Man in the Box.
Olivia Warren hated her job.
She hated the blood. She especially hated the needles. How exactly she got involved in the medical field she could never understand.
Perhaps it was the money, there was a shortage of nursing around the city and she jumped at the chance to make a little bit of extra cash. She thought that maybe someday she will be able to get out of her San Francisco apartment and actually move into a decent sized home.
Needles.
The streets were full of them now. The city's homeless crisis had gotten out of hand. She didn't care which political party would fix it, only that it would be fixed. Olivia felt that the world had forgotten about her. Her coworkers never asked her how she was doing. The politicians definitely didn't care. She hadn't spoken to her family members in months.
These late nights were stressful. She would get off work at 11:15 and have to walk all the way back to her apartment. It was a one room efficiency apartment with the kitchenette off to the left after one had walked through the door.
Olivia had a small TV. Everything was high definition now. She had a small high definition TV and stereo sitting on the floor of her apartment. She was able to afford a queen sized bed that also sat on the floor with the TV in front of it.
One day she was going to be able to purchase a home.
Water slowly began to pelt her face and auburn hair.
There was light rain under a full moon.
She kept walking along the lonely sidewalks.
There was no one around. She was surrounded by the twisting trees that lined the walkway. It seemed as if the trees moved in the silvery moonlight. It looked almost as if the twisting trees were alive and moving.
Olivia knew this had to be her imagination playing tricks on her.
She had not seen a car for the past couple miles or so.
She had gotten used to walking long distances.
Like everything else, gas was way too expensive.
Down the street she noticed what looked like red headlights.
Coming towards her.
For some reason she felt the need to pause and look at the oncoming car.
She thought she heard a helicopter.
Helicopter blades flapping in the air.
The red lights approached.
She froze.
It looked like an insect.
It had the body of a human.
The flapping became louder.
The glow from the red eyes almost enveloped her.
She was frozen in a state of fear. She could feel the sweat on her palms. She was dripping with sweat.
It had the body of the human but the faces something different.
It was the face of a moth.
Frozen in terror Olivia could only watch as it stopped a few feet away from her face.
The creature let out a shrill scream that almost destroyed her ears.
A wind blew across the twisting trees.
She heard a voice from behind her.
"Don't move Olivia."
"Don't move. Don't look around."
"I need to know if you have it."
You must not move.
The disembodied voice from behind her was coming quickly.
"Do not move. I'm going to reach in your pocket.
"You cannot move."
"Do you have it? It's one of the keys."
"I'm going to reach into your back pocket now."
"Do not move."
Caught between the creature and some disembodied voice of a man behind her, Olivia Warren felt she had no choice but to run sideways towards the twisting trees that were moving in the wind.
As she turned to run, Olivia Warren felt stabbing pains throughout her body. She felt stings on her arms and legs.
She knew that feeling.
As she looked down she finally let out a brutal scream.
Her body was being punctured by several syringes with hypodermic needles.
This is exactly what she was afraid of.
She collapsed to the ground on the sidewalk.
In the darkness, as her consciousness was fading she could see the man behind her standing over her.
"I told you not to move, I don't know if I can fix it."
The man's face looked as if it contorted in pain as he moved his hands around.
A green light enveloped the night.
Olivia Warren's vision was blurry.
The green light was the last thing she would ever see.
Lumina leapt out of the Tube and made her way out of the London Underground, working her way through the rush hour crowd of commuters. Upon exiting the station, she put up the hood of her hoodie to ward off the rain. While the area just outside of the station was sketchy, a block away, London's smiling, commercial face and parks. Alas, Lumina hadn't given herself enough time to get a cup of coffee, so straight to work she went. Taking a right, she approached a guard and flashed him her ID, which identified her as Jennifer Hawkins. This was not the name she had been born with. Neither was Lumina, which was actually more of a nickname she had come to identify herself by. It was easier for everyone that Sara was dead, even if it meant she could never see her family and former friends again. Although there were times that Lumina missed them dearly, she knew that this was the price she had paid for her abilities and the knowledge of the Secret World.
Upon being admitted through, Lumina made her way to the Temple Hall, where she again had to show her ID and this time be scanned through. While she supposed that one could never be too careful in this line of business, Lumina did find it irksome to have to go through so much security every time she came through there. As far as she knew, she had not picked up an alien parasite nor defected to the Illuminati during her one week of R&R (the last investigation she had run had been rather traumatic, so she had much appreciated the time off), but rules were rules, and for the Templars those rules had been in place for a long time, and one did not just violate them.
Lumina made it to her office at just the nick of time. Punctuality had never been her strong suit (to her boss's ire), so she counted this feat as an accomplishment. She had barely sat at her desk and opened her inbox before she was summoned to her boss's office. Did they have a new job for her already? Although being in the field was her favorite part of the job, she could feel butterflies in her gut as she made her way to the enclosed office…
Posted by : Sky on Mar 4, 2024, 9:21pm
Gail Iris had to get out of there.
She couldn't stop herself from shaking as she ran to her car. She taught there at the high school for two years but seeing the students talk like that, she knew.
She could see past their ruse.
"When they beg and ask us why we're doing this, we'll just say, "Evil."
They had to be planning something.
Gail did believe for one moment their excuse of "working on a rhetoric project based on George Orwell's "1984" and human cruelty."
She had spoken to the school resource officer twice and he still had not done anything.
She felt her palms sweating as she sat in the car outside in the California heat.
There had been enough mass shootings.
She knew one was coming.
Her friends and family of course told her she had an irrational fear of mass casualty incidents, and that she had been trained how to deal with one just in case something would happen.
It was coming and she knew it.
She planned on quitting tomorrow.
She grabbed a blue energy drink from her lunch bag in the passenger seat.
She opened the bottle and began to drink quickly.
After finishing her drink, she could only place her hands on the steering well and wonder about her plans for the future.
As she lifted her head up she saw something.
It was standing in front of the bricks of the school building in broad daylight.
It looked like a man.
It looked like an insect.
Its head was the head of a moth.
She locked eyes with it for a few seconds.
The piercing red glare was even visible in daylight.
Within seconds it was gone.
She still felt the presence of sorts.
Looking out the driver side window she saw a man in a black suit approaching.
Who would wear black suit in this heat?
California was becoming hot all year long.
The man in the black suit was coming towards her.
She felt a sense of panic as she looked at him.
She was not fearful of what he might do to her, but was rather fearful of what she was about to do.
Gail Iris opened the passenger side glovebox and retrieved the 22 caliber pistol.
A revolver.
It wasn't very powerful but it would do the job.
Gail surgically pulled the hammer back.
She placed the first two shots in her legs and kneecaps.
She winced at the pain.
As she pulled the hammer back again she would place two shots in her hands.
She could feel the coppery liquid coming from her palms.
She knew she was bleeding to death slowly.
From her hands and from her legs.
She knew this day was coming.
She had feared it.
What she had been wary of was the thing that was taking her life.
She tried to make sense of it as she counted the final two bullets in the cylinder.
Pulling the hammer back she placed one shot in her stomach.
The pain was excruciating.
She had one left.
She knew she was losing consciousness due to loss of blood.
She knew this would happen.
The school resource officer should have listened to her.
She began to feel a cold chill throughout her extremities as her vision darkened.
Gail Iris, with what strength she had left, put the revolver to the side of her neck and fired.
To all esteemed Templar Agents,
It has come to our attention that the fog-shrouded streets of San Francisco have become the stage for a series of peculiar and unsettling events. Reports of Mothman sightings have been trickling in, stirring not only public curiosity but also warranted concern within our ranks.
Furthermore, two corpses have been discovered under mysterious circumstances. The details surrounding these grim findings are sparse, and the local authorities are keeping a tight lid on the information. However, we must consider the possibility of occult involvement.
But there is more. Alongside these incidents, we've detected strange energy disturbances. Preliminary analysis suggests these may be related to ley lines, a concept I find necessary to elucidate.
Ley lines are hypothetical alignments that connect various historical, natural, and sacred sites. They are believed by some to carry a unique energy, forming a global grid of spiritual power. The concept, while not scientifically substantiated, is rooted in the idea that ancient civilizations may have built structures along these lines, recognizing their significance.
As Templars, it is our duty to investigate these matters with both an open mind and a critical eye. The convergence of ley lines and the recent peculiar events could be coincidental, but we must consider the possibility of a deeper connection.
Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to investigate these occurrences with the utmost discretion and report back with your findings. Remember, knowledge is power, but silence is the sanctity of our order.
Stay vigilant, Richard Sonnac
Corinth leaned back in his chair with his feet up on his desk. His hat rested on his face, keeping the artificial light from the ceiling from getting to his eyes. He wasn't asleep, but he wished he was back in his apartment instead of at the office. The familiar sound of heels on linoleum drawing closer caught his attention.
"Another late night at the TfT? I think you might be enjoying the place now," came a sweet voice with a London accent.
"Hardly," he said in his gruff and muffled voice from under his hat. He moved the hat to its rightful resting place on his head and looked up to see Dalia, his handler looking down at him with her half smile, half smirk. She wore her blue shirt and black pencil skirt, complete with her don't-mess-with-me heels. "You wanted me to tail Jack Stone and that's what I'm doing. Not my fault he spends almost every waking hour at the Tit for Tat strip club. With as much money as he's tossing at those girls, he could have bought the place by now."
Dalia cocked her head to the right, "well get caffeinated up, you got a job."
"Another one?" His boots moved off the desk as he leaned forward, the front legs of his chair slamming on the floor and his black trench coat swaying forward. "I have two already plus following this asshole. I haven't had a decent night sleep in three days and I'm running off sodas, whiskey, cigarettes, and gas station entrees."
She gave him a look that said she pitied him, but she really didn't. They all had their jobs to do and none of theirs were any easier than others. Well...almost not as easy. "Have you read the latest memo from Sonnac? Dropped this morning." She pulled a piece of paper out and handed it to him.
"No," said Corinth as he snatched the paper from her hand and began to read. "San Francisco...Mothman...Ley Lines..." He looked up at her after tossing the paper on his desk. "Doesn't the Mothman live in West Virginia? He's a little far from his hometown isn't he?" Dalia shrugged. "Let the Americans handle it."
An annoying sigh left her lips. "You're an American."
"Touche." "He pulled a cigarette out of his pocket and put it to his lips. With a snap of his fingers, a tiny spark lept out and caught the end of the cigarette on fire. He inhaled deeply to make sure it continued to burn.
As quicky as he inhaled the cigarette, it was pulled from his lips and snuffed out on his desk. "You know there is no smoking in here. Every day I have to tell you that." Her London accent was stronger when she was angry. He liked that about her. Probably why he made her mad so often. "Go home, pack your things, and get ready to get on a plane. It leaves this afternoon."
"I'm not going alone. You find me a partner and then I'll sign off on this. You're not sending me halfway around the world by myself to look for a Mothman; a creature known for impending doom and disaster." He grabbed his keys from his desk drawer and dropped them into his trench coat pocket. "Call me when you have someone, until then, I'm going to bed."
Posted by : Dblitz13 on Mar 6, 2024, 9:50am
Seoul, South Korea
In the shadowy labyrinth of Seoul, Moon Eun-Ji and her older and experienced brother, Jae-Hoon, emerged from the aftermath of their first mission together. The nightmarish creature they faced had left a palpable stain on both the siblings, figuratively and literally.
Tracking the creature through the winding streets proved more challenging than Eun-Ji anticipated. The creature's chaotic aura tested her skills, and her inexperience showed. The siblings finally cornered the beast in a dimly lit alley, the ominous silhouette of a decaying warehouse looming ahead.
The ensuing battle was brutal, and the rookie struggled to keep up. Jae-Hoon's seasoned martial prowess and experience in the secret world took center stage, while Eun-Ji played a supporting role, trying to harness her chaotic abilities amidst the chaos. It was clear – her big brother saved the day.
As the creature dissipated into ethereal echoes, the siblings stood in the aftermath, both covered in the creature's grotesque remnants. Eun-Ji couldn't escape the queasiness that gripped her stomach, and as they commenced the cleanup, her discomfort escalated.
"Ugh, this is disgusting," she muttered, trying to wipe off the foul residue.
Jae-Hoon chuckled, teasing her, "Less messy than your close combat, rookie. If you can't handle a little monster on you, you best stick to the physic books. "
Rolling her eyes, Eun-Ji retorted, "You know, not everyone enjoys bathing in monster guts. Maybe I'll stick to chaos from a distance next time."
Her brother smirked, handing her a towel, mop and bucket he had retrieved from his motorcycle. "That's not how it works, sis. Get used to it. And try not to hurl."
But it was too late. The combination of the creature's innards and the reality of her less-than-heroic performance overwhelmed Eun-Ji. She doubled over, retching.
Jae-Hoon laughed, "Smooth, rookie. You are supposed to be making the scene better, not worse. Maybe you should stick to cleanup duty for now until you toughen up."
Eun-Ji shot him a glare between retches. "Oh, laugh it up, golden boy. I bet I'll handle the next one better."
Jae-Hoon shook his head, "Less talk and more cleaning. I want to get home at a decent hour and having you tag along has already made this hunt take longer than expected."
"Take a seat," Lumina's boss, Owen Maryn, intoned. Lumina wordlessly complied.
"Welcome back," he began, "your timing is… impeccable. I hope your time off has been sufficient to recover from, well, you know…"
"Yes sir," Lumina replied, although she was unsure herself of the truth of that statement.
"Excellent. My colleague, Miss Dalia, has requested you in particular to accompany her agent on a job of utmost importance." Owen pushed a file across his desk. "This comes from Mister Sonnac himself.
Lumina skimmed the file. The seriousness of this development wasn't so apparent to her at first glance, but she could see she had some lore to brush up on. She had heard of the Mothman before but didn't recall the details of this particular cryptid off the top of her head. "I am not soloing this operation?" she inquired, attempting to suppress her incredulity.
"A more experienced agent than you has requested assistance for this task. This should clue you in as to the expected difficulty of this assignment, Miss Hawkins," Owen chastised. "After your previous debacle, I would hope that you would be more cautious and ready to accept help. We may not be able to bail you out of San Francisco the way we bailed you out of Hyderabad. And do you know why?"
"It… it's Illuminati country," Lumina stammered.
"Exactly. If this threat is crossing our desk, you can bloody well bet your arse that the Illuminati are swarming to keep their eye on their back yard!"
Lumina paused. "I'm sorry, but what business do we have dealing with this if the competition is indeed so fierce?"
"No doubt Mister Sonnac has his own reasons for being concerned about the sightings and deaths, but I think it is safe to conclude that the Illuminati cannot be trusted to contain this threat in a way that will sufficiently protect the people and the Secret World. This Mothman has been allowed agency in that country for over half a century. Those fools must have thought there was something to be gained from its continued presence. They are wrong. If they will not contain or eliminate the threat not only to those innocent people, but also to the discovery of the Secret World, then we will."
Owen took a breath to gather his composure, then continued, "You will go to San Francisco, confirm if these sightings of the Mothman are legitimate, and capture or destroy the beast if it is indeed there. And if there is anything to Mister Sonnac's intuitions regarding ley lines in the area, learn as much as you can and report on this as well."
"And who am I being assigned to partner with in this investigation?" Lumina reminded him.
"Ah, that will be Mister Whitethorn. I am hoping he will temper your recklessness, at least by a little bit."
"Corinth? Doesn't he have, like, three other jobs that he's on?"
"It would behoove you to mind your own business," Owen groused.
"Sorry, habit comes with the trade," Lumina apologized.
"Whatever," Owen sighed. "Your flight leaves at Heathrow at 2:30. You will meet Mister Whitethorn there by 12:30 with packed bags. I expect you to be punctual. Any questions?"
"We're flying?"
"Yes, the Illuminati will likely be keeping watch over the portals to Agartha near San Francisco, and as Mister Sonnac noted, local, and likely federal, authorities are containing the noise of these incidents as much as they can. You will likely have to get close to get the facts you need, and it will be best to have the proper paperwork on hand if they ask for it. As such, we will use legal channels to get you there even if more expeditious means exist. If you can find a portal to Agartha that is clear of oversight, we can smuggle you weapons and other equipment you may need to support your investigation. Anything else?"
"Can I stop by the archives and read up on this Mothman and Ley Lines before I go?" Lumina pleaded.
"Yes, but make it quick. One last thing."
"Yes?"
"For the love of God, do not forget your passport."
…
Lumina scrambled out of the cab with her luggage and carry ons. She was, of course, running late. But surely two hours was more than enough time to get through the airport, even if it was the busiest in the world…
Posted by : Sky
Seoul, South Korea
Moon Eun-Ji clung to her brother, Jae-Hoon, as the motorcycle tore through the city streets, leaving behind the chaos of their first mission. Excitement surged through her veins, mingled with a nervous anticipation. The mission had been a success, but she knew her parents would dissect every moment captured on the video footage. Their expectations loomed over her like a dark cloud, a constant reminder of the perfection they demanded.
As they rode, Eun-Ji's thoughts raced. She couldn't wait to shed the smelly clothes and grime of the mission, longing for the comfort of a hot shower and the familiar embrace of home. But beneath the excitement, a knot of anxiety tightened in her stomach. She dreaded facing her parents' scrutiny, knowing they would find flaws where she saw triumphs.
As they left the city's chaos behind, the landscape shifted, morphing into the tranquil outskirts. The air grew cleaner, carrying the scent of earth and night blooming flowers. Streetlights cast a soft glow on the suburban streets, guiding them toward their family residence.
Arriving home, the house stood as a beacon of solace amidst the night. Its more modern Korean architecture blended seamlessly with traditional landscaping, a testament to the family's heritage and the secret world they inhabited. Along the perimeter, subtle wards and protective symbols adorned the walls, invisible to the untrained eye but potent guardians against malevolent forces.
The courtyard beckoned, a sanctuary of tranquility within the bustling city. A pond shimmered under the moonlight, surrounded by meticulously tended gardens and intricately carved stone statues. Lanterns cast dancing shadows on the pathways, their warm light warding off the darkness that lurked beyond the property's borders.
Inside, the house exuded warmth and familiarity. Traditional Korean art adorned the walls, juxtaposed with sleek modern furnishings. Hidden compartments concealed ancient artifacts and arcane talismans, safeguarding the family against unseen threats.
Eun-Ji sighed with relief as they dismounted the motorcycle that was parked inside the garage, eager to leave the night's chaos behind and embrace the sanctuary of home. They would both enter through a door which would not yet take them to the main abode, but to a private and secure place sub-level on the property that the family used as their headquarters for dealing with the secret world.
Gangnam-gu: Seoul, South Korea - Moon Residence
Eun-Ji watched as Jae-Hoon went off and then stepped into the designated changing area, her combat attire clinging to her with a mix of dried Eldritch ichor and bits of the creature's grotesque remains. The outfit, designed for agility and protection, felt like a second skin. The flexible, lightweight material allowed for swift movements, yet beneath its surface lay hidden layers of reinforced padding, offering a shield against the perils of the secret world.
She unfastened the straps around her waist and upper thighs, feeling the weight of the hammers on her hips. "Insult & Injury" rested in their holsters, symbols of both destruction and order. Discarding the combat attire into a specially designed metal hamper, Eun-Ji activated the disinfecting and purifying cleaning cycle. The machine hummed to life, pulling the hamper container inside. It would take a while, but eventually it would erase the stains and odors that clung to the fabric; making it useable again.
Turning her attention to the weapons vault, Eun-Ji carefully placed the hammers in their designated slots. Each movement was precise, a ritualistic dance born from years of training. The vault door closed with a reassuring thud, securing the instruments of utility and pain until the next mission.
Eun-Ji then ventured further into the underground bunker, a floorplan of reinforced walls and state-of-the-art technology. The bunker, once a basic shelter, had evolved into a headquarters of sorts, equipped to handle the supernatural threats that lurked in the shadows. Computer terminals hummed with encrypted data, and surveillance screens displayed feeds from hidden cameras strategically placed throughout Seoul. There was also two years worth of food stored, enough for four people, should it ever come down to hiding away from an apocalyptical event.
Eun-Ji next made her way to the washroom. The simple bathroom itself was a haven of cleanliness, its tiles gleaming under soft lighting. The shower, a luxury she had been daydreaming about on their ride back, beckoned with the promise of cleansing.
Steam enveloped Eun-Ji as the hot water cascaded over her, washing away the remnants of the night's battle. She reveled in the sensation, letting the warmth seep into her bones. The soap, fragrant and soothing, mingled with the cleansing mist, creating an almost meditative atmosphere.
Emerging from the shower, Eun-Ji wrapped herself in a plush towel, her skin rejuvenated and free of the night's grime. She also wrapped her hair up into a smaller towel. Then she proceeded to her wardrobe, opting for casual attire – comfortable yet stylish. A loose-fitting top and fitted pants replaced the combat gear, and she slipped into cozy socks, grounding herself in the familiar routine of preparing for a night at home.
Back in the central area of the headquarters, Eun-Ji settled into a comfortable chair, the scent of clean clothes and the distant hum of machinery providing a backdrop to the evening. She could tell that Jae-Hoon had already finished and headed upstairs. Not yet ready to go up, Eun-Ji decided to turn on some classical music, close her eyes, and replay the frantic fight scene she had just experienced in her mind. She had trained her whole life it seemed for this night; however, no amount of training could have prepared her for the real thing.
