Play@YSDC

Location: The Haunted House, 121 Norman St.
Date: Sunday March 20, 1921 9:30 PM

Sonny and Harrison pull up to the house and park across the street. The block has been rebuilt in the last 10-20 years and is now shops and businesses, all of which are closed at 9 pm on a Sunday. The house at 121 Norman St. is pretty easy to spot as it is the only house left on the block.
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It sits back from the street and shrinks into the shadows. It is a 2 story house with large trees in the front and on one side.

Sonny and Harrison are kicked back in the car. Its a warm night, with little breeze, but the shadows from the trees still sway too and fro. Twice already you thought you saw something that was nothing more than the shadows playing tricks on you.

Its after midnight and you think you see something else. Even though Harrison has had a wee bit too much of that fine whiskey.

Sonny,make a spot hidden roll for me.

"Hey, sleepy-head, stop dozing on the job - did you see that?"

Sonny gives Harrison a gentle nudge with his elbow and tips his head in the direction of what has caught his eye.

OOC,Spot Hidden[60]: 38 pass http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4186579/

Harrison wakes with a "hey we might as well take shifts, you're up first Sonny".
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Those other shadows you weren't sure on, but this one you swear you saw something move. And was that window half open the whole time??
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OOC,make another spot hidden roll.

Harrison looks over at the house with your insistence. "I don't see anything."

OOC,Spot Hidden[60]. I pass 41http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4187593/

"Over there man!" Sonny insists, "take a look at that window. I swear I saw somebody move up there and now I think about it, wasn't that window closed before?".

Sonny, can now see what looks like a light moving around inside the house. He points it out to Harrison. "What do you think, we weren't supposed to go in the house. But I have the key."

"We're supposed to stake it out to stop anyone from interfering or setting things up.

The house is supposed to be empty - but I definitely see lights on in there, I think we should go take a look"

Sonny, steps out of the car and waits for Harrison to do likewise.

"Damn, this was supposed to be the easy job." Harrison gets out of the car and and pulls out the keys. "Alright, you lead the way."

OOC,I am playing Harrison as an NPC, he will accompany you, but you have to lead the way and decide what to do.

OOC,yep that's why one of my posts was heavily edited - I realised after I posted that you were running Harrison

Sonny and Harrison approach the house. Sonny glances up and down the street, trying to determine whether they are being observed or not but his attention is focused on the house and where the wandering light may be when they get to the door- upstairs, downstairs, front or back.

As they reach door, Sonny lightly places a hand on Harrison's arm to stop him, then cups his hand to his ear, miming the universal sign for listening.

After a brief pause, he gently takes the door knob and turns it, to check that the door is actually locked.

OOC Dice rolls,I have tried to move this along and made some assumptive die rolls, where I don't think the outcome of the roll will have a major affect on our actions - just how prepared we are for what may follow. Spot Hidden[60] - Checking to see if being observed whilst approaching house: 70 FAIL http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4188401/ Listen[25] - listening at the front door: 35 FAIL http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4188403/

The window that was open was on the side to the rear of the house and that is where the light flashed. Sonny can no longer see the light. As you look up and down the street it seems ominously quiet. No one around, you don't even hear a dog barking, or the sounds of cars or noise of the city.
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The closer you draw to the front door, a chill runs up your back and the hairs on your arms stand on in. You feel like you are being watched, but see no one around.
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As you put your ear to the wall, you hear nothing but the silence that is surrounding you. You check the door handle and it is indeed locked.
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Harrison puts the key into the lock and turns it. It seems to thunder in your ears as the tumblers inside the door creak and turn. Finally coming to rest. He withdraws the key and puts it back in his pocket. Harrison gets out the flashlight he got in his Maps gear and did a quick test to see it turns on. He nods to Sonny.
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Sonny turns the handle and starts to open the door, you'd swear the house alarms were going off as loud as the creaking in the door was.
The door finally opens far enough for you to slip in, just as you do a figure at the very end of the hall shines his light right into your eyes blinding you for half a second.
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The figure then runs towards you before ducking in through a door to your right. You estimate he is 30-50 feet away from you.

"Quick", Sonny gasps, "let's get him".

Sonny dashes for the door through which the figure ran, glancing back to make sure that Harrison is following. When he gets to the door he pauses briefly, looking for the fleeing figure or a door(s) through which he may have fled.

You sprint down the hall, Harrison following close behind. It seems almost as if the hall is stretching as you run. Precious seconds tick off in your mind.
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As you finally reach the doorway, you can see its a kitchen. The open window you noticed before is in this room. The strange figure is already outside the window. He would have had to make a very acrobatic move to dive through the window, is the only thing you can think. You are very small, you would fit. Its about 20 feet, you estimate from the door to the window.
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There are no exterior doors in this room. There is an interior door that runs into one of the rooms you passed while you ran down the hall. You know there is no way to run back down the hall and out the front door then around the side before he would be long gone.
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OOC,He is standing at the window, it is open. You have 2-3 choices here. 1. Shine your light at him and attempt to get a look at his face. 2. attempt to dive through the window in an attempt to catch him. (this would be an extremely difficult move) 3. run up and try to grapple him through the window. 4. attack him with a ranged weapon.

