Play@YSDC

Everyone just knows that the roads aren’t safe these days. Psycho killers stand along the edge of obscure routes, searching for prey as they thumb for a ride, while carjackers stalk the back roads in fake cruisers and stolen uniforms, more than willing to part honest folks from their vehicles. It’s a sick, convoluted tapestry, woven out of countless miles of asphalt; as dark, strange and twisted as anything that happens among the labyrinthine alleys of any crumbling metropolis, or within the walled palatial estates of the jaded rich. Along certain stretches of road, people occasionally go missing. Often they’re the sorts whom no one misses: runaways and prostitutes, transients and criminals. Perhaps the monsters that infest the shadows take them, whether to drink their blood or to feed on their souls, or perhaps some alien consciousness seeping up out of the land itself desires them. Most of the time, though, it’s just mundane human evil that makes people disappear.

Performing tonight at The Truck Stop:
From the window of his room, John Wilmslow can see more people pull over to visit the truck stop across the street. Busy as ever. The time crawls towards eleven at night. Almost twenty minutes till the band begins to play. That won't help his headache much.

No screams from the other rooms tonight. There's always that to be thankful of.

Mood music,[center][youtube]myhnAZFR1po[/youtube][/center]

The yellow Jeep parks just outside John's room. The driver exits, hauling a canvas kitbag and heads for the office. Two women also exit the car, A blond and a dark one. The blond carries an ordinary suitcase. They seem to discuss something.

During his days at the motel, he has found that everything works perfectly. Much thanks to the people caring for the old place, Old man Walker and his help, Benjamin was it? The creeps over at the truck stop was another story all together. They lacked all service mindedness in the world. But they had good beer on tap.

Two night ago the screaming had stopped. Now, the guests had left. Too loud for their own good evidently. That's what he's been telling himself. He was not the guy who would walk over and check if things were alright. Not nowadays.

Speaking of Walker, he just walked past John's window. The old man moves like a cat. You never hear him coming.

The new arrivals in the Jeep were getting their rooms sorted. The man who drove the Jeep comes out with one of the leather patch keys. Another key another profit. That's was what kept this place alive. Compared to San Fransisco this was a relief. No pace - just mañana - all the way.

The neon light at Nicely's flicker to life and the gong for the night's band rings.

Adam Chen cranes his neck to see if the two dames are getting in to get their rooms. Or maybe they share...? He gets all kind of images in his head and continues to unbox soft drinks.

Mason stands in the room wondering why the old man kept the whole place in pristine condition but let his own room in such a mess. There are things all over. Like a lost and found at a train station. And he hadn't even changed the light outside his room. In the back of the room a padlocked door leads to an adjacent building. That's what Mason thinks anyway. A grey-white brick building. Yeah, that was it. That or a small storage. It was hard to tell. It would take a few rounds more to get the full layout of the place.

The two girls discuss something by the yellow Jeep.

Kathryn glances back at Melinda. "Do you want to split a room with me, or would you rather have your own?" she asks.

-I'l stay with you Kat, I need company. Sane company- she says with a smile.

And so, the story begins. Three friends from the past, putting a fourth to a rest. One man, on the run from himself - his old self. Another man, finding his mentor, earning a living. A new start.

A girl on the rise to fame and fortune. Or? Fasten your seat belts, other lives will intertwine and the darkness will grow - in all.

Marcus spent a little longer than was necessary in the shower; the steaming jet erasing the journey and the pat along with it. So many bad memories to eradicate, so little time left to do it.

After showering he heads to be bar chooses a booth close to the stage and orders a beer and a nacho platter , followed up by a rack of ribs and ice bucket with several more beers. He makes himself comfortable and awaits his travelling companions...

John makes his way into bar. Maybe the noise of the band will drown out his thoughts. He takes a seat at the bar. Not a big crowd so far. He notices a guy sitting in the booth behind him.

Ahh, its slick who owns the golden pixie wagon outside. Something up with him though, that tightness around the eyes. All isn't hunky dory in Kansas. Well, misery loves company.

