OOC: Shawn Rolls Occult + Wits to determine his location, with the following results

0 Successes: In the Belly of the Beast....

1-3 Successes: At the Gate...

4+ Successes: At the Perfect Spot...

OOC: 15:29, Today: Shawn Cramer rolled 1 success using 6d10 with the World of Darkness nWoD system with a target of 8, rerolling 10s with rolls of 7,5,8,7,4,7. Occult + Wits + WP.

Shawn stood in front of a small, iron gate. Outside the air was thick with dark, billowing smoke. He could feel the acidic smog and feel the bits of ash in his mouth.

Gathering his bearings, Shawn could tell that this place ---- a small hole in the side of a hill with two chimneys up on high --- was somewhat on the outer edge of the Circus. Shawn had never been this far away from the Circus, he was perhaps a football field away from the large tents and spires that marked the Big Top.

The gate was ajar. It was just a matter of going inside.

Shawn swallowed heavily and carefully walked inside. In theory, Hogwash didn't want to actively murder him like Gaggles did, so this was safer than his last task. In theory.

It wasn't just a hole that Shawn was walking into, as he ducked his head under a thick, wooden beam to get inside.

A few steps into the blackness, and he realized it looked like some kind of coal mine.

A few steps more and he was swallowed instantly: only the dim, red light from the Circus' sky kept him from thinking he'd vanished. Then before he knew it, his feet were crunching over the coal dust and into the shaft after him. The air was suddenly cold and dirty and it invaded his lungs and stung his eyes. Underfoot was rough, Shawn tripped and stumbled for a second, the sound echoing off the walls.


Through the claustrophobic tunnel there was foul air and suffocating darkness on all sides.

Shawn realized he was in complete darkness now. There was no way of telling where he was, if there was any choice or divergences in the paths.

Everything was dark.

OOC: Shawn Chooses:

1) Listening: The Storyteller makes a Wits + Composure roll for the player, and keeps the result secret.

2) Smelling: The Storyteller makes a Wits + Composure roll and lets the player know if he succeeds.

Shawn goes completely still and silent and listens intently...

Shawn could hear the sounds of gears churning from somewhere deep in the tunnel to the right of him. There was also a 'clink'...'clink'...'clink' sound from that same direction.

Clearing out the sounds and focusing on his right side, all he could hear were was the silence of the darkness.

It was a stark choice to be sure: Head towards the sounds, or take his chances pushing deeper into the darkness.

Shawn didn't really like the idea of going further into darkness. His job was to find people, and gears meant machines, and machines meant people who used the machines, right? Plus, considering the hostile architecture of the Circus, there was every chance that he could just unknowingly walk right off a cliff. Carefully, he made his way through the tunnel to the right.

Following this logic, Shawn delve deeper into the tunnel, completely blind and only relying on his sense of hearing to direct him.

'clink'...'clink'...'clink'

The sounds were getting louder. The smell was becoming more like a garage. Older fumes of gasoline and metal tools became to become stronger.

Through the darkness, Shawn...

OOC: Shawn Chooses and then Rolls:

Wits + Composure +4: Shawn instinctively tries to notice something, taking his time to examine what is it through the darkness

Wits + Composure +1: Shawn takes in his surroundings quickly, trying to take in the information and react at the same time

Wits + Composure: Shawn reacts as quickly as possible, reacting immediately

Shawn takes in his surroundings quickly, trying to take in the information and react at the same time!

OOC: 07:56, Today: Shawn Cramer rolled 4 successes using 5d10 with the World of Darkness nWoD system with a target of 8, rerolling 10s with rolls of 10(+9),5,5,8,9. Wits + Composure +1.

Shawn took in surroundings quickly amid the distant clunking of gears and banging of metal on metal. He got the distinct sense that something, or someone what watching him. It wasn't something he saw, at least not initially, because the cave was still flooded with complete darkness. Instead, it was a sixth sense, a strange feeling not unlike that which Shawn had felt when sensing that someone was looking at him during class, perhaps another student or a teacher to make sure he was paying attention.

