[buzz buzz] They've heard the rumors. They've heard stories second- and third-hand from the kinfolk of the city. They've read the newspapers or watched the news, they have connections in the police department. Spirits have sought them out.

Strange things have been happening on the northside. People gone missing, dragged away screaming or simply vanishing into the ether. Fresh graves in the nearby cemetary dug up, the bodies gone. Investigations have been inconclusive, and frustrating. There have been no leads, at least not that human officers can follow.

Whatever has brought them here, they're here now. A small pack, just four unfamiliar wolves. They're here before Maelstrom's warriors, sniffing around a new looking mausoleum. They're looking around when there's motion behind them. A grave, the frozen winter ground freshly turned, is moving, the earth shifting as first a hand reaches out, followed soon by a perfectly lovely, slender young woman. She pulls herself free easily, milky eyes taking in the cemetary surroundings before alighting on the small pack.

Almost as soon as her head is turned in their direction, figures come out of the mausoleum. They are relentless, and they have the element of surprise. From a distance, they look like ordinary, if sturdily built, stocky, potential football playing humans. They fall upon the wolves, their actions oddly concerted. They move around behind, flank, tear tendons from behind, rip into backs, crack bones, like a pack themselves.

In a matter of moments, the four Garou are down. It's almost too fast for them to shift, but two of them do. Not even their Crinos forms can help them against the onslaught. There's a moment of silence, four fresh bodies bleeding onto the stone steps of the mausoleum, figures encircling them. And then.

And then.

Two of the bodies move. They're movements are jerky, slow. In the moonlight, their fur has a greenish light, is already falling away in clumps. They rise to their huge heights, tip back their heads, and howl. The sound is insane. It grates on the nerves, chills the warm blood running in the veins of those who have come to investiage.

Once they're on their feet, the others swarm the still motionless bodies on the ground. The sound of bones breaking, of joints being ripped apart, the squelch of muscle being torn from tendon and ligament, fills the air. A breath later, the bodies have been ripped apart, disjointed and carried into the crypt.

This is the sight Lights Out, Broken Hammer, and Silver Jester come upon when they follow in the foreign pack's footsteps, and decide to explore Graceland Cemetary.

[Lights Out] Something one of the Sentinels' previous members found out fairly quickly was that his brother and roommate was constantly getting messages from spirits. It seemed for a time as though an entire week couldn't pass by without the Theurge receiving some sort of vision or having some sort of dream that required investigation. Those who have been into the Umbra with Lights Out have undoubtedly noticed that spirits tend to take an interest in him, circling to draw closer and watching him as closely as they can. This is not a boon when there are Wyrm-spirits around. It works to his advantage sometime.

The Sentinels' newest crop of members is likewise beginning to learn that Lights Out places a great deal of stock in his dreams. Several weeks ago a note had been slid under Buried Hatchet's door, a request from one of the other Alphas staying at the Brotherhood to check out a strangeness occurring in the North Side. Today, Broken Hammer returned to Room 8 from a shower to find Lights Out pulling on his boots.

He wanted to check out the cemetery in the north side. He'd had a dream. Something was happening. The others were on patrol, or simply unreachable. It was just the two of them.

In hindsight, as they come out of the darkness to survey the cemetery's realmside appearance, maybe they ought to have come with reinforcements. There are five bodies moving around, reanimated and glowing, missing fur; the Theurge's eyes go briefly wide as he comes to a dead stop.

"Again?" he asks, and begins to abandon his human skin.

[Broken Hammer] Broken Hammer doesn't say anything; they were there the last time the dead walked. The lean Forseti simply drops forward on his hands, which become paws. In his thick winter fur, dappled grey and white and black and brown, the almost-gaunt narrowness of his frame is less apparent.

Even in Hispo, he has a preternatural lightness of foot. Broken Hammer breaks into a trot, loping smoothly, silently forward.

