Recon

I first engaged the enemy overseas. However, since coming to the conclusion that this threat was isolated to other parts of the world; and that my time of service in the army of these "Heralds" that you speak of was over, I have since discovered that my home is also infested. It as if I'm witnessing some wide-scale invasion, needless to say I can assume that I have been conscripted for an indefinate period - or rather, each of us have.

I'm not going to discuss my experiences in detail, I don't want to endanger my identity. No offence intended. My Commanding Officer, or whatever the fuck it is; knows where I am and what I'm doing, therefore I can assume that he will help coordinating those who have been conscripted other than myself.

What I am interested in is sharing detailed reconnaisance I've taken, and what information I've gleaned in the hopes of discovering some kind of weakness I can exploit.

The majority of "them" have looked the same. Something turns inside my gut, my vision is askew for a few minutes - whatever - and my CO confirms what I've seen. From what I gather, my orders are for my ears only; either that or civilians can't hear. I guess it doesn't matter.

However, a few have bore various "distinguishing features;"

A young girl with some kind of see-through "thing" imposed over her.

A thing that appeared to be part man and part beast. Maybe the strangest I've come across yet, when I came across it it seemed to vanish all together.

Finally, a man that had some kind of shadowy fist that belonged to a black mass sitting behing him shoved through the back of his head, working him like a puppet.

Now, I've heard my Priest talk about posession before, and I've seen horror movies before but all the same I'd like to know if anyone else has took down anything that shared any of these "distinguishing featres."

My experiences are similar to yours, but seem to be more focused, vis a vis seeing things that weren't there previously.

To elaborate, a couple of weeks ago I was involved in a house clearence. It was an old place - the work sheet said it was thrown up in the 1830s - and the equally old girl who had been living there previously had just passed away. I won't bore you with the specifics - besides I'm not sure if they are allowed under Witness1's rules - but myself and my crew were tasked with removing what could be auctioned off and doing minor repairs here and there to get the house into a fit state to be put on the market.

It was a big house - three stories and six bedrooms - so we were all pretty much doing our own thing. I was busy in the kitchen tending to the boiler - a mental old piece of copper that desperatly needed some TLC. It was a big job, so the other guys just left me to get on with it. Three hours of grease and sweat later and I was still at it, and that's when it happened.

I've read on these forums of people hearing voices that commanded them to "destroy this" or "save that" but that's not how it happened for me. The room was simply filled be a terrible stench, like curdled milk. That may sound minor but this smell it came out of NOWHERE! As my stomach churned I became aware of a figure in the doorway. Thinking it was one of the guys I asked what the smell was, but I got no reply. I was about to ask again when it came at me. It was odd - everything seemed to slow down and this black shadow flowed across the room to where I was, arms outstretched. There was a space where it's mouth should have been and it seemed to be trying to say something but I couldn't hear a single sound. What I did know - and this is hard to explain but I've seen similar posts on here so I think you'll know where I'm coming from - was that there was a bad vibe coming from it. It felt unnatural and wrong, like it didn't belong here.

I don't know if it was the way the thing was acting, or all the shit I've had to deal with recently but all the fear I should have been feeling seemed to evaporate and I grabbed the nearest tool and hurled it with all my might. It tore through the shadow figure and landed with a thud on the floor behind it. As I reached for another thing to throw I noticed that the shadow was writhing, almost like it was in pain, before it spread out across the floor and vanished. Just for good measure I fetched the floor a healthy smack but it seemed to be gone.

I have since been back at that house three or four times and on all occassions I've seen this thing skulking around inside - and every time it's felt wrong to me.

I need to do something about this but I really don't have much of a plan other than walking in there and whacking it. I won't lie to you - I'm bloody scared by what's happened but I know that I have to do something about this. No one else can see it but I know if I just turn the other cheek something bad's going to happen.

Do any of you have any pointers?

> besides I'm not sure if they are allowed under Witness1's rules


They aren't. The less you say about yourself, the better. So skip the details, since nobody gives a fuck anyway.

Nice story, by the way.

Get used to seeing tl;dr around here, O Henry.



> Do any of you have any pointers?

Sounds like a ghost. Some Imbued have the ability to light weapons on fire in a special way. Find one of them. Those psychos would be just thrilled to take care of your little spook. I hear that douchebag Crusader17 is always looking for something new to cleanse in GAWD'S HO-LEE NAYAM! Halle-fucking-lujah.

To: hunter.list@hunter-net.org
From: traveler72
Subject: re: recon

Don't mind Rigger's bad attitude, folks. He seems to have a problem with his mouth-to-brain filter these days. He is right though, you don't want to be giving out too much information about yourselves. This is actually the second Hunter-net site. By the numbers after your handles, I'm guessing you're too new to have seen the old one. Well, some bad things happened on that site, and alot of weirdness. In the end, we lost a couple of real good people for The Cause because a monster got ahold of personal information about them. So please try to be careful about what details you may let slip.