But now it was something else. First, just one eye in the darkness opened, revealing a reddish pupil amid a white, gooey-looking eye that appeared to be gelatinous and peering. Then, as if by some collective consciousness, other eyes opened. Soon the walls of  the tunnel and the ceiling were suddenly filled with eyes, all watching Shawn. The tunnel remained pitch-black.

Shawn fought down his rising panic as he paused in the middle of the tunnel. "H-hello? I'm here to see Master Hogwash?"

A torrent of buzzing whispers, some with deep husking voices, others with a high, shrill pitch began to talk over one another, filling the dark cavern with questions and comments all at once.

"He's here to see the Master!"

"He came into the Forge all by himself."

"He's a liar?"

"He came to see Hogwash, that's why he is here."

"He's Child Star."

"His name is Shawn..."

"His Mother drinks too much!"

"He betrayed others just like him."

"I saw he made friends with a boy that has no feeling."

"He's responsible for what happened to Eddy."

"He wants to get a big part, a really big part, then everything will work out."

"He knows someone that wants to commit suicide."

"He's scared, is he scared?"

"He found that body floating in the sewers and took something from it."

"I wouldn't trust him."

"He's lonely, really lonely."

"He can find the Master!"

"Crowley played him for a fool!"

"I don't know who he is and neither does he."

"He works with Griffix! He's a member of the Order!"

Shawn considered plugging up his ears as the barrage of voices continued, mentioning things he'd tried to keep secret or wanted to forget. Even the stuff he wasn't sure about, he didn't know, hearing it there just made him feel worse. Unless the voices were just mixing in truthful stuff to make the lies seem more plausible? It was something he'd done. He was about to flee further into the tunnel when he heard one of them mention the Order. "That's right, I'm with the Order, so if you could please tell me where I can find Master Hogwash, I'd be very grateful..."

"He's here to see the Master!"

"It's just up ahead!"

"He's a slave driver! Enter at your own risk!"

"Follow he tunnel, down, down, down..."

"He's from the Old Times..."

"He protects the kids from something worse..."

"Follow the tunnel down, down, down..."

"If you make it out, save us......."
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:05, Wed 22 Nov 2017.

"Thank you." Shawn gave the eyes a respectful nod, trying not to think too hard about the other things they'd said. Then he headed further down the tunnel, stepping carefully in the darkness.

As Shawn wandered down the hall, the eyes opened to either side of the path, forming two rows bordering the path that he was walking. The blinked and filled the tunnel with singular white orbs, the eyes on the walls and ceilings completely closing and now turning pitch-black. The only thing visible was the path.

The whispers continued as Shawn walked down what now felt like a runway as Shawn approached what felt like a dead ending.





"It's a door." A voice said, it was one of the eyes

"He's knows its a door." Another said

"No he doesn't, he cannot see in the dark." A third answered

"Yet he comes here anyway."

"He's brave for going down into chaos where its dangerous." Another voice observed

"He's a coward for ignoring his own feelings, because he'd rather not see the evil in himself." Another eye objected

"Open the Door!" A more practical eye suggested, opening up on the wall. And several others opened to form the outline of the door, an oval-shape in a backdrop of total darkness, the borders an edge of opening and closing red on white circles.

"Open the Door!"

"He's more afraid of what others think than opening the door."

"He should open the door!"

"He should run and save himself!"

Shawn didn't say anything in reply, trying to blot out to whispers even as he took their advice and reached out to try and find a handle on the door.

Shawn opened the door and a wall of heat pressed against him. And with it, the unmistakable smell of hot, burning metal. It filled his nostrils and forced itself into the back of his throat pushing up into his eyes and making them bleary.

He could see bright orange, liquid metal pouring from a large iron chamber and dripping into a receptacle. There were hissing sounds, the crackling and bubbling of liquid metal against cold water.

A face appeared in front of him.

It was a cartoon face.

A cartoon girl.

She was almost two-dimensional. Like a piece of paper that had been cut out and allowed to walk around, all flimsy and bending.

