Vampire the Masquerade V5 - Session Eighty Three - 'The Unbound' (Part Two)

I'm currently running a Vampire the Masquerade chronicle using the 5th Edition rule-set for a small group of fellow role-players. These are the chronicles of their adventures.

Our chronicle is set in Los Angeles and features a small group of Camarilla agents sent into the 'Free States' to bring them back under Camarilla control. Over a year of plotting allowed the coterie to gain control of two North-Eastern Baronies and a large part of a third. Now they are moving on to the final stage of their campaign and have their eyes on taking over the entire city, either directly or by proxy.

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The now obligatory warning bit - Unlike my other RPG write-ups this one will contain swearing, sexual references and other references that might offend. If you can't tell the difference between real             peoples opinions and grown-ups role-playing predators who crave blood then this probably won't be for you. I've also used actual photographs to represent some characters which I'll give acknowledgements to at the end if I've any idea who they are.
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The introduction to this campaign, the first story and all the other parts can be found at the following links and are in chronological order. If you'd prefer a summary of each session rather than read everything then there's a more detailed link page HERE as well as links to the first episode of each story in the blog sidebar.
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Chronicle One - 'Infiltrate L.A.' 

Welcome to L.A. - Introductory Session
Story One - 'Three Murders' - Part One, Two, Three, Four and Five
Interlude Session - One
Story Two - 'The Pasadena Problem' - Part One, Two, Three, and Four
Solo Session - 'The Neillson Library'
Story Two Continued- 'The Pasadena Problem' - Part Five, Six, Seven and Eight
Story Three - 'Becoming Baron' - Part One, Two, Three, Four and Five
Solo Session - 'The Gather'
Story Three Continued - 'Becoming Baron' - Part Six, Seven and Eight

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Chronicle Two - 'Foothold L.A.' 

Solo Session - 'Hostile Takeover'
Story Four - 'Countdown' - Part One, Two and Three
Story Five - 'The Missing Chantry' - Part One, Two, Three, Four and Five
Solo Session - 'The Anaheim Assassination'
Story Six - 'A Meeting of Barons' - Part One, Two and Three
Story Seven - 'The Carmelita Situation' - Part One, Two and Three
Story Eight - 'The Blount Sisters' - Part One and Two
Story Nine - 'Blood Money' - Part One, Two, Three, Four, Five and Six
Story Ten - 'Anathema' - Part One and Two
Story Eleven - 'Predators and Prey' aka 'The Blount Sisters' - Part Three
Story Twelve - 'Aftermath' - Part One and Two
Story Thirteen - 'The Messiah Complex' - Part One, Two, Three and Four

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Chronicle Three - 'Incursion L.A.'

Story Fourteen - 'The Rant'
Story Fifteen - 'Ties of Blood' - Part One and Two

Solo Session - 'A Gathering of Roses'

Story Sixteen - 'The Southern Solution' - Part One, Two and Three
Story Seventeen - 'The Baker Disappearance' - Part One, Two and Three

Story Eighteen - 'Inevitable Betrayals' - Part One, Two, Three, Four and Five

Story Nineteen - 'The Marius Contracts' - Part One and Two

Story Twenty - 'The MacNeil Protocols' - Part One, Two, Three, Four, Five, 

Story Twenty - 'The MacNeil Protocols' - Part Six, Seven, Eight, Nine and Ten

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Interlude Session One - After Griffith Park

Interlude Session Two - Divide and Conquer

Interlude Session Three - On the Brink of War

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Chronicle Four - 'Conquest L.A.'

Story Twenty One - 'Veni, Vidi, Victor' - Part One, Two, Three, Four, Five

Story Twenty One - 'Veni, Vidi, Victor' - Part Six, and Epilogue

Story Twenty Two - 'The Unbound' - Part One

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The PC's

Michael Tomassio - Toreador, 'Baron of the North East'
Vincent 'Vin' Ghast - Brujah, 'Constable'
Dr Daniel Matthews - Banu Haqim, 'Fixer'
Hope Romero - Gangrel, 'Census Taker'
Mr Hertz - Nosferatu, 'Seneschal'

The player characters stats and backgrounds can be found HERE should any-one be interested, but be warned that the page is usually several stories ahead of the most recent write-up and may contain some spoilers. There's also some minor 'house-rules' HERE that have occurred as we went along.

