Part 30: XXX - Hunters Hunting

We have Isaac's tape. Now all that's left is to bring it back to him.



He doesn't think much of us.

I didn't doubt you'd find this... and I apologize if I was overly imperious before - a reflex action - I get a lot of young blood in here forgetting their place. I'll assist you as reasonably as I can with your task, but first...



The camera zooms into the TV screen, and the tape begins...

Watch Tape:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhMgiSR5PdQ



The tape fades in and shows a girl sprinting away from three monsters...



She runs towards the door...



...and to the right...





...she closes the door, thinking she's safe...



...yet she's only secured her death, trapping herself with two more of these monsters.



The screen fades out...



...and we're left with this logo, accompanied by a low, buzzing noise, and the sound of someone breathing.



We wait for Isaac to clean up, then he rejoins us.



It just so happens that around the time this snuff film started circulating, the Nosferatu disappeared. I tried to elicit their help in tracking down the source, and for the first time in all these years, I was dismayed by their absence.

So you think this tape has something to do with their disappearance?



Presumably, Isaac has seen the entire thing before. I'm not sure why we need a full copy, but if Saint Isaac demands it, then we must comply.

Where do we find a better copy?

Behind the spit-shine gloss of the Hollywood dream factory, there's another city churning out a vile by-product for the furtive consumption of a debauched audience. I have no doubt the film's found its way to another smut peddler. I'd ask around.

Now that we've done this service for Isaac, he'll answer some of our questions.

Before I start looking, I had a few questions.



Tell me about yourself.

Here we go. Prepare for an hour of dialogue.

In your lifetime, unwittingly or not, you have seen an Isaac Abrams production. As the financier of thirty percent of American Film's top 100 movies, you must have. Being the Baron of Hollywood, I can do any project I want.

I suppose so, but being dead, you'd probably have to have a series of go-throughs, psuedonyms, go through a big corporation, etc. Not as spectacular as being alive and in the limelight.

Can I be in a movie?

Unless you're the most spectacular actor I've never heard of, your look would be a tough sell. But don't take it too hard, once you're dead, there's no such thing as good publicity.

The same goes for Isaac, here.

Who's your favorite person you've worked with?

Stewart, Lean, Hitchcock, Wilder, Holden, Dean, Scorsese, De Niro, and, last but not least Ash, my childe. I remember some studio suit lost in time telling me the only thing they could use Bogart for was to move furniture.

His childe, Ash?

Ash?

Ash. Where do I begin? Seven years ago, I saw a casting session for what would become Negative Zero. The moment I set eyes on him - the passion of his performance, I knew he had it.

I hadn't seen anything like him since Clift or Dean. He had the looks, the charisma, allure... that undefinable quality that makes a film legend. My first movie with him made him a sensation... and it also changed him.

How?



We can't judge. We did the same thing to save Heather.

You made him your childe to save him?

I acted on impulse. I had seen so many others die before their time, but with Ash, I had a chance to prevent that fate.

So what happened?

It devastated Ash - he still wanted to act, but I denied him his place in the limelight. He had to lie to his friends about his new lifestyle. He had to feed. I gave him a club - a scrap of his former glory. I did everything I could to facilitate the change.

Does he hate you?

He feels obligated to me. I don't think he hates me... resents me, maybe. I am his sire and he is my childe and there is a responsibility and respect inherent in that bond, even if we are no longer the friends we were.

Maybe Ash could give us some insight into how to get what we want from Isaac.

Where can I find Ash?



The "Asp Hole".

Maybe I'll head over there some time. I had some other questions. Anything else I can do in this city?



Look at that grin.

Yeah, tell me about this Gargoyle.

It's taken up residence in my beloved Asian theater. It is closed now, but that's beside the point. I sent some people to evict it, and it sent them back with a few less limbs. I can't have that monster attacking Kindred in my city.

I'm interested, but how exactly does one deal with a Gargoyle?

It's a walking block of stone with a taste for blood - I'd suggest whatever method doesn't result in you being eviscerated. In truth, I'd rather have it as an ally, but I doubt it's going to be chatty. Here's the key for the theater. I'll leave it up to you.

Who do we know that might know about a Gargoyle? In other words, where did we find a book about Gargoyles? Maximilian Strauss. Dealing with this Gargoyle means heading back downtown.

I'll see what I can do. I had another question. What can you tell me about the Nosferatu?

The Nosferatu? I pity them, but I loathe their presence. I deal with them when it's necessary. I know they're beneath my city somewhere, but only they know where. They respect my streets and I keep my politics out of their sewers, but I don't trust them by any stretch of the word.

I'll get back to looking for that tape. Later, Isaac.

We have four courses of action right now:

• Try to find the complete tape
  
• See what Ash is up to
  
• Explore the Gargoyle situation
  
• Head back to Santa Monica to catch the serial killer

We're going to look into Ash's situation, first. We don't know where to start looking for the complete tape; dealing with the Gargoyle means going back downtown; dealing with the serial killer involves leaving town. Plus, we might get some information about the tape while we're in the Asp Hole.





This place is just another generic club, but the important thing to note is that there's a vampire hunter staking out near the entrance. What could that be about?



Here we can see Colin Kaepernick blowing off some steam after throwing away the NFC championship.



I'm putting another dot into Charisma, bringing our persuasion score up to 7.



We'll also try to hit on this woman.

Who can know themselves even really? Such is the conundrum of life.

Oh my gosh, my skank-sense is tingling!

No luck. Melissa goes home alone tonight.



There's also this guy standing in the corner.

Anyway, we find Ash upstairs.



...or maybe we don't.

You Ash?

Present.

Right now we're given to option to ask him about the tape, which we'll do.

