Dawn breaks, and the terrors of the night gradually fade. Some comfort can be drawn from the knowledge that light drives the shadows away.

Alex woke in confusion. Where am I? Bed? Wasn't I on the...

A small surge of adrenaline hits her. She goes through a small mental checklist, and realizes she's still wearing the clothes she'd been wearing all day. Also, Jiro was sitting on the floor.

Okay. I'm good... fracked royally in the head, but good.

She threw back the covers and sat up with a yawn.

Jiro sat in an inner silence; her mind deliberately slowed into a rhythm of meditation. Her eyes are closed, her breathing even.

Mentally, she was almost back to an even keel. She'd had that nightmare before; the details changed, but the theme of personal failure and condemnation, was painfully familiar. Meditating was the least satisfying way of getting herself back on-keel after a round with that dream, but it was the least dangerous and most productive.

Lost within, she does not hear Alex wake.

Moving carefully to not disturb Jiro, Alex takes steps to deal with pressing matters. The necessary done, she soon discovers the pizza in the tiny fridge.

"Cold Pizza." Alex said to herself as she took a large bite. "Breakfast of Champions, and a programmers best friend."

The sound of her friend's voice broke through the mental fugue Jiro had been in. Blinking, she glanced first to the bed, and then quickly around the room, finally settling on Alex by the fridge. "Ohayou Gozaimasu, Alex-san. I hope you are feeling a bit better."

The martial artist stood, stretched, and joined Alex by the fridge, snagging a slice of pizza herself. One of the joyous foods just as good cold as hot. Pizza was a good idea, even if this one lead to... difficulties.

"I admit, I am not sure what our plan should be for the day. Before... last night, I had thought to repeat the activities of yesterday; practice in the morning and some scouting in the afternoon." A pause. "I asked Chen to meet us next tomorrow so that we could, well, try to adress your... memory problems... today, if that needed more time than expected. We still have a time window because of it, and I am inclined to make use of it."

Jiro finished her slice of pizza, using the moment to formulate her next words. "But considering what that vampire said last night... if they, like you, are from another world, this perhaps puts a new wrinkle in the situation. It may be best to appraise Dragoneye, through Chen, of that immediately. I also admit I would like very much to go over that seal with a true mage; one who knows better than a dabbler like myself."

Another breath. "I will defer to your judgement, however. How do you think we should address this day?"

"Practice for at least a couple hours would be good, I think. Some good hard physical activity to clear the head is something that works. Hoping on the treadmill beside my desk at home to work through a knotty programming problem or beating the hell out of my friends in sparring practice when the vampires weren't biting always worked." Alex said.

"And wow is it ever strange how saying that feels."

Jiro blinked twice, slowly. "You... both of you..." Another slow blink and long moment of silence. "Huh."

Jiro shook herself. "Well. Give me a few minutes to clean up, and I'll be ready to go." A pause as she considered how to parse this next question. "Ah, how would you like me to be for this? I know you, ah, associated this form with another friend last night. Would you be more comfortable dealing with, well, Jiro-chan or Jiro-kun today?" She... He... Alex seems mostly stable now, and yet with both sets of memories around. I wonder if this is a stable equilibrium, or a state of transition, or something else altogether... I do not want to make things worse for Alex. I do not enjoy spending too long in this form, but I can endure it for the sake of my friend. Friends. Pah, and I thought I created pronoun trouble.

Alex tilts her head at Jiro. "Both of me? Huh... I guess that makes sense. I've really been doing the whole split personality thing lately."

Alex closes her eyes and thinks for a moment. "I don't think I'm going to confuse you with other people. You are not Tommy or Sarah. You're Jiro. Just Jiro. Wear whatever you feel comfortable in. I'll be fine."

"Then I shall. But if the situation changes... let me know." a pause.  I will be as quick as I can." Taking a moment to grab some clean clothes - mental note, laundry soon - Jiro walked into the bathroom and fired up the shower. She peeled out of her clothes - stinking from a day's causal wear and sweat, and the much more intense night-sweats brought on by the dream - and jumped into a shower almost hot enough to scald. Oh, kamis, he thought as the water, and the change, washed over him, that feels good.