"Hello." She said in a friendly voice. Her two dimensional hand was holding what looked like a broom, it dragged along the floor beside her as she came up to Shawn.

"You must be in the wrong place. I don't recognize you. And you aren't owned by the Master. This place is dangerous. You should leave."

Shawn tried desperately not to stare - even thinking about how a cartoon person would function was making his head ache. Instead, he gave her a friendly and sympathetic smile. “I’m actually looking for Master Hogwash. I’m a messenger from the Order, and they want me to speak with him.”

The girl's frown became an upside down caricature, the kind that Shawn might have drawn in the corner of his notebook while in a boring class at school.

"We're slaves here. Do you know what that means? That means, we're hungry. And afraid. And because of that we get angry when people from outside come into here. I'll show you to Hogwash, but you better leave soon and stuff."

"Because I can't say for sure if the kids here will let you leave. Because dealing with Hogwash is one thing, and you might make a deal with him, but he understands that stuff happens all the time to outsiders that come down here."

"And that means you."

Shawn was surprised to learn where the danger might come from, but it made perfect sense when the girl explained it to him. "I'll be careful. Thanks for the warning."

"Follow me." The cartoon girl said. She moved like a card-board cut-out that was forced to walk, her shuffle was stiff and unbending. Her legs didn't so much move as her body tilted one way and then the other, like some invisible, giant hand was doing a poor job of making a puppet out of a paper figurine in an art class.

"You shouldn't stay down here too long in the Forge. This place operates outside of the rules for the rest of this...this place." She made an uncoordinated gesture with her two dimensional arms, which Shawn gauged to be a something akin to saying 'this place...this...Circus'. "Hogwash protects us from the Proprietor. He doesn't own our souls. But the longer your with Hogwash, the more you get...warped."

Shawn followed the girl as she walked in her strange way. “Are there signs I should watch out for? So I know when to wrap it up?”

"Well, for one thing, I'd probably come up with a reason why you want to take these kids out of here, and how you're going to protect them from the Proprietor."

"It might not look like it, but Hogwash is really protective of these kids and their souls. He knows that the Soul contest is going on, and so do I. It's obvious that your here to try to collect souls to put the Fortune Teller on top."

"I don't think Hogwash is stupid, so he probably thinks that your here to negotiate for the Souls of his kids. And that means one thing..."

"You're going to put them down the well. You're going to let the Proprietor take them." The girl said, disapprovingly.

As Shawn walked by, he saw muddied faces covered in grime. Some of the kids were hiding behind large welding machines, others viewed Shawn with sorry, sad eyes. Like stray cats hoping to be rescued.

“Does he have any souls that aren’t from these kids?” Shawn couldn’t help but notice that the girl hadn’t answered his question. “How does Hogwash warp people?”

The paper girl stopped and turned around. Wrinkles formed by her arms as her wrists folded, giving her a hands-on-hips posture.

"You sure ask a lot of nosy questions."

"No one is here that he isn't trying to protect. And that's all of it. Sometimes people don't know that they need to be protected. Sometimes their being protected from others and sometimes they are being protected from themselves."

"Everything here is really organized. Every soul is accounted for. If you don't see a soul here, its because Hogwash isn't protecting it.  Also and stuff, just so you know, sometimes souls that aren't under Hogwash's protection come here."

She gave Shawn a glare.

"No one is here who doesn't want to be here. If you stay here and change, its because you want to. And Hogwash doesn't do any 'warping.' Kids grow up and they change. Haven't you ever grown up and changed?" The girl asked defensively.

Shawn raised his hands placatingly even as he wondered what the Order had sent him into. Was he supposed to be tricking Hogwash into giving the Order the souls he was protecting, rather than paying for them? Or was this girl trying to trick him because she knew what he was here to do?“Sorry, I don’t mean to be nosy. I’ve never been here before is all.”

"The way I see it, you're doomed. Hogwash is gonna see right through your tricks." The girl said.