As I have written out introductions and dialogue for certain NPC's and some location descriptions I'll post these more or less as I wrote them so they'll be in a 'reading to the group' style and they'll also be in blue so you can tell them apart from the more traditional write-up sections and occasionally an obscure Premonition will turn up in purple. If I think something needs a bit of out of character explanation then those will get a storytellers note that will helpfully be in red. Anything covered via player handouts will also be in blue as they're written in the same style as introductions and the like. Where particular NPC's have a mention in a faction profile you will be able to reach it by clicking on their name or faction beneath their picture.

Introduction

The Young Bloods - Unbound Ghoul Gang

The coterie currently has three major concerns.

Firstly, the gang of unbound ghoul bikers known as 'The Young Bloods' has resumed it's vampire hunting activities after a brief lull. Daniel believes that they have reached a limit to the number of ghoul gang members that their current stock of vampire prisoners can support and is seeking new victims.

Secondly, Vannevar Thomas, Prince of San Francisco, may still be planning an attack on the Anarch domain of San Jose. He plans to then use it as a staging point for an assault. This is despite losing the support of two major kindred proponents of his plan. However it is possible that they gifted him the resources he needed, before their destruction, apparently at the hands of the Second Inquisition.

Storytellers Note - The coterie strongly believe that the up and coming Ventrue power-broker, Fiorenza Savona, had them destroyed as they apposed her more subtle plan to undermine the Anarch free States from within, using the coterie. They also believe that she wishes any victory in the city to be hers, not attributable to another kindreds machinations.

Third and finally, the other coterie members are increasingly concerned that Vin may believe that they are moving further from the goal that they were sent to L.A. to accomplish and may decided to turn against them. Before he acts, Michael is attempting to find out what Vin's sire's opinion on the matter is as she still has great influence over her childe as well as within the Camarilla.

Scene One - 'The Galerie Sanguine'

Galerie Sanguine - Pasadena

As promised, Marius people have upgraded the gallery's security considerably. The head of your new security teams is an imposing man called Dainton Derrick of Mercury Security Solutions. He is aware of what you are though his men have in his words been "Conditioned to remember only what we deem necessary..." all are inconspicuously armed and armoured.

Daniel made note of the various security personnel and they seemed to all be professionals, possibly former mercenaries. They were armed with 10mm Glock handguns and had high quality custom body armour beneath their inconspicuous clothing. Daniel, who had experience dealing with security, theorized that they had received high level close protection training based on their actions. Vin, who had acted as a bodyguard for his sire, was certain that this was the case. Their leader Dainton spoke to Michael and made clear the particulars of his mission.

Mercurio - Ghoul of Marius
Arms Dealer and Security Consultant

"My men and I are completely at your disposal within certain boundaries that I'm sure I need not explain to an individual of your obvious intelligence. Suffice to say that you may deploy us in any manner that pertains to the security of this facility and it's staff. We will also be available for external security duties that broadly match those aims. We will also patrol the local area, inconspicuously I assure you, and warn you of any potential external threats. Mercurio pays our salaries but he has told me to consider an order from you to be no different than an order from him."

You have been given new security codes, keys to the new looks and the locations of all the panic rooms as well as the necessary applications to enable you to access your security remotely.

"On a personal note, I have been told in no uncertain terms that if Heather is harmed while under my protection that I will be handed over to Victoria, so I am highly motivated as you might imagine."

Michael picked up the edge of fear within his voice. Victoria was the most trusted ghoul of Marius and had a fearsome reputation in the area of inflicting pain. Michael had once reluctantly witnessed the end of one of her 'interrogations' and was unlikely to ever forget the experience. Whenever possible, Michael preferred to have Daniel deal with her as she seemed marginally better inclined to him than with any of the other coterie members. She apparently considered him to be 'Useful', which was the closest thing to a compliment that one was likely to get from her.

