Scene #5501: Soliloquy of Reproach: Prologue

Owner	Pose
Alucard Tepes	Windknight's Lot looks no different than it normally would on such a sunny almost-fall evening. Though it's quite beautiful, with the mountains around the town and the open view to the sea. But there's a tension in the air here, one that speaks of fear among the small populace. So, about like usual, right? However, while the threat of Dio is not long in the past, it IS in the past. This time, the fear is more immediate. Once again, it seems, a vampire has begun to terrorize the already beleaguered population of Windknight's Lot. Has fate chosen to end this town totally? What other explanation could there be for this? Fortunately Jonathan Joestar has allies in the Multiverse outside, and has called them in to try and free the people from his second vampiric scourge. With the addition of Elite assistance, it should hopefully be over soon and Windknight's Lot will again be able to sleep peacefully.
Alexis Maaka	Joestar definitely does have allies. Dio's atrocities were fresh enough in people's minds to make such a threat easily terrorize the population of the town, and Maaka's certainly friendly enough with Jonathan to find this a tad concerning. She arrives by a coach rented locally, as she hops out and tips the chauffeur. The cyberpunk mercenary isn't used to playing gumshoe, but she has some scanning gear in her head that can calculate data from crime scenes...in theory. This may require some creative thinking.
John Rizzo	"Thanks for givin' me the megilla on this one, kid." Two bright headlights illuminate the tunnel, and the sound of a 6.8l V8 echoes through it like the growl of a predator. For once, John isn't the only predator in the area--evidently, there's something requiring the use of the word 'dire,' and that got his attention enough not only to assist, but to offer Eithne a ride. Inside the air-conditioned cabin of Rizzo's black Dodge Polara, the sound of Wynton Marsalis' trumpet is more present than the car's engine, but the rumble is nonetheless heard all the same. Over the car's radio, the public Multiversal frequency can be heard, chatter from the various Elites occasionally overshadowing the soft jazz. In the backseat sits John's "Bag of tricks"--a small medicine bag full of preventative anti-vampire measures. As the overpass gives way the car's steering attempts to give complaint regarding the dirt road, but the vampire's hands clutch the wheel and maneuver it expertly, keeping just under two tons of American steel steady on the rural path. It isn't long before the headlights illuminate standing forms. Pulling the car into the grass so as not to block local traffic, Rizzo kills the engine, cuts the lights, and steps out, walking briskly around to open Eithne's door for her. "Alright, kiddo, let's blast."
Eithne Sullivan	John's car is something else! It's like riding in an eighteen wheeler that thinks it's a sports car. Securely strapped into the passenger seat, Eithne leans forward like it's going to help her see the town faster. "No worries! It's been quite a while since we got to work together, after all." It was a good excuse! After they park, she waits for him to come around and open the door - it's unusual to her, but she doesn't care to fuss about it. It's just how John is. She swings her feet out onto the ground and clambers out. "Thanks~" The first thing she notices is how green everything is. Despite the pall of gloom hanging over the hamlet like a shroud, Eithne Sullivan doesn't seem to be feeling it - instead, she's consciously restraining herself from straying toward the densest patches of foliage. She's pretty sure she saw a blackberry bush...! Focus, focus. This is business. Though vampires tend to skew the results a little bit (they're dead, but some of them can fool her supernatural senses) it would be prudent to try to locate any hanging around the town first thing. Marking off the graveyard on her mental map of the place, the Scion closes her eyes and extends her senses. "Where are yeh, now...?" she murmurs.
Xiaomu	While Xiaomu missed most of the trouble with Dio himself, she has been to Windknight's Lot before, and the call for aid - along with the additional detail of potential vampires - is enough to bring her running ... "HIGH SPEED XIAOMU!!" .... or rather, riding on her lightcycle. She's careful of traffic, of course - you don't live to be 765 (and not counting) by ignoring large vehicles moving in other directions around you - but she takes advantage of gaps and openings, finally reaching the underpass and driving through. When the lightcycle comes to a halt and derezzes, Xiaomu's riding suit disappears in a poof of gold-hued 'smoke,' replaced by her normal qipao, vest, and sandals. She has her staff in her hand post-transformation, and a carrypack slung across her back which presumably holds whatever additional supplies, ammunition, snacks, and entertainment she expects to need. "Hey everyone," she greets the other respondents with a casual wave. "So, we heading into the castle, or ..." She pauses, looking around for Mr. Joestar himself. (Or would he be 'Lord Joestar' around here?)
Ainsley	Considering the time period of the area and the education levels of the town's occupants, after a quick review of any records that may exist of this particular world following Jonathan Joestar's activity in the Multiverse... Ainsley decided to wear a voluminous set of robes to hide her reptillian features, her sword on her hip. She rides into town on the back of a horse... and flinches gently to herself because she is not used to riding a horse and only knows the basics of guiding it along to its destination. Oddly enough, she has her Paladin badge pinned to the front of her tight-fitting but very covering robes, making it clear she's a Paladin, and a member of the Cursebreakers. She makes her way to the location likely given to her along with the others that chose to come help. "Greetings and salutations," she says, her voice muffled by a scarf, "I apologize for my attire, it would get less stares than just wandering around in plain clothes. Being a lizard woman can cause a ruckus, and that would distract from the task at hand." She pulls the scarf mask down momentarily to show her smiling and distinctly reptilian visage, before replacing her mask. A nod is given to Xiaomu, while the others are given more contemplative stares. She doesn't seem to mind the anachronistic outfits and methods of transport.
Rebecca Chambers	Rebecca doesn't fully know about what's happened here, but she's more than willing to find out. Unlike Xiaomu who may have entered using a lightcycle, Rebecca simply arrives on a green-colored motorcycle. She's careful of traffic as well, and isn't going as fast as the others might be, but she's still giving it all she's got and not stopping until she arrives. When she finally does arrive, Rebecca parks her motorcycle and looks around for Mr. Joestar. When she finally locates him, based on how the others have gathered near him, Rebecca salutes and says, "Rebecca Chambers here. I got the message and I came to assist."