"You're here to take souls. His souls. Isn't that right?" She had stopped now, and was looking at him accusingly, demanding an answer.

“Do I look like I know how to take souls? Or what to do with them?” Shawn tried to give her a placating look, unsure of how much to give away. “Look, Mr. Cherrywinks is really close to losing the big soul race, and the Circus is probably going to look really different really soon. The Order wants Hogwash on our side, is all. Otherwise, well, Mr. Cherrywinks needs a lot of souls really fast, and if he notices Hogwash has a bunch here...do you think he’s going to ask?”

As if she didn't have a response, the girl just shook her head. A paper head, now that Shawn could see. It was like a piece of paper that revealed its thin-layed side as she moved it, conveying disapproval.

But what could she say?

It was true that Mr. Cherrywinks would come. And as Shawn knew, the Clown wouldn't simply ask politely for the souls that Hogwash was holding onto.

"It's this way." The girl said. They had made it through the iron grates of the forge, as the girl had led Shawn to a single door with a large, spinning lock. It almost looked like a safe of some kind. The wheel was old and had thin, rod-like spindles sticking out from a circular disk.

The girl tried to spin it, but it was clear she was too weak.

"Can you spin it?" She asked, giving up.

OOC: Is Shawn decides to spin the lock, Shawn Rolls  Strength

Shawn strained at the lock, but didn't do much better than her. "Maybe if we worked together...can you give me a hand?"

OOC: 22:32, Today: Shawn Cramer failed (no successes) using 2d10 with the World of Darkness nWoD system with a target of 8, rerolling 10s with rolls of 3,3. Strength.

"Does it look like I would be of help?" The girl snapped, folded paper hands on hips.

The dial wouldn't budge. Instead, it was stuck, heavy, warm spindles unwilling to move.

"Well. I don't know what to say. I mean, if we can't get the door open, I guess that's it for you and whatever you came here for." The girl said, unhelpfully.

"Maybe its just not your time or something. Or that you're better off going back the way you came." She said, discouraging.

OOC: Shawn decides the next course. Possibilities include trying to re-open the door, trying to convince the girl of something, or any other action.

Shawn briefly tried pushing and pulling at the door; he'd feel very stupid if the door was already unlocked and simply had to be opened. If that didn't work, he looked at the girl with a hurt expression. "Look, I don't want to be doing this any more than you do..." He considered his options, and tried knocking loudly on the door.

Shawn pulled and prodded on the door to no avail. It was stuck. He was sweating now, the sweltering heat of Hogwash's Forge started to soak the back of his shirt.

"Well. Wouldn't that be a shame if you got stuck here." The girl said wryly, seeming to enjoy the idea that Shawn might fail at what he came down to do.

Shawn started to bang on the door.

"Wouldn't that be-----"

'Clink!'

There was a sound on the other side of the door that cut the girl off. A sound of movement and shuffling. Gears winding, metal-on-metal, a grinding, high-pitched shift. Then the dial began to spin. Slowly, slowly, the door began to open.

"Who is banging on my door!?" Hogwash said as he then cut himself off.

"WHO IS BANGING ON MY DOOR!" He asked again, coming out from the inner hall of the safe.

"WHO!! IS!! BANGING!! ON!! MY!! DOOR!!!?"

OOC: Shawn Rolls Wits + Composure

OOC: 22:00, Today: Shawn Cramer rolled 2 successes using 4d10 with the World of Darkness nWoD system with a target of 8, rerolling 10s with rolls of 8,10(+5),6,6. Wits + Composure.

The adrenaline surged into Shawn's system full throttle. For a moment he thought his heart would explode because it was suddenly pounding so hard. But Shawn kept his eyes wide, letting in every ounce of the light behind the Pig Monster flood in. His body wanted him to either run fast for the hills or work to find weaponry, but instead he managed to stay right where he was.



"Well? What is this!?" Hogwash demanded.

"I told him he shouldn't be here Master Hogwash, I said..." the girl started, as if trying to placate the task master.

