Part 15: XV - Traffik

So this is it for real. Downtown LA. Well maybe not for real, since downtown LA doesn't really look like this.



The first thing that comes to mind is that we have to go visit LaCroix in his tower.



Instead let's look at these weird posters.



Being new in town, we don't really know our way around.



But that's okay because there are maps around the city to help us guide our way. You can see that we're right next to the Ventrue Venture Tower. That must be where LaCroix is.



Well we're not going to go there yet. I'm interested in seeing what's in a back alley somewhere. That's a safe thing to do, right?



Apparently so. These guys are pretty chilled out.



Or not, since they started running off somewhere. What's going on?



Oh shit, a gang war. The red jackets vs. the tanktops.





Those are some powerful punches.



Have mercy, man!



This violence is senseless!



Back in that alley, let's talk to this unique-looking fellow.



[Listen] I am the proprietor and salesman of the month several years in a row; the ladies call me "Oh, god!", but you can call me Fat Larry with a F-A-T 'cause there's mo' of me to love.

Larry has pretty good voice acting, in addition to writing. He speaks and sounds like someone would in his position.

You sell counterfeit basketball jerseys or something?

Counterfeit?!? Man, I look like one of those peanut-headed, rock-smokin' brothers sellin' S-H-A-C-K shirts they made at thei' momma's house? I'm the real deal, OG, man in the alley with what you need! Counterfeit! Wh-why you gotta be like that?

Alright, alright. Why don't you show me what you're selling?

Nahaa- now that's what I like to hear. But it's like this: I save my best stuff for select clientele. Now that don't mean I don't appreciate your bu'ness, it's just, you know, bu'ness.

Show me the merchandise.



I'm not interested in any of this other stuff, I just want the new set of clothing. With one exception, there's one new set of clothing per hub. Each new set gives us a better resistance to damage. Some take away from your dexterity score. This set doesn't.



But it does make us look... better? At least more decent. We should thank Larry, maybe take him up on his offer for some love.



So?

Whoa, whoa, whoa! That's your bu'ness, okay. I just figured somebody with a shoppin' list like yours might be up for a little action's all, a'ight...?

Could anyone get anything done without us?

I'm listening.

Yo, I need a hardcore, pimp-killin', Cleopatra Jones for a super-sized score. Straight up foxy Pam Grier style. Still wi' me?

Some of Larry's dialogue can be a little bit over the top.

You've got my attention.



... but let's just say a certain client of mine is ready to drop some Uncle Sam-sized bucks to acquire what's in briefcase number one. You get it for me, I'm 'a not only gi' you a cut, but I'll roll out my special stock as well. Now how dat sound?

Special stock? This should be good.

I'll do it.

If we had one more point in persuasion, we could convince Larry to also give us a discount at his store.

Yeah, that's what I like to hear. Now, if you're the straight-out, hard-boiled terminator type, I'd suggest you buy some heavy firepower 'fore you roll up to the parking garage. You need anything?

I'm ready right now. I'll be back with the briefcase.



Not far away from Larry, something familiar comes into sight. The skyline apartments. Didn't we hear something about this building, earlier?



That's right, "Muddy" Mike Durbin fled Santa Monica for Downtown. He said:




This is the place. Odd that an apartment building has a cop parked inside of it. Maybe LA is turning fascist. "Let the state into your heart today!" Authoritarian idolatry and all that. Maybe this cop represents national unity. Or maybe this is just a video game and he's guarding something behind that employees-only door.



Milton, that's who Muddy said he'd meet. He also said apartment 2A, but there's just one apartment on floor two.

Let's just use the elevator up.



This building sure looked a lot wider from the outside.



Just a little blood buff and we're in. Muddy doesn't seem to be in at the moment, but did he leave a message?



Yes.

Mr. Milton, you know who this is, and I do hope you realize that we're still on for tonight. Meet me at the agreed-upon location across from the bar by the underpass. Bring your associate, Mr. Durbin, as it is a two-man job I am proposing. With any luck you two are already on your way and I shall see you soon. Goodbye.

We'll head there soon, if not just to have another reason to talk to Arthur Kilpatrick. Who can resist that?



There's not much of note in this apartment. Troika put a weird-amount of detail into this bass. It's supposed to resemble some old-style fender precision bass. That pickguard style hasn't been commonly used since 1957, when the Precision bass got restyled to resemble the stratocaster. What's odd is that there's a newer-split precision style pickup in the middle position, and a jazz single-coil in the bridge. I'm not sure if this is supposed to resemble any specific model or not.



One semi-hidden (more like hard to miss) feature of the skyline apartment is that there's a ventilation system that can serve as an alternate method of travel between floors.



A Nosferatu will use this to get around rather than the elevator. We can, too. Let's head down to the basement. That's the area the cop is guarding.



A computer?



Oh, he's been peeping in on the residents. Maybe the other monitor will shed light on this.



>email



How predictable.

1 posted:

<Subject> hidden cameras online
<From> Butch Rider

Hey Tom, it sounds like we have a deal. You keep sending in that security footage, and I'll pay you for the good stuff.

