Session 14 - Hand in Unlovable Hand

The Vespertine Order is looking for the Vault of the Lost Hour. Blood Prince told us to look for Lavondra, who is staying at a DoubleTree hotel in the Fade. We have Fynlan send a spirit to tail her, she never goes anywhere other than the Church of Midnight. We rent the room next to hers. Simone uses magic to let Gwyn pass through walls; he searches in the room, finds some stuff that we loot, as well as a note from the Vespertine Order telling her to let her dupes open the Vault on Thursday. We do some investigation, and determine that the key to the vault of the last hour is what they've been looking in the graves for. Also, the Vault of the Last Hour is also in the in the Orchard of Mausoleums in the Confederacy of Cloisters.
 
Locke suggests that they split up; Gwyn to the Orchard of Mausoleums, Locke back to Fartown to find the Key, Simone and Fynlan to deal with the Church of Midnight and warn them that somebody is using them as dupes.
 
I divine the location of the grave then go out there and skulk around. It's in a small private plot, and I just hop the fence and go in.
 
Gwyn looks for the Vault, and is pretty sure he finds it.
 
Simone and Fynlan meet with a high ranking member of the Church of Midnight, and tell them they've been infiltrated by the Vespertine Order.
 
I dig up the grave of Doug Benson. In it, I find that the corpse has a tattoo with a bit of a phrase on it. I use Feed Upon Text to consume the tattoo. I then go hang out with Gwyn, using Witch Sight to spy on the grave of Doug Benson.
 
During the Night, I see Lavandra and her goons search the grave. Frustrated, Lavandra uses Magic of the Enemy... some kind of compel/control spell.
 
The next day we meet up and share notes. The Church of Midnight sends Simone a note saying that Lavandra escaped, but the others have been nuked, including Sebastian.
 
On Thursday night we are hanging at the Vault when Ynfalosa, the leader of the Church of Midnight, and her two minions show up, to be backup. We continue with the stakeout.
 
Lavondra and her mooks show up. She and Fynlan share words and then combat starts. When Lavondra is killed, she turns into a big smudge in the air. We are all HELD by an incredibly powerful effect as we are directly confronted by the Enemy. (+1 despair)
 
Lavondra monologues, about how we could have let it happen, but instead now it has to be the hard way, or something like that. Gwyn breaks free, and kills her.
 
In the end, it all came down to that. We go back to the Blood Prince and celebrate our momentary victory. (+1 acumen for defeating Lavandra, +2 for keeping the vault from opening).
 
+1 despair for the pointlessness, the uselessness, the worthlessness of trying to manage the knowledge in Doug Benson's tattoo, and in so doing, being completely pointless in the confrontation with Lavondra