[06th April 2011]

[Bay Central Hospital, Downtown, Brockton Bay, United States of America, Earth Bet]

I, wisely in my view, ignored the complaints about 'jumping to lethal force' from the 'Detective' as it was largely half-hearted and I was rather busy shutting the doors while holding the shotgun. Still he'd taken the second enchanted pistol, and three reserve magazines, as I managed to get the glass double doors together and freed one hand to rest against it as I heard a loud crash from behind me. Words, soft and fast, passed my mouth as I summon power, reaching back in to my Magic Murder Bag and withdrawing a metal sigil and jammed against two doors with a faint crimson-gold light spreading like a shimmering sheen over the glass. One entrance temporarily barred, I turned my attention to...

"Well, that's a way to block that way I guess" I muttered seeing the white clad blonde superhero rip the large oaken and marble tabled reception desk and slam into the other entrance. Right into the fact of a startled undead, which turned and ran backwards as it saw the heavy desk flung toward him. Jade was at the cameras behind where the desk had been, watching them, weapon ready, as annoying girl was on my phone sound frantic as the healer in red trimmed white wringed her hands. The nurse had fled, and I could hear shouts down the hall in distant rooms, but for now I focused on the strange letter forming cockroaches, and trying to figure out to do next.

"Right, my barrier, and yours..." I nodded at the hovering golden girl coming back towards, and glaring at, me as I quickly checked the hellfire rounds for the pump action shotgun. Oddly enough an American made Remington, so maybe appropriate to the situation as I glanced back at the barrier, then at the mini-group standing about "...won't delay them very long, and there's probably more of them elsewhere. Now, bad news, my guns can hurt'em, special silver-carbon mix but regular bullets ain't going to do more than annoy them, and we're currently trapped here with'em, in a very big, people filled, hospital. Operational plan right now is figure out what the barrier is, and then take it down, yes?"

"Umm, won't they just break the glass on the door?"

I shook my head in response to the healer girl's words, trying to keep watch as I figured out what was going on. The air was faintly chilled, and everything was so...drained and dull around me, the air...felt wrong "No, it's...look, let's go with magic for now. It should take a few blows...are you talking to those bugs?"

'Tara' across from me, my phone in hand, insects buzzing about her as she spoke to a voice on the phone, and then to the insects before turned her head to me "Ughh...yes, there are Wards here, a few floors up, descending to us...I'm talking to her?"

She gestured at the phone "Dragon's on the line, it's...conference line...along with Armsmaster and Director Piggot in the background, Alexandria and others are trying to get inside, but the barrier..."

"Yeah, I don't know what it is, not yet, and we've more immediate problems in the shape of vampires..." I replied calmer than I felt, the prickling of dark energy at the edge of my awareness, leaning into the proffered phone to continue speaking "...so, respectfully, those on the other side of the phone, I am advising to get Mr. Blood to inspect the barrier from the other side, alongside any experts you've got on energy barriers or dimensional fuc...matters. I am going to suggest we link up with your Wards, and try work the situation from this end. But I'm stating, for the record, we are looking at a time limited situation here, before this place becomes an abattoir anyway..."

I could rattle off details on a mission reasonably well, interspersed by Jade sending a bullet into an attempt by a vampire to breakthrough 'Glory Girl's' impromptu barrier and two creatures battering on mine. The illusion I'd set on Tattletale failed suddenly, a bad sign, as it indicated a drain in the air along with the chill though my own and Jade's continued to hold up. Likely due to a better anchor and spell strength I assumed, but the dropping on 'Tara' let to more angry exchanges between blonde superhero and blonde supervillain. Fucking teenagers, we were in a life or death situation, with high ups on the phone, and they're bitching at each other?

The choice now was between protecting the hospital full of innocent people, who could be turned into not-so-innocent undead, and dealing with the barrier. Right now I argued for linking up, and then attempting rapid response to the major clusters; the bug-user coming towards us seemed to have some range according to Tattletale, and those on the phone, so tracking might be a thing. Yes it probably sounded like I wanted to get killing vampires, but options were low, and another had joined the three at my barrier and trying to break the magic barrier by sheer physical force...

"Good news, there aren't any on the upper floors..." Tattletale answered as I readied my shotgun, feeling the doorway way weakening even as the other entrance stairway was blocked by yet more heavy furniture and filing cabinets. Unfortunately the girl was pale faced as the bugs moved and buzzed on the walls around her "...bad news...god their killing everyone on the floors below us...and their getting back up, and there's..."

She frowned staring at the cockroaches, rubbing her head "...and...her bugs are dying on the lowest levels, there's a...mist or something rolling up making them...sick?"