Jonathan Joestar	The drawn horse carriage's elderly driver, unfortunately, receives a mild heart attack as real American steels rumbles through the tunnel. Passed out as he was on his chair, he should be fine if left alone, though. As for the others, they'll find that traffic wasn't really a problem. The automobile was, evidently, only just beginning to see its invention in America as even in the pinnacle of England's advancements, London, they were more likely to hit a pedestrian or carriage buggy than they were to encounter another vehicle. Somehow, no accidents occur. Jonathan Joestar isn't vey far from the tunnel, as he seemed to have planted himself like a tree in the dirt road in the wait for assistance. A muscled giant of a man, Jonathan stood over six feet tall with biceps large enough to really make you wonder how he even moves his arms. The decorated hilt of his sword is seen sticking up over his back as he uncrosses his arms and waves in greeting to each and every ally who heeded the call. "Thank you for coming on such short notice, everyone."
Alexis Maaka	Maaka pretty quickly approaches the towering English gentleman, clapping him on the arm with a nod. "Not a problem. I've dealt with a case like this before, 'cept it was more of a serial killer than...y'know, an actual vampire. Guy had a tendency to cut open women with surgical gear, we called him the Nosferatu back in Hong Kong." She says, before the others arrive. When she sees Ainsley, the cyborg ambles over, and discretely slips her a chocolate bar. "Hey, Lizard Wizard." She greets cheeruflly, and nods to John and Eithne, Rebecca and Xiaomu too. She knows the latter two, but the former not so much, and she regards them with a curious look that maaaaay be a bit creepy given her golden colored eyes. She's glad she tipped that carriage driver generously earlier, poor guy must be horrified at all the anachronism tonight.
Alucard Tepes	Eithne's senses might be interefered with by the graveyard; there's a lot of Very Bad Mojo out that way. But that's not all. The graveyard has been some time ago. But there's a smaller 'blip', so to speak -- there HAS been another vampire here recently. Just one. But it's been VERY recent, like in the past few days. Everything else seems about normal for this area; scared people, a dude passed out because OH GOD METAL MONSTER!, et cetera...
John Rizzo	Whoa, nelly. He's gone and given the poor carriage driver /some kind/ of fright. Of course, he can't get close enough to the horses without them smelling the curse on him and making things worse. At least the guy's not dead. He turns to Enya, watching silently as she searches for the vampire. "Me and my bright ideas," he mutters dourly, running a hand through his short red hair. "Remind me to go local the next time we get a call from the boonies." Sigh. Oh, well. Better introduce himself to the guy he's meant to be helping. "Hey there, champ," says the beanpole vampire. They can meet eye to eye in terms of height, but whereas Jonathan is all muscle, John's clothes seem to hang off of him like a scarecrow. He extends a hand to Jonathan. Should Jojo accept this greeting, he'll find John's hand cold to the touch. "John Rizzo, private dick. Heard there was a lick in the neighborhood. Thought I'd drop by, help you get a quarterback on him." "You got any leads so far?"
Ainsley	Ooh, candy. Ainsley immediately unwraps the candy and stuffs the chocolate bar in her mouth, implicitly trusting Alexis to give her perfect normal candy. She spends a moment enjoying this, guiding her horse to the side of the road so that she's not in the way or anything. She says, "No problem," through a mouthful of chocolate to Jonathan. "I'll go check the graves with some magic. Call if something happens." And so she guides her horse to a spot to tie to a post, to start scanning the graves one by one, using the Cognito spell word. The magic augments her sight so she can see an impression of 'thought,' so if something has any kind of mental activity she might be able to spot it hiding in the grave dirt.
Rebecca Chambers	Rebecca gives a nod to Alexis as well, as well as Xiaomu, before focusing on the graveyard in question. Unfortunately, she's not skilled in this manner of searching a graveyard for strange things, as her variety of undead is based off of biological science. Nevertheless, Rebecca's not going to sit around idly and let everyone else work on their own. She takes out her Beretta and attaches her flashlight to it. Entering the graveyard, Rebecca sweeps the graveyard with her flashlight to see if there's anything she might be able to spot with her lack of supernatural skill, as well as she pretty much has a naked eye. She bites her lower lip a little, feeling somewhat out of place.
Xiaomu	"Ah, there you are," Xiaomu calls out, matching up Jonathan's face (and voice) with his request for assistance, and striding over to regroup with the others. Her casual air notwithstanding, though, she's already paying attention to her surroundings as a whole - ears perked, gaze flicking back and forth; Ainsley already seems to be checking on something, and the sage fox from Shinra knows how good Ainsley's magic is from first-hand experience. (There had to be ONE good thing about that whole Urban Breath business, right?) She's not about to get in Ainsley's way; for now, Xiaomu's watching and listening - mostly listening - and extending her other senses. If there's anything supernatural in the area now, and it's not one of her allies, she wants to be ready to get the drop on it, her, or him ...
Eithne Sullivan	There's just too much interference for her to be sure, but Eithne can taste /something/. There was a ghoul here - no, a vampire, it smells like a vampire - recently. But whether or not it's /still/ here... Giving up for the moment, the dark-haired teenager opens her eyes and watches the colorful Elites chatting and investigating. ...Is that a lizard lady? Cool!! She'd better be careful to not stare. Waves and greetings are returned, smiles met with one of her own. Eithne sniffs at the mountain air, turning the bracelet on her left wrist around and around as she thinks. She could ask someone to come out and talk to her, maybe? Side-eyeing the others, she wanders a little closer to the cemetery. Totally not suspicious. Totally not about to do necromancy. She's totally going to do necromancy. "Right then," she says to the graves, as if she expects them to be listening. "Anybody care to come tell me what this is all about? Also if anybody wants to go toward the light an' such afterward, I'll help."
