Chapter 10 : Thou shall know my name…

Judith, Faramir and Thor had sought refuge in the home of Thor's friends. Now it was up to them to locate the others and Judith sat there with a note book in her hand. It was small and black and contained a long row of phone numbers but there were no names attached to them. Thor stared at it. "What is that?"

Judith swallowed and grimaced. "I have learned to be careful alright? I do have a very good memory and I don't need to write down the names of my friends. I know which phone number each person owns."

Beorn had taken off to "organize some stuff" and Thor was getting restless. The news were telling of some rather odd reactions among the people. They had been ready to storm the police station in anger of the in their eyes too gentle treatment of the criminals but now the attitude had taken an abrupt 180 degrees turn. When they learned through Lobelia that the police in fact had been controlled and ordered around by strangers the men and women in blue became heroes once more and Thor knew that any agents who happened to be out there now would be in great trouble. People would keep their eyes open and if someone did try to do something which could be interpreted as an act of hostility towards the police force they had it coming.

Judith wrote down some of the phone numbers and found the phone Thor had gotten. She smiled faintly. "I have no idea of whether or not I am right here, but I think I can guess where almost everybody are."

Thor frowned. "I didn't know that you knew all the investigators that well?"

She smiled faintly. "I do, it is my job to notice things and I do, even when the people I am surrounded by are alive still"

Faramir chuckled and she sent him a rather sharp glance. "Hush you, my job is no less important than that of you agents. I find the final evidence, the cause of death!"

Thor knew that Judith was very proud of her job and she always did her very best. He saw that she dialled a number and waited for a moment. A gruff voice answered at the other end and she made her voice rather soft. "Excuse me, but is Hernando there?"

Thor frowned, Hernando?! What the fuck? The voice sounded a bit relieved when it rather briskly told her that there were nobody there by that name. She smiled. "Oh, I am sorry, but I am working at the coroner's office and have a message for the biggest chimney there is in this town, "if you don't quit polluting the U.N will make you pay a huge fine" I hope that message gets through? It is as clear as Brightwater and Updale glass"

Thor held his breath, the street the station was on was named Brightwater street and straight across it was a small shop named Updale glass. He knew what she was trying to do.

The voice at the other end was replaced by one they knew, this was Fernando for sure and he was coughing lightly. "Judith? Is that you? Bloody hell, what is going on?"

She swallowed. "Listen, I don't have time to explain now, but can you find us? Do you know where the others may be? In that case contact them, we need to gather and make a plan"

Fernando sounded a bit exasperated but he was obviously thinking fast. "I may know where Duke and Leonard are, I can try to call them"

Judith nodded. "Do it, and ask them to come here too. We are at the friends of Thor's wife's place, Roseberry street 87"

Fernando did cough again. "Will do"

Thor heard him hang up and he made a grimace. "I know where Albert is hiding, it is a secret of ours, he has a small fishing cabin."

Judith smiled and gave him the phone. "Does it have phone reception?"

Thor took a deep breath. "It does, he will recognize my voice"

He did take the phone and went behind a wall for a few seconds, they heard him speak and then he returned. "He will be coming, eventually"

She sat down again and crossed her legs. "Who else do we need?"

Faramir shrugged. "Bard and Thran of course? They were heading for Bard's mother in law's place"

Judith was thinking. "I have no idea of whether or not they are there still. What about Elisa?"

Thor looked nervous. "She is absolutely in danger, she does know a lot and she is too unafraid to back off. How did you contact her?"

Judith shrugged. "An old Fax machine, I doubt that they will be tapping into that"

The couple who lived in the house entered the living room, both looked a bit shocked. "Guys, the news….they think something have happened outside of the city, the seismographs have picked up one hell of a tremor, 4.9 on the Richter scale. Something must have been blown up"

Thor went pale, he almost sank down. "Oh Gods, Thran and Bard…."

Judith swallowed hard. "Listen, we don't know if it was something related to them at all, it could be something else all together. "

Faramir was wild eyed and Thor looked as if he was about to piss himself, he was trembling all over. "Can we get there? "

Judith rolled her eyes. "Of course not! The others may be coming right? If we show up there we will be like sitting ducks, do you want to blow our cover completely?"

Faramir suddenly looked as if he had discovered the light for the first time and that it had been burning right under his hose the entire time. "Judith, didn't Elisa have a hacker friend, what was his name?"

Judith frowned and looked uncertain. "Uh…I don't know?"

Thor sighed. "Erestor, his name is Erestor. But I don't know if that is his real name"

Faramir got up and ran out into the kitchen, came back with a laptop, "This belongs to the kids, nothing but games and home work on it, nothing they can track us by."

He opened a tab and started typing, Judith stared at him. "What are you doing?"

Faramir looked as if he was focusing completely upon his task. "Trying to contact him, there are channels on the net which the hackers use to communicate. Please, is there something I can use to confirm that we are Elisa's friends and not the enemy?"

Thor was thinking fast. "She has a stuffed toy, a my little pony. It is pink and blue and she has named it Mr fluffles, she used to bring it to work the first years she worked here"

Faramir typed and then he raised his hands. "Right, it is all up to him now, we can just wait"

Judith still looked very confused. "What are you doing?"

He smiled. "We have Sat's out there haven't we? I bet we can get a look at the action from above?"

