[So... Last time on Vampire: The Rosening, our "heroes" got pulled into a murder mystery plot at Prince Mithras' court. They were given one year to prove that they are innocent of the murder and find who is responsible, and if they fail, they are all to be executed. They managed to find some faint footprints in the courtyard that seemed to be originating from the opposite direction of the great hall, and Mithras' attendant informed them that he would send a messanger when he was ready to see them, but that he was not to be disturbed at the moment, and so they all retired for the night/day.] [London June 13th 1230 A.D. 9:30 P.M.] [It is now one night after the murder of Renier, a ghoul has come to each of your havens and informed you that Mithras is willing to speak to you in a few hours in the same manor in which he held court the previous night. You have a couple hours then to congregate somewhere and talk, if you wish.] [Begin.] 06* Thalaba makes haste to be at the manor when she was expected to be there. Sometimes she had trouble being on time for things so this time she arrived early, standing out side as she waited for the correct time to come for the meeting. 06* Moriel arrives a little early, though not so early as Thalaba. He waits quietly for the others, standing unobtrusively off to one side. He's wearing something dark grey that intentionally or not makes him blend in to the shadows. 06* Cosimo arrives at the manor, careful to not arrive the same way he had departed out of habit more than anything. Finding a reasonable spot to wait that is out of the way and yet with a clear view of anyone coming or going, he jumps down from the rooftop. It isn't until he lands that he notices that several of his unfortunate collective have already arrived. Brushing himself off, he nods to 06* Cosimo each one respectively and takes up a spot nearby. 06* Moriel nods back to Cosimo, but he doesn't speak unless spoken to. 06* Thalaba sees Moriel arrive and raises a hand in greeting but seeing that he remains a short distance away she makes no move to strike up a conversation with him. Offering a wave to Cosimo as well when he 'drops in'. "Of course no one wants to chit chat.." She murmurs to herself as she turns back to the manor, looking up at it. 06* Eliana comes walking up right about now - not late and not early - wearing the same dark cloak she did yesterday, hood up and hands gloved. "Good evening," she says to the others by way of greeting. 06* Moriel nods at Eliana and murmurs back, "Good evening." 01 I did not expect everyone else to be early. 06* Moriel shrugs and smiles faintly. "Apparently, we are all excessively punctual." He waves to the door as if inviting Eliana before him. "Shall we go in?" jackals run late... and as such, only get scraps She moves closer to the group as Eliana arrives and begins the conversation. "I have a bad habit of being late..a nd thought it would be good not to be late for this meeting. " 06* Moriel glances at Thalaba. "A good thought." 06* Thalaba smiles at the compliment "Thank you!" [No one has exited the manor to ask the group in, but it is roughly time for their meeting.] 06* Eliana gives Thalaba a very tiny smile. "Well, now is the time." And she moves to knock on the door. [The door opens, and a ghoul stands behind it. "My Lord has been expecting you. Please proceed to the great hall." He motions to the same room in which court was held the previous night.] 01 Thank you. 06* Eliana breezes by the servant. Not with a literal breeze, but she is chilly. 06* Moriel falls into step just behind and to one side of Eliana, and follows her to the hall. 06* Thalaba follows in with the group. 06* Cosimo waits till the women enter and takes up behind them. [Seated on his throne is Mithras. He is dressed in loose fitting, more drab colored clothing than the previous night. A bastard sword leans against the right side of his throne and he watches you enter the room in silence. Once you have all entered the room he speaks. "You requested an audience. What do you require?"] 06* Eliana drops to the floor, kneeling and bowing her head. "Lord Mithras." 06* Thalaba follows Eliana's example and kneels at her side in front of Mithras. 06* Moriel kneels before Mithras with every appearance of humility. Then he looks towards Eliana to do the talking. She's been doing well so far. 06* Cosimo notices his companions all kneeling before the throne and quickly does the same, removing his hood as he does so. 06* Eliana doesn't rise, at least not yet, and her head is bowed with her curls obscuring her face. "We found tracks which indicate a group approaching the scene from the opposite side of the courtyard." She closes her eyes. "Five distinct footprints. They lead largely from the opposing door." [Mithras nods. "Is that all?" He doesn't say this with surprise or insult. Just as a neutral inquiry.] 01 No. We have come to ask permission to investigate the matter further, as we did not feel it wise to trespass. [Mithras nods again. "It would not have been wise. You may investigate that wing of the manor, if you wish; however, I warn you that my servants and advisors have been wandering about the manor most of the night, so it is unlikely you will find much to aid your investigation, if they have not found anything."] 01 I understand. Thank you for your generosity. [Mithras simply nods again. "You are dismissed."] 