The pig cut her off, arching forward in a hunched over motion and extending his snout out, whiskered hairs sprouting from every direction.

"Phrrruffff!" Hogwash snorted, a gust of foul air suddenly coming in contact with Shawn's senses. It smelled like rotten eggs.

To his right, Shawn saw Esther blow away like a piece of paper on a windy day. The paper girl tumbled backwards and then remained in the air listlessly floating back and forth in a wide, pendulum swings, arms flailing, the sound of crinkled paper.

Shawn held firm, even as Hogwash's treatment of the flat girl called into question her stories of the pig-man wanting to protect 'his children'. Instead, he ignored the spell and bowed deeply in front of Hogwash. "Master Hogwash, the Order sends its regards. I hope you're well?"

"The order.....hmmmmm" Hogwash said, the anger seeming to be taken out of him. Perhaps it was the way that Shawn had acted, or maybe it was what he said. Or maybe Hogwash was still planning to bite Shawn or grab him or mistreat him the way he had mistreated the paper girl.

OOC: Shawn rolls Presence + Socialize

OOC: 20:22, Today: Shawn Cramer failed (no successes) using 3d10 with the World of Darkness nWoD system with a target of 8, rerolling 10s with rolls of 2,4,7. Presence + Socialize.

The Pig looked at Shawn. Its teeth were yellow, with brown roots the closer they got to its grimy gums. Its hands were gnarled with the bony digits curled over, like they were malformed.

The way he looked at Shawn, it was clear that he wasn't impressed.

"I'm not impressed by your so-called Order sweety." Hogwash snorted, a bit of spittle coming out from his nose. Shawn detected a bit of femininity in the voice, or perhaps it was the limp-wristed way that the monster dismissed him with a wave of his gnarled hand.

Nevertheless, the Pig turned around and retreated deeper into its chamber, leaving the door open as if he expected Shawn to follow him.

"The Order. The Clowns. We used to have the Freaks. It's always the same thing dearie. You're always fighting each other for the Proprietor's scraps. Like animals trying to claw at each others throats. Sometimes I wonder what the point of all your silly plans and schemes are. None of these groups have anything unique to bring. Their plans are old and without style."

"And being smart is like having style. You've either got it or you haven't. And I've got it."

Shawn noticed the little hint of femininity - it reminded him of the Bearded Woman a little. He tried to mirror it a little with his body language, not in an obvious way or anything, just a hint that would maybe make Hogwash feel more comfortable. He followed after Hogwash, giving the man(?) his winningest smile. "Exactly! Maybe we can't match your style, but that exactly why we want you on our side. You're too good to just ignore!"

Noting the change in Shawn's voice, the Pig monster stopped and slowly turned around, his hunched over back lumbering as his hooves shuffled along the metal ground.

OOC: Shawn rolls Striking Looks + (Presence or Manipulation) + Expression vs. Hogwash's Dice Pool of 5 with the following results

0 Successes - Hogwash ignores the gesture, continuing with the conversation

1 Success - 'Oh?....' Hogwash takes notice

2 Successes - Hogwash's demeanor changes considerably

OOC: 06:21, Today: Shawn Cramer rolled 5 successes using 9d10 with the World of Darkness nWoD system with a target of 8, rerolling on 9 or more with rolls of 4,8,3,8,10(+10,9,4),7,4,4,4.  Striking Looks + Manipulation + Expression

17:46, Today: Evil Circus - Hogwash rolled 1 success using 5d10 with the World of Darkness nWoD system with a target of 8, rerolling 10s ((5,5,8,4,1)).

"Well, I'm usually not surprised." Hogwash said, turning towards Shawn. And Shawn could see now that the Pig monster was smiling--if you could call it a smile.

"But the way you said that...someone might be fooled into thinking that you're a member of the theater!"

It was clear that Hogwash was interested in this possibility. It wasn't necessarily that he was convinced of Shawn's embellishment or flattery or even what Shawn said, but perhaps that Shawn was so good at embellishing.