[Broken Hammer] (+9)
Dice Rolled:[ 1 d10 ] 3 (Failure at target 6)

[Lights Out] [+7]
Dice Rolled:[ 1 d10 ] 2

[buzz buzz] [Scout
+6]
Dice Rolled:[ 1 d10 ] 1

[buzz buzz] [Gatherer 1
+4]
Dice Rolled:[ 1 d10 ] 2

[buzz buzz] [Gatherer 2
+4]
Dice Rolled:[ 1 d10 ] 3

[buzz buzz] [Howler 1
+8]
Dice Rolled:[ 1 d10 ] 2

[buzz buzz] [Howler 2
+8]
Dice Rolled:[ 1 d10 ] 4

[buzz buzz] [Round One: GO!
Daniel
Howler 2
Howler 1
Charlie
Scout
Gatherer 2
Gatherer 1
declare in reverse]

[Silver Jester] (+5)
Dice Rolled:[ 1 d10 ] 6 (Success x 1 at target 6)

[Silver Jester] Edward has traveled a lot. Edward has known a lot of people - Garou, kin, and not. Here, there happens to be someone he knows buried, and after laying a small, tasteful bouquet on the grave, he's standing - clearly Silver Fang, clearly a young lord of the manor. It's in everything from well tailored clothes to artfully unarranged leisure taken to the look on his face as he studies the headstone in front of him.

[buzz buzz] [Round One: GO!
Daniel
Howler 2
Ed
Howler 1
Charlie
Scout
Gatherer 2
Gatherer 1
declare in reverse!]

[buzz buzz] [Gatherer 1
Bite Ed]

[Gatherer 2
Bite Charlie]

[Scout
Alert the hive]

[Lights Out] [1a: Claw Scout.
1b: Claw Scout.
R1: Claw Scout/Gatherer 2 if Scout goes down.]

[buzz buzz] [Howler 1
Claw Daniel]

[Silver Jester] (Snapshift, claw a fucker.)

[buzz buzz] [Howler 2
Claw Charlie]

[Broken Hammer] (1a. hamstring scout
b. jawlock scout for charlie to claw
R1. bite scout
R2. bite scout
R3. bite scout

-- moving on to Gatherer 2 if scout goes down.)

[Broken Hammer] (Hamstringing! -2 dice. +WP. diff 8 for this special maneuver; cripples if successful.)
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 2, 3, 5, 6, 6, 6, 8 (Success x 2 at target 8) [WP]

[Broken Hammer] (dam+1)
Dice Rolled:[ 9 d10 ] 2, 3, 4, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10, 10 (Success x 4 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [soak!]
Dice Rolled:[ 2 d10 ] 5, 9 (Success x 1 at target 6)

[Broken Hammer] b. jawlocking on gatherer 2, part 1! diff 6. -3 dice.
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 1, 2, 5, 7, 8, 8 (Success x 2 at target 7)

[Broken Hammer] (jawlock part 2, str+ath+1)
Dice Rolled:[ 9 d10 ] 1, 2, 4, 4, 4, 5, 7, 10, 10 (Success x 2 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [str + ath]
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 1, 2, 9, 10, 10, 10 (Success x 3 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [Howler 2
claw Charlie: dex + brawl]
Dice Rolled:[ 9 d10 ] 1, 3, 4, 5, 5, 6, 6, 6, 8 (Success x 3 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [damage: str + 1 + 2]
Dice Rolled:[ 11 d10 ] 2, 3, 4, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 8, 8, 9 (Success x 6 at target 6)

[Lights Out] [Soak!]
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 1, 2, 2, 6, 10, 10 (Success x 2 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [3 minutes up, Ed will roll at the end of the round]

[buzz buzz] [Howler 1
Claw Daniel: dex + brawl]
Dice Rolled:[ 9 d10 ] 2, 2, 2, 2, 5, 5, 7, 9, 10 (Success x 3 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [damage: str + 1 + 2]
Dice Rolled:[ 11 d10 ] 1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 7, 8, 8, 8, 9, 9 (Success x 3 at target 6)

[Broken Hammer] WEAK.
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 1, 2, 3, 3, 4, 5 (Botch x 1 at target 6)

[Broken Hammer] (lawl. i asked for that.)

[Lights Out] [Reflexive: -1 WP, activate Resist Pain.
1a: Brawl+Dexterity (+1): Claw Gatherer 2. -2 pool (split).]
Dice Rolled:[ 5 d10 ] 5, 5, 5, 10, 10 (Success x 2 at target 6)

[Lights Out] [Damage: Strength +1 (Bear) +4 (Crinos) +1 (claw) +1 (suxx).] [A]
Dice Rolled:[ 10 d10 ] 1, 1, 2, 3, 4, 4, 5, 5, 9, 9 (Failure at target 6)

[Broken Hammer] (oh right. he woulda activated resist pain somewhere... back there *waves*)

[Lights Out] [1b: Brawl+Dexterity (+1): Claw Gatherer 2. -3 pool (split).]
Dice Rolled:[ 4 d10 ] 2, 6, 7, 7 (Success x 3 at target 6)