Sonny runs straight to the window and attempts to grab at the figure outside.

"Quick Harry, help me! Use your torch!"

You rush for the window. As you do Harrison flicks his flashlight through the window. At first your own shadow covers him. As you get there, you reach through to grab at his robe he is wearing. He doesn't run away, but he seems to be just out of your reach.
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Just as Harrison gets the flashlight aimed over your shoulder you see this man outside the window.
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He steps forward a bit and your hands find the robe, but just as you are about to grab them, slams the window shut on your unprotected arms and hands.

Sonny,what do you do? 1. Are you going to attempt to grab him, and take the full force of the window on your arms? 2. Attempt to grab the window from the bottom to keep it from slamming on your arms and hands? If so make a resistance check. This is a d100 roll comparing your strength to his. You are pretty strong, but he appears to be also and has an advantage (read as bonus) for having momentum on his side. Just roll I'll tell you if you pass or fail. or 3. pull your hands out of the window before the window comes crashing down? If so make a dex check. (13 * 5 = 65, so 65 or lower on 1d100)

Sonny lunges forwards once more, determined to not let the intruder escape him. He braces himself as the window is smashed down onto his forearms.

As you reach for the robes you grab a handful, but just as you do, the window slams down are your arms.
You scream out in pain and you think you hear a bone crunch. Harrison yells out as he rushes towards you "damn it man he's not worth it"
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Sonny,roll me a d4 for damage and a grapple roll, Edit: I'm going to roll this to keep things moving.

Sonny grabs a bit of the cloth for a second, but as the window slams down on his arm he just cannot keep a grip.
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You can see through the window the intruder running off into the distance, the chance of catching him is past. You pull the window up and look at your arm, its not nearly as bad as it could have been. Mainly hit the muscle. (OOC: lose 1 hp)

"Shit, shit, shit!" Sonny curses, rubbing at his forearms "did you get a look at that guy? Think maybe he is our elusive albino?"

Sonny doesn't wait for a reply before continuing "Well, we're in now. Why don't we take a little look see and try and work out what our friend was doing in here - let's start in the room where we first saw him. You up for that Harry, my son?" Sonny smiles at his joke with the name.

You look around for the first time, you are in a conventional kitchen, with icebox, wood-fed stove and oven, and a meager larder.
Some of the foodstuffs are edible here - there is canned soup and meat, rice kernels, several pastas, a few bottles of homemade wine. The produce
which did not spoil has been eaten by rats, judging by the spoor left behind.
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There is the one window that is still open. An opening to a room connected to the kitchen, the dining room, complete with a long mahogany table, a built-in sideboard, and seven chairs. Three places are set, and unused. Scraps of rice soup rots in a tureen.
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You can see a pair of doors on the opposite side of the dining room. Back in the hall there was a set of double doors that were open when you ran by them on the same side of the hall as the kitchen, it was a living room, you got a brief look as you ran by.
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On the same side of the hall as the kitchen is a door at the end of the hall. That was the door the intruder was messing with, when you came into the house.
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On the opposite side of the hall, are 3 doors, and a set of stairs going up.

Here is a drawing of the house
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You are in the kitchen and went through door 2. Door 3 is the one the intruder was at. Door 1 leads to the living room.

Sonny leads the way to the door that the intruder was at and tries the handle.

"Let's see what what was so interesting to our friend"

This door looks different than the others. It has a lock in the handle and 3 sliding bolts on it. 2 of the sliding bolts are unlatched.
As you try that knob you can tell it is still locked as well. The look is of the same type as the front door lock.
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Just then you and Harrison hear footsteps upstairs, someone is still in the house with you.

Sonny whispers to Harrison "Let's get up stairs and see who's up there. When we get to the top, you guard the hallway and grab anyone that tries to escape down the stairs. I'll check the rooms - we don't want 'em to get away this time."

Sonny leads the way up the stairs - going as quietly as possible.

OOC,Sneak[70]: 81 fail http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4195698/

As you go up the stairs they creak loudly, making any attempt to be sneaky pointless. When you get to the top you see a hall in front of you, running the same direction as the 1st floor. There are 4 doors, the first right across from you is a restroom, you can hear water dripping in there, the other 3 doors are closed.
A scraping noise can be heard behind the 2nd door.

Sonny quickly steps across to the 2nd door, tests the handle.

OOC,If he finds the door is unlocked he will try and slam it open as fast as possible to try and surprise anyone in there. If it is locked then he will step back and kick the door and try to break the lock.

Sonny turns the handle and slams the door open. It's a fairly bare room about 15' square. The room contains a bed frame, bare bed springs, and a dresser.
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You hear a scratching noise at the window.
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Sonny,make a spot hidden roll

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Harrison,Waiting for you to jump in, assuming you are half way up the stairs following sonny's lead right now.

