull the hammer back so there's no mistaking how serious I am. "Take us downstairs, bo, or I'm gonna fill you with daylight."

Posted: **Tue Jul 12, 2011 11:07 pm**

The old man drops to the floor in a dead faint.

There are two doors, one to the right and one to the left; in a normal building, they'd be apartments.

The right-side door has a heavy latch on this side, locking something in.

The left-side door is ajar.

Posted: **Thu Jul 14, 2011 2:22 pm**

Dex looks at Esposito and then at Delores. "Split up or stay together?" He motions for his two friends to cover the latched door. "I say we go right, you and the rest of the official force go left through the open door, and Delores, you decide which set of us you want to go with." He glances at the boys, and gets ready to move. "We meet back up here as soon as we can, to take the upper floors or the basement. My guess, in a place like this, it's usually down where the trouble is. But I'd rather not leave anything behind us, if that makes sense."

He waits for any confirmation to his plan. Sweat beads over one brow, though inside, Dex is cold as ice. The old calm before action, he's done this dozens of times against some of Capone's boys in Chicago. How bad could it get?

(OOC: Edited for clarity)

Posted: **Thu Jul 14, 2011 9:13 pm**

"I'll stay with you guys," said Delores. She still didn't quite trust the two he'd brought in with them and she thought she'd be safer with Dex and Esposito - at least they'd be looking out for her.

Posted: **Fri Jul 15, 2011 8:18 pm**

I think Dex is proposing he and his two old friends go through the left door that's latched on this side and that Franky and his cop-friends take the door to the left that's standing ajar. So Delores's option is go with Dex or with Franky.

Posted: **Sat Jul 16, 2011 5:39 pm**

(OOC: Gaffer has it right, that is what I was getting at. One group to the right, one group to the left.)

Posted: **Tue Jul 19, 2011 1:37 am**

"Alright, Dex. I'll cover you while you open the door."

Once that's done, I'm heading through the other door and down, ready to squirt metal at anything that looks at me wrong.

Posted: **Tue Jul 19, 2011 12:22 pm**

I think I got your left-right choices reversed. Please clarify who goes through the door that's ajar and who through the door latched on this side.

Posted: **Tue Jul 19, 2011 4:57 pm**

Gaffer wrote:I think Dex is proposing he and his two old friends go through the left door that's latched on this side and that Franky and his cop-friends take the door to the left that's standing ajar. So Delores's option is go with Dex or with Franky.

(emphasis mine)

I'll take the left one!

I believe that Dex is going through the latched door and Franky is taking the unlatched door.

Posted: **Tue Jul 19, 2011 6:27 pm**

(Sheesh..However, that is right. Dex and two fed's will go through the latched door, Esposito and the coppers through the standing ajar door.)

Dex looks over the group of them, and then shakes his head. "Mother always told me to speak slowly and enunciate. So, me the feds will take this here latched door, Esposito, you and your boys take the door over there. Delores, you decide which group you want to come with." Dex's buddies laugh and one of them, its hard to tell which, sotto vocce says "Dex had the same issues in Chicago. Never quite clear what he meant, but he always got his way in the end."

Posted: **Wed Jul 20, 2011 6:49 am**

"I'll come with you, Dex," said Delores, shifting her grip on the sawn-off. The perspiration on her hands was making the grip slippery and she took a moment to wipe her palms on her dress - not ideal but she had nothing else to hand. "Ready," she said.

Posted: **Fri Jul 22, 2011 9:57 pm**

Dex nods as Heine and Two-Guns. "Okay boys, get that thing open, however you can. Delores and I will cover you and keep our eyes peeled for any other trouble." He glances over his shoulder at Esposito and nods as he and his officers disappear. "Delores, keep an eye on the stairs and the front door, if you can." His automatic in hand, he moves to cover the boys at the locked door.

Posted: **Sat Jul 23, 2011 7:27 am**

Delores shifts her stance, so she can cover both door and stairs as asked. "I've got it," she says.

Posted: **Sat Jul 23, 2011 1:55 pm**

Esposito pushes the door open and Corydon and O'Donough follow him through. They quickly realize that the apartment has been broken through into the next building, creating a passageway between the two. The rooms in both apartments are littered with men's clothing and pallets on the floor, the kitchens foul with months of greasy cooking.

At the end of the next apartment, the door opens into another vestibule, the exterior door to the right boarded over. Three other apartment doors open onto the landing where a staircase leads up, but where there should be ~~floors~~ steps [ed.] to the cellar is a solid floor.

Posted: **Sat Jul 23, 2011 2:18 pm**

As Delores covers the front door and steps leading to the street and Heinie Duppelmann points his Tommy at the door, Pasquale Garibaldi draws the heavy bolt and the knobless door swings inward. The apartment is barely illuminated by a couple of bulbs and the stench that rolls out makes you want to wretch. It's like an overflowinf privy in a slaughterhouse.

Inside is littered with unidentifiable debris. A number of white-haired, wizened old men, nearly naked, their arms and legs and prominent ribs evidence of starvation, begin to stir and stumble toward the light. As they get closer, you see that every one holds a knife or broken bottle or pointed stick.

You also realize that they are children.

[Stability check, Dex.]

Posted: **Sat Jul 23, 2011 3:22 pm**

Dex smells the waves of nausea inducing stench, and steps back, covering his mouth with his bandaged arm. Seeing the sight of these twisted children, armed and among the corpses, he lifts his .45 automatic pistol to fire.

