DiscoDude: ---BEGIN SESSION---
DiscoDude: Session logging commenced
GM: > Hot Flamingos Bar, Lowtide, 4:35 p.m.
GM: The sky is starting to blush from a deep blue to a light yellow when you pull up to the Hot Flamingos Bar. A neon sign bearing the namesake is powered down at the moment - the place is Quiet During Daylight - but you can make out the name just fine. A quick search turning up some reviews commenting on how it's a place Where the Low In Life Meet Lowlifes (as well as a few that complain about how Empty Pints Are Left 'Til Closing).
GM: Unless some serious shenanigans are at play, you know the murder weapon came from this bar. Only questions are when and how it left the premises, and if there's more connection to the crime than just the icepick.
(What do you guys do?)
Harry: Harry looks for the man on the floor who looks the most in charge, with the intent of asking him some questions.
Andie: Andie follows close behind, but is drinking in the layout of the bar more than searching for any employees.
GM: The interior is quiet; there's a grey bartender standing by, and the waitresses on shift are off to the side near one of the booths. There are doors to what seems to be a back room and one off to the side that seems to lead out back, if the make of them is any indication.
Harry: Harry approaches the bar. "I'll take a straight bourbon, if you've got any." He flashes his badge: "Also here to ask a few questions, if it's not too much trouble."
GM: "A-ah. With Paradisio? What can a humble Lowtide bartender answer for you? Ah- and coming right up, of course." The man dips below the shelf to get your order set up.
Harry: "Were you on shift last night, by any chance? If not, can you point me to who was?"
Norwick: ( And I'm home )
GM: "Haha, I'm always on duty behind the bar, but..." He glances over at the waitresses. "I believe Candy's the only waitress present who was here last last night. How would you like your spirits, sir?"
GM: (Welcome. Don't forget to open the notepad doc.)
GM: ((You didn't miss too much, so don't panic about reading up quickly.))
Harry: "Straight, no ice," he repeats, clarifying the instruction. "You wouldn't happen to have seen this man last night, would you?" He calls up a photo of Jonah Wheeler on his phone and shows it to the bartender.
Norwick: Norwick looks at the Bartender, "Got any orange juice? I like oranges." He says, back to his usual self, and not in the mode for talking and grabbing info.
GM: "There you go... I have a few oranges in back, if you're fine with fresh squeezed, Sir. There's a lot of things Lowtide can't afford, but fresh produce is actually something we have over the folks up top." He dooks the bourbon straight into the glass and hands it to you, Harry, then takes a gander at your phone. "I- Hmm... Perhaps. Hard to miss a human with fancy fashion like that around Lowtide, but I didn't serve him or his friend - they were at a table." He gestures to one of the empty tables. "You're in luck; I believe Candy did."
GM: New Clue: Jonah's Visit
"He Wasn't Drinking Alone" | ???
Harry: "I see." He gently prods <@!Norwick> with his elbow: "That sounds like your cue, kid," He nods in the direction of the waitress, in case Norwick doesn't get it. "'Nother question," he says, turning his attention back to the bartender. "Is it common for you to lend out your icepicks to customers?"
Norwick: "I'll take the oranges." Norwick says, "No need to squeeze em-" He turns over to Harry, "...Share my oranges with her?" He says, looking at Harry. "I gotta get my Vitamin C, I can't share these man."
Harry: "Talk to her," Harry says through clenched teeth. "Ask her about the victim and who he was with last night." He texts him photos of the contents of Wheeler's wallet - the girls he's presumably had relations with. "Be sure to show her those photos in case one of them was with him."
GM: "Hmm?" He glances between you two nervously. "Victim? Not sure if I like where this conversation is headed, all-a sudden. No, we don't, if you must know, but..." He eyes a stand where similar implements are perched, just behind the lip of the counter for anyone sitting nearby to reach. This includes a lone icepick next to a conspicuously empty slot. "Oh dear... I'll be right back with your oranges, sir..."
