Chapter 1.0 - Rio Grande City

Diego tries to shake the water from his hair as he reaches down and picks up his sombrero. "Señor Garderose, what would drive a man such as yourself to hire someone like me? And who the hell slid that card into my pocket?" he mumbles to himself as he mounts up. Straining to recall the events of the previous night Diego seems to remember it as a series of repeating events, images flash through his head, but nothing is clear. Shaking his head once more he jingles Diablo's reins and spurs his companion onward.

After a long and dusty trip, Diego finds himself on the outskirts of Rio Grande City. Pulling his sombrero low, hoping to hide his face, he trots into town and takes in his surroundings. Spotting what appears to a be a saloon Diego lets his urge for drink overtake good reason as he whispers to Diablo, "I think I could use a drink!" Keeping his sombrero low as he enters the saloon, he walks up to the bar and orders a whiskey. But before the bar keep can even turn around, the sound of a gun cocking directly behind his ear grabs Diego's full attention.

"Now, you wouldn't happen to be that bandito Rey we've all been hearing so much about, would ya?"

"Easy, Gringo. I'm here for honest work at the request of Señor Garderose. Check my coat pocket and you'll find my invitation."

The man reaches into Diego's coat pocket and retrieves the card. As he examines it another man joins him and as Diego drinks his whiskey he can hear a hushed conversation behind him. Apparently convinced that Diego is telling the truth about his intentions he returns his card to him and says, "Ol' Louis is up to something. You're not the only questionable hire he's sent for. You can find him over at the Blue Bell."

Pausing the man gets up nice and close and whispers, "Once you're done helping the old man, we're coming for you, Rey!"

Getting up from the stool Diego tips his hat towards the man, "I look forward to it, Amigo. Use the extra time to gather a couple more friends." Laughing he spins on his heels and walks out the door. "Come, Diablo, let's find this Blue Bell place and talk with Señor Garderose."

OOC: I love the interwebz: Mexican Horse Names

The colonel arrives by train. He steps off the wagon and stands still on the platform, scanning the area with squinting eyes taking every detail in. After minutes he walks over to the counter of the station manager/telegraph office and checks all the wanted posters.
He asks the clerk about the facilities and layout of the town letting the man talk wihile he stares at him. After a while he slips the intimidatedly babbeling man a bank note and walks off without another word.

He takes a walk around town, visits the sheriff's office exchanging a few more friendly words and learning about the situation in town and also stating his business and checking for more wanted posters.

Then he gets offers from at least two rental stables in case he needs a horse later, takes a look into every saloon in town, checking out the clientel and getting some rumors from the barkeeps. He carefully drops the name of the strange old man in the conversation here and there not to make it obvious that he is looking fo the stranger. Also he now has three street urchins in his employment to get the latest news. After half an hour he should be aware of any notable strangers and important people in town.

He memorizes the most important shops in town and finally ends his tour of the town at the reception desk of the Blue Bell. He gets a room, pays three days in advance and for a generous tip also the room number of his "business partner" while his stare strongly suggests not to ask questions. The Colonel makes very few words but always displays the very best manners.
He slips the card he recieved under the door of the old man's room to announce himself.

He gets to the room, has a bath prepared and relaxes in the water with a pipe. Then takes out a clothes brush and meticulously cleans the dust of the road off his black clothes and cleans both his pistol and rifle although they are already blinking in the sunlight. The equipment always has to be in perfect condition.

Later he sits on the balcony spanning around the upper floor of the hotel in front of his room and watches the streets until the sun sinks. He sleeps as always with his derringer under the pillow and a chair propped under the room and balcony door and awaits the 4th of june.

OOC: I'll subtract $5 for various tips around town and the hotel room. And hopefully I have an idea of the other new arrivals asking questions about Mr. Garderose. I just spent at least half a day on information gathering :)

"Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither thou be dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest..." The whispers of the faithful echoed back to Clancy as he repeated this phrase from Joshua chapter one. Parsing a familiar verse was the least a man could do to ease his troubles in such an unforgiving and confusing world. Of course, that wasn't the particular issue today. Clancy simply hated trains.

The clergyman's eyes darted around the cabin, noting few worthy of his interest. A large woman draped in miscellaneous cloth, a fidgety man showing less composure than even Clancy could muster, these were the souls that would die with him were this abomination of nature to fail it's purpose. He almost missed a third individual: a gruff looking older gentleman, who seemed to be very clean and organized despite the dusty demons that surrounded this wasteland. There was a yell throughout the train alerting everyone aboard that they were approaching Rio Grande City. Thank you, Lord, Clancy thought to himself, motioning a cross over his chest before reaching into his pocket to check the letter once more. As the box of metal death came to a slow, grindy halt, Clancy watched the gentleman stand and leave the platform, and Clancy was not far behind him.

Getting into the city was no problem for a man of the church. Everyone greeted Clancy with a smile and a "welcome, Reverend!" before passing him through to the next checkpoint. Before he knew it, the bustling industrial city was expanding before his eyes. The farther he stepped into the town, the more his fist clenched around the letter in his pocket. Memories-- were they truly his?-- appeared before his mind's eyes, bringing forward the familiar pain and torment of his past life. Approaching the temple he had contacted weeks before, he stilled his anger, and entered.

Immediately Clancy was greeted by a younger man, dressed in the cloth. "Welcome, Reverend! We've been expecting you!" This gentleman seemed very excited to meet him, though Clancy thought of several reasons for him not to be.

"Thank you, son. I'd love to stay and get the story on your wonderful city, but I'm afraid I am here for a higher calling. Tell me, where can I find a..." Clancy looked down at the letter once more, though he already knew the name he was looking for. "A mister Louis Garderose?"

The boyish man dropped in gladness, his smile all but vanishing. "Ah, mister Garderose. He'd be at the Blue Bell Hotel, sir." His hands met, fingers fumbling together nervously. "But, Reverand, why would you be meeting with such a..." Another nervous pause, finished with hardly a whisper: "Such a man of questionable intentions?"

Clancy reached into his front coat pocket, retrieving a handkerchief to cough into. "Child, the Lord does not favor the wise over the wicked. We must reach out to all corners of the earth to deliver God's grace." He smiled politely and put a hand on the young man's shoulder, comforting him. "God bless you, son. Take care," he finished, walking away from the lad. Deliver God's grace... he thought as he kicked up more dust in the desert town, If this man is deserving of such a blessing. It wouldn't take him very long before he was face to face with the entrance of the Blue Bell. A quaint name for a place of such importance this day. He gathered his thoughts once more, before entering.

A common hymn entered into Clancy's mind and he conjured it into being in an almost sinister whisper of a hum. "He put a new song in my mouth... many shall see, and trust... and fear the Lord thy God..."

The walk to Rio Grande City was just like the old man described, just a walk over a hill. The young man repeated "Louis Garderose Rio Grande City. June 4th." like a mantra in his mind. Puzzled by the strangeness of it all, his entrance into the city was without fanfare. AJ politely returned the greetings he got from from strangers as he made his way deeper into town. The old man hadn't set a meeting place. Maybe ... AJ thought of the whiskey he had shared with the man. Maybe I'll just go get a drink. AJ caught the attention of the nearest man, "Excuse me, sir. Where might a fella get a good drink around here?" Still just a boy by some men's standards, AJ was accustomed to people being kindly enough. Often times, it was the sight of his rifle that convinced others that AJ was really a man. The way he carried it, it was like the rifle was an extension of himself, rather than a firearm or a tool.
After only a cursory glance, the man pointed down the street. "I'd say the Blue Bell Hotel should suit you fine, son."
Tipping his hat as thanks, AJ made his way down the street, looking for a sign. The word "hotel" made AJ think of Garderose. Spotting the establishment, AJ walked into the hotel lobby and made his way to the desk. Greeted by a beaming concierge, AJ couldn't help but smile back. "Hello there. I wondered if there might be a Mister Louis Garderose staying here?"
"One moment, sir." The cheery woman searched the desk and quickly found a note. "Says here you're to meet him in the bar." Looking away from the note, she flashes him at the young man. "Looks like you're right on time."
"Thank you very much, ma'am." AJ nods and heads into the bar of the Blue Bell Hotel.

On the night of June 4, 1851, the five of you have arrived at Rio Grande City. The evening sun has passed and night’s chill has settled on the blossoming desert. The townsfolk have mostly returned to their homes, and the days end crowd has begun to drift away from the saloons back to their bunks. A comfortable calm has embraced Rio Grande City, settling like a blanket of peace.