True to his word, Jiro hurried, taking the time to get clean without wasting too much. They only had, after all, so much daylight to work with. He quickly dried off and pulled on his outfit for the day. Emerging from the bathroom, he grabbed another slice of pizza and said, "I am ready to go when you are. Same park as yesterday to practice?"

Alex smiles brightly as Jiro emerges. "Works for me. Let's hit it."

The practice goes exceptionally well. Even when she's making programming analogies Alex is able to move with practiced Grace. Jiro can no longer pick out where Alexander ends and Alexandria begins. While she occasionally shows some confusion with a conflicting memory, There is a unity that was lacking before.

The pair brake for some water to discuss the training.

Alex sprawls on the grass. "I think it's going well. What do you think?"

"From the standpoint of pure technique, it is going very well. I feel I am learning as much from you as you are from me." I always do seem to get some benefit from teaching the Art. I might have to think about doing so more often.

Of course, I am no longer really able to tell... well, which of you I am speaking to at a given moment. Nor am I sure it, well, matters. Alex seems... stable. That is a very good thing, really. What is the phrase... alloys are stronger. Fundamentally, I still trust Alex at my back in a fight. Perhaps, now, more than I did. He... she... bah... knows me, now, fairly well, and trusts me. And I think I know my friend the programmer/vampire huntress as well as I could, all things considered. At least the hunter seems more stable than, say, Birdy Cephon.

"I think we should move on to some sparring, or perhaps take a look around some of the vampire territory. We got a bit of a look at the group near the hotel; perhaps we could find some clues about the ones we suspect are behind the Ruthless Asian Gang." He shook his head. "I almost wonder what the best way to check that out would be. As best I know, none of them have seen me in this form. I could head down there alone with typical young-male idot swagger and try to infiltrate." He gave a crooked smile. "Or I could swap and the two of us head down together and go trolling for idiots; give some poor gangbanger the worst day of his life. Without a known local figure such as Chen Ming with us, one of them might be foolish enough to... volunteer for us to interrogate him." It could certainly be amusing to stomp on some idiots. Cathartic, too. And hey, we might actually be able to get some information out of them in the process.

A moment of consideration. "Also, given what we learned from the vampires last night... I think it might also be a good idea to bring in a real mage to look at that seal. Chen should be able to put us in touch with one, or perhaps even Dragoneye himself could look. As much as it... touches on your situation, Alex-san, it may also be how those vampires got here from wherever they thought you could not follow." A pause as he turned the thought over in his mind. "Actually, it might be a good idea to take a look around the area to see if there are any other, similar seals... Gomen, I am rambling again."

Jiro took a breath. How should I treat this? Pah, there is no straightforward way. "You are the expert in hunting these things, Alex-san. Which do you think would be our best course to take?"

Alex considers the matter. "Splitting up is a no go. You're good, I'm good. Neither of us are Centurion or Superman, so we might run into something we can't handle alone. When hunting, we always used the buddy system at minimum. To many painful lessons for us to do otherwise." Alex grimaced at some unpleasant memories.

"Baiting Gangbangers sounds like it would be hella lot of fun, but I don't think they'll know too much. Boss Vampires don't trust anyone, humans least of all. They think of us as cattle. Sometimes dangerous cattle, but cattle none the less. Still, we might be able to learn something."

She chewed on lip a bit. "As for bringing in a wizard... I'm not so sure. I don't like the feel I got off Dragoneye. He's manipulating us and I don't know what towards. I don't want to have to trust him any more then we have to. Chen Ming, I trust. Dragoneye I don't. Back home I knew a wizard, a psychic, and a witch who'd I'd trust with all this. Sadly, I'm pretty sure they are on another world."

"The more I dive into my memories, the more sure I am that I learned programming on one world, hunting vampires on a second, and this is a third. They are just so... different. I have no memories of any of the real caped crusaders that are all over the internet here. Since it's pretty clear that the Vampires are from the same place I was hunting them, it means that there are some who are going to recognize me on sight. I've been hunting them since my Junior year, and became the Slayer not long after. Not many have gotten away, but I don't get all of them. From what Talon said before I staked him, there has to be at least one other Vamp who knew my face."