Alexis Maaka	Alexis can't help but look in amusement as Ainsley devours her chocolate bar, and she eyes Eithne and Rizzo some more. "I take it you've got experience with this kind of thing? She asks the detective curiously, as she approaches him. "Alexis Maaka, I've been around here before. Jonathan and I are uh, comrades, so to speak." She explains off-handedly, introducing herself to Rizzo in the same breath. She'll then head for the graveyard, swapping her eyes to thermoptic-vision for a brief look around, maybe scan for blood splatters of a recent nature.
Jonathan Joestar	Jonathan narrows his eyes slightly as he shakes the lanky vampire's hand. Ice cold to the touch. But, he had to remember that not every vampire was like Dio. Seras had been a very nice girl, after all, so at the very least he should give this man the benefit of the doubt. "I see ... er, I beg your pardon, but I don't quite understand everything you just said." American slang seemed to be, more or less lost on him. " ... but the clues we do have are in the form of three victims. Young ladies just of marrying age, three of the handful or so left in town have been treated for puncture wounds in their neck." "All of them describe the same thing, a tall figure in black, pale skin. Ghostly hair." Meanwhile, in the graveyard... Once entering the gates, the first distinguishable feature is the utter desecration of the area. As if everything had been dug up or, perhaps, had dug itself out of the ground. It looked noticeably less disgusting than the last time Xiaomu visited it, as the gore and bodies that had been left were now in an advanced stage of dry rot, barely more than brittle bones and dust. Rebecca, if she so chooses to investigate some of these skeletal remains, may find a strange fluid leaking from some of the bones. Cursory examination would reveal that, despite the apparent age of the dead -- ranging from about fourty to a hundred years old or even more -- very lethal wounds to the head had to have been recent. Those without completely decimated craniums, oddly, had patches of bone that were much newer than the rest, only being about a year old. Enya's attempts at contacting the dead seem to be for naught, because there were no spirits here. None. This is unsettling, as such an ancient grave must surely have ancient souls in unrest. If there are spirits that wandered Windknight's Lot, she may have to look elsewhere, as whatever raised the dead here had consumed its victims wholesale, body and soul. Ainsley's use of magic tells her nothing, but that in and of itself is something. A spell that detects thoughts should still be picking up the life that typically blooms in a graveyard setting. But not a single scavenger approached this place, the animals avoided it just as much as the human residents did.
Alucard Tepes	Also, Xiaomu also gets a 'blip' of her own. There's something supernatural faintly on her 'radar', something supernatural... and dark. And wouldn't you know it, it's somewhere vaguely in the direction of the town.
John Rizzo	Rizzo catches the slight change in demeanor on Jonathan's part, and looks down in what appears to be shame. Letting his hand fall to his side and avoiding eye contact with Joestar, he nods. "Three young women treated for bite wounds, got it," he says. The vampire pulls a notepad from his pocket and begins scribbling down a description of the individual. Once finished, he shoves his hands into the pocket of his trench coat, tromping through the grass to the parked Polara nearby. It's time to head into town in search of clues, but he's not going to be without preparation. Opening the passenger side door and leaning in, one clammy hand unzips the bag of tricks he's brought along. Shortly thereafter, a stake and a bottle of holy water are slipped into the interior of his coat. Armed with these and a .38 special loaded with rubber bullets, Rizzo makes for the town in the distance, raising his watch to his mouth to confer with the other investigators.
Eithne Sullivan	Silence. Eithne waits a few moments more, expectantly, because sometimes the shyer spirits take a bit to work up the courage to manifest. She can't even tell if there are any here, because the whole graveyard is one big confusing scribble on her mental map of the village. There are a /ton/ of bodies, but with no ghosts to provide the thinking and the memories, they're useless for gathering information. All they ever want to 'talk' about is brains this and my-arm-fell-off-again that. This... is weird. More than weird, it's bad. Frowning, she leaves the graveyard and returns to Jonathan to report, watching John curiously as he retrieves his anti-vampire kit. "It's like a black hole in there. Nothin' but leftover bodies that look like they were zombies once." She's pretty familiar with the signs of ex-zombies, being that the usual symptom of such is 'grossly decayed, with uniform blunt trauma to the skull'. When he starts toward the town, the Scion reaches out into the thin air of Somewhere Else for her really ridiculously large sword and trots after him. "Wait fer me!"
Rebecca Chambers	At first, Rebecca doesn't think she's going to find anything, thinking she's on a wild goose chase and feeling completely useless to the investigation. That is, until she gets a look at the skeletons more closely, and almost immediately she widens her eyes. The first thing she notices is the fact that there's a strange liquid within some of them, and Rebecca gasps. She takes out a small syringe and attempts to suck up a sample before putting it into a tight container. "Looks like I wasn't useless after all..." Rebecca trails off as she gets another look at a skeleton, this one without its head. It's supposed to be old or something, yet parts of the bones don't look old at all. In fact, as Rebecca looks closer, she notices that some spots of the bones are almost like new. "OK, something's definitely wrong here!" She stands up and looks around, starting to feel a little uneasy.
Xiaomu	Compared to the literally unholy stink that emanated from the graveyard the LAST time she was downwind of it, Xiaomu finds the smell of dry rot relatively wholesome by comparison. She's still in no hurry to go much closer to the graves than necessary: one more reason to let the other girls do their thing and stay out of their way. Besides, what Jonathan has to say about the three victims - and the figure they all described - is a pretty solid lead in its own right ... particularly when Xiaomu's ears twitch a bit, and she tilts her head back, as though sniffing at the air. "Huh," she muses, almost under her breath. "Picking something up that far away ..." She kind of wants to meet with the victims herself - but whatever her affinity for the supernatural just picked up on, she definitely wants to check that out as well. And since all of her supplies and weapons are already on her person, she just turns to head towards the town. "I think our vampire may be around the area," she explains, "but if all three victims are still alive and don't show signs of turning ... need to investigate further. I felt something not of this world, not sure if I can zero in on it with my senses alone." And she's hoping she can find the vampire before anyone with a more-itchy trigger finger picks him out. Assuming the tall figure is male. No guarantees of that.
