Unknown Armies - IC

[darras]

Jessica

Jessica flinches visibly as the music booms out, only relaxing again once it is turned down. "Not convinced my eardrums want to function anymore." She mutters drily.


"Housemates, sure. But you've got to give me an address, John, or we're going to be driving around in circles all day." She strokes the steering wheel appreciatively, "Not that I don't enjoy driving this car.. But you know. Missing buildings, demons being summoned, sanity swiftly departing through the window and all that jazz."

[Remiel]

Norm

"Something like that, something like that," says Norm, keeping his eyes on the naked floating girl.  He isn't sure exactly what's going on here--the interaction between her and the others reminds him a bit of that between a celebrity and her pushy, overprotective agents: part valued asset, part prisoner.   She doesn't seem hostile, but this definitely pushes the boundaries of Weird, and to say that Norm feels out of his element would be an understatement.  Oh, well, nothing for it but to dive in headfirst and hope he doesn't drown.

"Maybe it wasn't Michael Tannen.  Maybe it was someone else," Norm concedes.  "I'm not sure who it was, but I think they were affiliated with the King's Head Pub.   At least, that's what I hear.  I wasn't there myself--the person who knows stepped outside to take a phone call."  Dammit, Bran.  You run around talking to everybody and everything on your own, and then when we need you the most you go and disappear.  Where the hell are you?

"Look," he says, realizing that the momentum of conversation is turning against him. "I'm just an average bloke, an accountant who goes to work one morning to discover that, whoops, the company he works for is gone.  Vanished.  Not just the company--the entire building.  Apparently there's a secret war, or at least a power struggle, going on between the various pub owners and highway engineers and McDonald's managers of the world, and you, my gel," he points to Miss Pissy McIrritated, "have the remains of what can only be described as a clockwork snake protruding from your toilet downstairs.  "I have no idea what any of it means, only that I have been sent by..." he snaps his fingers.  "Percy, Ron Percy, that's the name, to help Miss Moonshadow and escort her back to the King's Head.  I assume that if I do this, then things will be explained to me."

He doesn't raise the gun, but he does tap it against his hip, reminding everyone that he's still an angry man with a firearm who is demanding some answers.

[Blythe]

Miyo

After the initial panic subsides at seeing the floating chick, Miyo feels a sense of trepidation, knowing that this fake woman claiming to be Raven can't be up to any good. Certainly the woman hasn't tried to hurt them, but...Miyo doesn't trust her to remain particularly calm, either. She watches the reactions, the nods of the supposed real Raven as the other woman talked. The pissy woman claimed that the being behind them was the earthly form of an angel, and the floating girl disagreed. Then the speaker claimed to be Raven, and the floating girl once again quietly disagreed. But when the woman asked for an explanation and about Tannen, the floating girl...possibly Raven, nodded at the question of calling Michael Tannen but shook her head at the question of whether Tannen stated she'd called.

Tricky. Miyo wonders if this chick was some sort of impostor controlling the real Raven who was transformed...although she was wondering if that was a leap of paranoia more Norm-worthy. What kind of craziness was that kind of thought? This magic stuff was getting to her.

Miyo points at Norm and says to the two women in the room, watching as subtly as she can to see how the floating being reacts, "I'm with him, and yeah, the name you're looking for is Ron Percy." She raises an eyebrow and asks, "And considering that yeah, you guys did have a mechanical snake, did you not call anybody about that? Because someone called somebody, damn it." She's reluctant to mention Tannen at this point to a group of people that look like liars.

[Kythia]

Tuesday 13th August 11:05

31 Ebor Street, Heaton

Norm, Miyo

Nods and Shakes

Norm:

"Maybe it wasn't Michael Tannen.  Maybe it was someone else,"
Nod

"I'm not sure who it was, but I think they were affiliated with the King's Head Pub."
Nod

"At least, that's what I hear.  I wasn't there myself--the person who knows stepped outside to take a phone call." 
Nod

"Look,I'm just an average bloke, an accountant who goes to work one morning to discover that, whoops, the company he works for is gone.  Vanished.  Not just the company--the entire building."
Nod

"Apparently there's a secret war, or at least a power struggle, going on between the various pub owners and highway engineers and McDonald's managers of the world,"
Shake

"and you, my gel," he points to Miss Pissy McIrritated, "have the remains of what can only be described as a clockwork snake protruding from your toilet downstairs."
Shake

"I have no idea what any of it means, only that I have been sent by..." he snaps his fingers.  "Percy, Ron Percy, that's the name, to help Miss Moonshadow and escort her back to the King's Head.  I assume that if I do this, then things will be explained to me."
Shake

Miyo:
"I'm with him, and yeah, the name you're looking for is Ron Percy."
Nod

"And considering that yeah, you guys did have a mechanical snake, did you not call anybody about that? Because someone called somebody, damn it"
Nod

As Norm and Miyo talk there are constant glances from the students to the floating girl to see her various nods and shakes of the head.

"It's gone!" James queries, looking very worried, when Norm's comment about the clockwork snake is met with a shake of the head but Prissy McIrritated, the girl who introduced herself as Raven, cuts him off with prissy irritation "Of course not.  Her issue is with the can only be described as."

She drums her fingers on her side for a moment then takes a step back to keep everyone in her line of sight.  After each statement she glances to check there's a nod - each one is indeed met with a nod.