Norwick: "Oh...Okay." He walks over to the girl named Candy. "Hey there, I'd like to ask some questions about a patron and a friend of theirs. Jonah Wheeler and...whoever they were with." He says, keeping good eye contact with her.
Harry: "Yeah, I suppose I buried the lede here." He shows the bartender a photo of the bloodied icepick. "Jonah Wheeler was found dead this morning, and all the evidence at hand suggests this was the murder weapon."
GM: The busty human blonde looks over at you, Norwick.
"Um... Oh, are you, like, police?"
Norwick: "Something like that, yeah. Do you mind answering some questions? Won't be too long." He said, looking over at the Bartender to see if they had their oranges yet.
GM: "One moment..." The grey comes back out with the oranges and studies the phone again with a grim expression. "Oh dear... Hmm... That is unfortunate. Some waitresses come behind the counter sometimes for table orders, but I don't believe any of my girls could be capable of something like that. I'm fairly sure both picks were still there when we were winding down for the morning last night... Though this Jonah person came after that, right when we were closing."
GM: "Um, shoot then? Gimme a moment to think. Jonah... Jonah..."
Norwick: Norwick does a quick google search for Jonah Wheeler to show the woman, "Looks like this guy." He said, giving her the phone to look at the image of the man. "I'd like to know who he was with at the time, specifically."
GM: "Huhhh? Ohhh, that guy... Cor, he was fancy. I was, like, paying soooo much attention - thought I could get a good tip if I did, but no! Whatever... Um... So he was sitting there," she points to one of the table's chairs - a discarded napkin lay on the floor under the table near it - "discussing business or something on, like, the phone. Dunno who he was talking to, but whatever. Also said something about never being here before - something about checking the neighborhood out... Ew, someone didn't clean up right and I wasn't on bus-duty that night!"
Harry: "Y'never know. Creep makes a move, weapon's in easy reach, instinct takes over. Plus that spike's made for breaking through stuff way harder than a skull," Harry says matter-of-factly, taking a sip of his drink. "Hope you don't mind we're going to be keeping that pick for the time being. Evidence. Though I guess you won't really want it back now it's been used for, y'know. This."
GM: Candy's Testimony
"Jonah was Scouting the Neighborhood" | ??? | ???
Harry: (get the napkin, Nor!)
Norwick: Norwick looks over at the napkin and picks it up carefully, "Yes, alright, but what about the other person that was with him?" Norwick said, looking over as he inspected the napkin for any scrawls of pen ink.
GM: "Yeah, that'd be fair, I suppose. Still, I'm a tad worried - bad sorts come around often. Been meaning to reinstall this setup; I've owned this place for less than a year and I'm already scared to death someone sitting where you are right now will snap and start a barfight in the worst way possible... though I suppose pocketing it when we're not looking and walking out with it isn't much better, is it?"
GM: "Like, weren't you listening? He was on the phoooone. As in, the gal he was talking to wasn't physically there. Having a phone call with someone is pants-on-head when she's sitting right across from him. What makes you sooooo sure it wasn't a table for one?"
Norwick: Norwick blinks and gets serious, "Because the Bartender said there was a second person with him. So who's lying, the Bartender or you?" He says, raising an eyebrow. (Can I use my Silver Tongue stunt to wrestle anything out from her?)
Harry: (am i the only one getting a laugh out of how Harry had to specify to Nor that he wanted him to interrogate Candy, but Nor immediately caught on that Candy was lying about Jonah being the only person at the table?)
GM: (I was actually thinking of starting a mental conflict, but... Maybe we should save those for when you're confronting a suspect. Go ahead and roll it!)
Norwick: !f 4
DiscoDude: <@Norwick> rolled 4dF+4 for 4 [4dF = [+][-][+][-]]
GM: !f 2 (PLAYING DUMB)
DiscoDude: <@GM> rolled 4dF+2 for 0 [4dF = [-][ ][-][ ]]
Harry: "It was in a bucket of ice, along with some champagne. Considering what you've told me so far, I take it that's not a service you generally offer, either?"
Norwick: (I mean to be fair, he did hear how the Bartender said that he was with another person, and that stuck with him)
Norwick: (Also, was anything on the napkin?)