Thor gaped. "Are you nuts?! You cannot turn a multi billion dollar surveillance Sat just to take a look at the site of an explosion?!"

Faramir grinned, a wide and wicked grin. "Oh? I cannot? Watch me! If I get in contact with this Erestor dude I can give him the codes. I bet there are many interested in seeing the truth of what happened."

Thor just shook his head and Judith looked mildly optimistic. "Faramir, the Sat's, they do also have thermal camera's right?"

He nodded, "Yes, so?"

She took a deep breath. "We can use them to check if anybody is alive down there?"

Faramir sort of grimaced. "Now there is a rather small chance it will work but we can try, if Erestor is online that is"

Judith sighed. "Let us hope that he is, he must have seen the news like all others?"

Faramir made a vague gesture. "Who knows? Hackers often have a somewhat weak connection to reality"

Thor was about to say something when there was a pling coming from the Laptop and Faramir sat down again. "So, what is up? I understand that you guys are in shit up to your necks."

Faramir did read it out loud and he became frantic, typed back. "Yes, Elisa is missing, and something bad happened outside of the city just a while ago, we need to look at it, it could be connected to two of our friends. Can you access the Sat control?"

Erestor was quiet for a few seconds. "It is nice to finally meet someone capable of understanding and appreciating my talent, a good day to you Agent Faramir."

Faramir did wet his lips. "How do you know who I am?!"

The answer came immediately. "Duh, I am a hacker, and the laptop you are on have a webcam? I can see your sorry asses, not that your ass is sorry Miss, it is rather perky"

Judith blushed and hissed. Faramir sighed. "Can you help us? We need to find Elisa, and Bard and Thran. It could be that she has tried to find them"

Erestor typed back. "Brave girl ha? She has brass balls the size of church bells that one, too bad she often acts before she thinks. Let me see what I can do, I will be back in five!"

Faramir smiled. "He will be back in five. That must be good right?"

Thor crossed his arms. "Let us hope so."

It took seven minutes, then the laptop did pling once more and Faramir looked eager. "Listen up slackers, there are people watching Elisa's house, and Thor's as well. I do also see some dudes with surveillance equipment in the area around the station. I think there may be a mobile base somewhere in the city, probably a van of some sorts"

Faramir looked flabbergasted. "How do you know this?"

Erestor typed back. "Surveillance cameras? Hello? They are everywhere and there for the taking. I can hack anything remember? Do you want me to find that mobile base?"

Faramir typed. "Yes, yes please, Do it"

The answer was quick. "On it"

Thor was obviously impressed. "Damn it, he is good!"

Judith winced. "Scary is what he is, imagine that power? Everything is digital these days, guys like him can quite literally erase your entire life!"

Faramir nodded. "Good thing he is working for us then!"

There was a silence which lasted for about then minutes, then he was back. "They have a base near the station yes, it is a black van parked in one of the parking houses, they are trying to find you guys, my oh my are they frustrated, and pissed too. Some agents just went missing, I bet it has to do with the explosion"

Judith took a deep breath. "Ask him about the Sat's?"

Faramir did and a new tab opened, it showed the entire area from above and as they sat there it zoomed in. "You are in luck, one of the Sat's of the geological survey are above you right now, they are redirecting it as we speak, they fear it could have been something seismic which caused that tremor"

The city became visible and then the camera angle changed a bit and aimed at the area south of the city. It continued to zoom in and Faramir asked. "Are you controlling it now?"

The answer came right away. "Hell yeah"

Judith frowned. "Frisky guy"

Thor smiled. "Yes, and arrogant. But he has reason to be"

The camera revealed a huge area which was completely flattened and smouldering and in the middle was a crater. Thor moaned and Faramir closed his eyes for a moment. "Can you switch to Thermal?"

The image changed, now they saw several glowing dots moving around and Thor squinted. "Several people, that truck over there is a fire truck, a small one. Probably the local fire brigade. There are some horses over in that direction, I know that Bard's mother in law is a breeder. I do also see two coyote's and…over there, is that a ditch? It is a car, and corpses, almost cold"

The camera turned and zoomed in max. "Damnation, it is corpses, several. Could it be them?"

There was text coming. "That car has been hit by another truck, I can see that the entire side of it is pushed inn. There is a heat track leading away from the farm, it is cooling down though, from the time of the explosion I think"

Thor leaned over Faramir's shoulder. "Track it!"

The camera was turning slightly, they could see a faint glowing line, barely visible over the otherwise blackened terrain. Judith held her breath, the track was not visible to them but Erestor did probably have some sort of equipment which allowed him to stay on it still "They are on a farm road, it leads to an old Turkey farm."

Thor snapped his fingers. "I remember that, Bard mentioned it once. Neighbours of Jean who are about to lose their farm, they could be hiding there"

Faramir typed and a phone number came back, with an address and names. He turned around and looked at Judith. "Do we call?"

Judith shook her head. "No, are you nuts? Considering what just happened they need to rest, we'll call them tomorrow. And if they are trying to hide we could blow their cover, we'll wait."

He typed back. "Great, can you come back to us at nine? We all need some rest now, and we have incoming people, I hope"

Erestor answered. "Yes, I have seen them, they are heading towards your position. Stay low, don't make any calls, the phone lines are tapped for sure, and don't use your own computer's. I will do some sniffing while you rest, discretely of course"

Thor nudged Faramir who wrote. "Great, the more we know about our opponent the better it is. Be careful"

Erestor was probably grinning. "Of course, I'll be back"

Then he was gone and Faramir closed the laptop. "Right. What now?"

