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Post by darkscar on Nov 10, 2015 20:10:47 GMT -5
"Mr. Beck, please come here and check out this gentleman." "What do you think?" Beck says to the woman, "Excuse me, Ma'am, while I check on your husband. Don't run off. I've got questions for you." Beck looks over the fella, checking his pulse and whatnot. Checking on the Man: 3d6 11
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Post by araman on Nov 10, 2015 20:44:15 GMT -5
"Ma'am, is this the first time your husband has had anything like this happen?"
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Post by vladtaltos on Nov 11, 2015 9:43:09 GMT -5
"Young Apache braves, you say?" The woman seems to think about it for a moment. "Well, yes, it couldn't have been anything else, but Indians. They tore a hole in the roof trying to get in." She points to the hole made in the roof by the revenant Beck blasted off the top of the house. "Yes, it must have been Indians." While Beck explains things to the lady-of-the-house, Jones checks on the man who seemed to be having breathing problems, but Jones isn't sure if the man is truly having a heart attack or experiencing something else. He calls Beck over to take a look. Beck checks him out, but the man fails to show the symptoms of one experiencing a heart attack. Most likely it's a panic or anxiety attack brought on by the prospect of facing a grim death by the intruders who were attempting to break into his home. Jones looks around the tiny house. It's a one-room cabin, essentially, with two beds, the table, and a wash basin in one corner. A small cabinet houses a few dishes and utensils. He sees nothing out of the ordinary. He asks: "Ma'am, is this the first time your husband has had anything like this happen?" "Yes, he's never had anything like this happen before."
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Post by darkscar on Nov 11, 2015 13:10:15 GMT -5
"Sir, the good news is you're not having a heart attack. Just remain seated and you kids, keep him cooled down with those towels. He should start feeling fine, soon."
Beck returned his attention to the woman. "Ma'am, I need to ask you a few questions. I would ask your husband these questions, but he needs some rest."
He walks over to her and identifies himself as a U.S. Marshal. "Me and my partner here travel all over, but I don't know the details of this area. Tell me something of this region. Is there a town nearby, a place to buy supplies, clothes, that rabbit gun over there? How many people live, say, in the five-mile radius around here?"
Beck takes a look at his map as she answers, to verify or disqualify her answer.
After she answers:
"Here's what I'm getting at...I've seen evidence that someone is poking around in places, doing things they shouldn't be doing. We need to talk to that person. Is there anyone in town, or maybe someone you know out here, who's been acting strange, or is just flat-out weird? Has anything happened in town that seemed...odd? Maybe someone says strange things--you know, blasphemous things...and not a little bit. A lot...You know of anything, or come across anyone like that?"
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Post by araman on Nov 11, 2015 21:47:00 GMT -5
Jeremiah tries to remember anything he might have read regarding the area or Hoodoo Man that might be applicable here or a question or observation that might key the woman to something odd she might have seen or know.
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Post by vladtaltos on Nov 12, 2015 10:45:13 GMT -5
Beck asks the lady about the region, and how many people live within five miles of her home. She points with her thumb toward the back of the house. "About three miles that way is Pucket's Gap. It has a General Store, an inn--if you call it that, it's run out of Mack Peters' home, called Mack's Inn--and a tiny, and I do mean tiny, saloon that's open nights Thursday through Saturday, and a church. The church is as tiny as the saloon. There's maybe thirty people spread out along this stretch of plain. That's all."
When Beck asks her of strange happenings and strange people, she says, "Oh, nothing's happened, and I don't know anyone like that. We're all God-fearing people. Blasphemy? No, no one."
<Beck and Jones: Make a 4/IQ + Good Eye check.>
Jones tries to recall anything regarding the area or about Hoodoo Men that might be applicable here, or a question or observation that might key the woman to something odd she might have seen or know.