[Lights Out] [Damage: Strength +1 (Bear) +4 (Crinos) +1 (claw) +2 (suxx).] [A]
Dice Rolled:[ 11 d10 ] 2, 2, 5, 5, 6, 7, 7, 9, 9, 10, 10 (Success x 7 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [soak!]
Dice Rolled:[ 4 d10 ] 1, 5, 8, 8 (Success x 1 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [Gatherer 2
Bite Charlie: dex + brawl]
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 2, 2, 3, 8, 9, 9, 10 (Success x 4 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [damage: str + 1 + 3]
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 3, 4, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9 (Success x 4 at target 6)

[Lights Out] [Soak!]
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 1, 2, 5, 9, 10, 10 (Success x 2 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [Oops, ST's a dumbass. That was the attack of gatherer 1 against Ed. Ed, soak!]
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 2, 2, 6, 6, 7, 9, 10 (Success x 5 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [and ignore that roll!]

[Silver Jester] (Soak! [because spending WP is fun])
Dice Rolled:[ 5 d10 ] 1, 1, 2, 2, 8 (Failure at target 6) [WP]

[Broken Hammer] (R1: let's go for gatherer 1!)
Dice Rolled:[ 9 d10 ] 1, 2, 3, 3, 4, 5, 8, 8, 9, 10 (Success x 4 at target 5) Re-rolls: 1

[Broken Hammer] +3 damage
Dice Rolled:[ 11 d10 ] 2, 4, 5, 5, 6, 6, 6, 6, 7, 7, 9 (Success x 7 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [soak for the love of cheese!]
Dice Rolled:[ 4 d10 ] 3, 3, 7, 7 (Success x 2 at target 6)

[Lights Out] [R1: Brawl+Dexterity (+1): Claw Howler 1.]
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 1, 2, 2, 4, 4, 5, 10 (Failure at target 6)

[Broken Hammer] (R2: howler 1!)
Dice Rolled:[ 9 d10 ] 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9 (Success x 3 at target 5)

[Broken Hammer] (+2)
Dice Rolled:[ 10 d10 ] 2, 3, 4, 6, 6, 7, 9, 9, 9, 10 (Success x 7 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [soak!]
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 1, 1, 3, 3, 3, 4, 8 (Failure at target 6)

[Broken Hammer] howler 1!
Dice Rolled:[ 9 d10 ] 1, 1, 1, 3, 3, 5, 8, 8, 9 (Success x 1 at target 5)

[Broken Hammer]
Dice Rolled:[ 8 d10 ] 4, 5, 5, 6, 6, 6, 7, 7 (Success x 5 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [soak!]
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 1, 1, 2, 2, 4, 6, 8 (Failure at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [Round Two: Go!
Damage:
Scout/Gatherer 2/Howler 1: dead
Gatherer 1: incapped
Howler 2: OK
Charlie/Ed: 4A
Dan: 3A

Charlie and Ed, 1 Rage back for ouchies

Daniel
Howler 2
Ed
Charlie
declare in reverse!]

[Lights Out] [1a: Mother's Touch Daniel.
1b: Mother's Touch Ed.]

[Silver Jester] (1a: Falcon's Grip nearest baddie so Daniel can hurt 'im (or her)
1b: headbutt said baddie)

[buzz buzz] [Howler 2
Claw Charlie]

[Broken Hammer] 1a. MT on charlie!
b. wait til silver jester has a grip, then chomp howler 2
c. again!

[Broken Hammer] (gah! MT, -3 dice.)
Dice Rolled:[ 3 d10 ] 1, 2, 6 (Success x 1 at target 3) [WP]

[Silver Jester] (Holding so I have dice to roll)

[Broken Hammer] (you're up, CC! daniel's waiting to see if your grab pans out)

[buzz buzz] [Howler 2
Claw Charlie: dex + brawl]
Dice Rolled:[ 9 d10 ] 1, 2, 2, 4, 5, 5, 8, 9, 9 (Success x 2 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [damage: str + 1 + 1]
Dice Rolled:[ 10 d10 ] 2, 3, 4, 5, 5, 6, 9, 9, 10, 10 (Success x 5 at target 6)

[Lights Out] [Soak!]
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 1, 1, 2, 3, 7, 7 (Failure at target 6)

[Lights Out] [COME ON CHUCK]
Dice Rolled:[ 3 d10 ] 2, 8, 9 (Success x 3 at target 8) [WP]

[Silver Jester] (Rage spent for gift HOLY FUCK LOTS OF MODIFIERS)
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 1, 1, 5, 6, 9, 10 (Success x 2 at target 6) [WP]

[Silver Jester] (Headbutt, minus lots of dice, HAIL KASEENO)
Dice Rolled:[ 2 d10 ] 1, 6 (Success x 1 at target 6) [WP]

[Silver Jester] (Forgot to change diff, go to town, Daniel!)