Judith took a deep breath. "We wait for Fernando, Duke and Leonard, Thor did call Albert and we ought to pray for Bard and Thran and the kids, I just hope they are alright"

Thor sighed. "Yes, let's hope so. But these new enemies of ours, I don't think they have much moral at all. Murdering children is probably nothing to them."

He went to get some food and Faramir stretched and yawned, he felt very tired and Judith also knew that the day had been way too long. "Let us sleep for a few hours, I bet we will feel better afterwards. "

Faramir bit his lower lip. "Yes, I think so too"

She pointed at the couch with a faint grin. "Yes, let us rest."

Faramir took the long couch and she went for the smaller one and Thor got a spare bed in one of the kid's bedrooms. They just hoped that things would get better in the morning.

Bard was awakened by Elisa who did look as if she hadn't slept at all, he yawned and stretched and felt like shit. Everything had changed and his mind was reeling with the consequences of what they just had been through. What were they to do with themselves now? The farm was gone, where could the kids go, where could Jean go? He groaned and Elisa smiled. "There is hot water in the bathtubs again, go take a bath. You need it, you look like a savage!"

Bard ran his fingers through his hair and felt that it was greasy and full of dust. He got up and more or less staggered into the bathroom. Thran was already there, he had bathed and was getting clothes on, he had blue circles under his eyes and his skin was paler than ever before. Bard couldn't help it, he gave him a quick hug before he filled the tub and got inn. It felt divine and he was like a new man when he finally got rid of the last remnants of the night's events. When he returned to the livingroom Thran and Bard and Elisa were chewing away at some sandwiches and the kids were gathered in a corner, trying to play a game. It was rather obvious that both Sigrid and Bain tried to make Tilda forget about last night. They were such great kids and Bard hoped that this didn't end with them having to be separated. Elisa nodded and turned the laptop around, they had obviously been going through the stuff Olorin gave them. "I have been thinking"

Bard yawned and stretched, his muscles felt much better now. "Really? And it doesn't hurt?"

Elisa snorted at his joke. "Ha ha, very funny dumbass, but listen, the group which that scientist was creating is now being controlled by his son, and they have had like decades to catch the shrike, but they haven't really tried before. They have monitored it, these files are proof of that, but it isn't until now that they have stuck their heads out of the shell and actually made an attempt at getting the thing."

Bard sat down and took a cup, filled it with coffee which was black enough to be regarded as tar. It burned almost as much as the whiskey the night before. "You are right, that tells us something"

Dwalin came strolling and he did look well rested, he was probably used to sleeping in less than ideal places. "They are in a hurry?"

Thran snapped his fingers. "They are, you are right damn it, what could that be about?"

Elisa stared at the laptop, her eyes were dark. "The shrike represents two options folks, either a new sort of weapon, or something even more precious"

The others looked at her and she bared her teeth, there was something almost feral in her features. "Immortality, I bet the leader is starting to feel the hand of time, he wants it before he gets too old"

Thran frowned. "That could be it, but they haven't really made their presence known before right?. He must have been aware of his own mortality for a while, no, I think this is something which leaves them with even less time than we think"

Elisa turned her head, her eyes expressed curiosity. "So?"

Thran took a deep breath. "I think that man could be dying, I think he is ill, and desperate. Heck, they have been tracking this creature for almost a century, they know it isn't human, they know it is dangerous and judging from what I have read so far they haven't dared to go anywhere near it, until now! And now they try to wipe out any resistance, remove every obstacle and even murder those who know what they are up to?"

Elisa smiled. "Damn, you are right. They are desperate and if they are desperate they'll do mistakes."

Dwalin grinned widely. "Amen to that, now what?"

Bard took a deep breath, straightened himself up. "We deal with the important stuff first, Legolas. He is out there somewhere and we know who took him. We just don't know where. I will try to use what's been given to find him"

Elisa frowned. "You are gonna summon her?! Goddamn it Bard, they say I am bold…"

Bard bit his teeth together. "We are chosen right? We ought to be safe, we find Thran's boy, then we deal with that fucking group"

Elisa tilted her head. "You need to summon her on holy ground, not many churches in this area?"

Bard nodded " Correct, but there is an old Indian burial ground not far from here, it just says holy ground, the type of religion isn't mentioned at all"

Thran swallowed, he looked drained. Bard felt so sorry for him, his own kids were safe there and Thran had to live with the fear that his son could be in danger. "I will go with you, I can help, I have to help!"

Bard nodded. "I know, but we have to prepare and prepare well. We'll need weapons and equipment and probably more manpower as well"

Dwalin frowned. "You expect trouble? Why don't you just tell that thing to go and get the kid and get rid of the bad guys?"

Bard shook his head. "I don't think that's how it works. I could tell her to kill them all and she probably would but getting Legolas? I think that is something a human has to do."

Elisa nodded. "You are right, that is why you are chosen, to deal with such things. "

Bard tipped his head. "So, is there any way you can contact the others? Thor for example?"

Elisa opened her mouth for a second and then the phone suddenly rang, quite loudly. They all stared at each other and Aragorn came from the kitchen and answered it, he looked puzzled and turned towards them. "Is there anybody here named Mr fluffles?"