GM: (Oh, right, dang. So many things to keep up with at once. Un momente.)
Harry: (my instinct is there might be something on the napkin <@!Andie> might be able to pick up on)
Harry: (speaking of her, what's she up to rn?)
GM: "Umm... Like, what? Maybe that foggy old bloke just imagined a big bird bimbo? That's sad, real sad... Wait." It dawns on her what she just said. "Fuck."
Andie: Andie's lip curled in disgust when what she thought was her superior ordered alcohol. On the clock, no less! She had never partaken before, but that was only because she knew that inebriation impeded performance which was something Andie was diametrically opposed to (naturally).
Andie: (so she's currently seething until she notices the napkin lol)
Norwick: "Bird Bimbo huh? Alright, do you want to be taken into the back of the car and questioned down at the department, or do you want to make it easier for both of us and start talking?" He says, his eyes narrowing and tail curling. "Because I may be dumb, but I'm not stupid."
GM: The napkin, meanwhile, does have writing on it; numbers - all different, but sharing the same characteristics. Similar denominations, most being crossed out, and all of them having credit symbols next to them. There's other stuff, too, but it got soaked through with something alcoholic, so it's extremely difficult to read.
GM: Discarded Napkin
Haggling in Writing | ??? | ???
Norwick: Norwick hands the Napkin to Andie without taking his eyes off of Candy. "Here you go, there were numbers on there, and stains, you can figure that out, right?" He says, before folding his arms and tapping his foot.
GM: "I... Fine, he w-was with someone, okay?" Candy seems to glance at the bar where Harry and the bartender are. "This bright teal bird lady with the biggest chest you ever saw - fuck, I can't keep track of the different birds, but it wasn't one of those fucking beefcake natives, I know that much, thank god. She was also dressed all fancy like, and they were just having a casual conversation if you're stupid, but I saw they were passing a note back and forth, so I know something was going down between them."
(Is it safe to assume Norwick knows the basics of various alien species; including avians?)
Norwick: (Yeah, he would know the basics, probably not in-depth, but he could figure it out)
Norwick: (Is that a Miiki?)
GM: (Very likely; a safe guess, but...)
Norwick: Norwick pulls out his phone and shows a picture of the Miiki lover to her, "Did she look like this?" He asks, showing the picture to Candy.
GM: "What? No... Wait, is that a dude he's in that picture with? ... I think she was the same species though..."
GM: Norwick, you're no ornithologist, but you know enough about alien gender to know that if she's describing "bright colors" and "a big chest," then the Miiki she's describing is very much male.
Harry: (wait, so, to be clear, either the person he was with was a guy, or they weren't a Miiki?)
Norwick: "You said teal, right? Usually the males are brightly colored to attract female mates." He said, "So this girl with the massive wrack your talking about is probably a dude." He said. "Are you just trying to constantly confuse me, are you hiding something?" He says.
Norwick: (They were probably a guy.)
Norwick: (Jonah might have been gay, then)
GM: (Rather, the bird he was talking business with was a guy, the photos were of a girl.)
Norwick: (Oh, I see.)
GM: "O-oh, uh... Fuck, now I feel stupid... But yeah, He Met With This Miiki Guy."
Andie: Andie snaps out of her trance and examines the napkin.
"What am supposed do with...?" she trailed off as she continued to stare at the smudgy markings. She could try to scour it for physical evidence, but figures that wouldn't be too helpful if Wheeler was handling it a lot.
Instead, she decides to stare very hard in an attempt to decode the very smudgy parts.
(Can I roll Careful here?)
GM: (Sure. XD)
Andie: !f 1 (Careful)
DiscoDude: <@Andie> rolled 4dF+1 for 1 [4dF = [ ][ ][ ][ ]]
GM: (Vs. +2, that's not gonna do it. Will you invoke anything?)
Andie: (Daaang. And nah, I don't really think anything's applicable here lol)
GM: (Fail, or succeed at a cost?)
GM: (Fail, or succeed at a cost?)
