Offices of Panzersoft
San Jose, California
Tonya Knox hated the cover identity Senior Director Claus Rayner had thrust upon her. John Dugan, his previous deputy, kept a rotation of choice roles in the government sector. The Old Man had made her his secretary. She was in line to be a Director herself, yet here she was forced to do minor errands. She wasn't stupid. She knew that this not only kept her close and under thumb, but also was meant to be insulting and demeaning.
She walked into Rayner's office and stood, waiting for him to acknowledge her presence as he worked on his computer. He continued working, ignoring her, another favorite game of his. Exasperated at being ignored she gave a little cough.
"If you have a respiratory problem, feel free to take some time off, Tonya, we can get along quite fine without you, I assure you," Rayner replied dryly, not even bothering to look up.
"No, sir, I came with news," Tonya began.
"About the mercenary team I sent to Canada? What is their current position?" Rayner asked as he continued to stare at his screen only verbally acknowledging her.
"No, sir, I have other news. There is a highly visible deviance outbreak in Los Angeles. Due to the visibility and containment issues it requires a Director's clearance to proceed with containment. I've sent the details to your device," Tonya said.
"Well, I better take a look," Rayner said picking up his pad from the corner of the desk. "That doesn't answer the question of how my mercenary force is doing. What is their current situation?" Rayner asked while pulling up the data Knox had sent him.
"I don't know, sir, this is the only priority that has come though, so I don't think anything interesting has occurred," Tonya said in a dismissive tone.
"Your job isn't to keep track of what you think is interesting, Miss Knox," Rayner said finally looking up at her. "Your job, your only purpose in this organization is to keep track of what I think is interesting. If you can't fulfill that purpose, I will dispense with you and find someone who will be attentive to their duties."
"Yes, sir," Tonya said, struggling not to grind her teeth in frustration. It was irritating to be talked down to like a child. Still, this was her part to play, and the old man was currently head of the costume department in this little show.
Rayner flicked his wrist and the pad projected a 3D hologram of the area under watch. Already, sniper teams were moving on the tops of the skyscrapers of downtown L.A. The hologram also displayed the weapons they were armed with and a potential cover story. The weapons they had brought would generate an incendiary effect at the site of the target. With a little work and some planted evidence, it would appear the group causing this Wyld surge had faulty pyrotechnic effects installed. Something which had caused more than a few musicians injury in the past. A ready made and believable cause of death. As they were watching, however, two men stormed into the crowd causing some sort of disruption.
Claus taped his pad and spoke into it. "Hold the attack. I want to see how this goes," he said communicating directly with the men in the field. He placed his elbows on his desk and leaned forward to get a better look at the minute drama before him.
Tonya was surprised but stood mute while the altercation unfolded.
At the Parade
Five band members were busy pumping out modernized remixes of various metal classics as Jesus strode along, muscling enchanted people out of the way and making a path for Kashi who focused on the Float and Band. Kashi was concerned. The people appeared to be in a manic, drugged induced state. They were so fixated on the band that they would not turn their eyes away to start a fight, contrary to the stereotypical genre of "concert" on display. At being shoved out of the way, most simply muttered a few insults and protested, all of which was quickly forgotten the moment Jesus and Kashi were past and no longer jostling them.
"This is creepy as shit," Kashi said.
"Yeah, mind warping power are the worst," Jesus agreed. While the float had been active for some time, its slow speed down the street had yet to pick up a more than a couple hundred at most. The heat from the bodies was, as of yet, not unbearable, and they soon found themselves about ten yards from the mobile stage when the band took note of them.
The lead singer leaned forward to get a look at those causing the disturbance. The band seemed to be following in the tradition of masked performers like Slipknot and Gwar, complete with elaborate costumes. He paused singing to yell over the discordant music. "What the shit is this?"
"Your worst nightmare, pal! Your shitty music magic doesn't work on me and I'm here to shut you down," Kashi yelled back.
A murmur reverberated through the crowd. Kashi ran forward but arms started grabbing him. The lead singer laughed, yelling into the microphone. "This asshole is trying to end the show. He's trying to stop your FUN!"
The murmur deepened and the crowd grew more desperate. What had initially been a few hands on his arms and clothes became dozens clinging to Kashi's legs and arms. Kashi started shoving and bowling people over but the crowd grew increasingly maddened as he slowly advanced single steps at a time. They began to dogpile on top of him, grabbing anything they could, even each other, to stop the young Solar. The press of the bodies was smothering. The Dawn Caste responded by channeling his power to increase his strength, which, in turn, caused the sunburst sigil on his brow to appear and a light glow to envelop him.
