Small's Paradise

[Rex]

Charlie

Charlie will try and mingle with the locals as they follow the procession.

Listen (40) [1d100]=98
Spot Hidden (60) [1d100]=70
Luck (50) [1d100]=85
Classic!

[Grognardsw]

“I’ll see you after the procession Ms. Borden,” says Thurston, smiling as winsomely as one can at a funeral.

He joins the procession near the rear, looking over the crowd in front, noting the absence of the tipsy trumpet player. That was the nervous man who passed behind Mancuso's chair in Small's and accidently brushed him.

Thurston makes sure to keep an eye on the whereabouts of Ms. Borden, intending on talking with her afterwards.

Listen, Spot Hidden, Luck [1d00]=err16, [1d100]=5, [1d100]=43 Yes on Spot Hidden and Luck. Liston error in d, so:
Listen [1d100]=65 No

[Ashuaps]

René Vézina

Rene decides that it would be best for the investigators to be spreads through the procession so that they could hear various conversations. With Charlie at the side, Thurston towards the back and Calvin somewhere in the middle, Rene will try to walk closer to the front without interfering with the close family. However, if he starts feeling that he is attracting too much negative attention, he's gently slip back towards the back.

Rene is also particularly interested if the procession is going towards the house from last night and will be even more watchful if they do.

Listen(60) [1d100]=22 Spot hidden(60) [1d100]=4 Luck(55) [1d100]=46

[OGRE MAGE]

(Luck roll results pending)

The Procession Turns

Ms. Borden nods at Thurston, also cognizant of not smiling back. His smart perception of the missing trumpet player is about to be proven in spades.

The gang spreads out, with Thurston staying near the rear, keeping an eye on his new contact. Calvin hits the sidewalk and follows Charles route through the center of the gathering. René decides to stay close to the band and the coffin, an idea he may eventually regret. He finds the route moving away from the other side of town where the building he is slowly becoming obsessed with is located.

Charlie Johnson and his orchestra play slow and soulful renditions of hymn after hymn as they slowly march behind the pallbearers. All maintain a serious and noble bearing. Passing by several storefronts, the feeling of being watched creeps into your minds. From the rear, Thurston spots the very man he was just thinking about, the tipsy young trumpet player from last night. The sad looking man crushes out a cigarette and walks from the shadows, leaving an empty whiskey bottle against the wall. He puts his shiny trumpet to his lips just as the band strikes up “Closer Walk With Thee”, stepping almost directly in front of René as he joins a rather perturbed looking Charlie Johnson.

He starts to blow melancholy notes in perfect counterpart to Johnson’s cornet, a rolling murmur through the crowd testifies to the beauty of the soulful music. It apparently has Charles entranced, since he hears or sees nothing else. About a half minute later, the procession abruptly stops, prompting Calvin to rush ahead to see what happened, still certain that suspicious trumpet player has something to do with all this. Thurston and Charles have no idea what caused the delay, but René and Calvin get a front row seat.

Actions!

Calvin and René only, please!

The two of you are close enough to hear a dull thumping and moaning sound suddenly coming from the area of the coffin, about 20 seconds or so into the song. Some of the pallbearers must have noticed it too, as they have stopped and are now looking around in horrified confusion.

Can I get a Sanity Check from each of you please, with your next action based on the results.

[Bluetongue]

Calvin Beauregard

Calvin Beauregard: Sanity check vs 70 wisdom [1d100]=53

"My oh my. Can you hear that? That ain't no 'Sweet by and by' lament tune being played. I swear, I can hear Freddy knocking on the casket."

Calvin bursts out his thoughts, trying to convince himself that old Freddy just ain't ready to go and his ticker still tocks but the other part of his brain goes back to the scene of Manusco shuffling down the dance floor rather than off this mortal coil.

[Rex]

Charles

Charlie just moves along with the procession. Oblivious.

[Ashuaps]

René Vézina

Sanity check vs SAN 59 [1d100]=54

Rene sees the young trumpet player join in, apparently uninvited, and start playing. The noise from the coffin momentarily stun Rene but the events of last night may actually have hardened him and he quickly comes to the conclusion that the common point between the walking headless Manusco and the thumping dead man in the coffin is actually standing right in front of him.

Rene put his hand in his pocket to grab hold of his slap jack and look to map an escape route and manoeuvre himself so that he doesn't get caught in a stampede while keeping a close look on the trumpeter, ready to act.

Are we close to Rene's target house? If so, he might look if he could actually run away from the area and get into the house at the same time.

[Grognardsw]

Thurston sees the trumpeteer and realizes the procession has slowed. He wonders what is going on.

[OGRE MAGE]

The trumpet player was actually invited, if you remember he was the one who dropped the business card. Charlie Johnson must have looked upset because the young man was obviously late to the gig, and showed up half drunk again.

