The History of the Game, Part IX

The History of the Game, Part IX
by Bill Emerson, 3D Storyteller

Session Fifty-seven (Children of the Sun)

    Walks is visited by a Shaman of the Sept of the Speaking Skies who was so impressed by her showing in the Baggataway game (Session Fifty-three) that he teaches her the Wendigo Rite of the Sweat Lodge. The rest of the Pack scatters...
    Manny, paying off a debt to Luna, is guarding some Moon Bridges in the Umbra when an "away team" of men who appear to be Mages wander by. They seem to be studying the Umbra and take note of the "conduit" that Manny is standing near. Manny does his level best to confuse these gentlemen and sends them on their merry way.
    Jarryd challenges Bite of Frost to recognize him as Rank Four. The Warder charges Jarryd to visit judgment upon Kati Warsinger for embarrassing him at the last Moot. (Session 51)
    Jarryd summons up all his moxie and tells Kati that she should apologize to Bite of Frost. The closest Kati will come is "Bite me." He then challenges her, in hopes of forcing her to comply. She chooses a facedown and beats Jarryd, sending him home in defeat.
    He is then summoned by Catherine who wanted to touch base. She hasn't heard from him in a while and some vampires have started to try to sneak into Belleville again.
    During the conversation, Catherine inadvertently reminds Jarryd of the Litany and he goes back to the Sept determined to make Kati apologize or suffer the Stone of Scorn! (dum dum DUMMM!)
    He enacts the Stone of Scorn Rite. Kati is shamed, Bite of Frost is satisfied and Jarryd earns Rank Four.
    In the meantime, Manny tries to do spin control on "My girlfriend is cat," to the continuing amusement of Madonna.

Session Fifty-eight (Children of the Sun)

    A Bone Gnawer named Jambles arrives at the Sept of Gaia's Strength looking for the Children of the Sun. He asks them to come to his Sept in Cincinnati and help them with a vampire problem. The Pack agrees on the condition that Jambles bathes before sharing a car with them.
    They arrive in Cincinnati and meet Anna Thunderpaw, Shadow Lord and Warder of the Sept of the Central Skies. She tells the Pack that her decision to bring them here was unpopular, but she'll do whatever she can to help them.
    After getting the lay of the land from Anna, the Pack starts casing a Vampire-owned bank and club. They decide to hit the vampiric VP of the bank and plan a break-in.
    While in the planning stages, two local Shadow Lords, Edmund and Polina, arrive and offer to help with any sort of...disposal that may be necessary after the fight.
    The Pack launches their surprise attack only to find that the vampires were expecting them. Surprise! The kicker is that the bad guys have a Garou on their side. After liberal application of fang and fire, the Children of the Sun prevail and drag the unconscious form of the evil Garou to the waiting van brought by Edmund and Polina.
    Polina revives the fallen traitor and the two of them and Edmund attack Kyla and Co. Net result, the traitor is knock out again, Edmund is also sent to dream land and Polina escapes.
    The Pack makes contact, reluctantly, with Anna who meets them and identifies the traitor wolf as Alexi, the Sept's Wyrmfoe and Grand Elder. She then administers some Shadow Lord justice and kills both Alexi and Edmund. Kyla offered to do it for her.
    Figuring that the vamps know they're coming, the Pack hops a Moon Bridge home to round up some reinforcements before attacking the vampires' club. When they arrive at the club, they find it empty and police sealed. They also find Polina's body in the 'members only' section. Figuring that the bad guys have gone to ground, the pack sets some explosives and heads out.