"Oh, big man, hiding behind a crowd! I'll fight you all five at once! I don't care," Kashi shouted as he struggled to shoulder his way forward.
The lead singer had crouched down at the edge of the stage. He was watching Kashi as he tried to advance. The Fae had his right hand, which held his microphone, resting over his left knee. He wore a mocking expression. "Nah, that's okay, we'll have to pass," he said.
Kashi blinked and gritted his teeth as more and more people began to bar his path. "What?! Are you too scared to face me man to man?" Kashi said, his anima brightening with his efforts to make his way forward.
"That's right," the lead singer said.
"Wait, what?" Kashi asked momentarily shocked into a standstill.
"Yeah, you'd just kill us if you got up here. We're not idiots. I don't know what you are, but you're fucking dangerous. I can smell it on you," the guitarist said.
"If you don't face me, you're cowards!" Kashi spat in frustration.
"Damn straight we are. You're obviously powerful and confident to try to take on all of us at once. Not to mention that glow you got glowing there. It's suspiciously like a Manifested...but different. We wouldn't want to tangle with a Manifested, not even with a normal one. Nah, I think we'll pass and let the crowd do you in for us. Even if you kill the few hundred we have here, we can get a thousand or more. There's plenty to take their place in the next few blocks."
Kashi was mentally stunned. This was not how this was supposed to go. Bad guys were supposed to have pride, ego. They needed to keep up their rep and street cred, not pussy out when called on their bull. Kashi was sure if they did that, their followers would break and realize they weren't worth following. He looked around wildly to see if the crowd was responding to this admission. He looked to see if their leaders cowardice and careless disregard for them had registered. The same worshipful gazes filled their eyes. These weren't normal followers of a leader. These were thralls. Those close at hand looked fearfully at Kashi, but were still determined to stop him from advancing.
The drummer didn't stop the beat but called out to the others, "I'll bet you five souls he kills fifty before they wear him down."
"Seventy five," the keyboardist shouted
"One-ten," called out the bass player
"Nah, two-fifteen," the guitarist said. "Plus a few on the next block"
"None. He's gonna run like a little bitch. He's not ready to kill anyone," the lead singer mocked.
Kashi snarled in fury. His anima flared again and those closest to him actually took a step back. The unnatural fear effect of his terrifying aura shook them from their stupor, but they found themselves unable to retreat further, instead they were pushed forward by others. The crowd scrambled over each other and people found themselves crushed and trampled. They called for help, but no one heeded their pleas. Jesus fired his gun at the stage but the band ducked away. A shimmering energy formed like a heat haze to protect them, stopping the bullet as they picked up the tempo of their music. The band threw their heads back, laughing and the singer took up the next verse.
Kashi grabbed Jesus' arm and made a mad scramble backwards. While resolute in not allowing Kashi to press forward, some in the crowd blinked in confusion. They had not been ordered to pursue him and the aura of menace about him did much to dissuade them from following.
"We almost had them," Jesus cried out in anger.
"If we pressed on, even if we didn't kill anyone, a lot of people would get hurt. Some might have already been hurt or even killed with how they were piling up over each other," Kashi said as he retreated from the parade into the now deserted streets of downtown Los Angeles. It was the first time that Kashi had really noticed that people had simply abandoned their cars. The street was littered with stopped vehicles.
"What now?" Jesus shouted.
"I don't know. When your game plan is not working you come up with another plan and find another way," Kashi stated
"Like what?" Jesus asked.
"IF I KNEW THAT I WOULDN'T BE GOING THIS WAY!" Kashi snapped.
Jesus felt the brush of Kashi's anima and decided not to push the soccer star. He hoped they could come up with something.
Offices of Panzersoft
San Jose, California
"Well that was weird. Some sort of unknown Manifested or perhaps an abnormally colored variation on the known types?" Tanya asked.
"Quite odd indeed," Claus said distractedly. He was lost in thought.
"Well, then, should our own operation continue?" Tonya asked again.
"No. I want to see how this plays out," Claus said his voice distant.
"He fled," Tonya said matter-of-factly.
"A tactical retreat. He's regrouping. That boy won't back down from someone challenging his power and mocking his authority. It's not in his nature. It's not in his blood," Claus said.
"Excuse me, sir?" Tonya asked, growing more confused by the second.
"Yes," Claus said simply.
"I said, excuse me as in I didn't understand your statement," Tonya explained.
