Halloween GP

[londoncallingmods]

The weather today had been fairly pleasant, a mostly sunny day wedged between fairly grey ones. It wasn't warm, but the chill was minimal for this time of year, and there wasn't a drop of rain in sight. As night crept in, however, the streets slowly faded from sun kissed and painted in autumnal colours, to foggy and damp. An odd thing, really, since the forecast had predicted a clear and pleasant night.

It wasn't normal fog either, it was denser, thicker, and it carried an distinct scent, like cinnamon sugar and chestnuts. It was so thick it seemed to drain the streets of their colour, leaving the wold desaturated and grey. More importantly, anyone with a bit of magic in them would sense, quite quickly, that it wasn't of this world. It crackled quietly with power, dark and heavy. Unfriendly.

It was around nine pm that the local police stations began to receive calls, things they assumed were pranks at first, but soon began rolling in so quickly and frequently that it seemed something more was afoot. The evening news spoke of mass hysteria, warning people to stay indoors. Conspiracy blogs were lit up with chatter of chemical warfare, and some 'airborne drug'. There were reports of people seeing everything from long dead loved ones, to killer clowns.

Though despite the nervous chattering of talking heads and twitter addicts, most people were paying the supposed danger no mind. Clubs and bars on every block were blasting music and throwing costume parties, people were out with friends, wandering the streets and looking for a fun time. It may have been Monday, but that didn't seem to be stopping many people from enjoying the holiday.  

For the most part, everything seemed fine. ...The crowds and groups remained oblivious to the danger of the fog. ...It was only those who slipped off on their own, to have a quick smoke, to get some air or head home early. They were the ones in danger, they were the ones who's darkest fears seemed to emerge from the thick fog. 

Around 10pm, reports started to come in regarding a body found in Whitechapel, cut open wide and left to bleed out. No prints at the scene, no signs that anyone else had even been there. The CCTV footage had somehow been rendered useless, glitched out and blurred. A trouble echoed by every other security camera on the street. It was enough to set twitter and the internet off all over again, with talk of how the things seen in the fog might, somehow, be real.

(Happy Halloween! The fog is bringing fears and spoops to life! You can make the creatures and fabrications of the fog as personal or general as you like. Whatever works best to spook your pup. If, for any reason, you don't want your pup to see any spooks, that's totally fine too. It's not a required plot. Unlike last year, this time around the creepy things your pup might see can harm them and do real damage. Though they will vanish in the morning. If your pup is sensitive to magic in any way, they might sense that this magic is distinctly fae. If you have questions about what you can or can't do, just ask in slack! Though really, the only limit here is your imagination. Remember to check with other players before doing anything that might seriously hurt their pup, ect, ect, and have fun!)

Comments

[callmevod]

"Vod," he offered, in terms of who he was. daring a glance behind them, and seeing the Aari'kata round the corner after them. "We're being chased by a goddamned Aari'kata and I got no clue how it wound up on this planet."

That wasn't the biggest problem, though. "Don't suppose you got anything that'll kill this thing?" he asked, knowing full well he did; he was just loathe to expend his limited supply of bullets.

[utterly_mysterious]

Angelique didn't have a bloody clue what an Aari'kata was -- it sounded made-up, but if she'd described the monster chasing them down, she'd probably be accused of telling tall tales, as well. "Not unless it's allergic to lipstick," she answered in a breathless rush. Her small clutch purse was barely big enough to hold anything else. "Only other thing I have is my phone."

God, it was gaining on them, wasn't it? While Angelique would far prefer to run for her life than be killed by an alien beast, given her current state of dress, this fleeing was starting to become somewhat painful.

[callmevod]

Just from the way she was breathing, Vod could tell that she was going to start flagging, sooner or later. And he was betting on sooner; there weren't many, if any, humans who could keep up with him, as it was.

"I'm about to do somethin' really stupid, and really dangerous," he warned her. "Keep. Running," he said, trying to give her an extra boost by giving her a push forward at the hips as he planted his heels, turning in place to face the Aari'kata.

A damned monster he hoped he'd never see again. But he'd forgotten that he didn't have his rifle, by the time he found one. He still didn't have a rifle, but he did have something just about as good.

From under his jacket, from its underarm holster, Vod pulled his revolver, gleaming black chrome in the dim light overhead in the alley. Chambered in the .67 VoHammar round, the revolver was only capable of holding 4 shells, but considering each VoHammar round propelled a two-stage bullet, consisting of a steel external shell, which served to deliver an explosion-propelled tungsten-carbide internal slug after impact. The recoil, even for a Kathaari, was tremendous. Which is why he hadn't shot yet. Having only four bullets on him and whoever-knows-what around the next corner, he was going to conserve ammunition.

To buy the woman more time, he actually began to run in, revolver in hand, toward the Aari'kata, which reared up and began to swing at him with its long, scything talons.