06* Eliana stands, turns, and walks away, brushing her hair out of her face. 06* Cosimo bows his head towards Mitrhas again and then rises to his feet and helps the women up. 06* Moriel stands and hesitates, looking after the others. After a moment he says quietly, "My lord...Master Castelletti also noted that someone cried murder to bring you and your guards. It was none of your other guests...? Because if not, it must have been those who did the deed." 06* Cosimo looks at the hand he extended towards Eliana which went unclaimed and shakes his head before helping Thalaba up 06* Thalaba gets to her feet with the help of Cosimo, offering him a thanks as she looks to Mithras, curious about the answer to this question herself. [Mithras looks to Moriel and shakes his head. "That was one of my servants. She was tending to the rooms upstairs when she saw all of you gathered around the body."] Ah. Pity, it could have given us a clue. 06* Moriel shakes his head and bows to the prince. "Thank you for granting us this audience." [Mithras just nods. He's already dismissed the group once, so he is not going to do so again.] 06* Moriel turns and follows the others out. 06* Cosimo again bows his head respectfully towards Mitrhas and then turns to follow Eliana out. 06* Eliana is already heading to the courtyard. 06* Thalaba takes Cosimo's arm when it's offered, somewhat surprised by how nice he's being to her and walks out with the others. [The courtyard is just as you left it last night, minus the body.] 06* Eliana paces forward, taking another look at the footprints and looking for any other evidence. No real reason to rush these things, after all. "Have you thought of any other avenues of inquiry?" she asks the others when they walk in. 06* Moriel spreads his hands. "If we could find out why he wished to speak to us...but I don't know where to begin investigating that." Any associates of his, perhaps... 06* Moriel shakes his head. 06* Cosimo nods, carefully taking leave of the lady on his arm. "indeed... but then again, perhaps there is something in trying to figure out who has something to gain from 'removing' an emmisary of the Court of Love?" 06* Cosimo walks towards Eliana and the spot where the footprints were noted. 06* Eliana nods, studying the prints thoughtfully. "Renier, a Toreador from the Court of Love." 06* Thalaba steps forward "I still think that perhaps this was a cleverly placed trap in which we were the prey to be caught in it." 01 It's possible, but why? Who would benefit from catching us? Well if we cannot prove our innocence, we forfeit our lives. Perhaps we have a combined enemy we are not aware of? well, it could be that we were entirely coincidental, though exceedingly convenient 06* Moriel looks around the courtyard once more. His response to Thalaba is distracted. "I think we had best start with investigating things we know are true. We do know that the emissary wished to speak with us, and we do know that someone wished him dead." still, i cannot help but think the warning he seemed to have for all of us is unrelated to this whole mess If we do have a common enemy...we have fewer avenues to finding out who that might be. 06* Cosimo nods at Moriel. 01 All conjecture. Moriel is right; we should concentrate on facts for now. I think that it would be prudent for us to investigate through our own clans, as well, as to who Renier was and what friends and enemies he was known to have. Or.. one of us has an enemy and the rest of us are just innocent victims to mask the true victim of the plot. 06* Moriel grimaces. "Possible. Still, conjecture. Mistress Casale's idea is a good one; perhaps with multiple approaches we'll learn more." His face twists briefly as he says it, however. 06* Eliana glances at Moriel. Hm. She heads for the door the tracks came from and opens it. 06* Cosimo walks back towards where the body was located, and stands there, surveying the scene... the door, the fountain, looking for anything that might have been overlooked. 06* Moriel finishes scanning the courtyard and shakes his head. "I don't see anything more than I did last night. Only the same tracks leading to that door." He nods at it, then follows Eliana over to enter. 06* Cosimo looks up at his colleagues by the door. "i don't suppose any of you happened to notice which direction the body was facing when you found it. I must confess i didn't see it till after the whole mess started." 06* Eliana looks back to Cosimo. "Hm?" She walks over. "His head was here," she says, indicating precisely where it was, and then paces a few feet. "Feet were here." She nudges the ground with one shoe. 01 He was lying face up when we found him, eyes open. hmmmm... and his wounds? 06* Moriel frowns down at the ground suddenly. "Where did they *go* after they left him here?" He's not talking to anyone in particular, exactly, just thinking out loud. beg pardon, m'lady... could you stand here for just a second. 06* Eliana starts out of her thoughts. "Hm? Yes, I suppose." She walks over to stand 'here'. 06* Cosimo walks back a few steps and then starts pacing things off, then returns, his hand thoughtfully stroking his well groomed beard. 06* Eliana eyes Cosimo. Perhaps she doesn't trust facial hair. hmmmm... 06* Cosimo looks up, scanning the balconies and rooftops. 06* Eliana looks down again, then suddenly says, "I remember." 06* Moriel blinks at Eliana. "Remember what?" 06* Eliana rattles information off in staccato fashion: "Five bites. One on each arm, three on his neck. Seven claw swipes. One on his right arm, four over his torso, one on each leg." i see... "ah yes the injuries. Very good Eliana!" 06* Eliana starts again, then looks at Thalaba. She hesitates a moment, studying her, then says, "Thank you." 06* Thalaba steps closer to where Eliana and Cosimo are investigating "Was it 5 different bite marks or one person biting 5 different times?" 