The three of you are forwarded a very interesting post on the Twilight Network from Kristoph-Ryan. He points out that this is from a mortal forum on the internet but asks that the three of you check it out:








At first, nothing seems out of place in June's Cafe. There are a few people having coffee or using laptop computers. In the back, there is a room with a handwritten sign that says "Ghost Hunters." Any Sin Eater who ventures into that room sees quite an assortment of people:

Right by the door is a college age guy wearing an expensive suit and some likewise expensive headgear. Anyone who knows that sort or equipment would recognize them as a set of thermal imaging goggles. He has a name tag reading "SpecterDetector." Oddly, it is stuck directly to his otherwise unblemished jacket. SpecterDetector welcomes any newcomers and hands them a similar name tag and a sharpie. The etiquette seems to be 'use your forum name.'

Standing near him is a girl about his age. Her name tag says "GhostGirl." She is waring a shirt with a picture of Edgar Allen Poe. Covering the poet's eyes is the word "Believe." GhostGirl stares at any Sin Eater who enters for just a little too long. Any who look back can see that her eyes seem to be covered in Plasm. She seems to have at least a bit of the death sight that all Sin Eaters possess, but she lacks a Geist.

A younger guy wearing a tag that says "The_Last_Necromancer" is seated at the table. He is scribbling something on a piece of paper with his sharpie. As he does so, there are little pulses of death energy around him. It seems as though he is on the verge of performing a Ceremony. Other than that, he doesn't seem to be touched by death. The so called Necromancer certainly doesn't have a Geist.

There are also two individuals who didn't post. One of them is wearing what looks like a rubber wetsuit, with a plastic cowboy holster around her waist. The holster contains some sort of weapon, but it is indistinct and also seems to be covered in plastic. Her name tag (that doesn't stick very well) reads "Tinfoil Hat." She doesn't seem to be touched by death.

The last member of the group is a Sin Eater, and he greets any of his fellow bound with a smile. His knuckles read "Stay Dead" and they are obviously his Keystone. Whatever his Geist is, it is hiding inside him at this point. The wife beater he sports barely conceals any of the tattoos his body is covered in. It seems he only wore it to have a place to stick his name tag. It reads "The Son of Saint Death."

The table in the center has a few items on it. First, there is a one foot square black box. Next, there are more pieces of technological equipment, presumably belonging to SpecterDetector. Finally, there is an assortment of papers, including: maps, online article print outs, and blank sheets.

Malcolm's initial reaction to the information was a consideration about heading to the place first beforehand to see how badly things could go. However when it became clear others would be heading to the initial meeting he instead put out the offer to share a taxi there. Whether people took him up on the offer or not on the night he turned up with a reasonably sturdy coat on over his normal attire, a shoulder-bag and to the slight surprise of some who had seen him before a cane he leant heavily on both entering and exiting the vehicle.

Entering the cafe at a slow trudge Malcolm did not head straight into the back room, instead ordering a drink and tipping well but not egregiously while letting others go into the back room first to remain detached from them rather than walking in together. When he finally headed in he bestowed SpectorDetector a nod and a briefly muttered, "Evening," as he took the offered name tag, digging into one pocket to produce a small badge that he clipped on his jacket before slowly filling in the tag with the provide sharpie and affixing the tag to the badge rather than his clothing. With the displayed name of "Lost&Found" Malcolm headed slowly into the room, smiling politely if slightly distantly at those present with the grin slowly draining as he took them all in. After a long survey he took a seat at the table next to The_Last_Necromancer before asking him, in a polite but quiet voice, "So who was the first?"

Linda doesn't feel like heading out that night, but she feels a weird sense of obligation to check out the meeting.

Boots, Cargo pants, Death to all but metal -T-shirt, leather jacket, all as black as her hair that can be seen from beneath her pink lost-kid-beanie. As usual, she is low on cash, so she skips ordering anything and moves straight to the meeting area.

She tips her head as she enters and grabs the pen to write "Kain_saw_massacre" on it. Then she takes a corner seat hugging her knees.

Anne receives the post with a little shake of her head. Now, what do those people think...?
But then she recalls, long before she and her Geist made their bond, she was seeing things herself. Maybe they - or at least some of them - do as well?

With the combination of curiosity and a feel for duty to get there take a look, she approaches the Cafe and the backroom. Seeing the glowing eyes, GhostGirl is the one she walks by and greets somewhat shyly. "Hi", she says, "I am Whisperer" - pointing at her name tag.

Before she went to the Cafe, she had visited her favourite internet cafe and made sure to create an account under the nickname she was going to use.

The barista gave Malcolm a big smile and mouthed the words "thank you" at him as he headed into the back room. Other than the man in the wife beater, Malcolm doesn't notice any other Sin-eaters until his fellow Krewe members arrive.

The_Last_Necromancer looks up at Malcolm in surprise and confusion, the death energy that had been surrounding him quickly dissipate as he loses his concentration on what he was doing. "What?" a moment passes before his eyes are filled with understanding and he gives a half-laugh (the kind that suggests he did not think the joke was funny but wants to connect socially). "That's clever," he says, motioning towards an empty seat next to himself, "Haven't seen you around before. You new to the," he makes air quotes with his fingers, "club?"



SpecterDetector's eyes twinkle as Linda walks in. "Well, hello," he says, approaching her after she sits down. "You must be new," he musters in what Linda can only assume is supposed to be his 'sexy' voice, "You know... I'm kind of a big deal in this circle." He tries to lean against the table but misjudges the distance and slips, stumbling over. His face goes bright red as he franticly tries to think how to recover from the slight. The man in the wife beater laughs out loud as the other members try to do so a bit more politely.

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Spoiler text: (Highlight or hover over the text to view)
14:59, Today: The Storyteller, for the NPC SpecterDetector, failed (no successes) using 3d10 with the World of Darkness nWoD system with a target of 8, rerolling 10s for "Rizz" ((7,4,6)).

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Shortly afterwards, Anne arrives. GhostGirl is still laughing when she does. "Oh, I'm sorry, Whisperer. You just missed quite the perform-" she pauses and stares at Anne. Hard.

"This... isn't your first rodeo, is it?" she asks. She then motions to Malcolm, Linda, and the son of Saint Death, "Friends of yours?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:07, Tue 19 Sept 2023.

Malcolm's cheerful expression grew more genuine when it was clear that his humour was recognised as awful he took the indicated seat next to T_L_N, nodding in answer to the question, "Lurker so far rather than poster, I'm one of those who enjoys observing the discussion rather than participating. When I saw a meet was planned though I couldn't resist looking into things a bit closer." Settled in he glanced upwards as others entered but did not focus on them, particularly when familiar faces were those entering. Instead he kept his attention on his current company continuing the conversation, "What about yourself? I admit I don't look at the posting names much, runs the risk of biasing my opinions when I know one poster from another."