They arrived at the bridge and were getting their equipment un-loaded from the truck. Red was leaning against the ramp to the truck grumbling, complaining, and whining to himself while the others sat up.
''Not with me, agent.'' Red mimicked sarcastically. "What an ego!"
"I like him." Manning said walking down the ramp.
"You can keep him!" Red snapped after him before walking over to Abe and Ariel leaning against some wooden boxes. "Am I the only one who thinks this guy is...?"
"No, no, don't lean." Abe made Red stand back away from the boxes. "Lock 336, the Shuftain glasses. Could it be?"
"The last three surviving pairs. And we will use them to locate the troll market." Johann affirmed as he walked up to them.
"Dr. Krauss, what a coup...the Shuftain glasses." Abe said in excitement looking over the boxes. "You are my hero."
Ariel smiled at Abe's excitement before walking over to her brother looping her arm with his.
"Come on Red, he's not that bad." Ariel said.
"Glad to see you're not mad at me anymore." Red said ignoring her comment.
"Yeah well you are my only brother so I figured I should forgive you." Ariel said nudging him slightly.
"Hey, you're Hellboy?" A man asked walking up to them.
"Yes!" Red smiled.
"You are ugly, man." The man said before his friend through a can at his feet before they walked on. Growling Ariel kicked the can managing to ricochet it off the first man so it hit the other as well. "Hey!"
"Oh please do something, I'm begging you." Ariel grinned, her eyes flashing, but the men exchanged uneasy looks, especially when Red straightened up to his full height behind her and hurried off. "You think the guy didn't own a mirror. Calling someone ugly with a face like that."
"Thanks sis." Red smiled ruffling her hair.
"Yeah well, only I get to call you names." Ariel said shoving his hand aside. "You better go see if Liz needs help."
"Good idea." Red said walking over to his girl.
"Two more on the wall in front of me and then three on the alley facing that way." Liz listed off as she sat up the cameras.
"What do you think of Mr''Know-it-all''?" Red asked walking with her.
"I do not know, too early to tell." Liz said walking across the street.
"Are you Hellboy?" Someone asked leaning out of a truck window.
"I know, I'm ugly!" Red waved him off.
"Ah, forget it." The man called out. A rock came out of nowhere hitting him in the back of the head causing him to lose his grip and fall out of the truck window.
"We'll talk about that later." Liz commented before walking up to Red cupping his face. "He is sure of himself, and I think maybe you're intimidating."
Ariel laughed as she dusted off her hands until she noticed Johann turned in her direction with what she assumed was a stern look that is if he was able to produce such looks. In any case she could feel it, it felt just like one of her father Brooms stern looks.
"I don't like it when people pick on my brother." Ariel shrugged.
"You have a strong relationship with your brother and that is good, but please tries to exercise a little more restraint. They are ignorant to what we are so there will be negative reactions for a time." Johann said in a very parenting sounding voice.
"Yes sir, sorry." Ariel replied with a nod before walking over to help with the rest of the set up.
-0-
"What's this?" Manning asked picking up some of the glasses as he and Liz sat in the back of the truck.
"Normally we can't see fairy folk and trolls they genereta a cloaking aura or glamour." Liz explained. "But in 1878 Emile Shuftain designed and built these. Four crystals dioptres penetrate that effect and reveal true nature of things."
-0-
They had set up on a balcony giving them a good view of the surrounding area.
"Dr. Krauss, they're more beautiful than I'd imagined." Abe said as he picked up a pair of the glasses.
"So you must try them on, then." Johann said.
"Oh yes." Abe said pulling on the glasses. "And look at these tight little leather straps!"
"Looking good Abe." Ariel commented making Abe smile.
"I'm sorry to say that there is only one pair left." Johann said.
"That's ok, glamours don't work on me. I can see through them if I concentrate." Ariel said as her pupils shifted into slits.
"Intimidating?" Red muttered before turning to Johann. "Mr. Crab!"
"Krauss agent, there is a double 's'!" Johann corrected him holding up two fingers.
"SS, right." HB nodded. "Listen, those gizmos... How do you know they work?"
Abe looked to Red with the glasses on, bubbles filling his apparatus.
"Seeing the horns huh?" Ariel commented, her pupils rounding again.
"Yep." Abe nodded.
"I have a suspect." Liz came over the comm.
"Give me a vector, agent Sherman, a vector!" Johann ordered.
"B 12, alley, north alley." Liz replied.
"That's the target. We're coming down." Johann said.
-0-
"Keep an eye on it. Be right back." Liz told Manning.
"The little old lady?" Manning said looing to the monitor. "Come on."
"It's a fragle womp, an ugly Scottish troll." Liz told him as she picked up a cage containing a canary. "They're afraid of canaries."
"Oh my god!" Manning said using the glasses to see the troll. "Canaries, huh? What about the kittens?"
"She feeds on them." Liz replied.
"That thing is a she?" Manning said in shock.
-0-
Ariel shook her head as she watched the three men try to be inconspicuous as they ducked behind a garbage can. She walked behind them as they looked like they were exaggeratingly tiptoeing to cover. Red and Blue peeked over the garbage can until Johann pulled them back.