Alexis Maaka	Alexis looks and begins to dig around. A lot of things dug their way out of the ground, but that isn't a surprise from Jonathan's story earlier. She looks to Enya, as silence is all that answers the child of Morrigan, and she frowns. "Nobody's home. Duno how that works." She muses, before she takes off after the Scion curiously. As for weapons, she has her 10mm pistol, that won't be an issue if she runs into any kind of threats in town. "Lines up with what Jonathan said before, the last vampire in this town was uh...creative with his experiements." She comments.
Alucard Tepes	The town feels as nervous and electric as a town being attacked by a vampire would be. Perhaps not quite as nervous as when Dio was running around because... there's been no deaths. But definitely suspicious and nervous. Also night is falling, so people are doubtless trying to get off of the streets as quickly as possible -- no one wants to be next on the menu. That said, if people are looking for immediately suspicious places, there's always the places the girls were attacked. The attacks have been fairly recent and no one's been brave enough to go down there and mess with things. There's also a very tired-looking young man with brown hair and green eyes, standing in front of a building. This building, Jonathan may remember, was where they moved the three victims so they could keep an eye on them all. He's dressed in typical clothes of the era, but he's missing his coat and his sleeves are rolled up. He also looks very tired, as mentioned.
Jonathan Joestar	Jonathan begins to walk towards town. The vast majority of the hundreds-strong village had been massacred in Dio's reign of terror, and as a result, only perhaps two dozen or so inhabitants remained. It gave the ancient little hamlet a rather haunted look once you began to walk through it, long winding dirt roads and rolling green hills leading them from the riverfront and into the lower section that still saw habitation. With the onset of nightfall, it was only natural that those few who still remained outside their homes fled back into perceived safety. The only ones out now were Jonathan, the party that had come to assist, the brown haired man in front of them, and ... Two children or, perhaps teenagers. A very pretty young girl in plain clothing and a shoe-less boy in a shoddy white shirt and overalls. Anca and her little brother, Poco. "Jonathan!" Poco looked relieved, and brimming with excitement at the sight of the Joestar's allies. "Please tell me you brought a real doctor! I'm not sure Crackpot Yates is really being any help -- " A very loud thwacking sound resounded the starlit town. Poco reeled towards the ground as his sister slowly lowered her hand, rather than going for another vicious smack upside the back of his head. Jonathan, for his part, couldn't help but look sheepish for the boy. "This is the doctor who has been treating the three victims." In the graveyard... Rebecca is able to obtain MYST. LIQUID SAMPLE. The substance was thick, like congealed blood. Whether this is its natural state, or because of a prolonged state of inactivity, will be difficult to tell without an actual lab to examine it in. Any further looks into some of the skeletons littering the place yields even more disturbing results, as not all of the bones appeared to be quite human. Some were from animals. Some were from men, and some were from women -- all mixed up in the same body. In a way, it might be familiar for the medical genius of S.T.A.R.S.
Xiaomu	Maybe a hat would have been a good idea, Xiaomu thinks as she enters the town proper. She did manage to make friendly contact with a couple of locals when she was here before ... but given the rate at which the sun's setting, those two children are probably safely indoors by now -- Then she hears Poco's voice, and can't help but grin as she turns to look for him. "Poco, Anca, how's it going?" she calls out, waving to them cheerily. She doubts they have much information to offer, but she makes a mental note of where they are, just in case ... and keeps an ear perked in their direction as she continues her reconaissance. Checking out the attack sites seems like another good idea, but Xiaomu's initial interest is drawn to the man standing in front of that building without a coat. "Fair evening to you, good sir," Xiaomu greets him as she approaches, bowing her head politely. (She's not going to pass for a local without a LOT of work, so she isn't about to bother.) "We heard about the victims of the so-claimed vampire, and came to offer what aid we can. Might you know anything about this situation?" She may not be terribly formal most of the time, but the sage fox DOES know how to be polite when it's called for.
Alucard Tepes	'Crackpot Yates' is apparently that brown-haired young man, since Poco's statement, and the 'nickname', causes his face to go red and he sputters indignantly. "Why I should...!" But he pauses there. Jonathan's here, and so are friends of his, and it wouldn't do for the young man to lose his temper in front of them. He exhales, a visible effort to keep it calm. He's on-edge too, and his temper's a little tricky. He nods to Jonathan's introduction. "Lord Joestar," he offers, by way of greeting. And to the others? A bow. "Theodore Yates, at your service." Friends of Jonathan's are friends of his, after all. The young man with the brown hair blinks at seeing Xiaomu. No, she is definitely not a local, and he can very much tell that. But it's true, she did conduct herself well the last time she was here. But they ARE traveling with Jonathan, so... Yates tilts his head at the question from Xiaomu. "Ah, let's see... the victims were all found in or near areas where they would be out of immediate view," he begins. "Three young ladies -- poor girls, such delicate flowers, left for dead on the streets. They all said it was a man wearing a black cloak with a hood, white skin and a beautiful face, what of it they could see. Nearly white hair, long and wavy, chest-length from the hood. Their wounds are healing well, but... their continued weakness concerns me..."
Rebecca Chambers	Between finding this mysterious liquid and noticing there's something VERY wrong with the corpses and their bones, Rebecca notes what she's found before preparing to search some more. "I've got some interesting finds so far," She comments to herself, "But who knows what else I might find?" Although if one were to look closely, there's a hint of uneasiness on Rebecca's face. Almost like she's got a bad feeling about this whole thing. Occasionally, Rebecca's head snaps up almost like she's heard something she didn't want to, but it appears to be just her imagination...