Michael Tomassio - Toreador
Baron of the North East

With the gallery secure and somewhat expanded, Michael noticed that the areas reserved for his own art pieces were beginning to look quite sparse. He therefore threw himself into his work for a number of consecutive nights. It seemed that recent events had been quite an inspiration for him as he produced several paintings that he considered to be amongst the best he'd ever produced. The single work with which he was unhappy he burnt, as was his habit.

Storytellers Note - I got Michael's player to make seven Craft (Painting) rolls to ascertain the quality of his paintings. All were high rolls, accept for a single terrible one, the result of which the player decided his character would destroy.

Vin had been continuing his private investigations into his sire's missing childe but with little success. As he had been forced to use the coteries contacts as well as his own, Daniel, Michael and Mr Hertz were now also aware of his enquiries. They had, however, chose to leave him to his own devices as given the potentially fractious nature of his current relationship with the coterie they had no desire to antagonize him by looking like they were interfering in his private affairs. Vin was aware of this and appreciated them leaving him alone to deal with the matter in his own way.

Kingsley Barker - Toreador
Artists Patron

After a brief discussion where the coterie shared some of what they had learned from their own contacts the kindred concluded that the unbound ghoul gang known as 'The Young Bloods' were the most important current issue that required dealing with. Michael also theorized that if handled correctly that they may be a useful tool in uniting the Anarchs of Los Angeles into the council of kindred that he had envisioned. The presence of a common enemy had been used as a political tool by both kindred and kine many times in the past and Michael was confident that he could use these rogue ghouls in exactly that manner.

They would, of course, need as much information as possible. They therefore decided to contact Kingsley Barker, whose childe had apparently been one of the gangs earliest 'acquisitions'.

The coterie had discovered that Kingsley currently favoured two of the Los Angeles clubs frequented by kindred. The first was Club Confession, ran by Venus Dare for Marius Walker and the second was Club Zombie, which was controlled by Baron Fortier. As neither Marius nor Louis were kindred you wanted to antagonise they decided to make some further enquiries before arranging a meeting.

Venus informed Michael that Kingsley came to Club Confession a couple of times a week, but had recently been attending more regularly due to having had a disagreement at Club Zombie of some kind. Venus had no idea of the exact circumstances as Marius and Louis kept out of each others affairs and had indicated to those they controlled that the were to do likewise. 

It was generally accepted that the stability of the Anarch Free States was best served by the Baronies of Downtown and West L.A. avoiding conflict with one another.

Mariel St. John - Ventrue
Adopted Childe and Mistress of Baron Fortier

A call to Baron Fortier's adopted childe and mistress, Mariel St. John gave them further information. It seemed that Kingsley's opinions on the contribution of Carthage to the artistic culture of the world had antagonized several of Club Zombies Brujah regulars. 

In short, he had stated that the Carthaginians eclectic mix of influences and styles, which included Egyptian motifs, Greek fashion and Phoenician gods, amongst others was a reflection of a culture which borrowed much, but created nothing of it's own. He was also of the opinion that the finer pieces of art attributed to Carthage were imported and that only the more 'rustic' pieces were locally created.

Michael did some research of his own into the subject should he need to ingratiate himself with Kingsley and was inclined to agree with his opinions. He would however have been careful to avoid sharing this opinion in earshot of those it might offend, having more diplomatic talents than apparently possessed by Kingsley.

Philosophically minded Brujah were notoriously close-minded when it came to any criticism of Carthage and Kingsley had apparently not helped his cause by then launching into a detailed critique of many other aspects of the ancient cities culture. It had been suggested to him by several more level-headed club patrons that he should probably avoid the establishment for a while.

Carthage - Historic Brujah Stronghold

Vin was about as far from being a philosopher as was possible and so had no issue with the Toreadors opinions on Carthage as he himself couldn't care less about the long destroyed city. The Banu Haqim, Daniel, who had studied Carthage in order to help with his cover as a Brujah philosopher, was well aware of the high regard that Carthage was held in but was pragmatic enough to know that the city had been far from perfect. Like Michael, he would have kept his opinions to himself.

Venus had promised to inform the coterie should Kingsley make an appearance at Club Confession on any subsequent night. Michael briefly considered making the meeting appear completely by chance but reconsidered after some thought and asked Venus to make mention of their interest in him. As it was possible that they could help him with his search in return for the information they required, it seemed more beneficial if  Kingsley was expecting them.

