Chapter Two: Sunday Sermon

[Muskrat]

Pilgrim says, "Well, Jack and I will need to talk to Mr. Fowler before we head down to prison to talk to Danielle and the other members of La Mancha there. We can ask him if has any thoughts about discretely getting the police the crack--or if we should just flush it. And hopefully I'll have a chance to speak with Tough Luck and discretely ask him about the money."

[veritas]

Jack nods.

"We can go ahead and do that now, if you like. I'm feeling much better and it would give the others some peace while they work on the ritual."

[Muskrat]

Pilgrim nods and says, "Yeah, that's a good idea, Jack. Nikolai, do you need us to stick around or we can go have a word with Mr. Fowler now?"

[Trogdor]

"Oh, I imagine that Mr. Han, Esmeralda, and I will need a bit of time to figure out the particulars of the ritual." Nikolai looks to the other two for confirmation. "There should be plenty of time for you to talk to Mr. Fowler."

[Eanwulf]

OOC

You can go ahead and discuss whether or not some of you go see Mr. Fowler. I just want to inform you what's inside the safe.

Examining the safe's contents further, our heroes make several startling discoveries.

The Book
The black leather book is old and worn, appearing to be either one of Tough Luck's journals or possibly even his diary. The contents of the book are random, vile, and lewd; listing various atrocities the man has committed over the years and depicting some kind of crude attempt at records keeping for whatever drug sales, gun running, and prostitution rings he was associated with, etc. There is however, a tattered black satin bookmark that placed upon one portion of the item that marks the page listing an entry dated some six years prior.

It would appear that the entry describes Tough Luck waiting for his father's and brothers' arrival. The three brothers had apparently managed to spring their father from jail (some kind of isolation chamber in an underground supers prison over in the ruins of Freedom City) and were going to reap the benefits of such an endeavor. Apparently father (no name given other than simply Pops) was a powerful Houngan whom specialized in the dark arts. The man seems to have shown an interest in using his power over the Loa to imbue his sons with great boons. Father also appears to be a rather cruel and unforgiving man and Tough Luck even shows signs of fear in his writing that the man would be greatly irate at the fact of his youngest son not being there to personally spring him out of jail (apparently due to some gang-related affairs).

Later entries in the same section tell of how the procedure was done (midnight, cemetery, etc.) and that Tough Luck was utterly freaked out about it all. He also goes on to write that despite the sickening feeling he felt during the event, he doesn't feel like anything has happened to him. Sometime after this entry (when T.L. was shot in the leg) he goes on to curse his family for cheating him of the power he was promised. Something to do with an angry father's punishment and the simple fact that the Dark Loa didn't find his soul worthy of latching on to.

The Box
The intricately carved box of dark walnut contains numerous scrolls (illustrated) and ingredients used for black magic. It would appear that Tough Luck was trying to concoct his own spell for gaining power. Sadly, this effort never saw its way through to fruition. The parchments contain procedures in binding spirits (Loa) to a person's soul. The ingredients (most likely pilfered from his father) likewise seem key in some kind of role during such rituals. One particular piece (the withered skull of a cottonmouth water moccasin) looks ominous and promising; most likely belonging to the boys' father.

[Muskrat]

Pilgrim says, "All right then. Good luck with that spell. C'mon, Jack, let's go see Mr. Fowler."

OOC

I'm not sure it makes sense for any but the two of us to go. Raging Tiger and Ookami would stand out to much to be let into the prison (if Oookami wasn't just automatically locked up as some sort of monster). Maybe Luke could come with us, though I'm not sure how much control he has over turning into Cobalt. Is he like the Hulk, where if he loses his temper, he automatically changes? Or does he have changing into Cobalt under voluntary control? If the former is the case, we probably don't want him coming to prison with us either.

[veritas]

Jack nods and moves to follow Pilgrim.

"Coming."

[Chanur]

OOC

I control when I change.

"You guys have a good time, jails are not my thing. Magic really isn't either so ....I don't know. Hanging out here possibly getting drunk is in my future."

[Muskrat]

Pilgrim says, "Well then, God bless you all and aid you in your spell-casting." He goes out Nikolai's door, taking one last look back and shaking his head in wonder at the sheer size of the apartment, crammed into a space much smaller on the outside than the inside. For a moment, he wishes he could do that with his apartment--but then reminds himself that the Lord's servant can do without such luxuries.

He heads over to Mr. Fowler's apartment and knocks on the door. "Hey, Mr. Fowler, it's Pilgrim and Jack. We go a couple things we need to talk to you about--and don't worry. It ain't about the rent being late."

[Trogdor]

"Thank you," Nikolai says when Pilgim offers his blessings. "Any help your God can give would be most appreciated."

He looks over at Mr. Hand and Esmeralda. "Why don't we retire to my library or my magical workshop," he suggests to the two other mages. "I have better facilities in there for what we'll need, and it will be more comfortable."

Turning to the others he adds, "feel free to stay here or come inside." He gestures at the magical doorway. "If you had a rough fight, Luke, you might want a soak in the spa pool. I always find that loosens up my muscles. Or you could relax in the drawing room. I have a large collection of novels from my own world. You might find them entertaining." He glances at Crystal. "I'm afraid if the boys would like to watch the television, they'll have stay out here." The sorcerer looks thoughtful. "Though as I think about that, it might be possible to ensorcel a mirror to display the same images. I"ll have to work on that."

OOC

Ready to work on planning the ritual.

As for TV (and radio, etc.), the HQ has 'Communications,' which I assume means that Tenebrous has scrying pools and mirrors that let him 'hack' into the normal means of communication on this world (though not with any finesse).