Gone to the Dogs

[Malevolent] Ground Rules!

1. Hi Guys! I haven't done this in a while so bare with me. My Mage Storytelling experience is limited so I'll admit there's some things I might miss and if I do don't be scurred about pointing it out.
2. I think We're all in Sanctum, so lets keep OOC chatter over there and IC over here.
3. Expect a bit of ACTION! That's Action, and not necessarily Combat. In other words, remember you don't have to stand your ground and tear shit up. If you've got a clever way to get out of trouble using your character's skills, your wits, and perhaps a little detail i might have mentioned/omitted, feel free. That's what we're here for, right?
4. You can either set the Post order amongst yourselves, or simply have the scene follow the order in the first turn after I post an intro, but lest try to stick to it.
5. Have Fun!

[Malevolent] "I've been picking up whispers of something weird going on in Cabrini Green." Wharil had explained. The Society of the Nameless Crow Emissary had initially called his Fellow Emmisary from The House's Library. He didn't sound worried, but he did sound rushed for some odd Reason.

"That place is slated to be demolished soon, and now that people have started to move out, there have been reports that something there might have woken up. Something that was there even before the great fire. I'm already looking through the archives at the Library and all I can really find is some allusion to a containment device in one of the Basements. I Need you to check it, make sure its still functional, and if not, then gather some info so we can make a decision."

Later, he called Kim with the same information, asking her to lend backup.

And for some reason, just before he set down his phone, his eyes flitted over Thomas's number. Wharil went with his Gut.

Cabrini Green, by now, Did indeed look like something that needed tearing down. Most of the tenants had been relocated out of the failed Housing Scheme by now, but a few who were determined to keep their homes, and a lot more who simply preferred the anonnimity that came with the derelict buildings, still lingered in the courtyards and hallways.

But one building seemed more desperate than the others. While Children played among the blackened snow of the other buildings, this one had only a few wanderers trudging outside, and occasionally a face appeared in a broken window looking out, then ambled on by. If there was something weird here like Wharil said, it was probably in this building.

[Molly Quincannon] When Molly gets the call, she says, "Information is my game. Will come bearing laptop and backup. Give me an address and I can dig up info on the way." Then a brief pause and, "What is it with Cabrini-Green apartment-related weirdness anyway? If there's man-eating garbage again, I'm gonna be so thrilled..."

Then she calls Atlas. He's the only one in her cabal who would, at this point, respond to such a call, and anyway, she still feels bad about not having called him in on another recent matter. (It wasn't that she hadn't wanted to; she'd just started on preliminary work and the bitch of Time and Entropy in tandem is that if it tells you that you have to go RIGHT NOW, there's seldom time to call anybody.) The message is verbatim what Wharil said to her, preceded by, "Wharil said..." and followed by, "...Want an adventure? If so, then here's the address. Meet you there."

She hates public transport but she takes it. She needs her hands free to Google, and possibly hack.

[Atlas Mason] Atlas had been working, slaving one might say in the bowls of the Lafette when the call came through, he listened intently to Molly's word as the monstrocity before him stood in silence and when the call was finished he replied. "I will movate my my physical structure to the transmitted geographical coordinates Molly, convergence shall commence within twenty standard time units."

He hangs up and then is about his business, gathering devices, gathering his tools, and just incase, the old well oiled handgun he kept around...just incase.

It was cold, but Atlas knew the necessity of expedience, and the need for a getaway vehicle, and so the motorcycle roared down the street's at his touch, the icey wind slicing at his face, the glaring sun and snow doing their very best to blind him as he hid his eyes behind goggles. He was as ready as he was ever going to be, no point in waiting.

[Kim Jenkins] "Go where, check what?"

There wasn't any hesitation, there was never any hesitation.

"Where, what time?"

And just like that, she's there at the appointed place and time. The formerly blonde-haired death mage was going a little more low-key since technically now she was on the job. A simple black parka, a pair of jeans, one of those checked scarves (in a neutral tan), a warm cap. She should be colder, but she's not, not with what's under the parka easily mistaken for a bulky heavy sweater. Kim's also pretty keyed up...

[Thomas Black] Had had stopped more than once on the way to question why he was doing this, anything that had to contained suggested something quite bad. Yet it also suggested potential profit in the discovery. When Wharil mentioned he had contacted others it stirred the Hollow One to motion.

So he went to check it out. Black rings around his eyes, pale skin, the long tan overcoat, hoodie on under that, thick jeans and doc martin boots (His converse would never survive this weather) and fingerless gloves. A cigarette hangs from his lips.

Those that have met Thomas before he seemed out of balance, his Consumption has increase that it dwarfs his wandering. There is a feeling of a void, like a black hole that might pull you in should you cross the event horizon to consume you whole.

[Thomas Black] ((He had))

[Malevolent] Initial Construction of Cabrini Green began back in 1942, and has been something of a hodgepodge since then, the focus and planning of the construction changing from one City Administration to the next. By now, publicly, the place is a Relic, with desperate families and scores of dope fiends being the only ones keeping the implosion teams from moving forward. But, Relic that it is, Molly actually finds floor plans for the buildings. Fairly recent ones too. By the time she's arrived she has a presumably decent map of the interior.

