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Arc 1, Thread 1:  The Sleepers Have Awakened (Iapetus)

Posted by The Howling DarkFor group 0
The Howling Dark
GM, 185 posts
Sun 6 Nov 2016
at 23:48
  • msg #1

Arc 1, Thread 1:  The Sleepers Have Awakened (Iapetus)

Two days after the Raid on the Buchenwald, Iapetus hasn't had much chance to really get his teeth into the data.  Despite being decrypted the sleepers have been given code names and some general information, which would really give them a lot of trouble if Juno wasn't such a damn good spy.  She's able to put together quite the comprehensive list.  Out of ten total, she has 15 possible real identities, meaning some are certainly exact and some are just guesses.

The Guesses:
A single demon codenamed Dravenous.  Whoever this demon is once fought against the Last Refuge during the Void Demon Rebellion.  Supposedly Dravenous is a High Priest of the Void and is capable of corrupting other demons.
-Hawking the Demjen, a member of the Water Pump Gang in the Extremities.  He's a well-placed demon who was granted amnesty, partially due to his 'blameless' actions, but also because he's too vital to the water-pumping system.
-Kawallannapot the Marotte, who designed several of the barricades.  The Hopping Puppeteer has been reassigned to the transport ship Monitor, along with two other prisoners of the Void Demon Rebellion.
-Quixote the Tomescu, a very addled old demon who was seriously hurt during the Rebellion.  He often wanders the streets, prattling strange things and occasionally attacking 'giants of darkness'.  He's been in and out of the brigs for years.

A mortal pilot codenamed Promises.  Like many of the mortals, this pilot doesn't even know s/he has been corrupted by the Neverborn.  At the right signal Promises will open fire with their ship inside the hangar.  Promises is a survivor of more than one sortie against the Neverborn.
-Chupacabra, who recently just fought against the Buchenwald.  He's been through the most sorties against the Neverborn out of all the pilots.
-Matador, a once-talented pilot who washed out due to post-traumatic stress disorder.  He's hung around the Hangars for years, begging for another chance.  Nobody's been willing to give it to him yet.
-Diomedes, an old Daedalus-class starship pilot who fought at Stone Place.  He's been on reserve since taking a wound in another skirmish which has never fully recovered.  This may be why Promises hasn't been activated- he hasn't been given access to a ship since his injury.

A god codenamed Inconceivable.  Supposedly this god isn't truly corrupted by the Void, but is easily corrupted by promises of worship and his own fiefdom in the New Abyssal Order.  Inconceivable is a major point of contact for the other sleeper agents.
-Taru-Han, the Daimyo of Souls.  This ancient psychopomp is extremely powerful and aggressive, and is incensed at the fact that souls are now instantly processed without 'proper care and order'.  If she's Inconceivable, then they might all be screwed.
-Bullhorn the Thunderer, a war god of ancient north Germany who swears he's been usurped by Thor.  Bullhorn wouldn't normally be on the radar except he's taken to 'protecting' members of the Underdecks, effectively blackmailing them for prayers.  This isn't particularly uncommon for gods but Bullhorn has pulled this trick with worrying regularity, and what's worse has consistently been given only a slap on the wrist by the Senate.

Juno has given Iapetus the list- does Iapetus start with the difficult ones or go after easier prey?
Iapetus
player, 37 posts
Mon 7 Nov 2016
at 19:01
  • msg #2

Arc 1, Thread 1:  The Sleepers Have Awakened (Iapetus)

Since there is a risk that the sleepers will get word that they are being targeted, doing investigations on the uncertain ones would become much harder as time goes on, Iapetus decides to act on the guesses.

The very idea of either of the gods being Inconceivable worries Endings, and since this sleeper is a major contact point, getting to this one first might allow for more time to catch the rest.
Iapetus leaves a request for more information about Taru-Han, especially where to find the god, and heads towards the Underdecks to find information on The Thunderer.
The Howling Dark
GM, 195 posts
Mon 7 Nov 2016
at 22:31
  • msg #3

Arc 1, Thread 1:  The Sleepers Have Awakened (Iapetus)

"Got it, Iapetus.  If you can rule out the Thunderer, please let me know.  We may have to get some very heavy guns for Taru-Han.  Don't engage her alone if that's the case!"

The Underdecks is some distance from Command and a bit of a maze.  Despite Iapetus's equipment and knowledge, he's still fairly young and green when it comes to navigating the Underdecks.  Thus it's very, very easy for him to get lost.

((Make a Survival check, difficulty 40, for finding evidence of the Thunderer.  Critical failure leads to you getting utterly lost.  Critical success means you're gonna stumble right on to him.))
Iapetus
player, 38 posts
Tue 8 Nov 2016
at 01:14
  • msg #4

Arc 1, Thread 1:  The Sleepers Have Awakened (Iapetus)

(( Roll 9, 8&8, 5, 3&3, 1 Joss for a convenient navigation program.
Navigating the Underdecks:
Survival (28 Roll +0 Sur +10AB) 38 maybe something more from the program like tool bonus
3&3 to river ))

"Understood Juno."

Iapetus searches the program archive of his armor and finds an old navigation program. While it is not up to date, it should at least prevent him getting totally lost.
When Iapetus is not navigating the maze known as Underdecks, he asks around if people have seen or heard about the gods doings or current whereabouts.
The Howling Dark
GM, 201 posts
Tue 8 Nov 2016
at 18:25
  • msg #5

Arc 1, Thread 1:  The Sleepers Have Awakened (Iapetus)

It's definitely not up to date.  The Underdecks change with worrying rapidity, and just navigating it is at trial all on its own.  He's able to find some places where the Thunderer has frequented but one bar has turned into a brothel, a brothel has turned into a FakeSteakHaus, and the water pumping plant is now an aquarium.