"A mist?" I asked as something clicked...

"Yes! Yes like a fog!" another, concerningly young, feminine voice cried out as footsteps raced around the corner from the upstairs back office entrance under the watchful eyes, and guns, or 'Detective' West, to reveal three costumed teenagers. Apparently my Earth wasn't the only ones who believed firmly in the concept of superpower children were able for anything; aka, meta-human child-soldier syndrome. Unfortunately I too had to subscribe to the 'use child soldiers' condition myself right now as were apparently now standing on Unhallowed Ground, or some variation of that...which meant very bad things should a massacre occur.

"I'm Gallant, and this is Vista and Weaver, we..." the knight looking one started to say, with Glory Girl hovering over to him gesturing unhappily while he waved her off, but I cut him off. One had to focus on confirming the issue at hand as I took a quick glance at the entrances, judging them, then gesturing at more darkly costumed girl. All were give unhappy looks at the purple-black clad 'psychic' girl, but her 'psychic' powers at least were letting her grasp what I want as she brought the phone over as I point at 'Weaver' apparently.

"Describe the fog and its effects if you please? Is Jason on the line, I need you to confirm if..."

Sometimes I hated being right as the girl described and Jason Blood's concerned tones and technical queries to myself indicated...well, without protection people were going to die the more time passed. Die and then rise up again as bug-girl gave answers to my question on the morgue in the rapid-fire seconds that passed another vampire joined the others at the main-doorway...

"That barrier won't hold much longer..." I stated the obvious for the conference call, watching it coldly, calmly, drawing power into myself and pushing away the chill. Order needed to be imposed here, and I had little time to be super kind and polite as I watched said mist-fog drift up behind the main, glass, doorway "...I'm going to cast a protection against the drain effect on everyone here now. If you don't want that, then bugger off back out of the room and stay the hell out of the fog or mist or whatever drifting upwards. Herd the civilians upstairs I'd advise, but stay out of the effect as it'll slowly start to kill you, then reanimate you. Block doors, clog the air vents, whatever you can to slow it down. So, unless you folks on the outside have a plan I'm advising you to allow me and Cheshire to go active and try delay this...I'm just warning now there will be property damage, and I will burn my way through the undead, or anything that tries hold us back from whatever is allowing them to generate this effect. Also, I'd recommend if we fail and the hospital is overrun, or get turned, to immediately destroy this facility to contain any potential outbreak"

There was silence on the other end, and horrified and, either shocked or betrayed looks from one or two of our little 'superhero' group, before the local Director's voice came back on "You are aware of the consequences of what you are requesting?"

"Death is better than being turned..." I stated calmly, preparing myself as I handed 'Dectective' West the shotgun as they'd need the extra firepower, and I'd need free hands as the doorway began to buckle "...so yes, no, retreat, or fight"

"Brockton Bay will not be another Ellisburg..." I had no idea what that meant, but she said the magic words immediately afterwards as I stepped forward "...you are authorised to make this attempt you damned foreigner, but don't think their won't be consequences over this"

"When aren't there?" I muttered squaring my shoulders, creaking my neck side to side and letting out a breath hands moving as Jade fell in to my right as I motioned the others back and we faced the doorway "Please don't attack me or Cheshire by the way, I'll dropping our disguises"

There were four unholy horrors at this doorway, the far entrance barred fairly securely with heavy things, as I let my polymorph and Jade's drop, drawing my black staff and thudding it off the ground to grant the blessing with a pulse of power into the room. No-one had left, so that was default acceptance really, and momentarily the gloom lightened, the chill lessening a fraction as I cast the Protection from Evil and then Aid. Speed was the key now as I whirled my staff, drawing from reserves inside the staff and gesturing at the conveniently clustered up abominations breaking down the doorway...

"Black Tentacles!"

...as the walls came alive with shadowy blackness of my own and twisted limbs and growths reached out and grasped the undead things too intent on getting at their food, us, than the threat around them. And, in a situation where I'd actually learned something from John Constantine I formed an orb of fire in my free left hand, merging the flames with divine energy, laced with old Celtic and Nordic words of power. The doors flung open on the startled creatures struggling against being entrapped, one falling forward, another trying to turn to mist, while other two morphed into their half-wolf, half-bat-man-thing forms...

"BURN!"

...I liked fire, especially holy fire, even if it wrecked my unholy tentacle horrors. The vampires did not like it at all of course. They screamed as they were burned to ashes as I detonated the flame like a flame thrower, marching forward cleansing all in my path...

"Order. Will. Prevail!"

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