[Molly Quincannon] [[Hint of Awareness first, I think...]]
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 2, 4, 4, 6, 9, 10 (Success x 3 at target 6)

[Molly Quincannon] Molly's likely one of the last to arrive, as she's crossing the city on public transport, but she looks fairly proud of herself all the same. Blueprints - maps and layouts - are vital, and if she doesn't have to coax them out of the ether, so much the better, right? So up she pads in boots that, for once, don't have four-inch platforms (though the rest of her outfit is the same nerdcore as always - Kermit hat and phoenix scarf and battered jeans and duffel coat), with her laptop bag bouncing on her hip. She looks around for the people she's supposed to be meeting - they're around there somewhere, surely - and pulls her Macbook out of her bag, opening it up to pull up the blueprints she'd picked up. "Maps are awesome," she tells no one in particular, or all of them at once. "Hi, all."

[Atlas Mason] The motorcycle roared to a stop not far from the building and the etherite stepped from the archaic military machine. He wore his brown leather jacket in the style of the old barnstormers and his pants matched made of a durable corderoy. At his side swung an old satchel, brimming with unknowable items and devices. He stepped forward, his slicked back hair giving his angular and aquiline face a sharp cast, blue eyes alert.

"Appropriate societal interactive greetings and acknowledgements to all individualized personages. What particulars are already revealed Molly?" He inquired as he looked at the group, curt nods and amiable smiles for each, even those he did not know personally before glancing up at the building before them.

He adjusted the strap at his side and waited, his face set, eagerness shining in those eyes, just as he was resolved to see this through.

[Awareness as well!]
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 2, 3, 4, 5, 5, 6, 9 (Success x 2 at target 6)

[Kim Jenkins] "Hey."

The woman leaning up against a pole nods to Molly. Intense blues eyes flash her for a moment and she smiles. There's one of those sling packs across her chest, you know, the ones with a single strap.

"I'm Kim."
to Molly Quincannon

[Kim Jenkins] "Hey."

The woman leaning up against a pole nods to Molly. Intense blues eyes flash her for a moment and she smiles. There's one of those sling packs across her chest, you know, the ones with a single strap.

"I'm Kim."

[Kim Jenkins] ((opps))
to Molly Quincannon

[Thomas Black] Thomas walked out from the nearby shadows, reality allowed him to slip between the cracks in the world. He walks on up but still is stood off to the side as Molly, Atlas and....new girl. Eyebrows half close last time he met her shit happened, this time most likely shit might happen again. He would blame her but there was a good chance it was all him. He plucks the tab from his mouth and with cherry that is left pulls out another one and lights that.

Well at least he has a name now. And Thomas had more bodies to put between him and whatever it was, or perhaps more fear to feed from...His eyes close as he fights off the sensation and looks back to the group gathered as he awaits Info-Sluts input.

"Doc, Info...Kim." It was only Kim for now, she had yet to earn her nickname.

[Malevolent] There's a man running toward them. The snow makes a barren field out of what might have originally been planned as a lovely courtyard. The snow hasn't been shoveled, and occasionally a biting gust of wind blows a pile back over depressions someone has made in passing. Someone like the man loping towards them. He lifts his legs to knee height, almost as if frolicking, but there's no smile on his face. Just a pained look and squinting eyes under a warm cap, arms pumping inside a puffy down jacket. He stops about ten yards away. Just stands there in the snow, staring at them.

If they planned on entering, they would have to lope much the same way.

[Thomas Black] ((Per & Survival what do I see?))
Dice Rolled:[ 5 d10 ] 2, 2, 3, 4, 4 (Failure at target 6)

[Molly Quincannon] [[The Curiosity Flaw demands alertness!]]
Dice Rolled:[ 5 d10 ] 3, 8, 9, 10, 10 (Success x 4 at target 6)

[Atlas Mason] [Per+Alertness, whats on with this guy?]
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 1, 2, 6, 7, 7, 9 (Success x 3 at target 6)

[Kim Jenkins] ((Percep+Alert))
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 2, 6, 6, 7, 10, 10 (Success x 5 at target 6)

[Thomas Black] ((Bah, damn you Kas, I shall not curse myself by trying again...save them good rolls save them!))

[Malevolent] The snow here is still relatively white. There was no driving traffic here, no one pulling up to the building, no one bringing the slop of the city back on their shoes. Everywhere else in Chicago Proper, the snow had at least begun to grey from the passage of people, but not here.
to Atlas Mason, Kim Jenkins, Molly Quincannon

[Kim Jenkins] Eyes move to the man in the snow and she pushes off of the pole. Noting the snow around them and the new arrival, she wonders if he's another mage. There seems to be a lot of them about, and she doesn't know any of them. Apperantly Wharil called a bunch of people, what's one more?

[Molly Quincannon] "Huh. Nobody comes here." Molly picks up a handful of the snow and rolls it into a snowball, sounding perplexed, suspicious ... and curious. Oooooh yes. "I think we should probably head inside. Is ... that Wharil over there? The hat makes it hard to tell." Just in case, she waves at the figure staring at them from the snow ten yards away. "Anyway, hi Kim, nice to meet you; I'm Molly, everyone's not-so-favourite poker of mysteries and all-around code goddess. And I think I want to see what this guy does if we head into the building. Plus I want to see what's in the building. Probably better to talk out of the snow anyway."