Shawn was inside the room now. An office to be exact. A heavy, red-oak desk with papers stacked as high as could be in several mountains. There was an open, green safe on one side of the room and gaudy, red carpets that looked Persain.

Hogwash sat himself down behind the desk in a large, executive chair, nodding to Shawn to sit in one of two chairs in front of the desk.

"Well, I've done some theatre before. Kid parts, mostly..." Shawn's tone conveyed a deep love of the theatre, but also a recognition that he was young still and couldn't possibly call himself an expert on it, unlike what, for instance, Hogwash might be. He took the indicated seat in front of Hogwash's desk. "I bet someone as stylish as you knows all about the theatre, though."

"The tales I could tell, you would never believe!" Hogwash said, slamming one hand down on the table, a wolfish grin on his mouth, tusks and bent canines protruding at odd angles from his mouth.

"The Circus used to have a large theater. It was more of a show. A drama! This was well before I was dethroned. I used to compete against the Order for the top spot. I had a good run of about seventy years or so. We did drama and plays. We worked on the classics. We took souls and we left towns with nothing, dearie."

Hogwash's voice seemed to portray conflicted feelings about the experience. Proud of his accomplishments and certainly joy for whatever role he had in theater. But there was also a hint of regret about that last part of leaving towns with nothing. Shawn couldn't tell if it was remorse or just an unpleasantness.

"Are you someone who considers themselves creative? As in someone who can just come up with something on the spot?" He asked, some excitement in his voice.

OOC:
Shawn Chooses:

Shawn answers honestly

Or

Shawn lies:

If Shawn chooses to lie, the he Rolls Manipulation + Subterfuge  vs. Hogwash dice pool of 5

“It’s something I’ve done once or twice before. I wouldn’t call myself, like, an expert or anything. But I like to think I’m pretty good.” Shawn’s tone conveyed modesty and deference for the...man sitting in front of him, but it was an honest answer. He thought of himself as a creative person , even if circumstances meant he didn’t always get to share his ideas.

Hogwash began to talk about his own experiences being creative. First his experience as a young child in somewhere in a country Shawn didn't recognize the name of, where he would play in the farm house among the hay, pretending to be a knight and saving the princess. He then spoke once again how he was in the Circus and how he used to 'run the show' after winning the Soul contest each time the Circus came back for a period. He spoke of sword swallowers and lion tamers and a freak tent, all choreographed to perfection.

This time he went on and on, explaining to Shawn the careful detail that went into each preparation. "And then it all came to an end." Hogwash said. "A spectacularly, stunning end of the kind that only a true thespian can understand."

"I got too much into the character. When I joined, sweety, I was frightened and scared and terrified. But let me tell you something honey, you'd be so surprised what you can get used to. The change happened slowly. It was so slow that I couldn't even dare to think in my most wildest, fantastic dreams that I had become something so unbelievably monsterous. I had changed into this...this horrible looking thing." He gestured at his face. "I thought I was still a child, dearie." He chuckled a snorting, pig-like chuckle. "Fabulous. Absolutely fabulous. That's who I thought I was. A beatiful work of art, not an ugly thing. But I was ugly on the inside. So much that when I saw the outside--and the change sweetheart--the change was so slow I didn't even recognize my face had changed."

"I had become a monster."

Hogwash began to describe the single moment that caused this realization. He spoke of how he used to have to lower the souls into the Proprietor's well to give the required amount to the Proptietor, the amount of souls collected.

"Sweety!" Hogwash exclaimed, voice shrill and girl-like from behind the large, executive, desk. "I saw him!!!" He squealed, just like a pig.

"I knew dearie, that from that moment on, I could never do it again! I vowed to keep others away from that well. All the children that the Circus captured would stay will me, instead of being used in the Soul Contest!"
This message was last edited by the player at 14:46, Sun 03 Dec 2017.

Shawn couldn't help but notice the similarities in Hogwash's story and Griffix's. And his. And when he tried to look fascinated in the story the pig-man was telling, he didn't really have to act that hard. "Why does the Proprietor let you do that? And what happens to the souls when the Circus ends?"