"There are more attackers in this house" Check

"There are things in this house that are dangerous if disturbed"  Check

"The attackers could disturb things"  Check

"Leaving this house prevents us from preventing that" Check

She nods, the nod of self-satisfaction given by someone who is generally right about things being right about things.

"I think it would be easiest if you two checked the hot water tank above while I closed down rituals."  She glances at the floating girl and frowns when she sees that statement is met with a nod then smiles as realisation strikes.

"I think it would be easiest for me if you two checked the hot water tank above while I closed down rituals." She smiles and nods to herself when this slightly reworded statement gets the nod of approval.




Tuesday 13th August 11:00

En route to Chez Jessica

Jessica

"Sure, sure, address"  He nods enthusiastically and twitches a bit, tapping the spine of his book with his index finger quickly.  "It's over in Studentland.  Errrr.  I'm just going to open this door.  Need a bit of fresh air."

He does so and leans out, not leaving the car, to take a few deep breaths.  When he looks back at you he gives an embarrassed laugh.  "I can't even remember if my memory is what it used to be.  It's York Street.  Or...  Or something like that.  Not York.  Jorvik?  Ouse?  Something...Ebor!  It's Ebor street.  I don't remember the number but I'll know it when I see it."

[darras]

Jessica

"John I am trying really hard not to heave a sigh here." Jessica informs him with a level tone of voice, "Really hard. I just wanted you to know that before I failed." With that said, Jessica rolls her eyes and sighs heavily.

"Ok, that's done. Ebor street it is." Jess puts the car into gear and pulls out smoothly, trying to enjoy driving the beautiful vehicle while she can instead of focusing on anything more.. upsetting.

[Kythia]

Tuesday 13th August 11:00

Ebor Street

Jessica


You drive smoothly and easily to the student area.  It really is a very nice car, well worth the money it doubtless cost.  You brake smoothly to let a crazy person carrying a billboard pass in front of you ("Repent.  The End is Nigh.  Genesis 3:1") and effortlessly overtake a van at the traffic lights ("Alphard Reptiles").  John leafs through his Dummies guide as you drive, occasionally glancing up to misdirect you ("Right here.  No, sorry, turn round.  It wasn't right here")

You eventually reach Ebor Street though and slow down to a crawl so John can shout "That one.  No.  Wait.  Hang on" four separate times.  Eventually he's "pretty sure" it's one where the front door is wide open  but "can't rule out" one on the other side and further down. 

As he vacillates a young boy, a few years younger than you and wearing a school uniform, comes out of the open door.

[darras]

Jessica

By this point Jess has had it up to the eyeballs with John and his terrible directions. Ignoring him completely she throws the car door open and jumps out to apprehend the boy. "Excuse me!" She calls to get his attention, "Hi." She gives a faintly embarrassed smile.

"I'm looking for a girl called Helen, apparently she lives on this road somewhere. Do you happen to know which house is the one I'm after?"

[Kythia]

Tuesday 13th August 11:00

Ebor Street

Jessica

He looks up at you in faint surprise.  "That's a bit vague" he has a faint Welsh accent "there could be a lot of Helen's on this road.  But..."  he looks back at the ajar door behind him thoughtfully and chuckles to himself.

"My guess is you want to be in there" he glances behind you as John arrives.  "Without a surname or anything I don't know, but if I had to guess which Helen random strangers might want...yeah.  Did Ron Percy send you?"

[darras]

Jessica

Jess sighs, "Vague is currently the story of my life." She tells the boy with yet another apologetic smile. "Mr. Vague behind me here sent me." She turns to fix John with a 'look'. "Know this Ron Percy guy?"    

While she waits for an answer she considers the open door that the boy indicated, wondering what she would find behind it. And if it would manage to eclipse the weird that she had already seen that day.

[Blythe]

Miyo

Miyo flinches as she watches the nods and shakes of the floating apparition's head. Whatever the floating woman truly is, Miyo cannot say, although if she could be alone with the apparition for even a moment, she could use that nod/shake system to try to figure this out more concretely. But one thing is for sure. There are attackers in the house remaining and they can disturb things. She's grateful Norm has a gun, because she didn't have the foresight to get a decent weapon.

Miyo the martial artist extraordinaire would just have to do, if they met with any beasties. Hopefully.

She murmurs to Norm, hoping to murmur quietly enough for those present not to overhear, "What do you think of all this? I'm not armed, and that worries me, but...I don't think we should leave, either."

[Remiel]

Norm

Norm merely grunts in response to Prissy McIrritated.  He's not entirely sure he can trust her--he's more inclined to trust the naked girl floating behind her, even if Miss McIrritated is acting as her interpreter.  "The hot water tank?  Where's that?  In the attic, I'm guessing?"  Either that or on the roof.  Hey, she did mention above.  "All right.  You're the boss.  For now.  We deal with whatever it is that's threatening whatever it is you lot are trying to do here and Miss Moonshadow comes with us, to the King's Head pub.  Although I think we should put some clothes on her first.  I don't know how the common folk of Newcastle will react to a naked girl bobbing down the street like a balloon.  Deal?"

He walks away before she has a chance to answer.

"I honestly have no idea," he answers Miyo, without a trace of guile.  "My Spidey-sense is telling me that some seriously weird shit is about to go down.  And considering all we've seen today,  that's some seriously weird shit."  He considers her.  "You want the gun?  I'm sure I can find a hockey stick or a pipe or something around here somewhere."  He hands her the pistol, grip-first.