((OOC: I'll rely on my pillars of stability: My Roman Catholic faith in that these people are godless savages, my Moral Values: cannibals need to die, even if they are twisted children, and my Patriotism: these things don't happen in my America! to help strengthen my resolve to shoot...damnit...children, cannibal children, that its...

Stability roll, with a +5 spend (I think I still have that left after the alien dog attack):
1d6+5=6!
<a href="http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/ ... 1d6+5=6</a>
Good thing I spent the 5 adds!))

Reluctant to do what it is necessary, Dex fires at the first of the twisted children, hopefully one with the largest knife and the bloodiest mouth, to scare the others.
"I can't allow this to happen in America, you God forsaken savages!"

Posted: **Sat Jul 23, 2011 3:26 pm**

(OOC: Firearms, since I am shooting. I won't spend anything this round.
Firearms: 1d6=3
1d6=3

Posted: **Sun Jul 24, 2011 11:34 am**

The bullet punches a hole in the boy's chest and he staggers back into the room before collapsing to the floor. A couple of those nearest him turn to plunge their weapons into him and begin dragging him deeper into the dim rooms.

Pasquale slams the door shut and throws the bolt. When he turns back, his eyes are wide, "Christ Almighty. What is this place?"

Posted: **Mon Jul 25, 2011 5:55 pm**

Dex steps back, nodding as the door is bolted closed. "By Christ's blessed sacrifice, I don't know. But whatever is going on, we will come back to those murderous little sons-a-bitches." He takes a deep breath. "Everyone okay?" Once he gets a response, Dex asks in a more solid, stronger voice. "Now if we are going to get to the bottom of this..." He looks about and shakes his head. "Is there any sign of a way up or down in this place other than through the door the officers just went?"

Posted: **Tue Jul 26, 2011 4:11 am**

There is not.

Posted: **Thu Jul 28, 2011 11:04 pm**

Delores let out a sob as the Dex shot the boy, dropping the gun and clapping her hands to her ears. Sobbing, she staggers back into the corner of lobby, looking at Dex distraught.

Posted: **Fri Jul 29, 2011 2:08 am**

Gaffer wrote:Three other apartment doors open onto the landing where a staircase leads up, but where there should be steps to the cellar is a solid floor.

Damn it all. "You guys knock on these doors and see what scurries out, but don't waste much time."

And I'm off up the stairs, trying to draw a map in my head -- a map to the window where Langdon was.

Posted: **Fri Jul 29, 2011 3:19 am**

Franky mounts the stairs, pistol covering the next floor. Below, he hears Pat and Jerry kicking doors. He reaches the second floor to find another four doors and another stair leading to the third floor.

Posted: **Fri Jul 29, 2011 3:36 am**

Back down the stairs to see what Pat & Jerry have turned up. I'll let them know to do the same thing on the 2nd floor, then I'm off the the third.

OOC: It's just 3 stories, right? If it's more, I'll tell P&J to keep working it from the bottom and that I'm going to work it from the top.

Posted: **Fri Jul 29, 2011 1:04 pm**

Dex will nod at the boys. "Go on up. Help the police. I deal with Delores and join you two in a second or two."
Dex carefully puts away the gun into a jacket pocket and he comes closer to where Delores is standing, his hands out placatingly. "Delores, I didn't enjoy what I was doing. I don't know how much you saw, but those children were eating dead...people. Or what were people. They dragged the boy off into the darkness to consume him...to eat him. They weren't children anymore, Delores...they had become monsters."

He carefully picks up the shotgun, holding it in one hand by the barrel, ready to offer it to Delores when she is ready. "Let's go find the bastard responsible for turning those children into monsters Delores. That woman, I am sure, is behind it all. Remember is she lured Langdon away, I am sure she could destroy children and turn them into those things."

Quietly, he says just to her. "I need you to help with this Delores. I can't do this on my own."
(OOC: I'll make a reassurance roll here, spending 1)
1d6+1=5

Posted: **Fri Jul 29, 2011 10:35 pm**

Delores looks up at Dex and nods mutely, the tears still wet on her cheeks. With a trembling hand she reaches out for the shotgun, almost snatching it from Dex's grip. "I-I'll manage," she whispers, "Anyone who can do that... ..." She looks away, tears falling once again.

Posted: **Sat Jul 30, 2011 5:02 pm**

He just nods his head and waits until she collects herself.
"Shall we go and put an end to this nightmare, once and for all? Then we can think about trying to save those mon...children."

He pulls the pistol from his pocket, reseats the magazine, and heads for where the others went, making sure that Delores is coming along. He then stops and thinks for a moment. "Delores, I have a hunch. It might be nothing, but indulge me, eh?" Dex will then hurry back to the front vestibule, where the writing was on the wall. The rough plaster wall with the writing, covering what would have been a staircase..."Hmmm"

Dex wraps on the rough plaster wall with the butt of his pistol. If it sounds hollow, that bares further investigation. But if it sounds solid, he'll shake his head and then move quickly after everyone else.

Posted: **Mon Aug 01, 2011 4:12 am**

The wall sounds as solid as the others in the vestibule. With picks and sledgehammers it could probably be broken down, but it would take quite a while. As Dex turns away from the wall, he realizes the old man they had left unconscious on the floor is gone and the front door stands ajar.

