The Prologue (1941) - Part I

[Nanshork]

Richard continues to ignore Russo.

"I am not Bone's anything, he needs his parcel before we can leave and he can't be seen walking around right now so I volunteered to take care of it."  He chuckles softly.  "Furthermore, I'm old enough to be your father so I'm not any kind of boy." 

Richard places his hand in hers.  "Yes, give me a reading.  And a real reading, not what you might give to simple minded tourists."

[jacemachine]

She cackles at your comment. Her hands darts forward and grasps your own. You feel a sensation like you are falling. "uO wiLL sEe!!" it's her voice, but at the same time not, as if there was something more than just her guiding your experience. The Loa.

And you DO see.

You see a proud Mayan warrior atop a pyramid. His heart is cut from his chest and a gem the size of a fist is placed into the hole in his ribcage...

You see a demon. He walks in the clothes of a man. A priest. There is fire in his eyes. You see that he is with another expedition (from at least 20 years earlier judging from the way they are dressed) who have found the ruins of an overgrown Mayan city. The demon poisons his companions save one. This one escapes into the jungle only to be pursued by the demon...

You see the Nazi Flag. German soldier marching towards their goal with blood stained boots. Richard gets a very real sense that he and his new friends must stop the Nazis from achieving their goal...

You see a silver ship leaning on it's side up against a huge sand dune. It's a 1930's era destroyer. It's been stripped of every scrap of paint by the winds and sand...

You made your Will save at this point...

[[ The really cool past that was here was accidentally deleted, because I don't pay attention to what I am doing sometimes...

I have had to re-compose it from scratch. Sorry Nanshork. ]]

[Nanshork]

Richard is surprised, but only temporarily so.  In the depths of Africa he had encountered Vodun priestesses before, though he had never before experienced anything like this.  Richard takes this all in, trying to permanently etch every detail that he can into his memory.  He gives a quiet prayer of thanks that the woman is what he had hoped.  Paying special attention to the priest Richard smiles to himself, he has found a worthy prey.

Will: 21

Jace, you have made me happy on so many levels.   

[jacemachine]

You feel nauseous, and your heads swims. You find yourself laying on your back on the floor on the room. The woman turns to see you awaken. "Uo 'av no be out long-time" She says. "Long 'nuff dat me prepare ou and ou chummy's a special gift ob protection."

She turns and presents you with 6 leather bags, each tied shut.

"Gib' one ob dees to each ob your friends... Me think dat you all will need protection. Dis be 'gris-gris bags'. Dis maybe keep ou safe from de darkness. Do not open et, or de magic will leave et." After passing the 6 bags to Richard she hands you a breadbox-sized burlap wrapped parcel to give to Harrison.

[[ Your Will Save result was close but you passed. You could have blacked out for a period of time after that! ]]

[Nanshork]

Richard takes the bags and the parcel and nods in thanks.  He starts thinking out loud.  "Do you know what I saw?  The Mayans have created some sort of protector for a weapon, and the Nazi's are searching for it.  If they find it, they win.  How can I kill the bloody thing?"

[Tarotdragoon]

Russo listens hard to the commotion inside feeling slightly tingly but unsure if this is anything supernatural or just him thinking it is, he never put much stock in mumbo-jumbo of any sort.
He pulls out a cigarette and tries to light it but finds his hands trembling, a little disconcerted he places the matches and cigarettes back into his pocket, he finds himself sweating and twitchy.

Trying to calm himself Russo takes a good look around just to make sure nothing unpleasant is on it's way and at the same time trying to distract himself from the heady smoke issuing from the mouth of the woman's den

((oh yes, I'm back boys  spot: 21))

[jacemachine]

[Spoiler= RICHARD]

“So… dat be ou interpretation, eh?” she smiled. “Bisions be bery tricksy, bey-- BERY tricksy. Et be best  to no be jumpin to any one conclusion or anodda… Best wait and see where de pieces fall when de time be right. Ou know?”
She took a long drag off her pipe, and exhaled the smoke as rings. “Ou tell him Bones sometin’ fo’ me? Tell him dat he best come beck live or no at all.” She gave a smile that was both demure and predatory all at once.

“Demon-spirits be eternal. No way, no how ou can kill one. But dey hab’ dey weaknesses. Dey either got dems a Bane or a Craving. Somting dey can’t stand or somting dat dey needs. Ou find out what dat be… dens you hab’ sometin to work with... Ou can slow dem down.