Do you know anything about a snuff film?

That's street trash. You want the Sin Bin.

There we go. Our next stop in the main quest is the "Sin Bin."

Anything else?

But still, Ash is acting all moody and shit, not being very talkative towards a fellow vampire. Something must be up.

Is there something wrong?



We've clearly interrupted his thoughts. What he just said makes no sense out of context. The only thing we know for sure is that he might die if he leaves the club. Might as well tease more information out of him.

Remember, quitters never win and suicide is always the answer.

Mmm, yeah, the biographers would eat it up; the studios would sell more copies of my movies; they'd probably put up a statue of me somewhere.... "Die young, live forever." I'd be one handsome pile of dust.

Sounds like you've thought about it.

Hunters - in front, back, inside my club. I try to leave, they'll move on me. So, I had to ask myself, if I go out there, am I prepared to die? How many could I take out before the killing stroke, huh? Two? Three?

There we go. It's the hunter(s). Somehow they've figured out that he's in here, yet they haven't bothered to walk up the stairs to find him for some reason.

I could just walk out there, right now, blaze of glory. The end. And you know what? Knowing that... it doesn't bother me. And I guess the only reason I haven't walked out yet is because I'm trying to figure out why it doesn't bother me.

Ash was embraced against his will. As a former actor, having to step out of the limelight probably kills him. We have already learned this from Isaac, and that certainly must be causing him distress. But would it drive him to suicide?

Speaking of Isaac...

Aren't you worried about what Isaac would think?

It would break Isaac's heart. It's good to know some good would come from my death.

You don't like Isaac?

That story would take too long to tell. Suffice it to say, we haven't seen eye-to-eye on too many things lately, and it's pissed off Isaac to no end.

For instance?

He kept saying I should keep a low profile. He kept saying I was attracting too much attention to myself.

What's wrong with keeping a low profile?



Now Ash not keeping a low profile has led to Hunters infiltrating his club. The bouncers are, for some reason, okay with letting katana-wielding, trenchcoat-wearing, vigilantes stay here.

Being Kindred is great. Having powers, living forever, sleeping all day.

I didn't ask for this. I didn't ask Isaac to save my life. Maybe I wanted to die. I was having fun, dammit! I was alive! Who the hell gave him the right to deny me that?!? I can't act anymore, I can't love anymore; all I can do is... fade into obscurity.

Let's pretend we weren't listening and bring up Isaac again.

Why don't you ask Isaac for help out of this?

Isaac help me? That's a laugh. He wouldn't be caught within 500 feet of this place, not with hunters around. Just the thought of asking him for help, that smug curl of those poison lips of his... not in this lifetime.

It all comes down to us.

Maybe I can help you.

Did Isaac send you?

He told us where you were, but not to help you. Maybe he doesn't even know what's happening.

No.

What the hell, then, would be your motivation to help me?

Can't you see that you've touched Melissa's big old kindred heart?

If I can help people, I do. And you need some help.



Like the Romero quest, this can either be solved through combat or through conversational methods. The former requires defending Ash against hunters in a sewer. No thanks. The latter has to do with someone we've already seen.

You can switch clothes with someone in this club who looks like you.

D'you get that idea from a sitcom? Whatever. Look around the club, maybe you'll get lucky.

I'll come back when I find somebody.

Would a hunter really be fooled by a change of clothes? Perhaps, but only on the condition that Ash switches clothes with a look-a-like. Who do we know that looks like Ash?



This guy.

[Seduction] Hey, aren't you Ash?!?

Uh... yeah, I'm Ash, I'm just trying to keep a low profile. Fans, you know.

The easiest way to get this guy out of his clothes would be to dominate him. We're not allowed to do that. So here we'll rely on seduction. Let's ask him to recite one of Ash's famous lines, and act wooed when he does. He must know the lines, right?

Do that line from Negative Zero.... Oh, I love that line. You know which one.

Oh, do you? [Nervous, fumbling] Umm.... Every time... y-you come in here... uh, you look... uh wai- wai- wait wait, I got it, you look at that picture on the wall and you say, "I gotta go there sometime". Every time! But you never go. And every time, I gotta hear it.

That was terrible.

That sounds a lot different than the way you did it in the movie.



Okay. But first I need you to do something for me.

And what would that be?

I need you to exchange clothes with someone.



Uh...

It would just make me so hot if you were dressed like my brother.

Aww... eww... I'm not that drunk. Yikes!

This is going nowhere.

[Intimidate] I need your clothes. Give them to me.

Whoa, back up! What the hell do you want my clothes for?

Nice try.

Either you take them off or I will.

What am I supposed to wear?

You see that guy over there? You get to wear his clothes.



The look-a-like does what he's told. Heading back up to the real Ash...



Yeah. Go into the men's bathroom. Change clothes with the guy in there.

You better hope they get these hunters from a temp agency, cuz all a pro's gonna do is have a laugh. If it works, I'm out of this city. Here, token of my thanks.

It will be well spent.

Even though we didn't ask for any money, Ash gives us $250. We also take a humanity hit.



Ash meets his double...



...and they magically swap clothes. It's just different colors of the same outfit. Who would even be able to tell the difference?

But sure enough...

Watch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_75b0Ns4GBs



The hunter walks up to the fake Ash...



...and plunges a stake into his heart!



He falls dead. Yet Ash didn't turn into a pile of ash. But that's because staking a vampire in the heart only paralyzes them.



The hunter realizes that he's killed a human--presumably because of the noises that Ash #2 must have made as he died--and runs out in a panic. The quest ends there, and Ash is safe.

Bonus!
Watch the alternate way to end the quest, with combat in a unique section of the sewers:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFlnfiGQiwg