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Octavia’s Journal Entry:

Expect the unexpected. A line so old and used yet always holds up no matter what the occasion. It’s something I’ve learned to live by, especially with the line of work I’m in. It’s a reminder that pops up with most if not all the cases I get to work on. Take for example this one Valentine’s Day case I had to work on.

It happened during the days leading up to the Day of Hearts, where couples fret and plan over what to do on said day while chocolate and flower stores rub their hands in anticipation for the big bucks rolling in. I received a message from someone claiming to be a hotelier for a prestigious hotel and that captain Burke, a family friend as well as one of the few in New Luxerion aware of the things that go bump in the night, had advised them to bring the case to me. The case regarded a number of deaths that occurred in Sterling Crown Hotel. Living up to its name, Sterling Crown Hotel is a luxury stay that offers quite a number of amenities and continues to add on to it especially since new competition like the Whispering Blossoms opened up. It’s a favorite for many couples who are either filthy rich or are bad with finances, but with the recent cases of death, reservations and bookings are starting to plummet for them.

Deaths in a hotel aren’t too uncommon, sometimes things happen and the cleaning service ends up having to clear out more than just dirty towels. What’s intriguing about these deaths were that they happened in the span of three consecutive days and all of the deceased seemed to have gone out the same way. All of the deceased were different couples and all of them went out the same way. Coroner’s report stated that after continuous and rigorous action, each couple reached their climactic bliss then promptly succumbed to signs that pointed to myocardial infarction or as it’s most commonly known, heart attack. The notes go on to add that the deceased likely went at it at a rate that their heart could not keep up. There was also another note in regards to the deceased that added to this already bizarre case, which was that all those that died had their faces locked in silent screams of fear. Had it been one case, it might have been written off as an abnormal yet plausible case. But the fact that it was multiple different people with no similarities except that they were in different rooms in the same hotel and died the same manner of death was enough to get me to take on the case.

It took some time but after I had called up Providence for his assistance and contacted the hotelier to make him aware of my plan, we arrived in Sterling Crown the following day under the guise of a couple with money to burn. As soon as I stepped into the hotel’s lobby, whatever latent psionic gift I had instantly pinged. Providence merely solidified my wariness by saying that whatever had caused the deaths was still within the hotel’s domain. Thankfully, there had been no further deaths yet. At my request, the hotelier had reserved a room for us in the same area where the deaths had occurred which just so happened to be at the most exclusive rooms of the hotel.

Providence and I acted the part of couples, not willing to risk alerting the entity behind the deaths should they have eyes on us. We managed to bypass this problem through good ole trusty telepathy. In the confines of our luxury suite, Providence worked his arcane arts, extending his senses to the rooms where the deaths had transpired. Some entities would leave unseen traces of their presence and Providence was able to follow those in the other rooms. Providence took some time to weave what he explained to me as a type of subtle arcane beacon or bait. It would serve both as a lure and a reassurance that whatever entity was behind the attacks would head for our room and would not go for any other that might have defenseless blokes in them. Once the entity had been lured in, Providence would seal the room ensuring that that the entity does not escape. With that done, we hunkered down and waited

Turns out that the one behind the deaths was one nasty succubus and I’m not talking about one of those types you see in pop culture of devilish women exuding sexual allure. The thing with succubus’ is that there are different types of them. While some have the ability to shapeshift and take a more physical approach to draining the life forces of their victims and some preferring to devour dreams, the one we ended up facing was a little mix of both with a dash of hellside form. Now here’s where the “expect the unexpected” line really shines because said succubus wasn’t working alone. Working alongside the succubus was a Nightmare or Mara as it was called in Old High German. It’s not uncommon for denizens of the dark to work alongside each other which was what happened in this case. The succubus floods the victims with something akin to pheromones causing them to exert themselves while doing the act, and once they are too drained and fatigued, the Nightmare comes along to suffocate them, feasting upon their fear as they slowly die from lack of oxygen. This explained the similar symptoms to death by heart attack as well as the frozen faces of fears on the victims’ faces.

We dealt with the deadly duo and while our luxury suite might have been trashed in the process, the hotelier reassured us that there was no need for recompense, especially since we’d just dealt with the creatures that were responsible for the deaths in their hotel.

Another case closed and one that was not without its silver linings. A successful hunt, a chance to stay at a luxury suite but most importantly was the moment where me and Providence were playing the role of a couple. Who’d have thought that one of ways to get some form of reaction from the otherwise expressionless man was to talk in a valley girl voice. The faintest look of consternation on his face makes me chuckle even to this day. I guess I have to thank old high school Drama class for that one.