Alex sighs heavily "The problem is, I don't know who it might be. Talon was a serial minion. He never had the brains to be a real Master Vampire, always moving from master to master. Normally after I staked the last one. With my Slayer side memories still so jumbled up I can't even make a worthwhile guess."

"Which is all very interesting I'm sure, but doesn't give us our next move so... if there has been a split, then the original master is probably in control of the larger group. That means whoever is running the Ruthless bunch is junior, might even be a local. Newly turned vamps normally couldn't hope to pull that off, but if a person had a strong enough will before they died it could happen. Let's look there first. Less chance I'll be recognized and scare them off, and they'll probably be weaker."

[OOC: 18:12, Today: Alex rolled 14 using 1d20+7. Arcane Lore. ]

"I am sorry if I reminded you of unpleasantness. As for Dragoneye; I, too, do not trust him. Most of the trustworthy mages I know are half a word away. Your... Slayer side memories... do they include much in the way of practical magical knowledge? We could, I think, pool our resources on that seal."

Jiro began to pace. "Feh. You say you have removed many of that Talon's masters... He cannot have had a habit of... what is the phrase... backing the winning horse. That suggests to me that whoever is strongest in this power struggle is likely in the group nearest Chinatown. But any mage capable of creating that seal should be able to recognize the presence of one such as Dragoneye. If nothing else, the Ruthless Asian Gang cannot be ignorant of his existence, given their proximity to Chinatown."

A sigh. "But you are the expert in the nature of Vampires. And I suppose a 'junior partner' might use the threat of Dragoneye at his back to ward his master." Jiro grimaced. "I mislike leaving the threat at our back unopposed, but the more I think on it, the more I see where your logic lies. Let us pay the Ruthless Asian Gang a visit."

Hopefully, this is not a massive mistake. Given my track record these last few days, letting Alex decide our course is likely safest, even given his/her... interesting mental state.

"I've got all kinds of practical knowledge, but nothing that I think will be useful. I was never much for studying, I left that mostly to my friends. They found the great enlightenment in the books and then Gabe and I beat the crap out of everything that we needed to for us to put it into play. Too bad that I wasn't more like my other self there. I can quote you a truly mind boggling amount of computer lore." Alex smirks a bit.

"Talon... he wasn't push over and his bosses normally weren't either. I'm surprised that I took him down so easily. He must have been really off his game. I staked one of his former bosses about a heartbeat before he could bring about the end of the world. That was a rough night. The same night Talon killed Laura." Alex looks distant as she remembers.

"Enough of that. Let's go find some idiots and see what we can learn."

Jiro gives Alex's shoulder a squeeze. "I am game for that. Shall I stay as this, or do we want to do the 'oh look, two young ladies all alone, aren't they just helpless?' thing."

"If we can't bait in a couple dumb thugs with a little woman and her pint sized beau then we need to give up on this whole thing as a bad idea and go weave baskets for a living or something."

"Fair enough, Alex-san. Let us begin."

And at some point we need to get lunch. Bah, deal with that later, or get something on the way. I don't want to suggest something that might inspire another trip to Starbase Coffee. Not until it's time for more research, at least.

With that, he starts walking.

Alex and Jiro have a relaxing hour wandering around the area, heading into small shops and generally looking like tourists. They don't have much success getting mugged, until Alex has the bright idea of taking a 'short cut' down a dark alley past an obvious drug den.

A couple thugs take exception to this and pull switchblades. About 3 seconds later, they are unconscious on the ground in front of the pair. There is a small nook that can be used to hold a conversation out of sight.

Taking a moment to secure both of their 'guests' with a roll of duct tape he'd picked up for the purpose, Jiro tried to get himself into a good 'interrogating' headspace. He knew he could be a frightening fellow, but it did not come naturally to him. He preferred to get along with people.

These men, however, were the sort of idiot thugs who got their joy from inflicting violence and suffering on others. The sort of idiot thugs he did not care for. And at the moment, the sort of idiot thugs who may well have information he needed.

He took a bit of care, in the little nook in the alley's side, to position the two thugs so that the one could not see the other, sitting them on either side of a trash can. In low tones he said to Alex, "I believe a bit of 'good cop, bad cop,' is in order. If you will allow me, I will take the part of the bad cop."