John tips his glass toward Marcus with a wry smile that says I know how that feels.

"Hello, sir," says Kathryn to the old man as he goes by. She leads Melinda up to the front desk with her suitcase. "We'd like a double room, please."

OOC,Not all of my skill increases were applied to my character sheet.

In Mr. Walker's room, Benjamin takes up a seat by the broken laptop and helps finish fixing the computer, "Go ahead Mr. Walker, don't worry about me I got this. Not a big fan of crowds myself." Benjamin looks up to Frederick Walker with a smile, as he continues to fix the computer in slow careful precision, taking great comfort and silence for his thoughts alone.

Electrical Repair 60%,[url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4589151/]Failure 80%[/url]

The Office -



The fluorescent lights overhead buzz audibly, lending a sickly greenish cast to the beige walls and ceiling of the front desk area. The brick-red vinyl upholstery on the two uncomfortable-looking love seats in the small waiting space is cracked and peeling. A faded landscape paintings adorn the walls. The magazines on the side table are years out of date and contribute to the musty smell of the place. The “front desk” is just a window-sized opening into a cramped office.

In the front desk, the night manager, Adam beams a welcome smile. He is a good-looking man of presumably mixed ancestry. He’s just a little shorter than average and slender — the kind of guy who couldn’t intimidate a grade-schooler. "Welcome to Lee Vining Motel, miss. Our rooms are singles, but our best rooms have king size beds, fit for queens." Seeing the flickering of disappointment when he delivered the bad news as best he could, without admitting a failure to offer what the customer wanted he adds. “I can ask our room service to provide an extra bed, should you prefer that. The room is $55" He reaches to get a key from a rack behind him as if already having closed the deal. A key find itself in the manicured hands of the manager.
"The name is Adam. Just call if you need anything."

Handy - skills,I've updated the sheet. Probably an edit failure by me using multiple tabs and publishing the wrong tab. Looks better now. Tell me if I've missed any.

Walker's Room -

Putting the laptop together, using the smallish screwdrivers from a pricy brand of tools, Benjamin attaches the battery, plugging the cord in and presses the power button. A blue light flickers on and a faint hum starts - only to get choked after a second. Then the Toshiba Laptop is silent again.

On one of the piles of boxes in the room, Benjamin sees at least three other brand laptops, still in their boxes. Walker's room is more like a storage room for a rest stop shop than a motel room.

Nicely's bar and grill - Truck Stop -

OOC:   Right click, open in new tab and return here to read while you listen.

The bar is filling up as the two out-of-towners wet their throats. Three men behind the bar tend to the crowd of mostly bikers. A majority of the bikers are women. Apparently the Iron Thorns have a meet-up. Some old timers from a Hells Angels hangaround club, OG - printed in psychedelic font on the back of their vests. In all there are twelve Iron Thorns and four OGs in the bar. Apart from the bikers, a black man in his eighties enters Nicely's and finds a stool by the bar. Also two couples sit at two separate tables in the middle of the room. Hikers by the looks of it. The couples are in their early twenties.

On stage, Christie Reese approaches the hanging mike. "Good evening Vining! The first song is a reminder of how we all are. My new song: You Know I'm No Good ." The drummer starts the beating his set and Christie walks down from the stage in a slow trawl. She strokes the tables as she passes them. Brushes her fingers at the shoulders of the women she pass, Her dark eyes gleaming, her diamond piercing glittering.

Some of the patrons -

The Bartenders:


Iron Thorns' leader:


Girl of the couple closest to Marcus and John.

OOC:   Are you checking out any of the other patrons, state which and I'll upload the pictures.

Letting out a sigh of disappointment, Benjamin could see why this kept Mr. Walker up late. Regardless, Benjamin isn't discouraged and continues working on the laptop. Benjamin looked at his calloused hands, a reminder of his past that he would like to leave behind. His past broke open it's grave, many pains buried deep alive, they had only been sleeping. Under Mr. Walker's mentorship, it had brought some peace to Benjamin.