Another Dead Man Rises

Hearing the thumping from inside the coffin is enough to freak out Rene and Calvin, but their recent prior experience with this type of situation prevents either of them from losing it completely. Most of the folks closest to the deceased aren't so lucky. The pallbearers look around at each other in terror as the coffin suddenly lurches forward. Calvin cries out from the sidewalk that Freddy doesn't seem quite ready to go yet, causing a minor panic in the streets. When the lid gets smashed open from inside, three of the men drop the bottom of the coffin onto the ground and the entire crowd starts to shriek and scream.

The band stops playing and people begin to run for their lives when they see a grey, puffy, and rather bewildered looking Freddy Fayette flailing his arms around wildly as he exits his own coffin. The clearly dead man stands up and looks around in confusion as onlookers faint, scream, or flee in terror. The funeral director that Rene spoke with earlier gets the closest look, his bulged eyes giving a strong impression that this was NOT supposed to happen. Freddy starts to groan loudly and violently while his family and friends are frozen in terror and confusion. I will take a second Sanity check from Calvin and Rene for this new scene. If you should fail it, please add a d6 roll and subtract that number of Sanity points from your sheets. If you roll over a 5, you will be unable to act this round and I will tell you why.

At the middle and rear of the halted procession, Charles and Thurston can only watch the pandemonium from a distance. They see their 2 friends closest to the action, and can tell by the screaming that there is definitely something terrible going on up front, but the people fleeing in every direction blocks their view from this distance.

Charlie Johnson appears to be frozen in time, unsure how to react to seeing his own uncle somehow moving on his own accord again. The tipsy trumpet player also looks shocked, staring blankly at the shiny horn in his hands. Rene arms himself and keeps an escape route clear as people rush around everywhere.

Actions?

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[Bluetongue]

Calvin Beauregard

Fighting his sanity and without a drink in his hands too, he is relatively calm in the midst of a brewing storm.

Calvin Beauregard: Sanity check vs 70 wisdom [1d100]=12

He took the lead sash from the window for such a time as this and promptly draws it out in an attempt to cosh Freddy back into the casket.

Calvin Beauregard '.fighting skill - brawl vs 25% [1d100]=24

[Rex]

Charles

Charles, suspecting the trumpet player is somehow involved moves to stay with him if he tries to flee.

[Grognardsw]

Thurston wonders what is going on. He glances to see what Ms. Borden is doing.

“Don’t go far, I’ll be right back,” he says to her.

Thurston makes his way toward the front, walking cane in hand.

[Ashuaps]

René Vézina

Sanity check vs SAN 59 [1d100]=95
Sanity loss [1d6]=5
Ouch!

Rene feels much too close to the action for his comfort and decides to make himself scarce! Seeing the trumpeter in front of him staring at his instrument, Rene quickly run past him, grab the trumpet from the man's hand and flees the scene through his planned escape route.

[OGRE MAGE]

Chaos In The Streets

René stands there with his mouth agape, seeing the dead man stomping out of his coffin just like watching his business associate stumble around with half his head missing the night before. The shock to the man’s psyche is very near enough to send him into a fit of temporary insanity.

Anytime an investigator looses 5 or more Sanity points in one instance, they need to Fail an Intelligence check or go into a bout of madness for 1d10 hours. So please roll me an Int check and include a d10 roll if you pass it. (full comprehension of the dead rising) Good luck!

Charles and Thurston try to make their way up to the front of the procession to see what all the shouting is about, fighting through the crowds that have partially turned to flee the scene. Charles keeps his eye on the skinny trumpet player as they approach, both of them finally spotting the dead man who is now somehow standing on his feet and flailing around, moaning loudly and acting rather aggressively. I will take a Sanity check from each of you now. I will award a bonus die to your roll, (roll one extra “tens” die and use the lowest result) since you both had a moment to guess what might be happening. Give me a d6 roll if you fail.

Calvin resists the mind numbing reality before him (you only loose 1 San point for passing the roll) but seems intent on making a horrible situation even worse by applying violence. He moves in closer while some of the crowd disperses, leading the way with his recently acquired lead weight in hand. Moving directly up behind the moaning Freddy, Calvin suddenly bashes the zombie in the back of its head, hoping to return the thing to its resting place. The blow gashes open Freddy’s soft skull, splattering himself and anyone nearby with a spray of liquid grey brain matter and some horrible smelling, caustic embalming fluids. (5 damage but not enough to bring zombie Freddy down) In return, Freddy reaches out to choke the life out of the hack reporter, grabbing him by the neck with one hand and lifting Calvin off the ground with unnatural strength. Normally, you would be allowed to attempt a Dodge with your next attack, but in this case, all you can do is either stop what you are doing or fight back again.

Several onlookers see the aggressive white man smashing in the head of their beloved friend and/or relative. At least 6 men, including Charlie Johnson himself, lunge to intercept Calvin after his attack. Several onlookers remain nearby, some of them frozen in fear while others seem to think that Freddy was never dead in the first place. Charles and Thurston hear the words “buried alive” mentioned numerous times and a good deal of angst appears to be directed towards the two exasperated funeral directors.