Posted by : Lorem
Gangnam-gu: Seoul, South Korea - Moon Residence
The family dinner unfolded in a peculiar blend of warmth and tension within the cozy confines of the Moon family residence. The dining table was adorned with an array of dishes, a feast that showcased the culinary prowess of Ma-Ri, the family matriarch. The centerpiece was a steaming pot of Galbitang, a hearty Korean soup made with beef short ribs, radishes, and a savory broth.
As the family settled around the table, bowls filled with the fragrant soup were placed before them. Byung-Ho, the father, turned on a screen displaying the recorded footage of the night's eldritch encounter. The flickering light of the video cast an eerie glow across the dining room.
Ma-Ri smiled, "I hope you all enjoy the Galbitang. It's been simmering for hours."
Byung-Ho nodded, "Let's begin the debriefing. Eun-Ji, you led the charge tonight. Good initiative."
Ma-Ri brow furrowed with concern, "But, sweetie, your form during the chaos magic invocation needs refinement. It was too erratic."
Eun-Ji was quick to agree, "I'll work on it, Mother."
The family dove into their meal, the flavors of the Galbitang providing a momentary respite from the critical atmosphere. Despite the delicious distraction, the impending analysis lingered in the air.
Byung-Ho pointed to the screen again, "Look here, Jae-Hoon handled this encounter smoothly. Eun-Ji, your positioning was off during the creature's dispersion."
Jae-Hoon leaned in closer and I his sister, "Remember, sis, always anticipate its movements. You have to be a step ahead. Be ahead or your dead."
Eun-Ji sported a stoic expression, "Noted."
The dining room echoed with the clinking of chopsticks against bowls as the family continued their meal, a temporary reprieve from the harsh critiques.
Ma-Ri savored the soup and fished for affirmation, "Eun-Ji, the Galbitang is comforting, isn't it?"
Eun-Ji knew what she wanted to hear. It was made easy, because it was true. "It's delicious, Mother."
Byung-Ho leaned back in his chair, "Now, about the hand-to-hand combat. Too aggressive. You left openings that could have been exploited. You see here and here, Jae-Hoon had to save you because you put yourself at risk."
Jae-Hoon interjected, "Sis, remember what I taught you about balance. Use your opponent's momentum against them."
As the family delved into the minutiae of the mission, Eun-Ji maintained a stoic facade, masking the internal turmoil. Each criticism felt like a blow, a reminder of the relentless pursuit of perfection her family demanded.
Ma-Ri, as if she was aware of her daughters distress, softened. "We critique because we care, Eun-Ji. You have great potential. Just hone your skills."
Byung-Ho validated the compliment, "Indeed. You did well, but we expect excellence. The Dragon doesn't settle for anything less."
The family continued to share the meal, interspersing bites of Galbitang with words of advice and correction. Eun-Ji absorbed it all, determined to improve and live up to the family expectations, even if it meant facing their unrelenting standards. In truth, she understood that in this line of work, errors could spell disaster.
Posted by : Lorem on Mar 7, 2024, 11:18pm
Gangnam-gu: Seoul, South Korea - Moon Residence
After the tension-laden dinner, Eun-Ji found herself in the kitchen, diligently helping her mother, Ma-Ri, with the aftermath of the family meal. Dishes clinked, water ran, and the aroma of leftover Galbitang lingered in the air. As she scrubbed the plates, Eun-Ji couldn't shake the echoes of the debriefing, despite her mother's consistent talking on a variety of different matters.
Once the kitchen was in order, she retreated to her room, a private sanctuary within the expansive residence. Her bedroom exuded a blend of modern elegance and traditional Korean influences; a sign of her mother's grip on the style throughout the house. Dark wood furniture and minimalist décor adorned the room, creating a calming ambiance. The walls held framed family photos.
Settling at her desk, Eun-Ji pulled up the footage of the night's encounter. As the video played, she meticulously took notes in a leather-bound journal. Her father, Byung-Ho, had emphasized the importance of analysis, and she was determined to dissect every moment of the mission, seeking areas for improvement.
The bed eventually beckoned, and Eun-Ji allowed herself a moment of relaxation. She reclined against the plush pillows, surrounded by the scent of lavender diffusing from an elegant oil burner on her bedside table. Soft lighting bathed the room, casting a warm glow.
Her private bathroom, an extension of the bedroom, boasted modern fixtures and a luxurious spa-like atmosphere. Eun-Ji, getting up, indulged in a skincare routine, the ritual of cleansing and moisturizing a form of self-care amidst the chaos of her responsibilities.
As she immersed herself in her bedtime routine, the door creaked open, and her family members made individual visits to check on her before they too would begin preparing for slumber.
Her mother, Ma-Ri, entered first with a tray bearing a cup of soothing herbal tea. "A cup of relaxation, my love. You need to rest."
Eun-Ji offered a grateful smile, sipping the fragrant tea as her mother lingered for a moment, a comforting presence.
Later, her brother, Jae-Hoon, popped in, his advice taking a gentler tone. "Remember, sis, each mission is a step in your journey. Embrace the lessons, but don't let them weigh you down. Oh, and you owe me like at least twice for keeping you alive tonight." He was jesting, to soften the reality that it was true.
Finally, her father, Byung-Ho, entered, his stern demeanor softened by paternal concern. "Analyzing the footage is essential, but don't forget to breathe. Excellence comes from a balance of discipline and self-care."
With each visit, Eun-Ji felt the familial support, a reminder that, despite the critiques, her family stood united. It helped get her out of her cognitive dissonance over her first performance falling short of her own expectations, let alone theirs. As they left, she settled into her bed. Eun-Ji closed her eyes, determined to absorb the lessons of the night. She cuddled against a body pillow and was soon fast asleep.
Posted by : Lorem
Gangnam-gu: Seoul, South Korea - Moon Residence
In the ethereal realm of dreams, Eun-Ji found herself ensnared in the tendrils of a nightmarish landscape. The setting mirrored the site of their recent mission, now distorted by the surreal chaos of her subconscious. Jae-Hoon and Eun-Ji stood, back-to-back, amidst the unsettling silence, their breaths echoing in the oppressive stillness.
Suddenly, the tranquility shattered as the Eldritch creature emerged, its form morphing from the innocuous old lady they initially encountered. It loomed, grotesque and formidable, limbs elongated and distorted, eyes gleaming with an otherworldly malevolence. Shadows danced upon its twisted visage, creating an aura of dread.
The nightmare battle commenced with a deafening roar from the creature. Jae-Hoon, like a wraith, flowed into action. His movements blended grace, speed and lethal precision. A samurai sword, etched with powerful scripts, gleaming in the eerie light, became an extension of his body as he faced the eldritch horror.
Eun-Ji, wielding her twin hammers, Insult and Injury, channeled the chaotic forces within. As she swung the hammers, ripple-like trails traced their path through the air, leaving just barely perceivable ephemeral patterns in their wake. Chaos magic was manifesting subtly around her, distorting the natural order of reality itself.
The battlefield twisted with surreal distortions – illusions of multiple Eun-Jis confusing the creature, phantom hammers striking from unexpected angles, and slight temporal distortions causing the creature's movements to be just enough off pace. Yet, the Eldritch abomination proved resilient, adapting to the chaos with unnerving efficiency.
As the nightmare unfolded, Eun-Ji's chaos magic continues to toy with the creature's senses. Simultaneously, Jae-Hoon's martial prowess engaged the creature in a deadly dance of blades. The nightmare became a cinematic symphony of chaos, every clash and strike resonating with an otherworldly intensity.
Despite their relentless assault, the Eldritch creature retaliated with a primal ferocity, each of its grotesque appendages striking with an uncanny fluidity. Eun-Ji felt the surreal landscape warp around her, the battlefield becoming a shifting tapestry of nightmare and illusion.
The dream battleground dissolved, leaving Eun-Ji gasping in the darkness, awake in her bed. The nightmare, though imagined, left an indelible reminder that this life left its imprint on those that engaged voluntarily with it. The occasional bad dream, due to brushes with evil, we're going to be a consequence that she would have to come to accept.
Posted by :Lorem
Gangnam-gu: Seoul, South Korea - Moon Residence
The soft strains of classical music filled the room as Eun-Ji stirred from her slumber, her alarm clock gradually simulating the gentle rise of the morning sun. With a yawn, she stretched, the warmth of the faux sunlight coaxing her into wakefulness. It was 4:50 am, the start of another day in the relentless pursuit of excellence.
Eun-Ji's morning ritual unfolded with practiced efficiency. She brushed her teeth and flossed meticulously, every movement precise and deliberate. As she stood before the mirror, she deftly twisted her long hair into a sleek ponytail, a practical choice for the upcoming workout.
Selecting her workout attire—a lightweight tank top and fitted leggings—Eun-Ji dressed with purpose, the fabric hugging her form as she prepared for the rigors of the morning session. Before leaving her room, she took a moment to jot down fragments of her dreams in her journal, the ink flowing across the pages like whispered memories.
In the stillness of her private sanctuary, Eun-Ji sank into a brief meditation, centering herself for the challenges ahead. With a final deep breath, she emerged, ready to face the day's trials.
Descending to the in-home gym room, Eun-Ji was greeted by the sight of her brother, Jae-Hoon, and their father already engrossed in their morning routines. The gym, a sprawling expanse of equipment and space, hummed with the energy of disciplined dedication. It was a fusion of crossfit intensity, gymnastics grace, and martial arts precision, a testament to the family's commitment to physical excellence.
Jae-Hoon, his form fluid and precise, practiced with the wing chun wooden dummy, the rhythmic strikes echoing through the room. His father, Byung-Ho, moved with the controlled power of a seasoned warrior, his focus unwavering as he engaged in a series of martial arts drills.
Eun-Ji joined them, her presence adding to the symphony of movement and sound. As the clock struck 5:30 am, they launched into their HIT workouts, each one following their customized plan outlined on the large dry erase board. The session began with a dynamic warm-up, muscles awakening to the challenge ahead.
For Eun-Ji, today's workout focused on explosive movements and agility drills. Jae-Hoon's routine emphasized speed and precision, the wooden dummy bearing the brunt of his practiced strikes. Byung-Ho's regimen prioritized strength and endurance, his movements deliberate and controlled. Ma-Ri was working primarily on core exercises through a fusion of pilates and yoga.
As the workout reached its crescendo, the family pushed themselves to their limits, sweat glistening on their brows as they neared the end. The cooldown brought a sense of catharsis, muscles humming with exertion and satisfaction.
With the formal workout concluded, Eun-Ji dedicated the next half-hour to a thorough stretching routine, her flexibility a testament to years of dedicated practice. Jae-Hoon continued to refine his technique with the wooden dummy, his focus unyielding.
As the morning sun cast its golden glow, the family reconvened at the dining table for breakfast. Organic oatmeal, fresh fruit, and vitamin-rich smoothies adorned the table, a celebration of health and vitality. Around the table, conversation flowed with the dynamics of a tight knit family.
Posted by : Lorem
Gangnam-gu: Seoul, South Korea - Moon Residence
After breakfast, the family went their separate ways for the day. Her father and brother headed to work. Ma-Ri, a stay-at-home mom by profession, and Eun-Ji, being a Bee, were expected to devote their lives to the Dragon's cause towards the Secret World, so they both remained at home.
After lunch, in the heart of their meticulously equipped training dojo on the property, Ma-Ri and Eun-Ji embarked on a captivating exploration of her chaos magic, as they had done daily for the past twelve years. Over the last 12 years, the family had proactively explored, experimented, studied, recorded, identified, trained, and tried to develop Eun-Ji's abilities. Their first session today would focus on an ability they had dubbed "Illusory Prowess."
Eun-Ji, a vision of captivating grace in her rhythmic gymnastics attire, began her routine with a flourish. With a wave of her hand, illusions manifested, cloning her form into a dance team of three rhythmic gymnasts. Each clone mirrored her movements flawlessly, a surreal dance unfolding in perfect synchronicity at first. However, as the dance continued, each illusion began performing in harmony with the rest, but as if it had its own complimentary choreography. The illusions looked very real, but there was a degree of wispiness around their edges that amplified proportionately based on how complex their movement was.
Ma-Ri, surrounded by a labyrinth of recording devices, marveled at the spectral display. "Initiating Illusory Prowess Experiment: Rhythmic Symphony," Ma-Ri announced, her digital interface illuminating with a cascade of data. Motion sensors, strategically placed to capture the ethereal dance, traced the contours of the illusory gymnasts with delicate precision.
As Eun-Ji's rhythmic routine with clubs unfolded, the illusions dazzled with a mesmerizing display of beauty and grace. The room transformed into a canvas of rhythmic expression, and Ma-Ri focused on the feedback, documenting the seamless fusion of illusion and reality.
"Prepare for the shattering sequence," Ma-Ri instructed as Eun-Ji executed a final, synchronized twirl. With a directed gesture, Eun-Ji moved the illusions towards a caged mouse strategically placed in the room. They pranced and danced over to the cage with feminine allure. Upon arrival, the illusions shattered, resembling reality breaking like glass and disintegrating all at the same time into a kaleidoscope of colored planes. It happened quickly and brought with it a unique sound forced out of the air.
The mouse, exposed to the psychological impact of the shattered illusions, displayed physical distress, its responses recorded in real-time. Ma-Ri meticulously observed the data, noting the correlation between the illusion-induced psychological damage and its tangible effects on the mouse's physical well-being.
After a short break, Eun-Ji transitioned to her next routine for the next experiment. This time with a long flirty ribbon in hand. The illusions materialized anew, a dance of confounding elegance as she twirled and weaved the ribbons.
"Commencing Illusory Prowess Experiment: Confounding Elegance," Ma-Ri announced, her digital interface capturing the intricate patterns of the ribbon dance. Motion sensors continued to meticulously document it all in exquisite detail.
As Eun-Ji reached the climax of her routine, she shattered the illusions with a deliberate gesture. The chaotic energy surged, directed towards another science mouse adorned with electrodes. The mouse, subjected to the confusing aftermath of shattered illusions, exhibited signs of cognitive anomalies which they had learned to identify as disarray. Ma-Ri scrutinized the data, unraveling the intricate interplay between illusion-induced confusion and the mouse's neural responses.
After one more break, the third act unfolded with a hoop in Eun-Ji's hands. The illusions twirled and spun, creating an enchanting spectacle that blurred the lines between illusion and reality. Ma-Ri, engrossed in the display, marveled at the seamless fusion of chaos magic and rhythmic artistry. She was very proud of her daughter's skill in dancing.
"Initiating Illusory Prowess Experiment: Dazzling Disorientation," Ma-Ri announced, her digital interface pulsating with analytical precision.
As Eun-Ji reached the crescendo of her routine, she shattered the illusions with a final, dramatic flourish. The chaotic energy cascaded towards a third mouse, positioned strategically in the experimental field. The mouse, subjected to the aftermath of shattered illusions, displayed signs of profound daze on the readings. Ma-Ri meticulously recorded the data, dissecting the nuances of illusion-induced disorientation and its impact on the mouse's cognitive faculties.
The experiment concluded. To date, they had discovered that the shattered illusions could cause damage (to the mind, which also seemed to affect the body … but no external physical harm like a weapon would.), confusion and daze; however, only one of those things at a time, not all three. They were still exploring to see if there was anything else they were capable of, or perhaps to combine the effects of them, or continue to make them stronger. To do it on a mouse was pretty potent; however, large creatures seemed to have higher constitutions to overcome.
The two left to take a walk about the garden and talk. They would return shortly for more experiments and training.
Posted by : Lorem
Posted by : Dblitz13
Gangnam-gu: Seoul, South Korea - Moon Residence
Eun-Ji and Ma-Ri embarked on the next phase of their afternoon into Eun-Ji's chaos abilities, with a particular focus on Temporal Manipulation. This session aimed to unravel the intricate dance of time through a more focused experiment centered on a pendulum device.
Ma-Ri explained the focus, "Eun-Ji, for this experiment, let's narrow our focus to the temporal manipulation of a simple yet precise device - a metronome. Imagine it as an instrument of time, and your task is to alter its natural swings. Make the consistent rhythm hiccup."
As Ma-Ri adjusted the scientific instruments, the metronome swung with rhythmic regularity. Eun-Ji, with her chaos-infused abilities, concentrated.
Ma-Ri chimed in, "Begin by slowing down the pendulum's swing. Picture time stretching, elongating the natural rhythm."
Eun-Ji's hands moved with intentionality, her chaos magic intertwining with the pendulum's motion. The chamber held an air of anticipation as the pendulum, once a steadfast metronome, succumbed to the influence of temporal manipulation.
Ma-Ri smiled in approval of the readings, "Good, Eun-Ji. Now, let's bring time back to its usual cadence. Speed up the metronome's swings."
Eun-Ji's focus intensified as she embraced the challenge. The pendulum accelerated, its swings defying the constraints of conventional time.
Ma-Ri nodded in approval, "Now, let's incorporate a rhythmic pattern. Alternate between slowing down and speeding up the metronome, creating a syncopated beat."
Eun-Ji's movements became a seamless fusion of chaos and precision. The pendulum's swings shifted and a lot more data was recorded for analyzing.
Gangnam-gu: Seoul, South Korea - Moon Residence
Ma-Ri and Eun-Ji delved into the next experiment immediately after the metronome was removed and new equipment was setup. A motion capture suit and punching bag with internal sensors. The experiment would be focused on chaos-infused strikes. Directed by her mother, Ma-Ri, she began striking the punching bag with relentless force.
Eun-Ji's fists became a blur of chaotic energy, each impact sending shockwaves through the air. The punching bag, typically unyielding, succumbed to the infusion of chaos. As her strikes connected, the bag swung more than one might expect looking at Eun-Ji's size, distorting and warping under the unpredictable forces.
The motion sensors meticulously recorded these patterns, capturing the nuanced dance of combat and arcane influence. The camera even showed that sometimes it looked like the bag was hit before her hand struck it. Other times it looked like it had been struck moments after her hand was no longer making contact.
She eventually was allowed to stop. The time between strikes was lengthening due to fatigue and she was glistening with sweat. As her mother processed the new data and loaded it to the backup server, she gave her daughter a water break. It would be bit to get the next experiment session configured, so she gave her daughter a reprieve for an hour.
Gangnam-gu: Seoul, South Korea - Moon Residence
They were back in the training dojo. The atmosphere hummed with anticipation as Eun-Ji and her mother, Ma-Ri, prepared for the next experiment. This session focused on testing Eun-Ji's reality-warping feints.
Ma-Ri donned a jacket adorned with small, bell-like balls, each equipped with sensors. The challenge was set – Eun-Ji had to evade Ma-Ri's martial arts attacks while successfully removing every ball from the jacket. Eun-Ji, clad in a fencing-like outfit wired to register strikes, embarked on the daunting task.
As the session unfolded, the chamber echoed with the sounds of exertion – swift movements, the occasional clash, and the subtle jingling of bells. Eun-Ji's reality-warping feints proved effective, creating illusions that confounded Ma-Ri's strikes.
As Ma-Ri attempts to strike, Eun-Ji's agile movements create a warping effect just subtle enough to be indiscernible to the attacker, leaving her mother momentarily uncertain of her true location. Surprised in fact each time a blow just barely misses, despite understanding how it works. The visual landscape around her daughter ripples and warps with each feint, making the target a shifting enigma.
However, the fencing attire registered two strikes against Eun-Ji, prompting a stern expression from her mother. Undeterred, Eun-Ji faced the challenge once more. Round after round, she honed her ability to dodge, weave, and manipulate perception.
After seven more intense rounds, Eun-Ji achieved the elusive goal – successfully dodging every strike and removing each sensor-laden ball without a single touch to her wired attire. Ma-Ri, while unamused by the initial setbacks, acknowledged her daughter's resilience and growing mastery over reality-warping feints. The training session concluded with a sense of accomplishment overall.
Gangnam-gu: Seoul, South Korea - Moon Residence
They were back in the training dojo. The atmosphere hummed with anticipation as Eun-Ji and her mother, Ma-Ri, prepared for the next experiment. This session focused on testing Eun-Ji's reality-warping feints.
Ma-Ri donned a jacket adorned with small, bell-like balls, each equipped with sensors. The challenge was set – Eun-Ji had to evade Ma-Ri's martial arts attacks while successfully removing every ball from the jacket. Eun-Ji, clad in a fencing-like outfit wired to register strikes, embarked on the daunting task.
As the session unfolded, the chamber echoed with the sounds of exertion – swift movements, the occasional clash, and the subtle jingling of bells. Eun-Ji's reality-warping feints proved effective, creating illusions that confounded Ma-Ri's strikes.
As Ma-Ri attempts to strike, Eun-Ji's agile movements create a warping effect just subtle enough to be indiscernible to the attacker, leaving her mother momentarily uncertain of her true location. Surprised in fact each time a blow just barely misses, despite understanding how it works. The visual landscape around her daughter ripples and warps with each feint, making the target a shifting enigma.
However, the fencing attire registered two strikes against Eun-Ji, prompting a stern expression from her mother. Undeterred, Eun-Ji faced the challenge once more. Round after round, she honed her ability to dodge, weave, and manipulate perception.
After seven more intense rounds, Eun-Ji achieved the elusive goal – successfully dodging every strike and removing each sensor-laden ball without a single touch to her wired attire. Ma-Ri, while unamused by the initial setbacks, acknowledged her daughter's resilience and growing mastery over reality-warping feints. The training session concluded with a sense of accomplishment overall.
Gangnam-gu: Seoul, South Korea - Moon Residence
Ma-Ri initiated the final experiment, rigging a tennis ball machine aimed at a wall. Binding her daughter, Eun-Ji, in an exposed standing x position, memories of this once-favorite exercise from her childhood surfaced. The gradual evolution from stuffed animals to tennis balls marked the passage of time and skill. As the machine whirred to life, tennis balls were propelled at Eun-Ji, who, constrained, relied solely on her Chaos Shield.