[Broken Hammer] (chomp, -4 dice, -2 diff!)
Dice Rolled:[ 5 d10 ] 1, 2, 3, 4, 9, 10 (Success x 3 at target 3) Re-rolls: 1

[Broken Hammer] (+2)
Dice Rolled:[ 10 d10 ] 1, 4, 5, 5, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 10 (Success x 4 at target 6)

[Broken Hammer] (chomp, -5 dice, -2 diff!)
Dice Rolled:[ 4 d10 ] 1, 4, 7, 8 (Success x 2 at target 3)

[Broken Hammer] (damage +1)
Dice Rolled:[ 9 d10 ] 1, 2, 3, 5, 5, 8, 9, 9, 10 (Success x 3 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [soak 1!]
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 (Success x 2 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [soak 2!]

[buzz buzz] [dice would be nice]
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 1, 3, 3, 6, 8, 9, 9 (Success x 3 at target 6)

[Lights Out] [Action: Brawl+Dexterity (+1): WEEEEEOOOO! -2 diff (immobilized).]
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 2, 2, 4, 6, 6, 8, 10 (Success x 5 at target 3)

[Lights Out] [Damage: Strength +1 (Bear) +4 (Crinos) +1 (bite) +4 (suxx).] [A]
Dice Rolled:[ 13 d10 ] 2, 4, 5, 5, 7, 7, 8, 8, 8, 9, 10, 10, 10 (Success x 9 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [soak!]
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 2, 3, 6, 7, 7, 8, 9 (Success x 5 at target 6)

[Lights Out] [R1: Brawl+Dexterity (+1): IIIII'M RUNNIN! -2 diff (immobilized).]
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 2, 3, 3, 4, 4, 7, 10 (Success x 4 at target 4)

[Lights Out] [Damage: Strength +1 (Bear) +4 (Crinos) +1 (claw) +3 (suxx).] [A]
Dice Rolled:[ 12 d10 ] 1, 2, 2, 3, 5, 6, 6, 7, 7, 7, 7, 10 (Success x 6 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [soak!]
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 2, 2, 5, 7, 9, 10, 10 (Success x 4 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [Round Three: GO!

damage:
Howler: 8A and still going
Charlie: 5A
Ed: 4A
Daniel: 3A

Daniel
Howler 2
Ed
Charlie
declare in reverse!]

[Lights Out] [Whatever the ST says I'm doing!]

[Silver Jester] (Shoulder bite, grip maintained)

[buzz buzz] [Howler
Claw Ed]

[Broken Hammer] 1a/1b - bites!

[Broken Hammer] bite 1, -2 dice, -2 diff.
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 1, 1, 6, 7, 7, 8, 8 (Success x 3 at target 3)

[Broken Hammer] dam+2
Dice Rolled:[ 10 d10 ] 1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 5, 9, 9 (Failure at target 6)

[Broken Hammer] bite 2, -3 dice, -2 diff. STOP PWINKING.
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 4, 4, 5, 7, 9, 9 (Success x 6 at target 3)

[Broken Hammer] dam+5 -- DON'T PWINK.
Dice Rolled:[ 13 d10 ] 1, 2, 4, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 9, 9, 9, 9, 10 (Success x 7 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [Soak]
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 6, 8 (Success x 2 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [dead! recap coming soon!]

[buzz buzz] Whether they're here on patrol, here to investigate, or just here to pay their respects to a lost friend, the warriors of Maelstrom find themselves in the midst of battle before they know it. Daniel leaps behind the freshly risen corpse of the young woman, intent on hindering her movement, hoping to keep her from warning the others of their presence. The woman's corpse is surprisingly fragile. The lean Fenrir sinks his teeth into her leg, and with a snap of his head, breaks the limb off at the woman's hip. It's enough. When she drops to the ground, she doesn't move again. He moves next to one of the stocky men left behind, but this time his jaws are not enough to hold the barely decayed body.

Good thing his packmate is with him. Charlie swings his massive claws at the man's torso. Where the sharp tips rake, no blood spurts, and neither does it damage or so much as slow the man down. With the next swipe, however, the Theurge takes the man's head off, batting it away as easily as a cat taps a ball of string. The rush of the kill is fleeting, however. When Charlie turns to swing at one of the risen Garou, he misses completely.