In the corner, a woman plays a languid flowery tune on the piano, while an elderly cowpoke leans against the side, a half-drunk glass of beer ignored in his hands, his eyes closed and swaying gently with the song. The saloon’s barkeep is taking stock of his liquor and making tallies in his ledger. A trio of young soldiers play faro at a side table near the stairs to the upper level, their money piles small enough to dissuade more seasoned gamblers from wasting their talents bucking the tiger.

Suddenly, a gunshot rings out from upstairs. An old man is flung down the hallway, and topples over the railing, landing on the faro table. Louis Garderose, covered in blood, rolls to his feet, a tiger backed playing card stuck to his bloody cheek. A hairy, humanoid creature with a canine-like face but wearing female attire, places both of its clawed hands on the railing, and snarls down at the room, before eyeing Louis Garderose cruelly, and tensing to leap over the rail and into the saloon.

---

{Here we’re going to roll initiative. If you character is trained or specialized in initiative, indicate so in the description of the roll. Initiative, like all rolls in The Strange, is a 1d20 without modifiers. Initiative is a speed roll, if you are looking to spend effort. If your initiative roll is greater than or equal to 12 (or 9 if trained, or 6 if specialized), then you will get to go before the creature, so describe your action. If you are unsure of the roll, simply describe what you intend to do and roll a 1d20.}

The Colonel had been monitoring the lower floor from the upstairs landing. His pistol at his side and his two shot derringer up his sleeve. So man and beast come crashing just by him.

Instinctively he bends his elbow and lets the Derringer slide into his hand, ready to fire. "Halt! Stand down!"

OOC: The Colonel is both trained in tactics and in initiative.
I'd like to roll tactics, too and what is find the flaw for? Can I analyze the enemy?

Mortimer is a bit slow today... Maybe more startled than he would admit. Or just waiting for the creature to react to his call?

AJ hadn't been able to completely relax. Anxious to meet Mr. Garderose, the young sharpshooter kept his rifle ready on his shoulder as he sat at the bar with his back to the corner.
The commotion startled AJ into readying his rifle, aiming up at the strange creature at the railing. Only seeing a dangerous animal, AJ took the shot.

Strange ones around these parts... Clancy hung his head low, looking into the bottom of a glass. It wasn't whiskey, to his dismay, but simply tap water. He would have liked a sip of cold milk, but in the west, that sort of luxury was a miracle to acquire. Why, he could remember like it wa--

A gunshot rang through the air as well as Clancy's mind, alerting him of danger. Not long following the unwelcome noise was a thud and thump as an older gentleman, likely the one he was here to meet, fumbled down the stairway. It was clear he had been injured some how, and after another glance at the scene Clancy could determine who the culprit might be. The elderly man, Louis, slowly came to his feet as the cat-like creature revealed itself, menacingly pouncing about. Before his mind could catch up, Clancy was already rushing towards Louis; partly to see if he was in need of medical attention and partly to defend against anything that might be threatening. "I'm a priest! Do you need treatment?!" He screamed, his hearing still not adjusted from the chaos the gunfire had caused.

---

OOC: Clancy has an inability regarding initiative, he rolls at an additional level higher than normal, so to him the number to beat is 15. Also, he will be taking his action moving towards Louis. If he answers "Yes," he'll roll a healing check. If he answers anything other than "Yes," Clancy will defend against whatever may come at Louis. Not sure how to do that, but I'll roll a d20 just in case. If I can't wait for Louis to respond, Clancy will simply defend.

EDIT: Oh Lord, why hast thou forsaken me? ;-;

Diego quickly turns on his bar stool as he hears the commotion behind him and sees a bloody old man struggle to his feet. "Nothing like a good fight!" he thinks as he starts to lean back to enjoy the show before noticing the beast above.

"Dios mío! That's one hairy gringa!"

Looking about the room he sees several others prepared to take action as he draws both of his blades.

"Let's see what I can do to help" he mumbles as he starts yelling out inspirational encouragement to those who will attack the creature.

---

Diego will not attack, but will take an action (in whatever order it turns out) to Spin Encouragement, enabling those who are attacking to do so at one step benefit. Cost is 1 intellect for the Twist, but he has an intellect edge of 1, so it's a freebie.