Scene Two - Kingsley Barker

Venus Dare - Ghoul of Marius
Manager of Marius's Clubs

The next night they received a call from Club Confessions manager, Venus Dare.

"Kingsley is here and is expecting you. He is intrigued of course..."

Michael's chauffeur Dion, who was also an agent of Fiorenza Savona was to drive them to the club and Michael asked Daniel to accompany him. Vin had offered to go with them if necessary but was also keen to continue his own enquiries. Daniel indicated that he was sure that trouble was unlikely and so Vin's abilities shouldn't be required. With that decided, Vin left the Gallery to pursue his own tasks.

Mr Hertz had informed Michael that the sex trade within the city, that the coterie now largely controlled through Vin, was bringing in a surprising amount of profit considering Vin's lack of experience in that area. He theorized that his business connections with 'The Blossoms' in Downtown were becoming increasingly closer with them acting more as mentors than mere business acquaintances. This was another area to watch out for as The Blossoms were heavily under Marius's influence meaning that Vin could conceivably be influenced by him also.

As Daniel loaded his hardware into the cars trunk, 'just in case', he noticed that Dion had apparently started to store weapons of his own within the vehicle. Specifically there was a shotgun in there with a box of solid slugs next to it. Daniel recognised them as the kind normally used by law enforcement to crack car engine blocks. He mentioned this to Dion during the the drive.

Smith and Wesson 500's

"Considering the recent issues we've had, I decided that I needed something with a bit more stopping power to hand." He then gestured to the glove compartment and Daniel had a look inside. Almost filling it were a pair of loaded Smith and Wesson 500's. "I figure if they can stop a buffalo..." continued Dion. "...then they should give a kindred something to think twice about as well." Needless to say, Daniel wholeheartedly approved.

Michael and Daniel used the side 'VIP' entrance to the club that was exclusively reserved for kindred guests. Considering that their membership cards were signed by Victoria and Marius respectively, the security let them through without incident. 

Venus pointed them in the direction of Kingsley when they arrived but it was hardly necessary as he was fairly simple to locate.

As you'd expect, Kingsley is quite handsome and is currently in a booth with several pretty young men and women. He is drinking what appears to be wine of the traditional sort and is blushed. He notices you approaching and ushers his toadying sycophants away, and waves to Venus who leisurely approaches. 

Club Confession Staff
Private Rooms Security

"I believe I'm going to need the use of one of your special rooms and several bottles of your equally special wine." Venus indicates that she will see what she can do, and nods in the direction of her gigantic head of security who steps to one side and moves the velvet rope that crosses the staircase to the private rooms on the upper floor. "Room three is currently vacant. Mr Barker..."

Daniel had done some research into Kingsley and had discovered that he had a house in Hollywood, an apartment in Downtown and several penthouses around the city. He sponsored a lot of alternative art exhibits and workshops so was generally accepted by the counter-culture Anarchs when in the city. More surprising was the discovery that he was actually from Miami which was once generally regarded as Sabbat territory, but was now more or less a free for all with no faction clearly dominant.

He also had considerable personal wealth, though his influence was mainly in the mortal world of art, galleries, exhibitions, and similar. It therefore seemed likely that he would be able to repay their help in favours and cash but not boons due to his lack of influence within the Anarch Free States. That he could assist Michael in his artistic aspirations was obvious however.

'Refreshments'
Creation of the Blood Sommelier's of L.A.

As they sat down in the private room, Venus bought several bottles of blood infused wine and a selection of glasses. Once she had given them their privacy they began to learn exactly what Kingsley knew about his childes disappearance.

"Abandoning Eugene...I refuse to use the ridiculous nickname Romulus...was a mistake on my part and I can't help but feel that my rejection may have, in part, caused the distraction that enabled him to be captured by those unbound ghouls known as the YoungBloods. I would like to see him freed, if he still exists, but I have no martial contacts willing or able to attempt a rescue or to avenge his loss."

Daniel was curious about what Kingsley knew of the circumstances of the kidnap as any information on their modus operandi was going to be invaluable.