Silver Jester, rising from a crouch over the grave of a lost one, turns to see the carnage taking place behind him. He's Fang, he is bound to neither Charlie nor Daniel, is not related to them by tribe or even auspice, but they are all warriors of Gaia. They all must fight the Wyrm whenever they find it rearing its head before them. In an instant, the young Fang shifts from human to towering machine of war, and bounds into the fray. He arrives late, isn't able to raise a claw before a once-dead man is sinking his teeth into what he can reach of his side, tearing away a strip of bloody fur.

The risen Garou, their reddish tinged fur now dropping away in clumps, launch themselves at the Sentinels. The first swipes at Charlie, claws digging into the Fury's dark fur. He calls on Bear's gift to numb the pain, to keep on fighting. The other slices into Daniel's side. It should hurt, it should slow the Get down, but instead it spurs him to fury. Twisting, Daniel tears into the Garou's chest, rips out his throat in two quick, terrible bites. With another twist of his massive head, he bites into the shoulder of the other stocky man, sending him to the ground to lay twitching until someone can deliver the killing blow.

Not so long ago, Daniel roamed alone. His first thought was his own survival, making it through to another day, another battle, or just another step forward, away from a painful past. But his time of solitude does not override his pack instincts. He's a healer now, bound to Bear, bound to other warriors turned healers. He reaches out a massive paw to help his new brother. Charlie feels the warmth suffuse his injury, closing it slightly. In the end, it does little to help deter the fate of the Theurge. After doing what he can for Charlie, Broken Hammer renews his attack on the fallen Garou. He snaps his jaws at the undead half-moon, whittling away at her. It's not enough to keep her from digging her claws into Charlie's side, raking him from just below his rib cage nearly to his knee. It's enough to bring him down.

Charlie falls, as he's fallen so often in recent months. The Black Fury drops to the earth, his heart slowing, blood oozing from the wound in his side. As he falls, his incredible desire to live kicks in. His world turns dark, fades, the sounds of the battle around him growing distant and faded. And then the world turns red. Charlie claws his way back from the brink of death.

When he comes out awake once more, it's to find his quarry, his killer, his prey gripped by the Silver Fang. Ed sprang behind the once proud warrior of Gaia, calling on the gift of his totem to hold her in place. The Ragabash attempts to slam his head into the Garou, but to no avail. Charlie snaps his jaws, tearing a strip of flesh from the fallen Garou's chest and stomach that she barely even feels. Charlie then rakes his claws across her face, digging into her shoulder. Still, she stands.

It's not until Daniel steps up, snarling at their resilient enemy, that she finally drops. Daniel bites once, his teeth closing only on mottled fur. He bites a second time, tearing at her throat, nearly decapitating her. Finally, all is quiet. For a moment.

There's a commotion from the mausoleum. A woman appears. In the cold winter moonlight she is, quite simply, beautiful. Her blonde hair is pale as snow, and there's a bluish cast to her flawless features. This woman, whoever she was in life, was important. She was proud, and regal. She's dressed in a fine, light colored silk gown, ragged at the hem. It was not designed to be worn over the rough hewn stone inside her crypt, nor over the muddy earth of the cemetery. Her eyes, unlike those of the other undead, are pale pale blue, and clear. They fixate on the Fenrir, the Fury, and the Fang, and her beautiful face transforms into a scowl of horrible fury.

"Who are you?" she demands of the Garou. "What have you done to my children?"

Behind her, bodies gather, huddled en masse.

[Broken Hammer] Charlie is frenzied. Broken Hammer is Fenrir. There's no way to go but forward.

The only conscious member of the Sentinels -- because Lights Out, right now, does not count as conscious -- snarls in answer. It's not a sentence. It's not even a word. Intent is carried, though, in the baring of his teeth; in the bristling of his hackles; in the glare of his yellow eyes.

Killed them as I'll kill you!

[Broken Hammer] (+9 for reinit)
Dice Rolled:[ 1 d10 ] 5 (Failure at target 6)

[Lights Out] When it's over, Lights Out appears momentarily dazed. He stumbles, chuffs out a breath, and quickly regains his bearings and his balance... and his pain. It hits him like a freight train, pain etched deep into the right side of his body, blood pulsing down his body in waves, and he falls to one knee as he calls upon Bear's protective gift a second time this evening, a great arm propping himself up as the ethereal woman strides out of the mausoleum and into the thin moonlight, the snowy evening.

Broken Hammer hurls a threat, and Lights Out has to restrain himself from snarling. Torn open and a good strike away from death, he's not giving up yet. He launches himself at the woman, claws stained with blood but prepared to sail again.