<Jones, make a separate 4/IQ check.>
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Post by araman on Nov 12, 2015 11:04:53 GMT -5
As Jeremiah looks around the cabin, he can't help thinking that there's something in his studies that he's forgetting or just not making the connection. Good Eye Check: 4d6 6 (IQ 14 + Good Eye -1 = 15 needed)IQ Check: 4d6 18 (IQ14)
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Post by darkscar on Nov 12, 2015 12:53:03 GMT -5
Beck listens to the woman, noticing little else. Good Eye Check: 4d6 14
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Post by vladtaltos on Nov 12, 2015 14:10:48 GMT -5
When the woman answers in the negative to Beck's question about strange people or happenings, Jones spots the girl, who's maybe 9-10, give a wide-eyed stare to her younger brother; it's as if she's saying, 'Oh yeah, there's strange stuff going on around here all right' with her eyes.
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Post by araman on Nov 12, 2015 15:04:13 GMT -5
"Ma'am, Can we talk in private?" as Jeremiah guides her to the door.
To his partner, Jeremiah gives a subtle signal to talk to the children. "Mr. Beck, will you please check on the children and the gentleman while I have a quick word with the Missus?"
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Post by darkscar on Nov 12, 2015 21:55:31 GMT -5
Gar takes a seat at the table, while Jeremiah speaks with the woman by the door. He tries to seem and sound friendly, which isn't easy since he's just killed a bunch of undead and is still pumped-up. Nonetheless, he tries.
He fixes on the boy and girl, and in dulcet tones asks them if they've seen an event, or anyone do something that could best be described as odd.
"We need to find this person," he tells them. "They need our help."
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Post by vladtaltos on Nov 13, 2015 11:21:51 GMT -5
The father has taken a towel and rubs it over his face and head. His breathing is slowly returning to normal. At Gar's inquiry, the young boy says nothing, but looks at his older sister. She says in a tiny, uncertain voice, "I don't know, I think strange stuff is going on in Pucket's Gap. I guess it depends on what ya call 'strange.'"
The man removes the towel from his head, and introduces himself as Jack Baxter. "The innkeeper, Mack Peters, sort of runs the place, the town, I mean. Well, it's not much of a town, but a few weeks ago the preacher at the church was fired, for "preachin' wrong." Since then, it seems like a lot of people have had trouble with their livestock. Wolf attacks, it's been said. Missing or dead livestock attributed to wolves, beginning with Peters' cattle. Now, tonight, we get attacked by Indians?
"Anyway, they let the preacher, Reverend Pike, live at the church until he finds something else. Since his firing, there's been no church services." He shrugs. "I don't know, all of that could be considered odd, I guess."
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Post by darkscar on Nov 13, 2015 16:01:33 GMT -5
Gar nodded. Now we have a lead, he thought.
"One last thing, Mr. Baxter. Can you explain what 'preaching wrong' means?"
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Post by araman on Nov 14, 2015 9:22:47 GMT -5
"Ma'am, how long has your family lived here?"
"Is there a leader for the town and this area?"
"Are there any new people in the area?"
"Have you seen or heard about any strange or unusual incidents? I mean anything out of the ordinary?"
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Post by vladtaltos on Nov 15, 2015 17:47:11 GMT -5
Baxter answers Gar. "Well, I'm not really sure. I was at the services the day of the incident, but, well, I wasn't really paying too much attention to the sermon. After the service I saw Peters talkin' with Reverend Pike, and it didn't look too friendly. "Peters' money built the church, and everything in Pucket's Gap, so if he don't like somethin' he says it. The word I heard is that Pike was preaching stuff that ain't Christianity, that goes against the Bible, that type of thing. That's all I know. He was fired the next day." * * * * * Meanwhile, Jones converses with Mrs. Baxter. "Ma'am, how long has your family lived here?" "We've been here about five months now." "Is there a leader for the town and this area?" "The town? It ain't much of a town. Mack Peters built everything in Pucket's Gap with his own money. He kinda has say-so there, but no one lives there, technically, except for the Peters' family and the preacher. "Are there any new people in the area?" She shrugs. "I don't know. People come and go. Some can't stand it out here and move on after a while. I don't keep track of 'em all. The last new face I saw was a few week ago, just passing by. Don't know where they live." "Have you seen or heard about any strange or unusual incidents? I mean anything out of the ordinary?" "That's what your friend asked me. I haven't seen anything strange, no."
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