Ravenous

[mnemosyne]

Ginger update, from Sera

Sera and Elijah saved someone who had been attacked by - well, what seems to be a cannibal - outside the Hill-Top Tavern a few weeks ago. The attacker had a resonance a like unrelenting hunger, but did not seem to be using magic. He used a knife to incapacitate the victim, and was eating the guy's cheek when they intervened.

There wasn't any need for official involvement & the victim is fine so there wasn't anything in the newspaper. We haven't seen any similar reports since then, but the attacker is still out there. He was laying in wait, looking particularly for someone quite healthy, and was aware that he was transgressing (not sure if that means: breaking someone else's rules or something else entirely) so it could be that he is normally contained or constrained somehow.

This guy was dangerous. The guy he attacked was alone yes, but was fit and strong. They were more focused on saving the victim than following the attacker after they scared him off so no other details.

Sorry for the late notice but wanted the info out there.

[vesta]

Before now, it had all been word of mouth and Chinese whispers. To start with, the existence of Ginger had been kept hidden from him. It’s a felony, they explained. Then? He didn’t want anything to do with it, with them. He just didn’t care.

And now? He cares. And after carrying around a cheap, essentially disposable phone for a while, he’s finally bumped into Grace to get everyone’s favourite Awakened sex line set up. He calls and almost rolls his eyes as the line rings for a moment before the computerised voice answers. “Hello, Ginger.”

He doesn’t take his time surfing through the message, digging up the Awakened history that the system holds. Doesn’t worry about the SCREW THE POLEEECE messages between Hawksley and Pan. There’s one Kalen told him about that he’s trying to find. Turns out it was posted by Sera. He follows up on the original message about the attack they stopped.

-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-

“I bumped into one of their victims this morning, although he used to be part of them. He’d been severely beaten, had ‘weak’ carved into him, and had his teeth smashed out. His spirit was still hanging around, so I managed to get a bit more information about what’s going on.

This guy’s name was Oliver. I’m going to try to nudge the investigation so that his family can find out that he won’t be coming home. Anyway, these guys? They eat people, looking for the strong. That’s why they hunt down the young, fit and healthy. I don’t know how many of them there are, but he made it sound like some kind of addiction. He wasn’t able to control it, so the others tore him apart. It almost sounded like a pack, or something like that. They thought he was a risk to them, so they killed him. Made sure he couldn’t feed any more.

Just to top it off, there’s someone behind it. A woman, or at least something female. I don’t know any more than she’s doing something to these guys, making them stronger somehow. But, apparently, she’s going to find us. Or me, I’m not entirely sure what he meant by ‘you’. I’m hoping that it was just empty threats he was making, but guys? If you find a feeling of cold, ravenous hunger? Be very careful.

[-ix-]

Slight information update (indirectly from Lucy):
a.There is a cult
b.They eat people
c.They might be based nearer the chantry (as far as source of magic anyway)
d.Sketches posted in chantry

Be safe people. If you don't want to do things alone, you are welcome to call me. Have gun. Will travel.

-K.

[I have no idea if anyone is going to want crashspace that isn't the chantry for this particular crisis, but it's come up on other occasions - also feel free to call me. It isn't glamorous, but we have space. In this instance, that looks like it will put you closer to danger than the city is, but you know. FYI]

['Kalen I am coming to your place to sleep, also I hate it when you speak don't even talk to me' is valid. Just saying. I have met me. I know.]

[HDub]

Elijah here,

Here is what is going down that I know about:

Lucy and I were in the park and I heard a voice. After looking a little more closely at the source of the voice, we found out that it was the ghost of Jeremy Tran- one of the missing people referenced in the newspaper from awhile back. (Insert page and reference to newspaper article here, the character would put it in but the player has no idea how to reference this). He was looking for his dog, Jack. Thinking that maybe we could help him resolve his issues, we tried to look back at what was going on in the park in the summer.

So, looking into the past, Lucy said that she saw these four people come down out of nowhere on this guy, incapacitate him, and took him away. They also killed his dog, which from what I understand was pretty disconcerting. They took him away and the next thing that we see is that Jeremy looks like he's lost his heart in a literal sense and as though someone had actually eaten him.

There was another person with us, too, and she felt like the entirety of a renewing/devouring experience but I didn't get to catch her name.

[mnemosyne]

There seem to be four young men left, plus their leader. One of them was killed. -0+A mage who survived an attack by the pack said that their leader is probably stronger than Sera. So: an adept. Or something else, entirely.

The pack: one of the four may be awake, the rest are not, just believers.

Sera has the address of their lair, but they know that there was a survivor. So, they may disappear or decide to become more aggressive.

The house itself is strongly warded against scrying, and moreover has been Awakened by the person or entity who feels like devouring.

--

Grace if you want to search public records for ownership info on the house, go for it. No trace, and don't try to scry the property. Sooner is better.

The Adept is the key + something has to be done soon. Volunteers raise your hand.

[-ix-]

I have requests out to see if anyone has encountered something like this, but more information may be helpful for that and for figuring out what might be the most effective tactic against the pack leader. Can you put me in touch with the survivor?

-K.

[mnemosyne]

We can't. Figured she was safer out of town and got her out of dodge.

The updates from Sera do not sound like Sera but Dan does have regular access to her phone.

-----

Sera did experience everything through the survivor's eyes, though. If you have questions not answered here she should be able to answer them as well as the survivor.

[-ix-]

Mostly I need to know if there were indications of ceremonial magic or rituals. Also, if you get the impression the Awakened house ties into her power or their power (as if they Awakened a hungry landscape, perhaps?). And if there are any specifics about their feeding - whether they eat the hears for example. Elijah mentioned they removed a heart, but he doesn't know if they ate it or sacrificed it or just dropped it on the ground.

Specific details like that I can tie to a creature or ritual. Cannibalism is a rather non-specific thing to be working with. And it's pretty much all I know so far, outside of their victim profile and their Resonance.

[-ix-]

And, between an old friend of mine and Danny, we may know more.

Danny found accounts of the effects of a ritual, though sadly not the ritual itself, that seems mostly to account for what we're seeing. If it is the case, we're looking at an Aztec ritual that grants speed and strength for 24 hours following their cannibalism. This can be addictive and can lead to Quiet. (This follows with what we know.) He also found a way to rid them of the addiction, which means there are, in theory, more options than just killing them to stop them.

I've also heard that there is a rogue Hermetic possibly in this area who was showing signs of being afflicted with Jhor before she disappeared and there is evidence she may have been experimenting with cannibalistic rituals. Given what I know of her, a ritual to gain strength would have appealed to her, and with the effects of Jhor...cost may have ceased to be an issue. Or, perhaps her willingness to do it is how she came by the Jhor, honestly I don't know.

I have attached her picture. [See Howl's Gallery.] This is Victoria Drake. Serafine, did you see her in the survivor's memory? Meanwhile, she was most recently in Boston, so I will see what I can find out about Boston and about her. It seems likely she is involved.

-K.

[mnemosyne]

The survivor never saw her, but Sera says that she could sense the woman's resonance inside the house. The physical attacks were made by the worshipers and the survivor never made it inside.

We'll try to throw together a map based on the memories.

If the ritual gives her power, well - they killed several Awakened.