[+7]
Dice Rolled:[ 1 d10 ] 3

[Silver Jester] Edward is neither frenzied nor Fenrir but, while many wouldn't currently think it so, he is a man to see a thing through. He is hurt, bleeding, but is of no mind to do what must be done. He doesn't bother with snarling or baring of teeth - such a show, and why bother? - but does, once eyes shift off of him, proceed to blend into his surroundings.

(+5)

[Silver Jester] (With dice)
Dice Rolled:[ 1 d10 ] 1

[Page from Mei] Forums are now functional. Enjoy!

[buzz buzz] A faint smirk curls the corners of the woman's finely shaped mouth. She looks a mere human against the snarling beasts before her, but she is not afraid.

Behind her, the undead surge out from behind her, toward the Garou.

[Queen
+6]
Dice Rolled:[ 1 d10 ] 10

[buzz buzz] [Swarm
+4]
Dice Rolled:[ 1 d10 ] 2

[buzz buzz] [Round Four: GO!
Damage:
Charlie: 5A
Daniel: 3A
Ed: 4A

Queen
Daniel
Charlie
Ed
Zombie Swarm
declare in reverse!]

[buzz buzz] [Swarm
Attack Ed]

[Silver Jester] (Gift: Blissful Ignorance
R: Bite nearest zombie)

[Lights Out] [Reflexive: Oh, wait, people are hurt!
1a: Mother's Touch Ed.
1b: Mother's Touch Daniel.]

[Broken Hammer] 2 rage spent!
1a/b/c attack ze queen! (biting)
R1/R2 MOAR.

[buzz buzz] [Queen
split: dodge/dodge!]

[Lights Out] [Daniel
1a: Brawl+Dexterity (+2): Chomp! -3 pool (split).]
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 2, 2, 2, 3, 5, 10 (Success x 2 at target 5)

[buzz buzz] [dodge!]
Dice Rolled:[ 3 d10 ] 1, 3, 6 (Failure at target 6)

[Lights Out] [Damage: Strength +1 (Bear) +3 (Hispo) +2 (bite) +1 (suxx).] [A]
Dice Rolled:[ 9 d10 ] 3, 3, 5, 5, 6, 6, 6, 8, 10 (Success x 5 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [soak?]
Dice Rolled:[ 3 d10 ] 2, 7, 10 (Success x 2 at target 6)

[Lights Out] [Daniel
1b: Brawl+Dexterity (+2): Chomp! -4 pool (split).]
Dice Rolled:[ 5 d10 ] 1, 1, 2, 4, 6 (Failure at target 5)

[Lights Out] [Daniel
1c: Brawl+Dexterity (+2): Chomp! -5 pool (split).]
Dice Rolled:[ 4 d10 ] 1, 3, 4, 8 (Failure at target 5)

[Lights Out] [Charlie
1a: Intelligence+Medicine (+3): Mother's Touch Ed. -2 pool (split).]
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 1, 2, 5, 5, 6, 10 (Success x 5 at target 1)

[Lights Out] [Charlie
1b: Intelligence+Medicine (+3): Mother's Touch Daniel. -3 pool (split).]
Dice Rolled:[ 5 d10 ] 1, 2, 7, 7, 10

[Silver Jester] (Blissful Ignorance, Dex 2(+1), Stealth 2, +WP)
Dice Rolled:[ 5 d10 ] 1, 1, 6, 8, 8 (Success x 1 at target 7) [WP]

[buzz buzz] [Odds is Charlie!]
Dice Rolled:[ 1 d10 ] 3

[buzz buzz] [this is the number of folks in the swarm *cringes*]
Dice Rolled:[ 1 d10 ] 10

[buzz buzz] [Swarm
attack Charlie: dex + brawl]
Dice Rolled:[ 7 d10 ] 2, 3, 5, 5, 8, 8, 8 (Success x 3 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [damage: str x 5 + 2 // [B]]
Dice Rolled:[ 17 d10 ] 1, 2, 2, 4, 5, 5, 5, 6, 7, 7, 7, 8, 9, 9, 10, 10, 10 (Success x 9 at target 6)

[Lights Out] [Hah, haha... hah.]
Dice Rolled:[ 6 d10 ] 1, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10 (Success x 2 at target 6)

[Broken Hammer] (rage check)
Dice Rolled:[ 5 d10 ] 1, 7, 7, 9, 10 (Success x 3 at target 5)