With that, she commences loping (awkwardly, obviously - she's not tall, though not really all that short either) through the snow towards the building's front door. Of course it's safe!

[Atlas Mason] Atlas raises a brow to the building, and to the snow on the ground, whatever he is thinking though does not come to the forefront, he certainly didnt recognize the man before them and because of that he didn't speak, it would likely confuse the man, or frighten him. He did however step forward plowing into the snow without regard for his clothing, intent on reaching the building more then the man.

[Thomas Black] Thomas eyes glance up as he puts his hands in his pockets, smoke wandering away from nose as he breathes it out shoulders coming in to shield him from the cold he will consume too much of once all heat has gone.

"Oh yeah, this looks well robin..." He tilts his head as he calls out to the man "No need to be 'fraid mate, I know we look a lil' outta place....well the Doc looks outta lemon." His right hand comes out and thumbs over his shoulder towards Atlas as he walks past. He sniffs the air once, twice as he just stops talking. A deep lump forms in his throat as it he waits to see if the pained look is from something fear based or urgency until Molly does what Molly does and begins to walk on in brazenly. Atlas is following as Thomas looks over to Kim as he gestures 'Ladies first'. Besides he has seen what she is packing, and she doesn't seem afraid to use it.

He looks back at the man as he starts walking forwards "You all isle squire?"

[Malevolent] The man is breathing through his mouth, heavy puffs of air. As they advance, he turns in the same spot he stands in. Swivels, really, watching them all go in, and then he moves, following in their tracks.

"Whatchyu wanna go in there for?" He says to their backs. He looks cold. Duct tape patches one elbow of his down Jacket. You can tell from his voice, from his frantic, childlike way of asking, that he's not altogether...there. "Its Real Dirty in there! I don't think you wanna go in there!"

And then, snow crunching behind them from their newest member, he pops the big question. "Hey, Can I have a dollar?"

[Molly Quincannon] Molly's given more to people she had less reason to want to help, so she rummages in a pocket and finds about a buck-fifty's worth of loose change. "We're cleaners. Kind of," she tells him, holding out the money. "But if you tell us what kind of dirty, it'd be really helpful. Might help us know what kind of tools we need, and then we could clean it up nice for you."

[Atlas Mason] Atlas pays no attention to Thomas jibe at how he looked, he thought he looked quite respectable. What he did do was step on, tromping through the snow towards the door, he doesn't stop for the mans inquries, again hes just trying to avoid talking to the normals for now, he had a goal in mind and didn't want to get bogged down trying to explain himself to the man who was obviously crazy, or at least mildly off.

He stepped up to the doorway into the building and looked up at the building with a hint of appreciation for its old, dilapidated form. His hand strayed to the satchel at his side, as if he wanted to pull something out, but he waited...waited for his cabalmate to hopefully shoe the man away with the offer of money.

[Kim Jenkins] Her eyes never left the hobo. She noted the long explanation from Molly, Thomas's politeness and the rest of them loping towards the door. That seemed like a good idea, but something needed to be done about this guy. Which Molly again it seemed was willing to supply. No problem.

Intense eyes leave the man as she steps away (and over, and over) through the snow, squeezing past Atlas, and then pushing (or at least trying too) the door open.

[Thomas Black] Thomas was sorry for him right up until he wanted his money, at that point he casts the man a look which is very much 'Get a job you homeless bum'. Molly picks up his tab which was good because this guy wasn't about to get any money off Thomas. Still that doesn't stop him listening in on what tit bits were being offered.

Atlas was now the one steaming on ahead...well at least the cabal was made up of like minded folk as Kim passes him by. The Hollow one just blinks and waits to see if the crazy man will offer any good intel.

[Malevolent] "When it snows Omar lets his dogs inside!" He says without hesitation, eyes fixed on the hand with the change. "He aint even supposed to have 'em. Them dogs is illegal. Mama said he's a manace, but Omar don't care. Omar's muthafuckin Gangsta!"

The building is a simple one in this sense, it goes straight up. The plans that Molly found include several aesthetic flourishes such as contrasting angles, varied exterior edges on the exterior walls, and for the most part they're all there. But they also skimped on a few of the details. Instead of the classy double-glass doors, theres a heavy metal one, with a single meshed-glass porthole. What's more, the door pulls open. Its no doubt the result of having it kicked in too many times.

Kim opens it to reveal a darkened hallway, and the warm odor of fresh shit. Lets hope its from Omar's Dogs.

[Molly Quincannon] Well, perhaps not the most helpful thing in the world, but it's a warning as regards the smell, anyway. She hands over the change and says, "Well, we'll beware of dogs and dog-mess, mmkay? And Omar too. We're muthafuckin gangsta too, sometimes. Here." She hands over the change and says, "We'll just be over there with the cleaning up. Try to get someplace warm, okay?"

With that, she's heading into the building after the others to pass her Macbook with the aforementioned map and blueprints on the screen around the group. "Dogs, sounds like. Omar's dogs. They're illegal. Omar's muthafuckin gangsta. Beware of bling-induced blindness, guys."

[Kim Jenkins] She doesn't like this one bit.

Which is to say, she loves it. The little pins and needles feeling started in her fingers, and move up from there. Running along her arms, over her shoulders, right up to the back of her head and evidentally deep into her subconcious. They were beginning to notice her now, elliciting the tiniest tugs in the fabric of All Things.