"I believe he was captured while seeking inspiration in the mountains. There was a trail several miles long. It appears he was netted and dragged behind a motorcycle for some six miles, then his captors hit tarmac and the Brujah, 'Reuben', that I hired to track him could not or would not follow them any further."

'The Young Bloods' - Unbound Ghouls

Daniel knew the name Reuben as he had been a tracker for the kindred gang known as 'The Blue Bloods' led by Ralph Harwood. Unfortunately the gang and their leader had been destroyed quite recently which unfortunately made this a dead end.

Storytellers Note - Their destruction was also pretty much directly due to the coteries activities. the full story begins HERE if you're interested.

Kingsley then continued. "My own researches have indicated that at least five other kindred have been captured in a similar manner. A pair of Brujah, and at least two Caitiff, maybe three. They attempted and failed to capture a Gangrel named Lennie who now resides in Simi Valley with a pair of Gangrel 'Farmers' named the Goodwins. I have been unable to get permission to enter their feeding ground so he is somewhat of a dead-end to me. Mainly as I am positive that I have nothing of interest to 'The Fixer' to trade for the permission. I understand you have a better relationship with him so perhaps will have more luck?"

Club Confession - Vampire Club
"Offers a Variety of Services..."

Michael could tell that despite Kingsley's initial attempt to act aloof that he genuinely cared for Eugene and felt intense guilt for abandoning him. With the information passed on, Kingsley rose and handed Michael a business card with his number on it. "If you can help me I would of course be happy to show my gratitude in any manner that it is within my power to do." Michael confirmed that he would be in touch if he learned anything. 

"I'll handle Marius's bill for the use of the facilities. Enjoy the rest of the wine..." said Kingsley as he left, the melancholy in his voice was clear to Michael. He then left them alone.

"I really wish that so many of our potential leads weren't destroyed..." observed Daniel. "...but Hogg may have some insight?" Hogg now worked as a sweeper for Michael, and had left the aforementioned Blue Bloods gang long before the actions that had led to their destruction. He had therefore escaped the fatal consequences that the rest of them had met and avoided the ire of their enemies.

Michael then decided upon their next move.

Baron-less Gangrel Domains

"Daniel, take Hope with you to Simi Valley and see what information Lennie has on these 'Young Bloods'. I'll get permission from Victoria first, of course..."

Unfortunately that call to Victoria created somewhat of a delay as Marius apparently needed to speak with them.

"Can you pop by Hallowbrook before you head to Simi Valley. I have some more information on Vera that might be of interest to you. Vin has also requested a meeting with Marius so we might as well kill two birds with one stone and bring him along..."

"Change of plan..." announced Michael. "...we're popping to Hallowbrook on the way."

He then left a message for Vin, with his ghoul Sarah, informing him to meet them at the gallery so they could all travel to meet 'The Fixer' together.

Scene Three - A New Complication

'Hallowbrook' - Downtown L.A.
Marius's Haven and Base of Operations

As the hulking Brujah arrived at the gallery, Daniel noticed that Vin was carrying the bag that generally contained his small armoury of weaponry, including his automatic shotgun and theorized that he must have had it with him when Michael's call was passed onto him. The fact that Vin's personal investigation on behalf of his sire required such preparations was somewhat of a concern.

Vin was somewhat evasive about exactly what he'd been up to but in broad terms stated that he'd been following up on the precious few leads he had. He also let slip that his sire was becoming somewhat impatient and irritable about the lack of any significant progress. It seemed obvious to Daniel that he was hoping that Marius might be able to assist him in his quest.

They were met in Hallowbrook's private underground carpark by both Victoria and Yukio, which was somewhat unusual. Victoria usually was only accompanied by Marius's favourite ghoul assassin when she was meeting someone who might not necessarily be expected to survive the encounter. She seemed to pick up on the coteries curiosity. "You need not concern yourselves, Yukio isn't accompanying us, we merely had some matters to discuss..."

Michael could pick up no sense that she was lying and so relaxed a little.