Norwick: "Did you hear any names swapped about? Any locations discussed? Or possibly anything related to money?" He asks, relaxing his tone a bit.
Andie: (Succeed at a cost)
GM: After staring into the paper until your eyes start crossing, Andie, you finally see it - more numbers, paired with words and abbreviations! They're addresses! However, you grip the corners so tightly that the napkin starts to tear! You stop yourself, luckily, but you realize that you can't make out what the addresses are, or why they were written down. It's nothing but an Indecipherable List of Addresses [?] right now.
Harry: Harry just sips his drink while Andie and the kid go to work.
Harry: (he hasn't gotten an answer yet to his last question, unless I missed it)
GM: (Ah, right, hang on...)
GM: "No, I don't believe we do offer that kind of service. Certainly not last night. Last morning, more like, to be specific towards the victim's time here."
GM: "Um... They d-did mention going to see a place, but I... I forget where." Candy nervously glances in the bar's direction again.
Norwick: (BRB real quick)
Norwick: (5 minutes tops)
Harry: "You don't sound too sure of that answer," Harry says, nonchalantly. "Are you saying you might sometimes offer it?"
Harry: He texts Norwick a question: Ask the waitress about the champagne bucket and icepick.
GM: "We do have a bottle or two of champagne lying around, and a bucket of ice isn't hard to come by - we're poorer, but not that poor - so we could offer it, in theory... Customer would have to provide the bucket just so we're sure they don't run off with ours. Alas, our clientele is usually not into the fancy stuff, so in practice, we never considered it."
Andie: Andie silently tucked the napkin into an evidence bag. She decided that if anyone asked, it was already ripped by the time Norwick handed it to her. She catches Candy's nervous glance and words, but turns away towards Harry. Taking a cue from him, she rapidly texts Norwick: I think shes lying about not knowing were they went. There's addresses on this napkin. srry if that was obvious to u :v
GM: (Harry: Lying about what now? XD)
Andie: (oh I should specify she's sending Nor this lol)
Harry: (oh XD)
GM: (Haha, I suspected. XD)
Harry: "Mmmhmm. So, to summarize: we have an icepick that shouldn't be off the premises in an ice bucket the victim or the perp probably didn't take from here." He queues up another photo, this time of the champagne in the bucket. "Come to think of it, I've yet to ask if you even serve this brand here. Or sell it by the bottle."
Norwick: Norwick looks at the text and replies with an 👌 to Andie. "You've lied to me before, if you you think you can keep vital information away from me, I think there's another thing coming." He folds his arms. "You must have overheard some addresses."
GM: "Look, they named a place, but I forget what it was..." She's very nervous now, and keeps glancing between the bar and the table Jonah sat at. (It'll be another roll.)
Norwick: (Can I use Silver Tongue again?)
GM: (Yeah.)
Norwick: !f 4
DiscoDude: <@Norwick> rolled 4dF+4 for 2 [4dF = [+][-][-][-]]
Norwick: (NOOOOO)
Norwick: (...also didn't I get a SWS from before?)
GM: (Oh, right.)
GM: (Hmm... if it was that good, I probably should have given you a name.)
GM: !f 2 (PLAYING DUMB)
DiscoDude: <@GM> rolled 4dF+2 for 5 [4dF = [+][+][+][ ]]
Harry: (hot damn)
Andie: (woof)
GM: (Gonna invoke anything?)
Norwick: ( Bubbly Persuader perhaps?)
Harry: (you're gonna need two invokes)
Norwick: (But also, a SWS should give me an invoke, right?)
Harry: (a boost, yeah)
GM: (Already edited in the double free invoke.)
Harry: (oh yeah, you could spend that)
Norwick: (Oh, well I'd use that then if it's a [!!])
GM: (It's on "He Was With This Miiki Guy" [!!], which is the aspect you made with your previous success.)
Norwick: (Yeah, Imma use both of those)
GM: (Roleplay how you use that fact.)
Norwick: Norwick folds his arms, "I have a suspicion you know who that bird was, you didn't want to give out any info about them, and now you're trying to cover up about what you've heard. Are you friends with them and you're covering for them?" He says, folding his arms. "They your best friend?"