"And I said yes, you are excused, as in you can get out," Claus replied, standing for the first time and then gesturing toward the door.
Tonya opened her mouth too say more but seeing the dismissiveness in Rayner's eyes she decided against doing so. She hurried out, closing the door behind her. Perhaps the Old Man had finally given her something she could report back to Autochthon for her true masters.
Claus returned to his seat, and activated his own privacy protections on his pad and made a call. A voice answered on his device. "Facility Manager Dugen here."
Claus swiveled in his chair to look out the glass window. He looked up at the crisp, fall sun in the cloudless sky. "John, we have a situation and a complication here. I need two favors of you. One, pull the records on Kashi Kimura from the hard files and send it to me by secure means," Claus instructed.
"Simple enough and second?" John asked.
"The council's spy is getting to be a problem. She saw something she didn't need to see today. I need a plan to deal with her. Any suggestions?" Claus asked.
"Well, killing her would just raise too many questions. Memory wipes are too detectable. You still have that Black Ops mission running in Canada? That would be a good cover. You could send her to supervise and have your mercs arrange an accident," John suggested.
Claus thought for a moment. "That does have potential. I'd like to find a way to keep her, though. Better the spy you know than a new one you don't. Keep thinking on it while you pull that file, we'll see if we can come up with anything else in the meantime."
Kimura Home
Inglewood, California
Willow had returned to reading her book but had foregone the headphones as she laid on the couch with her head on the armrest. Sayuri was seated in an armchair as she flipped through the limited channels Banyan had on her cheap cable package. She was honest enough with herself to admit she was worried about Kashi out chasing danger. She knew the T.V. was just an excuse to find something to keep her mind off of the situation. Finding nothing that could hold her interest and thus divert her attention, she started wondering what Willow was reading.
"What are you working on Willow?" Sayuri asked.
"Research for music class I have to build up stamina. The director says I can't stay in choir if I can't keep up with the physical demands it entails," Willow explained.
Sayuri nodded. "You know Kashi could probably help you with that. I'm sure he knows all sorts of endurance building exercises."
"I don't want to listen to him complaining about how much of his time I take up or the trouble I cause him," Willow said.
"Willow, are you sure you're not projecting from things he did years ago? No one exists in a state of stasis. People change. I'm sure Kashi would be glad to help you," Sayuri said.
"I seemed to recall his attitude last month when he said the vampire problem which he and James caused was all my fault, but sure, whatever, I'll ask," Willow snapped.
"No, don't bother," Sayuri said with a sigh. "You're in no mood to ask nicely, so you'll do it in an offensive way, that will put him in a bad mood and he'll reject you. That way you can confirm your original view by sabotaging your own efforts at change," Sayuri said with a hint of sternness in her voice.
Willow rolled her eyes. "Ugh! I haven't had conversations this frustrating since mom took me to the temple. Are you sure you're Catholic and not Buddhist?"
"I'm definitely Catholic, but being compared to a Buddhist monk is not at all insulting. When did you go? For that matter, why did you go?" Sayuri asked, trying to change the subject.
"I was seven and started to wonder about spirituality. I mean all the default holidays in the U.S. are vaguely Christian and Nana always talks about Jesus. So, I asked mom about what she believed and she dusted off the shrine over there." She pointed to a clean but small and disused shrine. "Then, she explained, as best she could, about Buddhism, but admitted she hadn't been in years and could be considered, at best, a lapsed Buddhist. So, the next week we took a trip to the temple. I spent the better part of the day arguing with monks about the nature of human existence and came home. Mom took me back twice but I pretty much had decided it wasn't for me on the first trip and she dropped it," Willow explained.
"What exactly did you argue about?" Sayuri asked, trying to visualise a very somber seven year old daring to not only question but argue with a calm, unflappable monk.
"The tenets of Buddhism revolve around extinguishing desire and attachment, freeing oneself of passion and ties to the world. If I care for a cup one day the cup will break and I will be sad that the cup is no more. So I should mildly appreciate the cup knowing it like all things is impermanent and will pass. I should do the same with all things dispelling illusions accepting what is not pining for what I desire to be I should be a placid lake not a stormy ocean." Willow explained.
"I'm no expert but that sounds like a vague summation in some very broad strokes yes." Sayuri admitted.
"Utter bullshit," Willow said.
"How so?" Sayuri asked, genuinely curious.