Never taking his sights off the strange creature, AJ takes careful aim before taking his next shot. Even if the creature drops, AJ will keep his sights on the creature until he's sure it's completely dead.

---

Using Pierce ability for additional damage plus spending a level of Effort on attack roll. Total Speed points spent: 3

The colonel whirls around as the creature jumps over the railing and shoots his Derringer.

"A skinwalker! Use silver!" he shouts.

The sharp dressed man hanging out on the balcony draws and fires a small gun, but it strikes the pillar behind the faro table. AJ sights his rifle on the creature, but stumbles into the piano girl who is running for the door and he shoots high, into the ceiling. Eli draws a good bead on the creature and shoots it square in the chest, and the creature falls to the ground, convulsing.

AJ and Eli both notice that the first wounds that it took appear to be healing. Also, you both hear snarls from upstairs, from at least two sources. Louis Garderose says "Stay back from her men, she won't be down for long. And there were at least two more holding me." He points up the stairs, and you both notice that his wrist is bloodied as if from struggling while being tied up, and hobbles over towards the bar.

A haze of gunsmoke palls the saloon. The door to the kitchen closes behind the bartender, the three faro-playing soldiers are extracting themselves from beneath their splintered table. They appear to be unarmed except for large bowie knives, which they have not yet drawn. Curiously, the old man that was listening to the piano is still there, quietly rocking to himself, listening to music that no longer plays.

Lastly, Clancy's shoulder wound is bleeding badly, but you can see that it is flecked with foamy spittle and hair from the she-wolf.

---

Clancy and Diego are up. If you roll perception at 6 or higher (3 if trained), you will hear the commotion upstairs over the reverberations of enclosed gunfire. If you roll a 12 or higher (9 if trained) then you will also notice the rope burns on Louis and see the wounds closing on the twitching wolf-woman. Clancy has an asset on the perception for Louis for getting up close and personal; an asset decreases the difficulty one step.

The colonel darts into his room, grabs his bag and gun and then runs down the stairs.

"Get moving, we are outpowered! Everybody out!" he barks in commanding tone. "Reverent, take Grandpa! Everyone invited by him with me! We need to regroup and a plan! Quickfeet, Diego cover our retreat!"

OOC: Did I find a shop selling silverware while scoping out the city? I'd like to direct the group there. Yes, I know some names already :-)

Edit: I did percieve the commotion right next to me :-)

A burning sensation spread through Clancy's shoulder after the bite, sending waves of pain down his body. "What sort of demon...!" Clancy spit the words as the creature was felled by his now assumed partners. In the rush of things he had not been able to help Louis recover too well, and now he was unable to stitch himself up... it was going to be a long day for certain.

A couple of the men started to shout orders out. It was strange to hear directions in this time of chaos, but Clancy didn't question them for long. He inspected Louis, unable to stay angry at the mystery of the man in this panic, and yelled, "We ought to listen to him! Do you know anywhere safe?" It was then that he noticed two things: Louis had rope burns on his wrists, and there was gunfire upstairs. Clancy, suddenly a lot more angry, piped up, "What sort of unholy rite did you prepare to summon these creatures?!"

---

OOC: I will give the other XP to Ultrann36, for that line "Who the heck carries silver bullets?!" Literally made me laugh, could totally see the scene happening in my head. Updated character sheet to reflect XP and Damage. Also, depending on if Clancy sees the creature regenerate, he might try to decapitate it.

Edit: OFF TO A GREAT START FOLKS

"To the kitchen! They got silver knives!"

Not believing what he thought he saw of the healing wounds, AJ figured it just a trick of the mind, likely related to this not-Texas world. Frustrated by his missed shot, AJ looks incredulously at the man shouting about silver. "What the blazes does that matter? Just shoot the beasts!" Still, he retreated with the others. He wasn't about to be singled out or left alone.

Chaos reigns as Diego takes in the situation. The commotion from upstairs draws his attention, "sounds like there may be others in need of assistance", and as he turns to run towards the stairs that's when he sees it. The creature on the floor, the creature that should be dead and gone, is starting to heal.

"El Chupacabra!!" he yells as he takes both knives, rushes towards the beast, and plunges them into the creature's neck.