"Thanks," says Kathryn, taking the key. She fishes out her wallet and counts out three twenties, handing them over and awaiting her change. "I don't suppose you have a second key, do you?" Not that Melinda really needs a key to get a door open, but it's certainly more convenient for her, she thinks.

-I really need to take a shower. This place seems nice.
Melinda has been in better places, but remember too well she have been in much worst...

In the office -

"You can ask me to lock up if you forget the key, but no spare keys. Sorry." Adam returns the five dollars change.

Getting to the room, the two women hear a plane overhead.

Walker's room -
Mason makes an attempt to get the computer to spark to light. With some luck he'd be able to join the old man for a beer. That didn't happen too often.
Cole, Garrett and Vic are no barkeepers. The only one that could fill that role should be Adam, but he's stuck at the bookings. And he wasn't really friends with the three. Heck, who'd want them assholes for friends? They'd do anything that breathed. Literary. Anyway, that's what Mason thinks.

Something with their way of talking to people, especially women or girls, rather - made Benjamin cringe. When he thinks about the three bartenders he hears a low flowing single engine airplane crossing the motel.

DetectiveSocks,Roll Luck, please.

In Mel's and Kat's crib -
The shower is steaming hot. It takes some two handed force to get the heat adjuster to sway to less scorching hot water. The mirrors on the cabinet are all steamed up. Mel gets all dust rinsed off of her lithe body, the hair feels brand new. The shampoo has a scent of.. what is that? A scent from her childhood. She had taken the keys from Kat as soon as she could, leaving her friend with that good-looking boy. Now she was getting in.. Right? That is Kat coming in... or?

Nicely's bar and grill -
The man next to John tilts his glass and helps himself to his nachos. Christie Reese finishes the song and sits down to sip on a drink. In the meantime John can see the lights from a plane passing over Lee Vining through the sun roof.
Two of the bartenders leave the counter leaving the one whose Garrett. He's the social one, John remembers from his previous visits. The others are Vic and Hick or something.

Marcus is enjoying the music and the ease that lies over the place. Only if Tony could've been there. But he could right? He shrugs the thought out of his head.

A large thump is heard from the roof.

Realizing there's rarely an occasion late in the evening to have a drink with Mr. Walker, Benjamin works more diligently to catch up with Mr. Walker. The bartenders don't make for great conversations, as it always made Benjamin feel uncomfortable when they talked about their favourite lot lizards and their previous sex lives. "...always pining for the prospect of getting their dicks wet," Benjamin mumbles to himself, as he made the habit of talking to himself sometime when he's alone. For Benjamin, he was more concerned about trying to be the right person, instead of finding the right one.

Luck 75%,[url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4592168/]Failure 92%[/url]

"Are we on a flight path?" wonders Kathryn aloud as she sets down her suitcase inside the room. "Hope they don't go over at night."

Mr.Handy,A Spot Hidden check at half skill level, please.

In Walker's room -
The computer will need some more work. Either keep tweaking it and stay in the room for another fifteen minutes. Roll Electrical Repair once more. If you fail that roll, the board will be damaged and has to be replaced. That's Mason's professional opinion, anyway. You can only do a bad job that many times, right? Mason has the exact location for the problem and can tell that to master electrician Walker.

Through the window, he sees a blond halt on the porch outside. She hesitates and enters one of the rooms down the stretch.

While her eyesight is normally good, the dim surroundings make it hard for Kathryn to notice anything else.

John introduces himself to Nacho guy

"Hey, I'm John".

John would be glad for someone else to drink with tonight. The music is gradually getting louder and the prospect of hearing more about Garret's conquests is filling him with sort of dread that he used to feel when he saw his mother in law approaching his house with a suitcase in her hand.

Through the riot of music and banal conversation he hears a loud thud from the roof. His honed instincts kick in and he says to his new companion

" Either someone has free falled from that plane or something is going on up there."