[utterly_mysterious]

Angelique didn't need to be told twice. She went in the direction he prodded her, even though she clearly winced in pain as she did. A bit of bruising was better than dying under the jaws and claws of... whatever that thing was, and so Angelique ran, literally, for her life.

Once she realized that the odd man wasn't behind her, though, her steps slowed and she dared a glance behind her, to see what the madman thought he could do against a creature like that.

[callmevod]

Vod was used to shooting while running, it was just that he usually didn't run toward his target while he was firing. In order to make sure the shot hit, he needed a bit of time. Time he didn't have with that scything talon coming toward him.

Without much time to think, Vod dove behind a dumpster, nearly twisting his ankle doing so, letting the Aari'kata's talon bury itself into the metal side of it instead of him.

From this vantage point, it became much, much easier to line up the shot. Vod rose from a kneel, and with his revolver in a military grip, he squeezed the trigger.

The initial report of the revolver was surprisingly quiet, given the size of the round. It was more of a bark than a roar, but it was followed momentarily by the sound of the small explosion of the secondary slug's propellant, and where a quarter of the Aari'kata's face was just before, there was now a gaping, bloody hole through which the building behind it could be seen.

It shrieked an otherworldly shriek, and changed its course to scurrying up the wall, faster than Vod could track and reliably hit, with only three bullets left. It disappeared over the rooftop, and Vod began to fall back, revolver in hand, turning to look for the woman who'd been running with him.

[utterly_mysterious]

Angelique's own scream had been lost beneath the monster's. She had slowed to watch, and startled to a stop, stumbling for cover around a half-hidden corner, at the sound of the weapon firing. When the strange man -- military? something else? weren't the military supposed to be covering up aliens and such things? -- turned back to her, she was white-faced with one hand clamped over her mouth, eyes wide and round with shock.

Vampires had been one revelation, not all that long ago. It hadn't been easy, but she'd had proof, and her path to acceptance had been smoothed by her friendship with one. This was something else altogether, as if reality had slipped and she'd toppled into a science-fiction horror film.

Frantically, she gestured to the man with the gun to follow along with her, so they might both get to safety.

[callmevod]

Vod nodded, a bit dazed, but knew he had to keep up. The thing could be back. "You got a safe place to go to?" Vod asked. He needed to drink. Copiously. And alone, preferably. Mostly so that nobody would see him and the wreck he was going to be. He never wanted to be close to one of those things ever again.

Almost as an afterthought, he holstered his revolver again, suppressing a shudder. God damn, he thought he was over this shit already.

[utterly_mysterious]

Angelique hurried along, biting her red-painted lip as she glanced back over her shoulder. "I... was going to a party," she said weakly, then winced, just now noticing how her feet ached after that shoe-less run through an alley. "I don't... think I'm going much of anywhere without shoes, though. I don't... are we safe? Is that thing coming back?"

[callmevod]

"No idea," Vod breathed, figuring it was best that they hurried along. "Never killed one before. Only ever hid, and just from one. Had to bury myself in a pile of filth to get it to go hunt something else," he explained, feeling just a bit breathless.

"Fuck, if an Aari'kata's made it to Earth, this is bad. There's no way one could get to Earth without help. I don't know anyone crazy enough to catch one and take it here, though, of all places."

[utterly_mysterious]

None of that made any sense in the least. Angelique stared at him outright, because despite her own rattled nerves and racing heart, this was no time for games. "... made it to Earth?" she asked, bewildered. "You're saying that thing's an alien?"

[callmevod]

"Uh, yeah. It's not native to this planet. It's native to Aae Jira'jah," he explained. No sense in trying to explain it away. He was reasonably certain he had nothing to fear from her.

"I only have three shots left, and I left my spare shells where I'm staying. I don't like the odds with three rounds left."

[utterly_mysterious]

No, the stranger had nothing to fear from her, but Angelique was beginning to think she had plenty to fear from him. The revelation that her crush was a vampire was one thing, delivered gently from someone she trusted. Claims of alien life forms and planets with far too many syllables coming from a complete stranger with a gun... that was something quite different.

Fear for her life quickly melted into fear of the stranger beside her. Angelique's steps slowed, then angled away, making for the nearest intersection. "I... I think... I can see myself home from here," she told him with a forced smile.

[callmevod]

"If you're sure," Vod said, somewhat reluctantly. "No telling if that thing will try to track us back down. It's got both our scents, but with a hole like that, it should bleed out." Then again, he didn't know if an Aari'kata would heal quickly or not. It was a gamble, but Vod was freaked out enough himself to try it.

Bleakly, he thought he might luck out if the beast went after her, rather than him, but he also didn't want that.

"You sure you don't want me to tag along, in case it comes back after us?" he asked, trying to sound like he was okay with that. Really, he just wanted to get back to Hex's pad, dig in, and hope that it didn't come for him.