GM: "I... He was... He said he'd..." Candy looks on the verge of tears. The other girls seem to want to give you both some space now. "I'm... I'm not stupid. I can fucking guess what happened to this Jonah guy, I..." She sniffles. "I don't wanna be next... and that's what'll happen, Haf said... Fuck, I don't even know if that bitch- er, bastard Cola is still alive either, he... Fuck, Haf's scary... Hate when he comes around here..."
Norwick: Norwick backs off for a bit, and contemplates on talking to one of his contacts to ensure something doesn't happen. "Look, we'll do our best that nothing bad comes your way, we promise." Norwick looks at his partners, "Right guys?" He then looks back at her. "If you don't mind, I'd like to get your number so we could talk about what you've learned and saw on later date." He texts to Harry, "We got two names, Haf and Cola. Might be street names, check the criminal database and check on them"
Harry: Harry looks at his phone. "Good job, kid," he mutters under his breath. He punches in both names into the police database.
GM: "Er... Haf - his name's Haffner - called the bird as Cola afterward, but during the conversation, Jonah called him Maishiki-Kan." Norwick, you're aware that "Kan" is a male honorific for cultures originating in the Milky Way's East belt, such as the Miiki.
GM: "Haffner... He said he was going to follow them, and that I... I should forget I ever saw them..."
Norwick: He texts Harry again, "You get that? Haffner and Maishiki-Kan, sorry for a double text, but it's more info." He looks at Candy. "Thank you for coming out with this info, we'll make sure you're safe." He says.
Norwick: (You think I can use my Black Hand stunt to use an underworld ally?)
Norwick: (I want to basically text some people to make sure they keep on eye on Candy and make sure nobody is gonna, y'know, off her)
GM: (You can, sure. Go ahead and make the call, assuming Norwick wants to do that this scene.)
Norwick: Norwick looks around and says, "Hey guys, I'll need to make a call real quick. Can you guys make sure everything is fine in here until I get back? Oh and, I'd like to see those oranges when I get back, please." He says, waving and exiting the building to make a call.
Harry: Harry sighs, and punches in the full names.
Harry: He gives Nor an odd look as he leaves.
Andie: Andie awkwardly looks between the employees and scratches her head.
GM: Harry, nothing turns up in the police database at just "Haf" and "Cola." However, with the new names, you get some hits. Haffner Heffa, a Gaorin that looks even meaner than Prowler, arrested by the Lowtide militia for five counts of "roughhousing too much" and one "on suspicion of shanking a guy." (Man, these guys aren't even remotely professional, are they?) If Candy's to be believed, "Haffner Followed Those Guys Out" shortly before Jonah's death.
On a general hypernet search, Maishiki returns a city planning and real estate company working with Paradisio. Apparently, Cola is an executive of the company - Cola Maishiki. You also notice his sister Akaia holds the position of CEO. Akaia looks... familiar, to say the least.
Harry: Harry squints. He begins scrolling through Jonah's photos.
Norwick: Norwick makes a phone call to one of his underworld networks, "Hey, it's Nory. I got a favor to ask. A gal named Candy from the Flamingos, right? I want to have some people keep some eyes on her." He says, waiting for a response.
GM: You're aware that people of another species can be hard to tell apart in some cases - Miiki females being one of them - but you're fairly sure they're the same person.
Harry: "So. Jonah was probs in bed with Mr. Maishiki's sister. And Heffner is our prime suspect right now. Still one thing we haven't followed up on, though." He texts a message to Nor: Don't forget to ask about Kol Mosro. He then takes his own advice: "Does the name 'Kol Mosro' ring any bells?"
GM: "Eyyyy, Nora. Yeah yeah, lemme uh..." God, it's Stone D'wall - just pray he can finish a sentence through all that haze. "Okayyyy... Soooo... Biff's free." 'The Holepunch,' you know he's called, on account of that one time punched one of his arms through a wall to choke a guy.