06* Eliana frowns slightly. "I don't know." This clearly annoys her. 01 However, given the location of his injuries, I think it's likely he was pinned for at least part of the attack. 06* Moriel wanders over to the others, still frowning. "Another thing to consider: how is it that the murderers left footsteps when they entered this courtyard, but not when they left?" 06* Eliana tugs at the fingers of her gloves. "That is a mystery." 06* Cosimo looks back to his companions. "i am not sure he was pinned. there would have been blood..." 06* Moriel says dryly, "One of many." He watches Eliana curiously. 06* Moriel glances at Cosimo. "Well, his attackers likely drank most of it." and while it isn't impossible that he fell, there don't seem to be any signs [Cosimo casually points towards the rooftops and balconies]. no, i believe it more likely he was brought here from somewhere else" Still, it seems there should have been more signs of struggle if he were killed on this spot. Yes. 06* Eliana nods in silent agreement. She adjusts her gloves again, then actually moves, heading into the newly opened wing. indeed. and if there were five, as has been said based on the footprints, it is unlikely that he would have stood by and gone quietly "So maybe he was killed else where and brought.. " She pauses to look up at the house "Or thrown to this place? 06* Cosimo shakes his head. "it would be a difficult toss to have him land in such a fashion... of that im fairly sure" 06* Cosimo smiles, his eyes twinkle with a familiar predatory gleam. 06* Moriel drifts silently after Eliana, keeping his eyes peeled for any potential clues. 06* Cosimo turns to follow Moriel and Eliana. "shall we?" 06* Moriel glances back of his shoulder and gives Cosimo a thin smile. "Naturally." 06* Eliana has already opened the door! She's heading in. 06* Thalaba tilts her head at Cosimo's comment as she follows the others "Oh I see! So you've tried such a thing with different results." This said matter of factually. [On the other side of the door is a large entryway at the back of the manor. There are some stairs that lead up to the second floor. A set of doors that lead outside, and a door on either side one leading into the armory and the other into the servants quarters.] only birds and bats fly where they intend to... everything else is just falls as it will (edit: everything else just falls as they will) 06* Eliana looks around for any indication as to where they would have come from. [There is no indication. Since this is a stone floor, there are no easilly discernable footprints. They could have come from basically any direction.] 06* Moriel looks around the entryway, hands folded thoughtfully behind him. "Prince Mithras was right. There is little here." 06* Thalaba smiles at Cosimo's answer but turns to Eliana "So we know they came this way..but have no way to find out where after entering the manor?" 01 The tracks are dead. well... given our options, what do we have? the servants quarters would likely be busy, especially given the festivities, though they would be easier to quiet than others might the armory would likely have restricted access, but also posted guards, again, given the festivities... so that leaves us outside and the stairs? 06* Moriel nods, and, given where this is going, walks over to the door that leads outside and opens it to see what he can see. [Outside the manor from the back is very much like the front. It is moorland and so there is heather, which is mostly dead this time of year. There are also some stables with no horses and a rough path leading north further out of the city.] Hm. If they came from outside the city, perhaps this is how they came. 06* Eliana walks over and looks out as well. "Logical," she says, and looks down at the ground for any sign of tracks. 06* Moriel examines the trail as best he can as well, but after a little while he straightens up with a sigh. "I can't tell if any of these match the ones in the courtyard. Can you?" 06* Eliana walks out a few steps, turns back, and shakes her head. 06* Cosimo shakes his head no. 06* Moriel looks back towards the manor entrance. "In the interests of thoroughness, shall we check the stairs, as well?" 06* Eliana walks back in. "Let's," she says, before heading upstairs. 06* Moriel nods and follows to make with the examining. 06* Cosimo follows as well. 06* Thalaba heads back inside as well. [After a full night of checking, no one finds any further physical evidence in the manor and you all begin to head home before the sun rises and fries you all.] 06* Eliana is walking home, for she does not want to be fried! "I wonder where Rolf is," she says, mentioning the Gangrel for the first time that evening. You're the only one of us who knows him. Can you find him? We need to tell him what we found tonight. Or what we didn't find, as it may be. 01 Possibly. He... wanders, a bit. Ah. Yes. 06* Eliana frowns a little, thinking. "Still, he has some standard haunts. I'll send my servant to track him down." 06* Moriel is quiet for a few steps, then adds, "We need to arrange to meet tomorrow night, as well." We could all keep an eye out for him and anyone who finds him fills him in on what we found?" 06* Eliana nods. indeed... perhaps a spot a little less... conspicuous? 06* Moriel casts Cosimo a thin smile. "Did you have someplace in mind?" perhaps... i know of an abandoned farmhouse on the outskirts of town. a short walk from the gates and conveniently, the guards there tend to be rather heavy drinkers, so getting over the wall isn't difficult 06* Eliana raises an eyebrow at Cosimo. Yeah, like she's going to climb over the wall. But she does say, "Acceptable." [Session End]