"Fo' example...do ou know dat some demon-spirits crave sugar?"[/spoiler]

[Spoiler= RUSSO]

You notice someone along the street watching you. When they notice that you’ve seen them they smile broadly and head in your direction.

The man is the same Hispanic man you had met earlier on the ship; Carlos Garcia.

“Hola!” he says. “I THOUGHT I recognized someone I knew over here! Have you gone to see the Palm Reader? Scary stuff.” He smiles withdrawing one of his hand-rolled cigarettes. “Mind if I get a match off you, amigo?”

“Did you ever get that ‘guide situation’ figured out? Most of the guides in this town aren’t worth their weight in donkey shit. TRUST me, my brother and I have had to rescue quite a number of jungle treks that got turned around and lost. So if you happen to still be looking, I know that my brother IS available… How about it?” Carlos proposes.[/spoiler]

[Spoiler= MAX]

Max sits with Harrison in the dismal cantina, talking about old times...[/spoiler]

[Nanshork]

Richard nods, "You would know more than I about these things, that's why I'm here.  I will deliver your message."  He chuckles softly to himself.  "Sugar?  Well, that's something to lay a trap with."

[jacemachine]

Richard

“Dey you go. Dat's Dinking wit' de noggin. May you have success, but me dinks me glad me am staying here." Shes sits back down on her large comfy pillow. She taps her pipe out in an ashtray that looks like it has been made out of the Frontal Bone of a human skull.

[Nanshork]

Richard nods.  "At least I won't be bored.  Is there anything else I should know?"

[jacemachine]

Richard

“Me only can be making guesses, bey. See me when dis be all done. If you lib to dell anybody 'bout id. Me wanna hear ou tale den... Mayhaps ou don' die--" She gives you a dismissive wave of her heavily ringed hand. Bangled bracelets jingle on her wrist.

[Nanshork]

Richard nods, then gets up and heads out the door.

[Tarotdragoon]

"Ah my old friend mr Carlos! You arn't kidding, that sort of stuff gives me the shakes! not my thing at all!" he chuckles and attempts to get out his matches settling as best he can his tremblings
"if this carries on" he strikes the match, sulfur smell overpowering the noxious fumes billowing from the teller's shelter for a second before being eclipsed once more, "I'm gonna have to start charging" smiling he holds the light to the man's cigarette and takes a deep, long look into his face

((sense motive: 17))

"yeah still looking for a guide, found a rather interesting man over in the market who says he can take us through the jungle, but he seems a bit of a grifter if you ask me, where did you say your brother and you were staying?"
((Bluff: 19))

[jacemachine]

Russo

“Gracias!”Carlos says to the gift of fire.

“Really? The other man is a bit of a grifter you say? Tell me his name and I can tell you if you would be in good hands. As I’ve said, mi hermano and I know a lot of these guys. I live in a large boarding house with brother. If you need us, I can go get him and we could meet you somewhere! What do you say to that? Did you want to leave today?”

[spoiler= Sense Motive Result][[ You get the sense that he is a fairly shady individual, but then again it takes one to know one. He doesn’t seem to be lying about anything he’s said. ]][/spoiler]

[jacemachine]

Richard approaches Russo and Carlos, who are standing outside the building and talking.

[Nanshork]

Richard nods in greetings at Carlos, then turns to Russo.  His brusque manner has returned.  "I'm done here."

[Tarotdragoon]

Russo swore mentally, he hadn't thought up a name for this imaginary guide, think John! Think!

Richard nods in greetings at Carlos, then turns to Russo.  His brusque manner has returned.  "I'm done here."

"Ah Richard! Carlos says he may have a guide for us, do you remember what that other guy's name was, you know the boney guy with the bird cage" he gave Richard an awkward sideways glance preying he got the hint not to tell the guy about Harrison, he gave Carlos a pall-ish sort of smile as he turned back,

"Either way now that my old pal is back we should be going, you got a side of town you belong to?"

((Edit: Bluff: 25 Booyah!!))

[Nanshork]

Richard thinks quickly, then nods.  "Juan something or another, I wasn't paying attention."  He shrugs. 

[jacemachine]

[[ Bluff checks from both of you for your last posts, please. ]]

"A boney guy named Juan with a birdcage...?" Carlos says trailing off as he tries to recall this person.

[Nanshork]

Bluff check: 1d20+0=20!