"Down you fools!" Johann snapped pulling them down. "What do you think you're doing?"
"She's gonna eat the cat." Red said desperately as Ariel looked crossed between nauseous at the prospect and pissed all at the same time.
"You'll make her aware of our presence!" Johann replied.
"I hate Scottish Trolls, I had nightmares about them all the time when I was a kid." Ariel glared over her shoulder at the troll.
"We should use the canary now." Abe said as HB became more agitated.
"She's gonna eat!" Red snapped.
"We should use the bird, Dr. Krauss." Abe said. "The bird!"
" She's gonna ..." Red looked back at the troll with the cat.
"Stay put and follow my orders." Johann ordered.
"I can't sit by ..." Red struggled.
"... under my command, you have to obey!" Johann demanded.
"Oh screw this." Red shot to his feet. "Lucy, I'm home!"
"Oh yes, deary, can I help you?" The troll fell back on its old woman routine.
"Give it up nasty, we can see you." Red replied as they all walked up.
"See me? How? How do you see me?" The troll panicked and in response Red tapped his glasses.
"We're looking for the entrance to the troll market." Ariel said with a sharp look. "Any clues?"
"Come any closer and I'll rip your heart!" The troll threatened
"We gonna have to get a little old school, Abe." Red said and held out his hand to Abe. "Give me the bird."
"Not a canary!" The troll flinched back as Red help out the bird.
"What, you're afraid of this little guy?" Red taunted. "Who would know?"
"No more. No more. I'll take you there." The troll relented and started to lead the way.
"Hey Liz have an agent pick up these cats take them to a good shelter." Ariel said.
"On it." Liz replied.
"We could keep them." Red said.
"No." Liz and Ariel said together.
"You already have way too many." Ariel said.
"And it's already cramped enough in our room." Liz added.
"Fine." Red grumbled as they walked up to a meat fridge the troll leading the way. "Come on, let's go you dirty old troll." The troll pushed aside a large sign revealing a tunnel. Hellboy made sure that the troll preceded them down it. "Come on."
"Agent Sherman... we're going in to the troll market. Keep communication to a minimum." Johann ordered. "Over and out."
-0-
"I like him. See, this is a man who takes charge." Manning said.
"Do you think?" Liz asked mockingly.
"Yes. He is efficient, you see. He is precise." Manning replied missing her mocking tone.
"You add resistant to that, and you got yourself a new watch." Liz said typing into the computer.
"Dr. Krauss is aware of the chain of command." Manning went on.
"Oh brother." Liz got up walking away.
"And he seems to like me." Manning commented to Liz's retreating back.
-0-
"So here we are." Ariel said as the came to a large door made of cogs and wheels, three tumblers on the wall to the right of the massive door.
"Wow, that's some door!" Red said looking it over.
"It's a complex combination lock." Abe said as he walked over to the tumblers.
"What do you see, agent Sapien?" Johann asked.
"Not good. With the number of symbols on the combination we'll be here for days." Abe replied.
"Not necessarily…" Johann started.
"Let me try my technique." Red cut him off turning to the troll. "Open it, Lucy."
"I will not!" The troll replied.
"Pretty please." Red said taking the bird from Abe again.
"Do as you may demon, release the yellow beast, tear my eyes out rip insides and my legs and my tongue. I will never open that door." The troll spat making Red let out a heavy sigh before slamming his rock fist into her face sending her flying back with a resounding crash.
"Is that your investigative technique?" Johann questioned sarcastically.
"It said ''never''." Red replied.
"It's unconscionable." Johann admonished.
"That means he didn't like it." Ariel said when Red looked to her confused.
"What? So you're gonna show us how it's done Mr. ''By the book''?" Red taunted as he and Abe took off their glasses. "Is that it?"
"Yes, I think I will." Johann replied then twisting a valve on his suit released himself into the air. He flowed into the tumblers and started to turn them. "Here we are. Let me see ...Yes!"
The doors opened up before them revealing a massive market place filled with all manner of fae creatures.
"Gentlemen and Lady welcome to the troll market." Johann said as he came back into his suit.
"It's amazing." Ariel breathed out wide eyed. They began to move through the market taking it all in, she and Abe stopping in front of a stall that unfortunately was selling fish.
"Fresh fish." The vendor said as he sliced the fish making Abe flinch. "Buy fresh fish ..."
"No thank you." Ariel said looping her arm with Abe's as they walked away back to the others.
"Red, there is something really important, that I need to tell you ..." Liz said over the comm.
"Liz? You should be here, you'd love it. Nobody's looking at us. We blend right in." Red said in wonder.
"Agent, I said keep communication to a minimum. You blow our cover." Johann snapped before walking away.
"You know, I think he's right." Abe remarked getting a look from Red. Abe held his hands up before walking away with Ariel.
"I'm bringing you here for sure babe. He wants the radio silence. I move on to radio silence, so ..." Red trailed off.
"Over and out." Liz said before they cut comm.