To answer some of you questions, I can add a few bits, but unfortunately not much. Sorry for the cut and paste, but I figure you don't want to be confused about who I'm responding to...


> The majority of "them" have looked the same. Something turns inside my gut, my vision is askew for a few
> minutes - whatever - and my CO confirms what I've seen. From what I gather, my orders are for my ears
> only; either that or civilians can't hear. I guess it doesn't matter.


We call this "The Second Sight" or just "The Sight", for the most part. It works a little bit differently for each individual, but has the same goal every time... it shows you monsters. Some folks get a sick feeling, others get visual cues and some like me only get a sensation that can only be described as a "wrongness" about a specific thing. I can't begin to explain the intent behind these feelings we get, except maybe to speculate that the Heralds want us to make our own mind up as to what we should be doing when we see a Monster. I guess everyone has their own philosophy and the Heralds can't change those, no matter what other switches they may turn on in our heads.

> A young girl with some kind of see-through "thing" imposed over her.

Sounds like a possessor. That would likely be a ghost who's controlling the poor kid for some reason. Killing the kid won't stop the ghost. You're going to have to either talk it out of her, make her an inhospitable target in some way, or as Rigger suggested, get someone like that Jared guy from on television who can make flame a weapon or make the Cleave.

> A thing that appeared to be part man and part beast. Maybe the strangest I've come across yet, when I
> came across it it seemed to vanish all together.

Might be a werewolf, but I never heard of them disappearing into thin air before. Can't tell you much otherwise, except to try silver bullets on it and do NOT try to fight it hand-to-hand.

> Finally, a man that had some kind of shadowy fist that belonged to a black mass sitting behing him
> shoved through the back of his head, working him like a puppet.

Maybe another possessor. I can't say for certain though, since I've never seen anything fitting that description before.

> I need to do something about this but I really don't have much of a plan other than walking in there and
> whacking it. I won't lie to you - I'm bloody scared by what's happened but I know that I have to do
> something about this. No one else can see it but I know if I just turn the other cheek something bad's
> going to happen.

> Do any of you have any pointers?

Sometimes, a ghost is harmless. I haven't seen many like that though. If this one is pissed that it's house is gonna change hands, then it'll be a threat to the new owners. You can try talking to it. Sometimes that gets them to move on peacefully, but not always... and in most cases it just pisses them off more. Alot of the talkers like Driver300, Potter116 and Bookworm55 have had SOME luck with talking though, so it may be worth a shot.

If not, then you do have to get rid of it. You can do that a couple ways. First is the Cleave. It's one of our Edges that some of us get. If you got it, it will allow you to hurt intangible spirits with stuff like clubs or swords or baseball bats. I heard about this one hunter down in Texas who uses old pieces of rebar from salvage sites, since it's cheap and the rebar lasts awhile without exploding on him. Whatever the case, if you got the Cleave, you're lucky. If not, then it's a lot harder.

If that doesn't do it, you can look for these things we call "Anchors". Objects that are important to a ghost. Sometimes, the Second Sight shows them as being wrong. Other times, another Edge that I like to call "Witness" will detect a weird glow around them. And an Edge that Bookworm calls "Illuminate" maks a funky colored aura appear around them. This method ain't foolproof though... it doesn't ALWAYS show an Anchor, but it's worth a try. Once you find the Anchor... and there might be more than one... then you only have one thing you can do. Destroy it. If you get all the Anchors, you get rid of the ghost.

I don't like destroying ghosts. The poor bastards are only trying to get back something real important that they lost. So I really hope this one goes peacefully for you. Good luck, let us know how it turns out for you.

Don't get me wrong here capricorn, it wasn't my intention to start some kind of fucking homosexual "show me yours and I'll show you mine" thread here. You got a message from on high, thats as much as matters - this is war, not some classroom for liberals and elite intellectuals to talk about what the Heralds are, or why they conscripted each of us.

At any rate, thanks for the advice Traveller. I'll seek out a soldier with these weapons you've mentioned.

As an aside, I think I did encounter something like what you're talking about capricorn. A great big shadow thing, that I'm guessing was a ghost - except it seemed to have a number of people under it's control. In this case, normal ammunition seemed more than adequate; and fire to burn down the building resolved the issue permanently.

Rigger and Traveler, thanks for the advice. I'm swinging by the house tonight so I'll post an update on what I find. Strangely enough I think I may be able to do something similar to this "cleave" that you mention Traveler, but only when I throw things. When I'm holding an object it feels normal, but when I throw it at something it somehow seems to become more potent and destructive. Maybe I'm just doing it wrong.

Buck, lose the attitude will you? I wanted to get something off my chest and your post seemed like as good a jumping off point as any. I'm certainly not interested in any debate, only facts. Debate and conjecture mean that something's not known, and when that's the case any incoming advice could get the person trying to act on it killed. I'm sure there's seperate threads for that.

Again, thanks for the advice guys - it's nice to know there are people out there more experienced than me that aren't just fumbling around in the dark.

To: hunter.list@hunter-net.org
From: soldier91
Subject: re: recon

No offence intended. My Commanding Officer, or whatever the fuck it is; knows where I am and what I'm doing, therefore I can assume that he will help coordinating those who have been conscripted other than myself.

Be very careful with others who know what you can do. You didn't specify if your commanding officer was one of us or one of them, but either way there is a danger in being known. If he's one of them then the danger should be obvious. If he's one of us it's more subtle, but can be just as deadly.

Leaving the service prematurely was one of the hardest decisions I ever made, but the call is more important then our personal desires. If you think you can do good staying more power to you, but be prepared to bolt at a moments notice. Dead hunters don't save lives.

I need to do something about this but I really don't have much of a plan other than walking in there and whacking it. I won't lie to you - I'm bloody scared by what's happened but I know that I have to do something about this. No one else can see it but I know if I just turn the other cheek something bad's going to happen.

Do any of you have any pointers?

Ghosts can be tricky, but you are probably right to think that something bad will happen if you do nothing. It's always best to trust your gut in instances like this. Depending on where this building is fire tends to be a great equalizer, if this would cause too much collateral damage and you can't find a talker to find out what the thing wants I have to agree with Traveler.

Hey Traveler? Go fuck yourself.

You kiddies paying attention? THIS is how you go about telling off another hunter you don't feel like listening to. Skip the hoo-rah and bullshit, especially the gay jokes since half the fucking list are bum-blasting anal jockeys, and get right to the point. That point being that you don't give a fuck either, just like everyone else.

Now, listen close, Sunshine-

Speculation and conjecture is KEY to our survival. I'd rather slag anything stupid enough to trigger The Sight or that the Messengers tell me needs killing, but without theory to start the ball rolling, we don't get practice. Yeah, I'm just what my name implies, a fucking glorified tinker-toy builder. But I'm not a stupid tinker-toy bulder. That's why I'm still alive while guys with lower numbers than me are pushing up daisies. So face the facts- you're both fucking pylons, and neither fucking one of you should be telling ANYONE to STFU. Open your eyes, kiddies. This isn't a dick measuring contest or a fucking training maneuver. No fucking metaphor or double entendre is going to change the simple fact that this is kill or be killed. Piss on each others' Cheerios some other time, like when the guys with 700 and some change after their handle start filing in six months from now.

Rigger's right, speculation, conjecture and discussion are absolutely crucial to our existence. However, it would be foolish to suggest that the only application of our shared knowledge is to find better ways to speed along the annihilation of those that our Sight reveals to us. There is something bigger happening here - we have clearly been imbued with some purpose in mind - and to assume that our sudden appearence is merely a precurser to us serving as "creation's janitors" (as I believe Carpenter169 once put it) is niave in the extreme.

It is extremely important that we discuss and examine every facet of our existence with a view to discovering the Heralds true intentions for us. I for one am more than willing to engadge in discourse with those who believe they have something of value to contribute.

Solider, thanks for the information - we seem to be on the same page. I can understand that leaving the service for good would be difficult, but we must do what we must do in order to survive. To clarify, since my "Imbuing" I seem to have been assigned some kind of Commanding Officer; no I don't know their identity, whether they're one of us or not - all I know is that they constantly "talk" directly into my head. Constantly.

I've received "orders" (if you can call them that, visions, voices, sounds) whilst being near or around others who haven't heard the "call" (or whatever), which has led me to beleive these orders are directly for my ears only.

Sixofswords, do you have any idea of what is going on, if something bigger? To me it has seemed as clear as daylight ever since I was conscripted:

After reading what Bookworm has posted, it would seem clear that each of us have been conscripted due to the unique skills each of us posess, that will better assist us in a specific battlefield role. Furthermore, it would seem that each of us have been equipped to fulfill that role.

To: hunter.list@hunter-net.org
From: traveler72
Subject: re: recon

> I've received "orders" (if you can call them that, visions, voices, sounds) whilst being near or around
> others who haven't heard the "call" (or whatever), which has led me to beleive these orders are directly
> for my ears only.

Violin99 mentions something similar in a number of his old posts to the first list. He claimed that whenever he is near a monster he gets a number of voices and sounds in his head. Mostly screaming, he complained in alot of posts. Maybe you have the same sensitivity to the Messengers that he has. He calls his problem "The Static" and used to caution folks that it can completely paralyze him at times. He also used it as an (in my opinion smart) excuse for not actively Hunting, but instead just observing monsters from a distance.

to: hunter.list@hunter-net.org
from: god45
subject: re: recon


> Sixofswords, do you have any idea of what is going on, if something bigger?


It is obvious. Humanity has risen up against a spreading sickness that it can no longer tolerate. At last, we have developed the means to destroy that which has held us back from truly becoming the society that we should be. How we remove this cancer is the only question of consequence, although many more will and should be asked. Understand, however, that everything else that is asked is simply the means to that end.

I'm glad that someone else on this list can see the bigger picture.

when the guys with 700 and some change after their handle start filing in six months from now.

Oh hey, am I early? And here I've been keeping my big mouth shut till I got some frigging idea what the fuck is going on...

Get fucked, smart-ass. In case you just fell off the short bus and couldn't figure it out, I was alluding to the fact that Hunters have a high turn-over rate. The fact that you're here already says that either the Messengers have stepped up the production line, or there's alot more dead pylons out there.

I got your point.

Try layering them in less bad language, sonny, and you might find folk are more willing to listen rather than take the piss.

Just because you've got a gun doesn't mean you have to be an asshole - and it doesn't make you a better shot.

To: hunter.list@hunter-net.org
From: traveler72
Subject: re: recon


Rigger: You think you could maybe lay off a bit, man? Seems like everytime someone new shows up you make it a point of pride to be the Unwelcome Wagon. Stop being a fucking punk and just relax, huh?

Shotgun: Yeah, man. You are a little early. Last time some of us checked, there was about 390 on the list. To see that we're up to almost 800 now is a littled disconcerting for some of us I'd day. I'm sure there's all kinds of fires lit under certain asses trying to figure out the implications and signs that seeing guys like you already are going to bring. If you got a story to tell or a 'report' to make, don't be shy. Information exchange is the main point of this site. Don't let big dogs with nasty barks shy you off.

Buck: I usually don't get into debates about our purpose. Reason being, I can only speak for myself. Not for everyone. My purpose is to make what time I have count, and to help people where I can. If that means getting information, fine. If that means putting down a moster who's hurting other folks, also fine. This "Soldiers of God/Humanity/The Light/Aliens/Yo Mamma" or whatever doesn't fly with me. I believe what I want to believe is right for me. Alot of other folks believe that too. There's nothing stopping you from making your philosophy known, but keep in mind that forcefeeding people tends to make them want to puke after they've got a full stomach.

Your way works for you, and that's good. But don't exclude others just because they don't buy into your line. Someday, you may come to this list asking for back-up, and if you piss on someone now, they may not be willing to get your back when the time comes.

Capricorn: You're welcome. Sorry for not mentioning that before. Hope it works out.

> Try layering them in less bad language, sonny, and you might find folk are more willing to listen
> rather than take the piss.

Who the fuck are you, Mary Motherfucking Poppins? Do you want to know what you're trying to kill, or do you want to stand around here eating tea and scones while having a fucking ettiquette lesson? GTFO my internet.

> Just because you've got a gun doesn't mean you have to be an asshole - and it doesn't make you
> a better shot.

I'm an asshole because my number is 111, while yours is 777. You've seen all of what? A couple rots and maybe a bloodfuck? Come back and give me shit after you've barbequed a couple of Flickers on an oil tanker if you still want to give me shit, you fucking pylon. At least then we'll have something in common.

Just an FYI: Half the time, guns don't put these fuckers down. Most of us use them for show. Yeah, hard to swallow, I'm sure. Put a spoonful of sugar on it and it'll go down better, amirite?

> Rigger: You think you could maybe lay off a bit, man? Seems like everytime someone new shows
> up you make it a point of pride to be the Unwelcome Wagon. Stop being a fucking punk
> and just relax, huh?

Fuck you, Traveler. You and I still need to settle up on your bullshit up in Vancouver. So don't give me no shit, or I'll spread around what you did, you fucking pussy.

to: hunter.list@hunter-net.org
from: soldier91
subject: recon

Don't mind Rigger, his mommy didn't hug him enough.

To: hunter.list@hunter-net.org
From: traveler72
Subject: re: recon

> Fuck you, Traveler. You and I still need to settle up on your bullshit up in Vancouver. So don't give
> me no shit, or I'll spread around what you did, you fucking pussy.

Kiss my ass, Rigger. I didn't do anything wrong in Vancouver. It was that fucked up freak Fisher you were with who couldn't just leave it alone and get the job done. You ain't holding this shit over my head, you jumped up little honkey prick. Cut the shit already.