Session Fifty-nine (Wyvern's Claw)

    While the ladies are out shopping, Dmitri Ovius sends Nathan into Ann Arbor to ask the Glass Walkers there to help him track down another Shadow Lord by the name of Aldus Montcrief. Apparently Mr. Montcrief has access to some information that Dmitri wants.
    Nathan does so, with Scott and Randell in tow, and soon finds himself invited to a party at his old frat house.
    Randell is approached by Matthew, who asks him to procure a large quantity of euthanizing agent for him. When pressed on why he wants this, Matthew is evasive and noncommittal, but hooks Randell up with someone who can provide all range of legal pharmaceuticals with few questions asked, so long as you have a valid medical license.
    Scott, whose hair has mysteriously turned pink, has a pretty girl walk up to him and give him a phone number. It isn't hers, unfortunately. The number belongs to Rasp, that old high school chum of Scott's who became a vampire shortly before Scott became a werewolf!
    The boys set up a meeting with Rasp posing as some sort of drug cartel with supernatural contacts (or something). They work out an arrangement for Rasp to share information with them. Then they go to the frat party.

Second Irregularly-Scheduled RPG Awards

Session Sixty (Email Moot)

The sun will set in an hour or two, but an impatient moon is already rising. Cry of Winds howls a sudden cry to wake the spirits and call the attention of the Sept. As he sings his wolfsong, Walks calls the names of the spirits that watch over the Caern. East Wind blows from the darkening East corner of the Caern Center. Hyperion stands opposite in the glorious colors of the setting sun. Wyvern perches on the tallest tree while Black Panther and Fenris circle the assembled Garou, eyeing each other suspiciously. The Winter Spirits huddle in shadows to the North of the Center and Twister blusters around randomly.
In the more physical world, a few Packs of werewolves that don't always get along too well gather together. Conspicuous by their absense are the Streetlight Prowlers. Apparently, what ever errand Madonna's Pack was on is taking longer than she thought...

Dmitri Ovious: "We are here, under Luna and with our patron spirits to ready ourselves for the month ahead. Who wishes to bring business before the People assembled here?"

Garth Avelanche of Blood: "I do. I wish to ask the Sept why we are here and Madonna is not? Her pack hasn't been standing guard duty and now the miss our Moot. I would have preferred to ask Madonna herself; I've been wondering this for some time, but she is not here to ask.
"What does this do to the defense of the Caern, Bite of Frost?"

Brows furrow around the fire as Kyla, Kati and Domino prepare to rebutt Garth's argument. However, as the addressed Garou, Bite of Frost is the first to speak.

Bite of Frost: "Madonna is absent with the permission of the Wyrmfoe and her responsibilities have been seen to by the Warder. That is me, Garth. Do not worry about the defense of the Caern until I tell you to worry about it. That is my job.
"As for getting out of guard duty, Kyla has recently asked me to arrange to have YOUR pack excused for some period of time, so you need not feel shut in."

Garth (slowly, a little angry): "Then my question is answered. Thank you...Warder.
"I have one more thing to say before the Sept, then, as Trent is not here to say it. My packmate, Greta Treepuller Resoundingstrike, challenge Trent Lightningclaw for the third rank and was successful. He has not made her victory of him in combat widely known and it is not polite to crow too much about one's new rank, so I will announce it to the Sept."

Dmitri: "An excellent idea, Garth. Greta allow me to repeat my congratulations. Any other business?"

Kati: "A month ago, I took advantage of an opportunity to embarrass Bite of Frost in front of the Sept. So, in front of the same Sept, I wish to...apolgize.... For the disrespect."

A few murmurs are heard about the circle.

Bite of Frost: "Thank you, Kati Warsinger, I accept this apology. I understand the pains giving it has caused."

Kati gives a hard look to Bite of Frost, redirects it toward Jarryd and steps back to the circle.

Dmitri: "Yes, well. Anyone else?"

The Galliards tune up their voices/instruments/whatever and begin taking turns telling the stories of this month's accomplishments. A lot of interest in generated by "The BaneMother of Gary" and many seem impressed by the story.

    The Revel begins with Kyla describing how Manny had been guarding Moon Paths all month. In that time, he found a few nests of Banes near the Paths, so tonight, she is leading the Sept to stomp them out.
    Before long, these unsuspecting Banes are killed or scattered by the twenty-some Garou that follow Kyla into the Near Umbra.
    Coming back to Caern to continue the party, Nathan's first batch of home brew is waiting for a similar decimation. Everyone that wants a taste gets a pretty heady rush and soon eight- and nine-foot-tall Crinoses are jumping the bonfire and chasing each other through the trees.