Marius 'The Fixer' Walker - Gangrel
Baron of Downtown

You are led to the roof garden where Marius is waiting. Your attention is immediately drawn to the fact that the garden is now covered and there is a set of stairs along one side presumably leading to some additional floors. Light is now provided both naturally via large, quadruple layered, armoured glass windows and hydroponic lighting. It looks like the windows can be further protected by armoured shutters should it be necessary.

Some of Vin's street level spies had already informed him that construction work was ongoing and so he was aware of the changes. The rest of the coterie who had been concentrating on other matters were more surprised. The coterie later theorized that Marius has decided to shield his garden as a security precaution and so that Bahari rituals conducted there could not be observed. Daniel was more curious about what the floors that had been constructed above contained.

Marius wasted no time in relaying what he had discovered regarding the coteries old foe, Vera Vignes.

Vera Vignes - Ventrue
Former Baroness of Pasadena

"It seems that Mrs Vignes had other sources of wealth as she has acquired much of the assets of David Geduld's shipping empire. The assets acquired semi-legitimately by Harvey were negotiated through a shell company owned by the Vignes family, presumably without his knowledge. She has moved the remainder of these assets and the money from the sale of the remainder to her new home and now has a significant hold over the port of San Francisco. This of course begs the question of just how close she was to Geduld both before and after her departure from L.A., doesn't it?"

It was clear to the coterie that Marius seemed amused by Vera's activities and they got the sense that he wouldn't be particularly helpful as an ally in her removal from power. He wouldn't necessarily get in their way of course, but they doubt he'd help either. Marius was dangerously unpredictable when it came to things that he deemed interesting enough to stave off the boredom of nearly seven centuries of unlife.

"Is there anything else I can help you with?"

Vannevar Thomas - Ventrue
Ambitious Prince of San Francisco

His curiosity once again getting the better of him, Daniel asked about the rumours that Marius had summoned the remainder of his brood to the city in anticipation of trouble from the Camarilla held territory of San Francisco.

Marius didn't seem to be making any secret of it and was surprisingly honest with his answer. "They're all on the way. More survived than I expected which is a bonus I suppose though it's inconvenient as I'll probably have to destroy some myself now. Just so they understand how things are supposed to work..."

Marius's methods of 'parenting' left much to be desired though despite this his childer and grandechilder were surprisingly loyal to him.

Daniel also laid out an idea that had occurred to him. He had decided that it might be an idea to plant evidence in San Jose that would lead an invading Vannevar to focus his attentions on a specific target. He had Tara of San Diego in mind, mainly as he could see her attempting to take L.A. if Vannevar failed. perhaps they could be used to weaken each other?

Tara Kearney - Brujah
Baron of San Diego

Marius considered the idea before replying. "There's nothing wrong with the plan in principle though he has significant resources so the evidence would have to be very compelling and able to stand-up to forensic scrutiny. The real issue is time. I'd be surprised if San Jose isn't Camarilla territory within two weeks and that's a tight timeframe for the sort of project you want to implement. Tara also still has Camarilla contacts which would give her an avenue to allay Vannevar's suspicions should you be capable of arousing them."

Daniel admitted that it wasn't a fool-proof idea, but he admitted that he was still considering it, despite the flaws pointed out by Marius.

With the meeting drawing to a close, Vin indicated that he'd like to discuss something privately with Marius. Though the rest of the coterie gave them some space, Daniel was still close enough to use his supernatural senses to eavesdrop on the conversation.

Vin informed Marius that he was looking for his 'Sister of the Blood', Georgiana Landry, another of his sires childer who had been tasked with infiltrating another faction. Whereas he had been tasked with undermining the Anarch Free States, Georgiana had been given a task within the Sabbat. Karla Bray, enforcer for the Toreador known as 'The Blossoms', had suggested that Marius might be able to help. She had in fact implied that he had ways of gaining information on Sabbat activities. She hadn't elaborated however.

Lottie Noble, Karla Bray and Tayla Quintana - 'The Blossoms' 

Toreador, Mistresses of  Downtown Los Angeles's Sex Trade

"That's not a trivial request, you understand?" began Marius. "The Sabbat that remain outside the Middle-East have become far less overt than they once were. They are infiltrators, terrorists, assassins. No longer do they embrace a horde of expendable pawns and wallow in the chaos that ensues. They are ironically, far more dangerous with their numbers reduced, than they ever were before...." 