Hogwash snorted. "In a word, sweetie, the Proprietor has cut me a break, I think." Hogwash speculated. "Because I used to know him, from the Old Times. There might still be a piece of him in there, somewhere, of someone that hasn't been completely lost."

But Hogwash sounded doubtful. "Not really." He second guessed his speculation. "I guess, sweetheart, I really don't know."

"All I know is that I have to do everything...EVERYTHING...to make sure that none of these kids ever get into the Proprietor's hands. And that means sacrificing. Even if it means sacrificing them to each other, sometimes."

Shawn thought he spotted an opening there, and gingerly tried to test it. "What do you mean by sacrificing them to each other? Is that different from what the proprietor does?"

Hogwash snorted twice. "Never." Hogwash rejected the notion. "The Proprietor consumes the souls he's taken. Or they say maybe he gives them to some other, darkly-dark demon, my cupcake. Or some say he tortures them and that he puts them into the flameee-fire. Just like that silly little book they make your read on Sundays."

Shawn's parents never really took him to Church, even though it appeared that Dad might have been more religious than it had appeared to Shawn. Mom said once 'We don't believe in God, we believe in Nature.'

"There are a thousand stories. I just keep my pretties here. To make sure nothing, ever, ever happens to them." Hogwash said, seeming to justify his actions as defensive in nature.

"But the only thing that keeps them from running to him or any other member of the Circus are the acorns. I may have turned into a Monster. But I learned that cooking the acorns with rock soul keeps the kids here. It dulls their senses. It makes it so they'll never, ever want to leave. And that way, sweetheart, they'll never, ever be in any danger."

"But there aren't enough acorns for everyone. So that means that some have be sacrificed, so that other pretties can live." Hogwash reasoned.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:48, Wed 06 Dec 2017.

Shawn heard the defensiveness in Hogwash's story, and immediately rallied to attack the hypothetical people who'd disagree with what the pig man was doing. "Well, I think its brave, what you're doing. Sometimes you have to sacrifice a few to save a bunch, right? And sure, it's a hard choice, but all the kids here that survived when they wouldn't otherwise are lucky you're the one making it."

"How many kids do you usually lose in a cycle?" Shawn's eyes were big and sympathetic, like he knew the answer was something Hogwash felt bad about, and was already commiserating with him about it.

With that statement, Hogwash softened his tone. Shawn could see that the tension in the Pig's shoulders--bony and sharp--had released somewhat. The Pig-monster slumped in the executive chair, the old leather ruffling and the base creaking against the floor.


"I lose....at least five or six of my little pretties." Hogwash lamented. "Each time the Soul contest begins."

"Sometimes I just can't believe I would participate in such a thing. I just can't believe that it used to be me doing competing. I just wanted to win. I didn't think anything of them. I just wanted to win."

"Now I just want to hold onto as many as possible. As many as I can that will survive so they don't get sent down into that god-awful well Oh dearie, you have no idea...."

Shawn nodded sadly. "And this year it might be more. Part of why I'm here is to warn you; Mr. Cherrywinks is losing the soul race now, and he might get desperate. Maybe desperate enough to come after other souls in the Circus..."

The room suddenly grew more noticeable in its business-like atmosphere. Shawn was now more aware of the papers piled on the desks, the bookshelves filled with ledgers and the quill pent that was in the inkwell next to the green lamp.

It was time to get down to business.

OOC: Shawn Rolls Manipulation + (Socialize or  Subterfuge) + Striking Looks Vs. Hogwash Dice Pool of 5

This is an extended action with 3 rounds of rolls. A total of 5 successes more than Hogwash's total is needed

OOC: 19:28, Today: Shawn Cramer rolled 2 successes using 9d10 with the World of Darkness nWoD system with a target of 8, rerolling on 9 or more with rolls of 9(+6),4,3,7,7,5,10(+3),1,6. Manipulation + Subterfuge + Striking Looks .

