A Messenger Comes [attn Spirit mages, Sam]

[CourtCat]

As usual when Shoshannah works her Will, it's night and she's away from anywhere she's been before, anywhere that might easily trace back to where she's staying for now (though chances are good that she'll be back at the house soon - the wards need maintenance, after all), and so this time she finds herself near Cheesman Park where she has it on good authority spirits will be easy to find.

Ghosts love Shoshannah, it must be said.

So there's a coin, and some characters traced in the air (for those talented, insightful, what have you, they glow in the air as an Independence Day sparkler's trail might), and spirits called to act as messengers. The message is simple.

Shoshannah Mitchell of the Dreamspeakers bids greeting and asks for any information you might have about Gabriel Russo and Marco Landi, also Dreamspeaker, or their students. It will be accepted with gratitude.

======================
Niko's entrance included to show someone else was there.
CourtCat @ 12:20PM
In which case, I'll roll here. Spirit Messenger, -1 taking time, +WP
Roll: 2 d10 TN4 (4, 7) ( success x 2 ) VALID
Denver @ 12:21PM
OOC Room is required to remind you, niko, that you will be baked, and then there will be cake.

[errin]

A spirit messenger finds Connor as he makes his way out of an office building downtown. He looks like a messenger, himself, which in a way he kind of is, except he doesn't deliver sandwiches or messages of his own. He's stepping aside, holding the door for one of the be-suited employees of the building when he feels the cold brush of something Other.

Which he greets with a great big beaming smile. "Oh hey!" Someone glances at the young man smiling at thin air and looks away, thinking he's crazy. Maybe he is crazy.

Connor is oblivious. His expression becomes serious, intent as he listens to the message. "Ah," he says, because he doesn't know how to send the messenger away. He doesn't know what he's doing at all. "Tell Shoshannah that Connor Whitman says hey? But uh, I've never heard of those people. Oh but hey maybe-!" but alas, the spirit moves on when his message is delivered.

Connor looks around, noticing and not minding that people are deliberately avoiding eye contact. Shrugging his shoulders, he continues on his way, pulling out his cell phone as he does to send a message by more mundane means to Alyssa Solomon (who will no doubt be regretting giving Connor her number in 3...2...)

Text: Hey! Someone like Mellie just gave me a message! (It's unlikely difficult to imagine his enthusiasm.) They said Shoshana Mitchel of the dream speakers wants info on Gabriel Ruso, Marco Landy, or their students. Sound familiar?

[Samael]

The strength of the Dreamspeakers is, occasionally, a weakness. The Tradition most renowned for spirit mages are a fractious lot and that allows them incredible versatility as a Tradition; it also means that there was no centralized location for the Technocracy to decimate during the Reckoning in the same way that the Hermetics, the Choristers and others were torn asunder.

Unfortunately, this also means that they can be difficult to get ahold of.

Shoshannah has a plan, and when she calls spirits to her in order to get a message sent out she gets two spirits who can serve as messengers. Perhaps appropriately for the season, they take the form of a pair of crows with a sense of rot around them. Whether the rot is from the spirits themselves of the fact that they are the spirits of Carrion birds, who can say? But it is a supposedly-haunted park, so it could really go either way.

They listen, and they are swayed by Soshannah's request. They flap their wings once and are gone.

Those with Spirit within the city who have at least an rudimentary level of training in Spirit are visited by the spirits, who seek out those that can see them and deliver the message.

No one from outside of the city makes contact with Shoshannah. Whether whoever is inside the city makes contact with her...well, that is up to them.

[Basically if you have Spirit of 1 then congratulations, you get this message from Shoshannah! Assuming that you are in the general city metropolitan area (including the vicinity of the Chantry) as of November first, that is. If you are outside of the city then let me know where your PC was and I will let you if you got it.]

=====================================

Alyssa is in her apartment downtown checking up on a couple potential workleads over the phone when she hears the beep that says she has a text message. That's about when she looks over her shoulder, sees the strange dead bird sitting on her bookstand. (She has no bust of Pallas, alas.)

The occultist raises an eyebrow, as if to say Yes? and then receives the message. She knows no Shoshannah Mitchell, but she of course knows what a Dreamspeaker is. Interesting. As the bird flutters off she checks her text messages and smirks when she sees Connor's text. A few quick fingerstrokes and she's sending one back.

Names mean nothing 2 me. Dreamspeakers does. U and I should chat more. I got sum things U oughta know.

She sets the phone down and rubs at her eyes, then goes to do her own summoning. She already has a seal readied, kept underneath her bed and with a heavy scraping sound the sleeping surface is pulled away. She gets out her ritual knife (HIS ritual knife) and slices into her palm. Blood drips over the candles and before it's dried she lights them. The heat bubbles her liquid lifeforce and she presses her palms together, beginning the summoning.

What is summoned doesn't quite have a distinct form; it is more like shadow coalescing from the dark parts of the room. It hisses and approaches her and she narrows her eyes, grinning as it is trapped in the seal.

"Dumbshit. Now you're going to deliver a message for me."

The creature roars (as much as you can roar when you can only whisper) and throws profane curses on the Hollow One's head, but they are futile. It knows it will obey, and so does she.

And thus the shadowspawn appears in front of Shoshannah when she arrives back at Kalen's from her conversation with Sid. The creature draws out of collected shadow and stares balefully at the Dreamspeaker, then speaks in its sibilant, malicious tone.

Alyssa Solomon of the Hollow Ones says hello, and says that while she doesn't know the names you speak of, she feels she should make greeting. You may find her at [address of her apartment downtown], or by phone at [phone number].

And then it dissipates, its mission accomplished so that it can return to wherever Alyssa pulled it from.

Samael @ 6:02PM
[[Spirit 2: Messenger Spirit back! -1 specialty focus, -1 taking time. WP because it would be JUST MY LUCK.]]
Roll: 2 d10 TN3 (7, 10) ( success x 3 ) [WP] VALID

CourtCat @ 6:02PM
Witnessed!

[CourtCat]

At some point, Shoshannah has a charged phone and remembers it at the same time, and sends a text back. Red Rocks is usually the best place to run into me. I'm out in the suburbs most of the time. Any chance you know someone who might know those names? More information's a good thing. All of which is to say, this is a stranger. Better to meet on neutral ground, first.