[Log] The Hollyhock Society

[thewatchers]

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In Wengen, Switzerland - the quiet was interrupted by a blatant daylight kidnapping attempt, where Noah Adank slipped out of his kidnapper’s hands by turning completely intangible, somehow snagging a cufflink in the process. Within hours, Daybreak sent an investigative team thanks to a local officer in tune to supernatural affairs.

When the group arrives, they’ll be met by Officer Caspari who gives them full run of the scene, and a chance to interview the victim, who is idly tracing a now-familiar mark on the back of his hand, still shaken by what happened but willing to cooperate. Now with a possible lead, it’s time to track down the kidnappers and see if there’s a chance to rescue the ones who had already gone missing.

Time is off the essence if they're to locate the culprits before the trail goes cold.

Comments

sobs in nighshifts i'm finally here,

[standless]

[Jonathan, for the time being, is in his phantom body- the one that looks like..well. Him, in other words. But while listening to the discussion the group has, he quietly gives a cough to interrupt.]

Perhaps I could scout ahead? I would need someone to watch this body of course, but I imagine a small animal far easier to ignore than any single being.

[And, well, it goes unsaid that he could likely get those alternate views that it didn't seem they had any means for.]

[stavros]

"Very well, Mr. Joestar. You can count on us." She nods, still keeping an eye out above them. "Let us know, and we will proceed."

[improbablenotimpossible]

He looks over to Sira, giving them a grim nod of understanding. "It would not be the first time Vampires use their victims as weapons," The detective couldn't quite keep the bitterness out of his voice. "And yes, that would be a good idea, if there's another way in - even how a place is designed may tell us much of what we'll be up against."

[emergensirations]

They notice the bitterness of Sherlock. They didn't deal with vampires much. Vampires weren't really looking to share souls. But they know the trick. Pretend to still be the innocent until the prey got close enough. They weren't sorry for it now. It was what those hosts had needed.

Still, they add, "We do have some advantage. I'm sure you can tell the difference of the dead as well as I can sense it."

With that bit of wisdom, they turn their gaze to the other man.

"What do you mean watch your body?"

[standless]

Jonathan nods- and then nods again, before blinking at Sira. "Oh- it's quite literal! Though I should have realized that would sound rather odd- you'll see soon enough however, just one moment...Here should be fine yes?" he asks as he finds a place to sit, looking to the others.

Assuming it is, he nods. "Right- now..."

For a moment it seems nothing happens. Nothing except the man slumping slightly in rest. Like he's sleeping, one could argue- except that the body isn't breathing.

Instead, something moves from underneath the hair at the back of the neck- small, scrabbling slightly, and- "Here! This is what I meant!" Jonathan calls, the tiny bat waving a wing from his own false-body's head. "If even just one of you can keep an eye on the body I've been using, I should be able to fly out ahead and search for some alternate means inside."

[emergensirations]

They're told to watch and wait. They hear the amusement in the man's tone and their arms fold. Of course he was going to be cryptic about it. Everyone here was weird.

But they wait. And they watch. And slowly their arms unfold as their back straightens. Did... did he just...

Then, out comes the bat.

"Wha-!? wait! Wha-!?" They run up and grip the body by the shirt collar, shaking it, peering at it, tying to open an eye. "... what...?"

[stavros]

"That's just what Mr. Joestar does!" Kokoro offers helpfully(?). "He was once a human, but now he's a bat. It's some manner of very long story. While he's doing that..."

She starts climbing up the edge of a rock wall, looking to get a better view.

[improbablenotimpossible]

Sherlock starts climbing, there's something almost gecko-like in the effortlessness of his movement, holding still in a similar position, watching and waiting.

[emergensirations]

They're distracted from the empty and abandoned body by the girl going to leave. And then Sherlock too.

"Wait...!" They call out once again, but this time it's quiet. They glance back at the body. They guess they'll just stay behind and watch it.

They give it another prod. Creepy, empty thing.

[standless]

"Oh- I am sorry if I've startled you," Jonathan apologizes, completely missing why Sira is unnerved. The body moves almost bonelessly under each poke and shake. "But please try not to manhandle my body too much- while I'm certain Rex can make another, it was extremely challenging to talk him down from his plans...as it stands," he explains. "This body- this bat- is the one technically considered my 'real' one for now. I'm actually a spirit who is quite trapped you see!" It's a calm explanation, and one that he gives while carefully taking off the odd shirt he's wearing. It's set carefully upon his 'head'. "There. I suspect a clothed bat would be just a bit suspicious."

With a smile- however much a bat can smile, he launches into the air. "I'll try not to take long- as promised, I'm only going to be looking for an alternate way in, rather than slipping inside too far."

From there the bat takes off- flapping just as much as any regular one from the area likely would. Technically speaking, the region doesn't have any fruit bats- but they do have plenty of similarly sized and coloured ones, and much like those, he's capable of echolocating.

