The Howl (Los Sangrientos)

Have now and hold this house unpeered;
remember thy glory; thy might declare;
watch for the foe! No wish shall fail thee
if thou bidest the battle with bold-won life.


The howl is sudden. It is not a solemn, mournful thing, building slowly up in a mournful crescendo like the howls of wolves. No - it begins at full pitch and keeps going, five voices meshed together into a single savage, wordless chorus. It is loud and reckless and unafraid, rolling south across the railroad tracks and through the nearby streets of downtown Sacramento like a wave. This place is ours now, it seems to say. We are home.

It is not a howl made by human throats. It lasts for a full minute, hanging unbroken in the cool night air, a promise of swift and brutal violence to whoever would challenge the truth of the message it bears. And as it finally fades and dies, its last echoes still lingering between the looming buildings of Sacramento, the howlers cross the railroad tracks and make their way through Muir Park towards the city proper with firm, unafraid steps, confident that they have made themselves noticed.

"Now they know we are here," said the first among them, and where a moment before a four legged creature had walked now stalked a young woman. She had tangled raven hair and feral eyes of emerald, and wore a self-satisfied and somewhat wicked looking smirk on her face. She did not stop moving when she spoke, but continued leading the pack deeper into downtown Sacramento. "Its time to get down to business."

From behind a hill you hear clapping.

One of them, a muscular, heavily tattooed man just now shrinking down from an even more muscular shape, stops and looks towards the hill.

"We have an audience!" he exclaims, seeming quite pleased.

"So soon?" asked the woman, turning to look. "I figured it would take at least fifteen minutes for something to respond. I'm impressed."

Shifting into his human skin, the mountain of muscle and scars that was Breaker moved in front of his Alpha, not enough to block her view but enough to put him between her and the intruder and await what was to come next.

Let the others banter and make nice. It was obvious to all what Breaker's position was and what he was prepared to do given his Alpha's command or an intruder's gross misstep...

A young black woman hitches a leather backpack up onto both shoulders as she sidles around to the far left of the group. Moments before she had been slipping four-legged amongst her fellows, touching and rubbing along, mingling the pack’s scent together and sharing in their eagerness to see their new home. Her spirits were higher than they’d been in over a month, and it showed in her pheromones and in the way she fairly vibrated with energy. Whether it was a good fight or a good party that was about to start, she was looking forward to it.

“Well, isn’t dat neighborly,” she says with a friendly Creole lilt in her voice and a mischievous gleam in her eyes. “We hardly get de place settled yet an’ dere’s summin’ come a callin’. Must be dat fancy invite you compose,” the girl grinned at the tattooed man.

She slips gracefully along the ground, never quite coming up level with the rest, and positions herself facing away from other woman. Her senses scan the darkness to the left and behind them, leaving the hill and their mysterious audience for the others to focus on. With lidded eyes and an anticipatory smile she glances back at the other woman.

“I wonder how many dey want come say hello tonight?”

The clapping still continues.

Matthew lopes through the territory, enjoying the night air. He thinks back to his most recent dream. The night is calm. The calm before the storm.

As if on cue, a howl pierces the night. Matthew turns northward, cautiously following the howl toward its source. His jet-black form blends in among the shadows the shadows in an attempt to evade notice, especially that of the pack that would so confidently announce its presence.

Breaker looks back over his shoulder at Snow, "Our first confrontation, Alpha. How do you wish us to deal with them?" From the gleam in his eye Snow can tell her brother is ready to establish dominance over this territory.

ATTN: all persons not invovled. It takes an extended wits+survival-2 (each roll represents the 30 seconds) and a total of 10 successes to pinpoint their location from that one howl. Since they only howled for one minute, the roll has to be completed in 2 rolls.

Matthew shakes his head in frustration, having been unable to pick up more than an extremely general sense of direction. He continues to Fremont Park and waits there, knowing the futility of trying to actively search.

OOC: Can I tell how many people are clapping? One? Two to four? An arena full?

"Over the hill," she say, ordering them toward the clapping. Her scent, to those sensitive to such, betrays her heighetened sense of excitement at this first challenge. "Sniff them out, pin them down, but don't kill...yet. Let's give them a chance to go peacefully."