"Nothing in any of these flats, Franky, just filthy pallets and filthier kitchens. How can these people live like this?" says Corydon as he and Jerry emerge from a door. Heinie and Two-Gun come out of the connecting apartment at the same time, followed in a moment by Dex and Delores.

[ooc - yes, all three buildings (which are basically identical in appearance) are three stories.]

Posted: **Tue Aug 02, 2011 1:35 pm**

"Well, there's another floor of them, maybe two. Probably also empty, but we'd best check."

I notice that Dex and Delores both look a little pale. "I heard a gunshot. Everything okay?"

Posted: **Thu Aug 04, 2011 11:15 pm**

Delores shakes her head mutely. She tries to speak but words fail her and she wipes the tears that are starting to roll slowly down her cheeks.

Posted: **Wed Aug 10, 2011 5:35 pm**

Corydon and O'Donough take the flats on one side of the stairwell, Heinie and Two-Gun take the other, as Franky, Dex and Delores confer. Soon both teams report that the filthy, unkempt apartments are empty except for mattresses and men's clothing: "It's like some caporegime's barracks, Dex," says Pasquale, "You remember."

"Shall we check the third floor, Franky?" asks Jerry.

Posted: **Thu Aug 11, 2011 1:24 am**

Dex nods his head. "Chicago scum...when we are done, we should torch this place." He looks at the others. "Langdon had better be up on the third floor, as well as some answers. Because its there or the roof. No basement that I can see...unless we are missing something."

He looks at Delores and smiles and then turns to Esposito, his face more serious. "Let's get this done with. Once and for all. What I saw downstairs pal, well no one should ever have to see."

Posted: **Wed Aug 17, 2011 3:33 am**

"What the hell's that supposed to mean? Is there anybody down there? Who's down there?"

I start to head downstairs. "And nobody's torching anything. Unless it's me."

I nod to Jerry that he should head up to the third floor, then turn to Dex. "We clear on the 'torching' thing?"

Posted: **Wed Aug 17, 2011 3:02 pm**

Dex looks at Esposito and shakes his head. "I promise not to torch anything. And Esposito...trust me, save it for later. There is no way the things in that room are going anywhere. Trust me...we need to find Langdon and this missing woman who is behind all of this."
He looks at Delores for some support. "Esposito...the answers are upstairs. What's behind that door on the first floor can wait for later."

He looks to his two men, and nods. "Up we go. And no torching."

Posted: **Wed Aug 17, 2011 4:56 pm**

I look back and forth between Dex and Delores, trying to figure out what's going on, what dark secret they have between them now. Whatever it is, it can't be good. "Things?" Did he say "things in that room?"

I'm more confused than ever, but he's right about one thing: the answers are upstairs. If there are any. And maybe it's better if there aren't. This is Red Hook, after all. Need to remember that.

Posted: **Thu Aug 18, 2011 12:31 am**

Dex looks to Esposito. "Coming?" He heads for the stairs, leading Delores along if she seems hesitant.

Posted: **Thu Aug 18, 2011 6:10 pm**

the stairs on the third floor. As before, there are four doors opening off the landing. Three stand open, disclosing what seem to be vacant flats without even any furniture. The third door is closed. In fact, it proves to be locked.

Posted: **Thu Aug 18, 2011 9:32 pm**

Dex looks to the cops and his two lads. "Okay, four big men...which of you is ready to bust the thing down while the rest of us cover you?"
He looks over to Esposito to see if he follows Dex's lead and nods to Delores. "Be ready for anything."

Posted: **Wed Aug 31, 2011 9:22 pm**

"OK," murmurs Delores, gripping the sawn-off tightly. She sniffs hard, trying to get a grip on herself, trying to ready herself for what might lie ahead...

Posted: **Tue Sep 06, 2011 4:08 pm**

"I got it," Heinie nods to Dex and tightens his grasp on the Tommy. He rears back slightly and drives an elephantine foot, backed by his considerable heft, into the door. The frame splits and the door slams back into the room, rebounding off the wall. Heinie shoulders it open and sweeps the barrel of his gun around the room, which contains only a mattress, an over-turned stool, a bucket (pee-yew) and a dishevelled man lying beneath a window, dabbing at his bloody head with a wad of cloth.

"Am I glad to see you guys," the man rasps, "What took you so long?"

After a moment Delores, Dex and Franky recognize the formerly-immaculate Vilas.

Posted: **Wed Sep 07, 2011 11:02 pm**

"Jesus!" mutters Delores, before realising she had cursed out loud and clapping her hand over her mouth and flushing with embarrassment. She moves across to Vilas. "Are you ok?" she asks.

Posted: **Thu Sep 08, 2011 4:29 am**

"Depends on how you mean ok. I'm alive and I guess I'm rescued. But they took Miss Hirt away, probably back to their temple in the cellar. And they hit me in the head." He looks at the cloth, "I think the bleeding's about stopped."

He staggers to his feet, "Let's not waste time."

Posted: **Thu Sep 08, 2011 4:38 pm**

Dex takes in Langdon and Delores, and shakes his head. "Langdon, we haven't found a way down. And do you know who captured you or why? Who are "they?"

He motions for the boys to make sure no one is sneaking up on them.
"Heinie, I have a bad feeling about this. Make sure the Chicago typewriter in your hands is ready for action."

