black rock ♔ with my sad bones and my soiled throne

[sternshield]

WHO || Erky, Maxwell, Liam, Thoster
WHAT || The Knights track down a message from a mysterious woman in trouble
WHERE || Black Rock, Utah
WHEN || April 22nd, 2015
HOW || Actionspam

It's after noon when they arrive, a bleak, dreary day, and an ominous blanket of low, gray clouds hangs over the landscape.  A recent rain has left everything damp, giving the scenery an air of decay.  It seems there is no end to the parade of empty fields and derelict farmhouses flanking this stretch of road.   As they drive towards the coordinates of Black Rock, Thoster's phone abruptly rings.

Comments

[behindcloseddoors]

[ the voice cuts in and out again, and she's clearly so panicked that she can barely register what he's saying ] Oh god, please-- please, you have to help us. Please. I don't know - I don't know where we are--

[ex_boning176]

[Liam, meanwhile, is straining to listen to Thoster's phone conversation. Which is sort of difficult with Max chuckling beside him (listen 12). This tag is mainly meant to serve as proof of life because he is also present.]

[bluffcheck]

Shh, it's alright. It' alright now. We'll find you. What's your name, lass? [He's trying to help calm her down?? Idk if that is diplomacy or something. He got a nat 20 so he's just doing that big brother thing he does.]

Tell me what you can see. What you hear. Anything.

[behindcloseddoors]

I-I... my name is Marilyn. I don't know where I am. All I see is... is this room, and it's so dark. There are... shelves, and the ceiling-- it slopes down one side. It can't be more than five feet long. Please--

[bluffcheck]

Marilyn. Beautiful name. I'm Thoster. Got a crew here that just wants to help you, lass.

[behindcloseddoors]

I... I tried calling 911, but they couldn't understand me... The signal must have been bad, so I just-- I just started dialing numbers at random. I think the batteries are dying. I think-- Shh, shh, it's ok, it's ok -- God, I don't think I have much time left before it's dead.

[bluffcheck]

Save it, then. Call me if you can see or hear anything more. We're coming for you, Marilyn. On my honor as a bard, we'll do everything we can to find you.

[behindcloseddoors]

Please. Please, it's getting harder to breathe in here and--- [ a listen check of 15+ might be enough to catch the sound of crying in the background. a crying baby, no less ] Hurry. [ and with that, she hangs up ]

[bluffcheck]

[Pulling his phone away, Thoster stares at it grimly.]

A woman and a child. She doesn't know where they are. Somewhere dark and cramped. She says it's getting harder to breathe. We've got to find them.

[beatemup]

Next time, put in on speaker so all of us here can hear it clearly. [He goes on silent for a few second. There's something weird with that woman but it's hard to pull. After a short moment, he manages to make something about it.(Wis 15)] Sounds fishy to me. It's been at least half day since she called us. If she was really in hard to breathe enclosed space, she would have been dead by now. [There's also this other thing but he is not the smartest guy in the car, so what do you expect?]

[sternshield]

Maybe there's a hole she's not aware of.

[bluffcheck]

Best way to find out is to have a look around the town, aye?

[beatemup]

[Max nods in agreement.] Aye, but proceed with doubt. This whole thing still feels wrong to me. [He commands, playing his role as the team leader.] Anyone has any idea how we should do this?

[ex_boning176]

[It seemed kind of weird that she was randomly calling numbers and happened to really luck out, but Liam doesn't actually say as much out loud or ... contribute much of anything in the way of an actual plan because he's like fifteen and these guys are all adults. Baby's first mission, but he doesn't know how this is supposed to work yet or if he's even allowed to add his two cents--or, you know, if he will be taken seriously if he does. So he just kind of sits there listening to everyone else go back and forth for now instead.]

[bluffcheck]

Might as well move from one end of town to another. Can't be that big. There's no time to waste with lives on the line.

[He promised her that he would find her. He intends to keep that promise.]

[sternshield]

[ the empty farmland stretches for miles, broken only by the occasional hill or bracken-lined riverbed. farmhouses - most surrounded by dilapidated outbuildings and the rusty skeletons of old machinery - dot the countryside, but the fields are empty and many of the houses are boarded up. there are few vehicles on the narrow, empty roads.

ahead, they finally see a sign: "Black Rock. Elev. 648. Pop 282." at least, that's what it seems to say; a dense coating of rust has obscured some of the letters. ahead, a cluster of buildings and leafless trees sits brooding and lifeless. just outside of town, a long brick building sprawls next to an empty soccer field. further ahead is an old gas station, its plate glass windows covered in plywood. ] Not much of a village.

[bluffcheck]

Looks like it's been deserted for years. Wynn said some still live here though.

[sternshield]

[ "downtown" seems to consist of a single crossroads, with commercial buildings running about a block north and south from the center of the town. a number of homes are scattered along the roads to the north and west. the roads leading east and west have few buildings near the crossroads. they may make wisdom checks as they look around. ] Maybe they're all off raising a barn together.

[beatemup]

See anything suspicious? [He stands in the middle of the crossroad and looks around searching for something that seems off. Sign of life or U.F.O, maybe? Wis 13.]

[bluffcheck]

[Spot 24?? Does he see anything suspicious??]

[ex_boning176]

[Liam is looking around, but he's not really sure what it is he's supposed to be looking for. The place seems deserted, which I guess he sort of expected from the briefing. For now he's focused on trying to think of anywhere that might have a basement or underground shelter or something that might stand out among the other buildings (wisdom 20 total).]

[sternshield]

[ a number of vehicles - primarily old-model pickup trucks and beat up sedans - are parked along the main drag. most are streaked with dirt and rust, as though they've been sitting there for years.

one stands out, however. it's not a truck, but a minivan, and it looks like it could have been parked there yesterday. judging by its delaware license plates, it's a long way from home. its tires are flat and the front passenger door is ajar. thoster notices that the tires appears to have been slashed multiple times by a sharp instrument. ]

[bluffcheck]

[He moves towards the van, brow furrowed.]

Seems someone wanted to make sure this one didn't leave.

[And since its open, he'll head into the car and have a look around (search 15)]

[sternshield]

[ the glove compartment contains a registration, under the name michael delaney. there's also a receipt for an oil change dated six months ago - under the name marilyn delaney. ]

[beatemup]

[Max follows Thoster to the minivan. While Thoster is looking for things inside, he looks around outside, searching for more clues, footprints and the like. Though he probably won't find anything. (wis 3)] Find anything in there?