2020-06-13 - But I got the Suits
But I got the Suits
Participants: Otto Sveta Ansel Avery Mosquito
Storyteller: Nakisisa
Location: VIP Seating Area - Walt Disney Concert Hal and Hollywood and Vine
Date and Time: June 13, 2020 3:14 am
Summary: Saving a car for a Primogen
Mood Music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBmCJEehYtU
The first thing one can hear is a raised voice. It is pure annoyance with a mixture of shocked, stunned, disbelief. It is one Primogen of the Ventrue, a man that very rarely speaks above a whisper. But tonight, his voice is loud and proud. A sound of a bang can be heard as he slams his fist down on the table.
Nakisisa is standing there, with his hands deep in his pocket with a puzzled look on his face. His fingers tapping against his leg as he exhales with a look of pure annoyance. His teeth-gnashing down against his pen as he paces back and forth. His phone against his ear, as his fingers are tapping against the table."I sent you to pick up my suits down at the dry cleaners. You left, the car running to dart inside, and now my car is gone? Is that truly what you are telling me, Hollywood and Vine, in the early hours of the evening. A simple run-and-grab job, and you fucked it up. We will have words later, such words." His hand is slammed down on the table with a look of poor rage as he quickly tries to force his mask back down into a calm face that is typical of his. As he paces over to a chair, not yet sinking down into it, one of his long legs is resting in the center of it. He rocks back and forth, trying to find his moment of zen. His hands are gripping the phone tightly, with his eyes narrowed at the horizon.
"My Rolls-Royce, which was restored over so many years, was not an easy find. You will find this tonight. Or I will find your family! You better hope. That is not what is going to happen. Now, then bye-bye Billy-Bob. I should have known better to allow such a name to touch my things." With that, he spikes the phone downwards the sound of shattered glasses, as his right foot is coming up to smash over and over into the brand new iPhone max till it is nothing but shards of glass, grounded into the floor.
Ansel could only watch with a grimace, "Ouch. That sucks... but a Rolls-Royce is pretty noticeable. Doubt they could get far with it. Like stealing the Mona Lisa, it's insured, and hard to find a buyer for it. Maybe whomever has it... is on a joyride...", probably not helping the situation with his words. "I got free time, Sir - this also ain't my wheelhouse. But I can cruise the beaches and look around for you. Also not a cop, but if you got a license plate. I can play lookout?", shrugging, the ghoul had nothing else better to do with his life.
Having been idly studying the maps on the table, Keet turns her attention towards Nakisisa when his voice raises. She doesn't know him well enough to know that this is unusual, but at the same time a Ventrue losing his shit (even mildly) in public is a spectacle to be enjoyed. "Joyriding a Rolls? That'd be like joyriding a sofa. More likely they're gonna get it to a chop shop toute-suite. Get it sprayed, the VIN filed off, the plates changed." This almost certainly is not going to help Nak's mood, but hey. She's being realistic.
A loud voice in Elysium? Avery recognizes who the voice belongs to - she has a sharp memory - and her steps are almost tentative as she makes her way inside. "Good evening," she still dares to offer, gaze shifting between those present and finally settling on Nakisisa. "Someone stole your car, Primogen Kanumba? Is that what I just heard?"
Svetlana Serova is on her tracfone. Lingering in the far corner of the spectator seating arrangement, it's only once the room has started to fill out that she's allowed herself to drop into the realm of conscious observation. She's tapping away at the screen with a half-lidded gaze, evidently only paying half-attention to the discourse over the automotive case of bad news. "I would burn it," she says, despite her evident disinterest.
"Take it out into the desert, stuff a rag into gastank, watch..." She trails off, wondering passively: "What's one of those things cost? 200 grand? Four? Whatever. Just watch that shit go up." She fluffs her fingers toward the ceiling and makes a throaty little noise reminiscent of fuel and oxygen combusting.
"Got to agree with, uh..." She squints over at Mosquito. "Ms. Swarm over there. If they're smart at all, it's off the streets by now."