Desdemona 'Demonmaw' Moore - Brujah
Sire of Vin, Camarilla Alastor and Praetor

Vin waited in anticipation of being hit with a fee of astronomical proportions for Marius's help. What came next was therefore of considerable surprise.

"...but as the service is more for your sire than yourself, and as I appreciate that Desdemona is neither patient nor forgiving of failure, I will make the necessary enquiries on your behalf. I too, was once at the beck and call of a master that I both respected and feared in equal measure so I appreciate your predicament. We shall call this a favour between us, I see no need to wrap it up in the formalities of kindred prestation." Surprised but grateful, Vin gave his thanks and re-joined the rest of the coterie.

As Victoria began to escort them out, Marius summoned her back. Daniel heard Marius ask her to send 'Meredith' to him as soon as she arrived. Whether this related to their own issue, Vin's, or something completely different was, however, a mystery.

"Need I be concerned about this?" asked Michael of Vin, referring to his meeting. Vin assured him that if his mission for his sire effected the coterie in any way that he would inform them straight away. For now, however, there was little more he could do unless his own spies or Marius's contacts could supply him with further information.

Scene Four - 'Lennie'

'The Yound Bloods' Bunker
Near Calico Ghost Town

As they travelled to Simi Valley, the conversation naturally turned to the Young Bloods gang.

Vin was concerned that often kindred attempted to use threats like these Unbound ghouls as weapons against their own enemies, and this was prone to backfiring. The Second Inquisition being the biggest example of this, though there were lesser incidents too. In short he believed that the gang needed to be utterly destroyed, not diverted through political trickery.

Daniel agreed, though he did add that in his opinion a straight fight wasn't a great idea either, especially given the advantage the enemy had in both numbers and the not to be underestimated ability to strike during the day. Hope, like Vin, would prefer to just tear the bastards to pieces but knew that Daniel was correct. Fighting a prepared enemy, in their own base of operations, rarely ended well for the attackers. Hopefully Lennie would have some useful intelligence for them.

Lewis Wheeler - Gangrel
Barony of Simi Valley

The Goodwins farm is much as you remember it though the kindred who intercepts you on the way in is new to you. He is a solidly built, black man dressed in functional clothing and appears to be unarmed. Presumably this is Lewis, former Crypts Son and current sweeper for Simi Valley. "I was told to expect you though I heard you coming anyway. Lennie is just checking the farm is all locked up. He'll be here in a minute or so."

It was transparent to the tactically aware coterie members that Lewis quite obviously didn't trust Lennie to do much more than basic security around the farm and had evidently taken on the more important tasks himself.

Daniel made a mental note to look into Lewis further. Lewis had, like many Gangrel, the look of a casual killer. His stance was poised and he was definitely analysing Daniel, in the same way that Daniel was analysing him. On closer inspection he could also see that Lewis had a USMC Ka-Bar knife in an original scabbard on his belt, towards his back. Though this may be indicative of a military background, it could just as easily simply be a souvenir. The former Crypts Son seemed to have transitioned from an urban to rural environment with little effort.

"He is a bit embarrassed about the incident..." stated Lewis "...so may exaggerate a little to mitigate that. I'd appreciate you taking that into account, rather than confronting him about it..." It seemed that Lewis was somewhat protective of Lennie, in spite of his apparent lack of faith in his abilities. "...if you'll follow me, he's meeting us at the house after he's finished his sweep."

'Lennie' - Gangrel
Barony of Simi Valley

After a brief exchange of pleasantries with Bryce and Julianna Goodwin, the Gangrel whose domain it was, they were left to speak to Lennie. The mortal family who ran the farm on their behalf were presumably asleep due to the lateness of the hour. Lennie then began to relay his tale.

"Yeah, well...I was following one of the mountain roads and I heard some bikers approaching, then like out of nowhere their were dozens of them..."

Though not a lie as such, it was obvious that though they had probably arrived on mass, there probably weren't actually dozens. He then continued.