[Broken Hammer] (okay. R1.)
Dice Rolled:[ 9 d10 ] 1, 2, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 7, 8 (Success x 3 at target 5)

[Broken Hammer] (+2)
Dice Rolled:[ 10 d10 ] 2, 2, 3, 5, 5, 6, 6, 7, 7, 9 (Success x 5 at target 6)

[Broken Hammer] (fuck's sake, daniel, you can do better than that. R2!)
Dice Rolled:[ 9 d10 ] 2, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 9, 9, 9 (Success x 5 at target 5)

[Broken Hammer] (that's more like it. KILL THE BITCH! +4)
Dice Rolled:[ 12 d10 ] 1, 2, 3, 3, 4, 5, 5, 6, 6, 8, 9, 10 (Success x 4 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [soak]
Dice Rolled:[ 3 d10 ] 3, 6, 7 (Success x 2 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [soak]
Dice Rolled:[ 3 d10 ] 1, 7, 10 (Success x 1 at target 6)

[buzz buzz] [she's dead! recap coming!]

[buzz buzz] The crowd of undead surge down the steps and out toward the Garou with single-minded determination. Daniel is just as intent on his target, the coldly beautiful woman. The lean Fenrir leaps forward, massive jaws snapping. She tries to side step, but she's so small, and before she was...whatever it is she has since become, she was only human. She was not a fighter, and she is not one now. Daniel sinks his teeth into her shoulder, but she does not cry out in pain. She looks into his baleful yellow eyes.

And she smiles.

Charlie, warrior shaman, healer, summoner, steps to the Fang he does not know, lays his heavy Crinos hand upon him. Edward feels warmth fill him, feels his flesh stitch itself back together. He's reminded of home, of Kate's perfume, the warmth of Gabriella's hand. He is made whole again. And he vanishes from sight.

The Theurge of The Sentinels moves to his brother next. His clawed hand presses against Broken Hammer's side, and warmth fills the Fenrir's bones. Even in the midst of battle, his touch is gentle. Charlie was a healer before all of them. It's one of his greatest strengths, his healing ability. How many times has he laid his hands on his brothers and sisters, brought them from the brink of death to full fighting strength? How many times has he healed those with no connection to him whatsoever? Daniel feels his new brother's touch, and is glad for it. It strengthens him, warms him. It's the last memory he'll have of the dopey, gangly Theurge alive.

The undead move as a group, as one cohesive unit. Five of them surge over Charlie, pounding at him with fists, kicking at him, pummeling him to the ground. Over and over, Charlie feels the strength of them. The stench of formaldehyde fills his nose. The sight of gortesque figures over top of him, around him, over him, driving him down and down and down, is the last thing the Fury metis sees.

Almost.

Charlie doesn't go down easily. He fights against the mob, but it's no use. They knock him down onto his back. When he looks up, he can see the moon. His moon, a sideways crescant, curved like Joey's smile, like Hatchet's grin, or Echo's smirk. For a moment, there's a feeling of the blows, hits with no pain thanks to Bear's gift. There's a moment of something dragging him down into darkness. And then he's being lifted up. He's on his feet again, whole, and filled with a sense of awakening. A lightening of spirit. He feels the warmth of the sun on his face, the smell of salty sea air in his lungs. He looks, if anyone could see him as he is now, the way he should have looked in life. The dark circles under his eyes gone, the gaunt lines of his face finally eased. He looks rested, and content. A glance is cast over his shoulder, to his brother, to the dark-furred shell left behind.

And then Lights Out is gone.

The Sentinels feel the change immediately. They feel the loss along the totem link they share. They know that one of them is lost forever. For most of them, it's a familiar sense of loss. For others, it's a completely new sense of void, an empty place where a person used to be.

For Daniel, fully aware of the fall of his brother nearby, it's a feeling of sudden, horrible fury. Rage fills him, seethes from his dappled winter coat in waves of heat and anger and pain. For a moment, it's almost beyond his control. For a moment, he can almost feel the sweet release of frenzy.

But Gaia has other plans for Broken Hammer this night. He may not be blinded by his rage, but the lack of frenzy does little to diminish the power of his jaws. In two savage snaps of his mouth, he breaks apart the beautiful woman. Her otherworldly paleness is marred by the gouges cut into her undead flesh. There is no blood, not for this woman. There is no satisfying spray of warmth filling Daniel's mouth to let him know he has avenged his brother's death. There is only the crack and splinter of bone. She falls.