Nakisisa looks over at Ansel as his hand reaches into his jacket to produce that leather book. His thumb is opened with a flick of his thumb, his other hand is brought out his pen as he starts to scrawl in haste the number."Here is the license plate. It is a 1925 Rolls-Royce. I drove someone in one just like it. It is a lovely car. It means the world to me. Get it back, and I will figure something out, little ghoul." With that, he offers that piece of paper, his eyes once more hidden inside of that mask, as he lifts his foot quickly looking over at someone."Clean that, please." It is directed at one of the ventrue ghouls in the Elysium as he makes his way to a chair to sink into it once the paper is gone from his fingers.
Turns slowly towards the kindred woman, as he speaks slowly."Indeed, so then this Swarm of yours are into the world of crime, are they not?" His eyes locked on to her, not matching those eyes, as he speaks slowly."I will pay you to return my car if you find it. Make sure those that took it to know better than to touch things that are not theirs. DO, I need to work it out with your boss, or can you do this?" His fingers bringing up his notebook once more as he idle starts to write into it over and over, trying to lose that rage, that mask on his face not slipping, but his body is taut.
Looks over at Avery, his hand is rubbing along his tie as it plays with the bird, as he crushes it between his fingers."Indeed. It has gone the way of the DoDo, and soon its eggs will be harvested. I would prefer the eggs to return home to the nest. I will owe a minor boon to anyone that brings back said egg."
Leaning back into that chair, his right hand is coming up to rub at the bridge of his nose. "Good help is so hard to find these days. No one wishes to do jobs right. Not like it was back in my day, lazy children of the world." The words spit out with a laced venom, as he thinks for a moment."I will deal with the ghoul shortly."
Turns his eyes now to Sveta with a bit of chuckle."Indeed, let us hope they are idiots, and you can handle this with skill. If you all so pick to do s. I have stated now I would be ever so happy if my car was mine again. I'm rather fond of it." His hand is brushing along his tie as he works to get it to lie flat on his work shirt. "If you need more of me, ask it now before I go talk to my little bird that needs to examine the coal shaft for me."
"If we do happen to find it, you want us to just call you ... or drive it back somewhere safely?", Ansel asks, unsure if they'd have to transport the expensive vehicle themselves. He had a look, like he'd totally love to drive one, but also didn't want to lose his head for damaging it further. Ansel then looked to the other three, biting his bottom lip. "Kind of feels like a Monday, no?", sighing briefly.
Avery wrinkles her nose as she soaks things in. "Oh... I'm not so certain I can be of much help in locating a car. My skills don't exactly lie in that area." she looks from Ansel to Sveta, the latter getting a slight smile. "You seem full of ideas, though."
Sveta watches Ms. Swarm's departure with slightly lofted eyebrows. She puts her phone to sleep, then blows into her hand and sniffs.
"Something I said?" She wonders, before inquiring placidly of Avery:
"Where do your skills lie?" A finger then drapes in Ansel's direction.
"Maybe you check surveillance tape of surrounding area. Something tells me that if our regal friend was getting his dry cleaning done there, then the chance that there's 24/7 eyes on the block is rather high."
"Every day is a Monday for a business owner or a person that wears a crown. Do well to remember that little ghoul. Do as you will, but if you are going to drive it, make sure it is in one piece, undamaged if possible." Nakisisa looks over at Mosquito with a nodding of his head as he slips upwards to his feet as starts towards the door."But if you wish me to pick it up, you may call one of my ghouls. Unfortunately, my phone seems to be not working at the moment. It will take me a bit to get that back on. Maybe a bit; I don't know how fast one can get such a phone again. It was top of the line, I'm told. Perhaps I'll try one of those folding phones. Next, I keep hearing of."
He nods towards Avery."It is out of my wheelhouse as well, so then it seems my car is gone. Much like the forementioned DoDo." His eyes studying Avery with a soft little chuckle, his fingers once more working along that tie."Ideas are good. You strike me as a resourceful group. I'm sure you will figure something out in time. I hope it is not too late or too little." With that, he starts for the door now, moving at a brisk pace. "See, that one has all the ideas. I think she is going to be in charge. Hell, I place her in charge. That is done, now find my car!" With that, the Primogen is off to find himself a little dumb ghoul.