Unwilling to draw down with a hobo present, she settles for slipping a small (but probably very bright) flashlight into a gloved hand.

"Where are we going?"

She askes as she looks over the macbook. This is going to be awesome.

[Atlas Mason] Atlas frowns as Kim pushes her way past him and pulls the door open without even a moments thought to what might be behind it. "Initiating entrance procedure without following and utilizing appropriate aberrant approach guidelines increase threat levels and chance of personage termination by fifteen point four percent." He says with a hint of concern. He does however look within the building, and unfortunately smelling within as well.

However it does not dissuade him, he steps over the threshold and pulls out a the L.A.D.I and fits it over his head, lenses clicking down and up into position, setting itself into standby.

"Activating molecular agitation and sweep." He says as the resonance from within him springs up, magic activating.

[Matter Corr Force Sight] [Diff 4 -1 for foci]
Dice Rolled:[ 2 d10 ] 5, 7 (Success x 2 at target 3)

[Thomas Black] Thomas watches the rest head in, and with a small whiff he takes another drag of his cigarette. "This is why 'avin' a cough is robin for ya, takes away yer sense of Aunt. 'cos wen shit Aunts that way why the soddin' 'ell wud ya want it."

Perhaps he could come up with a rote of non smell, would help with the smoking in people's houses too. He gets inspired at the best of times as he curses slightly that he didn't have a notepad with him. He will have to put that one to the side and hope he remembers. He has one last looks around and then steps in after the rest.

"So then, tenner says sum one is gonna get fucked, any takers?"

[Malevolent] "Ey, Thanks." The guy says, taking the change and shaking it in his open hand while the others went inside. His head popped up as the door closed behind them. And then, muffled, they hear him shouting.

"YO OMAR! YOU GOT VISITORS MAN!" And through the porthole the see him loping away, hand full of change carried victoriously over his head.

Inside, its dark. The only light illuminating the lobby and hallways are from the front door and clusters of candles at the halls and stairwell. Someone is obviously still in here, and have made themselves quite at home. At least they know they're looking for something in the basement. From Molly's map, the quickest way there is the elevators to the right, but would they even work without the power? To the left is a long hallway of apartments and, according to the map, an L shaped path leading to the the basement stairs.

[Molly Quincannon] ".........Oh, monkeyslut."

An interesting choice of expletive, but when their element of surprise is blown by the guy she was actually being nice to, she defaulted to inanity provided by British miniseries fun.

Then she sighs. "Okay, stairs or elevator? I'd rather not get caught on dark stairwell by dogs, and I'm betting I could make them work." Because being a Forces mage means never having to say 'power outages have changed my patterns in any significant way'.

[Atlas Mason] Atlas looks about with that odd contraption mounted upon his head and compared what he was seeing to what was written on the floor plans. He took a moment to look at the elevator and nodded in its direction. "This gravity arresting personnel movation device is currently uncoupled from any useful electron source. This however can be rectified with the appropriate application of Scientific formula." He says with a nod in Molly's direction.

He steps over towards the elevator, pulling out what looks like an electrical meter reader and gestures Molly forward. "We shall activate this unit in conjunction, addendum, substantial residual heat traces concurrently located within the substrata locality within this physical structure, cautionary advisory activated."

He puts the meter to the door controls and waits for Molly's assistance.

[Kim Jenkins] The smell is irritating, it brought back bad memories of ugly places. Bad things happened here, for sure. Bad things might still happen here. But that didn't matter, she relished the opportunity.

A grimace at the old man's unfortunate outburst. She could stand a certain level of noise, though she'd already made up her mind that pretty much everyone else talked too much. Atlas was irritating, Molly too cheerful and Thomas was plainly unintellable.

But that didn't matter. She needed more friends, and these were awakened at that! So she instead just grins at the others. tugging her checked scarf over mouth, bandit-style. Instantly she felt more gangsta.

A nod to Molly.

"K. I can handle the dogs, just stay close."

Now she draws down. The flash light went to her left hand (but stayed off) and in her right a giant shiny handgun flashes briefly in the dimlight of the lobby. Reflection off the bright nickle (not as bright as the chrome, but brighter than the flat nickle) slide. Thomas had already seen her willingness to apply the Desert Eagle as a problem-solving method, and maybe, he was lucky, he'd see it again.

[Thomas Black] Of course, Thomas was thinking the stairs were perfect, okay there might be dogs but you can't get trapped in them, your not greeted by one exit. For a man that quickly fell to the rear he is more than willing to venture the stairs alone.

He looks over Molly MacBook screen taking some things from it as he focuses on the screen's reflection...

He watches them head towards the lift "Guys, no offense but the apples are way easier no?" He gestures on the floor plans. "Plus plenty of runnin' space, in the lift were all in lined up like bloody ducks in a row, one exit pendin' it bloody works an if sumone or lets be Frank an you can be Jill sum thin' is down there, sumone might be 'andin' over a tenner before you can say bobs yer uncle."

He looks around them all, surely they will come to there senses?

[Malevolent] Barking can be heard from somewhere above them. Loud, hard barking, and from multiple sources. its the first indication that the dogs they were warned of are actually present, and awake.

[Kim Jenkins] Blue eyes flit up and then down. Her eyes are on the hallway, she'd already nickednamed the Death Hall, but that's not relevant. Elevators weren't too bad, no one really liked them, but a long, dark hallway?