He sets his drink down and heads into the quieter hall listening out for any further activity. Being paranoid had saved his life on more than one occasion.

Mel is much more relaxed after the shower.
-I don't know, but I would't be surprised. I mean this is in the middle of nowhere and nobody will care if the locals complain.

Nicely's bar and grill -

The nacho-guy replies amicably "Karl, Karl Muller." He toasts with John once more. "You from here John?" Finishing his beer and pulls a fresh one from the ice bucket.

At the alertness of his new friend, Karl (ie Marcus) sits at the table and watches the two unsympathetic barmen move out back. He hadn't seen anything alerting them, but then he had been watching the performance all the time. The old man who entered just now also gets up and follows John out the hallway. "You heard that too?"

Now, there's no sound from above.

"There's a ladder out back - I'd better go up and check. Don't want any dead birds rotting up there..." He whispers. Walker exits the bar.

Outside Nicely's -

The small airplane, a red and white painted Cesna is doing a slow left turn heading east.
At the back of Nicely's a truck is starting and leaving, moving south east.

Walker comes out of the bar and instinctively looks up the facade - seeing nothing. He continues to the right side of the bar.

Walker's room -
Benjamin closes up at Walker's. As he exits he sees the old man coming out of the bar.

Mel's and Kat's room -
The room is really neat. The bed is surely big enough to share and everything is well kept. From the bar comes music and blinking lights. A truck is driving off from a lot nearby. They have a bit of a trip tomorrow but who says they need to leave bright an early?

For the ones following mr Walker outside and out back,Walker mutters as he heads around the corner. [color=#0000FF]"If something's up old Walker will be fixing it. No problem. Might ask for a raise soon."[/color] He pulls a wooden ladder down from a pair of hooks. He stands it level and starts up the rungs, one at the time. Up on the roof he switches on a torch and sweeps the roof with it. [color=#0000FF]"Man! You better come up here lad." At the north east corner of the roof, on the other side of the skylight a sprawled body lies. When up and close it's easy to see it's the body of a young woman. He clothes are torn and she has bruises all over. The back of her head as been crushed against a pipe exiting the roof. [img]http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee265/it4edda/54a8b746-e62d-48ae-9043-148c1b5ea23c_zps95963d7c.jpg[/img] [b]The poor fallen[/b] [/color]

"Want to head down to the bar and see how Marcus is getting on?" asks Kathryn.

Letting out a long yawn, Benjamin decides to give it a rest and try fixing the laptop in the morning without being half asleep. As Benjamin gets up and leaves the room, he's surprised to see Mr. Walker already leaving the bar. "What's my old man up to?" Benjamin asks himself.

Marcus necks the drink and takes a bite of the ribs before grinning cheerfully at his companion: "back in a minute!" He winks and quickly heads outside to see if he can access the roof. He keeps his eyes and ears open, wishing he'd stayed at his quiet cabin cautious as usual, like a cat that was down to its last life..

John follows Karl and Walker up the ladder onto the roof. Climbing up the ladder, he notices the two women that he saw with Karl (Marcus) earlier walking past.

For Anyone On The Roof

"Mr. Walker!" Benjamin shouts after, as he picks up the pace to catch up.

Up on the roof -

Karl, Walker and John hear Benjamin shouting from down below. As John checks the bruises on the girl´s body he´s quite sure she has been tied up for a long period of time. Her restraints have left clear marks around her ankles and wrists. Her back is ridden with gashes - she most probably has been beaten with various types of weapons or instruments. No kind of ID can be found in her clothes. A tattoo on her right scapula depicts three tears surrounded by feathers are in the foreground of a rising sun. Sadly, the sun had been setting much too soon for this angel.

Kathryn and Melinda can´t help but noticing the guys on the roof and Benjamin who is about the scale the ladder. The plane leaves the small village in it´s trail wind.

In Nucely´s bar -
Through the front doors, The Law enters, wearing casual, greasy clothes, donning a badge and a shoulder holster.