Posted: **Sat Sep 10, 2011 5:45 am**

"Alright, Langdon. Showtime. Can you lead us to this basement "temple?" Or tell us how to get there -- your head looks pretty bad."

Posted: **Wed Sep 14, 2011 4:38 am**

"Oh, no," Langdon answers, "I'm going with you guys. Anybody have a spare gun? Don't worry about the rooms up here, no one uses them. They don't seem to have that many followers -- yet." Through the broken window shouts can be heard from the street out front. Looking down, a mob of men can be seen storming up the front steps. "We better hurry," Langdon says.

Leading the way, a bit unsteadily, to another apartment door, Vilas opens it and passes through empty rooms and a doorway cut through to an apartment in the next building, then out and down the stairs. He stops for a moment, clutching the railing and catching his breath: "Whew. Maybe someone else should lead."

Posted: **Thu Sep 15, 2011 9:15 pm**

Delores stood back. Whoever was going first, it wasn't going to be her!

Posted: **Fri Sep 16, 2011 1:52 am**

Dex will simply shakes his head and mutter "Stupid idea Dex...didn't your mom tell you never to volunteer."
He heads off in the direction that Langdon indicated, .45 in hand and .38 revolver in his shoulder holster.

Posted: **Wed Sep 21, 2011 9:28 pm**

The second floor of this building is full of empty rooms again. After checking these rooms, Pat and Jerry say to Franky, "By our tally, there's prob'ly sixty to a hundred guys dossing in these rooms. O'course, that's if they ain't sleepin' in shifts."

The group comes to the first floor and find the front doors have been solidly nailed shut, the glass windows in the upper halves covered by close-fitting boards, as is the transom above.

Three doors on this level are closed. The fourth one, at the head of stairs leading to the basement, stands open.

The stairs descend into darkness.

Posted: **Thu Sep 22, 2011 5:48 pm**

Gripping her gun tightly, Delores peered down the stairs. "We're not going down there, are we?" she asked, her voice quavering.

Posted: **Mon Oct 03, 2011 7:48 pm**

Dex looks at Delores and smiles. "Of course. In for a penny, in for a pound."
He glances over at Heinie and his streetsweeper. "Ready? Let's deal with this like we did with Capone's boys."
He looks back at the cops. "Make sure Miss Delores is in the center of us, and sweep high, sweep low, cover all the angles."
He nods at Delores and smiles lightly. "If you see a shot, take it...just make sure none of us is in the way. Alright?"
Once he has everyone in position, he moves down the stairs, Heinie behind him. Dex knows to drop low if the SMG will fire since the barrel tends to go high but he trusts his old Prohibition agent pals to cover his ass. "Langdon, you had better be right about all this."

Posted: **Wed Oct 05, 2011 9:21 pm**

Delores swallowed hard. Although well intentioned, the men were crowding her and she wanted to scream. She gritted her teeth, trying to fight down the urge to run. She gripped the stock of the shotgun so hard that her hands were aching. The men started to move off, shuffling forward, starting to drag Delores with them, into the dark maw of the stairs below... ...

Posted: **Tue Oct 11, 2011 4:36 pm**

As Langdon leads the way to the basement level, a door can be heard to slam up on the third floor. A pair of feet can be heard coming down the stairs, then another, then several; a dozen; a score are thundering down from above.

Langdon stops abruptly as a hulking brute steps through the door of the apartment at the foot of the stair. Naked to the waist, his shoulders almost scrape either side of the doorway and he has to duck a bit to clear the top. In each hand is a mighty cleaver that would take a normal-sized man both hands to wield. He looks up at the party, a grin twisting his mouth.

Jerry's voice is heeard from the top of the stairs, "Company's comin' fast, gents!" Then two gunshots, as he fires up the stairs.

Posted: **Tue Oct 11, 2011 8:44 pm**

Delores stared blankly at the huge figure that stood before them. She blinked twice, stepped to one side to get a clear shot, aimed and pulled the trigger.

Posted: **Wed Oct 12, 2011 9:33 pm**

Dex will step to one side, making sure Delores has a clear shot. He then nods to Heinie to go help with the horde descending from above.
"Where the hell did they come from?" Dex mouths, and then aims at the huge target Delores unloaded on.
If it still moves, he will fire his revolver into the target repeatedly.

If the guy is down and there are no more foes in front, he will yell to Delores "Reload, I'll cover you."

Posted: **Sun Oct 16, 2011 9:27 pm**

Delores mechanically broke open her shotgun, catching the brass rim under her fingernails and pulling the cartridges loose, dropping them to the floor. The cordite smoke rose wisperly from the barrels and Delores moved her head to one side to avoid breathing the fumes. Her hand searched in her bag, fingers tightening around two more shells and she loaded her gun again.

Posted: **Wed Oct 19, 2011 6:22 pm**

The great monstrosity is staggered by Delores's blast, it's naked torso peppered with small punctures and a few great rents. Dark fluid oozes sluggishly from its flesh. As Dex's shots hit home, it moans, a low rumbling noise.

Then it leaps forward! Both huge cleavers flash up, then down. Langdon Vilas's body is sundered into three parts, both arms springing loose with attached bone and gristle down to the waist, blood spurting from arteries and exposed organs. A horrible, choking sound as shock overwhelms him, and his corpse staggers down the last few steps to collapse on the basement floor.

At the head of the stairs, Heinie's chopper begins to pound, the shattering sound mingled with shouts and screams and the popping of revolvers. Pat Corydon's voice shouts in pain.