Xiaomu	Xiaomu nods, listening to Yates's summation. A few more details than she already knew - and some details about their current status. "Try a tincture of ... what was it, holy water and garlic blossoms? Their ailment isn't strictly medical, but I'll talk to some experts back home and see what good remedies you can make use of. Talking to them ourselves may elicit some more useful details." She pauses briefly, as if remembering something. "Oh yeah ... make sure they eat foods rich in iron. Red meat, spinach ..." She trails off, looking rueful, and adds, "Do you actually know what I mean by 'foods rich in iron'? - But yeah, red meat if you can get it, spinach ought to be good too. I'm guessing the mundane problem is anemia, so as long as you don't use leeches and do focus on helping them regain their strength ..." She meanders towards the door of the building now, but she's keeping her ears perked for any additional useful details that other people might manage to draw out.
Eithne Sullivan	Oh, look! There /are/ people left, after all. Eithne drops her sword as she runs after John, and it vanishes as it hits the ground. Anca and Poco get a friendly wave as she draws near, and Eithne actually laughs a little when the sister (she assumes) gives her little brother a good whack. Atta girl! Crackpot Yates seems to be less... well, she'd really been expecting some kind of Doc Brown type with a name like that. Not a young man! "Enya Sullivan," she introduces herself, returning the bow with a nod of her curly head. It takes an effort of will to not make a face when he mentions 'delicate flowers'. Land like this doesn't turn out wilting violets, in Eithne's experience... but Xiaomu is right. "I can bring some back if there's a shortage," she volunteers. "But with the plants around here growin' so strongly, I doubt there's a lack of vegetables, right?"
Alexis Maaka	Alexis recognizes Poco and Anca when she hears their voices. "Hey," She greets casually, before she approaches the two kids. "I remember you two from last time, vaguely though." She does produce a pair of snack bars, pitching them like softballs at the kids as a treat. "Help yourselves." She grins, before she returns to listen to the doctor explain shit, folding her arms. "What time did these attacks occur, Doctor?" She asks, keeping to business as she mulls over the details; Tall guy with white hair and pale skin, pretty boy, cloak with hood, sounds about suspicious enough to her. Then again, she's a commando with combat BDUs, an armored coat and bulletproof vest, and butch as all can be, so she can't judge even if she wanted to.
John Rizzo	John, Alexis and Eithne look like a walking timeline, each one successively further away from what passes as normal around here. The vampire's attire might be the closest to the native Victorian flair, but even his clothing bears subtle divergences; his tie is a slim cousin of the cravat, his trenchcoat a billowy associate of the frock coat. "No such luck, young man," Rizzo quietly offers to Poco once they're brought before him, his sister, and the alleged crackpot. "But he did bring a private investigator from America--yours truly. Me and my pals'll find out who did this." Smiling wanly, he takes his attention off of the boy to turn and face the building serving as an infirmary. So--this fits the usual vampire MO, but... "...the execution is sloppy," mutters Rizzo under his breath, jotting down notes on his notepad. No attempt to mindwhack the vics, despite not draining them completely. That implies a bit of arrogance; maybe he thinks he can get away with it because there's so few people left here, and it's so remote. The bit about the weakness concerns him, too--enough that he decides to see for himself. Naturally, the exorcist and the vampire hunter don't trust the vampire--but if he has any misgivings with that, they are nowhere to be seen on his gaunt, haggard face. Motioning for Jonathan and Xiaomu to come along with him, the vampire slips inside, leaving Enya and Alexis to socialize with Yates. Once indoors, he removes his trench coat, hanging it on a coatrack beside the door and rolling the sleeves of his shirt up. His nostrils flare as he follows the scent of 19th century medicine and dried blood, all the way to the location of the vampire's living victims. What can be seen here, before he does his Thing?
Jonathan Joestar	Meanwhile, in the graveyard... Most of the disturbing things have been uncovered, but there were still a few bits of interest. Checking the remaining gravestones, depending on how well she knew her history from her own world, she'd be able to surmise that quite a few of the graves made here were made for soldiers over three hundred years ago, during the reign of the Tyrant Queen, Elizabeth the First. There was definitley relevant history to uncover there, as two of the graves very specifically, were left unmarked. The only two to be such. Maybe, she'd need to venture outside of this area to gain insight on the matter.
Alucard Tepes	Yates seems flummoxed. "DON'T use leeches? But what of the tainted humours in their bodies?" Yeah, THAT theory. "Would it not be best for the leeches to remove those?" As for the tincture? "Holy water and garlic?" He begins thinking about that. Maaka has a question too, and Yates has an answer. "The last attack was yesterday. The others occurred during the first and middle of last week. The last attack, the one yesterday, someone heard a scream. When they came to see what the matter was, the last victim was found." Eithne gets a bow as well. "Pleasure to make your acquaintence," he greets in return. "Food is not terribly scarce, no. But your assistance is appreciated. If food may strengthen these poor girls, I am willing to try." A bit of fear enters his expression, and his voice, despite he efforts to quell it. "I hope you all can find the cause and end this...." Yates looks at Xiaomu and Rizzo as they make to enter. He looks like he's about to stop them. But then he looks at Jonathan. If Jonathan goes in with them, Yates probably won't be too upset... The inside of the building is a typical example of the architecture of the era. Though dusty and clearly un-lived-in for quite some time. The large dining room has been cleared of furniture and in its place are three beds, each holding one young lady. They are indeed on the cusp of marrying age, all pale with blood loss. And all of them with long blonde hair. If anyone looks at the wounds, they're healing about as well as can be expected. But if Rizzo's looking at their auras, he might notice something immediately... these girls' auras are very weak. Not just from the creature that fed on their blood. But something else, something not readily apparent. They're distressed, severely -- frightened. Which might also show in their sleeping frowns.
Rebecca Chambers	Despite her gut instinct telling her not to, Rebecca moves towards the two unmarked graves. Of course she does double-check to make sure the safety is turned off on her gun before she approaches those graves. Her steps are slow and deliberate, and if one were to look closely, they'd see she's shaking a little. Her teeth are gritted as she gets close to them. "All right, let's see if there's anything notable about them," Rebecca comments, sweeping her flashlight as she examines the area around the graves.
Jonathan Joestar	Poco stares at John Rizzo with the curious admiration that only young boys tend to carry with them. The man was just close enough in dress and posture to what he was familiar with that he was comfortably relatable, but just different enough to be exotic. Mentions of America only increased these feelings. "Wow! Jonathan, you even know people from America? That's amazing." Anca catches both of the thrown snacks with a smile, nodding to Xiaomu, Alexis, and Enya. Poco's attention was gathered as the candy was whapped lightly against the top of his head and offered to him. "Oh gee, thanks!" Jonathan, meanwhile, enters the room with the vampiric detective and vulpine exorcist. Meanwhile, in the graveyard... Rebecca moves to examine the graves, but --- her foot slips! The dirt is loose, and the grave reveals itself to be an open one. And, it's big. Bigger than any man, for sure. Maybe ten men could fit in this, but it looks closer to twelve .... Should she climb her way out of the empty burial, she'll find that the other one is empty as well, though it is sized much closer to what an average human's grave would be. Some minor belongings were found within the second, primarily a locket. It was starting to paint the picture that perhaps the graves were unmarked, and the corpses left coffinless, as a sign of disrespect.
Rebecca Chambers	Rebecca finds that the dirt is a little more loose than she'd like it to be, and she cries out in terror as she finds herself taking a fall. It's short, but it's enough to scare her. Once she's recovered, Rebecca looks around and is relieved to find there's no traps or anything there. She pulls herself out quickly, then looks inside the other grave to see if it's open as well. Not only is it open, but it's also got a locket in there as well. "Hey, there's something here." She leaps down into the grave to look closer. "A locket?"
Eithne Sullivan	"Actually, about the leeches... What's wrong with the girls is that they've had the blood drained from 'em, right? Well, the leeches will just drink /more/ of their blood," she explains to poor Yates, deciding to swerve around the whole business of 'tainted humours'. "It'll just make 'em sicker. Holy water an' garlic are things that vampires don't like. Also, grow more wild roses around here if yeh can. Oftentimes, they'll stop a vampire in his tracks. Here, hold on." Eithne takes a break from being a know-it-all to dig around in her backpack. "Book, book, ball of twine... aha!!" She holds up a makeup bag with a kitty on it. "Here, I've got just the thing!" Unzipping the bag reveals not makeup, but... seeds. Plastic bags full of them. She draws out one that looks exactly like all the others, stows her things back in the backpack, and wanders off to start poking holes in the dirt around the house, particularly under the windows and around the doors. "We'll plant these here, yeah?" She'd better wait until John's back out to give the seeds a jolt, but it's the best idea she's got so far!
John Rizzo	Rizzo knows better than to be angry as he observes the auras of the vampire's victims. This kind of thing happens, and expecting other vampires to follow rules as stringent as his is idealistic at best. But that's not to say the sight doesn't affect him. As soon as he enters, the vampire's normally neutral frown deepends into something wrought with worry. He takes the hand of one of them, kneeling before the impromptu cot. Closing his eyes, he utters a prayer in Latin, resting his forehead against the weak victim's hand: "(Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our protection against the malice and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray; and do thou, O Prince of the Heavenly host, by the power of God, thrust into hell Satan and all evil spirits who wander through the world for the ruin of souls. Amen.)" He quietly makes the rounds, repeating this prayer for the other two young women, as well. When he's finished with this quiet rite, he rises, then begins doing his aforementioned Thing. Every living being--and more than a few unliving beings--has a mind. Even when the body is weak and frail, the mind persists. Malkav's blessing allows those of his blood to touch the minds of others, and this John does, reaching out for the presence of one of the victims. Telepathy is more art than science, more interpretation than exact measures, but the mind thinks of things in certain ways. Images, feelings, smells, sounds. Discreetly, John begins searching the mind of the victims for a better idea of how, when, and where they were attacked. Did the perpetrator use any sort of special ability they might not have recognized? What did he sound like? What did he /look/ like? Did he have any distinguishing features past the long white hair? He's hoping these memories will be at the forefront of their minds and not require much digging. He already has a description of him, but if he can get an image of the guy, he can send it to others.
Jonathan Joestar	Rebecca obtains an OLD LOCKET. The locket is ancient. The silver and gold that made up its form were dull and dirtied. The locking mechanism is most likely brittle with age, breaking it open shouldn't be very difficult. What will she do with it?
Xiaomu	Ah, somebody patient enough to explain to the poor uneducated back-historical crackpot WHY certain aspects of his era's medical science were quite rightly superseded by other, more advanced approaches as science went marching on. Xiaomu smiles to herself as she hears Eithne explaining the whys and wherefores of not using leeches; she wasn't planning to burden 'Doctor' Yates with knowledge ahead of his time, but Eithne was patient enough to put it in terms he'd understand. Then again, Xiaomu didn't know the bit about the wild roses. She'll have to try and keep THAT trick in mind. At this point, though, she's more curious about what John Rizzo is doing - and she watches, and listens, while staying out of the way. It may bear mentioning that Xiaomu and Christianity are not exactly on close or friendly terms. Not that the Chinese sage fox has anything in particular against that religion - but Christians across the centuries have had issues with her, for one reason or another. Then again, so have less-aware Buddhists and quite a lot of alleged adherents of Shinto ... Anyway, yeah, Xiaomu's staying out of Rizzo's way while he prays and sets to work.
Rebecca Chambers	Finding the locket, Rebecca realizes she might be on to something. She scales out of the grave and is about to crack it open when something tells her not to. "I'd better get to the village and join the others. I don't want anything to happen to me while I'm alone!" She tucks the locket into her pocket securely but carefully, then takes off running back towards the village, silently praying she's not attacked by zombies.