As he's attempting to remove the hairy head he hears someone yelling out orders as if they were some sort of military commander. "If this were the fields of Palo Alto I'd be coming for you next, Gringo!" he murmurs under his breath as he continues his grisly task.

---

OOC: Going to make my perception roll first and then go back an edit the post accordingly.

HA! I perceived that HELL out that situation!

As Louis reaches the bar and goes behind it, clearly looking for something, the well-dressed Derringer wielder from upstairs runs down the stairs with a bag and a rifle. He tears off toward the kitchen, yelling about silverware. Eli fires a round off toward the upstairs balcony while also hurrying to the kitchen. AJ covers them with his rifle while following them.

Clancy watches the Mexican bandito begin expertly sawing the downed wolf-woman's head off with two knives at once. The creature appears to be struggling for life, but transforms into a beautiful, human woman, looks up at Diego with an incredulous look, and then succumbs to her massive wounds, in that order. Her eyes glaze over and a torrent of blood erupts from at least 5 wounds in her body.

Above, two more wolf-women leap over the railing, sailing down toward Clancy and Diego.

---

Everyone can act before the undoubtedly misunderstood beast-women tear half the party to shreds.

A blood covered Diego leaps to his feet as the sight of the decapitated women horrifies him. As he starts to question what in the hell is going on he hears two more creatures above and quickly regains his focus. Looking for options he decides that being behind the bar would at least provide a little protection. As he runs, he sheaths both of his blades and draws his gun. Vaulting the bar, he ducks down behind, aims his weapon, and fires at the left most creature.

---

OOC: I'm assuming that Diego's "Fast" descriptor provides him the ability to do all of this in a single turn. If that doesn't work, no worries. (I'll just take my character and go home!)

"Mercy, Good Shepherd!" Clancy cried, seeing the beast-- no, woman-- revert before his eyes before fading into a pool of her own blood. Truly, this was demonic possession at work within these women. A snarl crept onto Clancy's face, shrouding the calm demeanor he had been fighting to maintain for the past few minutes. He whispered a short prayer, "Forgive her eternal soul of transgressions, dear Lord... and mine," before letting the rage haze over him.

Clancy was a changed man. Certainly no one knew him from Adam, but if they had known him before the west they would know a violent and ruthless fighter. That Clancy emerged from his cage, taking bold steps to where the demons would land after their leap. "By the name of Jesus of Nazareth," he unsheathed a machete from behind his back, hidden by priestly robes, "and Clancy Winwood," Clancy gritted his teeth before taking the blade in both hands.

"Go back to hell."

---

OOC: Clancy will equip his machete, move to the were-belles, and swing away like a mad man.

Covering the group's retreat into the kitchen, AJ takes a shot at the left were-woman before stepping through the doorway, keeping his sights on the creatures.

---

Using Pierce and Effort (spending 3 points of Speed)

Mortimer takes a handfull of knives and dops in a handfull of banknotes. He distributes some of the knives and pockets the rest.
"Ok we seem to have the situation under control now. Lets see if those beasts are really dead. Massive wounds seem to work, too. But lets visit the gunsmith as soon as possible and get some special shiny bullets."
He takes his pistol out and reenters the saloon to survey the situation.

The haze fades. Red cornering his vision recedes back to where ever it originated. Clancy shook his head and rubbed his eyes with his free hand, smearing a smattering a blood across his face. Realizing this, he took a handkerchief from his breast pocket and cleaned himself up-- machete included-- before addressing the room. "This is certainly a strange day..." he quietly murmured to the room, slowly directing his gaze at Louis. The man was across a counter, brandishing a giant rifle. It wasn't too long before he took that gun and left. Clancy, not wanting to get left behind by the man who knew his old name, gave chase.

---

OOC: Clancy follows Louis out the door. Speed roll included to see how quickly he catches up, if necessary.

Diego stands up behind the bar, holsters his pistol, and draws one of his blades. As the old man heads for the door, Diego walks slowly towards what he hopes are two very dead wolf-women. Leaning over the decapitated body he looks over the two bodies for anything that might give him a clue as to what is going on.

If nothing interesting happens inside I'll follow outside...