She begins moving toward the crest of the hill herself, gesturing silently to one among them to move into a flanking position (ooc: to Johnny).

it sounds like one person clapping. The wind is covering the prey's position. And the moon is New.

The tattooed man grins, not bothering to wait for their flanker to get into position before breaking into a run against the hill. He aims his course straight for the top of the hill, not even giving a token effort towards a stealthy approach.

The flanker, a tall man dressed darkly and wrapped in a long, black coat, nods at the direction. Without pause, he slips silently around to the side of the source of the clapping, making for any cover that will help to conceal his position, and searching for a good vantage point.

A bedraggled, disgusting looking homeless woman sits there, clapping monotonously, a half-grin on her face. She smiles as you approach.

"My my, how the salt does make the blood grow. When will the spicy greens realize truth under their paws?"
(A successful wits + occult roll PMed to me tells you that she's a werewolf)

(Second try: Wits+Occult: 5, 6, 4 = failure)

the tattooed man shakes his head and chuckles to himself at he sight of the old, disheveled woman. He looks over his shoulder at the rest of his approaching pack.

"It's just an old bag lady. We probably startled her."

{03-25 02:46:14: 5 dice to check out bag lady 1 success - 2,5,3,9,3}

The black girl follows along, keeping her attention mainly on their left flank and back trail. She tilts her head away from the clapping to keep it from drowning out other sounds.

"Crazy lady, crazy talk," she suggests softly over her shoulder, "but not maybe so crazy. We're proud, but we ain't fresh punks like she suggest. We doan' just know de score, we're settin' it."

Breaker stands before the Bagwoman and gets right to the point, "Greetings. As you now know, we have laid claim to this territory. What is your business here?"

His stance is relaxed but even Breaker's casual nature is ready for anything.

((03-25 07:39:57 Breaker rolls 3 dice to Detect a Werewolf 1 success 8,6,5))

(when I say pm me the rolls, that means you don't have to put them in the post as well.)

"I'm a Deborah. Not that you care. You would rather whole spikes than lamp. But you heard call, and so you bus. I make call, and so I here, and clap."

"You are the one who made the call, grandma?" asks Snow as she walks up. She stops a few feet back from the woman, allowing her more warlike packmates to take more intimidating positions. Still, her body language isn't passive, and she crosses her arms in front of her chest aggressively. "Well, we answered it. We're here. And this land on which you stand is ours now. We will put down any who challenge our claim."

"Because you are our elder we will show you proper respect and allow you to depart our territory unharmed and unharried. We cannot expect, nor do we wish to see, you flee this land with your tail between your legs. We honor your long life and what I can only assume to be the long accumulation of wisdom more than that."

"But we will not accept future tresspass into what is now our territory by you or any other Uratha without permission having been granted first. We will mark the borders of our territory well, and will view any transgression of those borders as a direct challenge to our claim here."

"We mean you no disrespect, and if you wish to speak with us further we will meet you at a tur of your choosing in the near future. We will even welcome your counsel if deem to give it then. But now we have much work to do, and we must get started."

Taking his Alpha's lead, Breaker moves to Snow's right shoulder and crosses his arms across his chest with an impassive look on his face. It is clear by his demeanor that the Alpha's word is final and that the conversation is over.

Johnny moves quietly along the cover of trees and bushes, to find a well-hidden point within the brush. Always watching the events unfolding around his pack, he hastens to a position between some thick bushes, surveying for anyone else that may be with the old hag. The woman looks like an old beggar, but the pack is taking her seriously, and so will Johnny. Once satisfied that he is out of the view of prying eyes, he kneels down and raises his rifle.

Had anyone been watching him go, and was still watching now, they would likely have noticed the large weapon for the first time now. Johnny raises the sleek black rifle to his shoulder and, squinting his right-eye, peers through the scope to take aim at the old woman. He doesn't expect to use it, but he intends to be ready.

"Hahaha" The old uratha laughs in Julia's face, before her face turns grim. "Know this. The river and its shores are protected by me. If you need to hunt there, so be it. You will find that you rail against walls that are not there. But I encourage you to know, that. Packs here must work together. See the wolf in sage, and he will tell you more. And remember."