"If I hold a cup and I don't care about that cup, it's part of the vague meaningless background. It's attachment to things that gives life its meaning and our passion about things that define who we are. If we are passionate about nothing we might as well be nothing. No great person ever lacked passion. Even the Buddhist saints don't make the ascent to nirvana because of their devotion to helping others. Their own beliefs holds that one has to stray from their teachings to do great things and promote their wisdom. So, love the cup when it's here. When it's gone, find another cup. If you hurt because everything that you have has been taken from you, at least you have that pain to remember it by. Don't be the lake. It's boring and pointless. No one is going to remember a lake. Be the storm. At least the storm is memorable," Willow said.
"Is that what you told them? What did they say?" Sayuri asked, a bit surprised.
"That I was only hurting myself and until I realized that, there was no point in continuing to argue," she said with a shrug. "They said they were sad for me for I was destined for a life of pain. I told them that it was better to have a life of pain than no life at all, which is what they had."
"I think I see why you stopped going to the temple. Did you ever go to church with Nana Johnson?" Sayuri asked, trying to lighten the tone
"Nah, I couldn't bring myself to see eye to eye with happy, forgive anything Jesus," Willow quipped
"Ever think of trying Catholicism? We have guilt trip Jesus," Sayuri offered.
"Does anyone have passive-aggressive Jesus?" Willow asked.
"Not sure, but I've meet some sarcastic Rabbis before," Sayuri said.
"Nah. They just have tyrannical dictator God. I've never looked into Hinduism though," Willow said with mock seriousness.
They both chuckled when a knock at the door interrupted their conversation. Sayuri rose to see who was there.
"I'll think about taking to Kashi. I don't know, maybe he'll help without being too big of a pain," Willow admitted.
"I keep telling you people change, Willow," Sayuri said.
"Not at their core. But you have been a good influence on him and that's pretty impressive," Willow admitted with reluctance.
Sayuri looked through the peephole and then back at Willow with confusion. "It's Lucy."
"I thought Jesus said everyone was out of town?" Willow asked.
Sayuri opened the door and a very weary Lucy entered and looked around.
"The boys aren't back yet?" She asked.
Willow put down her book and sat up. "No. Do you know anything?"
"Lucy, I hate to say this, but you look terrible. Are you sure you should be up and about?" Sayuri asked.
"It's been a hard month. I might be tired and I might not be able to fight, but I can at least help the boys plan and try to keep them from getting into worse trouble. As for Willow's question, I talked to James on the phone. He said they are all coming back here. The mission was a wash. The fae tossed the crowd at Kashi and he wasn't about to hurt brainwashed people to get to them," Lucy explained.
"Oh no. That's terrible," Sayuri said, worry creeping into her voice. "That means their power will keep growing."
"It also means Kashi's lost the element of surprise," Lucy said gravely.
"Maybe he should have gone ahead. I mean, he might hurt or kill some now but waiting is just going to put more under their spell isn't it? That's like handing them more hostages," Willow said.
Sayuri looked at Willow in horror, but Lucy gave a sad nod. "Only time will tell. We've lost the element of surprise but if we come up with a better plan he did the right thing. If not, he gambled with future lives and lost. I learned far too long ago it's best not to second guess what is done by anyone, including yourself, in the field. We weren't there and didn't see what Kashi saw and his tactical instincts are pretty good from everything I've seen and heard. His main mistake was not scouting the area himself. I expect as much from Jesus and James but Kashi should have known better than to rely on their shotty intel.
Lucy excused herself and sat down on the couch with a slight grunt. She leaned her head back and closed her eyes sighing deeply. "We still don't know what Kashi can do. Sometimes even he only figures out his powers when he's put in a place where he has to use them. Scouting with his own eyes might have revealed something but that is more on James and Jesus then Kashi... mostly Jesus. He should know better. He thinks of Kashi more as a weapon than a person with his own opinions and it shows. His error in simply pointing Kashi at this problem is proof enough of that," she said sadly.
The sound of a car pulling up sent Sayuri to the door again. She opened it letting James inside but continued to stand by the door. "I see Jesus truck. It's spray painted with a Turkey on it, spread out like a Firebird logo. I can't read the slogan, however."
"Give thanks and send in the tanks," James said. "The sides have turkey infantry storming a defensive line that tanks are breaking for them. His uncle Rod was inspired by the story of what happened on Halloween. So he mixed it in with the Thanksgiving theme. Eccentric guy, but he sure is helpful. He's the one that hooked me up with the Accord. Nice car. Glad to have it really. My Fiesta was on it's last legs even before the vampires used it for a target."
"Rod, like Hotrod?" Willow asked.