Jonathan Joestar	Jonathan watches John Rizzo as he prays. It's a strange sight, but, it brings a small modicum of comfort that the detective believed in God. The commonality between the three girls in question bothered him greatly, just as did the description of their attacker. Close to Dio, but different. Longer hair. Dio's fell to his shoulders and was a mane of gold, not pale blonde waves. None the less, the vague similarity was striking, just as much as the three girl's resemblance to his fiance, Erina. Meanwhile... Rebecca quickly finds her way to town. It looked empty, haunted -- but whatever frightful atmosphere it had was eased by Anca and Poco, who showed up to help escort her. "Wow, you're a really pretty lady, even though your hair is short --" As is tradition, Poco finds himself with a new sore bump on his head. "I'm sorry about my brother," Anca apologized, bowing her head slightly. She was a pretty girl herself, with tanned skin, shiny black hair and big, sapphire blue eyes. "Your friends and Lord Joestar are seeing to the victims to find clues, just this way."
Alexis Maaka	Enya basically nails what Maaka was about to say. Except the garlic and holy water thing, she didn't know that actually WORKED. "You speaking from experience?" She asks the Scion, regarding her curiously. "But yeah, uh, leeches aren't gonna do much good when they're already anemic as all Hell. I mean, excess blood is definitely a good idea, or even when you're reattaching body parts and-" Pause. She's not helping. The town's already got vampires to deal with, talk of mutilation isn't gonna do much. "...nevermind." Cough.
Xiaomu	Xiaomu quirks an ear further up, and just kinda casually looks sideways in Maaka's direction.
Rebecca Chambers	Rebecca smirks a little at Poko getting bumped on the head, before replying to Anca, "If you could take me there, that'd be great. I really need some assistance here." She sounds calm enough, but there's beads of sweat on her forehead indicating something's bugging her.
Alexis Maaka	"What? I've been researching this shit ever since he brought up leeches." Maaka says defensively, shrugging. THIS WHOLE TIME she says? Might explain why she was looking into space. She also quietly turns off the browser in her head, briefly.
Alucard Tepes	Yates tilts his head to Eithne's explanation. "Oh... well, when you put it like that, it's... not a terrible point," he concedes. Though then she's digging around in her bag and... seeds? Wild roses? "Will they really? Thank you," he says hesitantly. He's not quite sure about the roses, but... "...Well, I can't see the harm in roses. Perhaps they'll pretty the place up a bit, too." Maaka makes Yates go a little pale, with her talk of reattaching limbs. He can't find the words to speak at the moment, but he tries, sputtering a little. "A-ah... w-well..." Finally he gets his composure back, and notes, "I will, er... k-keep that in mind..." As for Rizzo? Darkness. The town looks scary at night, the mostly-empty buildings almost seeming to loom over him. They move by fast, as if he's running. Something's behind, chasing, something horrible. He's gaining, run faster, FASTER!, can't run faster, he's catching up have to get away can'tlethimcatchme! Look back, there he is. A dark shape, human. But something horrible lurks under that hood. Cloak spread like a great pair of wings, whole shape like a great winged shadow. Disappears. Appears before. Oh no IT'S HIM! The winged shadow bears down, a glimpse of the face is seen... Pale. Near-white skin. Delicate of features, beautiful for a man, but not enough to mistake him for a woman -- the jawline is too strong, even if the chin is narrow. Long hair, pale yellow like straw, just wavy enough to not make it seem stringy. In fact it looks quite well taken care of. The shape bears down, the mouth opens, and the fangs are visible. He's a monster, a beautiful monster but he's a monster... And if Rizzo sends that image he gets as the shape bears down on the view in the girl's mind, everyone here will have a better idea of what the perpetrator looks like. ...Some might find him familiar, actually...
Jonathan Joestar	Anca and Poco escort Rebecca to the specific house that Yates was using to treat the victims. On the way there, they obviously pass by Theodore, Alexis, and Enya -- Rebecca could either head inside from here, or remain outside to talk with those who'd chosen to stay behind. Jonathan, in the meantime, receives the mental image broadcast by Detective Rizzo. "Gh.." It wasn't the first time he'd been involved in such things, he'd once dived inside of Ainsley's brain to help deal with a certain problem, afterall. It none the less, was not a pleasant experience. The figure was not Dio, at the very least, this confirmed it. But the similarities, they were all there. The stature, the fangs, the uncanny or otherwise inhuman beauty. It made his stomach churn and his blood boil. And these women would be haunted by that encounter for the rest of their lives. Perhaps that's what the fiend had intended, the reason it hadn't killed them. "I don't recognize the face, but ... I'll remember it."
Eithne Sullivan	Hey, Eithne loves telling people about things she knows! Especially things that are useful! "Not personally, no," she tells Maaka. "But it's common knowledge on worlds where it works, and on some worlds where it doesn't. The wild roses are less well-known, but they were mentioned in Dracula. Somethin' about being able to rob a vampire of its strength, make it weak as a kitten." It's been nearly a decade since she last read that, she can't possibly remember the actual passage anymore. But the important bits usually manage to stick around. Crouching down next to the row of planted seeds, Eithne tucks her skirt between her thighs (for reasons of Morals) and rests a hand on the ground. Calling on her Legend, the power of a Scion to channel the powers gifted to them by the divine parent, she focuses on the tiny world of infinite possibilities contained in something as small as a rose seed. She can get them started, but it won't be enough to stop anybody for a while... not without help. Tugging the knife from her boot, she calmly slices open her palm and dribbles her own blood over the seeds. It's not pretty, but it's worked before.
Rebecca Chambers	Rebecca stands by to talk to those who remained behind. Although she will turn her eye at the sight of Enya cutting her own palm open. She may be a bio-chemistry major with major experience handling grotesque bio-warfare weapons, but even this is a bit too much for her...