Two-Gun steps forward and begins pumping rounds into the brute that bars the way as fast as both triggers will pull, the leaden slugs slapping obscenely into loose flesh.

I think we should have some Stability checks, yes?

Posted: **Thu Oct 20, 2011 4:54 pm**

Dex is staggered by the rounds just peppering the bestial man, and when it attacks Langdon, chopping him into pieces, it is a sudden shock.
He looks incredulously at the weapon in his hand, and then shakes himself. "No foreign bastard does that too my friend."
He reloads the .45 automatic almost mechanically, letting the slide snap back loudly. He aims for the creatures' eyes, and fires round after round
until the slide locks open. "Die you bastard, die."

(Dex calls upon his pillars of stability to assist him in his Stability roll)
1d6+3=6

(Dex's shooting roll)
1d6+1=5

Posted: **Thu Oct 20, 2011 10:57 pm**

Posted: **Sat Oct 22, 2011 4:52 pm**

Delores turns away from the horror of Langdon's grisly demise, clutching the shotgun and shutting her eyes tightly as guns explode all around her.

Dex and Two-Gun stand shoulder to shoulder pumping bullets into the monster until it finally staggers back and collapses into the doorway from which it came, only his feet protruding into the hallway. A sign beside the door says SUPER.

At the top of the staircase, Heinie's Tommy stops hammering and he calls, "Re-loading!" Jerry says, "Franky, Pat's hurt pretty bad."

Esposito has held his fire during the last few moments. He reaches out a hand to squeeze Delores's shoulder, "C'mon, Boom-Boom," he mutters, "Don't give up on us now." Then he turns and climbs the steps to where Jerry crouches beside Pat, "How are you, old-timer? Can you walk?"

At the end of the short hallway is an iron door with BOILER stenciled across it.

Posted: **Tue Oct 25, 2011 8:41 pm**

Delores' eyes flick open and she stares at Franky as he makes his way up the stairs. Without looking at the body of Langdon, she steps over it and mechanically walks up the stairs, stopping short of Jerry and Pat, standing there, staring blankly as if waiting for orders.

Posted: **Wed Oct 26, 2011 5:51 pm**

Dex looks about and notices that the remaining door is still waiting. He then glances back over his shoulder to see how the others are doing.
If they seem to be holding their own, he will coldly walk over to the giant of a man and place two shots into his brain pan.
He will then make sure that everything is alright once again, before listening at the door to the room marked "Boiler."

1d6=4

Posted: **Thu Oct 27, 2011 2:42 am**

Pat Corydon writhes on the floor, clutching his belly with Jerry O'Donough crouching over him, "Hang on, old pal," says Jerry. "We'll getcha outta here." Heinie watches the stairs above, a new magazine in his chopper. As Delores and Franky join them, they can see a dozen or more cultists on the stairs and landing above, a couple feebly writhing and whimpering. "Th' sons-a-bitches've had their bellyful fer now," says Heinie, "But they ain't gone away."

As Dex's shots thud into the creature's head, its flesh begins to ripple and waver. In a moment, all trace of humanity is gone. Instead, a rubbery, white dog-shaped thing with an ammoniac stench lies on the floor. It has no eyes, but tendrils on its featureless face quiver spasmodically for a moment and are still.

"Dex!" calls Franky, "Any sign of a back door? We need t'get Pat outta here and to a hospital."

"Here's a door up to the alley," says Two-Gun.

Behind the boiler room door, Dex hears a faint thudding of machiner --or maybe drums.

Posted: **Sat Oct 29, 2011 9:19 pm**

Dex looks at the others and then responds to Franky. "No sign of a back door, only a door to a boiler room. However, there is sounds of what I swear are drums coming from behind the door. Maybe this is where Langdon was leading us?"

He looks over at the wounded cop. "Franky, can your boys get out and up to the alley while Heinie and the Wop watch the stairs? I know this is stupid, but I think you, me and Delores need to see what is behind this door. Otherwise, this is all pointless, all of this including Langdon's death."

Posted: **Sun Oct 30, 2011 2:22 pm**

Delores eyes flick over to Dex, studying him momentarily then she nods almost inperceptably. She checks the load in her shotgun, and steps over to cover the door.

Posted: **Sun Oct 30, 2011 11:22 pm**

Having reloaded his weapons, Dex will open the door to the Boiler Room once Franky and Delores are in place.

Posted: **Mon Oct 31, 2011 11:35 pm**

Jerry and Franky half carry Pat through the suoper's apartment and up to the alley. Then Franky returns.

At the foot of the stairs, Heinie says, "We'll hold on here for five minutes, Dex, but unless they come down, we're comin' behind ya, just in case."