Sonny, sees a shadow or reflection outside the window and a creaking noise like someone is out on the roof outside.

Harrison follows Sonny close behind, standing as close as he can to the wall on the same side of the bedroom doorway. He watches as Sonny bursts through the door. "Careful!" he shouts in a raspy whisper. He waits to see how Sonny reacts to whatever he sees in the room. "Anybody in there?" he asks quietly.

"I think he's climbed onto the roof" Sonny says over his shoulder, "I'm gonna go have look. You come here, keep me and the hallway covered".

Sonny moves to the window and attempts to slide it open before leaning out to look up at the roof.

Harrison watches with shock as Sonny moves to the window after revealing the albino might be on the roof. "Boy, are you daffy or something?" he whispers, annoyed. "What if he's just waiting for you to stick your head out of there? Let him go! We're being paid to check out the house, not chase after freaks in robes!"

Sonny runs to the window and attempts to raise it. It doesn't seem to want to budge, you look down to see the window is nailed shut.
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As a quizzical expression crosses your face, you hear a squeeking noise behind you and then hear Harrison yell something.
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You can barely get your head around to see the bed frame hurtling at you.
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Sonny,make a dodge roll

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Harrison,you are standing with your back to the wall opposite the doorway. As Sonny struggles with the window you see the bed come from the corner you cannot see, towards him. I assumed you yelled for him to watch out, you may also react. You can assume someone must have been hiding in the corner to push the bed.

Sonny catches the movement in his peripheral vision and throws himself to the floor and rolls away as the bed frame smashes into the wall, where he had been standing a moment earlier.

"Shit! That was close" he mutters as he quickly gets up and heads to the corner of the room, intending to grab whoever threw the bed frame at him.

OOC,Dodge[26]: 12 Pass http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4195924/ I've rolled a Spot Hidden[60]: 28 pass http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4195929/ in case you need Sonny to see his assailant in the dark room

Harrison hears a loud thump, like something crashing against a wall. He steps into the doorway, swinging his flashlight around the room. He surveys the scene, seeing Sonny and the bed frame and mattress, clearly thrown against the wall. Confused and clearly jarred, Harrison struggles to make sense of what happened. "What's going on?" he asks urgently.

Edit - you posted whilst I was composing!

OOC,Sanity[55] : 9 pass http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4195951/

"Jeez, I must be losing it or something - walk into a trap like that!" Sonny says to himself. He performs a quick search of the room - trying to figure out how the bed frame was launched whilst calling out to Harrison "I'm guessin' no one ran outta here, 'cos there ain't no one in here 'ceptin me? I reckon he must have set up some kind of trap or something to scare people off"

OOC,Spot Hidden[60]: 1 pass http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4195963/ - trying to find how the bed 'trap' was sprung

"You know what Harry? I think that's mighty fine advice you gave me earlier - let's lock this place up and finish our stake-out from over the road - make sure our albino friend doesn't come back. I think I've had enough excitement for one night".

Sonny heads towards the stairs, intending to close and lock the kitchen window, make sure all the bolts on the door the intruder was at are securely in place and that the front door is locked behind them.

"Man this has been one helluva strange night!"

Sonny,You can clearly see there is nothing in the room that would have propelled the bed.

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OOC,before we jump too far ahead we need to see Harrisons reaction.

Harrison absorbs the fact that no actual person threw the bed toward Sonny -- but the bed obviously almost crushed him. A bed flying on its own? It made no sense... But he managed to suppress the shock of it all, the sheer absurdity of it. Could this house really be haunted? No, there had to be another explanation... But what could it be? He needed a drink...

"Yeah, let's get out of here," he says, needing no convincing and giving the room no further inspection. "But let's be on the look-out on the way to the car. We don't know if that albino freak is going to try and ambush us. We already got a look at his face."

The two of you give the room a good once over, again, nothing that looks like it would have moved the bed. With the hairs on your arms standing on end, you decide to bug out. You head downstairs, shut and lock the window, and then head to the car, locking the front door on your way out.
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You get back in not realizing how tired you really are. It doesn't take long for you both to doze off.
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When you awake you notice someone walking around the property. Then you recognize him as Richard. The sun is already well up and you have slept through the morning.
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The 2 of you look at each, trying to figure out if what happened was a dream, or did it really happen. The huge welt and bruise on Sonny's arm answers that question for you. You see that Richard notices you in the car.

Sonny looks across to Harrison "Man, that was some weird shit last night" he indicates towards Richard "shall we see what tricky Dicky over there has unearthed about our albino intruder?"

He get's out of the car and calls out "Hola! Richard, what brings you out here this fine sunny day?" he gives him a big grin.

Harrison rubs the sleep from his eyes. Still disturbed from what he saw last night (as well as hung over), he lets out a groan and rubs his temples. He doesn't respond to Sonny's question but instead remains in the car while Sonny calls Richard over. Gradually, though, he gets out of the car and leans on the roof to prop him up.

OOC: end of this thread. Go here.