And when she falls, so do the other undead. They drop where they stand, over Charlie's body, in the doorway to the mausoleum where reinforcements where just beginning to appear. They die their final deaths. How they came to be, how this woman came to control them, will be a mystery.

There are other things to see to first. Daniel and Edward find themselves standing alone in the quiet solitude of a cemetery on a cold winter's night, bodies littering the area like some strange parody of a war zone. Except that it is a war zone. This is their life, war. Fighting to save the world, hoping to live to see another sunrise, to see another smile on a friend's face, to feel the warmth of a loved one's hand one more time. Sometimes they make it to tomorrow. And sometimes they're left behind, so they can lay to rest the empty shell of a brave warrior. Of a friend. A brother.

[Silver Jester] All Edward knows of Daniel is that when they first met, the Fenrir was with Hatchet. He hadn't held that against him; goodness knows, Edward's run with some pretty questionable sorts in his time, both before and after change. Still, as he fades back into sight, there's the slightest bump of shoulders. It's a measure of commiseration, of comfort. Silver Jester'd known Lights Out even less than he'd known Broken Hammer, but the Ragabash has certainly lost people. He knows what that's like.

Then, he's gathering up pieces, and shoving them into the nearest place someone probably won't look, and it's quiet companionship offered with no pressure to talk; in fact, Edward would probably rather not. But he's there.

[Broken Hammer] Like a soundless explosion, death radiates outward from the queen of the hive, the author of all this madness. When she falls, they all fall.

And Daniel knew that would happen. Or at least -- hoped, if such a desperate, hard-bitten emotion can be called hope. He understood that their only real chance here was if killing the queen meant killing the rest. To fight the undead one by one by one would have been hopeless. More would have risen. No matter how bravely they fought, how true their blows, sooner or later they would've joined the ranks of the dead.

That is what he told himself when he left his packbrother behind and drove for the eldritch, blue-eyed

thing

that smiled at him even as he killed it. That's what he reminded himself of, made himself think of, when the undead swarmed Lights Out and took him down. And snuffed him out.

That's what he'll tell himself later, performing the Rite of the Gathering for Lights Out, questioning in his heart if he shouldn't have stayed by the Theurge; warded him somehow from the blows. If taking even one of the undead down wouldn't have tipped the balance. If taking even one of the blows wouldn't have kept Lights Out from death. If --

Time for that later.

Breath steaming in the cold, Broken Hammer looks down at the body of the Queen. He does not feel triumph for what they have accomplished. He does not feel pity for what she once was. He does not feel remorse for tearing her asunder when, in the end, despite all the chaos she's wreaked, she was so very weak.

All he feels
is bloody red hate.

Silver Jester bumps his shoulder into Broken Hammer's. The Forseti, bone-lean, bone-hard, wheels on the Fang with teeth bared and hackles up, the growl in his chest spiking into a snarl. He doesn't want to be touched. He doesn't want comfort. He doesn't want commiseration. He wants --

well. He wants to do exactly what he does, which is to whip around again. To fall tooth and claw on the dead enemy; to tear the carcass to limbs and viscerae, to shreds of skin and gristle and bone; to stale, bloodless bits.

When he's done, Broken Hammer is covered in flecks and specks of cold flesh and bone and the queen is a smear, an explosion of pale gore on the ground. His heart is hammering with exertion. It wants to beat out of his chest. It wants to loop his entrails into knots, twist him inside-out. The hispo backs away. One step. Then again. Then again. Weariness is coming on, the fading of the fury, the onslaught of loss. He turns on his hindquarters. Pads back to the Crinos body of his packmate. Lies down, heavily, thick fur disturbing snow and hard winter soil, brittle winter grass.

The Forseti curls close, like sleeping wolves in the den, like a pack in winter. He sets his chin over Charlie's neck. His breath stirs the Theurge's ruff, riffling the fur. The sky is clear, and freezing cold. He won't be able to keep Lights Out warm very long.

It doesn't matter. He closes his eyes.

--

Sometime before dawn, Broken Hammer bears his brother's body back to the Caern.

[Silver Jester] (Just so it's on everyone's transcripts, zomg, that was some amazing posting. Monki throughout and that closing one from Damon and . . . just yay, everyone. *applauds*)

[Silver Jester] He leaves the mourning Fenrir to tend to the body of his packmate, and when the mess is cleaned up - long before Broken Hammer is ready to move away with Lights Out's body - he takes some pieces for cleansing, and ultimately for the Wyrmpole. Finding out the name of the one that healed him for this purpose shouldn't be that hard, he thinks.

[Silver Jester] (And, I'mma go to bed. 'Night!)