The door opens smoothly onto a short concrete staircase. Below is a good-sized room, the near end cluttered with a furnace and boiler and incinerator and a large pile of coal, as well as scattered debris. at the far end a hole has been battered through the wall. From that opening comes a throb of drums and a piping of flutes and a clatter of cymbals. Above it, crudely etched in the cement is an inscription:

ΦΊΛΟΣ Ο ΚΑΙ ΣΎΝΤΡΟΦΟΣ ΝΎΧΤΑΣ, ΧΑΊΡΕΣΤΕ ΓΙΑ ΥΛΑΚΉ ΤΩΝ ΣΚΥΛΙΏΝ ΚΑΙ ΤΟΥ ΑΊΜΑΤΟΣ, ΠΕΡΙΠΛΑΝΙΈΤΑΙ ΣΤΗ ΜΈΣΗ ΤΩΝ ΣΚΙΏΝ ΜΕΤΑΞΎ ΤΩΝ ΤΆΦΩΝ, ΓΙΑ ΤΟ ΑΊΜΑ ΚΑΙ ΦΈΡΝΕΙ ΤΟΝ ΤΡΌΜΟ ΣΕ, GORGO, MORMO, ΧΊΛΙΑ ΑΝΤΙΜΕΤΏΠΙΣΕ ΤΟ ΦΕΓΓΆΡΙ, ΚΟΙΤΆΖΕΙ ΕΥΝΟΪΚΆ ΣΤΙΣ ΘΥΣΊΕΣ ΜΑΣ.

Franky shudders at the few words he recognizes, but makes no comment.

The space beyond the opening is dark.

Posted: **Wed Nov 02, 2011 6:44 pm**

Dex nods his thanks to Heinie. "If you hear shooting, the hell with those guys, and come to our rescue. I didn't think you guys would ever be the US Cavalry, but you might just get that role today."
Seeing into the room, and then beyond to the darkened hole, he asks: "Does anyone have a flashlight?"
Regardless, he will cautiously make his way over to the whole, glancing at the crude etchings on the wall, and unable to read any of it (though it does look vaguely Greek to the classical scholar),
he listens at the hole and takes a quick glance into the darkness.

(How big is the hole?)

Posted: **Thu Nov 03, 2011 4:15 am**

The hole is door-sized. I'll say that Dex and Franky each have a flashlight and Delores has one in her purse, but cannot hold it and use the shotgun at the same time.

The characters carved into the wall are actually reminiscent of those on some shops in the area, perhaps Turkish? The words are unreadable though.

Posted: **Sat Nov 05, 2011 5:22 pm**

Dex will free his flashlight, shining it around inside the hole, and look towards the others to see if they are ready to continue. Revolver in one hand, flashlight in the other, he will prepare to step through the hole. Just because it seems warranted, he'll pray and call upon God and the saints to protect him. (Good Jesuit education and Roman Catholicism comes to the fore!)

Posted: **Mon Nov 07, 2011 10:33 pm**

Delores catches Dex's eye. Her gaze is blank, vacant, staring off into the distance, only a twitch in the corner of her mouth indicating she is anything more than an automaton.

Posted: **Tue Nov 08, 2011 11:11 pm**

The opening passes through the walls between two of the buildings and into a sort of cavern or grotto beneath them, lit here and there by gas jets spouting from crudely-installed pipes. A rickety wooden structure -- half staircase, half bridge -- spans a narrow canal gouged out of the ground that passes through a tunnel into utter darkness. Beyond the canal is another arched opening from which wild sounds of arrhythmic discord issues, mixed with ecstatic shrieks and wailing cries.

Posted: **Sun Nov 13, 2011 5:27 am**

Dex steps through the hole and continues towards the sounds of music. However, he will be cautious enough to make sure nothing is lingering in the shadows as he approaches the discordant music.

Posted: **Wed Nov 16, 2011 12:25 am**

Delores steps forward after Dex, only her shifting grasp on the stock of her shotgun giving away anything other than nerveless automation. Her eyes flicked left to right, looking out for threats.

Posted: **Sun Nov 20, 2011 8:00 pm**

The archway gives into a large space open to the night sky. A circle of silver moonlight shines from above, illuminating a hellish sight. Cultists dance lewdly around a pool of black water to the music of pipes and drums. A woman dances ecstatically around its rim, wearing nothing but an ornate headdress and a mask and a distinctive necklace. In either hand a blue knife slashes and thrusts rhythmically.

Worshipers thrust sacrifices into the circle -- cats and other small animals -- and her knife-strokes send black blood spurting across her flesh and into the crowd. The corpses are thrown into the black pool, which pulses in time with the music like a living thing. The air smells of ozone; it is unbearably hot, but your breath steams in the air in front of you.

On the far side of the pool, two men hold a blond woman, struggling frantically and uttering little shrieks. It's Marlene Hirt. As the dancer whirls around the circle toward her, knives flashing, the men thrust her forward, her throat bared to the blades.

Posted: **Sun Nov 20, 2011 10:08 pm**

Delores steps forward, brings the sawn-off shotgun up to shoulder height, takes aim at the dancer and pulls the trigger.

Posted: **Sun Nov 20, 2011 10:38 pm**

Posted: **Mon Nov 21, 2011 9:59 pm**

Dex will draw his second weapon and fire at the men hauling off Marlene Hirt.
One shot per target (.45 in primary hand, .38 in off hand)

Primary: 1d6+2 → [3,2] = (5)
http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3272995/

Off Hand: 1d6 → [3] = (3)
http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3272996/

Posted: **Mon Nov 21, 2011 11:04 pm**

Posted: **Tue Nov 22, 2011 12:05 am**

The shotgun blast catches the whirling dancer squarely and slams her to the ground on the verge of the black pool. One bloody blue knife spins from her hand into the water. Her mask is dislodged and you can make out the grimacing countenance of Merivana. Blood pulses from her ragged wound to drip into the pool, which seems to rise to meet it. There is as moment of absolute silence.