"Why the music stopped ya´ll?"
Police chief Ben Ostler waves his arms in a drum roll gesture and barks, "Double whiskey in the back room, and be quick about it Garrett!"

Kat and Mel slowed down their pace when the police chief stumbled around the corner and overtook their point of entry. If the people they´ve seen so far seemed dodgy, this fellow gave sleaze a new face.

Kathryn avoids the dirty-looking cop, instead looking up to the roof. "What's going on up there?" she calls.

Fredrick Walker pops his head over the ledge. "Got a fallen angel, up here, I´m afraid. She´s quite dead." He murmurs something inaudible and takes off his jacket and walks away from the ledge. Coming up on the girl he covers her torso and head with his garment. "Let´s let her rest, for now."

"We'd better tell the cops, then," says Kathryn. "One just walked in, but I don't like the look of him."

"What the hell is going on? Benjamin looks at the crowd and the woman on the ground. "Mr. Walker?" Benjamin runs to Mr. Walker side. She had looked like she had seen everything dark and ugly that anyone on the roof could think of, and Benjamin didn't dare to imagine.

Benjamin looks over at the young body, and tries his best what to do, but left motionless.

First Aid 30%,[url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4733932/]FUMBLE 100%[/url]

Examining the girl´s remains, Benjamin gets sick to his stomach and bends over next to her, vomiting. At his side Walker pats him on his back. "Yes, indeed, what the heck is going on... Must be them youngsters at the gulag. Nothing good comes of young men keeping to themselves, right?" He offers Benjamin a clean handkerchief and adds. "I go down informing the sheriff about our find. You stay put and get some fresh air."

Down on the ground Melinda and Kathryn arrive at the ladder. Walker starts climbing down. "We need to tell sheriff Ostler anyway, whatever state he may be in." ... "Much good it will do...", he murmurs.

Down on the ground he properly introduces himself. "Ladies, Fredrick Walker - handyman of this nice establishment. Pardon the circumstance."

OOC:   Thanks for playing, DetectiveSocks & Mr. Handy. Much appreciated!

"Kathryn Petersen," says Kathryn, who had held the ladder for Walker as he descended. "Well, at least things are interesting around here. What can you tell me about the sheriff?"

OOC,You're welcome, and thank you for running it!

-This is... different. And somehow familiar- says Mel.

"What was that?" Walker asks as he steps down on firm ground again.

Before anyone can respond, a handsome man exits the bar. He looks around as if he´s expecting someone jumping him. He relaxes and walks towards the ladies and the janitor. "Trouble with birds?"

In the bar-
Garrett brings the whiskey to Sheriff Ostler

"I think Mr. Walker can probably explain it best," says Kathryn.

"Well, there´s a fatality up on the roof. I´d guess the poor girl fell out of one of them planes frequenting the air strip our west." Walker passes the handsome man and enters the bar.

Inside, he finds sheriff Ostler in the back room.

A few moments later, the sheriff steps out along with Walker.

Marcus, still up on the roof examines the body a little more.

OOC:   Where do you guys want to be when we continue?

In the bar-
"Ya´ll, the party´s just ended! Pack your things and leave! I have urgent police business to work out, this place is now a crime scene! Thank you for your cooperation." Ostler licks something off of his fingers and dries them against the legs of his trousers. He puts on a pair of mirrored sunglasses and downs yet another whiskey. Garrett comes running with a leather bag and hands to the sheriff.

From a distance a siren can be heard.

Satisfied with his search, Marcus looks at Benjamin and says, "Man, I have a friend to bury over in Vegas. This ain´t my problem. I´d better move on, can´t be stuck here for an investigation." With that he starts for the ladder.

Kathryn holds the ladder for Marcus as well, already standing near it from before.

-And besides, your outside of your juridction, ritgh? I know that the police get furious when someone from another departement starts investigating.-says Mel

"It's not just that," says Kathryn. "Some cops are likely to consider everyone on the scene a suspect and not let anyone leave."