Each impact defied the laws of physics, as the ball ricocheted in unpredictable angles upon striking the shield. The experiment continued, with Ma-Ri launching tennis balls at varying speeds, increasing the forces that tested the Chaos Shield. Eun-Ji, surprised by the minimal impact at the 70 mph speeds, expressed disbelief. In between strikes, Eun-Ji narrated her sensations, describing the fastest speeds as akin to being hit by a localized soft pillow.
The Shield, invisible yet present, manifests as a subtle layer enveloping her body, right on its outer surface. When struck, it induces a fleeting ripple-like water effect in the air that swiftly dissipates, leaving only the imperceptible presence of the protective shield seamlessly integrated with her form. It cloaks her in an unseen barrier when active.
Encouraged by the progress, Ma-Ri elevated the challenge by loading baseballs. The slow speeds were manageable, but mid-speed strikes to the gut prompted a decision to conclude the experiment. At mid level, the impact resembled an unblocked punch to the torso, hinting at potential light bruising. The session concluded after the third loud grunt of pain, leaving a sense of accomplishment and showcasing the refinement of Eun-Ji's protective Chaos Shield.
Posted by : Lorem
Gangnam-gu: Seoul, South Korea - Moon Residence
In the disciplined routine of the past month, Eun-Ji and her family engaged in rigorous preparations for her impending rite of passage mission that had now been official set. The anticipation of the coming date felt surreal, even though it was so near it had truly been a twelve year journey till now. Was it actually going to happen?
The past month doubled down on all things related to the Secret World. All other normal routines and activities were put on hold. Jae-Hoon, her older brother, took her on frequent hunts, challenging her skills against low-level threats and occasional non-threatening monsters for essential practice. During a particularly intense encounter with a medium-level threat, Jae-Hoon assumed a more prominent role in the fight, earning Eun-Ji's newfound respect.
With the month concluding, anticipation lingered as Eun-Ji prepared to delve into the details of her upcoming mission, the pivotal moment when she would transition from apprentice to a realized Dragon agent… if she survived and if her performance measured up to their standards.
Eun-Ji doubted she would get any rest tonight when she went to bed. Her mother had prepared for that, per usual, and worked her so hard that last day that she collapsed and fell asleep without even the desire to shower.
Posted by : Lorem
"Doesn't matter to me. I can find a plate anywhere." Which was true, Corinth wasn't picky when it came to food. He had an iron stomach, easily eating wierd food combinations that would make a pregnant woman nauseous. "How about we grab a drink at the bar, they're bound to have a menu for food as well."
He took point and led the way to a small bar called The Oceanic Pub and Kitchen. It was more restaurant than bar, but what did one expect in an airport? You could be expected to not be allowed to smoke, for one. In a bar…no smoking in a bar…what was the world coming to, he wondered to himself.
Pulling up to the bar, he took a seat on one of the stools and waited for Lumina to get settled before handing her a menu. "First drinks on me, just don't get too crazy with it, I'm not carrying you to the plane." He was joking of course, but there was a bit of seriousness in his tone. When the bartender came over, Corinth ordered "a whiskey on the rocks, lemon the rim and whatever she wants."
After the drinks were brought, he took a sip and then turned to his partner. "I've read your file. You've been on leave for awhile, getting your head back on straight after your last assignment? Are you good to go now?" He took another sip. "What I'm really asking is, can I trust you to do what needs to be done should things go sideways? To shoot, to kill…all the things. I need to know you go my back no matter what. If you can't do that, for whatever reason, you'd be better off back at your desk because I can't do our job while watching my back and yours."
He may have came off pretty harsh or matter of fact like, but it was what it was. He'd watch her back as long as she was capable to watch his. Thus was a team mission, not a training or escorting one. Too many agents have been lost in the field because their attention was too divided on babysitting their partner and trying to keep themselves alive.
"I heard this place has good fish and chips. I think I'll have that."
Posted by : Dblitz13
Incheon International Airport (ICN) - Seoul, South Korea
The next morning an encrypted correspondence arrived, signaling the onset of Eun-Ji's mission. She was to board a plane destined for Heathrow Airport today, eventually making her way to San Francisco, USA. Due to a formidable storm over the Pacific Ocean, the route to the east was compromised. In San Francisco, she would rendezvous with a Dragon agent named Alex, using the security word "Serpentine" for identification.
Eun-Ji diligently packed for her mission, ensuring her dragon gear, designed to guarantee passage with checked bags, was included. At the airport, family goodbyes were exchanged, and with a sense of determination, Eun-Ji passed through the gate, boarding the plane with a ticket detailing the journey's intricacies.
Airline: Dragon Wings Airlines
Flight Number: DW567
Departure: Incheon International Airport (ICN)
Destination: Heathrow Airport (LHR)
Departure Time: 10:30 AM (local time)
Arrival Time: 4:45 PM (local time)
Class: Economy (Lowest Class)
Seat: 23B
Passenger: Moon, Eun-Ji
Seated in the lowest class, to remind her of her status of apprentice, a poignant reflection overcame her as the plane lifted off. Gazing out the window, she pondered the bittersweet nature of her journey, acknowledging the profound wisdom that often accompanies the juxtaposition of beginnings and farewells.
London Heathrow Airport - West London, England.
On the Dragon Wings Airlines flight to Heathrow, Eun-Ji found solace in the in-flight entertainment, indulging in a classic martial arts movie that resonated with her love for combat skills. In the confines of economy class, she navigated the crowded cabin, savoring the in-flight meal—spicy bulgogi and rice paired with a refreshing ginger ale. Though the narrow seats hindered sound sleep, she managed to steal a few restless moments. An unexpected turbulence jolted her awake, leading her to the airplane's restroom, a cramped space.
Upon arrival at Heathrow, she made her way to the departure screens at the terminal. Eun-Ji, embodying high society allure, donned a chic and sophisticated travel ensemble. She wore a tailored, ankle-length camel coat with subtle gold accents, cinched at the waist by a slim black leather belt. Underneath, a form-fitting black turtleneck highlighted her elegant neckline, seamlessly paired with wide-leg charcoal trousers that gracefully cascaded over her slender frame. The outfit was completed with black leather ankle boots adorned with discreet gold buckles, exuding both comfort and style.
Her accessories added a touch of glamour, featuring oversized square sunglasses with gradient lenses and delicate gold earrings. A structured black leather handbag, subtly monogrammed, hung gracefully from her shoulder, showcasing her affinity for both luxury and practicality.
Eun-Ji's hairstyle combined sophistication and ease, with her long, glossy hair expertly framed her face. A subtle yet impeccable makeup look highlighted her features, emphasizing her eyes with a touch of mascara and a nude lip, radiating effortless beauty.
Discovering a time gap before her next flight, she opted to explore The Oceanic Pub and Kitchen. Stylish and graceful, she caught the eye of the patrons as she took a seat, the intricate designs of her ensemble reflecting her affluent background, not to mention her graceful figure.
Posted by : Lorem
Lumina followed Corinth to his food station of choice, a place called the Oceanic Pub and Kitchen, which appeared to be as good as any place one could dine at an airport. At first she had been thinking about just getting a light beer, but when Corinth offered to buy, she changed her mind and ordered a glass of sauvignon blanc.
Just after their beverages were brought, Corinth uttered the dreaded words,
"I read your file"
That probably was a reasonable thing to do given the circumstances, but Lumina still felt somewhat violated, especially since she hadn't thought to reciprocate. She could feel herself flushing as he continued…
"You've been on leave for awhile, getting your head back on straight after your last assignment? Are you good to go now?" Before she could respond, he continued, "What I'm really asking is, can I trust you to do what needs to be to be should things go sideways? To shoot, to kill… all the things. I need to know you got my back no matter what. If you can't do that, for whatever reason, you'd be better off back at your desk because I can't do our job while watching my back and yours."
Lumina was rather taken aback, and her first instinct was to retaliate. Unfortunately, no witty comebacks came to mind, and the more she thought about it, the more she realized that it would be to her detriment to do so. She had penance to do to make up for the fiasco at Hyderabad. If Corinth gave a bad report of her efforts for this assignment, she could find herself even further in the doghouse. Lumina didn't know if people got fired from the Templars, but she had seen first hand what the Templars did to people that knew too much that they didn't need or couldn't use, and it wasn't pretty… As such, it would behoove her to make as good an impression on Corinth as she could.
Instead, the best she could muster was "I got your back, chief. You don't need to worry about me." Lumina was hesitant to talk about killing stuff in a public place like this. One never knew who was listening in, although with all the violence in movies, shows, and video games these days, people talking casually about killing may not be so unusual, so maybe she was just being paranoid.
Corinth seemed satisfied enough with this response and changed the topic. "I have heard this place has good fish and chips. I think I'll have that."
Ordering fish and chips in a bar called the Oceanic Pub and Kitchen seemed appropriate, so she ordered the same. Perhaps not terribly creative, but she had a lot of other things to figure out right now. For one, while Corinth was no doubt forming his opinions about her, she believed it prudent to get his measure as well, if only to figure out how best to behave to not incur his ire. But it was also just her nature to dig her nose into anything that she felt mattered and probably too many things that didn't.
Lumina suspected that Corinth was of a similar bent to herself in this regard. If she gave him the means to do so, Corinth would get her to reveal more about herself than she wanted him to know. To avoid this, she decided to take the first opportunity available once the bartender had taken their orders to go on the offensive. Talking about work in such a public environment was obviously a bad idea, so instead she asked the next non-work related question that came to mind.
"So are you in a relationship with anyone?"
Lumina could feel herself reddening as she realized how improper that question was to start with, but she had found herself checking his hands for rings to see if he was married and had not seen one. Granted, people were less traditional these days than they had been, and in the Secret World, these types of things were even more complicated, but Lumina still found the ring check to be a regular part of her analysis of people.
Posted by : Sky
Eun-Ji scrutinized the menu with a subtly raised eyebrow, her expression betraying minimal enthusiasm for the available options. When the waiter arrived, she spoke with an air of decisive authority. "I'll have the Grilled Salmon Salad, but hold the feta cheese, add extra avocado, make the dressing on the side, and can you substitute quinoa for the mixed greens? Oh, and grilled instead of poached salmon. And a glass of Sauvignon Blanc, preferably the 2019 Cloudy Bay." The waiter, a bit flustered, nodded and hurried away to relay the complex order.
As she awaited her customized meal, Eun-Ji's attention shifted to her cellphone, but soon turned to people watching. A faint familiar buzzing crept into in her head. She massaged her temples, a response to the recurring sensation that placated it. The buzzing, a constant companion since her induction as a Bee at age 11, had become a part of her life, an ever-present hum that she had learned to navigate with practiced ease. As a minor, she had no autonomy or wisdom to entertain the buzzing, and over time learned to simply ignore it at the behest of her parents.
Posted by Lorem
"Am I in a relationship? Is that what passes for small talk nowadays?" He laughed to himself as Lumina's face started to change color, even if only slightly. "Now are you asking because you're curious or because you're interested?" He winked at her as he turned to the food that was placed in front of him.
"I know what you meant and the answer is no. Been a long time since I was in anything that resembled a relationship. Different life, so to speak." He took a bite of one of his fries and trailed off for a second. "Look," he said turning back to her, "whatever you did is over and done with as far as I'm concerned. That was yesterday and today is today. You keep your head in today and we'll get along just fine. No point in dwelling in the past. Learn from your mistakes and victories, then move on." Taking a sip of his drink, he finished, "people who live in the past never go anywhere. That's it," biting into another fry, "that's my lecture for today."
Corinth continued eating and even ordered another round for himself and Lumina, even though he said he was only going to buy the first. He couldn't help but notice the young woman that sat close to them wearing her expensive out. Corinth didn't know fashion, but it looked expensive. When she placed her order, he couldn't help but overhear her and thought that she sounded either really picky or she was a woman who knew what she wanted.
"So," not looking at her, but paying more attention to his food and drink, "do you go by Lumina or is that a nickname? Should I call you something different? More professional?"
Not long after he asked his question, a man approached Corinth and tapped him on the shoulder. He looked over at him and noticed that he was wearing a uniform, signaling him as an employee of the airport.
"Are you the Sky Marshall for the San Francisco bound plane?"
Corinth looked over at Lumina and smiled, raising his eyebrows. "Why yes I am," he replied back to the man.
"The captain of the plane wishes to speak with you before boarding begins."
"They always do. Tell him I'll be right there." The employee nodded and then moved away back towards the loading gate.
"Duty calls." He reached into his pocket and pulled out some money and tossed it on the counter. When he put that away, he reached in and pulled out a small prescription bottle, shook out a pill, and tossed it back, chasing it with the rest of his whiskey. "Don't be late for the plane. I would hate for you to have to go back and tell the boss you got left behind. I got you bumped to first class. Thank me later." He tipped his hat to her and walked away.
Posted by : Dblitz13
London Heathrow Airport - West London, England.
Eun-Ji's customized Grilled Salmon Salad arrived, and she delicately adjusted the arrangement on her plate to her liking. Engaging in a bit of people-watching, her attention was drawn to an airport employee approaching a man at the bar. Her curiosity had previously been peeked in that direction due to the mismatch between the two.
Intrigued, she overheard the employee inquiring if he was the Sky Marshal for the San Francisco departure. The man, confirming his role as law enforcement, exchanged a few words with the younger woman accompanying him. Their conversation hinted at a shared workplace and a reminder not to be tardy, alluding to a boss. Eun-Ji discreetly continued observing, tolerating her meal while absorbing the intriguing airport drama unfolding nearby. It was interesting to her that a Sky Marshall would be drinking right before active duty.
Posted by : Lorem
London Heathrow Airport - West London, England.
As Eun-Ji wrapped up her meal at The Oceanic Pub and Kitchen, she carefully arranged her things and made her way to the restroom to freshen up. The crisp scent of hand sanitizer lingered as she rejoined the stream of travelers heading towards the departure gate. Opting to stand and avoid prolonged sitting, she observed the boarding process, her patience evident as she waited for her boarding zone to be called last. As she progressed down the narrow aisle to her assigned seat, a sea of glances followed her, blending admiration and curiosity. The former, because she had the presence and appearance of a model. The latter, because she was dressed like first class but was in the back of economy. The Dragon organization booked her seat intentionally, to emphasize her lowest on the ladder status as a newcomer and no amount of powers, legacy, or wealth would merit special treatment.
Settling into the last row of the plane, she donned her noise-canceling headphones, diving into a book on tape, determined to navigate this journey in her own focused orbit.
Posted by : Lorem
"Now are you asking because you're curious or because you're interested?"
Lumina's face felt like it was on fire, and she could only imagine that her face was redder than her hair, which only made her feel even more embarrassed. Thankfully Corinth was sympathetic, and after informing her that he was single and had been for some time, he told her that he was willing to overlook her past mistakes and encouraged her to keep her head in the present. By the end of his brief sermon, Lumina had caught her breath and was calming down, when she noticed that Corinth's attention had moved onto somebody else. She glanced in the direction he had and spotted the cute, well dressed asian girl at the nearby table and sighed. Men were all alike…
"So, do you go by Lumina or is that a nickname? Should I call you something different? More professional?"
"Lumina is a nickname, but it's the name I tend to go by. If you'd prefer a more professional name, I guess you can call me Jennifer, Jen, or Miss Hawkins." Lumina responded. She had never quite recognized herself as Jennifer, as the name had been given to her only upon joining the Templars. Instead, she felt more like Lumina, the bringer of light to dark places. But to Corinth's point, Lumina was a weird name, and on top of her unusual hair and eye color, could make her stand out more than was ideal in situations where being non-descript would be more ideal.
Just then, she noticed a uniformed airport employee approach them. Perhaps Corinth's gun had been noticed after all.
"Are you the Sky Marshall for the San Francisco bound plane?"
As Corinth affirmed the employee's assessment and confirmed the followup question about meeting with the pilot. So that's how he got permission to carry around a gun.
"Don't be late for the plane. I would hate for you to have to go back and tell the boss you got left behind. I got you bumped to first class. Thank me later."
He was being awfully generous Lumina mused as Corinth departed in badass fashion. It would be nice to have that kind of self confidence…
Lumina sat in silence, finished her meal, and paid for her food. The second glass of wine might have gotten her a bit buzzed, but it wasn't like she had much to do for the next fourteen hours, or however long this flight halfway across the northern hemisphere would last.
Boarding had gone smoothly enough. Lumina had never sat in first class before, so she was looking forward to the experience, even if she didn't really think she deserved it. Hopefully it hadn't been too expensive for Corinth.
She wasn't disappointed. Lumina had all the leg room she'd need, plus desk space with a port she could plug her laptop into, and even a TV. And that looked like it might be a fold out bed! Not to mention the relative privacy! Lumina did not see Corinth himself, but assumed he was in the main cabin doing Sky Marshall duties, whatever those were.
Once the plane took off, Lumina set about going sifting through her carry-on bag. There would be no TV for her, she had too much reading to do. She pulled out a couple of occult tomes concealed behind innocuous covers of (somewhat) popular fiction such as The Dresden Files Collection, and The Great Book of Amber, and her own spell book, titled Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, which hopefully nobody would find suspicious at all.
After reviewing her own spell book for any spells she thought she might need to use in the near future, she packed it back up then looked at her other two books. The book disguised in the Dresden Files Collection was an impressive tome of nearly forgotten heretical philosophies, occult lore, and ancient magics. Unfortunately, this book had been written before people thought to write indexes, but fortunately she had had a commentary piece disguised in The Great Book of Amber with such an index along the hundreds of explanatory notes on the many arcane concepts expounded in the former work. Needless to say, the Templars would be more than pissed if these works were lost or destroyed, but given the suddenness and urgency of their mission, she had been allowed to borrow them. Looking through Amber to figure out where to find sections that mentioned ley lines (or at least references believed to be related to ley lines) in Dresden, she went to work…
Hours disappeared as Lumina puzzled over what the authors of Dresden understood of ley lines, how they found them, how drew power from them, and what the costs of doing so were among other things. As a warlock herself, Lumina was familiar with drawing arcane power from artifacts, the environment, supernatural entities, and other such things. As she read on, she found that she may have known more about ley lines than she had known, and she had only not realized that these founts of power she had found in times past were called ley lines. The different writers throughout Dresden used different terminology for similar concepts, and the terminology likely only diverged more in other texts she had read prior. What any of this had to do with the Mothman was a mystery, however. It occurred to Lumina that it might be worthwhile to reach out to Sonnac when it was safe to do so to figure out more precisely what he had learned and what he suspected that relationship was.
All of a sudden, a stewardess rapped on a nearby surface to get Lumina's attention. "I am sorry to bother you," the young woman began, "but we have had a medical emergency on board, and we are looking for a volunteer from First Class to give up space for the patient needing attention. You will be fully reimbursed and given a coupon for free services."
Lumina looked around and sighed. She didn't want to give up her space, but she knew it was the right thing to do. "Alright, fine, give me a moment to pack. Which seat will I be moving to? Oh, and this seat was paid for by the Sky Marshall, so he will be the one you should reimburse."
"Of course Miss, thank you so much!" the stewardess gushed, handing Lumina the promised coupon and writing down a note. "You will be taking one of the seats of our unfortunate patient and her spouse, which are at the back of the plane at seats 70B or 70C."
As the stewardess departed, Lumina packed up her bags and did a quick inventory check to make sure she had everything, then moved toward the back of the plane as instructed. At one point, had to get out of the aisle by standing over a sleeping passenger awkwardly as a gurney carrying the patient, an unconscious elderly woman, was pushed by her, followed by her anxious husband.
When Lumina got to the back of the plane, she immediately recognized the asian girl she had seen at the bar in seat 70A, looking a bit less perturbed than Lumina might have expected someone to appear after watching a person have a stroke or something right next to them, but perhaps she was just good at masking her emotions. People had different ways of dealing with trauma, she supposed. Lumina sat at the aisle seat, leaving an empty seat between them, and did her best to stuff her carry on under the seat in front of her, with only partial success. She was going to miss the legroom of First Class. Lumina thought about saying something to her new neighbor, but seeing that she had headphones on, she decided against it.
Lumina fell back into her seat and sighed. Now what was she to do to pass the time?
Posted by : Sky
Flight 0666 - Over the Atlantic Ocean
Eun-Ji was willing to put up with cramped accommodations, pinned in the window seat, for the lengthy flight. The bathroom was behind her row, so the seats barely reclined at all and her carry on had to be down by her feet because the overhead compartments were already full. She was willing to endure being right next to the lavatory, despite the occasional stink that would trail someone coming out of the bathroom. She was willing to stomach the fact that the meal, an egregious overstatement for a subpar snack, was just picking between two undesirable options. All of these minor irritations would have been manageable; however, the tipping point began when the wife of the elderly couple next to her got on her last nerve.
The husband in seat 70C, the aisle, smelled a little like he had a hormonal imbalance that led to increased sweat production when active, but when seated and still carried a stale old person scent. He was keeping to himself and looked content on watching the inflight movie and being antisocial; perfect. The wife; however, was another story. Despite the fact that Eun-Ji gave every obvious clue that she didn't want to be bothered, this old woman would not stop talking.
It was unbelievable how socially inept the woman was in Eun-Ji's thoughts. Could she not see that she had headphones on and was shifted away from her towards the window. That every reply, polite at first, was designed to hopefully put a stop to any actual conversation. The old woman just kept at it. How was her husband immune, or was he oblivious, to this woman's behavior?