Session Sixty-one (Children of the Sun and Wyvern's Claw)

    The Sept is startled by a mournful, ghostly howl echoing from the Caern center. Everone bursts into the clearing to find Zephyr at Dawn, in Lupus form, baying at the sky. The object of his distress is a red star that has just appeared in the heavens. He tells the assembled Garou that this star is the Eye of the Wyrm and signifies the Apocolypse's coming.
    Everyone begins to worry.
    The Children of the Sun, head to the Aetherial Realm to see if Hyperion can give them any insight on the star. In shedding light on the subject (sorry, I couldn't resist) Hyperion tells them that he hasn't heard from Estharra, Nerigal or Rorg, the Incarnae of the Earth, Mars and the asteriod belt, respectively. But, as the Red Star is manifested in the Aetherial Realm as well, and its presence has stirred up the minions of the Wyrm, Hyperion suggests that his Children get some back up.
    So, they head home and pick up Cassie, Randell and Nathan of the Wyvern's Claw.
    Upon visiting Eshtarra, she sings the Garou a verse of her song that implies that the Red Star heralds the death of the Sun. Eshstarra's song came at the price of s song that Cassie had to make up on the spot. She didn't disappoint.
    The next stop was Nerigal, the Incarnae of Mars. As they expected, the realm of Nerigal is dangerous to enter and they are soon faced with a challenge of combat.
    The good guys triumph on the strength of Walks tearing through the baddies like a furry little buzzsaw. Nerigal is pleased with her ferocity and teaches her the Gift called Shards of Icy Rage. He also tells them what he knows of the Red Star.
    Before heading outward, Kyla dials home on her Umbraphone. The news she hears is dire: Zephyr has been visted by several other Stargazers and is now getting ready to leave the Sept, possibly for good.
    Zooming home as fast as they can, the arrive as Zephyr is saying good-bye to the Sept that has been his home for so long because he must go to East to help his Tribe protect their holdings. He tells the assembled Garou that the name of the Red Star is Anthelios and wishes them luck and safety. He opens a Moon Bridge and leaves.
    Politics explode as the Sept scrambles to find a new Master of the Rite! Bite of Frost and Kyla think Walks should be nominated. Walks has other ideas. Dmitry swerves everyone by getting Madonna to take him to the Freebooters Sept to get Brings the Future (remember him?) to be the Master of the Rite. This choice is surprisingly well accepted and the Sept gets ready to face the upcoming challenges that the Red Star brings.

Session Sixty-two (Children of the Sun)

    Walks and Jarryd get The Call from Catherine. Manny gets a call from Stephanie.
    Catherine is afraid that the Red Star has caused her to get more evil, she is exhibiting new powers and wants the Pack to check her out. She's clean, but no one can explain why her eyes can be made to glow or how she can suddenly grow claws...
    Stephanie has figured out where Potiphar has reappeared: The Florida Keys. She asks the Pack for help. They blip down, dust the Mummy (again!) and blip back to Michigan thanks to Manny's Open Moonbridge gift. Although Stephanie travels back with them, Kyla forbids Manny from bridging them backanywhere near the Caern.
    Manny offers to help Stephanie find an apartment.

Session Sixty-three (Children of the Sun)

    Catherine calls Jarryd, on the phone this time, to tell him that the Ann Arbor Vamps seem to be trying to muscle in to Belleville. She says that some construction companies that are secretly owned by Vampires are building housing developments.
    Verifying this with Darren Lexus of the Ann Arbor Glass Walkers, the Pack sets to sabotaging the work sites at night. They flood two of the subdivisions by rupturing water mains and trash the foreman's office at each site.
    While merrily smashing things, they manage to find one house that seems to have an extra 'bolt hole' built into the garage. As this is not up to code, the Pack demolishes this cellar with extra gusto.
    They also sneak into the office of one of the companies and leave a note, from Catherine, on the owner's desk warning them to play nice.

On To The History of the Game, Part X