Either way, the Fates were watching now.

"Doesn't matter, as long as we make up our minds quick."

[Molly Quincannon] Oh, hey, another gun-bunny. Of course, that wasn't thought with any particularly judgemental undertones - more a desire to ask whether there was any possibility of lessons at some stage. Then she decides that Nathan's gun-bunny enough for her and 'Hey, teach me to brutally gun things down?' is probably not the best way in the world to start a friendship.

...probably...

After that particular typical-Molly-frantic-brain tangent, which only takes a fraction of a second to buzz through her head, she looks over at Thomas and sighs. "Well, my point would be that at least some of the dogs are upstairs and dogs, unlike humans, can't climb elevator shafts. We're less likely to get flanked this way. But if you really want to have vicious-sounding dogs biting the ass out of your jeans, okay. Stairs it is. Never let it be said I'm not flexible."

[Atlas Mason] Atlas looks upwards, possibly at the approaching animals and frowns, now was not the time to hesitate, he might regret this later, but he turns away from the elevator pocketing the meter that was in his hand and moved along the hallway at an expedient pace, watchful for signs of enemies or hidden traps.

He does however wrap his fingers around one particular item in his pack, and it remains there...just incase.

[Thomas Black] Thomas just smirks slightly. "Ain't 'bout bein' flexable Info, sum lemons it's just about bein' practical." He falls in behind Atlas letting the 'Gentleman' Inventor steam on ahead. Thomas just shrugs and follows on suit. He was fairly sure he could kick the crap out of one dog, two perhaps not but one it would be a bad show if he couldn't handle one mutt.

[Atlas Mason] Per+alert [diff 7]
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 3, 4, 5, 7, 7, 8 (Success x 3 at target 7)

[Kim Jenkins] "Alright."

There.

She sets off after Atlas, and again moves to squeeze past him. She's fairly sure he won't mind too much.

"Let me go first."

A grin is hidden behind the bandit-scarf.

"Just don't linger in doorways and if I tell you to get down, do it."

Easy, right? The tingle in her fingers is back, traveling up her arms as a new sensation arrises. A slight rumble of her stomach. As soon as Wharil called, she began under a very abrieviatet period of ritual denial, the asethicism was considered passe these days by most of the Chakravanti, but she much of the old traditions, and found a value for in her magik. Silently invoking the spirit of Eucleia to show the way forward... ((Forces:1, sensory))

[Kim Jenkins]
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10 (Success x 3 at target 9) [WP]

[Kim Jenkins] "Don't step in that."

A glimpse of dim light off the brushed nickle slide, gesturing vaguely towards a dark pile of... something on the floor. Another thought occurs to her, time is running out. The dogs are coming, but where to face them?

"We need to move."

[Molly Quincannon] With that decided ... well, Molly has a flashlight, but it has other uses. Instead of that, she puts a finger to her right ear briefly - just a quick tap, to activate the bone conduction earpiece microphone tucked away there - and murmurs "Load ForceFeed. SpectraSkew. Target: Self. DarkSight. Engage."

Hands-free is awesome. And assuming that works out, she follows along and takes the rear.

[[Diff 5, -1 focus, -1 practiced so diff 3]]
Dice Rolled:[ 2 d10 ] 1, 7 (Failure at target 3)

[Molly Quincannon] [[*sigh* And so Molly lingers just a little. Diff is now 4]]
Dice Rolled:[ 2 d10 ] 4, 7 (Success x 2 at target 4)

[Atlas Mason] Atlas also warns the little group of mages as he steps forward warning all those present at the same time as Kim. However he frowns and shakes his head slowly, he is certain they should have taken the elevator and he moves onward drawing a pistol from his bag, knowing sadly that he was going to need it very very soon.

[Molly Quincannon] [[So glad I upgraded WP last month...]]
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 1, 1, 2, 4, 5, 6 (Botch x 2 at target 8)

[Molly Quincannon] So Kim points something out - tells her not to step in it. Now, she smells this place and knows that whatever it is, it's going to be foul. So there's no need to touch it with her hands ... but she has things with which to poke things, and it's a little like that thing where someone tastes something that has gone bad and then offers it to people saying, "Ugh, this is awful! Taste it!"

Long story short? Molly ends up prodding the thing that Kim told people not to step in with the handle end of her sonic screwdriver. It doesn't do anything, but it tests texture. She's almost sure it's excrement, but ... well. She's Curious.

[Kim Jenkins] She can feel the onset of tunnel vision as she releases the flashlight from her hand, it falls for a moment, before being caught on a lanyard around her wrist. Taking one careful step forward, then another.

The tunnel vision is immediately broken as Molly suggest she taste something Kim had expressedly pointed out as something 'not to touch, much less eat.'

A quick glance over her shoulder. Her breathing is a little heavier now, her nerves a just slightly more jittery than before.

"What"

[Malevolent] That thing that the others stepped past? Well, Molly doesn't step past it. Not right away, at least. It is, as she finds out, a Hoodie. A hoodie covering the corpse of a dog. A hoodie covering the discarded carcass, the meat-stripped jaw, the exposed ribs and the scattered skin and fur. A hoodie covering the swarm of tiny bugs that had made short work of the eviscerated dog, and were now crawling across the floor, up the walls, and up her legs.

