rome ♔ watch your worlds fade to black

[behindcloseddoors]

♬ three in the morning - homestuck

WHO || Alanna, Kate, Bo, Rose [Closed]
WHAT || The Knights investigate a strange series of fires
WHERE || Rome, Italy
WHEN || Jan 15th, evening, almost 6pm [backdated]
HOW || Actionspam. Single thread, don't worry about maintaining tagging order.

The Knights arrive at the scene of the fire several hours after the fact.  It's clearly gutted the building, located in a commercial district of Rome.  Only one fire truck remains, along with several police cruisers and a van marked 'Arson Investigation Unit' in Italian.  The police team seems hard at work combing over the scene.

A small sign in Italian hangs half-legible over the door.  Though the fire is out, the building still smolders, even as water drips from the blackened timbers and stone.  

Comments

[trebond]

[ alanna follows after, brow furrowing. it doesn't sound like any magic she's used, but she's not thom. thom would know in an instant what this was, and alanna could do, if she hadn't been neglecting her studies with solace. her hands ball a little as she begrudgingly surges forward. ]

Where I'm from, Chief Billox, any video would be a miracle. [ no but really. alanna's not exactly hiding her purple fucking eyes rolling around rome, so italy or not, she isn't dropping the not-shadowkind card on this one. she'll own it. ]

[behindcloseddoors]

[ the chief gives a very faint smile at the joke, giving alanna a second glance as they pick through what's clearly the interior of a store, en route to the backroom. ]

I hope no one's given you trouble for it, in this city. [ she hardly sounds like she'd be surprised though. the assistant leads them to a location where another member of the arson team and a police officer are viewing a tape on a monitor that shows some fire damage. at a point marked on the tape as 2am, a man approaches the main entrance and begins picking the lock. after letting himself in, he moves through the store, apparently casing it out. he pays particular attention to support beams and the like, and makes a few notes in a small notebook he carries. suddenly, he breaks out in a sweat, looks about furtively, and departs in haste.

"Now here's where it gets interesting," says the assistant.

a few minutes thereafter, the image of a flaming humanoid figure floats into the room through a wall, which bursts into flame as the creature passes. the figure moves purposefully across the room toward the door by which kleese departed, igniting furniture along the way, then it exits through the door, setting its frame afire as well.

they back it up to an excellent head shot of the intruder and freeze it there. simone frowns, folding her arms. ]

I know that man. Raimando Moretti - a professional arsonist with ties to the local mob - the DiRisio family.

[killmypatience]

[Kate watches the video carefully, taking in all the details, including the firestarter. Even with her status as a Shadowkind, she's never seen something like that before. Her eyes widen slightly, confusion crossing her features (will save 11).]

Does Moretti usually have this kind of MO? He looks ... surprised.

[Aka she doesn't think he's the guy but he's probably a good guy to talk to.]

[trebond]

If this is his work, his magic may have taken time to manifest. He could be having a hard time dealing with it. [ she furrows her brow as she watches the tape, then looks up at simone and kate. ] But where I'm from, children either had a knack or they didn't.

Whoever's magic it is, he had to have known it was coming. Look at that. [ she points to his sweating, furtive expression. ] I wouldn't say he's happy to be dealing with magic at all. Do you know where we can find him?

[behindcloseddoors]

[ simone shakes her head ] Moretti's done some time before for professional arson, but it's the standard kind of job. This is... well, something else. But I think you're both right - it looks as if he's expecting something, but at the same time, he looks ... very nervous.

He's been out of jail for awhile now, but he's all but vanished recently. Anyone with DiRisio connections might be able to tell us more about where he is.

[littledhampir]

Looks like the ghost of Arson's past if you ask me.

[Rose piping up with a comment that was in no way helpful... Though it did spark a thought in her mind, one that she'd stew on til they split away from the investigator.]

[killmypatience]

[Kate smirks at that comment, before turning back to the investigator. That brand of humor reminds her of someone but she isn't entirely sure who. More unanswered questions, thanks to the grasp.]

Do you know where to find those connections?

[behindcloseddoors]

You're probably going to have to hit the streets. Our undercover cop outted himself last month and we haven't been able to work in a replacement successfully yet - they'll still be on the watch for it.

[trebond]

So, they'll have moved their court. [ give her a break she's working on adjusting her phrasings. ] Some of the worse rogues of my realm extorted fees from locals in the area, calling it protection. Do you know of anyone in the city dealing with some equal harassment by this mob of yours? Or a name perhaps your spy acquired.

[behindcloseddoors]

Not a bad idea for a lead. There's a grocer about a mile west of here - I can write down the name and address - who we think has been paying up regularly to the DiRisios. [ she scribbles down the info on a pad and holds it out ]

[succubestie]

[Bo reaches out at takes the pad, taking a look at the information.]

We'll check it out. It's a good a place to start as any.

[She glances back up.]

Anything else you think we should know?

[behindcloseddoors]

"Just to be careful. Not sure how much experience you have with these mafia types, but they don't forgive easily and they don't forget a face."

[littledhampir]

[Rose straightened at that, looking around at each of the team with a look that can best be described as;

Yeah... about that.]

Good to know.

[trebond]

[ sense motive of 15 has alanna taking a moment to pause and observe rose. yep something just went down. she, too, straightens. ]

Your warning's appreciated. If you learn anything more, send word. [ the phrase is 'call me,' alanna. with a nod and a polite smile, she'll excuse herself, waiting just outside to jump rose about what the hell that was. ]

[killmypatience]

[Kate's also noticing that there's something ... off about that (sense motive 15), but she keeps her smile professional and extends her hand to the arson investigator again.]

Thank you for the information. We'll be in touch.

[succubestie]

[Bo, on the other hand, just nat 20'd hers. Have a look, Dhampir. Rose gonna have so explainin' to do.]

[behindcloseddoors]

[ simone gives kate's hand a firm shake. ] Thank you again for coming out. We'll let you know if our labs turn up anything else.

[trebond]

What was that about? [ alanna asks rose as the team escapes earshot of simone. ]

[littledhampir]

Yeaah... There was an incident in Chicago... Long story short. This face? [Jerking a thumb towards herself.] Chances of them remembering it are pretty good.

[trebond]

Chicago? [ her geography knowledge is 8 cut her some slack. all she knows is that's definitely not where they are. ]

[killmypatience]

It's a city in America.

[Kate exhales slowly. Great. That's one face burned - but it's not something they can't handle.]

So you stay in the car. At least when we're dealing with their contacts.

[littledhampir]

[She looks like she's about to argue but [Roll 11] finally settles for a barely audible groan and borderline dramatic sigh.]

Fine. [A beat, her face suddenly brightening.] So does that mean I get to drive? Ya know, in case you need to get out of there fast.

[trebond]

[ well. alanna would have encouraged rose to stay back at the hotel more than anything else, but she will defer to kate with the knowledge that kate knows this world far better than alanna does, and if she says the car is safe, it likely is. ]

I see no reason you can't, provided you can navigate the city.

[littledhampir]

Isn't that what GPS is for?

[She won't argue if Alanna insists somebody else take the keys. She has the vague sense that nobody ever lets her behind the wheel of a car.

No. Really. It's canon.]

[killmypatience]

[Kate's eyebrows climb a bit before nodding.]

Just don't take us on the wrong way down any one way streets.