Description

Octavia’s Journal Entry:

Expect the unexpected. A line so old and used yet always holds up no matter what the occasion. It’s something I’ve learned to live by, especially with the line of work I’m in. It’s a reminder that pops up with most if not all the cases I get to work on. Take for example this one Valentine’s Day case I had to work on.

It happened during the days leading up to the Day of Hearts, where couples fret and plan over what to do on said day while chocolate and flower stores rub their hands in anticipation for the big bucks rolling in. I received a message from someone claiming to be a hotelier for a prestigious hotel and that captain Burke, a family friend as well as one of the few in New Luxerion aware of the things that go bump in the night, had advised them to bring the case to me. The case regarded a number of deaths that occurred in Sterling Crown Hotel. Living up to its name, Sterling Crown Hotel is a luxury stay that offers quite a number of amenities and continues to add on to it especially since new competition like the Whispering Blossoms opened up. It’s a favorite for many couples who are either filthy rich or are bad with finances, but with the recent cases of death, reservations and bookings are starting to plummet for them.

Deaths in a hotel aren’t too uncommon, sometimes things happen and the cleaning service ends up having to clear out more than just dirty towels. What’s intriguing about these deaths were that they happened in the span of three consecutive days and all of the deceased seemed to have gone out the same way. All of the deceased were different couples and all of them went out the same way. Coroner’s report stated that after continuous and rigorous action, each couple reached their climactic bliss then promptly succumbed to signs that pointed to myocardial infarction or as it’s most commonly known, heart attack. The notes go on to add that the deceased likely went at it at a rate that their heart could not keep up. There was also another note in regards to the deceased that added to this already bizarre case, which was that all those that died had their faces locked in silent screams of fear. Had it been one case, it might have been written off as an abnormal yet plausible case. But the fact that it was multiple different people with no similarities except that they were in different rooms in the same hotel and died the same manner of death was enough to get me to take on the case.

It took some time but after I had called up Providence for his assistance and contacted the hotelier to make him aware of my plan, we arrived in Sterling Crown the following day under the guise of a couple with money to burn. As soon as I stepped into the hotel’s lobby, whatever latent psionic gift I had instantly pinged. Providence merely solidified my wariness by saying that whatever had caused the deaths was still within the hotel’s domain. Thankfully, there had been no further deaths yet. At my request, the hotelier had reserved a room for us in the same area where the deaths had occurred which just so happened to be at the most exclusive rooms of the hotel.

Providence and I acted the part of couples, not willing to risk alerting the entity behind the deaths should they have eyes on us. We managed to bypass this problem through good ole trusty telepathy. In the confines of our luxury suite, Providence worked his arcane arts, extending his senses to the rooms where the deaths had transpired. Some entities would leave unseen traces of their presence and Providence was able to follow those in the other rooms. Providence took some time to weave what he explained to me as a type of subtle arcane beacon or bait. It would serve both as a lure and a reassurance that whatever entity was behind the attacks would head for our room and would not go for any other that might have defenseless blokes in them. Once the entity had been lured in, Providence would seal the room ensuring that that the entity does not escape. With that done, we hunkered down and waited

Turns out that the one behind the deaths was one nasty succubus and I’m not talking about one of those types you see in pop culture of devilish women exuding sexual allure. The thing with succubus’ is that there are different types of them. While some have the ability to shapeshift and take a more physical approach to draining the life forces of their victims and some preferring to devour dreams, the one we ended up facing was a little mix of both with a dash of hellside form. Now here’s where the “expect the unexpected” line really shines because said succubus wasn’t working alone. Working alongside the succubus was a Nightmare or Mara as it was called in Old High German. It’s not uncommon for denizens of the dark to work alongside each other which was what happened in this case. The succubus floods the victims with something akin to pheromones causing them to exert themselves while doing the act, and once they are too drained and fatigued, the Nightmare comes along to suffocate them, feasting upon their fear as they slowly die from lack of oxygen. This explained the similar symptoms to death by heart attack as well as the frozen faces of fears on the victims’ faces.

We dealt with the deadly duo and while our luxury suite might have been trashed in the process, the hotelier reassured us that there was no need for recompense, especially since we’d just dealt with the creatures that were responsible for the deaths in their hotel.

Another case closed and one that was not without its silver linings. A successful hunt, a chance to stay at a luxury suite but most importantly was the moment where me and Providence were playing the role of a couple. Who’d have thought that one of ways to get some form of reaction from the otherwise expressionless man was to talk in a valley girl voice. The faintest look of consternation on his face makes me chuckle even to this day. I guess I have to thank old high school Drama class for that one.