Elisa let out a snort. "Oh Gods, it is Thor, put it on loudspeaker if you can"

Aragorn did and Elisa gasped. "Boss, is it you?"

Thor's voice was a little gruff. "It is, Judith and Faramir and some of the others are here as well"

Bard closed his eyes in relief. "The station, how many are dead?"

Thor sighed. "Bard, I am so glad to hear your voice again, but we lost many, I am very sorry, but these bastards seems to care naught about anything but their own goals, whatever they are"

Elisa leaned forth. "Listen, I met someone, someone who knew everything about them, and the shrike. He died last night, but he left us with a heck of a lot of material and knowledge and I will send it all to you if you have a safe computer. But first and foremost, the bastards who attacked us first took Thran's boy and we plan on getting him back tonight."

Thor fell silent for a few seconds, then he came back and his voice was tense. "I was afraid of something like that. We have an email address you can use, it is not one they will know anything about."

Elisa smiled. "How did you find us?"

They heard Faramir in the background. "That hacker of yours, he redirected a Sat and we saw the heat signature of the car you used. "

Elisa chuckled. "Erestor is clever, oh so clever. Listen, if you are in contact with him, ask him to check something out. The leader of the group, it could be that he is ill somehow, we need to know if that is so. In that case it is no wonder they are so eager at catching the shrike, they think it could heal him somehow, Can he check that?"

Faramir sounded eager. "I can certainly try, I can message him right away"

Elisa put all the info in a folder and sent it over, she crossed her fingers. "Now, read through this, it is all true even if it sounds more or less like a fairy tale. If you are ready for it we'll meet later and discuss what to do next, but the kid is first priority okay?"

Thor could be heard moving "Alright, we are prepared, I have a friend who can get the equipment we need."

Bard smiled slowly. "Excellent, call us back when you have read the files. We need to prepare as well"

Aragorn had been standing in the background. Arwen was upstairs taking care of Jean who had been more affected by the events than they previously had believed, she was really struggling. "I am not even gonna start trying to understand what this is all about"

Bard turned to him and his face was a bit grim. "Aragorn, you lost all your birds because of a disease right? We just found out that someone tried to buy Jean's farm at the time Sophia died, and her death was murder, not suicide. Did a Bombur Dwight try to buy this place?"

Aragorn frowned, then his chin sort of dropped. "Oh my God, ah, yes?"

Bard smiled, a stiff smile. "Great, now I know for sure."

The black haired man was blinking. "Shit, are you saying that…."

Bard nodded. "Yes!"

Aragorn swore. "Oh fuck, goddamn it! What a jerk!"

Bard smiled but the smile wasn't pretty. "Yes, too bad he is dead, or else I would have forgotten all about being a cop and just put a bullet in his obnoxious head"

Aragorn was breathing fast. "So that was how that goddamn disease entered our buildings, someone brought it here, on purpose."

Bard nodded. "Yes, so now you know. If I can find evidence of that I bet the insurance company can be persuaded into giving you at least some of your money back. I remember that they were less than thrilled by what happened?"

Aragorn leaned against the doorframe. "Less than thrilled?! They were enraged, we didn't get anything back for they claimed that we hadn't been careful enough, that it was caused by neglect and poor routines"

Bard scoffed and crossed his legs. "I thought so, I will look into it, when this is solved."

Aragorn wetted his lips. "Listen, if you could do that, it would mean everything. We are at the bottom of the treasure chest here, our accounts are empty. Last week Arwen sold her mother's gold watch, just to get money for food."

Bard nodded. "Shouldn't have to be like that now does it?"

Elisa leaned forth. "Listen, you are going to that burial ground? Now?!"

Bard smiled, a faint smile. "Yes, I am scared as fuck yes, but I have to do it. You can deal with the others when they call back, you know more than me at this stage"

Thran had been silent. "I will go with you, I won't meet…her, but I will be there, for you"

Bard smiled and reached out, caressed Thran's hand. "Thanks"

Thran blushed ever so slightly and Dwalin chuckled. "You guys are adorable, are you aware of that?"

Bard took a deep breath. "I better get going, it is a couple of hours walk away"

Aragorn interrupted. "No it isn't, there is a tractor road following the river, I have an ATV you can borrow. It is small and not very fast but it beats walking and it has room for two"

Bard smiled. "Thank you, it is very appreciated."

Bard got up and Aragorn found some clothes he could borrow, they were a bit short but useable still. Thran too got a huge jacket and a pair of overalls and with his hair pulled up into a cap he did look like some farm worker instead of a professor. Bard went over to the kids and gave them a swift kiss on the head. Sigrid looked a bit worried. "Where are you going da?"

Bard smiled. "Listen, the bad guys took Legolas, I have to go and see if we can get him back right? There is someone who might be able to help us and I am gonna go and see that…person now. Be good and don't be a menace while I am away, I will be back soon enough"

Tilda started crying and Bard knew that the poor kid probably would need tons and tons of counselling, a good thing Thran could help.

They followed Aragorn outside, the long buildings which had housed the turkeys looked like a ghost town now, the paint flaking and the feed wagons empty and rusty. Behind the turkey houses were a small barn with a few household animals, some chickens, a couple of pigs and some sheep. It was just for food for themselves and Aragorn petted one of the ewes and opened a small door. An ATV did stand there, one of the smaller type. It wasn't very strong but Aragorn petted the seat. "The tank is full, I use it when I go checking for coyotes, they used to dig into the turkey houses before I electrified the foundation."