Actions?

I realize that is a metric shit ton to digest, so if you have any questions about the mechanics of it all, please just ask and I will try to explain things as we go. Thanks!

[Grognardsw]

Thurston struggles through the crowd and sees Calvin and a man fighting next to a tumbled-open empty coffin. A half-dozen men try to pull the reporter away. So quickly are things moving that Thurston isn't sure exactly what is happening.

Questions flash through his mind: Who interupted the funeral? Why is Calvin fighting that man? Did someone say "buried alive?" Is that man Freddy? No - it can't be!

Thurston is reluctant to enter the fray. He knows in seconds that Calvin will be dragged away from the fracas. If Freddy is - God forbid - another zombie, the only thing Thurston can think of in common with Small's is that trumpet player. Where is he?

Thurston Sanity Check [1d100]=78 Bonus d10 [1d10]=6 Just made it.

[Rex]

Charles

Charlie tries to follow the trumpet player.

Sanity check (47) [1d100]=15 Bonus die [1d10]=4

[Bluetongue]

Calvin Beauregard

Will most likely try to escape the melee, especially if the crowd do manage to pull him away from the zombie's grasp. He has one last cosh attempt on Freddy before getting overwhelmed probably.

Calvin Beauregard '.fighting skill - brawl vs 25% [1d100]=10

[Ashuaps]

René Vézina

Intelligence Check (60) [1d100]=21
Hours of madness [1d10]=6

René being a relatively bright person, unlike the rest of the crowd present, understands the full significance of what he has just observed. His brain decides that the best course of action for the next 6 hours is to stop behaving sanely.

I assume Rene can't insanely steal the trumpet then

[OGRE MAGE]

The Chaos Resides?

Half the crowd is in utter shock as the horrifying scene plays out before them, while the other half is convinced that Freddy was never dead in the first place. Several of the latter are not pleased to see some white stranger smashing in the head of their beloved friend or family member. Calvin knows he should flee, but cant help himself from smashing his lead weight into the head of Zombie Freddy one more time before he does, giving those around him plenty of time to tackle the reporter to the ground where they overpower the lone man and begin beating him into submission with fists and canes rather violently. (-6 hit points)

Rene looks at this new development in shock but finds that he can do little to help his friend, because every time he sets his gaze upon dead Fred, he begins shrieking uncontrollably and is unable to move on his own accord. Luckily the predominately black crowd doesn't take offense to this and start beating on him too. The damage being done to his vastly outnumbered associate is starting to look severe.

Thurston and Charles rush forward and meet up again in the midst of the chaos, seeing both of their friends in a bit of a bind. Their pal Rene looks like he has just seen a ghost, but they are not nearly as bothered by the sight of frantic Freddy themselves, remaining focused on the task at hand. (-1 San point for each of you) Charlie doesn't try to stop the men from killing Calvin, instead keeping his eyes trained on the trumpet player, who has since stopped playing and is currently staring quizzically at his shiny trumpet with a few other band members standing around him in utter confusion. The security man continues hearing things from the crowd that do not sound good for the funeral directors, making him wonder if the mob will drag them to the ground next. Both of those men look very nervous as well, but continue trying to calm the situation.

Thurston cant believe how quickly a nice procession turned into such a mess, unsure himself who he should try to help first. He too spots the tipsy trumpeter, but before he can act upon the man, a tiny old woman pushes past him and moves towards the flailing Freddy with the badly weeping head wound. In a timid voice that somehow rings above the noise of the crowd, she addresses her dead husband. "Freddy? Freddy, baby, is that you?" She moves closer to the zombie who stops groaning when he sees the woman, a look of pure confusion and sadness upon his puffy, grey face. "Freddy? What's going on with you, my love?" The little old woman bursts out in tears, causing the zombie to fall to the ground at her feet to wrap his arms around her ankles. She puts her hand on the portion of Freddy's head that wasn't violently bashed in, speaking to him softly as he closes his eyes one final time and doesn't move again, finally returning to the realm of the dead.

Actions?

Rene is obviously going to be unable to function normally for a while, but I will allow you to continue making actions for him as long as they stay within the confines of his temporary bout of madness. Basically, he has developed a phobia, so when he sees dead things, he will need to react accordingly and make rolls to function normally. This condition will eventually fade in time.

Calvin is completely surrounded and overwhelmed by the half dozen men trying to beat him into submission. The more he resists or fights back, the worse his beating becomes. If something isn't done to stop the men, the investigator may very well be killed in the street. He is currently unable to act, but might be able to get in a few words before he slips from consciousness.

[Rex]

Charles

Seeing how bad Calvin is he rushes over and tries to calm the situation. "Don't kill him! The law will be after us all." He tries to prevent them from doing any more damage to him.