Seeing Louis head out with rifle in hand, AJ happily follows the old man. "Two down, one to go." AJ muttered to himself, noting the two dead creatures-turned-women.

Louis steps outside, raises his rifle and sights for a spell. He adjusts the rear sight, expels his breath, and fires. The rifle bucks and huge cloud of smoke explodes from the barrel, a sound like thunder rattling the walls of the Blue Bell hotel. Clancy and AJ watch the wolf-beast take the slug in the center of its back, arms splaying to the side and back arching as it is flung forward, landing facedown and sliding a few feet in the early dark of the street. In the glimmer of light from another saloon, the hair retreats from the creature leaving a still woman in the lonely dust.

Inside, the horrific wounds on the second wolf-in-woman's-clothing begin to close, bubbling with its violent convulsions. A bubble of blood forms in the side of its head, and underneath, the bones of the skull can be seen to grow slowly back. The first woman, fully human is also clearly fully dead and not healing.

Diego, keeping back from the clearly healing wolf-woman-hellbeast, spies three items of note on the mostly decapitated woman: an ornate snuff box, a leather bracelet with several inset precious stones, and a small glass bottle with a single orange pill inside. While seemingly ordinary, something about these objects tell him that they are extraordinary.

---

Diego receives an xp for discovering cyphers.

If Clancy would like to recuperate and heal his depleted might pool, he can attempt a heal check on himself. As previously mentioned, healing works by choosing a number of points to heal, and making an Intellect check against {one less than that number (trained)} times 3. You can only attempt this once per day per target. In addition or alternatively, he can spend a recovery action (one round) and roll recovery (1d6+1).

AJ is also down 4 speed [spent effort on speed checks twice, each costing 2 speed (=3-1 speed edge)] and can make a recovery roll if desired (1d6+1).

There is something interesting happening. Mortimer will put one knee on the back of the healing opponent ready to put all his weight on the she-wolf's back to keep it under control. He puts one of the silver knives against its throat.

"Someone's got some rope or shackles? I imagine we have some questions for this one."

Diego takes his turn with the bottle and passes it along. Still not quite sure what the hell he has witnessed he eagerly awaits Louis' explanation.

"She must have snuck in while I was sleeping, that one," he says, pointing at the one that had been drug back from the street. "Tied me up, gagged me. She brought that one in a few days ago," he continues, pointing to the woman on the bed. "And bit her. Chained her up, and bit her on the arm. She tried to scream but she squeezed her throat till she fell still." He gulps dryly, and stares wistfully at the whiskey bottle. When she woke up, she was one of ‘em. Her teeth got sharp, her fingernails thickened and sharpened, hair sprung out o' her skin."

"The next night, they went out and gets the other one. Same thing. The first one, Kendra she was called, bites Margaret there. She turns into another one." He pauses and looks at each of you in turn, stopping on Clancy. "Thing is, did she bite anyone else, before she got here?"

He notices Clancy turning red with barely contained rage, and he waves his hand. "Now, you don’t need to worry too much, son. Maybe you’ll get hairy, but your mind is your own. Just don’t go chewin' on folks and you and me will be fine. See, there is one more thing you need to know. Kendra isn’t from the Rio Grande City, she isn’t from Texas. She isn’t from this world at all."

"Clancy, don’t bite no one." He pauses again, and you begin to suspect that his pauses are purely for dramatic effect. "You start to get angry, though, you focus on something calming, cuz if you lose control, you’re going to get hairy. And that seems like its oil into the fire. Those girls went wild. Your mind will be your own, but your mind will be full of rage and hate. And biting might seem like a real good idea."

"Now, Kendra there, maybe she bit others, and they gets angry and start chewing. This place will tear itself apart. Some places have ways of keeping things like this in check, but here, well, these werewolves have no natural enemies. Here, they can just, go wild."

"I know you're confused. This don't make a lick of sense. Your world, though, this place, it's important. It may not seem like much and you probably got all kinds o' questions. But right now, we gotta stop these werewolves before they turn your world into hell."

AJ listened to the tale spun by the old man. It was ridiculous. This whole place was ridiculous.He tried to wrap his head around it all, but it didn't work. At the mention of saving their world, he immediately thought of his sister. That was it. that was all he had to hear. With newfound resolve, AJ straightened and looked to Louis, "Tell us what to do, sir."