Bard had to gasp. "You did what?!"

Aragorn grinned, a wry grin. "I attached several miles of fencing wire along the foundation and attached it to the electrical grid. It did do the trick. We could smell fried coyote for a few weeks but then they stopped coming. I guess they realized that it wasn't worth the risk."

Bard checked the wheel, new and full of air. He turned to Aragorn again. "Do you have any sort of weapon, just in case?"

Aragorn nodded and went over to a closet, it was locked but he opened it and took out an old shotgun. "My badger gun, here, I don't have much ammo though"

He tossed a box with five shots in over to Bard who took them and put them in his pocket. "Badgers too? What the heck, did your turkeys sort of attract every beast in the area?"

Aragorn nodded. "Yes, even bears. We have had racoons trying to break inn, snakes, possums, cats, dogs, one day we even saw an eagle try to peck its way through one of the roof windows. I guess the turkeys were temptation incarnate for all predators"

Bard mounted the ATV and Thran sat down behind him. "Alright. If someone should come while we are away, assume that they are the enemy. You can keep an eye on the road from here yes?"

Aragorn nodded. "Yeah, if someone comes we can see them from miles away"

Bard started the machine and Thran grasped onto his waist, it felt oddly reassuring to know that he wasn't going to do this alone. "If you see something, anything! Get the kids into the basement or something and hide them"

Aragorn smiled but the smile was pale. "We have a tornado cellar, behind the old outhouse. It looks like a piece of metal someone has left there if you don't look too closely"

Bard smiled and took Aragorn's hand. "Great, if something happens go there with the kids, the others can deal with any attackers"

He backed the thing out of the garage and drove carefully through the barn not to disturb the animals. Thran leaned his chin onto Bard's shoulder. "You think you can help them?"

Bard smiled. "I am sure I can help them, I know people Thran, and some do owe me favours, if this Bombur dude left any sort of evidence of having killed their birds I will find it."

Thran sighed. "And Sophia"

Bard speeded up and headed towards the river. "Yes, nothing will bring her back but just seeing it, black upon white, it would feel…"

Thran finished the sentence. "Like closure"

Bard nodded. "Yes, closure"

Thor and the others gathered around the files Elisa had sent and they all stared at each other with rather shocked expressions upon their faces. What in heck's name? And Bard and Thran were suddenly among those who were monitoring this creature? Thor did swipe the sweat from his brow and he felt dizzy. He was the leader of a police station damn it, all this …this rambling about ancient gods, Nazi's and mad scientists were just not what he was used to but it was true. He had to believe the evidence and the evidence was there, right in front of their eyes. Judith took a look at the pages of text, dates and images and she leaned back, a bit pale. "We are not made to understand these things, damn it, mother always said that some things aren't meant to be understood by mere mortals, just accepted."

Faramir nodded slowly. "Look at this, goddamn it, that scientist they brought over, he was really a beast all on his own."

The files showed images of starved prisoners, victims of terrible experiments and Judith felt a surge of anger. "And now his son is just as bad I bet, if not worse. We are gonna do it right? We are gonna put an end to his power?"

Thor sneered. "We are gonna put an end to him, simple as that. Period"

Faramir stared at him, eyes wide open. "Are you kidding me? You are gonna…That is not how things are supposed to be done!"

Thor nodded. "I know, we are cops, we uphold the law and abide it right? But that man…he has the power to evade the law completely, to let someone else take the fall for him, to escape without any consequences to himself. Is that justice?"

Faramir looked down. "No, it isn't"

Thor had a very hard expression upon his face. "Good, then we agree. I bet the Shrike will want a word or two with him as well"

Judith sighed. "Why can't we call her by her real name, she is Sekhmet isn't she? "

They stared at each other and Albert shrugged. "That name is as good as any I bet, much more elegant than a bird's name"

Thor smiled. "Alright, Sekhmet it is then. Beorn has gotten some equipment for us, I say we prepare for a fight. We cannot let Thran's lad be injured, so he is first priority. The old bastard can wait, he has waited for this long so a day more cannot hurt. "

Faramir went over to the laptop and then he waved his hand. "Erestor has sent us a mail, already! Damn the man is fast."

Judith looked eager. "Read it, come on"

Faramir bent down and opened the mail, he blinked twice, then he sat down. "They were right, the old man is really ill. This is a part of a journal, from some specialist. He has even used a fake name, but if Erestor says it is him, it is him."

Thor almost growled. "Come on, what is the matter with that bastard?"

Faramir made a grimace. "Ah Judith, come here, I have no clue about what this is, I don't even know how to pronounce it"

Judith moved over and she read through the text fast. " Aha, now that is proof that karma does exist."

Everybody stared at her and she grinned, the grin was wicked. "It is a very rare nerve disease, it makes the nerves sort of malfunction and the sufferer will lose the ability to control the body"

Thor cocked his head. "Is it painful?"

Judith bared her teeth, there was glee in her eyes. "Very!"

She pointed at the text. "It does give extreme burning pains and it can also give nasty sores where the nerves are close to the skin. Earlier they believed that it was some sort of syphilis"

Thor had to laugh. "Karma indeed. But it is fatal?!"

She nodded. "Always, it will take some years before the sufferer dies but they do die, the body shuts down"

Faramir frowned. "Like ALS?"

She shook her head. "No, this is worse, way worse. Not as fast, very painful and it makes you disfigured too, the sores can be very nasty"

Fernando and Duke cringed and Leonard sort of shrunk, he looked as if he was about to piss himself. "So everything hurts?"

She nodded. "At the last stage yes, swallowing, moving, clothes chaffing against the skin, urinating, basically everything which involves nerves. It is a hellish disease and fortunately very rare"

Thor took a deep breath. "Let me guess, hereditary?"

Judith frowned. "Yes? Have you heard of it?"

Thor shook his head. "No, but you know, the sins of the father's"

Judith got a stern expression on her face. "But it does explain why they suddenly try to capture the shrike by using our evidence. And the info we got from Bard also tells us that we were right when we assumed that there is something out there which can enable them to control her. They just don't know what it is"

Thor nodded, he sat down in an armchair and for a moment he did look very determined, like some world leader about to sign some very important treaty or something. "Well, at least we do know how to lure the old man out then"

Judith looked confused. "Ha?"

Thor smiled, a wide grin. "With an artefact of course, one which he cannot resist. You do have friends at the Smithsonian right? They have got to have something stored there which can entice him, something old he doesn't know anything about or something fresh out of Egypt. Doesn't matter, it just has to look promising"

Judith sort of backed off a foot. "Whoa there, we cannot just ask the Egyptology department for an ancient artefact?! They will think we are insane!"

Thor smiled, a slow devious smile. "We have a hacker on our side right? I am sure we could arrange so that something is delivered here at this door tomorrow by Fedex, in crisp condition"

Judith gaped. "You have lost me…what are you talking about?"

Thor grinned. "I am of course talking about the extremely rare and precious artefact they just discovered stuffed away in some crate, covered with magical hieroglyphs and so on. It will be all over the news soon, Erestor or someone else just has to be a bit creative and pretend to be an expert on old Egyptian stuff."

Faramir gaped. "Seriously?"

Thor smiled again, like a benign king granting some loyal subject a wish. "Of course, and that precious artefact is gonna get stolen you see, by someone mysterious, and that mysterious someone is gonna have a small slip of the tongue online, leave some small breadcrumbs here and there, lead the way"

Judith scoffed. "And it will all be make believe? Just made up? I don't think they will fall for that"

Thor smiled slowly. "There is a souvenir shop at the museum, I bet we can order something from it, some plastic statue or something and make up a fat lie, say that the thieves did replace the souvenir with the real thing or something. Let us use the media for all they are worth, isn't that an idea as good as any?"

Faramir's eyes got narrow. "Know what, that may work. If someone were to steal something very precious from the museum it would most certainly catch the attention of our enemy, and the method is both bold and smart. Put the artefact in a box and have it sent in the mail, like some ordinary thing. Yes, I like that. But we need a pre history, and we need someone to back it up, at least until we have got the guy"

Judith rolled her eyes. "Fine, great, okay, I do know someone at the museum who could, for the sake of justice and so on, pretend to be an Egyptologist, and pretend to have discovered something very old and special."

Thor rubbed his hands. "Then let us get to it shall we? I bet the museum will be more than willing to help us if we promise that they'll get any artefact those bastards have in their possession."

Judith had a sour expression on her face as she started to search for the address of the one person she did know. "Thank goodness that he owes me one, or else this would have been a terrible idea."

Thor just snickered. "Oh don't come here and say that police work doesn't involve creativity, come on, this is a set up like none other. And the bait must be perfect too"

Faramir rolled his eyes. " Alright, I will tell Erestor of our plan, it cannot be a huge newspaper headline, just some note in the local paper perhaps? Telling of our bold heist? I bet that can be arranged"

Thor rubbed his hands. "Excellent, this will be so good!"

Bard drove carefully, the road was bumpy and here and there nothing more than a muddy track along the creek. The landscape was lovely with grooves of beeches and high thick grass and here and there they did startle birds and even a few deer. Bard didn't say anything, he was too busy trying to figure out what to do. He had no idea of how he was to summon that thing, just say "come here" like you would to your dog? Bet that would work just fine, nope! He sighed and concentrated upon keeping the vehicle on the track and Thran was clinging onto him like a monkey over the worst bumps. The burial ground was upon a small hill and it was surrounded by some tall rocks, some said they were placed there just after the last ice age. Bard had been there once before with Sophia, when they first started planning their wedding. The spot seemed sinister and he hadn't liked it but now he had to overcome that feeling. The wind was chilly and he was glad they both wore good clothes now, Thran was quiet too and Bard knew he was worrying about his son, the whole time. They had to hurry. He drove as fast as he dared to and they saw the hill in the distance.

He slowed down as he approached the area used for burials, parked the ATV under a tree and Thran took off his ring and handed it over. "Here, please, I wish I could have been there with you but…"

Bard kissed him, very gently and felt the warm lips against his own, a surge of something very pure and very strong went through him. "I know dear, don't blame yourself. I know that you won't be able to handle this, you are not as pragmatic as me"

Thran bit his lower lip. "No, I am not, I…"

Bard embraced him. "Stay here, I will make sure that she'll help us"

Thran sighed and kissed him swiftly. "Be safe, I cannot….!"

His voice cracked. "I couldn't bear it if something happened to you"

Bard smiled and let his hand run through a loose lock of silky hair. "Likewise"

He turned and walked toward the area which was sort of marked by an old fence, some signs stood there , probably placed there as information to the locals that this was protected land and not to be farmed. The letters were almost gone and the fence had sort of flipped outwards and was heading for the ground. One more winter and it would be flat. He walked until he was well on the inside, then he put on also Thran's ring and he felt odd, as if the world he saw with his own eyes was an illusion, something not even there. This had to be what a bad LSD trip felt like. He took a deep breath, tried to think rationally. "I am here, I am summoning you. I wear the rings, come to me"

It was the only thing he could think of saying and he waited, eyes almost closed and heart thundering in his chest. At first there was nothing, just the cold wind. Then he felt a burst of heat and opened his eyes. In front of him everything changed, from the terrain he knew to a sandy desert. He felt the heat from the sun and saw how it made the air shiver. Was this real? Then he felt a presence behind him, heard something moving against the sand and he held his breath, fear grasping him tightly. He shivered, the presence was so overpowering, so terrible and yet it wasn't hostile, at least not towards him. A hand landed on his shoulder and he yelped like a startled kid, a chuckling laugher could be heard. "Oh are you that easy to scare my beautiful knight?"

Bard had a hard time even breathing, he was shivering from head to toe. The voice was deep and sensual and most definitely female, the voice of a seductress. "I..I have never done this before…."

There was more laugher, it was like the chiming of bells. "Who can say that they have, truly? Fear me not, you are beloved by me, as is your silvery lover."

Bard tried to catch his breath. "I…I have a favour to ask, for him"

She chuckled. "You do love him so much already, that you will do for him this? Face a Goddess? Truly you are blessed, and yes, I know what boon for which you ask"

He swallowed. "You do?"

The soft laughter was like ripples over a peaceful pond. "Oh yes, I am a Goddess remember? I know everything"

Bard took a deep breath. "Can you help us? His son…he is everything to him"

She let the hand slide through Bard's hair, it felt like a real hand, warm, with weight to it and structure. "Of course he is, you humans are such fascinating creatures, so diverse but this I can understand, your love for your offspring. The boy is safe for now, my sister is watching over him"

Bard didn't know what to say and the hand kept caressing him gently. "I will help, and I will not slay the one behind it, he will be allowed to live, but punished he will be"

Bard looked down. "That is all that we'll wish for"

She chuckled again. "Modest, that is good. I have sensed you two, for a long time. Beacons of light in an otherwise dark world, bringers of justice and hope. You are precious and rare, like a blue lotus"

Bard felt his heart beating like a drum. "You killed Bolg for me, why?"

She was straight behind him, he could feel it, he could almost feel drawn backwards towards her, as if she was a black hole and he matter. "He would have ruined you otherwise"

Bard frowned. "I don't understand?"

She was oh so close, smelling of flowers, and something otherworldly he couldn't identify. "But you will, soon enough."

He licked his lips, feeling how dry his mouth was. "How, how do you chose them?"

She let her hand rest on his shoulder and he looked down out of the corner of his eye, it was a hand, a woman's hand, larger than normal for she was very tall but still a hand, not something unnatural or odd. She sighed, a soft sound. "You mean the ones I kill?"

He nodded slowly and she grasped his shoulder, made him turn around. He looked down, refused to look until she grasped his chin and raised it gently. "Look at me Bowman, fear me not"

He opened his eyes, let out a small sigh of awe and fear. She was magnificent, he couldn't form words which would do her justice, he simply couldn't. She was extremely tall, over seven feet and her hair was braided into thousands of tiny braids, adorned with gold beads. She did look human, but her eyes were not. They were large and slanted and the eyes of a predator. Yet her gaze was soft, almost loving. "Those who serve good should never fear me my beauty. Only those who's hearts are black and devoured by darkness shall know me as death"

He shivered, she did look very Egyptian, from her olive skin to her malachite make up but there was something more to her as well. Something which went beyond that old culture. "I…I know…"

She smiled. "Tell me Bowman, what is the nature of evil?"

He held his breath. "I…I don't know what to answer?"

She sighed. "The concept is grand, too great for a human mind to fully perceive"

Before them he suddenly saw a scene from a road, cars drove by, one was placed on the shoulder of the road, a blue van with a family in it, the car had motor trouble. Bard gasped as a huge truck suddenly ploughed into the van from behind, literally crushing it. She pointed at the terrible scene. "What you saw is real, the driver of that truck had been awake for twenty hours straight, trying to earn enough money to fend for his family and he fell asleep at the wheel. Was he evil to do this? To kill six people in one go?"

Bard bit his lip, blinked, it was awful. "No, no he wasn't evil…"

She purred and for a second her head was that of a cat, a giant one. "Exactly, he was being distracted, tired and in despair. He didn't mean to kill that family."

The scene shifted, a man was moving through a crowded street somewhere in a small rickety wagon pulled by a skinny donkey. Every now and then he hit the poor thing with his whip to make it move faster. "And this man, is he evil for flogging that poor beast?"

Bard swallowed. "I don't know, I would say yes?"

She caressed his shoulder again. "If I tell you that he is doing what everybody else is doing, that this is what has been done for ages? He doesn't know of anything else, to him it is natural"

Bard took a deep breath. "Then perhaps not"

She smiled. "Yes, good and evil does depend on the eye of the beholder, in most cases. The ones I do kill are the ones who are beyond human understanding, those who know that the things they do are wicked and still do it, because they simply don't care! To them others are tools, things to be used"

Bard dared to look at her. "Psycho's? "

She shook her head. "A man born with a faulty brain cannot be blamed for being the way he is. No, being evil is a conscious choice Bowman, and I chase them"

He nodded slowly. "Why so few, and so far apart?"

She smiled. "Because I cannot end all evil, I can only take those who otherwise would go on for many long years. Souls so dark and wicked nobody truly are able to see the truth about them"

Bard tried to smile but his lips were so tight" I…see. You have done this for a long time"

She lifted her hand, and before them he yet again saw a new image. Of an Egypt at the height of its power but things were not as he had believed them to be. The streets were lighted and the pyramids were glowing, with a strange sort of power. "The history of mankind is very different from what you have been told, and way longer. Once you were able to reach the stars themselves, but that knowledge was lost. Don't think more about this, it is too much for one person to fathom. From now on you and your lover will be able to use my gifts, to see if someone indeed is touched by darkness or not. You will age slowly, and live for a very long time. Have no fear my dear one, I take care of my own"

He felt himself shiver again. "What now?"

She bent over, kissed his brow. "Go back to the farm, rest, meet the others by the monolith. I will show you the way from there"

He frowned. "The monolith?"

She giggled. "You will know of what I speak soon, go now, you are my eyes and ears now, my weapons against the dark"

She was fading, like an ageing photo and he just gaped as he stared at the empty spot where she had been. His mind was reeling, how could this be true? But it was, and he staggered back to Thran who was watching him approach with nervous eyes. "Bard, are you alright?"

His voice was thin and Bard nodded, embraced him. "She will help us, we should meet the others and gather by the monolith and then she would show us the way"

Thran frowned "The monolith?...oh, I see!"

Bard looked shocked. "You do?"

Thran smiled. "The old obelisk they placed straight in the middle of the old city square, see? I have some knowledge about this city after all"

Bard deadpanned, "Of course, the old business district. It is mostly cheap houses and old abandoned stores now, they plan on renewing the entire area"

Thran petted Bard on the back. "So…she was real?"

He nodded. "Yes, she was…words cannot describe it Thran, we humans are not supposed to see such sights I think"

Thran smiled but the smile was a sad one. "I am glad you were the one to meet her then, I fear I would have gone bonkers if I had been in your shoes"

Bard snickered, he felt so terribly relieved, so oddly light somehow. He gave Thran the ring back. "It works, guard it well"

Thran nodded and Bard chuckled. "Bonkers, and you are a psychiatrist?"

Thran smiled vaguely. "Yes, I suppose I am."

Bard started the vehicle again. "Your son is okay, I can feel it. He is unharmed, but we must hurry back. I can feel that we need to move soon"

Thran frowned. "I feel the same, why?"

Bard got the ATV onto the track again, "Because she has changed us, we are more sensitive now, have new instincts. Call it whatever you like but we will be so much better at our jobs from now on"

Thran just hung onto him again and they drove towards the farm again. When they were close to the buildings Thran suddenly leaned his chin onto Bard's shoulder again and gasped, as if he was crying. Bard stopped, shocked and turned around, stared at Thran's teary face. "Thran, what is the matter?!"

The blonde embraced him, held him tight, hard " Bard, promise me this, do never ever leave me again, I have hardly ever been so scared in all my life, the atmosphere over there, it was…terrifying, like a thunderstorm"

Bard held him, kissed him, caressed his hair. "I swear, I will never leave you for as long as I live"

Thran smiled and closed his eyes, leaned his head onto Bard's chest. "Thank you"

They drove into the farm yard and parked the vehicle and they were greeted by Elisa who was very eager. "Guys, the others, they have made a plan and it is the most audacious thing I have ever heard, it is so mad it has to work!"

Bard hung his coat on a rack and Thran got rid of his overalls with a groan. "Do explain please"

Elisa grinned from one ear to the other. "See? They are gonna trick them with a fake Egyptian artefact, supposedly stolen."

Bard had to laugh. "That sounds like Thor, he is bold enough to try something like that"

Elisa nodded. "They have gotten some guy who will pretend to be an Egyptologist and Erestor will make some fake news to insert into certain newspapers. It will happen tomorrow, the "theft" is to happen tonight"

Thran looked confused but Bard patted him on the back. "Don't worry, they know what they are doing We'll prepare and meet them later on. Elisa, send a message, we will all meet at the old city square, at dusk. Bring everything they think we may need, it could get nasty"

Thran took a deep breath of air. "Things are happening now?"

Bard kissed him fast, and rather hard. "Yes, at last things are truly on the way, vengeance is coming, and with the Goddess at our side I bet they won't stand a chance"

Thran sent him a pale grin. "Let us hope you are right"

Bard just smiled, a new sort of energy was filling him. "Thran, I am right, do never doubt that alright? We will get Legolas back tonight"

Thran smiled but he was trembling slightly. "I trust you, we will get him back"

Bard pulled him with him towards the fireplace. "Damn right we are. Now, let us eat, get warm and prepare. Understood?"

Thran managed to smile. "Understood"