Avery gives a respectful nod to the Ventrue Primogen and finally moves further in. "My skills lie more in the area of preservation - I'm an archivist," her words are directed towards Sveta and it's near the Malkavian that she finds a seat to settle into for a short time. "Why? Did you think my skills were of some other sort?"
Ansel checks his pockets for a vape pen, "I have a feeling if I was 7 feet tall, he'd still call me a 'little' ghoul.", he offers with a chuckle once the Ventrue Primogen was out of ear shot.
"I'm a clinical therapist, not a car thief. Perhaps we just hit the streets. I'm honestly not hopeful in our endeavor, but perhaps the gods will favor us tonight and we will be rewarded? We got nothing to lose and everything to win, in a very machiavellian sense.", hitting the vape and exhaling to calm his nerves. Ansel shrugged, "I'll follow the lead."
Sveta falls silent as she watches the primogen go. She purses her lips as her gaze find a new target: Avery. She blinks slowly, and then pushes herself to her feet, making her way out of the aisle by straddling the other vampire's legs, leaning forward, and saying a simple, flat: "Nyet."
Assuming that this all goes down unfettered, she's then nodding toward Ansel.
"Why not, though? It's not like I have a life. Anything to do. Friends. Family. Hobbies. Literally anything other than running Oligarch's errands." As she heads toward the exit, she beckons Avery along.
"You come too. Maybe we find paperwork you can file or something."
Hollywood and Vine, is right there where the money lives and it's busy as hell, it's packed even in the early evening. The dry cleaners is called Bubbles, it is closing up as you see an old Asian man starting to walk off to an uber after locking the door. The world is filled with music, the sound of cars, the world is alive and ready to spend their not-so hard-earned money.
You paged Ansel with 'In the corner of your eye, you see someone that is following the old man.'.
You paged Sveta with 'You see people are lurking in the shadows, that seem to be watching the street waiting for something.'.
You paged Avery with 'You see the car drive right by, turning down into an abandoned parking garage. Inside are three people, African Americans dressed in the finest of Ghettotastic clothing. These men are dripping in diamonds and each has a Rolex, but the license plate is the same as the car you are seeking.'.
Sveta's taken the lead: literally. Ushering the ghoul and the archivist into a beat up Honda Civic that's very likely stolen itself (no inspection sticker, no license plate, and most notably: a RadioShack button wired in in the place of an actual key), she pulls up directly in front of the laundromat. It's hard to tell whether her exhaust is louder than her speakers, but the thumping bassline she's bumped all the way from Elysium dies as the engine does. If driving carefully were to be important later on, then perhaps she shouldn't be the one to handle the wheel: she had quite the lead foot all the way over.
"Okay," she leans out of the window, glances up and down the street, then leans back into the car.
"I'll check out, uh... recording. You two... I dunno'. Sniff around." She pops the door using the outside handle and glances up and down the street for any errant CCTVs.
You paged Sveta with 'You see many cameras, but none of them seem to line up with the jacking spot.'.
Ansel looked to Avery, "Perhaps you should do the *sniffing* around, apparently I upset others by doing so.", exiting the car and stretching, cracking his old man back, and giving the top of the Honda a slight knock. "The old man locking up the dry cleaners... is being followed. Looks like he's taking an Uber someplace else. Maybe he saw something?", pointing it out to the vampiress's he was with. The older ghoul vaping once more, "Is Lyft cheaper?"
Avery sits in the back of the vehicle, not knowing Sveta well enough to care to ride shotgun. She keeps her gaze out the window as the drive towards Hollywood and Vine. When they arrive at the laundromat, she waits a moment as Sveta exits the vehicle before getting out herself. "It's possible," she says to Ansel, eyeing the ghoul a moment before turning her back to him and the laundromat in order to watch the street.
As she does so, a car drives by but it's not just any old car - it's /the/ car. "Well damn," she mutters, raising a hand to point at it and watching as it eventually turns into what looks like an old parking garage. "That's it there. Gotta be. Three men inside too."