"Some of the ones on dirt bikes tangled me up with chains and hooks, threw this net over me and then rode off then the rest followed alongside. I managed to get my claws out and rip the net after a mile or so. The ones at the back gave chase but the lead ones were too far ahead by the time they realised I was free. It was nearly dawn so I melded with the earth like Ria taught me too. They must have given up cuz my clothes and stuff were on the ground when I arose and there were no tracks nearby..."

This bit seemed to be mostly true though those listening imagined that his escape had been more by luck than judgement or skill on the fledgling Gangrel's part.

Lennie had also stated that "...their senses were definitely heightened, they were strong and fast for mortals too..." which had no hint of embellishment. It made sense that given their prey, that the gang would have mastered the use of any disciplines that they had inherited from the vitae of their victims.

Subtle questioning narrowed the number of gang members involved from "dozens..." to "eight or nine, maybe ten..." and the method of escape to the net catching on a jagged selection of rocks and ripping enough for Lennie to struggle free. Despite these exaggerations, they at least now had a good idea of the methods they used for capturing prey. When asked about the specific location of the assault, Lennie told them that he and Lewis had returned to the area the next evening and awaited in ambush should the ghouls return. They hadn't. At this point, Lewis returned and passed on some information of his own.

'Just in Case'

"I looked for tracks and signs of scouting in the surrounding area but found none that were more recent than the attack on Lennie. I imagine that they went looking somewhere else after their failure here. They must have known that an ambush or counterattack was likely if they made another similar assault. We've been extra vigilant though...just in case..." Vin then asked about how prepared the mortals of the farm were, in case of an assault during daylight hours. Apparently this had already been considered.

"Marius supplied us with a selection of firearms and appropriate ammunition. One of Mercurio's guys gave them a crash course in their use and they've all been practicing their shooting when they can. They're not exactly a crack military unit but they can shoot straight. We've set up some early warning systems and monitors along the approaches too. Not much else we can do really..."

"They must have a base of operations between L.A. and their bunker." theorized Daniel. "There's no way to cover that distance in one night, and you can't drag a vampire behind a bike during the day."

"A van?" interjected Vin. "It's a possibility." agreed Daniel. "They could even have both. A half-way point as well as a more convenient transport."

It was decided to continue their enquiries by asking Hogg, a former associate of the now destroyed Reuben if he had any insights into what Reuben had discovered when working for Kingsley. Daniel's police contact would look into the records for any reports that might be associated with the gangs activities and Hertz would confer with his criminal contacts to see if they had any information on the gangs criminal activities.

The area between the two points would also need to be scouted. A mammoth task, considering the area to be covered. But at least they were making some progress.

To Be Continued in 'The Unbound' (Part Three)

In Conclusion

I like to do a round-up of how the session went in these features but if you couldn't give a shit what I think then feel free to skip this bit...

Some solid investigation by the players has enabled them to make a lot of progress. More progress than I was expecting to be fair.

Unfortunately for them, this means that a significant event is now going to have to happen sooner than I was planning...

Acknowledgements
“Portions of the materials are the copyrights and trademarks of White Wolf Entertainment AB, and are used with permission. All rights reserved.”

I've used pictures of real people to represent some of the characters and art for others so in no particular order Michael Tomassio is represented by Matt Bomer, 'Vin' is Scott Adkins, Dr Matthews is Mads Mikkelsen, Hope is Deborah Ann Woll, Mr Hertz is Charles Dance, Mercurio is Taylor Kitsch, Kingsley Barker is James Franco, Mariel St. John is Kate Moss, Venus Dare is Sophie Howard, Marius Walker is Tony Curran, Vera Vignes is Helen Mirren, Vannevar Thomas is Bryan Dechart, Tara Kearney is Melissa Rauch, The Blossoms (Tayla Quintana is Alyssa Milano, Karla Bray is Rose McGowan and Lottie Noble is Holly Marie Combs), Desdemona Moore is Amanda Donohoe and Lewis Wheeler is Michael Ealy

Everything else is from vampire related folders and searches and is as far as I know is all of the 'fair use' variety. If there's something that you feel should be attributed to some-one then feel free to let me know and I'll happily add an acknowledgement.