Meanwhile, Atlas and Kim have made it to the L to hair footsteps now accompanying the barking, coming from the direction of another metal door marked by candles, presumably the one leading to the staircase. They were coming!

[Malevolent] Coinflip
Dice Rolled:[ 1 d10 ] 1

[Kim Jenkins] ((Everything stands but Kim doesn't say anything, sorry Molly!))

[Atlas Mason] Atlas frowns at that. "This particular passage is no longer viable, entrance into this particular locality will result in unnecessary risk factions that should be avoided. He says as he steps up to the door. "We shall negate the canines ability to actualize upon us via this portal and utilize the decent unit at our relativistic rear."

At that Atlas adjusts the headset and a beam begins to trace along the door's edge, his intent to seal the door and keep the dogs from reaching them.

[Matter base diff 5 -1 for foci -1 for quint]
Dice Rolled:[ 2 d10 ] 3, 7 (Success x 3 at target 3) [WP]

[Molly Quincannon] "Um ... guys?" She's trying to be quiet but it really depends how far away people have got. "Can anyone reliably determined what killed this dog? Also ... anyone got a can of Raid or Off or something? 'Cos ... bugs. Ew."

She's not unduly upset. Bugs don't bother her. Unless these are cannibal bugs that could devour flesh like ebola, but what are the odds, really? So she slaps at her legs where the bugs managed to get between jeans and skin, glad that she needs to shower before she heads out with Ashley later anyway, and wishes that the theory that sound waves repelled bugs wasn't utter garbage.

[Atlas Mason] [Rolling again diff plus 1 for sustaining Quint again]
Dice Rolled:[ 2 d10 ] 5, 8 (Success x 2 at target 4)

[Kim Jenkins] "That's probably not necessary...."

Her voice trails off as she watches Atlas begin to seal the door. Lowering the gun, she feels sort of, puzzled. The feeling of confusion is only reinforced by Molly's question from down the hall.

Christ. Shaking her head, she heads back towards the Molly, and the lobby.

"Molly, can you make the elevator work?"

[Malevolent] Atlas attempts to weld the door shut, and from the other side, something thumps against it. Through the porthole they can see a light, a head-strapped lantern on a hispanic man glaring out. A hand pounds against the door and he seems to be shouting "This is MY building! You can't have it!" The dogs are with him. They claw angrily at the metal, but naturally it doesn't budge. Omar on the other hand does budge it, just a little. He slams a shoulder into the door, and the corners bend out, then back in. Atlas's fix might hold him, but for how long?

[Molly Quincannon] "Um, yeah..." This gets strange looks. "I mean, Atlas and I together could rock the hell out of it but we were taking the stairs. ...Except now we're not taking the stairs back up because there are dogs. Right. Okay. With you." She smacks her knee to kill a particularly determined bug and rises from her crouch. "I just wondered about what killed the dog because, dude, I've seen some funked-up stuff underground in this city. If there's something down there worse than dogs? Eating the dogs? We probably ought to know about it first."

Still, she gets up, though not before grabbing the hoodie off the dog and brushing the bugs off it as she joins Atlas. It's a good scrying focus, if she needs one. But the man screaming through the porthole gets, "We don't want it! We're just trying to make it safe for you! And dude, clean up your dogshit! You're gonna get diseases!"

[Atlas Mason] Atlas backs away from the door and frowns at the man on the otherside. "Actualizing the activation of this mechanical unit is necessary in expedience." He says as he moves quickly back to the elevator, his eyes cast one more time back to Omar on the otherside of the door.

He pulls out the meter again and slams it against the elevator's control box and nods to Molly. "Shall we commence with actualization?" He inquires as he waits for her to begin.

[Molly Quincannon] "On it." Another tap of her ear, and "Load ForceFeed - SparkyPenguin - pee-eff-pee - tandem action target Heterodyne." And, when Atlas seems ready... "Engage."

[Kim Jenkins] These people are going to get me killed.

That's the first immediate thought.

Kim just stops there as the techmages go to work. Guessing that the screaming man is left for her to deal with, she heads back towards the door. Moving up to it she taps the portal with the Desert Eagle. It's always a convincing way telling someone to 'Fuck off.'

Tap, tap

"Fuck off."

[Atlas Mason] [Diff 5 -1 for foci -1 for time taken]
Dice Rolled:[ 2 d10 ] 4, 5 (Success x 2 at target 3)

[Molly Quincannon] [[I think I'll assume the higher difficulty and add successes as appropriate. So diff 7 - vulgar, witnesses. -1 focus, -1 practiced, -1 time so diff 4. +WP]]
Dice Rolled:[ 2 d10 ] 8, 10 (Success x 3 at target 4) [WP]

[Kim Jenkins] ((Char+Intim))
Dice Rolled:[ 4 d10 ] 2, 3, 4, 7 (Success x 1 at target 5)

[Atlas Mason] [Alright upping to diff 7 -1 for foci -1 for time]
Dice Rolled:[ 2 d10 ] 3, 6 (Success x 1 at target 5)

[Molly Quincannon] [[Helping again! Diff up to 5 for extending, more WP]]
Dice Rolled:[ 2 d10 ] 2, 10 (Success x 2 at target 5) [WP]

[Malevolence] Omar Halts when he sees the gun. He looks pissed still, but he's not that crazy, as muthafuckin gangsta as he might be. He doesn't leave, but he's not trying to force his way through there anymore.