It was during one of his 'patrols' - those bizarre attempts to preserve his humanity - that Otto was approached about the stolen vehicle. Seeking an opportunity to gain favour and ingratiate himself with the peerage of L.A., he immediately set off for Hollywood and Vine. Bounding across roof tops and cutting through alleys, Otto somehow, by a twist of fate or simple coincidence, managed to arrive just as Sveta's vehicle was pulling up. Emerging from an alley and catching sight of her vehicle, his head listed to the side with curiosity as he followed Avery's hand.
Emerging from the alley in the guise of his homeless persona, he flashed a quirky smile as he bounded up to the car to tap on the window with his unusual jittery and jerking step, waving to his vague aquaintance and almost yelling through the windows. "Oh - h-hello Miss S-S-Serova! I-I think we're looking for the same thing!" <English>
That parking garage is covered in graffiti. It looks like it was closed around 10 years ago, given the trash build-up. The car is going downwards into it, as the sound of the engine is cut off suddenly. A man is sitting at the booth to collect tolls. His feet are kicked up with a cig in his mouth. He is listening to something. One earbud is hanging out, the other in there, his head is bobbing like a jack in the box. He is dripping in swag as if he is the king of this block, but that is only a look given the low-ranked job. The smell of skunk weed is coming out of the booth as you roll closer, and he smells like he has not showered in a week.
"Otto. My very own palindrome," Sveta greets the Nosferatu with a cool, dispassionate smile. Her attention is elsewhere, however. She's busy glancing up and down the street for any sign of CCTVs that might be useful. Judging by her expression, there's none to be found. She shoves her hands in her pockets, about to speak further, before Avery catches her attention. She follows the woman's gesticulation and watches the car slide toward the parking lot.
"Hmph." The Russian turns up her collar and lights up a cigarette as she moves across the street and toward the parking spot. Halfway across the road and she allows herself to slip into obfuscation, disappearing from the observable mind, like a biker in a blind spot.
You paged Sveta with 'Any camera that faces the parking garage has been broken covered or painted over. No-one can see who is coming or going.'.
Ansel waves to Otto the new arrival, the ghoul sticking back by Sveta's Honda. "I'll call the V. P. and let him know we spotted his car.", looking to the garage. Checking his cellphone and placing a call with the number provided.
You paged Ansel with 'Female voice:Hello?'.
Ansel(An) pages: Good Evening, this is Dr. Ansel Waters calling to let the Ventrue Primogen know that his car has been found. Currently working on recovery. This might be the hand of local street gangs. More information to come as the situation updates. Found in the parking garage at Hollywood and Vine, by the dry cleaners.
Avery's gaze is drawn towards the unfamiliar figure that is Otto, watching the exchange then between him and Sveta almost curiously. Ansel's comment draws her attention next as Sveta crosses the street, and she nods to the ghoul. "A good idea. Hopefully hearing that it's still in one piece will be a small relief to him."
You paged Ansel with 'The line goes dead.'
Otto flashes a rotten tooth grin, and for a brief instant his facade drops within the window of 'familiarity' between the group: the crown of his head twisted into a pair of gnarled horn-like protrusions that form a sweeping widows peak, a nose rotten and melted away to leave a gaping hole, and a fanged, almost unhinged maw all revealing his Nosferatu nature to the group before being replaced by the eccentric hobo and his top hat. "I-I think, ah... some... play acting is in order, since Miss Serova wants to play spectre, hm?" he offers, starting to walk away, "J-Just, ah... perhaps capitalize on my lead to get yourselves in?" he suggested as he began to hack and cough up his own inhuman bile, approaching the guard booth with a suitably convincing stagger and dragging of foot. "T-This building! Y-you need to leave! Haven't you heard a-a-about the - the god damned lizard men? Your Sasquatch leader is r-r-running an insurance scam and you're gonna die!" <English>
The man in the booth leaps up with a look of what the fuck is going on as he reaches to pick up a barbed wire wrapped bat."MOTHER FUCKER!WE TOLD YA FUCKERS DIS AIN' YA FUCKING HOME NO MORE!IT'S OUR FUCKING BUSINESS NOW! YOU SMEELY MOTHER FUCKING WASTE OF BOOZEEEE!" The bat is swung as he yells out to the others."Got another mother fucker out here, come on guys let's get this fucker." He speaks into a little walkie-talkie, hanging from his shoulder, out of the building rushes a bunch more men, about 8 of them as they start towards Otto all holding weapons of smashing and cracking.