Having had enough, Eun-Ji excused herself to the restroom, though she didn't need to go. Stalling inside, she created a cloned illusion of herself that went out and took her seat. The moment it sat down, the real Eun-Ji caused the illusion to shatter and put the old woman into a daze that appeared as if she had suffered a stroke. At the very instance, Eun-Ji came out of the restroom and immediately called for help.
It wasn't too long after that the flight attendants and a volunteer physician that was onboard, managed to move the couple up the plane. It worked out better than she had hoped. Eun-Ji just wanted her to shut up. Instead she got two extra empty seats. Naturally she took advantage of the extra leg room and made herself comfortable stretching out her long legs. It wouldn't last though. Just as quickly as the nuisances were gone and her situation improved, the flight attendant was bringing someone to replace them.
She recognized the woman as the red head at the bar. It was easy to remember her. Eun-Ji quickly sat back properly in seat 70A. On the positive side there was a space between them for a little room and no one was pestering her anymore. The downside is she lost her ideal situation and this red-head had something to do with law enforcement based on what she overheard in the bar.
Eun-Ji at the very least politely acknowledged Lumina's presence with a smile and nod. It was not a genuine happy to see you, but more a required social greeting; like checking off a box on a to do list.
Posted by : Lorem
The flight was uneventful for the most part. He had spoken to the captain of the plane and they went over "worst case scenarios" and other such things. Corinth reassured the pilot that everything was going to be fine and not to worry.
Moving to his assigned seat which was on the right side of the plane, somewhere in the middle, he had a whole row to himself. He could have sat in first class with Lumina, or Jennifer, or Miss Hawkins? He chuckled to himself. That sounded more like a schoolteacher than an agent for the Templars. Lumina would work just fine. Sitting in the middle of the plane provided easy access to wherever he needed to be should anything crazy happen. Besides, Lumina was in the first class. She could keep things entertained until he got there. It was really the reason he put her there, to spread out their forces.
Once the plane was in the air, he tilted his seat back a little and placed his hat over his eyes. As the hours passed, he was woken up with some hustle and bustle from the aisle. that's when he saw Lumina moving from the front of the plane to the back with all her gear. Stopping the stewardess, he asked her what was going on and she informed him that a sick passenger was moving to first class for better accommodations. Corinth was a little annoyed that Lumina switched seats. It still split their forces up on the plane, but he felt better knowing she was near the pilots and not the farthest point away. He checked his watch. Only a few more hours to go.
Once the plane landed, he waited till everyone disembarked. Not one to shirk his duties, even if they weren't real, he exited last and caught up to Lumina waiting for her baggage. He then noticed that the Asian lady from the bar was also on their plane. Interesting, he thought to himself.
Moving over to Lumina, he stood beside her and waited for her to gather her things. Once done, he walked with her to grab a taxi. "We will need to talk about strategy," he told her as he popped another pill before they entered the car. He paid the cabbie some money and told them the hotel they were staying at.
With smooth traffic and a fortunate string of green lights, they arrived at the Stanyan Park Hotel. While not a top-tier establishment, it certainly didn't reside at the bottom of the spectrum either. Its exterior exuded both a charming coziness and a subtle aura of historical significance, inviting guests into" a world where comfort and tradition harmoniously intertwined.
"Here we are, home away from home." Exiting the cab, he helped Lumina grab her bags and led the way inside. "Go get us checked in. Registration is under Whitethorne. I'm going to step out for a smoke. We should have adjoining rooms or across the hall from each other, I don't know. We should be close though. And do not give your room up." His eyes just below the brim of his hat, "I don't care what they need or what they offer you."
Posted by : Dblitz13
Choi Yeong was near the end of sparing against Park Ho, the man who had been disciplining him in the arts of DahnMuDo and Taekwondo. They had faced each other with dangpa (a trident weapon), the hyeopdo (a polearm type weapon with a 25 inch curved blade), and the bonguk geom (the national sword of Korea).
Afterwards, it was training in jedok geom, a style of fighting involving two swords or geoms, one being a shorter waist sword. Park Ho had trained Yeong well, so well, the student was near teaching the teacher. He was a talented fighter.
Both had scored hits on the other. Thankfully, because of their skills, each wore the padded gambeson suits for protection.
Throughout, Choi had shown his parkour skills as well. Park Ho knew his skills, which gave him an advantage. Ho still had not revealed all the skills he knew. So, when Choi ran up a wall, doing a back flip, Ho stripped both swords from Yeong's grip with two quick moves.
Choi could have accepted defeat. That wasn't his way. With fluid motions of the Sundo technique, stimulating his ki. He forcefully thrust a flat open-hand punch forward towards Park Ho. Even though he stood three meters from Park, a force was generated from Choi's ki, throwing Park Ho backwards ten feet into the wall.
Catching his breath, Park Ho announced training had ended. "Time for you to get freshened up and catch a plane."
"Catch a plane?" Choi probed, wondering what was planned for him.
"You are flying to San Francisco, where you will find another Dragon operative. This is her first mission. You will watch over her and assist her in being successful."
"Master?" Choi inquired, "I am not worthy of this. I am still a student under your teaching."
"I now release you," Park insisted. "I can teach you no more. You have more to learn, but it will come as you grow. Use your inner energy, as you did here."
"How will I find her?" Yeong queried.
Park grinned, "You will know."
Two hours later, Choi Yeong was on a plane bound for San Francisco. Inside, he wondered if he would be able to identify this Dragon.
Posted by : mdman
San Francisco, CA
As Eun-Ji disembarked from the landed plane, she reflected back on the red-haired woman in her row that had been too engrossed in what appeared to be innocent books. While the woman had visited the restroom on the plane, Eun-Ji discovered on closer inspection that they concealed information pertinent to the Secret World. She pretended for the rest of the flight as if she hadn't discovered this fact. Entering the terminal, she also witnessed the redhead rendezvous with the Sky Marshall, solidifying her suspicion that they were both concealing their true identities.
Opting not to follow them, Eun-Ji proceeded to baggage claim, where she spotted a man holding a sign with the name Moon. Approaching him, she exchanged the code word, "serpentine," confirming his identity as her contact. Together, they retrieved her luggage and departed for an apartment in San Francisco's downtown area. As they drove, the man, named David, explained that the house would serve as her base for the investigation, promising further details upon their arrival.
"Welcome to San Francisco, Eun-Ji. I hope your flight wasn't too taxing." David began.
Eun-Ji replied while looking out the window of the vehicle, "Thank you, David. It was uneventful, although I did have some interesting company on board."
David validated her unspoken thought, "The other factions are surely present. Indeed, they're not to be underestimated. But we have resources and strategies in place to counter their moves. Your training and expertise will prove invaluable in this mission."
"I'm ready to do whatever it takes to succeed. What can you tell me about the house we're heading to?" She said with conviction.
David obliged her question, "It's a safe house, discreetly located near the heart of the city. Fully equipped with everything you'll need for your investigation. Consider it your home away from home."
Posted by : Lorem
David's Apartment - San Francisco, CA
As David's car pulled up to the apartment building located at 3749 Bay Street in San Francisco, Eun-Ji took in the surroundings. The building stood tall amidst a bustling neighborhood, its exterior adorned with intricate architectural details that hinted at its historic significance.
Entering the building, they were greeted by a spacious lobby adorned with modern artwork and plush furnishings. David led Eun-Ji through the lobby and up to the fourth floor, where their apartment awaited.
Upon opening the door, Eun-Ji was immediately struck by the apartment's minimalist interior design. Clean lines, neutral colors, and sleek furnishings characterized the living space, creating an atmosphere of simplicity and sophistication. Floor-to-ceiling windows bathed the space in natural light, offering panoramic views of the city skyline.
Moving through the apartment, David's confident demeanor and impeccable sense of style were evident. As the CEO of a high-performing app, he exuded an air of authority and sophistication. Tall and lean, with sharp features and piercing eyes, David's appearance commanded attention. He was dressed in a tailored suit, exuding professionalism and refinement.
Continuing the tour, David led Eun-Ji to the designated workout room, equipped with exercise machines, free weights, and a yoga mat. The room exuded an atmosphere of motivation and focus, perfect for maintaining physical fitness during the mission.
Finally, they arrived at Eun-Ji's bedroom, a serene oasis furnished with a comfortable queen-sized bed and minimalist furnishings. Soft, neutral tones adorned the walls, creating a calming atmosphere conducive to rest and relaxation.
As David prepared to brief Eun-Ji on the mission details, she took the opportunity to unpack and freshen up. After a refreshing shower, she changed into a flattering outfit of yoga pants and a fitted t-shirt, ready to tackle whatever challenges lay ahead.
Posted by : Lorem
Choi's plane safely landed without incident. These days, this was a miracle. Choi Yeong was beginning to get used to the strange and unusual. Unusual was the new usual.
Without incident, except for when a young stewardess became concerned. Yeong was meditating with his eyes closed, his heart barely beating, his lungs barely breathing. The stewardess tried to touch him to make sure he wasn't dead. Sensing a presence breaking his boundaries, Choi quickly grabbed the stewardess by the wrist. Startled, the stewardess quickly apologized. Choi Yeong released her and apologized himself.
After getting his bags, Choi arranged for an Uber ride to Chinatown. The address was 1261 Stockton Street.
The Uber pulled up in front of a restaurant. Hing Lung Company, aka Go Duck Yourself. Choi grinned, seeing the familiar sign.
Gathering his bags, Yeong entered the establishment. Mostly everyone recognized him. The owner soon appeared and motioned for Yeong to follow him.
They walked into the basement, where the owner pushed a brick, which opened a hidden door in the wall. This lead into a portion of Old San Francisco, the part buried beneath the current city by an earthquake in the past.
One of the former shops down here had been refurbished into an exquisite underground safe house. Choi Yeong nodded to the owner in thanks and appreciation.
"You have served the Dragon well," Choi affirmed. "You shall be greatly rewarded."
Once the owner departed, Choi unpacked, then began the motions to calm himself. Soon, he was quieted and centering himself.
Posted by : mdman
David's Apartment - San Francisco, CA
The evening fog casted a soft glow through the windows of the apartment. Eun-Ji stood in the center of David's private study, arms crossed, her eyes scanning every inch. She was extrapolating more about the man, to whom she would be staying with, based on what she was discovering with her observation skills. She picked apart the details as if anything around her could be a clue to what she would be expected to do now that she had arrived.
David was setting up some case on the table in the room and upon flipping it open, revealed an array of high-tech gadgetry. "The latest in secure communication. Encrypted channels, untraceable signals, and a self-destruct feature for emergencies." He shared proudly. "I helped design some of the software it uses."
Eun-Ji's expectant expression did not change as she waited patiently for him to finish.
David was hoping to fish for a compliment; however, receiving none, began the installation. His hands moved with practiced precision. He attached a small, unassuming device to the underside of the table, another behind a painting, and a third inside a book on the shelf.
"Voice-activated and retinal scan enabled. Only you can initiate the link to Voice of the Dragon." He spoke as he showed her with gestures how to access and utilize the tech.
"What happens if it is compromised?" She wondered.
David smirked knowingly, "The entire system fries. No evidence left behind."
Eun-Ji started by testing the system under David's assistance, her voice a low whisper, "This is Eun-Ji. Testing… testing…" She nodded as David gave her a thumbs up; her voice and video were working well within optimal limits.
The devices hummed to life, a soft green light indicating a secure connection. David gave himself an air fist pump as everything worked seamlessly. "You're all set. Remember, the Dragon sees all, but is seen by none."
Eun-Ji was nervous, but tried to hide it. " I have arrived in San Francisco and humbly await the Dragon's Voice. When you speak, I listen." She said to the case with a logo of their faction displaying on the black screen.
Posted by : Lorem
As David exited the study, Eun-Ji heard the faint sound of someone breathing into a microphone as it came through the speakers. This would be the first time she had actually heard the Voice of the Dragon. She did not know what to expect, but she did feel like she was in the presence of a transcendent power based on the belief system she was raised on.
"Agent Eun-Ji,
Your briefing on the recent unsettling events in San Francisco is as follows:"
With each new topic, the screen switched to a harmoniously designed and aesthetically pleasing digital presentation. It was minimalist in design, only showing the header and necessary information. She would have to pay attention and the slide display was on a visual timer inside the design before it would switch to the next slide.
Unusual Mortalities:
A nurse afraid of needles is found on a sidewalk dead from puncture wounds from hypodermic needles.
A high school teacher afraid of mass shootings, shoots herself multiple times in her car with a 22 revolver and bleeds to death.
Most recently a physics student at San Francisco University frightened of bees is found dead in his dorm room after being stung to death.
The circumstances of their deaths are suspicious and remain under investigation.
Historical Context:
While not recent, it's worth noting that San Francisco has a history of bodies found under mysterious conditions, including mass graves under the city from past eras.
No Further Data:
Currently, there are no additional reports of bodies found under strange circumstances that have been made public.
Mothman Correlation:
Recent Mothman sightings have been reported , with descriptions of a large black figure soaring through the sky. No direct sightings in San Francisco have been confirmed.
Ley Lines Nexus:
San Francisco is positioned between two significant ley lines, with Mount Tamalpais to the north and the Mystery Spot in Santa Cruz to the south. The energy from these lines is believed to extend 30 miles on either side.
The Voice of the Dragon begin to speak again. "Your mission is to investigate any potential connections between these occurrences. Be cautious of the energies at play and the shadows they may cast."
The last slide read, Voice of the Dragon, Bong Cha. Then the screen went dark and the secure connection light turned off. Moments later the technology powered itself down automatically.
Posted by : Lorem
Corinth entered his room and tossed his carryon onto the bed. The room was nice. There was a bed and bath and a small kitchen. He approved of the room, but he wasn't going to be spending enough time in it to really appreciate it. He opened the fridge and saw the bottle of whiskey and rum chilling inside.
"Props to the concierge." He checked the labels and then put them back, thinking that once the day was over, it was going to be a good night.
Feeling he needed to let his handler know they made it safely; he shot off a text to her and thanked her for the items in the fridge. She did her job well. He also told her to send him anymore information she might have obtained since they left and to send him any resources on any historical or cultural references, or natural energy conductors around the city that might potentially have a ley line running through it. Deeper focus on natural energy conductors and perhaps anything with heavy limestone deposits.
He unholstered Loy and looked the gun over. Safety on and removing the bullets, he spun the chamber around making sure it was free flowing with no friction to slow it down. Satisfied, he reloaded the gun, flicked his wrist to slam the chamber home, and then slowly moved the gun down his left arm, the chamber rolling so he could see every bullet inside. Once done, he holstered it and repeated the process with William.
Stepping out into the hallway, he moved to Lumina's door and banged on it. "Hurry up, got a rental being dropped off in a few and we need to go. No rest for the wicked, eh?"
He knew the crime scene was already heavily contaminated and finding anything of value was going to be hard if not nigh impossible. But still, they had to try. Beating ones head against a wall until it crumbled and gave way to its secrets was the Templar way after all.
He banged on her door again. "I'll meet you in the lobby."
Choi Yeong was a seeker of balance, which is why he often meditated. It often set his spirit in proper perspective.
Besides the spirit, there were three other areas where Choi had found he should keep balanced. They were the physical, mental, and the social aspects of life. He had come to understand through Master Park's tutelage that keeping a balance in these four areas brought peace to one's soul. If any of these areas were neglected, there was stress.
There was another thing: the meditations. It was often during these times that Yeong received visions. It was during this particular meditation that he received flashes of things Choi assumed from previous experiences that he was about to encounter.
He saw a flash of two lines coming together into an intersection. This quickly faded and a new image presented itself. I was some creature, half man, half moth? with piercing luminescent red eyes. Choi thought he had heard a helicopter, but it turned out to be the sound of the wings of this creature as it flew away. The last picture Yeong saw was a young oriental woman, beautiful, near his own age. The Dragon operative believed her to be the one for whom he was to ensure success. Was this her first assignment?
He soon returned to the physical world. Choi decided to freshen up, return upstairs for a meal, then walk Chinatown. He had sensed for some reason she was nearby, perhaps even in Chinatown. He had to find her.
Posted by : mdman
Chinatown - San Francisco, CA
After thanking David for his assistance with the meeting, Eun-Ji retreated to her room to retrieve a notebook, jotting down her thoughts and potential questions for herself regarding the information and instructions. Feeling a pang of hunger, she decided to venture out and explore the city.
Donning a light, cute matching sporty jacket tied around her waist, Eun-Ji's attire resembled that of a fashionable fit model at the gym. With directions and a debit card from David in hand, she made her way from the downtown apartment to Chinatown.
As she walked, the vibrant energy of San Francisco surrounded her, with the bustling streets alive with the sounds of chatter and honking cars. Eun-Ji couldn't help being intrigued by the eclectic mix of architecture, from towering skyscrapers to historic buildings lining the streets.
Upon reaching Chinatown, Eun-Ji found herself immersed in a world of vibrant colors, exotic scents, and a cacophony of activity. The narrow streets were lined with traditional Chinese lanterns, while the air was filled with the aromas of sizzling stir-fries and steaming dumplings.
Passing by a variety of shops and restaurants, Eun-Ji took in the sights of ornate storefronts adorned with intricate designs and colorful signage. Street vendors offered a plethora of goods, from fresh produce to handcrafted souvenirs.
Eventually, Eun-Ji settled on a cozy restaurant called "Golden Dragon," drawn in by the savory aromas wafting from within. Taking a seat near the window, she perused the menu before placing her order for a flavorful dish of spicy Szechuan tofu with jasmine rice.
As she ate her meal, Eun-Ji watched Chinatown life unfold outside the window. She also was contemplating on what she would do tomorrow.
Posted by : Lorem
Choi Yeong searched the streets of Chinatown but to no avail. He couldn't help but feel he was so close to this young lady a few times in his search. If she had seen him, she would have recognized the ring he wore.
Choi headed back to his underground dwelling. He did a light workout with nunchucks. Walking the streets of the city, a sword would be obvious if he were to carry one. The nunchucks, Yeong could conceal them under a lose fitting shirt at the waistline of his pants.
He worked up a sweat with the workout. He showered, then put on a pair of shorts. Fixing himself some green tea and popcorn, Choi started a DVD movie: Enter the Dragon.
When the movie ended, Yeong settled in for the night. He would resume his search tomorrow. Tomorrow would be the day. This girl must be a promising operative. He looked forward to seeing what she could do.
Posted by : mdman
The Golden Dragon - Chinatown - San Francisco, CA
While still in the Gold Dragon, Eun-Ji's mind was preoccupied with the unsettling series of mortalities that she had recently learned about. Each case seemed to involve the victim's fear manifesting into reality and ultimately leading to their demise. The nurse's fear of needles, the teacher's fear of mass shootings, and the physics student's fear of bees all culminated in tragic endings.
The thought gnawed at her mind: what could have caused these manifestations? Was it the elusive mothman, rumored to haunt the shadows? And if so, what was its goal? As she pondered these questions, Eun-Ji realized the gravity of the situation and the urgency to uncover the truth.
She mentally listed the important questions she needed to ask herself upon investigating the crime scenes: What evidence could she find to support the theory of fear manifestation? Were there any witnesses who could shed light on the events leading up to the deaths? And most importantly, how could she protect herself from becoming the next victim?
Eun-Ji resolved tomorrow to visit the crime scenes and gather as much information as possible. Unfortunately her path missed Choi Yeong not once but three times. Twice he walked past the window when she was in the Golden Dragon eating a late dinner. And once on the opposite side of a busy street while she was leaving Chinatown.
As Eun-Ji made her way back to David's apartment, she felt a sense of introspection settle over her. The streets of San Francisco had given way to a serene calmness as she stepped through the door. With a sigh of relief, she shed her jacket and slipped into her comfortable sleepwear. Her attire consisted of soft, loose-fitting pajamas adorned with a delicate floral pattern, providing a sense of comfort and relaxation.
Before retiring for the night, Eun-Ji made her way to the quiet sanctuary of her room. Sitting cross-legged on the floor, she closed her eyes and began her nightly meditation routine. With each deep breath, she focused on calming her mind and centering her thoughts. The stresses of the day melted away as she sank deeper into a state of tranquility. After several minutes of meditation, she felt a sense of peace wash over her, signaling that it was time to surrender to the embrace of sleep. With a final deep breath, Eun-Ji climbed into bed, her mind clear and her body ready for a restful night's sleep.
One might have thought it would have been prudent to immediately investigate the scenes; however, the Dragon taught about a balance in everything. It would have been unbalanced to go when exhausted and not mentally prepared. If something happened that required optimal performance, it would be difficult to respond well. No, evil will still be out there in the morning.
Posted by : Lorem
Beyond the obligatory smiling and nodding, Lumina made no effort to socialize with her antisocial neighbor. Between her own uncertainty on what to do and the awkward space between them, Lumina found herself feeling uneasy. The faint buzzing that had been with her since she had stumbled beyond the veil seemed to grow louder in the silence, contributing to a sensation that something was amiss. After looking around to see if there were any noticeable threats to justify her paranoia, Lumina sighed softly and settled into her seat. She knew it was a risk to pull out her books in such a public location, but if she didn't do something, she would go crazy. In retrospect, she would realize that watching the TV on the back of the screen in front of her was a perfectly valid option, but at the time, she decided to risk it and pull out Dresden Files.