There's a whirring from the basement, and a flickering of the lights in the entire apartment. Something, somewhere zaps and snaps, and the elevator control box sparks suddenly, the call button glowing an intense red. The elevator cables spin and catch, the motor whirs, and a short while later the doors slide open revealing an elevator box with a flickering flourescent inside. It was hardly perfect, but it was reasonably functional.

[Molly Quincannon] [[Paradox = 5 (highest sphere, +2, +1 for 1 extension)]]
Dice Rolled:[ 5 d10 ] 4, 6, 6, 9, 10 (Success x 4 at target 6)

[Molly Quincannon] [[Soak?]]
Dice Rolled:[ 2 d10 ] 1, 1 (Botch x 2 at target 6)

[Atlas Mason] [Dox]
Dice Rolled:[ 5 d10 ] 4, 4, 9, 9, 9 (Success x 3 at target 6)

[Atlas Mason] [Soak]
Dice Rolled:[ 2 d10 ] 6, 8 (Success x 2 at target 6)

[Molly Quincannon] Molly staggers. Hard. Paradox always does this to her. Always. So she staggers, leans against the wall and puts her free hand to her nose, where it comes away bloody. She doesn't scream. She whimpers. She'll be okay in a moment, but for that moment, she's hard pressed to see straight.

Are you there, Consensus? It's me; Molly. And I hate you.

[Atlas Mason] Atlas only grunts as he takes the slap from the world around them and shakes his head. "Kim, actualization complete, converge upon this locality." He says as he steps into the elevator, helping Molly get inside as well.

[Kim Jenkins] Right on. Kim takes three steps backward. And then turns her back, moing quickly through the darkness back to the lobby, and to the now funcitonal elevator. She assists Molly into the elevator, before examining the button panel, quickly stabbing the relevant basement button with the muzzle of the handgun.

"Guys okay?

Intense blue eyes are looking back over at them now, studying them curiously.

[Molly Quincannon] Molly's at least capable of something resembling speech at this point - enough to mumble, "Technocrats threw lightning at my brain. This? Is a love-tap. Anyone got any Excedrin?"

[Molly Quincannon] And, as something of an afterthought, "Thanks. For the assist."

[Atlas Mason] Atlas nods his status. "I am only five percent below nominal status, Molly...." He trails off, uncertain how to say it, he was after all no life mage.

"She has suffered acute systemic backlash activated upon completion of our attended task." He looks at her then, concerned. "Is your physical structure capable of continuing with this incursion Molly?" When she answers like that he shrugs and pulls out some advil and such.

"We shall continue."

[Malevolence] The doors slide shut, open, and shut again before the elevator begins to descend, fairly rapidly, toward the basement. Then, once settled, they do the same sort of dance in reverse. One might assume this elevator was on the fritz long before the power went out.

The basement, according to Molly's map, was Huge. It extended a decent ways beyond the footprint of the exterior building with the boiler rooms and storage rooms being the largest. But here was one exposed side of the boiler, directly in front of them as they exited the elevator. Down the hallways were doors which corresponded with the map, but it begged the question, what was actually in the boiler room?

[Molly Quincannon] Have Dew, will travel. First? The Advil, with a grateful smile at Atlas. Then? Curiosity kicks in. "So ... okay. Search methodically, then start running up and down corridors panicking?" It's a joke, obviously, because she grins a bit and says, "Seriously, anyone up for a little bit of poke and probe? Boiler room first, then storage rooms?"

[Atlas Mason] Atlas nods at that. "The thermic transfer locality is the most logical locality to begin our investigative efforts."

He nods to the others and waits for Kim to take the lead, let the girl with the big gun go first, as she seemed to like that.

[Kim Jenkins] "No problem... uh... Sounds good."

What was in the boiler room? Her heart begins to beat a little faster, as blue eyes peer out from the elevator. She takes a careful step out, a flick of her wrist and the flashlight is back in her grasp. Another careful step, she doesn't activate the flashlight yet. She's just taking it in.

[Malevolence] The Boiler room contained...a boiler. Or rather, what looked like a boiler, only this one obviously wasn't connected to the other they'd seen, and might not have even been connected to the building. It was warm, this one. They could feel it the moment they stepped through the door. It was functional and in use, but most of that warmth and steam was carried away by pipes leading in a labyrinthian path, through the exterior wall.

There was something else on the wall as well, something they could just barely make out. A bezel shaped like a giant lock, with faded asian writing.

[Kim Jenkins] ((Wits+Enig (Ling:2), post will follow))
Dice Rolled:[ 4 d10 ] 2, 4, 6, 10 (Success x 2 at target 6)

[Molly Quincannon] Curiosity has its advantages, when you've had it as long as Molly has. She flips on her Maglite, walks across the room and turns the beam of the little flashlight onto the bezel, studying the characters thereon. "Give me a sec," she murmurs. "This can't be any more difficult than Hebrew characters from the future..."

[[Wits + Cryptography at diff 7 (8 - Linguistics 1). -1 dice pool for wound penalties, damnit.]]
Dice Rolled:[ 5 d10 ] 5, 8, 9, 9, 10 (Success x 4 at target 7)

[Atlas Mason] Atlas stepped towards and examines the boiler itself, curious as to what precisely this could be powering, because it could be nothing other then a power source, of that...Atlas was absolutely certain. Turning and glancing the pathway that lead into darkness, he could only assume that what they sought, was down that path.

