I put down the report and started rubbing my temples to fend off the headache I knew was coming. I should have expected her to get involved in something like this sooner or later. Hell, I was surprised it took as long as it did for her name to cross my desk the first time.

Now wasn't the time for humour though. I picked up the phone off my desk and dialed. It took only half a ring for it to pick up. "Danny, it's me."

"Lance? Something going on?" Maybe my ears were playing tricks on me, but I could have sworn Danny sounded nervous. Couldn't imagine why though.

"I can't call to see how an old friend is doing?" I tried to laugh but it sounded hollow even to my ears. "Sorry, I've had a bad day. The boys got called in for a real ugly situation."

"What happened?"

"Someone cut a load of pot with chacal and sold it to a bunch of kids."

Chacal was a relatively new drug to hit the streets. A Tinker from Europe created the formula and let it loose on the internet, and soon enough gangs all over the world were whipping it up. It effectively shut down a person's higher brain functions, turning them into wild animals while boosting their strength and senses to almost unreal levels. For a while those under its influence were as dangerous as any villain.

It also had the side effect of burning out the user's nervous system and causing massive damage to their internal organs. Sad thing was, there were people all over who were more than willing to trade the risk for a short period of freedom.

"How bad was it?" Danny asked softly.

"Bad. Three conscious but paralyzed, five in comas, and another six dead."

"Jesus..." Danny fell silent for a few moments. "You catch the monster responsible?"

"Didn't have to." I grunted somewhat unhappily. "That's why I called."

"This isn't a social call, is it?"

"I'm gonna need you to come down to the station."

Danny's sigh crackled over the line. "Taylor got involved. Of course she did..." He started to mutter to himself and I felt my cheek twitch.

"Dammit Danny, what the hell are you teaching her?"

There was a moment of silence on the line. "What?"

"I've got Detective Fisher sitting on her in a room downstairs. Had to keep her separate from the Empire kids that tried to kill her."

"Well, that explains that..." Danny said half under his breath. "How'd she do?

"Explains what?"

"Had a few 'friends' from the Empire stop by the office. They wanted to meet, insisted on it really, so I, eheh, invited them for dinner."

I paused for a moment. "You made reservations?"

"All taken care of." Danny's voice is colder than I've heard it in a long while, becoming much warmer as he continues speaking."So, how'd my girl do?"

"I've got four in the hospital with broken bones and a couple others with concussions, plus the others nursing their bruises downstairs; which is besides the goddamn point!"

"What's wrong with teaching her how to defend herself?"

I stared at the phone incredulously. I wonder how much aggravation it would take to spontaneously develop the power to strangle someone through the phone lines. Or send spiders through them. Giant ones. With claws.

"Defending herself is one thing," I say mildly. And lo, the twitch did return. "But turning her into the second coming of Fisher and MacNeil is another!

"And to prevent her from becoming like them, you left her with Fisher, alone?"

"Well I had to do something to keep her from catching a shiv in the back! You know what, forget I said anything. MacNeil's on his way to pick you up. We can discuss better in person, alright?"

"Fair enough." Another moment of silence passed. "You're still coming to the housewarming party, right? I know Taylor was looking forward to it."

"I'll be there." I chuckled as a thought crossed my mind. "I'll see you shortly Danny."

"You too Lance." I waited until the line clicked before I put the phone back down. Leaning back in my chair I reached down and opened the topmost drawer on my desk. I pulled out a cigar from the open box inside and was just bout to stick it in my mouth when the intercom crackled to life.

"Commissioner, Director Piggot of the PRT is on the line."

I sighed, then sighed again, and put the cigar back in its box.I gave it a long look and shuffled the papers on my desk. Some days it really didn't pay to get out of bed. "Put her through."

Oh look, the twitch was back.

Staring at the high back of the chair sitting shrouded in shadows, the young man adjusted his tie nervously before clearing his throat. "Pardon the interruption. Sir, our agents believe we've found her."

"I see." The voice echoed from all directions and the young man shivered.

"What would you like us to do, Sir?"

"Release the prototypes. I look forward to the results from our experiments. And send a few Crows to keep an eye on them. That should be an adequate test of her measure."

"Right away President Giovanni." The young man tried to mask the relief in his voice as he turned to exit the office.

"Oh, one last thing Mr. Paran." The young froze with his hand on the door, not even breathing. "Keep up the good work. Run along now."

Paran ran.

"Sons! Daughters! Brothers and Sisters! God has revealed to me the lair of an evil most foul!" Reverend Stryker grinned wildly as he shook the bible in his hand over his pulpit. "At this very moment it is spreading its darkness through the streets of Brockton Bay!"

Many doubted the good Reverend, they said he was a 'Cape', but he was not one of those poor deluded fools, bargaining away their immortal souls for mortal power. His visions, the miracles he made, no mere parahuman could even simply copy them, no he could only be a true prophet! The masses were blind to the truth of the world, but Father had enlightened them, shown them who to descend upon in righteous fury. If seeking out and destroying such evil was a crime, then so be it. God's law was the only one that mattered.

"Yes, while I slumbered did a messenger of God, an Angel, pure of form and blinding beauty, descend into my dreams to speak to me of the worst kind of sinner."

The crowd shuffled their feet and a low angry murmur filled the church. The Reverend waited until it and raised his hands, instantly quieting the crowd.

"A despicable monster, one who would dare consort with the Devil! A Witch! A seductress no doubt already working her sickening magicks and twisting the innocent into her pawns. You know what must be done!"

They did. They knew killing well. Many of the congregation had been the worst kinds of soldiers and murderers before Reverend Stryker had enlightened them to God's truth. And had he not proved to them the truth of his words? Had he not delivered them from the Devil's own with his divine protection? How many of Satan's puppets found their unholy granted gifts useless in the face of a true man of God!

"Kill the Witch!" The lone cry was soon joined by others, the church thumping with chants of, "Burn her! Hang her! Smite her!"

"Yes! We are the Ragna, the holy vanguard of God's Wrath! We shall save the city of Brockton Bay from that which lurks in secret! We shall be His sword as we cut away the evil that hides in the hearts of men! We shall be the whip that punishes mortal and unholy trespass in the land of God! We shall be the fire that cleanses the world!"

The air hummed as twenty nine silver coins, black as pitch, spun and danced in space. Gravity was nothing to them as they hung suspended in midair, twirling, twirling.

In the midst of them sat a figure. There was silence as it contemplated what the winds had whispered. Another of that blasted Witch's bloodline yet drew breath.

The hum ceased abruptly, leaving behind a startling silence, as the twenty nine pieces of silver flew into the figure's outstretched hands. Bones creaked and skin cracked as it got to its feet.

Spinning in an empty eye socket, the thirtieth piece of silver grinned.