GM: "Hmm... I think it rings a bell... forget where..."
Norwick: "Yeah, have Biff stake out Candy's place, I don't want anything bad happening to her. I'll repay you back if she's safe after this whole thing is over." He says, "I'm assuming you'd want me to do the usual for you." He says. "Thanks again for this, Stone." He waits for a response.
GM: "Yeah... Yeah, Biff'll tail her, I think... Stake out her place if she's... home... yeah... Usual's fine... M'kay, bye." He hangs up.
Norwick: Norwick sighs a bit and then walks back inside. "How are those oranges?" He says, looking at the bartender.
GM: "They were here on the counter for the last several minutes, sir."
GM: (BTW, are we good to finish this scene, or is there something else we should cover?)
Harry: (i still got my question, and i texted Nor one)
GM: (I answered your question, though I don't blame you if it blended into my response to Nor.)
Norwick: He blinks, "Oh, well I'll just take these." He says grabbing the bag, "And uh, Candy. Do you know anything about Kol Mosro?"
GM: "Hm? No, I don't think so."
GM: (Do you need me to repost, <@!Harry>?)
Harry: (oh i see now)
Harry: "Come to think of it, I didn't get your name, sir."
Harry: (after this i think we're done here)
Andie: (Yeah, I can't think of much else)
Norwick: "Alright, I won't press you anymore." He says, grabbing an orange and beginning to peel it. "Let's go back to the precinct, guys."
GM: "Hmm? It's Sheryl. Don't think I need any other name than that."
Harry: "All right, then." He nods to Norwick. "I think we're done here. Thank you for your cooperation, Sheryl, Candy. Andie, kid, let's move out."
GM: (So what's the plan for next session?)
Harry: He texts the others: This Heffner character looks like our prime suspect. Followed the victim out, and seems like the kind of guy who wouldn't hesitate to shank a man if given a reason. But even if he is the triggerman, proverbially speaking, I have a feeling there's someone higher up on the food chain calling the shots.
GM: (If <@!Andie> or <@!Norwick> have a countertheory, now's the time to say it.)
Andie: (I don't think I do)
GM: (Else I only have one theory set to work on. ^_^;)
GM: (Even just something to add, not necessarily contradict.)
Harry: Either of you find out anything from the waitress that might be useful?
Norwick: Yeah, that Maishiki-Kan fellow might play apart in this. He could honestly be the person in control of all this. Maybe he didn't like Jonah messing with his sister? It's a possibility
GM: (*sister)
Norwick: (Fixed)
Andie: This all still seems weird. If this Miiki is behind it all, then who left those fingerprints on the icepick?
Norwick: ...You think it could have been Candy? She is a human after all
Harry: Candy's the only human involved here other than the victim, to be sure.
Norwick: She does work at the bar, she seemed really nervous, maybe she handed the ice pick
Harry: True. There might be nothing suspicious at all about her fingerprints being on the icepick. It could be that whoever used it as a weapon wore gloves, or used some other method of avoiding leaving fingerprints.
Harry: Any thought on motive, other than the fact that Jonah was seeing Mr. Maishiki's sister?
Harry: Andie, I'm sure I saw you checking some bit of evidence over at the table?
Andie: Right. It was a napkin by the table they said Wheeler and Maishiki sat at. It has several prices crossed out on it and what I think at addresses (though I couldn't make any of those out).
Norwick: (It was Maishiki-Kan not Heffner)
Andie: (Right, fixed.)
Harry: We should see if we can get forensics to figure out what those addresses were. Clearly there are cash values attached to those addresses, but we don't have a clue what they mean yet. They could be real estate values, or debt collections, or drug deals, or anything.
Harry: I think that's everything till we get to HQ. Anyone?
GM: (Are we approaching last lines soon?)
Harry: (yeah)
Andie: (mhm)
Andie: That's all I got
Norwick: Nothing else I can think of
Harry: Then let's head for the station.
Harry: (and that's it for me~)
Norwick: (same)
GM: (<@!Andie>?)
Andie: (also same)
GM: (Then let us...)
GM: !end