John Rizzo	The victims have provided him and a few others with valuable information--which he'll gladly share with others if it means a chance to apprehend the perpetrator. Before he can do anything else, however, good must be nurtured. Having already said a prayer of protection, Rizzo takes a moment to conjure mental images of calm and safety, projecting them into the minds of the victims. The English countryside in the daytime, the rays of the sun banishing all darkness from even the most secluded of the small town's alleyways. The smell of freshly baked bread rolls freely throughout the place, as does the sound of children laughing and the distant sound of a lute. It's nice to leave people with something good and uncorrupted. Eithne's voice pipes up over his radio asking him to watch the door, and so he leaves the side of the victims to do as he's asked.
Alexis Maaka	Maaka meanwhile isn't even phased by Eithne slitting her hand open like that. "Huh." She vaguely recalls seeing similar spells before, as she watches with some interest. "We'll see how well it works here, I guess."
Xiaomu	Flavored by its presence in a nightmare as it is, Xiaomu still commits the literal mental image to her memory; she may not get a fangs-first look at the attacker - and she's honestly hoping she doesn't - but the rest of his visage, at least the part captured from nightmares and memories, that she's pretty sure she'll recognize the vampire if she meets him. At the sudden commotion outside about Eithne 'watering' roses with blood, though, the sage fox just wrinkles her nose and flicks her ears back. She may not be looking, she may not even know what exact school of magic the Celtic chick is working from, but blood carries power - especially life-force, which is WHY vampires and a few other supernatural creatures are known to drain blood from their prey. It's like taking just the nutrition out of a piece of food, leaving the rest of the bulk instead of having to process it out through the stomach and intestines. On the flip side, if Yates is actually right and the rosebushes grow carnivorous, she'll make a point of coming back with incendiary grenades a-plenty.
Jonathan Joestar	Jonathan says nothing as John is outed as a blood sucking fiend of the night; he'd already had him pegged, after all. Still, he couldn't help but feeling bad that something so obviously personal was shared thoughtlessly. At the least, the man seemed to have a good heart, despite his ... condition. Not like that /thing/ terrorizing the Lot. Not like Dio. "I'll stick around here for a while yet, make sure no other incidents occur. The creature can't have gone very far, at the worst, it's camping out in the mountain range. Or ... in the castle." He'd have to conduct a sweep of it later, he supposed. Just to be sure.
Alucard Tepes	Yates goes a bit pale when Eithne slices her palm. "Good HEAVENS, miss!" he all but squeaks. "What exactly are you doing?! Watering plants with human blood?!" He doesn't like the idea of that! "The roses may grow to crave it!" Superstitious folk! Meanwhile, inside, Rizzo's having a better time of it. Between the prayer and the pleasant thoughts he's sending to the sleepers' minds, the darkness will begin to retreat. Oddly though... it seems almost as though something is Not Happy as Rizzo pushes it back. but between the prayer and the happiness, it has nothing to grab onto, and so it retreats... Rizzo may get the feeling that 'for now' is tacked on... Xiaomu, if she starts out of the building, will get a look from Yates. It's an exasperated look, a 'please can you clean up after your friend' look. Not that Eithne is a Xiaomu's puppy dog or anything, but... well! It just ain't proper to water plants with blood in mixed company! And once Yates can see Jonathan again, he asks, "Is everything all right? Are they still... er, rather -- has there been any change?" He realizes these are Jonathan's friends, yes. But he doesn't know know, and he's a little concerned. Doubtless he'll be checking on the girls later.
Eithne Sullivan	Her blood isn't like most. Something old and dark and powerful birthed Eithne, and she carries that something's legacy in her veins along with her human father's blood. "Don't worry about it," she pipes up cheerfully. "That almost never happens!" How cool would a carnivorous rose be, though?! Watered with blood and Legend, the seeds have enough energy to crack through their shells and grow. Grow, and grow, and grow... The vines creak and whisper as they climb the walls, leaves unfurling and buds bursting into bloom. Thorns and fine hairs dig into the wood and brick of the house, blossoms of blood red and baby pink defying the gloom of the cursed village as they open beneath the stars. Standing up, Eithne brushes her hand off on her skirt and beams at her handiwork. "There, that's MUCH better."
Jonathan Joestar	Jonathan nods to Yates, his stern expression softening slightly. "Yes, they should be fine -- ah? What pretty fauna has suddenly decorated the outside." He seems impressed.
John Rizzo	The vampire's brow furrows with concern as his mind turns. Something else was in there, when he was playing clean up. It's worth mentioning to the others, but first, he'd better step outside... The door absolutely refuses to budge. John sighs. He supposes True Faith comes inherent when one is the daughter of a god. Raising his watch to his mouth, he speaks up. "Eithne, you might busting me out of this joint? Your mojo's got me sealed up like armored heifer in here."
Xiaomu	"Well," Xiaomu remarks idly as the rosebushes suddenly engulf the house which she, Rizzo, Jonathan, and a few others are standing in, "if that doesn't keep vampires out, I'm not sure what will short of an Uzi full of anti-spirit rounds. They better not have entirely blocked the door ..." She trails off as Rizzo makes an effort to open it. Then lets out a deep sigh, her chest gently jostled by the force of the exhalation. "Lemme try mine," she offers, walking over and trying to open the door. She's not a vampire, at any rate, so if it's simply the anti-vampire properties, the sage fox should have no particular trouble. If on the other hand the roses' barrier is a matter of physical obstruction of the door - which is what Xiaomu was REALLY worried about - then she can apply a more direct approach, evne a violent one if need be.
Alexis Maaka	Maaka sighs in consternation. "Bugger." She grumbles quietly, bringing her hand to her face. This may take a while.
Eithne Sullivan	Like armored... what? Eithne flushes pink. "Sorry, sorry!" Xiaomu opens the door without trouble, and Eithne hangs her head sheepishly.
John Rizzo	Strides out, a few of the vines grasping at him and tearing at his skin. Gritting his teeth, he places a hand on Eithne's shoulder. "It's okay, kid. You meant well. I'll be in the car when you're ready to go." He smiles, a genuine gesture made slightly worse for wear by the gash on his cheek. The vampire turns and skips down, making the walk back to the car parked in the distance.