Lumina quickly found herself missing having access to the commentary piece as she picked up where she had left off before the medical emergency event had displaced her. She strived to push through, but between lacking the commentary book to reference (she didn't dare pull it out for fear of giving her neighbor a peak at something she had no business reading) and her own paranoid anxiety, Lumina found she was comprehending no meaning from the text. With a sigh, she gave up and began putting Dresden back.
As she did so, she caught sight of her spellbook, and the neurotic thought occurred that she should cast a detect magic spell to see if there was indeed something fishy about her neighbor. Lumina tried to dissuade herself of the nonsense of casting a spell in such a public space like this, but she just couldn't dispel the idea, and soon she found herself trying to figure out if she had the range of motion necessary to perform the spell in her seat while buckled in. To satiate her curiosity, she pulled out Order of the Phoenix and flipped to the page in which Detect Magic was on to remind herself of the motions. Even as she did so, it occurred to her that her motions and mutterings would not likely go undetected, and considering the recent medical event which had occurred here would likely make the nearby passengers a little jumpier. No, performing that spell here would definitely be a bad idea. Finally convinced that she just needed to get over herself, Lumina packed Phoenix back up.
And then the sound of a flushing toilet gave her an idea. She could cast the spell in the lavatory. Excusing herself once there was nobody else waiting to use the bathrooms, Lumina made her way to the back and got into one of the tiny plane lavatories. After gauging the position she needed to be in to perform the gestures of the spell without colliding with anything, Lumina began to bring the incantation to mind. She paused. This is so stupid, why am I doing this?
Perhaps she would be able to rest easy once she proved that there was no foul magic in play. With that justification in mind, Lumina went through with the spell, quietly muttering the incantation while performing the gestures with a practiced grace. She could feel the power leave her as the spell went into effect. Lumina held concentration of her spell as she flushed the toilet and turned the sink water on and off just in case someone was paying attention to her, Lumina opened the door of the bathroom when she saw it…
Traces of magic. A spell had been cast here recently. Those traces were fading, but she could barely make out the type of spell it had been. Somebody had cast an illusion spell. Lumina spotted a trail of those traces, and she followed it… right to where the asian girl sat. Lumina felt her blood go cold. This didn't prove anything, but, what did this mean?
Lumina looked around and saw no other signs of magic nearby. Struggling to force herself to calm down, she stopped concentrating on her Detect Magic spell and sat back down in seat 70C with as much cool as she could muster. That whole endeavor had been intended to dispel her paranoia, but now she had even more suspicions and questions than she'd had before. Glancing at her neighbor, Lumina discarded the notion of asking her about anything. No, it would be best to keep her cards to her chest and pretend as if nothing had changed. It was going to be a long night…
Lumina made sure to take advantage of her coupon in an effort to take her mind off her worries and ordered a mediocre cocktail. The alcohol helped a little. Lumina did her best to remain on guard against the unknown force that was the girl two seats from her, but eventually she dozed off.
The next thing she knew, the plane was descending. By the time they landed, Lumina had largely gotten past her grogginess, and when they stopped and everyone started getting up, she was ready. Lumina made sure to let the asian girl get past her, as she did have one last order of business on the plane that she did not want the girl to witness.
When she spotted the stewardess who had informed her of the medical emergency, Lumina approached her and asked, "Hey, sorry to bother you, but I just wanted to ask, is that woman going to be okay?"
"Oh yes, definitely!" the stewardess replied.
"What happened?" Lumina pried.
The stewardess hesitated, but then answered, "Well, she seemed to have experienced some kind of shock, and fainted."
"An electric shock?"
"No, she, well, she claims that she saw the young girl next to her that she had been talking to shatter like glass," the stewardess responded. "Needless to say, this young girl was completely fine, so we think the poor woman must have had some sort of hallucination."
"Did the woman have any additional such hallucinations throughout the flight?" Lumina inquired.
"No ma'am, other than being rather rattled, she seemed completely fine. Thank you again for giving up your seat."
"No problem, I am just glad she will be okay!" Lumina replied, making her leave.
Traces of illusion magic, and now a reported hallucination. And a hallucination involving the girl, most likely at her seat. Very strange. She was one to keep an eye on.
Lumina and Corinth were able to get their bags and get through Customs without incident. Corinth, or more likely his handler had arranged lodging for them, so getting registered and getting a room was a breeze. Lumina was thankful that she was not sharing a room with Corinth, as it would be nice to have her own space, and she didn't think she could stand his smoking. She also had one particular idiosyncrasy that she didn't think Corinth would care to deal with either, so having separate rooms was definitely ideal.
Lumina sighed as she cast down her bags and fell on the bed. Corinth's quip about not giving up the room had stung her a bit. Apparently giving up her first class seat to the old woman had bothered him. They weren't even a day in yet and she was messing up.
She might have taken a nap right there, but then a heavy rap on the door followed by Corinth's "Hurry up, got a rental being dropped off in a few, and we need to go. No rest for the wicked, eh?" broke her from her reverie. With a moan, Lumina sat up and looked at herself in a mirror. She looked tired and uninspiring. She thought about touching up her makeup, but another rap on the door dispelled that idea. It was time to go.
Lumina approached Corinth in the lobby of the hotel a few minutes later. The old monster hunter did not appear at all worse for wear from their journey. She envied him for that. "Alright chief, what's the plan?" she asked as she struggled to suppress a yawn.
Posted by : Sky
Choi Yeong awoke early in the morning. It wasn't bright and early, as it was only 5:00 and the sun hadn't risen yet. Of course, if it had, Choi wouldn't have seen it in his underground safe house.
He took a few moments in the lotus position. He did his slow methodical routine of centering himself in preparation for the day ahead. There were no visions or pictures entering his head. All was calm and peaceful.
Upon breaking the meditation, Choi brushed his teeth, then turned on the smart TV. He brought up one of the best resources available in searching for weird occurrences: YouTube. He entered the search command for strange events in San Francisco.
One of the videos caught Yeong's attention. Apparently, a cryptid called mothman has been seen in the city. The last was at San Francisco University where a student was found stung to death by bees. Gaia?
If this young lady he was to help be successful was going anywhere, it would be there. So, Choi Yeong got dressed in black joggers and footies. He pulled a loose fitting black T-shirt over his head, then slid his feet into a pair of black apikas. Lastly, Yeong slipped a pair of nunchucks into the back of his pants at the small of his back. It would be concealed there.
Yeong decided to get breakfast before heading to the university. He decided upon Sutter Street Cafe. He decided upon an omelet, stuffed with cheddar cheese, avocado, roasted peppers, tomatoes, and mushrooms. While he waited for it, Choi calmly sipped his tea and twirled the Dragon ring upon his finger.
Posted by : mdman
Corinth was standing in the lobby talking to a receptionist when Lumina came down looking worse for wear. It was clear she was tired, but they were on the clock and time was not on their side. He looked her up and down and almost felt a little sorry for her. Almost.
"Alright chief, what's the plan," she asked, stifling a yawn.
Tossing her the keys to the rental car. "We go to work."
The car was a deep red Nissan Maxima. Fitting for a team of Templars. When they got in, Corinth pulled out his phone and began scrolling through some files. The blue light illuminated his face in the dark car. He told Lumina the address and settled into his seat as she pulled away.
"I won't subject you to all scenes in one night, but we need to get one of them under our belt as quickly as possible. Any evidence that was there has already been severely compromised and is going to be hard to find or work with. I need you to be awake and focused." He looked over to her before looking back at his phone. "These things tend to attract other factions who may or may not have already visited the scenes. Keep your eyes and ears open. If anything seems questionable, log it."
Pulling up to the location of the woman who was killed by needles, or at least that is what the file suggested, Corinth exited the car and immediately surveyed the scene. It was dark, just like it was when the woman walked these streets. City life was still audible, but it wasn't going to be a distraction. Shutting the car door he walked to the sidewalk and looked around again.
"Like a needle in a haystack," he thought to himself and then chuckled at the irony. "Split up, look around, take pictures, or do whatever it is you 'Locks do in times like this."
Corinth moved away to give Lumina some breathing room. He wasn't going to micromanage her. She was a Warlock for the Templars, chances were she knew how to do her job without needing him to guide her along the way. It was time to see what she could do.
Moving over to the location where the body was found, he kneeled down and began looking around. He looked for anything that was out of place or stood out. Something that must have been missed by the mundane authorities. Once finished there, he moved over to the grassy areas and then to shrubs, bushes, and the twisting trees that lined the sidewalk.
"Come on," he said to himself as he searched. "There's got to be something here." The buzzing in his head had gotten progressively louder and that usually meant one of two things: a threat was right around the corner or there was something he was missing. Or maybe three things…both.
Posted by : Dblitz13
David's Apartment - San Francisco, CA
As the soft light of morning filtered through the windows, Eun-Ji stirred from her slumber, feeling refreshed and ready to face the day ahead. She meditated briefly and then did a modified workout in the workout room. With a leisurely pace, she made her way to the kitchen, where she quickly prepared a simple breakfast from the available ingredients.
David was still fast asleep, his nocturnal tendencies keeping him in bed long after the break of dawn. However, he had left three folders on the table, each containing valuable information gathered from his contacts in the police department regarding the recent incidents.
After fueling herself with breakfast, Eun-Ji embarked on getting dressed for the day, starting with donning her combat attire. The modernized ensemble consisted of a sleek black outfit, featuring reinforced protective fibers and strategic padding for enhanced mobility and defense. She carefully strapped her twin hammers to her thighs, ensuring they were securely in place for easy access during any potential encounters. Over this, she adorned herself in a stylish hanfu outfit, elegantly designed with intricate gold detailing against a backdrop of sleek black fabric. As she fastened the matching accessory purse around her waist, she ensured it contained all the necessary items for her day ahead, including her notebook for jotting down important details. With meticulous precision, she completed her ensemble, concealing her combat attire beneath the elegant layers of her hanfu outfit. Completing the look with coordinating earrings that complemented the color and style of her attire, she felt both prepared and poised for the tasks that lay ahead.
With folders in hand, she set out on her first investigation, a determined stride in her step as she made her way to investigate the college student's encounter with the bees. She chose this one first because she liked both bees and physics. It was exciting and uncertain. She alternated between walking and taking the trolley, allowing herself to immerse in the sights and sounds of the city as she ventured towards her destination. She also took the time on the trolley to look over the file on the physics student crime scene.
Posted by : Lorem
University of San Francisco -San Francisco, CA
As Eun-Ji stepped onto the University of San Francisco campus, she was greeted by a bustling atmosphere teeming with activity. Lush greenery adorned the manicured lawns, while the imposing facades of the various academic buildings loomed majestically in the distance. Students bustled about, their vibrant energy infusing the air with a sense of purpose or college shenanigans. It was easy for Eun-Ji to blend in amidst the throngs of college-goers, her youthful appearance and casual demeanor ensuring she attracted little attention, save for the occasional lingering gaze from admirers.
Following the directions provided by a helpful student and the campus wayfinding signage, Eun-Ji made her way to the physics building. Upon arrival, she seamlessly slipped into the role of a transfer student, engaging in casual conversation with fellow students as she discreetly inquired about recent events surrounding the tragic death of Turner Kramer, a physics student. With a bit of finesse and charm, she eventually gleaned the information she sought regarding Turner's dorm room.
Undeterred by the need for key card access, Eun-Ji employed her resourcefulness, assuming the guise of a hapless foreign exchange student struggling with the nuances of the English language. Her ruse proved effective as a sympathetic young man emerged from the dormitory, his chivalrous nature prompting him to grant her entry. With a grateful smile, Eun-Ji made her way to Turner Kramer's room, her heart pounding with anticipation as she prepared to uncover the secrets concealed within its walls.
Posted by : Lorem
Turner Kramer sat alone in his dorm room in the evening. He spent a lot of these evenings alone looking at his physics textbooks.
He was a special scholar. Even though he was an undergrad at the University of San Francisco. He was already in talks with professors about presenting academic papers.
He was an excellent physicist and mathematician.
He did a lot of his thinking and what were called thought experiments. In other words he was daydreaming.
Dreaming.
Over the past two weeks he had strange dreams. He saw geometric shapes that didn't make any sense. These shapes would've baffled even Euclid.
He saw stone structures and ancient civilizations.
He saw strong warriors fighting off horrific creatures with glistening blades of steel.
However; they couldn't fight them off.
Either the creatures were able to overcome them or the civilizations collapsed under their own degradation. Horrid carvings of strange beings lined the walls of ancient tombs of cities long forgotten in the past.
Never mentioned in any history book.
He had heard the whispers before, as if there were two forces of poetry.
One spoke in maddening gibberish. The other spoke in the language of the universe.
The Bees.
Their wisdom was so sweet.
That's what jolted him awake; he had always been afraid of bees.
He knew they were trying to tell him something important.
Something about the future.
As he closed his physics textbook for the night, the small rectangular dormitory had only the light of his desk lamp to light it.
Turner looked out the window to his left side.
Outside the street lamps lit up the courtyard.
There was something standing in the courtyard.
He was aghast to see it even so far away.
Turner knew what it was.
But it couldn't be there.
The body of a man.
The head of a Moth.
Red glowing eyes.
It couldn't be there.
Those things didn't exist.
That was what he told himself after he began writing in his journal that things the universe was telling him.
Everything you learned about rationality seemed to be slipping away.
Strange dreams of tentacles, the master and the fades haunted his nightmares along with the other dreams of the bees.
Over the past couple weeks he kept everything these entities hnd told him in his journal.
He blinked again.
The creature was still staring at him with the red glowing eyes
He saw it's wings begin to flap.
It sounded like helicopter blades going off in his head.
He closed his eyes for what seemed like eternity.
When he opened his eyes the creature had disappeared.
He grabbed his notebook and flung it across the room.
Irrational nonsense.
He would be presenting papers before the world knew it.
He looked back down at the notebook before feeling the sting on his neck.
There was a low humming throughout his dorm room.
He knew that humming.
He fell several more stains on his body as a swarm of bees enveloped him.
Sting his life away from him.
Brought to the floor by the pain, he grabbed his pen attempting to stab at the bees in the darkness.
He knew it was to no avail.
As he felt his throat swell up Turner reached for the notebook and opened to that page scribbling something under the first paragraph.
Hopefully someone would understand it.
It was something no scholar could dare comprehend…
Daylight On the Campus was already creating extreme heat, Sartre, wished he was in his T shirt and jeans
The trip through Agartha had gone well enough. After receiving his message from Geary, Sartre knew that he had to hurry quickly to the crime scene. Being able to flash an old FBI badge was one of the easiest ways to get past the security guards. However; he figured that someone was here already. It took a while for the labyrinth to get the information about things going on in San Francisco. Though it was still in the United States and under Illuminati control, it was quite far away from the base in New York City. He was pretty sure team Green would find out about it eventually. They would always interrupt a good fight between the Templars and illuminati.
He heard static coming from his chip that had been implanted by Xern in 2012. This was the first time it had been used.
"Eye see you." Order is supposed to beat chaos, not the other way around. You see that Shining Emerald sitting on the park bench... Geary won't be happy that others beat us to it.
"Shining Emerald? Dammit Cassini, I'm an illuminated agent rank, not a gopher anymore ad I'm still waiting on my vault data access authorization ." He grabbed his pendant.
"I'm not Cassini and we are team blue are we not? I'm Alyssa, I'm in a van a few blocks away..."
He heard static.
"Hello?"
As he reached the bench he took a moment to touch his pentagram around his neck before approaching the woman. It was something he had done out of habit over the past eleven years. Like carrying around his books. Research about why people disappear and Operation Condor in Chile. He loved those books in his rental car.
She was reading a notebook.
A dragon Agent
She was different.
She was a new agent.
Like any good member of the illuminati Sartre took the chance to take over the conversation as he scanned the area.
"Peter Sartre, nice to meet you Miss...? He extended his hand "It seems The Dragon works faster than Geary.
I'm not sensing Anima coming from you?
Am I wrong?
That means you didn't swallow a bee back in 2012 or later.
Summer 2012.
A "terrorist attack" occurs at a Tokyo subway station.
The commuters are all infected with a strange virus that turns them into babbling creatures with black tentacles and gelatinous oozings coming from their former bodies.
At the same time, several people around the world from all different backgrounds are connected by swallowing bees. Something with the universe. Within days they finally have powers, abilities to maneuver the elements, abilities to move quickly in combat. Something happened when we swallowed those bees. But the dreams… that's where we can find the truth.
After swallowing the bee, we all had the same dream.
Standing somewhere in the cold cosmos. There was snow all around us. Like Antarctica.
Angels. Had something to tell us.
There were different kinds, good and bad.
It would depend on what choices we would make.
They said that the prophecies of the end of days had begun and that dark days were here.
After waking up, we were contacted by the secret societies who looked to harness our powers. I was picked up by team blue. One thing unique about us Lumies is that we all had chips implanted in our head.
The factions were sent on several missions to different paranormal locations.
They were connected somehow.
The first was a place called Solomon Island where ancient Norse god Loki was stirring up trouble after retrieving the sort of Excalibur. His girlfriend and a member of a cult, named Cassie took the sword from him after we defeated him.
Then; we all fell unconscious Summit back into the dream world. This time the Angels weren't there but there were voices…
Voices of something called the dreaming ones…
They told us that if we wanted to survive the end of days we had to separate ourselves from our factions and listen to them. They said they could give us immense powers. They offered a gift. I accepted the gift after the New England mission.
Next it was off to Egypt to fight mummies and the ancient pharaoh Akhenaton. The same substance found in the Tokyo subway was present in Egypt. The Pharaohs were being infected by it. They weren't the only ones experimenting with it though the powerful Corporation Orochi was trying to harness the pathogen and its power Akhenaton and his Egyptian Cult were defeated.
Afterwards, we passed out again.
This time; we were back in the cosmos but somewhere cold. Freezing.
In the early 1900s, the Explorer Roald Amundsen had gone on a lost expedition to Antarctica. The explorers found something.
Something powerful.
Something horrible…
Once again; the dreaming ones made us an offer.
Bow to them in exchange for power and break away from the factions.
I ran and jumped off a cliff.
Next was Transylvania, and of course vampires. We had to fight off Dracula's sister.
Once again when she was defeated we all passed out.
We returned to the frozen cosmos area, learning more about the failed Antarctic expedition and what could've been found out there. A woman. Perhaps Amundsen's granddaughter, we don't know who was at a crime scene in her home covered in blood. Strange symbols adorned the walls painted in blood.
She was afraid something, possibly the dreamers were after her.
There was also a young girl, she was rescued in a fire. She had powers herself but was extremely more powerful than anyone in the three factions, there is actually a fourth faction of pirates but I can tell you about that later.
This girl, now a woman, is named Anima…
The firefighter that rescued her mistook her name for "Emma."
She could be the key to this whole thing.
Our second to last journey took us to Tokyo, the pathogen more commonly known as "The Filth" was spreading everywhere.
Everyone was fighting over it, either to control or figure out what it was.
The Orochi Corporation was headquartered there. We had to fight our way through their entire building until we finally realized who was controlling that corporation. It was the biblical Angel Samael along with the villainous Angel Lillith from the apocryphal texts. These Angels, they are common amongst all three Abraham make religions Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
There seem to be a Council of Higher Angels, these were the good angels I mentioned before.
They refer to themselves as "The Host." Though they seem to be benevolent, their motives are also unclear but they are definitely not as dangerous as the dreaming ones.
The dreaming ones are extremely old gods. I don't know how to put it, some type of eldritch horror.
The dreaming ones can project their thoughts into the heads of this world and possibly others. Who knows what's out there in the cosmos?
We're just standing here on this Pale Blue Dot… not even a fraction of the cosmos. The zero point pathogen is the thoughts of the dreaming ones. One can become infected by the pathogen if they let the dreaming ones into their head. They can also become infected by touching a physical manifestation of the pathogen either an infected human, creature, or the black gelatinous liquid that they leave behind.
Ohhh, I forgot to add that there was a religious cult called "The Morning Light." This colt exists to recruit members into its ranks in order for them to commit suicide and give their minds and souls up to the dreaming ones in order that they may be eaten by the abominations. Remember what Carl Sagan said, "We are star stuff, a way for the universe to know itself."
The dreaming ones, they like to devour stars…
We were able to chase the Morninglight Cult to its headquarters in South Africa.
After infiltrating the group, we thought we were finally close to getting their leader Marquardt as was the closest to the dreaming ones and the zero point pathogen.
Their steamed powered robots in the underground world of agartha the world tree that connects the entire world. These robots were invented around the 1900's
Marquardt was able to escape as we had to fight off a weaponized version of these steam powered robots.
Our faction handlers helped with the fight.
Marquardt was long gone.
We were able to track his location to the Congo in Africa.
However; the all-powerful secret societies that vie for control of the world have not been able to find anything in seven years."
"We have lost too many…"
Sartre played with his pentagram necklace.
His phone buzzed.
Looking down, he read the secret message from Kiersten Geary
Placing a phone call to her he said,
"Yes, they beat us to it then Julia was probably pushing them to go fast. I see… There is some connection between the deceased. There has to be. Yes Mothman sightings and ley lines. Oh… "line" he whispered the last sentence, not knowing how much the dragon agent could hear.
"Team Red will be showing up soon enough." Yes, we will work on the crime scene together, sending each faction our findings."
Talk to you later, boss.
Sartre hung up his phone.
"She always says Ciao Ciao."
Using his profiling skills, he said.
"The victim was frightened and had a phobia of bees. He was killed by something that terrified him the most."
As you got here first, I'm going to let you lead the investigation. I'll be here if you need to ask me anything or perhaps need some help. What are you reading? Kiergarrd?"
Choi Yeong walked onto the campus of the University of San Francisco after riding the trolly. At least the public transportation here seemed to be moving people right along their way.
Yeong asked a few students if they had heard of the cryptid mothman and if it truly had appeared in this part of the United States. Several of them pointed Yeong toward the victim's dormitory.
As he walked that way, Yeong could help but notice the one he had seen in the vision. She was sitting upon a bench and reading a book.
Quietly Yeong approached her and gently sat next to Moon. "Dangsin-eun geunyeoibnida," Choi commented to Moon. "Nae kkum-e naoneun salam."
("You are her. The one in my dream." In Korean.)
Posted by : mdman
Eun-Ji had read the notebook from cover to cover. It all seemed normal of a college student journal in the beginning. There were personal entries, notes from academic studies, doodle and drawings, nothing out of the ordinary in terms of content. As the entries progressed through the pages, things became more theoretical and also started skewing towards more interesting and curious subject matter. The drawings as well started to take on a purposeful intent in their design and frequency. Then by the end, that last entry seemed down right irrational to the point of gibberish at the end. Had Turner Kramer gone insane? Had something caused this incoherent train of thought, or was a genius writing in a way others wouldn't be able to easily decipher.
Before she had a chance to consider this more, a tall man with a clean cut beard interrupted her. Eun-Ji just ignored him, maybe the creep would go away. Yet she knew it was more than that, the things he was saying meant that he knew about the Secret World. She could be in danger, she thought. Despite this fact, they were in a public place, so she continued to play the foreign exchange student role and responded in Korean to leave her alone.
No sooner had she said that than an attractive Korean man sat beside her on the bench. She was surprised she had let him get so close without realizing it; she must have been too distracted by the first gentleman. And was that an attempt at a pickup line?
Eun-Ji stood up while holding the notebook close to her body. She bowed to both men and then quickly turned and started to walk away. Her feet were moving swiftly beneath the long hanfu dress. She wanted to put as much distance between herself and those two creeps.
Posted by : Lorem
"Definitely a new agent. Team Green are always like that. Showing up with Samurai Swords as we fight the Templars for control of Stonehenge, in the Council of Venice sanctioned secret war." Alyssa, how can I calm down that green girl?"
Down a nondescript alley, with cracked sidewalks, and potholed asphalt waited a nondescript grey van.
It looked ordinary not out of place, it's windows blackened, the moonroof, opened only so softly.
Inside however held a world of computers, screens and surveillance equipment. And sitting there on one of the black and grey padded swivel chairs sat Alyssa.
A half eaten small bag of plain chips sat on the side of her computer, an empty can of caffeine laden cola had just been replaced with a new one which she opened and took a swallow of before she heard the voice asking how to calm the green one down. "Her name is Eun-JI. Former physics major." Alyssa was a computer genius but she wasn't necessarily one when it came to her interpersonal skills. "Oh, wait … say "nogsaeg-i palansaeg-eul mannassseubnida." Which meant green meets blue, figuring if the man was honest about who he was it might come across better. Alyssa didn't know much Korean but the translation program she had was one the best in the world.
University of San Fransisco - San Francisco, CA
Eun-Ji slowed ever so slightly at the man shouting the word Dragon; however, she quickly regained her distancing pace. If it came to it, she would join a group of college students walking about to get some help from stranger danger.
She contemplated the meaning of the word and it could have been three options. One, the Korean man was upset at the rejection and was cursing her. Two, he could have been a secret world agent from another faction trying to draw her out into revealing herself. Three, he could actually be a Dragon agent like her. Perhaps he was their to test her, to see if she would make rookie mistakes? She decided it would be best not to run the risk.
Finally she found what she was looking for, a group of girls chatting on their way to class. She interjected herself into their presence and explained the situation about how there were two young men over there that were trying to hit on her and wouldn't leave her alone, and would it be possible if she walked with them to avoid another interaction.
The college girls, thinking Eun-Ji was just another college student too, eagerly came to her rescue and brought her along with them. In fact they started sharing how they had similar experiences before on campus. They assured Eun-Ji that they wouldn't let anything happen to her.
Posted by : Lorem
Choi Yeong stared at the older man still standing there. He hadn't heard the man talking to the girl, so Yeong wondered what he was up to.
"Either I messed up," Choi said not trusting the man, "or you disturbed her. What did you say to her?"
Alyssa sighed as she watched the Green girl move into a group of girls. Her idea certainly wouldn't work but, she spoke to the man on the other side of the chip. "On second thought, I am not sure you can get to her now. But I got an image of what she was reading. Interesting stuff."
While that was being said, Alyssa started running a more complete background check on both Eun-Ji and the unknown Dragon man.
Posted by: Cindy
"nogsaeg-i palansaeg-eul mannassseubnida." He shouted, hoping that it would prove fruitful. This investigation was not turning out the way he thought it would, he spoke into the microchip in his head that it was being used for the first time in 12 years. "If you can get some sort of screenshot of that, we can use it for decoding. With these types of operations, it's best that we have as much help as we can get, it's not the 19th century anymore where we can just slip poison into the absinth of the other factions… thank you Alyssa, perhaps we can work on decoding it later.
Posted by : Lorem
University of San Fransisco - San Francisco, CA
Eun-Ji was was too far away to hear them shouting at her anymore. Plus, the girls she was with were talking her ear off now, making it difficult to hear anything else. She continued with them into the biology building and then convinced them she would be alright from there. She made her way to another exit out the back of the building and started a a course to get off of campus. Meanwhile, the notebook had been securely inserted back into her purse.
—
Choi had a belly laugh as the clearly caucasian man attempted to speak Korean. He was at a disadvantage when it came to language. Many Koreans can fluently speak both languages.
"So," Choi Yeong said, once realizing he had an opposing operative before him, "blue and green, she being Dragon makes you Illuminati. I guess both of us came in too strong for someone on their first mission."
Peter replied, "I assumed that she was a much more experienced agent, Has she even fought a monster yet?" You are both Dragon." "I asked her what she was reading. If you want to hide secret conversations about the secret world, whisper them in public... Team Blue has so much information and misinformation, we flood the public with so much they cant tell the difference between the two..."
"That's why I spoke in Korean," Choi admitted. "There's not many in this country that knows what I said, and it was nothing to do with the secret world."
Choi rewound what the man had previously said. He pulled out his phone. "What do you want me to screenshot?"
Yeong made an effort to check the man's ears. No earpieces, so he must have been speaking to Choi.
Alyssa hearing the request, "I already have," screenshot it that is. "I also have eyes on your green girl. She's moving with that crowd, into ... the biology building." It didn't take long before the next comment was. "And she just went out of the biology building, the back of it."
Posted by : Lorem
University of San Fransisco - San Francisco, CA
Peter considered their options and made an executive decision, "Let her go Alyssa... I'm sure we'll meet her again." He motioned to Choi. "She's carrying a notebook that says this. He used his secure phone to show Kramer's Notebook images captured and shared by Alyssa.
"Hmmm," Choi Yeong wondered aloud. Although he had done much research on many things, Yeong was not the most intelligent of men. He was smart, but not overly smart. This seemed like gibberish to him. Maybe it was. Maybe, as an aspiring scientist, this kid was on to something. Yeong had heard that time may not be a straight line. It may be spiral. Could this be what the kid was talking about?
"Who is RaGley? And, to what language did he switch in the end?"
"Could be Latin..." Peter suggested.
"I'm joking," Choi Yeong laughed. "Anyone can see that this is code. I'm pretty sure the first word is The. If you give me some time, I can crack this."
"Sure, Mr. Choi, Peter Sartre, nice to meet you." Peter officially introduced himself, pleased that things were moving in a more collaborative direction once again.
University of San Fransisco - San Francisco, CA
Yeong hesitated. He never told this Peter Sarte his name. He looked at the ears again, not finding an ear piece.
"Okay," Choi admitted. "You're scaring me now. At first I thought you had an earpiece in, but you don't. And, you got a picture of the text of the book, although you didn't take one. You have eyes and ears somewhere else, but how are you communicating without the…" Choi pointed to the ear, indicating the missing earpiece.
Peter apologized, "Oh, my fault… Or rather Dr. Zurns …He asked me twelve years ago, "Hey, can I ask you — have you ever seen a jaguar tripping?"
Apparently, Peter knew Choi Yeong's name already, because he said it a split second before Alyssa was going to say it. Then she heard the explanation, sort of, as to what was going on. "Tell, Mr. Yeong I said hi." Before drinking more soda, and squeezing a not too firm stress ball.
"Alyssa says hi. At first I thought it was our main computer tech, Leah Cassini." Peter shared.
Choi nodded, then grinned. "Let Alyssa know I look forward to meeting her before this is all over."
Yeong had a job to do, so all the friendly chit chat had to wait. "I guess we'll be working together on this one. Between you and me, I'm surprised the other guys aren't here. I have to try and catch her, so I guess I will be seeing you around."
"See if you can get her to calm down." Peter asked.
Choi bowed. "Good-bye for now, Mr. Sartre!"
Rising from the bow, Yeong sprinted away toward the building he saw the girl go into. He knew she was no longer there, so he sprinted past the building following, bounding the walled planter on the other side and pressed onward, hoping it wouldn't take long to find her.
Posted by : Lorem
City Streets - San Francisco, CA
Eun-Ji breathed a sigh of relief as she managed to exit the campus entirely with no further incident. As far as she could tell, no one was following her; however, she continued to proceed with caution just in case. Her head was on a swivel as she made her way towards downtown.
She had no idea that Choi's speed had shortened the distance relatively quickly. As she stepped on the trolley several blocks down the way, Choi would have a last second chance to see her before she would be completely obscured and in the clear. Unfortunately her stunning hanfu outfit was easy to spot amongst the common American attire.
Seeing the girl from his vision hopping on a trolley, Yeong realized he was to far away at the moment to catch the trolley. Choi looked around for something that would help him catch up. Spying a boy on a skateboard nearby, Yeong pulled a twenty dollar bill from his pocket.
"I need to rent this," he quickly said, as the boy stepped off to receive the money.
Choi gave himself a push off toward the street. Grabbing the fender of a car, he built up momentum from the acceleration. As the car turned away from the path of the trolley, Yeong pushed away from it to propulse himself as a rocket toward the trolley.
People on the back of the trolley couldn't believe what they were seeing. They began cheering him on, encouraging Choi to catch up.
Choi Yeong, inspired by the passengers, reached a hand forward, grabbing the back pole with his left hand. He pulled himself up onto the trolley with the skateboard shooting out from under his feet.
Choi to a second to breath deeply. Keeping an eye toward the front of the trolley, Yeong kept an eye open for the girl to exit the trolley.
JP with Choi and Eun-Ji
City Streets - San Francisco, CA
The trolley was on the move and Choi's Herculean effort was being praised by all onboard. In fact, his actions would be shared with family and friends to come, in most cases being embellished even beyond what actually happened. The only person on the trolley that wasn't paying attention to him was the girl he was chasing after. The beauty was at the front of the trolley and was just sitting very calmly with perfect posture. She suddenly turned her head, her neck moving with the gracefulness of a dancer and she looked right at him and then looked down at the empty seat beside her.
Choi's eyes met hers, then SA them drop to the empty seat beside her. He didn't want to spook her like before, so this time he raised his right hand to his chin, so she could see his Dragon ring. Then, he calmly approached her.
Holding his right hand out above the seat, again ensuring she would see the ring, Yeong probed, "May I sit here?"
The vision before him remained peaceful and smiled as he came . It wasn't a happy-to-meet-you-stranger smile, but a knowing one laced with flirtation the closer he came. She nodded yes to his question and gestured with her hand to the empty seat.
Yeong sighed at those eyes viewing him the way they did. She certainly knew how to use them.
He sat in the seat next to her. Casually looking at those eyes again, then down to not make hers feel uncomfortable, Choi apologized.
"I am sorry for before. Sometimes when I meditate, I see things. Like an impression of what I am to do. I saw your face. You are the one I was sent to help."
Posted by : Lorem
City Streets - San Francisco, CA
She listened and then brought a finger up to her mouth to hush him, making the shhhh hand gesture. Her smile was full of guile. Now that it was too late, the fake expression gave way. He may notice that her edges, where she met the air, looked painterly upon closer inspection; if he focused. And without warning the illusion before him shattered into numerous prismatic shards which diffused into the air until it was gone. The warping of reality caused a unique sound as it happened.
Suddenly a wave of utter confusion aggressively attacked his mind. Disorientation slammed into him. Befuddlement saturated him and made it difficult to connect the dots between any thoughts.
Meanwhile, a block back on the corner stood Eun-Ji. Her hand was gently raised and had previously made a subtle gesture which shattered the illusion. She had actually ducked into an alleyway and created an illusion of herself entering the trolley. It was a precautionary trap, just in case someone was still following her. Like a spider luring a fly, she had caught her victim.
Seeing the illusion successfully shatter right in the man's face, Eun-Ji made her way across the street and continued walking towards downtown. She held a hand out hailing for a cab to stop.
When Choi Yeong came to his senses, he realized why this girl was sent on a mission. She was good, very good. She may not even need his help. Still, it was his mission. He would not give up. She was dealing with the Illuminati and possible the Templars would be arriving to the scene soon. Yes, they worked together at times, especially when Gaia was involved, but each had their own goals of supremacy.
He grinned. "Dojeon surak!" (Challenge accepted) he confidently pronounced softly to himself.
Posted by : Lorem
David's Apartment - San Francisco, CA
After arriving back at David's apartment building in a taxi cab, Eun-Ji made her way up to her room. Her mind was consumed by the mysteries of the notebook she discovered and the adrenaline rush of being potentially hunted. Briefly filling David in on her findings at the University, she senses his agreement that she made the right choice in investigating further and escaping from what were probably other faction agents. Declining his offer of food for the time being, she retreats to her room to focus on deciphering the cryptic message within the notebook.
Eun-Ji meticulously made several attempts at trying to decipher the gibberish in the last entry; however, continued to reach failed results. Suddenly she had a moment of insight and considered that the solution could be a famous substitution Caesar cipher with a shift of three; a method she remembered from a computer science elective in college. She reworked the text with going backwards three alphabetical positions for each letter. She finished decoding the message and read over the resulting text, now readable. What she read still didn't make sense to her, but she felt confident she cracked it. Though a second opinion that knew more would make her feel better.
Eun-Ji sent the original gibberish text and her decoded results to the Voice of the Dragon via David's encryption machine. She also asked if any information could be sent back to her that may help understand some of the things mentioned in the translation.
Posted by : Lorem
Alyssa sat back in her chair watching the monitors which lit up the back of the van giving it a bushish glow. This was Alyssa's place, a home away from home, not that she had much of a home left.
The mansion, Alyssa's home, was too big and often void of family except the girl herself. Her mother had little to do with a child who, the social butterfly the woman was, didn't understand her introverted daughter who would rather spend time on her computer than socializing.
Her father seemed to be gone a lot, but when he was home his only child wasn't exactly good enough. He knew she was a computer genius. At 12 she had started college. But she hated anything athletic and wasn't social.
At sixteen she was introduced to the Illuminati, by her father. Younger than most, but apparently they had asked for her It sent her down a course that would forever change her life.
Alyssa absent-mindedly tore a piece of blank paper and then put it back together, as the computers continued their checks on the dragons of earlier.
Choi Yeong:
24
Dragon
A few other pieces of information, perhaps. Alyssa would relay those later though it was possible Peter already knew.
Eun-Ji Moon
23
Immediate family all seemed to be Dragons but clearly this information needed to be updated. There was a file on her but nothing listing her as a green. Well, time to fix that. Alyssa set to work, updating the woman's file.
Posted by : Cindy
P with Choi and Eun-Ji
Downtown - San Francisco, CA
Choi Yeong exited the trolley. He walked for a few blocks coming to a park. This park had hilltop views of the bay and the city. It was the perfect place for Yeong's next step.
Climbing toy he top of a hill, Yeong turned his back to the bay, so he faced out over the city. He could see the Presidio to his right. The city sprawled out before Choi.
He got into the Lotus position. Beginning the motions of dahnmudo, Yeong began to relax and center. Although he only sat next to the girl for a few seconds, he had felt her energy. She was good. Most likely, she could possibly handle herself without Yeong's help. He was loyal to the cause. It was something within him other than the Dragon cause that had bright her face to Yeong in the vision. So now, Choi Yeong began reaching out to find her energy.
Choi, having awareness and practice with discerning someone's essence, would have felt it from having sat next to her on the bench outside the college dorm. Her energy signature was chaotic, or put another way, unclear. Yet, this was not some inexperienced pup and Choi was able to catch a glimpse of her energy trail despite its unpredictable manifestation.
The path she had taken would be like a visualized perfume trail in the sensory perception of a trained bloodhound; if one tried to explain the process. The trail closest to the trolley was fading though and would eventually be completely gone, while where she was would be the strongest and most consistent. She took a path towards downtown. Occasionally, her path would branch into multiple different directions; as if she became more than one person. No doubt this was similar to what he had already experienced on the trolley.
It made the tracking process all the harder. Which one should he follow and would he have time to check all of them before the trail faded. Fortunately the branches seemed to have a recognizable pattern of utility and he could use logical deduction along with his gut to stay on the right way. At one point the trail went completely cold. She must have gotten in a taxi for a stretch, which masked her energy all the more from the outside air. But his expertise, was able to pick it up later by deducing downtown was indeed her final destination.
He finally sensed her energy entering a large building in downtown. But she was not stationary but at the present, seemed to be exiting that very building and heading in a new direction.
Eun-Ji having successfully decrypted the notebook was making her way to Chinatown once more. She was going to celebrate with some food that reminded her more of home, then what was in David's apartment. She was feeling a sense of accomplishment for her first day.
Tracking her could be a challenge at times. Of course, Choi had assumed if their were three signatures, or even five, the one in the center would have been her.
Suddenly, he got another picture. It was a dal (moon) above her face. As Yeong pondered the meaning of this, it broke again into shards, much as her illusion had. Then he saw two lines intersecting again in the shape of an X.
The vision faded and he picked up on her trail once more. She was coming across Chinatown, headed in the direction of the area between where he now sat and the Presidio.
Yeong knew enough not to be overconfident. However, knowing those one's ki, it gave him an added advantage.
Posted by : Lorem
JP with Choi and Eun-Ji
Chinatown - San Francisco, CA
As Eun-Ji wandered through the streets of Chinatown once more, she window-shopped at the colorful storefronts adorned with hanging lanterns and bustling crowds. Despite the activity, she felt a sense of calm wash over her as she searched for a restaurant that offered traditional South Korean cuisine. The aroma of various spices filled the air, enticing her taste buds and igniting a sense of nostalgia for the flavors of home.
After wandering for a while, Eun-Ji stumbled upon a cozy little eatery tucked away in a quiet corner of Chinatown. The sign above the entrance read "Seoul Garden," and she knew she had found the perfect spot. As she stepped inside, she was greeted by warm smiles, compliments of her hanfu attire and the inviting scent of sizzling meats and savory sauces.
Taking a seat at a wooden table adorned with delicate Korean pottery, Eun-Ji perused the menu with eager anticipation. She decided to start with a classic appetizer of kimchi and japchae, followed by a hearty bowl of bibimbap topped with a perfectly fried egg. As she waited for her meal to arrive, she couldn't help but smile, feeling a sense of comfort and familiarity wash over her in this little slice of home nestled amidst the bustling streets of Chinatown.
Yeong sensed that the girl had settled at a destination. He quickly headed there, coming to the Seoul Garden. The aroma coming from inside made Yeong homesick. The cuisine was definitely authentic Korean.
Yeong quietly entered the front door. He saw her awaiting her order. He reached out to sense her ki, sensing only the image at the wooden table. It was her, not an image.
The memory of the picture of her face with the dal. He still didn't catch the meaning of this but thought appropriately to quietly pronounce the word as he gently approached, arms being unthreatening down by his side, yet he remained cautious, in case she took off again.
"Dal?" he inquisitively stated. Then, for some reason pronounced it in English. "Moon?"
He was already anticipating putting his parkour skills into action. Up to this point, she proved to be elusive.
Posted by : Lorem
JP with Choi and Eun-Ji
Chinatown - San Francisco, CA
Eun-Ji listened closely while also paying attention to his body language, gestures, tone and expressions. She was measuring his answers and trying to determine if he was first accurate and second speaking from experience versus having read it from a script. In her final analysis of what he did answer, he passed with flying colors. He had not answered the trick question though. Was he stalling for more time to think? Had he simply not been paying attention to the last question.
Eun-Ji confronted him on it. "Not so fast." She titled her head a little flirtatiously to the side. "You have one more question to answer, …. what color are the four tassels on the monk's tunics?" She reminded him.
Yeong grinned, leaning back in a relaxed nature. Finally, he thought he had the upper hand with her.
"I thought it would be obvious." Choi Yeong amusingly answered, "I didn't answer because there are no tassels."
Yeong crossed his arms and smiled. "Now, can we work together instead of slowing down the mission? What does the moon have to do with you? What is the meaning of the two straight lines coming together to mark an X?"
Eun-Ji smiled in satisfaction and relief. He seemed to be who he claimed to be, she know thought. Her hands released her hammer grips and gently came back to the table top.
She extended her hand to Choi in a formal greeting. "In answer to your dal question…. Hi, my name is Eun-Ji Moon, nice to meet you Choi." The gracefulness in her hand was similar to the poise of a ballet dancer.
"Yes, I think you've earned the right to compare notes. In regards to the ley lines forming an X, I haven't yet looked into that. However, I did find the notebook of the victim Turner Kramer and was able to decode his encrypted writing. What do you have to offer?" She began eating her meal and gestured for him to bring himself to the same table.
Choi Yeong gently took her hand. He hoped this would be the beginning of a beautiful partnership. He could see himself working alongside someone as quick thinking as Eun-Ji.
"Eun-Ji?" Yeong thought aloud, his brows raised. "I am honored to be working beside one from the Moon family."
As far as her last question, Choi was at a loss. He had yet to investigate much.
"To tell the truth," he honestly replied, "I have only had my visions and I've chased you the rest of the time." He chuckled. "You are one tough girl!"
Yeong thought of what Eun-Ji had said. "Yes," he quickly affirmed, "Ley lines. I hadn't thought of that. Do you think X marks the spot? We would need to check out a ley line map and see where these lines cross and maybe the other sites they cross will help us."
He moved to the table with her. When the server checked on Eun-Ji, Yeong ordered a green tea and ddukbokki.
Posted by : Lorem
San Francisco - 1st Evening After Arrival
Before getting into the rental car, Lumina purchased a week's worth of the local newspaper from a box in front of the hotel. Corinth got into the passenger seat, so Lumina got behind the wheel. As Corinth sought out the location and nearest address to the crime scene of one of the two young women whose deaths were suspected of being related to the Mothman, Lumina scanned through articles in the paper about those two cases. One of those women, Olivia Warren, had reportedly been repeatedly stabbed by a needle in the street. Reading the articles, it seemed likely that she had been murdered late at night after a late shift at the clinic she had worked at. Her death had been ruled as a homicide, but no suspects for the deed had yet been reported. Olivia Warren's body was apparently still being held at the morgue, perhaps for a few more days, while her funeral service was planned for next week. Lumina then decided to look up details on the other woman, Gail Iris, a teacher who's death was reported as a suicide. The strangest detail Lumina saw about Gail's death was that she had reportedly shot herself six times, putting one bullet through her knees into her lower legs, two shots through her hands, a bullet through her stomach, and a bullet through her throat. Why and how she had, with such precision, shot herself in those areas was highly unusual to say the least. Checking her obituary, Gail's remains appeared to be at the very same morgue hosting Olivia. This place might be worth visiting.
Once Corinth had given her an address where they could park near the scene of the crime, Lumina stuffed the papers into her bag and drove as quickly as she could within the speed limit. It was dark by the time they got out and onto the sidewalk where the crime had been committed, much to Lumina's discomfort. Pulling out a flashlight, as much for comfort as for utility, Lumina began scanning the area for anything suspicious. No doubt the regular police had taken most anything of mundane value to the investigation, so Lumina soon switched to looking for something of magical significance. Moving to an area where she was less likely to be spotted, she cast a detect magic spell and began scanning the area for traces of magic.
Posted by : Sky
JP with Lumina and Corinth
Corinth sighed at the lack of information. He knew this was likely going to happen, but it was always worth checking up on. Sometimes he would get lucky and sometimes, not so much. This was one of those "not so much" times. Giving a last look over, he made his way back to the car.
He stopped and watched as Lumina performed a spell. He knew how to cast a spell or two, but not like the Warlocks did. They seemed to do it more naturally than when he did his. His was more like trying to manifest using brute force, but watching Lumina, it was like watching someone moving their hand move effortlessly through water. He admired that. Once she was done, they entered back into the car and headed to the hotel.
"I think the second scene is going to be a bust like this one was. Too many days have passed and too many disturbances. We're more likely to get more false positives than anything else anyway." He looked over to her, "You find anything with your magic?"
Not long after, they were pulling into the parking lot of the hotel. Getting out of the car and moving into the hotel lobby. It was late and the weight of the day started to rest heavy on his shoulders. Just by looking at Lumina he could tell she felt the same way, maybe even worse. Making their way to their rooms, Corinth gave her a light slap on the shoulder. "Go grab some sleep and come get me in the morning and we'll pick up were we left off." Giving her a slight smile, he entered his room and shut the door behind him.
Pulling off his coat, he tossed it on a nearby chair along with his hat. Opening the fridge, he felt the cool air rush out to greet his as he pulled the bottle of whiskey from the fridge and sat it on the table followed by a small shot glass. He slumped in the chair and rubbed the stress from the back of his neck with a sigh.
One shot, two shot, three. With the ending of the third shot, he turned the glass upside down on the table and stared at it. With the flick of his finger, he watched it slide across the table and then onto the floor with a bounce. He was surprised it didn't break. Taking the bottle of whiskey he turned it up and sent two large gulps to his stomach before he screwed the cap back on and tossed it back into the fridge. Falling into bed, he was asleep not long after his head hit the pillow.
Waking up a few hours later to the sun knocking on his eyelids, Corinth rolled over and looked at the clock. It was a quarter past nine and he was just as tired now as he was when he went to bed. Still, duty called and so did the need for a shower. Begrudgingly, he got to his feet and made way towards the shower.
Fast forward twenty minutes and he was drying himself off, already feeling like a new man. At least for now. After putting on his pants, he heard a soft knock at his door. With "room service" not following the knock, that left it to be only one other person.
Corinth opened the door about halfway and leaned on the door frame. He was shirtless and just coming out of a hot shower made the scared claw marks across his chest from shoulder to to stomach all the more visible. "I'm finishing up. Be ready in a minute. Come in."
When he turned, there were another set of marks down his back. At one time, they were probably deep and being so close to his spine, almost death worthy. He grabbed a shirt and put it on, buttoning it up while he spoke.
"We may need to approach this from a different angle. If scene one and two have been scrubbed already, what are the odds that scene three is the same? What was three? A university? For all we know the university has already given another student the room. Do you have any ideas?"
Pulling a vest over the shirt, he buttoned that up too before grabbing Loy and Powell and holstering them. Grabbing a second set of holsters, he put them on, letting them rest just to the sides of his chest. With a few wrist movements of his hands, a set of 9mm pistols now resided in each one. After a quick look over, Keanu went in one holster and Bale in the other.
"So whatcha got," he asked as he grabbed his hat and jacket. "You can tell me while we go grab breakfast."
Posted by : Dblitz13
Newark, New York:
A private jet lands in the Newark airport and is taxied in by the ground crew. Eventually the crew arrives and the plane's stairs are opened and rolled out. Then a very muscular Agent Max Powers steps out and strolls down the stairs. Agent Max Powers looks around 30 as he hides his cool smolder behind his sunglasses. He looks around and is greeted by the ground crew and the limo that pulls up before him. One of the stewardesses opens the door for him and lets him in the limo before she bids him farewell and closes the door. The limo then begins to drive off. Unknown to all but a few people, Agent Max Powers is actually Jack Gomez age 15 and a field Agent of the Illuminati. He was adopted by a high up member who he is not to mention ever and was trained to be a hardened fighter. Sadly he is still struggling with being a teen and his hormones so he tends to struggle with society a bit.
As he looks out the window his phone rings and he gets a call. He listens to the voice on the phone and rolls his eyes up as he listens to the long lecture before he reluctantly agrees with the voice then sighs as he ends the phone call. He puts the phone in his coat and rubs his temples as he wanted to get a break but just found out he is being reassigned again.
Posted by : Jaxx
It didn't take long running the cryptic message from the letter for the computer to decipher it. Alyssa carefully read it, then ran it again, with a different program to be sure. It said the same thing.
The message made sense in a way but also not. Just adding more questions on top of the questions already rolling around in her mind.
"Hey, Peter. I think I've decoded that cryptic message. You should see this." Alyssa said, talking back to the man's chip.
"Can you send it to my phone? You are helpful Alyssa, do you have any theories?"
"I'm running some information through the database - here." She sent the now decoded message to his phone.
the Halliwell sisters are the charmed ones they have the power of three they use their magic to fight evil and keep their family tree but what if they discovered a secret world where myths and legends are real where ancient mysteries and modern conspiracies collide in a shadowy deal would they join the illuminati the cunning and the bold and use their magic for power and gold or would they join the templars the righteous and the brave and use their magic to protect and save or would they join the dragon the chaotic and the wise and use their magic to create surprise or would they forge their own path the independent and the free and use their magic to shape their destiny the choice is theirs to make the secret world awaits the Halliwell sisters are the charmed ones and they have the power of fate.
"It then repeats but the code seems different."
Posted by : Cindy
San Francisco, 1st Crime Scene, Late Evening of the Day of Landing
Upon activating her Detect Magic Spell, Lumina quickly spotted some sort of magical energy emanating from the tree. Getting closer, she could sense that the energy was a connection to… somewhere, shrouded in darkness. There was not much more she could glean with her current spell, but she had the idea of using another spell to see what was on the other side of that connection. However, she wouldn't be able to maintain concentration on both spells, so she performed a sweep of the area first, and after finding nothing else, she shook off Detect Magic and prepared Clairvoyance. She pulled a rather expensive glass marble from her bag, consulted her spellbook, and then for about the next ten minutes, she uttered a string of incantations while carefully monitoring her motions. As she did so, the marble transformed into a small orb of energy, which, once the process was complete, she wafted the now invisible orb toward the energy emanating from the trees. She gasped as the ball was taken by the energy. Peering through the orb, she could see and sense a swampy landscape, somewhere across the country. The structures she could see did not appear old, but the style was antiquated, as if they had been built prior to the Great War. Lumina's gut twisted as she realized that the connection led not just to somewhere else, but some-when else. She could not maintain the spell for long. She was suddenly bombarded by foreign sensations she could scarcely comprehend. Before she could make sense of it all, she was booted out of the spell. She found herself standing, dazed, recalling only a few details from the confounding experience. A swamp, somewhere in Florida, a century prior, and an impression etched in her mind that this all had something to do with the Warren Family. After trying and failing to remember more, Lumina recalled that the name of the victim who had passed away nearby was Olivia Warren. What connection did she have with this place in Florida? And why was this anomaly here where she perished?
"I think the second scene is going to be a bust like this one was. Too many days have passed and too many disturbances. We're more likely to get more false positives than anything else anyway."
It took a moment for Lumina to realize that Corinth was talking to her as she came out of her trance. He seemed to notice her distress, and asked rhetorically, "You find anything with your magic?"
Lumina relayed to him what had transpired. He was just as puzzled as she was by the development, and they briefly discussed the possibility of entering through the connection themselves, only to come to the conclusion that even if it was possible, there was no guarantee that they would survive the journey, let alone be able to safely get back. For now, this lead was mostly a bust, but perhaps something could be gleaned from digging into Olivia's history and ancestry.
Deciding to call it a night, Lumina drove their sexy red Nissan Maxima back to the Stanyan Park Hotel. She was exhausted, and she felt like a zombie as she and Corinth trudged toward their rooms. Following a friendly hit to her shoulder, Corinth instructed her to visit his room once she was up and about. She went into her room as he went into his.
Lumina contemplated trying to do some more reading into Ley Lines from the tomes she borrowed, or perhaps seeing if there was anything that would shine light on the nature of the anomaly she had found at the crime scene, but she realized she was too tired to make sense of those arcane volumes. Instead, she changed into bed clothes, turned on a light across the room to act as night light, set her alarm for seven, and collapsed into her bed. Sleep came quickly.
San Francisco, Stanyan Park Hotel, Morning of the Day After Landing
Lumina hit the snooze button quite a few times as she struggled to wake up. Eventually she flicked the TV onto a news station to help herself get moving. She bolted up as she saw the story making headlines. A student had apparently been stung to death reportedly by bees inside his apartment last night. It didn't take a genius to realize how unusual this was. Her gut told her that this was another scene worth adding to their investigation. She thought about going straight to Corinth's room to discuss the development, but then she realized that she might miss out on her only chance to get in a much-needed shower. Lumina decided to text Corinth first, only to realize that she had never actually gotten his number. She would have to remedy that. Okay, she'd take a quick shower, and then…
Lumina did not take quick showers. Ever. She had tried many times after getting out of bed too late to take a quick shower, but she very rarely succeeded. She did not succeed today. Lumina just had too much on her mind. Olivia Warren, killed by needles near some magical anomaly with a mysterious connection to her family in a Florida swamp a hundred years ago. Another boy, Turner Kramer, killed by bees in an environment with no known infestation. A spooky asian girl on the plane with potential magical capabilities. Working with a partner, Corinth Whitethorn, a veteran monster hunter and total badass. Being back in the field after one of the worst experiences of her young life. Thoughts related to all these things and more floated through her head in no particularly productive order as her hands became wrinkly and time passed by her. It almost was quarter till nine by the time she got out of the shower, and she still had to do her hair and makeup.
It was a little after 9:20 when Lumina was dressed (in her usual jeans, blouse, and hoodie), packed, and at Corinth's door. She rapped on his door and waited for a response. After waiting a minute, she was about to knock again when she heard running water. At least he didn't get breakfast without her. Deciding to give him more time to clean up, Lumina went back to her room and reviewed her spell book, contemplating which spells she might need to use for the day. As she was reviewing her known spells, she found herself looking at the Speak with Dead spell, and a shiver went down her spine. If all other avenues of information dried up, Olivia, Gail, and now Turner could point them in the right direction. In fact, a trip to the morgue sooner rather than later could be highly beneficial to get on the correct track before the other Societies mobilized their forces. But first they needed to figure out the right questions to ask, as they would only get one shot at interviewing the dead.
She packed her spellbook back in her bag and returned to Corinth's door and knocked again. Lumina was astonished when a shirtless Corinth cast the door open and leaned on the frame, and she couldn't help but let her eyes be drawn toward the vicious scar across his chest. He had pretty nice abs and pecs too…
"I'm finishing up. Be ready in a minute. Come in."
As he turned around, she saw that further scars and impressions marred his back. Corinth had definitely been through some shit. Lumina had her own scars too, but most of hers had been acquired quite recently, and she was much less eager to let them be seen as Corinth seemed to be.
Lumina quickly mentioned the news she had seen to him as Corinth resumed getting dressed.
"We may need to approach this from a different angle. If scene one and two have been scrubbed already, what are the odds that scene three is the same? What was three? A university? For all we know, the university has already given another student the room. Do you have any ideas?"
Lumina sensed that Corinth was a little discouraged, which she was used to feeling at this stage of an investigation. "I mean, I'm sure the university is looking to fill that room, although I personally would be hesitant to take a room in which someone just got killed by bees, but I suppose if they offered a low enough price for that sweet on-campus housing…"
She paused as she watched Corinth expertly handle his weapons as he checked and holstered his armory of pistols. Lumina didn't even see where he had gotten those second two pistols from.
"So whatcha got? You can tell while we go grab breakfast."
As they made their way to the hotel's complimentary breakfast, Lumina continued, "All joking aside, the place has certainly been swept by the first responders and mundane investigators, but we don't know how close the Illuminati are to this yet. My boss thought they were most likely all over it, but again, we don't know that yet. I think it would be worth the effort to see what we can find. At the least, we can hopefully find out a little bit about Turner Kramer, which may be pertinent because, well…"
Lumina then told Corinth about her idea about visiting the morgue to interview the victims, and she also told him about the roughly five question limit to the at spell. Once both of them had grabbed food from the breakfast bar, she continued, "Learning as much as we can about our victims through other means can save us questions and time which we can use to learn other details. Also, we should probably wait until Turner is done being reviewed by the Coroner, after which he should hopefully be admitted to the morgue, at which point I can interview all three of our victims in one visit. But yeah, I'm thinking we hit the university first, figure out as much as we can about Turner, and perhaps get eyes on what the other Secret Societies are throwing at this mess at the same time, and then we evaluate where to go next from there."
Posted by : Sky
Corinth opened the car door as and stood watching Lumina as she spilled to him her idea, taking a sip of his soda that grabbed before they left the dining room. He thought about it for a moment and nodded, "sounds like a plan. Good work." After getting situated, he cranked the car up and drove off. The thought of talking to the dead intrigued him about as much as it made him a bit uncomfortable.
Animating the dead was some wild use of magic and he wondered how powerful that type of magic could go. Instead of just answering questions, could she control them in more ways? Was his partner a budding necromancer? Could be interesting...could be dangerous...for both of them. Still, would be fascinating to watch.
The drive was uneventful except for the San Francisco traffic that seemed to hinder them at every turn. It would be nice to blame it on some type of chaos magic, but it was really nothing more than the mundanes being chaotic to themselves. Sometimes, he wished he had a little more magic training to help with situations like this, but he knew he would abuse it every chance he got. Perhaps it was best he was only good with guns.
Pulling into the parking lot of the University of San Francisco, Corinth parked the car and looked around. He never went to college and t wouldn't have mattered if he did. the Secret World had taught him more than any self-righteous, self-absorbed professor could have. Still, there was the whole college life that he missed out on, but let's be honest, who wouldn't take the chance of travelling the world and turning monsters inside out using impossible means?
"Alright," he said opening the car door and stepping out, "we need to find the dorms and have a look around. Who knows who's already been here and grabbed what. I mean," he pulled out a cigarette and lit it with a snap of his fingers, "it's not like there's gonna be a notebook with everything we need to know in it. Let's be thorough." Pulling out his bottle of pills, he popped one into his mouth and chased it with the rest of his soda. Stretching his back, he shut the car door and tossed the can into the nearest trash can.
The campus was fairly large and was wonderfully taken care of. The buildings were large, spacious, and the grounds looked like what a university should look like; regal, spacious, and an atmosphere of free speech and learning. He admired the place, especially the St. Ignatius Church that sat on the edge of the property. Maybe it was the Templar in him that admired it the most. Or maybe it was just a nice looking building.
"Hey! This is a no smoking campus!"
Ignoring the teenager's shouts, Corinth continued on his way, following the signs leading to the dormitories. As the young person yelled at him once more, Corinth casually flicked his cigarette in their direction, prompting a barrage of curses aimed his way. "I can't stand teenagers," he muttered to himself. "Glad I never was one."
Upon arriving at the dorms, he tried to pull the door open, but it was locked. A campus safety measure no doubt. Banging on the door, he attracted the attention of a young woman who walked over.
"Detectives," he said loud enough for her to hear through the glass. "We need access to Kramer's room."
"I can't open the door for anyone without a pass or a student ID," she said matter of factly."
"Look, you can either let us in and we can all go about our day or I can go get a warrant and take you in for obstruction of justice which you will then have to call your parents and explain to them, in detail, why they needed to come bail you out. But I'm sure by the time they get there, our background check on you will find a few things even you didn't know you had."
She looked confused as she slowly put his words to context. "Wait...are you saying-"
"I'm saying open the door," he reached in his jacket and pulled out a metal badge, placing it against the glass with a clink.
The woman moved forward and let them in. "The San Francisco Police Department thanks you for your cooperation," he said, walking past her and into the hallway. Turning back, "Turner Kramer, upstairs?" The woman nodded and exited the building in a hurry.
"You should get one of these," he said, showing the fake badge to Lumina. "They come in handy sometimes. Let's go."
Moving upstairs, it was easy to find the room that doubled as a crime scene. The door was left wide open, which Corinth thought was odd. The door should have been closed, locked, and cordoned off pending an investigation, but here, the door was open and welcoming anyone inside.
His right hand moved toward Powell instinctively as he peered inside. The room was small, like any dorm room would be. A bed to the left of the room, a chair, small desk, cabinet to the side. What was in the room, looked disturbed, as if someone was looking for something. Chairs moved, sheets disturbed, pillow at odd angle...not only were they looking, they were trying to do it discreetly.
He sighed heavily with annoyance. "We're not the first ones here and whatever was here, is gone now." He looked to Lumina, "see if there is anything you can do with your magic. I'll stand outside and make sure no lookie-loo's get too close."
Stepping outside the room, he closed the door and leaned against the wall. Pulling out a cigarette, he placed it in his mouth and snapped it alight. Things were going downhill fast and it looked like their only hope for getting ahead in the investigation was to go and talk to a couple of stiffs on a table. He shook his head and emptied his lungs of smoke.
Posted by : Dblitz13
"Ohh, who sent you to surveil me and be the one first use Zurn's chip? If you dont mind me asking? "Halliwell Sisters? Ever heard of them, if not can you find something about them?" Sartre asked
"No, but I'm running checks on them and to answer your other question, Cassini sent me." Alyssa's father had also been an Illuminati agent but the young woman didn't offer that information, not yet.
"I have heard of them but not much else."
"This is going to take a while. I can let you know when I have more." Alyssa commented as her her eyes kept watch on the screens.
"Thank you Alyssa. Do you have a favorite snack."
"Takis, Fuego. Or anything spicy." The woman replied.
It didn't take long before the brightly lit screen started giving up information regarding the sisters. "I got something. The Halliwell sisters used to live here in San Francisco, but their place is now abandoned. Apparently, they used to fight the supernatural." She paused, "Ley lines run under their former house." The young woman's mind was starting to explore possibilities.
Posted by : Cindy
The sound of Peter's voice caught Alyssa's attention. "Alyssa, I may head to the abandoned Halliwell mansion to see if there is anything of value there. That seems to be where the ley lines intersect . Can you look up any information on "Prue Halliwell, her sisters, Piper, Phoebe and half sister Paige", Team Blue had to keep a file on them in the 90's and early 2000's."
"Got it." The information that came through was interesting, though she didn't know how much it would help."They are descendants of a long line of magic users. The Warrens. The three sisters were left the house by their grandmother. Prue died a few years back. I'm sending you the current addresses of the other sisters. Not surprisingly, there have been more than a few mysterious deaths surrounding them." Alyssa sent Peter the information she could, then saw something else. "There is a place listed. Possibly owned by the remaining three sisters called the P3 Apothecary at 250 Ivy St. I'll send you more information as I get it." Alyssa broke the communication.
