Monster Mash Round 9: IDK What Year It Is Anymore

[Second Chances]

Okay, maybe we'll actually finish this before THIS Halloween. Although since time is my nemesis, I'll through a temporal twist on whatever option you choose. What monster do you want to see?

A) Avenging Angel
B) Bound Echo
C) Urban Legend Cryptid
D) Murderous Offspring

Vote now!

[21C Hermit]

B., cuz they’re the least fleshed-out type of monster in the official book I think.

[ArcaneArts]

D, of course.

[KaiserAfini]

B is very out of the norm, so it draws my curiosity.

[LunaLupa]

C, always good to see some fun cryptids.

[LostLight]

B- Echoes need more love, as they are a very cool concept.

[TrueMrMultiverse]

B, Echoes are pretty rare to see.

[Satchel]

C. Would love to get some urban legendry.

[Demigod Beast]

B! I want me some bound echoes!

[Yossarian]

B! Ten characters!

[Primordial newcomer]

B my friend

[Korogra]

A, for Angel!

[evtrax]

I vote C for cryptid please.

This is my first time voting.

[Vent0]

B sounds pretty interesting.

[Second Chances]

And as voting stands

A - 1
B - 8
C - 3
D - 1

My original intent was to make up some rules for what would change if an Echo became a Sin-Eater's Geist (and I still intend to in some vague future) - but by this point I've bitten off more than I can chew multiple times desperately need not to do it again. Plus, I at an excellent idea for an Echo that has literally bound itself to one place and wrote the entire thing when I should have been going to sleep last night. Hopefully you enjoy.

*******
Any Demon getting a close look at the Westen household would be forgiven for thinking the entire thing is Lare. The house appears normal until you look in places people don’t usually go. Crystal brains flashing with fibre optic circuits grow out of the attic walls while gears pumping with oily blood fill up its crawlspaces. The Westen family has so far remained oblivious to the strangeness around them, and the presence in the house intends to keep it that way.

You see, Peter Westen has the habit of getting into bad deals. Gambling debts, bad investments, deals with people who get nasty when you don’t pay them back — it all started adding up. Peter isn’t a bad person by any means, but his judgement has never been great and he is desperate to keep his family from suffering from his mistakes. So when a stranger with many faces showed up saying he could take away all the debt, Peter jumped at the opportunity.

Peter didn’t really think he’d sold his soul until the Demon came to collect it. He thought it was all some metaphor for a client system like what the Romans used to do. He didn’t mind being wrong; keeping his family safe and financially stable mattered more than his continued existence. The kids would still have their dad, even if it was just someone wearing his face.

Peter was only half right about that. The Demon did a good job playing the part, but its Agency was involved in sabotage on an unprecedented scale. One night, they actually hurt the God-Machine. Not damaged it, not destroyed Infrastructure. They stabbed God and made it bleed, but such a victory demanded sacrifices. The Cover that was Peter vanished - sacrificed so a Demon could have the power to fight again another day.

The catch is that Peter made his Soul Pact in an alternate timeline. The Peter Westen living in the house right now is the genuine article, not a Cover. He’s never encountered the supernatural, has his regular nine-to-five and sings his babies to sleep each night. There, however, is a second Peter watching over the family - the one who has taken over the house.

Peter’s Echo doesn’t know exactly how he came into being. He remembers the showdown with God Machine where his Nemesis went Loud and shredded his identity. He remembers the Demon he made a Soul Pact with and hates all Unchained as a result. He gained consciousness as an Echo years before he had any inkling of the supernatural before anything went wrong. From what little he has been able to glean, he suspects the God-Machine reset the timeline to an earlier date to save itself, but hell if he knows if it intended for his Echo to go back in time as well. It could have been a coincidence and sheer luck he got thrown into the past, or he could have been deliberately sent to act as a spanner in the works.

Peter’s Echo doesn’t care what the truth is. He only cares about ensuring his family is safe and that he doesn’t make the same stupid mistakes all over again. He Claimed the House, ensuring he is always there when they need him, but takes great efforts not to scare or use Embeds in front of his family unless he absolutely must. Other Peter, however, gets no such special treatment. The Echo takes great care not to be overt, but he has zero qualms about using its abilities to manipulate his past self — although the Echo looks at it as saving him from himself.

Peter's House, Echo Claimed
Rank: 3
Vice: Overprotective
Virtue: Loyal
Aspirations: Keep Other Peter out of trouble, kill his nemesis, protect the rest of the family
Anchors: Other Peter, his children, his nemesis
Attributes: Intelligence 3, Wits 2, Resolve 4; Strength 8, Dexterity 1, Stamina 6; Presence 3, Manipulation 4, Composure 2

Structure: 32
Willpower: 6
Size: 30
Initiative: +4
Armor/Durability: 2

Embeds: Associate and Integrate, Ellipses, Knock-Off, Shift Consequences
Dread Power: Claimed Might
Influences: Anchors 3
Essence: 20
Ban: Cannot harm members of its family.
Bane: An axe wielded by a person Other Peter owes money to.

New Dread Power - Claimed Might: Peter's House adds Rank instead of Skills to his dice pool when activating Embeds.