<OOC> Nakisisa says, "diff 6"
+ROLL/+DICE> Sveta: Willpower vs. 6 -> 3 successes.
Once Sveta passes the group of men charging out after the seemingly crazed Otto, she drops her cloak, glances back at Otto, and gives him a very "what the fuck man" sort of aggressive shrug. A second later and she's taken on the facade of the gatekeeper of the facility, morphing from her alt-Slav-best into the two-bit crook who just sounded the alarm. With this, she turns, pockets her hand, and waltzes into the mouth of the facility properly.
You paged Sveta and Avery with 'The warehouse is empty, they are out there trying to beat the fuck outta the homeless bastard, the car is parked in the corner. It is next on the rack. Right now, a bmwer is up in the air on a jack. Everything is getting the good old fashion chopy chop. There are parts all over, everything in the state of getting ready to be moved. But, lucky for you the Primogen's Rolls is bright purple, with a silver eagle painted onto the hood is perfectly fine.'
+ROLL/+DICE> Sveta: Dexterity vs. 6 -> 0 successes.
Avery eyes Otto and then Ansel. "So we just... what? Walk casual?" Her brow furrows - this is definitely not the type of situation she has ever found herself in. She starts crossing the street herself after giving Otto the headstart, hanging back though when things start looking ugly. As Sveta creates an opening, however, she takes the opportunity to slip inside after her - sure to regret the action but she's not one to leave a task uncompleted.
Sveta glances around. She drops the cloak. No need for it now. She picks up an errant hammer and slips it into her waistband for safe keeping, before looking up at the beemer on the jack. She hops up, trying to grab it to mantle aboard, but winds up landing flat on her back with a dull thud.
"Ow." She stares at the ceiling for a moment, before clambering back up to her feet and using the jack's controls to lower the other car.
Making true on her earlier promise, she pops the gas tank and stuffs a shop rag into it. Lazily, the Malkavian waltzes over toward either spent oil storage or any fuel tanks that might be laying around and pours out a large S behind the priceless Rolls Royce to the BMW's Molotoved tank.
When she spies Avery, she offers her a crooked grin.
"Know how to drive, Pencil Pusher?" She takes a long pull on her cigarette, casting her face in a dull orange glow in the shop's dim illumination, distant shouts filtering in from outside.
"Y-You're condemning yourselves! G-Give it up!" Otto cries as he begins to run toward a nearby alley beside the parking garage, in hopes of finding some culvert or side entrance - dropping his staggered limp, he takes off toward the alley at an almost -inhuman- sprint, glancing over his shoulder as he realizes he may have bitten off more than he can chew. Letting out a chittering shriek, he runs until either determining that he needs to turn and fight, or else finding a place he can try to sneak in. <English>
The gang is runs after Otto, than he is gone as they are look around confused."Fuck fuck fuck!" They are heading off into the night, trying to find him as he looks around and than they are sprinting off still not heading back yet.
Avery's eyes light up when she sees that - yes! - the `s Royce is still in one piece but not for much longer from the looks of things. She picks her way over towards it, glancing over at Sveta when she catches sight of what the Malkavian is doing and shakes her head, unable to contain her own little smile which grows when Sveta flashes a crooked one her way. "You really think I'd want to drive that thing?" she counters, not really answering the relatively simple question.
"Da. I do. Don't worry. I was only being polite. Here. In that case..." She passes her lighter off to Avery. It's a standard BIC, shrink-wrapped with a majestic rainbow unicorn up on its hind legs.
"You do the honors. Just don't go feral on me." She slides around to the driver's side, pops it open, and checks the seat, dash, and sun-visor for the keys. If she finds them, she hops in and starts the ritzy ride up.