But he waited, let the others work as they disciphered the writings, waiting to see what precisely they could ascertain.

[Kim Jenkins] "This looks..."

Like something. Blue eyes focus on the writing, and idly wonders where they're going to get a giant key. She didn't have much familiarity with east asian scripts, but know quite a bit about the arts and practices of the subcontinent...

"Together lotus hand, inner bad?"

[Malevolence] From what you can make out, the writing says "Place both lotus in palm hand. Evil Contained"
to Molly Quincannon

[Molly Quincannon] [[Hell with it. Curiosity again...]]
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10 (Success x 3 at target 6)

[Molly Quincannon] [[I forgot my diff, but still 2 successes...]]

"Place both lotus in palm hand. Evil contained."

Molly quotes it a little better, but it's still a little off. She looks at the palm of her free hand and then looks for Atlas. "Wharil said it was storage. Storage for something bad, from the look of it." Oh, she wants to know what it is, but the sensible thing is... "Maybe we should leave it alone. Or help seal it better. We've got enough nasty shit under Chicago without this thing getting out." She frowns at the lettering again. "Place both lotus in palm hand how? Maybe it means in the palms of both hands? Lotus, though? What?"

[Kim Jenkins] "Well."

She looks around the boiler room for a moment. She had no idea, she just assumed Wharil wanted her to go along to keep everyone out of trouble. Which she had done a good job of, at least so far.

"It looks pretty secure. I guess? What did Wharil say he wanted us to do?"

She thinks on it for a moment. Technically she could do it, but she wasn't sure and she wasn't sure about working with the techmages. Kim just wasn't ready for that sort of, intimacy. So she just asks.

"Can you guys call him?"

[Atlas Mason] Atlas continues to look about as the two of them piece things together, he was listening of course, not entirely sure what to make of it either. He steps towards the entrance to the pathway filled with pipes looking down its length with his enhanced senses and looked at the others.

"Perhaps answers to this connundrum will be acquired within this subterranean locality." He says gesturing to the path.

[Molly Quincannon] Molly searches her prodigious memory and says, "Well, the problem is that this place is going to be torn down soon. And what he actually said was that we should check this thing, make sure it's still functional and if not, take what info we can and make a decision later. Sounds like he was in a bit of a hurry, and in a lot of 'do not disturb' mode. Safest thing to do," she adds, frowning in thought, "is to bring our mundane tech skills to the fore, see what we can do about stabilising this thing, then see if we can maybe tweak the demolition orders to involve filling this room and that tunnel over there with concrete without dicking with the containment device too badly. Like I said." She grins a little, sheepish. "Lots of nasty under Chicago. Don't need more. I mean, it's either that or shut this thing down and see if we can't kill this beastie with bullets and fire. Not my favourite plan."

Then Atlas suggests going down that corridor and she grins a little. "Well, there's an easier way. Y'know, one that doesn't involve travelling into the unknown dark with a gun and a bit of Forces against the nasty. Plus we don't know if we'll trigger this thing's shutdown if we go in there. I'll scry first, okay?"

She doesn't wait for an answer. The hack-box laptop's already coming out.

[Molly Quincannon] [[Well, she said she wasn't waiting... Corr-scry 'down THATaway, coincidental, diff 5, -1 practiced, -1 focus so diff 3.]]
Dice Rolled:[ 2 d10 ] 7, 7 (Success x 2 at target 3)

[Kim Jenkins] "Sounds good..."

She has no idea how to do any of that. Instead she just pokes around the room a little bit, waiting to see what(if anything) Molly comes up with.

[Kim Jenkins] ((Percep+Alert))
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 1, 4, 5, 5, 6, 9 (Success x 1 at target 6)

[Malevolence] ((Hey, how bout that? A storage room with boxes and pipes. Pipes coming from....here?))
to Molly Quincannon

[Kim Jenkins] There seem to be an awful lot of pipes in this room she notes, mind dizzyed by the vast array.

[Atlas Mason] Atlas nods to Molly letting her do her thing. At the moment...this really wasn't his ball game.

[Molly Quincannon] "............There's nothing down there," says Molly, and she sounds utterly perplexed. "I mean, the pipes come from here, but ... maybe it's just something I can't see?" She peers in the direction of the corridor. "I don't know if there's any point in going down there or not. Maybe..." She frowns at the boiler. "Maybe whatever it is is just actually in here? Or in the pipes?"

That done, she closes her laptop, frustrated, and pulls up her sleeve, revealing a leather wristband. Opening it to reveal a tiny screen and Blackberry keyboard, she taps a few buttons with her index fingernail - running a Prime-scan.

[[Where's the magic? Is there magic that's not us? Prime 1 basic scan - coincidental, -1 practiced, -1 focus so diff 3.]]
Dice Rolled:[ 2 d10 ] 7, 9 (Success x 2 at target 3)

[Malevolence] The boiler is hot in more ways than one, and so are the pipes, but only some of them. They don't go very far but still they loop and tangle over themselves. Perhaps the secret is in their pattern?

[Molly Quincannon] [[Paused!]]