Waiting a moment for her response, he shifted his ki and lay hands on the first of the two thugs. "Merciful Spirit's Grasp." As the thug regained consciousness, he gave the toothiest smile he could. "Hi there, foolish one. You picked the worst possible people in the world to jump, I think. What am I going to do with you?" Squatting down, he looked the youth in the eye. "I don't even particulary want anything from you. Just a little information. Tell me what I want to know, and that's the end of it."

"I want to know where your boss is, little man. I know he's told you he'll do horrible things if you betray him; but consider: he is not here." Shifting his ki again, Jiro shrouded his hand in rippling blue fire. "I am."

[OOC: healing, then shifting the array to Fist of the Oni. 13:14, Today: Jiro Koji rolled 18 using 1d20+10. Intimidate on moron number one. ]

While they shop, Alex buys a number of articles of clothing. She doesn't take much time picking anything out or even trying things on, just grabbing things that Jiro assumes are random. All of it is on sale or otherwise low priced yet decent quality.

"Ah, my favorite game. Oldest one in the book to. Wake 'em up!"

Alex reflected on how incredibly useful it was to have a healer at times like this. She had vivid memories of waiting for someone to wake up after a brawl. She also remembered that scene in B5 where Marcus took out the whole bar. Much more fun to watch on DVD then wait through... though the beat down before hand was worth it.

As the target woke up, she knelt and put her game face on. A soft smile, a faint bit of sadness in her eyes, and a sympathetic tone. "He's right, you know. You're in a bad spot. Made a few bad choices, and now your in over your head."

Alex reaches out and gently pats the man's hand. "All the rumours going around, you friends disappearing or acting strange. The turf fight brewing that seems bigger then any before it. It's a scary time right now and it's okay to be afraid. It's a lot to take in. I know. I've been there myself. Just wanting everything to go back to normal, the way it was before."

"We can do that, but we need to know where to look. We aren't here to destroy your life or send you to jail. We're here to keep people alive, even with the strange stuff that has been going down. So talk to us. Please. It's for the good of everyone in the city." The girl leans forward and gives the guy a brilliant smile.

[OOC: 16:47, Today: Alex rolled 31 using 1d20+14. Diplomacy. ]

Looking between the devil and the angel before him, the man breaks. "You... you can beat them? The Pishacha? Alright. I'll tell you. Johhny took over from Yu a few weeks back. He beat the crap out of him in the fight. We all thought he must have gotten powers somehow. I mean, you hear about it happening on the news and stuff but it doesn't happen around here normally. After he took over, he said that he had a way of giving powers to his most loyal followers. His elite guard he called them."

The man shuddered, then looked at Alex's comforting smile. He took a deep breath and continued. "How he did it was a secret, but everyone he gave powers to got... really really violent. I mean, I'm no nun but these guys... I saw one punch a guy through a wall for touching his jacket. They kept the best groupies for themselves, but the girls always looked so pale and in a daze. Drugs we thought but it wasn't it. I saw one once with his teeth in a girls throat and he was drinking up the blood. I ran before he saw me. Then there's how they never go outside during the day... Well, it doesn't take a genius to figure things out."

"Now there's talk about how a war's coming, and we all need to be ready. I hear he's going to be bringing a bunch more guys into his guard tonight, at his pad."

The man gives you two addresses where the Pishacha, as he calls them, make their lair. It sounds like at least a dozen people have been inducted into the elite guard.
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:59, Tue 29 Mar 2011.

Jiro kept his eyes on the thug, doing his best to look frightening. He wasn't doing that near so well as Alex was doing 'trustworthy,' though. Oh my, oh. I'll bet just about anything that this... confidence in her apearance is Alexandria's doing as much as anything else. Still, I do believe the baka here is telling us the truth as he knows it... This can be put to our use.

"Hmph. I do not know... Well, for your sake, little man, you had best hope your information proves accurate."

"Thank you. Now, you'd better get out of here. Hop on a bus and find somewhere to lay low for a while. You've saved a lot of lives. Thank you." Alex leaned forward and gave him a peck on the forehead.

With casual ease, Alex rips the duct tape as though it was nothing more then tissue paper.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:55, Tue 29 Mar 2011.