It's been several hours since he started and Iapetus isn't having any luck.  He's just intimidated the hell out of a few vagrants when he gets on his way to the next spot, a fighting ring where the Thunderer 'took fighters under his wing'.

Really, the God imbued mortal fighters with his Essence- cheating- and then blackmailed them for prayers later.

When he arrives at the fighting ring, he finds it's almost deserted except for a single Blood-Ape wandering around the premises, looking lost.
Iapetus
player, 39 posts
Tue 8 Nov 2016
at 21:47
  • msg #6

Arc 1, Thread 1:  The Sleepers Have Awakened (Iapetus)

Silently sighing inside his armor, Iapetus walks up to the Blood-Ape.
"Looking for something?"
The Howling Dark
GM, 206 posts
Tue 8 Nov 2016
at 22:19
  • msg #7

Arc 1, Thread 1:  The Sleepers Have Awakened (Iapetus)

"They said there'd be a fight here and there's nobody," The Blood-Ape says glumly, "It's not fair.  It's not fair!  What are we supposed to do?  Scratch our pits all day waiting for the Neverborn to show up?"

The Erymanthus throws a rock in a random direction, hitting a wall of the fighting pit. "Hey, aintcha the Chosen of Endings?  Why you here?  Looking for a fight too?"

He sounds almost hopeful.  This is very stupid of him.  Then again, the Blood-Apes aren't known for being particularly smart.
Iapetus
player, 40 posts
Tue 8 Nov 2016
at 22:37
  • msg #8

Arc 1, Thread 1:  The Sleepers Have Awakened (Iapetus)

"That would be me, yes. I am looking for a god called Bullhorn the Thunderer, have you heard about him? And where did you hear about the fight that was supposed to be here?"
The Howling Dark
GM, 209 posts
Tue 8 Nov 2016
at 22:39
  • msg #9

Arc 1, Thread 1:  The Sleepers Have Awakened (Iapetus)

"Stoneback told me here's where to get fights last year.  Been waiting ever since!  Nothing here," The blood-ape grumbles.  "Oh Bullhorn?  Old Bullhorn?  Cheater,"  He spits on the ground, "Thasswhy I like him.  Haven't seen him in a while though."
Iapetus
player, 41 posts
Tue 8 Nov 2016
at 22:57
  • msg #10

Arc 1, Thread 1:  The Sleepers Have Awakened (Iapetus)

The Sidereal gives the blood-ape a slow nod and a long look.
"Would you have any idea where to find him? I can reward your assistance if you can."
The Howling Dark
GM, 212 posts
Tue 8 Nov 2016
at 23:04
  • msg #11

Arc 1, Thread 1:  The Sleepers Have Awakened (Iapetus)

"Who, Stoneback or Bullhorn?" He asks as he begins picking his nose, "Well, Bullhorn ain't been here for a while.  Stoneback's always at the Martial Library nowadays, all them hoity-toity smart types.  It's not normal for a blood ape.  But you wanna find the Thunderer, you look at the poor ones.  He's always there for us poor ones."
Iapetus
player, 42 posts
Tue 8 Nov 2016
at 23:15
  • msg #12

Arc 1, Thread 1:  The Sleepers Have Awakened (Iapetus)

"Bullhorn is the one I am looking for, but Stoneback might become useful at some point, so thank you for that. And where would I find more of you poor ones?"
The Howling Dark
GM, 216 posts
Tue 8 Nov 2016
at 23:34
  • msg #13

Arc 1, Thread 1:  The Sleepers Have Awakened (Iapetus)

The Erymanthus looks at Iapetus like he's crazy. "It's the Underdecks.  Everyone is poor here."

He flings a piece of snot out of his nostril and hoots at the distance he gained.  "Hot damn!  See the range on that one?"
Iapetus
player, 43 posts
Wed 9 Nov 2016
at 00:07
  • msg #14

Arc 1, Thread 1:  The Sleepers Have Awakened (Iapetus)

"So no place in particular here where Thunderer would likely be?"
Iapetus looks at the enthusiasm created by such activity and sighs silently once again.
The Howling Dark
GM, 223 posts
Wed 9 Nov 2016
at 14:39
  • msg #15

Arc 1, Thread 1:  The Sleepers Have Awakened (Iapetus)

"Well, no.  I suppose you could try some of the bigger slums.  I mean, he's a God, right?  So that means mortals."  The Blood Ape lies down on his back, "No sense hanging around demons.  So check the slums?  I mean, ain't this what you sidereals supposed to be good at?"

According to his map there are three mortal slums nearby, a Mexican, an Anglo, and a Chinese.
Iapetus
player, 45 posts
Wed 9 Nov 2016
at 14:51
  • msg #16

Arc 1, Thread 1:  The Sleepers Have Awakened (Iapetus)

"Thank you for this, find me sometime and I will repay your advice."
It's a long shot, but Iapetus figures that the Anglo slum would be the best chance due to the origins of the god, so he heads there first, hoping for the slum to still be there when he gets there.
The Howling Dark
GM, 226 posts
Wed 9 Nov 2016
at 14:59
  • msg #17

Arc 1, Thread 1:  The Sleepers Have Awakened (Iapetus)

The Erymanthus farts loudly and scratches his belly.  Looks like he wants to go to sleep!

Ia makes his way to the Anglo slum.  The place is decrepit but they never seem to change; benign tumors in the great hollow underdecks, growing smaller sub-cancers inside themselves, never bulging outside of their designated zones.

The Anglo-arcology is a massive building/tumor called Zeta Lot, and Iapetus gets a lot of weird looks the moment he steps up.  Some people scatter, knowing trouble when they see it.
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