She turns and stares right up into Johnny's scope, her eyes boring into his.
"The People do not kill the People." She shouts, loud enough so that all nearby can hear it.

She turns and walks north, up and out of your territory.

"But sometimes they shoot each other," says Julia after the old woman has walked away. She shakes her head, then turns to the rest of the pack.

"We're going to have to watch that one. Somehow I get the feeling we don't want to make an enemy of her."

"I doan know, I t'ink I like her." The black girl smirks as she watches the old woman toddle off. "You doan get dat old n' dat crazy an' laugh in de face of a pack wit'out knowin' how t' dish it out, you know?" She looks around at the rest of the pack.

"'Specially not alone."

Johnny lowers the rifle, but remains vigilant from his hidden location in the bushes, from which he watches the surroundings and waits.

"Maybe you're right," the tattooed man remarks to the black girl.. "Or maybe it's the kind of recklessness that comes with knowing your days are running out anyway, one way or another. In either case, I wouldn't mind picking up a tale or two about what she's done, sometime."

Seeming to regarding the matter settled, he turns to their leader, waiting for her signal to continue with their business.

Breaker watched as the woman removed herself from their territory. He spoke to no one in particular, "The crazy bag lady image is deception. She likes the riddles sure enough but sharpened up pretty quickly when confronted."

Turning towards Snow he cotinued, "She lays claim to the river and shores and speaks of a barrier between us and the lands beyond the river. Perhaps, if what she says is true, we can put less effort into securing our Northern border for now."

He shrugged and nodded at Snow, "That said, we should confirm that this barrier exists before trusting in its ability to protect us. That would be your area considering the whole "walls that are not there" crap she spoke of."

Looking up at Johnny's position, Breaker noted, "At least she understands the Oath and that means a whole shitload when it comes to neighbors."

“It’s better than the alternative,” Snow agrees. “But I want to tread cautiously with her. She’s the type to believe she owns the place, and for all we know maybe she does. I’m glad she didn’t challenge us when I told her this territory was ours. I wonder where her pack is….”

Snow pauses a moment in thought, then inhales deeply before letting out a long, drawn out breath. Then her body language abruptly changes, she motions Johnny in, and she takes charge.

“We better get to business. The first thing we need to do is identify a suitable den. Eventually we’ll need half a dozen scattered throughout our territory, but for now let’s find an isolated and defensible place where we can hold up if push comes to shove. I’ll place wards around it and try to contact any spirits in the immediate area to make sure things are relatively safe.”

“Once that’s done we’ll set about setting and marking our borders, and begin to scout out the lay of the land. I’m much more concerned with what lies within our territory than what remains safely outside it right now, but we’ll locate the local tur and leave a formal message to make sure everyone respects our claim.”

“I don’t want any of you to get the idea that this is going to be easy. We may not be as pressed in here as we were in San Francisco, but these next few days will be very dangerous. We don’t know anything about this place, or what terrible things might lay waiting for us just on the other side of the gauntlet. We don’t have a locus, which means we have no source of essence or way of crossing over, and we have no spirit allies or contacts to help us gather information. We may be able to intimidate many of the spirits here, but rest assured there will be some bigger, nastier things that will challenge us. And it will likely occur quickly, while we are vulnerable.”

“For that reason I don’t want anyone wandering off alone. Stay with the pack as often as possible. When we must be apart or split up, make sure you are with at least one other member of the pack. Things will be easier in a day or two when the others arrive from San Francisco. Right now we’re quite thin, which means our movement will be limited for the time being.”

Snow stops then and looks to the pack to make sure her words are sinking in.

"Close to the pack it is. What kind of deal are we after regarding the den? Renting or squatting?"

"It will be as you say." Breaker says as he looks at the Pack and awaits Snow's answer to Bodycount's question.

“You want up town, down town, parkside, or riverside?” Keys perks up as she pulls her iPhone out of her pocket and starts calling up web sites. “Industrial, commercial, or residential? I bookmarked some listings before we came out so I got street views on most of dem. You just want some place for tonight?”

"No, something permenant," Snow answers. "And if its a bit off the beaten path more the better. I wouldn't mind being able to see who's approaching the place as they come."

"We'll probably have to squat, considering we have no way of purchasing or even renting the kind of place I'm thinking of. We'll want something like the warehouse on the warf back in Frisco. A place with dormatories for sleeping, a mess hall, a common area, and enough space for working out and training. If I know you Talons, you'll make enough noise and commotion in your excersizes that even my wards won't keep snooping neighbors away."

"Hmm," Keys murmurs the list of requirements to herself as she scrolls through pages on her iPhone. "Tought you might want sum'in' like that, sooo...." Keys holds out her phone for Snow to look at. On the screen are three properties: an abandoned quarry north outside the city (nearest cross street 7th and D), a condemned building sitting next to a dirt lot on 8th and K, and finally an empty warehouse on North C street that 's for sale or lease.

"Now, I like de warehouse. It got de open space, close to de park, de train, de buses, and wit' everyting else closed at night, no one to bother us. But, you got to worry 'bout de agent bringing people round to see de place. I hacked de agent's website, an' it ain't had no showin's in months, but it could happen any time.

"The one on 8th and K is good. We doan have to worry 'bout people comin' roun' to look at it, tho, since anyone wantin' to buy it will be tearin' it down an' won't care what it look like inside. But it sit right in city center, so it's kinda busy in the neighborhood, even at night, an' since it condemned, it ain't got no utilities." She taps the final property.

"De quarry may be best for practicin' an' all, but no utilities an' most like we have to worry 'bout kids and gangs usin' de place. No sweat to chase dem off, but not too subtle, either. No worries 'bout it bein' sold, since dey lost their bid for a variance when they got caught pollutin' the river with their runoff. Ain't nobody gonna touch dat property till it get cleaned up, an' ain't nobody got de money to do it." She shrugs. "A generator be easy 'nuff to get for de places wit' no power. Findin' water shutoffs are easy, too. The quarry most like to have a shower, an' I know de warehouse don't have nuthin' but crappers."

"Any of dese look good to you?"

"Oh! And the quarry be a good place for the dogs," she grins at Bodycount.

"How 'bout I just put you in charge of that?" Snow says, smiling just a little. She puts her hand on Key's upper arm. "Since you know so much, you can pick the den. The only factors we'll have to be wary of are the spirit landscape around those buildings. I expect to have to clean house no matter what, but some places are easier to clean than others."

"Yeah, the one ting I can't check for on de internet is spirit presence... not unless someone sensitive's been spooked an' blogged 'bout it." She chews the corner of her lip as she thinks, calling up more information on her screen.

"The quarry's 'bout the best spot I got so far. It's nearest the bend in de river, so we got both banks at our back. Nuthin' but industrial aroun' so mostly day shifters. We got the trains, the buses, the highways, Old Sac, an' Down Town all within 'bout one mile..." She taps a few more times on the screen before breaking out into an even bigger grin.

"An there's a McDonald's, a Hardee's, an' at least ten other restaurants within a quarter mile! Yep, dis is de one!"

Breaker looks over Keys' shoulder at the locations, "The Quarry does seem to have a lot of open area around it. We can see intruders long before they see us and we will have the added bonus of being far away from prying eyes. That means we can use all the weapons and forms in our arsenal without too much hassle." He gives Keys a push with his shoulder, "Oh, and Keys has access to all the gut-rot crap food she can handle."

He looked over at Snow, "When do you want us to scout the area around it? Buyer beware and all that."

Johnny, who had approached the group quietly, and had worn an amused grin at the successes of Keys’ web research, suddenly turns more serious.

“And how long do suppose the new neighbors 'ill take to stop by and say hello?” he asks rhetorically.

Bodycount grins. "Yes, the quarry sounds like a good choice. We should go and have a look at it at the first opportunity."

Breaker looked at Johnny, "Let them come to us. Considering how recently this area was cleared I would say their situation will match ours." He took a deep breath and smelled the air, "Besides, it is always good to know who your neighbors are..."

He exhaled and smiled, "even if you have to put your foot in their ass to keep them in line."

A lanky young man who had been hanging towards the back of the group walks forward and lightly taps Snow on the shoulder with his right hand, his left hand appears to be occupied with holding a four-foot bamboo pool over his shoulder.

“Qingyi, something has me a bit confused,” he says addressing Snow while he scratches the side of his head and peers at his fellow Iminir curiously. “Now, perhaps I misunderstood, so please correct me if I’m wrong, but I was under the impression that one of the primary reasons you and yours decided to relocate was to avoid all of the messy entanglements that came from being surrounded by enemies on all sides.”

“If that’s not the case, I don’t think that last exchange worked out as well as you might have hoped for. The laodan didn’t even try to hit you and you made absolutely no effort to insult her heritage! Now, I can give you some tips for next time if you like. I’m pretty good at getting old ladies mad enough to strike me. You should have seen what my Aunt Jean did to my backside this one time after I- Ahh, but that’s a story for another time,” Wukong says as he smiles at Snow and waits for her answer.

Any humor that was on Breaker's face instantly disappeared as Wukong came forward. He positioned himself at Snow's shoulder once again, hoping that his sister would give the signal to stomp this snake.

This one thinks he is an equal. thought Breaker, He comes to us with his tail between his legs and believes he knows best. He flexed his hands at his sides, If Julia won't put him in his place then I will have my own talk with him.

Johnny lets out a low chuckle, as he gazes quickly to each of his packmates, catching momentarily on Breaker, and then jumping to the alpha. The newcomer's sarcastic criticism was entertaining, but the response it might elicit could be even funnier.

Keys’ grin faded as Wukong questioned Snow. Can’t he wait to push her? Like maybe until -- oh, I don’t know -- we’re some place private so we don’t have to worry about outsiders watching a power struggle? Nothing like letting enemies and allies think our new alpha might not be in complete control.

{sigh}Must be a Storm Lord thing.

But it wasn’t Keys’ place to say anything about Wukong’s attitude, and besides, the rest of the pack looked split between backing Snow and just watching to see the outcome. Don’t know what he’s expecting, but where Papi had the experience behind him to let something like that slide and not lose face, could go either way how people think if she does it. Then again, gettin’ too angry only makes her look bitchy.

“Pa kounye-a, mal-Makak” Not now, bad Monkey, she mutters under her breath in Creole as she looks back down at the map on her phone. It was only about half a mile from where they were in Old Sac to the place they were considering for the den. As she calls up the list of amenities between the park and the den, her stomach growls audibly in the tense quiet. With a happy stage whisper she turns to Johnny and holds out the map for him to see.

“Hey, Johnny, there’s a Taqueria Jalisco’s only a block from here!”

Bodycount turns away from the rest of the pack as the tension rises, and walks back up to the crest of the hill by himself, looking out across the river. He crosses his arms, seeming to lose himself in thought.

Snow stared at Wukong for a long moment, considering him. She could take action to put this newcomer in his place, and let him know he has to earn the right to criticize her so sarcastically. Some of her pack wanted her to, that was clear from their reactions. But that probably wouldn't do her much good, and it wouldn't earn her any respect with those who weren't most loyal to her. Things were too uneasy here for her to start asserting herself as some alpha's might have done. Besides, she had a better idea.

"So," she finally began, "you think I was a bit harsh. And you're not comfortable with my methods. Fine." She smiles mischievously.

"You are now in charge of making nice with the neighbors. Find out who they are and introduce Los Sangrientos to them. Start by locating the local tur and informing all the packs in the area that this territory from Q street north to the river is ours now, and that we do not forgive trespassers without permission. I've been involved in too many territorial fights to allow free movement. Breaker and Johnny Bites-from-Nowhere can accompany you. Both are capable warriors and can back you up if things get unruly."

"Other than that, you may approach them as you see fit. And I don't mean only in the short term. From now on you are in charge of diplomacy, including strategy and implementation. Just run any alliances or accords you reach by me, and make sure they are to our advantage. I don't want to be running off aiding every dysfunctional pack in the region while our territory festers and rots.”

“While you three are at the tur, Keys, Bodycount, and I will go to this quarry and check it out. Sound good, everyone?” Snow looks to each of them, though the question is in fact rhetorical.