Ahh, that's why. Now we'll head into the contacts.

apt 1 posted:

Simon Milligan. He's on TV, so odds are footage of his place will be worth something eventually. I gotta keep an eye on him.

apt 2 posted:

Sean Milton. He's a slob, and he never really has chicks over. Some guy has been staying with him lately, so I haven't wanted to watch much.

apt 3 posted:

Georgia Welch. This rich broad is pretty hot. Oh, the password on her door is 9648, so maybe I'll sneak in there and steal some panties to auction off online.

apt 4 posted:

Vacant. No reason to keep an eye on this one.

apt 5 posted:

Paul Anderson. I thought there was no reason to watch him, but then I caught him upstairs. I'll keep the tape rolling.

apt 6 posted:

Hannah Glazer. The gold mine! Something hot is always going down in here, and that something is usually Hannah herself.

Uh, let's just leave.




_{This is an unused alternate to the regular downtown theme. I like it a little better than the regular one.}

Let's go ahead and do that job for Larry.



We can either go in guns blazing, or try to sneak down to the spot where the deal is going down. Successfully sneaking down gives more experience, so let's try that.



Predictably, there's a ventilation system to climb through.



We're like a vampiric Sam Fisher/Solid Snake/Insert stealth game character here.



The vent eventually drops us down to the regular floor, but there's another vent system close by. We just have to sneak over there undetected. I put two dots into stealth for this, and it better pay off.

. . .



There are these guys everywhere, but on some floors there are Asian guys patrolling instead of the white guys in the hoodies. Let me spare you most of this vent crawling and sneaking nonsense.

. . .



We're moving slowly downward. It's been pretty uneventful so far--



Oh shit!



Well they didn't notice us. These guys, like every enemy in a stealth video game, are very nearsighted. Let's just sneak across--



Well there goes the experience bonus.



There's a shit-load of these guys, and some of them are using uzis, which are pretty damaging.



Well whatever. We eventually take care of them. We could just go charing forward, since we've lost the opportunity for getting to the briefcase undetected, but that's not a good idea. There were a ton of guys we had to fight on this level. I don't like the idea of having to do that again. We'll stick to the vents.

. . .



This is the bottom floor. Now just to--



Not again!



But he didn't see us. Maybe just sneak to the right...



Oh, forget it.



Those guys must be exchanging whatever's in those two briefcases.



So why are they using them as melee weapons?



Ugh, whatever. The two sides eventually turn against one another. We still have to find this briefcase Larry wants - it wasn't either of those two.



There we go. Now let's just head back to Larry. Strangely, the entire ramp has now been evacuated. We exit without trouble.

. . .





I got the briefcase.

Outstandin'! Pass it here, girl.

Yeah, that's beautiful! Everything looks in order. Somebody somewhere got to be pissed off about losin' this! Too bad I sent my main girl here after 'em. Alright! Let me peel off a few bills for ya.



As enticing as that sounds, we've got things to do.

Sorry, Larry. I already have plans for tomorrow.



This could be worth checking out. Somebody with a name as stupid as 'Venus Dare' must have something worth our time. But for now, we should have acess to some new items to buy.

Yeah, I'll check it out. But first I need to buy some merchandise.

Man, what you do with all this stuff, I don't want to know. Just keep that cash flowing.

I will, Larry.



Oh, nothing. That's what the secret selection was. It was nothing. We'll just buy that fire axe and leave.


Well, no use putting it off any longer.



Let's give LaCroix a visit. That warehouse - I'm still unconvinced that he wasn't trying to send us to our death.



Is that...?



It is! The guard from outside of Gallery Noir, the one that we seduced.

Mind doing me a favor, moon pie, and buzzing me up?

Oh, I'd love to buzz you up, but according to building security protocol 916, I'm going to have to verify you're supposed to be here before I can open the elevator. I hate to be a Louis Law, but I'm new here and uh, you don't get a second chance like this everyday.

Here, we have the option to dominate him to let us up. But why bother? I'm sure LaCroix was expecting us.

I'm here to see LaCroix.

Would that be Sebastian LaCroix of the LaCroix Foundation, or Dwayne LaCroix of Insurrection Baby Formula Company?

What do you think, genius?

Uh, okay then. Mr. LaCroix he told me to expect someone fitting your description sometime tonight. You go right on up.

Thanks.



Uh...

Did you say "Chunk"?

[Listen] Ah, yeah, I get that all the time. The name goes back to my football days. Uh, actually my fantasy football days... at the station... Stationarium - that was this office supply outlet mall I used to watch. Hey, you kids, no skating in the parking lot! That was me.

Yeah... bye.



Chunk, the most pathetic character in the game, everybody.



LaCroix here we come...



There they are. LaCroix and his giant gorilla thing, the sheriff. We haven't seen either of them since the courtroom, where our sire got dusted. LaCroix would have executed us too, if it wasn't for Nines.



LaCroix has this dagger-thing on the table. It's probably supposed to be the most posh letter opener imaginable.



Also these paintings on the wall. I'm not bourgeois enough to know what the names of these paintings are. Some of them are obviously related to Cain and Abel.






This sure is the room of a Ventrue.



Ugh, let's get this over with.



Yes, but -



We haven't had a vote for a while. Let's spice it up this time and have two choices. The first vote is obvious: Do we tell LaCroix about Mercurio's failure? Remember, Mercurio told us that he'd be able to hook us up if we kept our mouths shut. And then there's the fact that he might be one of the only people we can trust...

We've seen enough of LaCroix to know what he's like. Power-hungry, willing to step on anyone to accomplish his goals, etc. The second vote, then, is about how we will treat LaCroix. Doubtlessly this comes with political consequences. Do we act defiantly to LaCroix, act neutral towards him, or suck up to him?