Ansel hangs up the phone with the V.P., sighing and shaking his head. "Well, I'll take Sveta's car then. Good luck getting that baby home.", walking around to the drivers side - even if no one could hear him and he was talking to himself. "If I was them, I'd let the Russian drive.", attempting to start the hacked car. Getting the engine going and seeing if he can maybe pick up Otto if needed.
The ritzy ride is starts up with a loud sound as the engine turns over with the wheels ready to go.
As he hustles down the alley, bending his will to call out to the various rats and bats lurking in L.A.'s alleys, Otto turns and - quite comically - stumbles to a stop, his head listing to the side with a sickening crack of his neck as he looks down the alley. As the creatures flood out toward the street in various directions and manners he lops out into the street. For a brief second as he emerges from the alley his full and horrifying form is almost visible, before the bumbling schizophrenic Otto shuffles out to the curb oblivious to the rats and what have you. He waves to Ansel, straightening his top hat and licking his lips. "H-Hey there, bud! Where'd the ladies go? Lose them already, huh? Wanna give a guy a lift!?" he shouted across the street, letting out a sickeningly wet and mucusy laugh while wiping his sleeve on his nose. <English>
"Oh, I'm not worried... too much," Avery replies to Sveta, taking the offered lighter in the process, "but I see no reason to torch the place. Could bring about too many questions - questions we don't necessarily need to have asked." the lighter is slipped into a pocket with a slight grin. "Besides, it seems more your calling card than mine. We should just go while we still can."
The self-content smile melts from Sveta's face. The car idles noisily. She stares out of the window at Avery. "Light. It."
Ansel does his best to not look at Otto, "You might be the most frightening thing I've ever seen.", the malkavian ghoul offers with a whine and then he starts chuckling madly. Swerving on and off the road, before regaining his composure. "I'm always losing the ladies bro. Some fellas just don't have that kind of luck.", looking back to Otto. "Let's get you out of here bud. Good work on the.... ", swallowing his words. "... Off to see a Primogen."
Avery's green eyes darken at those two words uttered by Sveta and she stares back. "Perhaps you don't understand what 'preserve' means." She gives the Russian woman a look before reaching out to open the other door to the Rolls. "You want to destroy - go ahead."
Snorting in laughter, his visage twisting in and out of focus between Nosferatu and schizo hobo, Otto shrugs and his eyes narrow while shaking his head. Surprisingly absent of the stutter, he turns to Ansel. "I don't think it's time for me to meet them. You can drop me off..." he trails off, pausing before waving a hand about, "Here is fine. If the Primogen desires my company he can request it of my s- of my father," he offered with a wry grin, licking his lips again with a long KISS like appendage. "I am the Bodach, by the way. It's been a pleasure." <English>
Ansel with much courage stops the car and offers Bodach a fist bump in departure, not sure how to offer a farewell greeting to such a creature - yet still trying to be polite. "Alright, man. Good luck to you. Have a good evening. My name is Dr. Ansel Waters.", winking at the Nossie. "I know right, me a doctor. We all have mid-life crisis. Some... post-life.", the ghoul laughing again. He might be a few tacos short of a combination platter.
Sveta's jaw clenches. "Close your eyes. I don't want to be strapped into a car with you if you lose your shit."
She pushes herself out of the ride and shakes her head, grumbling in her native tongue as she heads to a nearby torch and grabs the flint-spark lighter that hangs from its nozzle.
"When someone says 'teach a lesson', it means scorched fucking earth. It means -" She steps over to the shop rag turned car-Molotov.
"Salt the fucking land. Kill the fucking newborns. Gut the livestock."
Spark. Spark. Flame. The Russian stands still a moment, watching that flame spread across the rag. She rolls her tongue along her incisors, her canines accentuating somewhat in the glinting light.
A glance back at Avery. She raises her voice.
"It means you FUCK THEM." She stomps back over to the driver's seat, slams the door. "Okay?! You. FUCK. THEM."
The car might be close to a century old, but Sveta treats it like a junkyard banger. She slams it into 1st, hits the gas, and dumps the clutch fast enough to burn rubber. The back end of the Royce fishtails out to get the nose pointed straight out of the garage. Serova applies just a hint of countersteer, and barrels straight out of the shop. She isn't likely to stop for anyone she doesn't know.