Then the cultists erupt! Some lunge toward you, others throw themselves into the black waters of the pool or flee into low, narrow tunnels around the perimeter of the room. Franky drops a pair of cultists as they rush forward, knives drawn, and the others give back.

Dex's .45 drops one of the men holding Marlene, but in the tumult his .38 bullet misses the other, striking a man behind him.

Then the light changes. The building overhead creaks as a tremendous weight settles on it, and the ground shakes.

Posted: **Tue Nov 22, 2011 1:54 am**

Dex will gauge how many people are between him and Miss Hirt (I assume the real one?) and if at all possible, he will shoot/bull-rush/stiff arm his way to her to try and get her out of the crowd and whatever is happening.

Posted: **Wed Nov 23, 2011 2:12 pm**

Glancing up. it's like looking up into an immensely tall, luminous tower that soars from this space into the sky until its alabaster details are lost to distance.

Suddenly, there is a thing in the moonlight alongside the woman, a rubbery, shambling, white, dog-sized thing that squats on its hind legs and flexes its razor-sharp fore claws. It has no eyes, but tendrils on its featureless face strain in your direction. Dex halts, as the most direct path to Marlene would take him too close to the thing.

The creature smacks aside some cultists, leaping over the crowd and blocking the archway that leads back to the house. It squats motionless for a moment and suddenly expands to the size of a man. There's a new note of panic and terror in the cries of the cultists. The men holding Marlene release her and scramble for an exit.

Abruptly, the only ones left in the room are Dex, Delores and Franky, Marlene and the bleeding Merivana, and the Moon-Beast. There is only one...so far.

Posted: **Tue Nov 29, 2011 9:08 pm**

Delores steps forward and pulls back the hammer on the loaded barrel of the sawn-off. She lowers the barrel until it points at Merivana, taking aim right between the woman's eyes. She tries to speak but finds her jaw set, teeth locked together to stop herself from screaming. She looks across at Dex mutely, willing him to help.

Posted: **Wed Nov 30, 2011 3:01 am**

Merivana glares at Delores. Through gritted teeth she utters a phrase, "Iyt-ah-ya Cth-yim.". Her form seems to shimmer... She is gone.

Posted: **Thu Dec 01, 2011 1:32 pm**

Forcing down the screams that threaten to burst from within her, Delores moves her jaw a couple of times to unclench her muscles then repeats what Merivana said.

"Iyt-ah-ya Cth-yim... ..."

Posted: **Sat Dec 03, 2011 9:48 pm**

Dex will look at Franky. "You go for the girl. I'll take care of that thing."
He turns and empties both weapons into the Moon Beast.
1st roll is primary hand, 2nd roll is off hand.

1d6 → [5] = (5)
1d6 → [2] = (2)

1d6=5, 1d6=2

Posted: **Thu Dec 08, 2011 9:39 pm**

As soon as Delores has spoken the words, her form shimmers and she is no longer there.

Franky advances on the two men holding Miss Hirt, one runs and the other dives into the pool. Marlene Hirt collapses into Franky's arms.

Dex hits the creature with one shot, but his bullet just thwacks into it like a stone hitting a wet clay bank. The creature sits motionless except for the quivering of its feelers.

Posted: **Fri Dec 09, 2011 2:37 pm**

Dex shakes his head, believing he simply missed. He aims both guns at the creature again and prepares to fire.

"Franky, grab her and let us get the hell out of here. I have no idea where Delores disappeared to. If these pea shooters don't have any effect on this thing, I'll see if Heinie's Chicago street sweeper staggers it any. Speaking of which, were the hell are the lads?"

Dex will slowly blaze away, his mind not yet comprehending what Delores did. He will also try to cover Franky and Miss Hirt's exit from the room, while slowly backing towards the entrance.

"Delores, where the hell did you go to?" He mutters a quick but genuine prayer to St Jude the Apostle for her safety.

OOC:

Posted: **Fri Dec 09, 2011 11:46 pm**

The creature is between Dex and Franky and the exit (back the way they came). There are several low tunnels that the cultists ducked into, but no telling where they go or whether the cultists are lying in wait.

Another slug smacks into the thing, making a hole, but not seeming to bother it much. An ooze of black tarry-looking stuff begins to seep from the first hole.

Abruptly, the thing more than doubles in size. It's now the size of a pro lineman.

The cavern is filled with a hammering racket and Heinie comes around the side of the beast, his tommy chewing away big chunks of it. The monster abruptly flops onto its side. Two-Gun dashes up and puts a bullet from each of his pistols into its head.

Franky ranges up next to Dex, an unconscious (and naked) Marlene Hirt in his arms. "Where's Delores?" he asks.

Posted: **Sun Dec 11, 2011 6:02 pm**

Dex takes off his suit jacket and places it over Ms. Hirt' naked body.
He turns and thanks Heinie for his prompt arrival. "Thanks pal. That thing was barely staggered by the .45 and .38 rounds I was tossing at it."
He finally glances at Franky with a shake of his head. "She mumbled some sort of phrase or chant or something and vanished. I swear, one moment here, the next she was gone. I wasn't paying too much attention to what was said with all the shooting and this thing appearing." Dex, in frustration, empties the rest of his rounds into the things 'face'. He then reloads, his last clip of .45 and the last 6 of the 7 rounds he has for his .38.
"Any of you guys have any ideas other than getting Ms Hirt out of here? And she better be the real one..."