05:22, Today: Evil Circus - Hogwash rolled 1 success using 5d10 with the World of Darkness nWoD system with a target of 8, rerolling 10s ((5,5,3,7,9)).




"Hmmmm...dearie." Hogwash pondered the dilemma. Bushy eyebrows came together and one lip on the snout began to curl.

"But sweety, this happens all of the time. All of the time, its so exhausting." Hogwash complained, clearly starting to think about the situation.

OOC: Shawn has 1 success that cannot be taken away. Shawn rolls the same roll

“You have to think about what’s best for you and the ones you can save. If you overextend yourself, who does that help?”

OOC: 07:24, Today: Shawn Cramer rolled 5 successes using 12d10 with the World of Darkness nWoD system with a target of 8, rerolling on 9 or more with rolls of 7,2,6,10(+9,9,7),8,1,4,5,8,2,7,3.  Manipulation + Subterfuge + Striking Looks + WP.
This message was lightly edited by the player at 12:27, Fri 08 Dec 2017.

20:10, Today: Evil Circus - Hogwash rolled 2 successes using 5d10 with the World of Darkness nWoD system with a target of 8, rerolling 10s ((7,8,1,7,9)).




"But what about my pretties!?" Hogwash asked, stunned and clearly in turmoil over the idea that these very kids, the ones he believed he was saving, could be lost to someone else that might punish them...or even give them to the Proprietor.

OOC: Shawn now has 4 successes that cannot be taken away. Shawn rolls the same roll

"I know it's hard, but you're doing what's best for them."

OOC: 22:30, Today: Shawn Cramer rolled 5 successes using 12d10 with the World of Darkness nWoD system with a target of 8, rerolling on 9 or more with rolls of 3,2,6,9(+8),9(+7),10(+5),2,4,6,8,3,6. Manipulation + Subterfuge + Striking Looks + WP.

01:57, Today: Evil Circus - Hogwash rolled 1 success using 5d10 with the World of Darkness nWoD system with a target of 8, rerolling 10s ((2,6,10(+5),6,1)).




"It doesn't matter" Hogwash threw up his gnarled, twisted hands and he shook his head slumping. "It doesn't matter at all then. To be honest, there's only so much that I can do. And only for so long."

"There aren't enough acorns."

"I made the mistake. I should have gotten more of the acorns, to make sure my the pretty ones that I took on, could stay here longer, and flourish."

"But I have a soft heart. I feel too much."

"The things here at the Circus, have said 'you're too emotional.' While half of them yell at you for feeling too deeply...The other half of people in the real world admire it..But a larger portion of them think you're absolutely crazy. But you just have a sappy heart… And are brave enough to express it."

"That's what I am."

"To be honest, sweetheart, there's absolutely no way that I can keep these pretties. They'll all die if they stay with me. Not enough acorns. Can I say it any clearer?"

"They'll all die!" 

OOC: Shawn convinces Hogwash to release the souls to The Order

“What you tried to do here, it was beautiful. The important part is that you tried.”

"I know..." Hogwash was choked up. "I didn't...I didn't...save them." Hogwash's hand was quivering, gnarled fingers grasping the quill as it scratched against the paper in fits and starts.

"There..." He said, finishing with a scrawling signature at the bottom of the paper, ready to turn the souls over to Shawn. The paper was yellowed, the scroll at the top sheet of the parchment was a heavy, brown oak. "That's...that's all of them. All of my pretties. All of the ones that I spent time saving. It's...it's probably better this way. Better to start all over again with new crop of young, pretties that have the world's acorns at their fingertips."

He paused and looked down at the paper

"I'm not effeminate. I'm just… animated."

Shawn quickly took the paper, before the pig man could change his mind, but gave him a sad and sympathetic smile. "Well, I think you're cool, Master Hogwash." Shawn tried very hard not to think about the monstrousity of what he'd here done - he just had to justify the same way Hogwash did; these souls were doomed regardless, at least he could save his own life...

OOC: Shawn Joins Thread

Shawn: Griffix is Pleased...And Something Else