"Don't know. He works on cars, so maybe. His name is Rodriguez, but might be both," James explained.
"You were the target, not your car. It just got in the way," Lucy said dryly. "What's an old lady gotta do to get a glass of water around here?"
"Oh gosh, I'm so sorry, Lucy. Do you want anything, James?" Sayuri asked
James shook his head and Willow, taking her cues from Sayuri, quickly ran into the kitchen.
The door flew open and the Soccer Star and the Hunter both walked in, both wearing expressions of defeat. Jesus sighed and rolled his eyes at Lucy before he sat down.
"You're going to have to tell that granddaughter of yours I didn't call you. That maldecido has already threatened to cut my balls off if I called you," Jesus said
"No, she didn't. She's pretty consistent about maintaining you don't have any balls. She threatened to cut your soul into pieces and hand feed you to Satan," Lucy explained.
Jesus rubbed the bridge of his nose "That woman..."
"I already talked to her. Relax, I'm just going to help you plan. I'm so dizzy right now that if I was to go into battle I'd likely just get someone killed," Lucy said with reluctance.
Kashi flopped down into the sofa and started to massage his his right temple with his right index and middle finger in a way Sayuri had seen both his mother and Willow do when troubled. "We have to find some way to break their control. My light show broke a few people free but it wasn't enough. Only those in front seemed to be affected and only when they were attacking me."
"Your power seems to invoke fear in active combatants against you. The Fae's magic looks to fail in the face of other emotion or mind influencing effects or so I'd assume from the cafe," James said.
"Cafe?" Kashi asked.
"Yeah, just before you showed up the parade passed a cafe with outdoor seating. None of the patrons were affected. In fact those from the crowd who strayed near it were broken free. I checked the place. It was playing songs from the Canadian pop star Jay Odele's Sapphire Orchid Dreams CD. It's full of low level, benign, mental commands like introspection, self worth, and not giving into peer pressure. Just regular after school special crap. The theory on is he's a mage, but we're not sure," James explained.
"We could get my uncle to rig up a sound truck. Hell, maybe even that old Ice Cream truck he's got to play that crap and drive right up to the float and jump straight on!" Jesus said.
"Maybe we should see if Jay Odele will help us," Willow suggested, returning to the living room with a glass of water and handing it to Lucy.
"Yeah, let me run off to Canada to get him," Kashi quipped.
"He's not in Canada. He's across town at the Platinum Arms. He has the penthouse suite. He's going to sing at a charity event tomorrow for the homeless," Willow explained.
"That's my dad's hotel!" Sayuri exclaimed.
"How do you know this?" Jesus asked.
"She has this whole stalker crush thing going on about him," Kashi said.
"I have Diamond level membership in his fan club! It sends me alerts when he's doing things because I'm also supposed to have VIP upgrades. If I ever buy tickets to his shows, he's obligated to sign up to one autograph per show or event due to my fan club level. We could use that to get in and talk to him and he could sign my Sapphire Orchid Dreams Poster!" Willow rattled off excitedly.
"I can get us up there. I have a staff elevator key card," Sayuri interjected.
"So wait. We can get in to see the guy who makes the music himself? I mean that sounds like a win for us," James said.
"Who says he'll believe us?" Kashi scoffed.
"He uses magic. He'd be more likely to believe you than most," Lucy added.
"If not, your light show is pretty hard to argue with," Jesus said.
"Sounds like a waste of time to me. He's a creepy little girly boy. He's not going help us," Kashi sighed.
"Jay is all about helping people, Kashi. He's understanding and empathetic like, Sayuri!" Willow exclaimed.
"You mean he sings about being empathetic and helping people. There's a big difference between a stage persona and real life. Also, we aren't sure it isn't a musician or musical editor who is weaving this magic into his songs. Still, this is worth a shot. We don't have any other leads and can keep planning while on the way there," Lucy said.
"I guess," Kashi admitted reluctantly.
"Come on girls. Lucy you can ride with me," James offered.
"Hey! Why do I have to ride in the Chicken Wagon with Jesus?" Kashi snarled.
"Take your motorcycle if you want, but no one is going to want to sit in the back seat with you and Sayuri giving everyone diabetes with your mooning over each other," Willow said as she raced up the stairs to get her membership card and poster.
"I'd say because you're the only one among us that isn't' fed up with Jesus to the point of strangling him right now, so be a trooper Kashi," Lucy added.
With a frown, Kashi headed for the truck, brushing past a glaring Jesus whose ride he had just insulted.