Posted: **Mon Dec 12, 2011 6:22 pm**

Heinie is changing magazines in the tommy, "This is my last drum, Dex. I don't think we'll have any trouble gettin back up those stairs, though. Where's that other dame?"

Two-gun snaps a couple of shots at tunnel entrances where he spotted faces peering out, just to keep their heads down.

Posted: **Wed Dec 14, 2011 4:37 am**

Dex looks at the others. "She murmured some sort of mumbo-jumbo. I didn't catch it guys. Was too worried about Franky, the skirt, and dealing with Mr. Plug Ugly to catch it all." He glanced at Heine and then indicated the others. "Why don't you escort those guys out of here. Make sure the skirt gets on a meat wagon to the hospital. I'll stay here for a bit and see if Delores shows back up. If she doesn't...I'll leave a note or something and skeedaddle myself."

Posted: **Wed Dec 14, 2011 5:05 pm**

"I'll stick with you, Dex," says Two-Gun, reloading, "These rats won't dare to take on two of us."

Posted: **Fri Dec 16, 2011 6:38 pm**

Assuming the others have left, Dex will look at Two-Gun with a wry smile. "Thanks for staying and for all your help. I owe you and Heine a few beers and a steak or three in his case."
He looks about the empty underground chamber and then at Two-Gun. "Why don't we search this place and see if we overlooked anything. And if that thing moves, full it full of lead until it doesn't move."

Posted: **Thu Dec 29, 2011 4:57 am**

With fierce yells at least a dozen cultists rush Dex and Two-Gun from one of the tunnels, brandishing knives and clubs and rocks!

[Cultist charge: 12d6 with rolls of 3,2,5,4,3,6,2,4,1,5,4,4.]
Two Gun fires with rolls of 6,3,5,4. Two Gun damage rolls of 5,4,6. Two Gun Scuffling rolls 6.]

As the fanatics run across the open ground, Two Gun fires both pistols, putting three of the crowd down. A fourth he lays out with the barrel of one pistol, but two others grapple with him.

[Dex: make up to two Firearms rolls per pistol and consequent Damage rolls as well as either an Athletics, Scuffling or Weapons roll.]

Posted: **Thu Dec 29, 2011 7:04 pm**

Dex sees the remaining cultists and curses. Deciding to fire into the mass of them, he pulls both weapons, the trusty .45 and the backup .38 and pulls the triggers.
"Damn them, they are like cockroaches. Is there an end to them?"
When they get too close, Dex throws a right punch.

Dex fires:
.45 3, 6
.38 3, 4

(OOC: If I have any firearms left, I'd add 1 point to each to make them hit.)

Scuffling roll (with 3 spends): 4+3=7

Damage: (.45) 6, (.38) 3

(If I got to do the additional successful hits, the damage would be: 6, 2)

(Hmm invisiblecastle seems to be down, so I used a different online dice roller.)

Posted: **Mon Jan 02, 2012 4:47 pm**

Dex puts down three of the mob, though one takes two shots with the .38. As the rest close, he smacks one with the .45 and the guy stumbles past him and presumably into the pool, though Dex hears no splash in all the tumult.

Then two are grappling Dex and one Two-Gun, wrestling them back into the circle of light that surrounds the pool. There's an almost electric hum as the flat white light envelopes the struggling group. The men's gasps and grunts seem flat and tinny. Dex's hat comes off and feels like it's being whipped upward.

[Two-Gun rolled 8 using 1d6+2 for Scuffling (Target 3). His opponent rolled 7 using 1d6+3 for Scuffling.]

From the corner of his eye, Dex sees Two-Gun's pistols hit the ground, as he drops them for a better grip on his man, pushing him back a couple of steps.

[Dex, roll two Scuffling contests; you have to drop one gun to spend 1 point, both to spend 2 or more. With two opponents, your target number is 4 and you have 3 points remaining. You may use one Firearms test, but your target number will be 5; you have 0 points remaining.]

Posted: **Mon Jan 02, 2012 6:53 pm**

Dex realizes with two of them coming at him, he better do something drastic. The first thing he does is drop the .38 to get a better grasp on one of the two cultists, then he fires the .45 into one of the two, hopefully beneath his chin. He'll then do his best to grapple with the other guy if the shot one goes down.

"You okay over there, Two-Guns?"

Online dice rolls:
6 (Avg: 6.0) (this is for the .45 pistol shot...yay, it seems I make it!)

4 (Avg: 4.0) (Scuffling #1: having dropped a pistol earlier, I'll add 1 to this to get a 5!)

1 (Avg: 1.0) (Scuffling #2: having dropped a pistol earlier, I'll add 1 to this to get a 2, boo!)

Damage roll for the .45
5 (Avg: 5.0) (yay!)

Source: http://www.roll-dice-online.com/

Posted: **Tue Jan 03, 2012 3:59 am**

[Cultists Scuffling rolled 12 using 2d6 with rolls of 6,6.]

Dex manages to grab the first mook that hits him, jamming his .45 into the guy's body and pulling the trigger. He feels that cultist sag and slip to the ground, his hands clenching at the pistol. But the second assailant is a big guy who slams into Dex like a bus, knocking him backwards. As one foot slips from the crumbling edge, Dex twists his head to see the moon's reflection filling the pool completely...impossibly.

Then he and his opponent are both falling upward, the wind rushing past them with a sound like a speeding train.

Please continue in the thread: Dex on His Own.

Play@YSDC

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