Which is, of course, what he's doing. It's not only useful for the scouting, but it makes him blend in much more!

[thewatchers]

At first, it seems like there's nothing in this high altitude where the snow lay permanent in the alps, but as Jonathan's echolocation bounces, he'll realize there are rock formations that are too vertical, too smooth to be natural under layers of snow.

A good lookover (squeakover?) would give the outline of a citadel or castle that is nearly completely submerged under the snow save for a few thin patches on a few sides. Curious...

[standless]

Certainly something to share with the others, suffice to say. The bat flies back once he's done his search and 'scan', soon coming to alight upon his false body's head. "I have some interesting observations," he begins, before explaining what seemed odd- the strangely smooth stone within the snow, the fact that so much even was under it...once finished, he tilts his head. "I must confess, I did not expect our destination to be...buried."

[stavros]

"I see." Kokoro starts coming down the side of the cliff carefully. "It does make sense for something in the mountains; much more easily hidden. Let us proceed; surely they have a tunnel system that -- wah!"

She slips and tumbles the last metre.

[improbablenotimpossible]

"So... perhaps..." Sherlock trails off before he suddenly grabs for Kokoro as she tumbles.

"Careful -"

[emergensirations]

Sira waits at the bottom, arms folded. They don't look concerned with the girl's fall.

"If no one gets killed," They mutter.

They get up to their feet.

"Well, I'm not surprised. Is that not what humans do with the dead? Put them underground? There's no light there either."

[standless]

"Oh-!" He almost moves to help- but, he does need to get back into the body. There's a bit of shuffling around at the back of the neck once he has his shirt back on, and then soon enough Jonathan's humanoid self is back in action.

Well, Kokoro's alright at least. "...The dead in many cultures are certainly buried yes, but not like this. What I felt was if anything an entire building- something to live in."

[stavros]

[Sherlock does manage to grab Kokoro's arm, and she restores her grip on the wall, returning a look that's half grateful and otherwise embarrassed. She climbs the rest of the way down with a red-faced grumble.]

Then let us proceed. What's the best way down there?

[improbablenotimpossible]

"Depending on what we're dealing with, there might be smaller entrances - for smaller forms... even mist, it's not an uncommon tack for Vampires that can shift shape... may prove a problem unless we want to give up on any pretenses of stealth." Sherlock answers slowly as he scales down.

"Or we may have a flushed door hidden by snowfall, a closer look should tell us what we have to work with... or - perhaps the entrance is not on the building itself? A tunnel for example...."

[emergensirations]

They go to huff again and suggest that maybe the vampires like it down there. But, with another vampire right here, they hold back. For a moment.

"Mist?" They repeat, head tilting up at Sherlock. They glance out over the snowy landscape again before looking back. "If there's no other entrance way... I can try something. But it can't be long and you have to keep me safe."

They clearly don't like the idea, despite it being their own.

[thewatchers]

Thankfully whatever Sira may have up their sleeve wasn't necessary as a search of the area around (or some unfortunate stepping) would reveal a hatch on the ground, revealing a set of stairs leading down. Careful, there is some ice on it.

[standless]

Jonathan is soon back on his feet, moving forward with a frown. "Is it anything like what I did just now?" he begins. "You did the same for myself, so-"

Crunch.

"Oh?" He's stepped on ice, apparently. Which normally wouldn't be surprising except- "...I think something might be under this."

[stavros]

Kokoro carefully walks over... okay, she's doing that ridiculous-looking penguin walk that you'll know and understand if you live someplace that's covered in snow and ice 3/4 of the year. Hey, it's the best way not to wipe out, and she's already done that once today. She crouches down, brushes some snow off the hatch door, and points before tugging the door up and open.

"Let us proceed," she says before climbing down.

[emergensirations]

Well, that settles that. They're just fine with saving that trick for another day, even if it means they're still useless here.

"It's not quite," They tell Jonathan. "It's more... ethereal." And risky.

They peer down at the open door and decide to take a leap. They're cotton, so there's not bone to break.

[thewatchers]

The stairs went down someways, the ice slowly receding, before leveling out into a hallway towards a door - left unlocked, either by a careless resident or by sheer arrogance that no one would have found the trap door.

It leads to an intersection of the hall, another stairway leading Down that is cloaked in darkness, a staircase to the west leading Up that looks well-worn, and a corridor towards the East lit by gaslamps.

[standless]

He might not be walking quite like that, but he's at least making it safely along through the hatch. With a confused nod in Sira's direction- he's heard the other, even if he doesn't quite get it- he soon follows the group in.

Quietly, he looks about.

"I do not feel it wise to split up...but I do fear we may not have much choice if time is of the essence..." But even if they split up, which way would they go? At the very least it would be better to go in pairs if they must.