"Find out where she came from. I suspect its down by Fort Alamo, but maybe not. See what you can find. Then track her back to wherever and find out how she got here. Then shut that God-damned door." He slumps down, clearly worn out. "You get into any trouble, you go seek out Ida Jericho in Tombstone. It's about a days ride thatta-ways," he says, gesturing vaguely to the northwest.

"I'm going to get some rest, maybe work up to taking this one somewhere she can't do so much harm. Stick together, and I'll try and find you in a week or so."

"Seems we got ourselves a Job. So Silver works. What else does? Let's take our cutlery to the gunsmith. He'll provide us with some bullets in a day or two. We can't go unprotected.

Seems also something is different about each one of us. Not only did Louis get us all together. I suspect he did something else. Did you all feel like som sort of awakening from a dull dream or was it just me?

So Louis, what makes us different? What do we have in common, diverse as we are seemingly? And where did you get al that knowledge? Are you some sort of "outsider", too? By the way is there a cure for Clancy that we can find?"

Diego removes his pistol from its holster and flips open the cylinder as he listens to Louis' story about werewolves and people from other worlds. Removing the spent shell and tossing it to the floor, he removes a round from his bandolier and chambers it, spins the cylinder, and flips it closed.

Nodding to Mortimer he adds, "We need to get the Padre fixed up pronto..."

Louis waves you away, muttering "tomorrow." His wounds and his age have clearly worn him out. He slumps back in his chair and falls asleep.

The night passes uneventfully. {If you want to share anything that night, please do.} The five of you rest and gather yourselves for the coming day. Searching the beast-womans room, you find a half-dozen more strange objects: a pocket watch, a cigarillo holder, a pince-nez, a ruby ring, a sheriffs badge, and a hard candy. When you carry more than two or three, you feel odd. {If anyone wants to make Intellect checks, you can try to identify the cyphers.}

In the morning, the Colonel slips out early and finds a gunsmith who promises to forge silver bullets in proper calibres for each of your weapons. He needs a half day.

The old man seems pale and thinner the next morning. His hands shake with palsy as he drips water into the chained womans mouth. "I need to take her away, to somewhere this curse can ... pass harmlessly. I can take Clancy there later, but I think the Rio Grande needs you all. See, you all are a little bit more awake than others here. Never can tell who it will be. Maybe your enemies, hopefully your loved ones. Best not dwell on that though. This place, it has a way of making you forget. Stick together and remember that you don't fit in anymore."

"You don't owe me nothin, heck, I probably owe you all something for saving my keister. But, if you want to see this through, I can promise you a trip through hell and sights you ain't never thought of. And maybe, we can right some wrongs along the way." He coughs into a handkerchief, and your eyes see a spot of blood. "Go to Fort Alamo, and figure out how they got here. Then come back here, or go to Tombstone. We'll catch up then."

---

Give me some Intellect rolls, and post your reactions to the info dump, haha. The game is afoot!

As Diego listens to Eli's story he remembers the objects that he taken off one of the dead women while in the saloon. As the others continue their discussions and stories, Diego will take the time to inspect each of the items individually.

EDIT: 24? Oops, let me re-roll that one.

After Eli's introduction, AJ stands up, but doesn't really know what to say. After a moment of awkward false-starts, he takes a deep breath and shows off his boyish smile. "Name's Alex. Call me AJ. I dunno what's going on exactly. And really, I don't care to figure it out right now." He takes off his hat and rubs his forehead. "Kinda gives me a headache. This place is strange, yeah. But Mister Garderose here gave me something to focus on: protecting our world. I got a sister that I help take care of. If I can help keep her safe, I'm going to do it." He sits down, allowing others to have their say.

OOC: I count only 5 items identified, but I don't think AJ was up searching the room since he stayed with Louis.

"I'll take the rest then..."

Diego, somehow making sense of what the objects he gathered actually do, holds up a jar with a single orange pill inside. "Anyone interested in this? I'm not sure what it's real name is, but I call it 'velocidad'"

OOC: It restores 5 to your speed pool.

AJ takes a moment to consider the pill Diego presents before standing to take the bottle. "Why thank you." And he pockets the pill.

"I'm quite content with what I've got. Those will come in handy." I'll put them in my coats inner pocket.