Posted by : Cindy
San Francisco, En Route to USF, Late Morning, Day After Kramer's Passing
Lumina appreciated that Corinth was behind the wheel for the trip to the university. She had never much cared for city driving. It was nice to be able to take a turn at an intersection without having to watch out for pedestrians. By some miracle, Corinth was able to find an open spot in a lot first try, and soon the Templar Team was on their way to the student dorms.
Corinth's smoking quickly drew the ire of a young student, who proclaimed that the USF Campus was a no smoking campus, a claim that Lumina was rather skeptical about. One did not tell a college student not to smoke tobacco or weed with the expectation that this would prevent them from getting their fix. The student's complaints certainly didn't affect Corinth's behavior much, at least until he persisted, at which point Corinth flicked the cigarette he had been smoking in the direction of the belligerent undergrad.
"Way to make a scene," Lumina moaned.
"I can't stand teenagers," Corinth groused quietly. "Glad I never was one."
This was even more perplexing to her than the no smoking policy, but the comment was meant for her, so she didn't say anything.
Arriving at one of the dorm buildings Corinth tried a door, which unsurprisingly did not open. Lumina struggled to suppress a smile as her partner then went Captain of Koepenick on some hapless student to gain them entry into the building.
"You should get one of these," Corinth advised as he pocketed his fake badge. "They come in handy sometimes."
"It's unfortunate that I forgot to dress the part," Lumina murmured. She was pretty sure that impersonating an officer of the law was illegal, but then again, so was trespassing, so in this case discretion would have to be the better part of law abidingness.
Lumina wasn't sure that trick would work to get them into the room itself, but it turned out her fretting was unnecessary, as the door was wide open. Her own unease was mirrored by Corinth, whose hand she saw drifting towards his holster. She let him take point. Once Corinth looked the place over, she followed him in and watched his shoulders droop.
"We're not the first ones here and whatever as here is gone now. See if there is anything you can do with your magic. I'll stand outside and make sure no lookie-loo's get too close."
Lumina had to agree with his assessment, they were most likely not the first agents of the Secret World to visit this room. Considering their late start, this had probably been inevitable. Now to see if she could find anything mundane eyes might have missed…
Lumina cast Detect Magic and began looking around. No magic anomalies made themselves readily apparent, however, after having a look about the dorm room, she spotted a faint shimmer coming from somewhere in Turner's closet. Tucked into a corner on a high shelf under some linens were some books. Not being particularly tall, Lumina struggled to move the linens off the books and then pull the books off the shelf. Needless to say, this was a highly unusual place to store books, and when she saw the covers on the books, she could see why Turner had been keen to keep these volumes hidden. Tomes on fringe physics, unconventional theories on the origins of mankind, and alien geometries were not quite the stuff one wanted in casual display before polite company. The shimmer was coming from the fringe physics textbook, and pawing through it, Lumina finally spotted the source of the shimmer, a page with a bunch of latin characters that did not form any obvious words. It didn't take her long to realize that this was some kind of code, probably a substitution cipher if she had to guess. As much respect as Lumina had for writers like Edgar Allen Poe who had very much been into this kind of stuff, cryptography had never been something Lumina had much of a knack for. She could perhaps figure this one out eventually, but perhaps Corinth had a better head for this.
Unintentionally dropping concentration on her spell as she thought about all of that, Lumina grabbed the Fringe Physics book and brought it toward the room exit. "Hey Corinth, I found something. What do you make of this?"
Posted by : Sky
Corinth looked at the book Lumina held out to him. "Looks like a book full of information I know nothing about." She pulled it away from him and flipped the pages open to a section that had scribbled writing on it. Dropping his cigarette and snuffing it out under his boot, he looked the coded words over.
"The fool wrote all this in code. Not hard to decipher. The daily paper used to have a puzzle section near the comics. My old man and I used to speed run the Cryptoquotes."
Walking back inside, Corinth sat at the desk, opened the drawer and scoured for a pencil. Finding one, he began looking over the words, making markings above letters, crossing out others, and putting new letters above old. "The key is to go for the obvious ones first. The letters together, space on each side, most likely 'the,' a stand alone letter...either an 'I' or an 'A.' Most often used letter, probably an 'S'. But in this case, this is a standard +3 cipher. Each letter has been moved three places to the right. So this word here, "Kdoolzhoo?" Take each letter and go back three letters and you get...Halliwell. Now you can either take those letters and replaces all known letters or you just go down the line moving each letter back."
His hand and mind went to work, replacing letters as fast as he could. Once finished, he looked it over, read it, and gave it to Lumina. "Looks like a pilot to a tv show. What do you get out of it?"
The Halliwell sisters are the Charmed Ones
They have the power of three
They use their magic to fight evil
And keep their family tree
But what if they discovered a secret world
Where myths and legends are real
Where ancient mysteries and modern conspiracies
Collide in a shadowy deal
Would they join the Illuminati, the cunning and the bold
And use their magic for power and gold
Or would they join the Templars, the righteous and the brave
And use their magic to protect and save
Or would they join the Dragon, the chaotic and the wise
And use their magic to create surprise
Or would they forge their own path, the independent and the free
And use their magic to shape their destiny
The choice is theirs to make
The secret world awaits
The Halliwell sisters are the Charmed Ones
And they have the power of fate
"I mean, sisters of Fate? That's a bold claim. Still," he sighed, "this is something new." he sat there thinking for a moment before speaking again, "You're a Warlock, you like books and stuff right? Think the library here might have something? Shit, probably not, but it wouldn't hurt to check. Maybe I can find something on these sisters, address at least. Think there's a phonebook around here?" He looked over at her. "Yeah, doubt it. Haven't seen one of those in years. Still, I can make some calls and see what I can find. Meet you at the car in an hour to compare notes?"
Posted by : Dblitz13
Chinatown - San Francisco, CA
Choi finished his meal, then looked at the pretty Korean girl across from him. She had said she had decrypted the code. He wondered what it said more than the first word. That's all he had seen, not having the time to sit down with it.
He took a drink of his hot tea, then revealed, "Eun-Ji, you know that other guy at the university? His name is Peter Sartre, an Illuminati operative. I don't know, but sometimes when the other organizations are involved, Gaia has us work together for the bigger cause."
He paused to give what he said some time to process. Continuing, he further revealed, "Somehow, the were able to get a copy of the code while you were leading through the book. He had someone being eyes and ears to what he couldn't sense himself. Someone named Alyssa."
He paused again, then added, "You still have it with you?"
Eun-Ji listened to Choi, more interested in letting him speak than doing so herself. She hadn't completely warmed up to the idea yet of working with others, thinking this was going to be a solo endeavor, let alone another faction. She had been raised to distrust the motivations and intentions the Illuminati and Templar subscribed to. Though if these other agents could prove useful, while still maintaining Dragon supremacy, then she supposed she could pretend to play nice.
Neither name that Choi offered up meant anything to her; however, she did log them away in her memory banks. "I have the translation, but it is not on me at present." She replied to his question.
Posted by : Lorem
Chinatown - San Francisco, CA
"It is good to have it hidden," Yeong responded. "Templars may be joining the chase soon. Until we know the circumstances, they are our competition."
He looked at the girl across from him. He could not deny she was beautiful. He wanted to know more about her, as Choi may be working aside of her for a while.
"Tell me about yourself, Eun-Li," he requested. "I know you come from a solid Dragon family, but that's all I know. The Moon name is well known in our ranks."
Eun-Ji smiled in amusement. Her family name held honor and prestige in the Dragon ranks, yet she herself had not contributed to it. She brought honor to the family in many ways growing up, but not yet in regards to the secret world. Well, the fact that she is a "bee" did bring with it the attention that she was full of potential; however according to her teasing big brother, that was just an elegant way of saying you haven't done anything yet. She knew he was right. Her rhythm gymnastic medals, straight A's all the way up to getting a degree in physics from the most prestigious schools in South Korea, to her other superlatives didn't amount to much in the secret world dominance hierarchy.
Eun-Ji had finally finished eating and she wiped her mouth neatly with her napkin. Then she organized her utensils and dish so that it would be an easy pickup for the waiter when they came to bus the table. "Choi, let's keep this professional and stick to matters of importance for the mission." She was being an obstacle to his friendly question. Though she did concede slightly, "But, yes, my family name is known for solving problems consistently, meriting honor."
Getting back to business, she asked. "So do the Halliwell sisters, the charmed ones, mean anything to you?" Decoding the message had just led her to more unanswered questions.
Posted by : Lorem
Chinatown - San Francisco, CA
Choi Yeong was disappointed that Moon Eun-Ji didn't want to know more about each other. One of the areas Yeong attempted to address for balance was the social side of himself. He could see her point, though he preferred knowing the person with whom he worked.
Because he was raised in a monastery, Yeong didn't have access to a TV. However, when he was inducted into the Secret World by Master Park, his master encouraged him to do research. Research fit into the mental aspect of Yeong's search for balance.
"I believe they arre three individuals known as the Charmed Sisters," Yeong surprisingly answered. "Some say they are witches. But maybe they are bees like us. I know they have powers like us. They do battle against evil like us."
He couldn't remember the powers they had. So, he would need to research it again to bring it back to memory.
Eun-Ji arched a single eyebrow in disbelief to his reply without even thinking. What are the odds this stranger would connect a dot in her investigation. "Well that was unexpected, but surprisingly helpful." She honestly replied, but grateful because she didn't even know that much. At least that was something to continue making investigatory progress on.
"Based on that …. " she paused and looked Choi over, just to be sure he wasn't pulling her leg. "We need to figure out the truth behind it. In addition, I haven't done any investigation of the other two murder sites, nor visited the intersection of the two ley lines." There was a long list of things to tackle.
Posted by : Lorem
Chinatown - San Francisco, CA
"So the code has something to do with them?" Choi probed.
Yeong smiled. "You made progress already. You ARE good!"
Well, this is your investigation," he encouraged. "Where would you like to start?"
Eun-Ji couldn't help but feel a sense of positive esteem at the compliment. Typically she would perform above expectations and would get more constructive feedback than praise. She didn't quite know how to take it, or even assess if it was genuine or if he just wanted something from her. "Thank you." She hesitantly replied with a trace of skepticism.
She thought a moment about how she wanted to proceed. Having another person involved was not in her initial plan, so it altered the possibilities. "A divide and conquer algorithmic approach would be best based on the new inputs." She more or less murmured to herself. "We should visit the other two sites in case there is anything valuable still to discover." It was best to have as much information as possible when making decisions after all. "I know someone …" she was referring to David, but didn't use his name in case he preferred to remain anonymous. " … that can research these sisters while we do so. They have already given me what the police know about the crime scene, so we would be looking for things they may have not been looking for."
Choi Yeong tightened his lips. He was determined to help Eun-Ji to be successful on this mission. She was bright, seemed to be competent in what she was doing. Eun-Ji also knew how to be evasive, whether in word or by using her ability to manipulate reality. He wondered if the illusions were the only thing the bee had given.
"We start with the other two crime scenes," he agreed. "Hopefully, they will help us find additional clues. These Charmed Ones, it sounds as if we may be lured into working with them. It will be the first outside of the Big 3 if that were the case. Tell me, Eun-Ji, can I expect any other abilities besides the illusions?" He had a mischievous smile as he said this last question.
Posted by : Lorem
Chinatown and Murder Sites 1&2 - San Francisco, CA
Eun-Ji slid out and stood from the table, straightening out her dress. She answered cryptically to his question, "Yes." Her tone was precipitating mischievousness and simultaneously keeping Choi at a disadvantage. It was a power play, keeping her cards close to her chest. It occurred to her that there current partnership may not always be so, and there may come a time where she would need an advantage over him.
Eun-Ji proceeded out of the establishment. She paid for her meal using the card David provided her with and thanked them for their delicious dish and hospitality. She then proceeded out the entrance and waited for Choi to catch up.
They walked to the first crime scene. There wasn't much in regards to talking, she spent almost the entire trip on the phone with David. She was setting him up to do the research on the sisters for them. As well as getting directions and a briefing on what was already known about the crime scenes. She did share this information with Choi.
The first crime scene proved uneventful and unfruitful, even with her lucky tendencies they came up empty handed. Perhaps the second crime scene would be more informative.
When Eun-Ji got up and began to walk toward the front of the establishment, Yeong, at first thought she was trying to ditch him as she did earlier. Yeong quickly got up and paid for his food, leaving a nice tip.
As Yeong had expected, they didn't learn anything from the first scene. The trail was cold. It was too public of an area. Too many energies had walked through since the incident, as it was no longer closed off.
As they approached the second scene, Yeong didn't believe they would find much there, either. However, an eerie feeling grasped his senses from the moment they arrived.
Not finding much, Yeong shifted to his sense of balance. Something was not right. He gazed around them and saw the issue. There was a wooded area that seemed off. Walking to a twisted and gnarled tree, Yeong reached out to touch it. He saw several other trees in the same manner.
Turning to Eun-Li, Yeong queried, "Does this look natural to you?"
Posted by : Lorem
Murder Site 2 - San Francisco, CA
Eun-Ji was equally at a loss at the second investigation site. There was nothing that the briefing from the police data, nor the environment, contributed that would seem to be of use to the enigmatic path the decoded journal entry had already set them on. It had just been a waste of time, aside from being able to have the peace of mind that she looked.
While Choi went off looking, she answered her cellphone and started having a conversation about something much more interesting than their current situation. She seemed pleased with whatever the conversation was about.
When asked for her opinion, Eun-Ji came over to look at the trees. She wasn't very familiar with Californian plant life and so hadn't even noticed that the trees he was referring to were indeed twisted in a way that was different than other trees in the area. "Compared to the similar looking ones over there, No."
She complimented Choi's find in her head, not out loud. "What do you think could have caused this?" Was it purely environmental conditions or something more eldritch in nature she wondered.
Yeong thought of past encounters aside Master Park. It seemed that the eldritch would often distort the natural in some way. In Choi's mind, something evil this way came.
"I am not specifically certain," Yeong replied. "I have never seen trees distorted in such a way. However, I do know evil sources often distort what is natural. Whatever it was, it is dangerous."
He hoped that what he had said would have no affect upon Eun-Ji's resolve. Up to this point, she was determined, even driven in her mission.
Eun-Ji couldn't help but do a quickly turnaround to look more closely at their surroundings. She was looking for any threats based on his comment, but was simultaneously trying to look calm. It was a facade she used when on a hunt with her older brother; inside she felt anxious but she couldn't let others see.
With a growing desire to leave the scene, Eun-Ji thought it a good time to bring up her conversation with David. "Or just poor nutrients from the soil?" She murmured, but knew that wasn't the case.
"My contact was able to locate the house address for the charmed sisters." She changed the subject. "I will give you three guesses where it is located, but you should surely only need one." It was right smack on top of the intersection of the ley lines.
She made a gesture to let's get going.
Posted by : Lorem
Taxi Cab - San Francisco, CA
Yeong inwardly wondered if this let line may have run along the ever present path of the fault line in California. If so, besides whatever eldritch they were facing, Choi half expected there to be earthquakes. There is no limit to what the eldritch could do when active.
Yeong headed to the street. "You have an address?" he asked, flagging down a cab.
Again, Choi wondered what he could expect from Eun-Ji. When with Master Park, he knew his Master's techniques. He knew his abilities. There was trust and a knowledge of how to respond to support each other. He knew nothing of how Eun-Ji could handle herself. Well, he surmised. Otherwise, why would she be given a mission.
Choi phrased his next question carefully. "How may I best support you in a conflict?
Eun-Ji prepared to get into the taxi cab, but paused before doing so to turn and address his question. "Don't die. And I would prefer the same." She then entered the cab slightly annoyed. He asked many questions. His trying to get to know her better attempts were like the frequent yapping of a puppy not yet crate trained.
As Eun-Ji settled into the backseat of the cab, she gave the driver the address of her destination: Halliwell Manor on 1329 Prescott Street. The cab driver glanced at her in the rearview mirror before nodding and pulling away from the curb. As they navigated through the streets of San Francisco, the driver couldn't help but strike up a conversation.
"You headed to Halliwell Manor, huh?" the driver asked, his tone tinged with curiosity. "That place has quite the reputation, you know. Some say it's haunted, others claim it's home to a coven of witches."
Eun-Ji raised an eyebrow, intrigued by the rumors surrounding the historic Victorian-style manor. "Really? I've heard a few stories myself," she replied, leaning forward slightly to catch the driver's eye in the mirror. "But I'm just going to visit a friend. I'm not afraid of a little superstition."
The driver chuckled, his eyes crinkling at the corners. "Well, you're braver than most, miss. Just be careful around that place. You never know what kind of spooks might be lurking behind those old walls."
Eun-Ji nodded, a faint smile playing on her lips as she settled back into her seat. As the cab continued on its journey, and the driver continued talking about the rumors out loud as if content just to talk to himself and fill the air space.
Posted by : Lorem
Halliwell Manor - San Francisco, CA
Stay alive, Yeong thought. According to Master Park's experience, they wouldn't die. Just painfully be restored back to health. Depending upon the injury, the time varied. Park had relayed a time he was near death after fighting a demon he called Black Hat. Doctor Flug and Dementia and his minions were involved, Choi remembered. According to Park, it is too painful even for those of balance to endure. Park stated he wouldn't want to go through that again. Yeong wondered if Eun-Li knew this. He assumed she did, as her family has a long history in the Dragon.
Choi set there listening to the cabbie go on-and-on about the mansion being haunted. He wanted to tell the man to shut up because his talking just dragged on in a monotone. Choi wondered how many people he lulled to sleep in the back of his cab.
Finally, in what seemed like the never ending story, the cab pulled up to the gate of the mansion. He put the vehicle into park and stared, "This is as far as I go; you're on your own from here."
As Eun-Ji stepped out of the cab, she thanked, paid the driver, and took a moment to survey her surroundings. Halliwell Manor loomed before her, a grand Victorian-style mansion with ornate architecture and a sense of faded elegance. Ivy crawled up the weathered walls, adding to the eerie charm of the place, and the overgrown garden hinted at neglect.
Approaching the front door, Eun-Ji couldn't help but feel a shiver of anticipation. The house appeared abandoned, but she wanted to be certain. With a series of knocks, she waited for a response, but the silence hung heavy in the air. The doorknob was locked.
Taking matters into her own hands, she reached for the doorknob and applied a subtle twist, her chaotic abilities working their magic to unlock the possible combination of the tumblers within.
With a faint click, the door yielded, but her progress was halted by a stubborn deadbolt further up. Frustration flickered across her features as she pushed against the door, straining against the resistance. Despite her efforts, the deadbolt remained steadfast.
Posted by : Lorem
Halliwell Manor - San Francisco, CA
Sung has been working on a case he had gotten a request for help from an old friend in law enforcement his friend did work for the government but not the mainstream type of stuff. Sung had worked as a well-consultant now and then on some cases that have been a puzzle to law enforcement. the Dragon organization was happy with the arrangement Sung could cover up things that needed to be seen not by the normal world as some say.
So far all the evidence led Sung to a house. The historic Victorian-style manor. known as the Halliwell Manor on 1329 Prescott Street. Sung was looking around from street view watching for the last few days seeing who was coming and going. The house appeared abandoned no lights at night either. Watching a cab pull up Sung looked with interest to see how it was. To his surprise, it was the daughter Eun-Ji Moon and Cho. Sung had been around the moon family for about almost 10 years. Sung knew the daughter well. More like acquaintances.
Sung walked onto the walkway and walked up behind them. Sung was not sure if they would even recognize him. This was risky if someone from the Maner was watching this would give him away.
"Eun-Ji, Cho," He said with a small bow. "what brings you here?" Sung asked looking confused to see them.
Eun-Ji whirled around completely caught off guard by the voice calling out her name. Her shocked expression was for the door to see, as well as a wave of incredulous frustration. Did her mother send him to keep an eye on her, was the first thought that flashed in her mind. She was upset with just the notion of maybe her parents didn't think she could handle this on her own. She didn't need someone to hold her hand.
She stopped with door, releasing her grip on the knob. She calmed herself, suppressing her disappointment and trying to put on a polite and honoring graces. She turned to face him, all smile and respect; quite the transformation from a split second beforehand.
Eun-Ji bowed deeper, and lowered her eyes out of respect. "Master Sung" She paused in the bow and then slowly came up. "What are you doing here?" She had no idea why her private martial arts tutor was present.
" Before you think I am here to look over you I am not. I am on a case for a friend and the evidence brought me here," explained Sung. "I am as surprised to see you here as you are to see me," commented Sung with a small crack of a smile. "I have been looking around for a few days and looks like abandoned but I am not so sure," said Sung looking over the door. "So you were just going to walk in? did you look for anything like a trap or alarm?" asked Sung politely.
Posted by : Lorem
Yeong incredulously lolled between the new comer as Eun-Ji. It seemed like a family reunion, which left Choi Yeong out. As far as he knew, he had no living relatives. He was raised in the monastery after both parents had been killed.
He was told his father and mother were intelligence officers in the South Korean army. Apparently, they were killed in North Korea, where they mutilated the bodies then cremated them. All that Yeong has of them is ashes.
He stood there, waiting for the reunion to be over, breathing to keep himself calm, wondering if he were going to be introduced.
"Actually," admitted Yeong, "I can break in the door from about four meters."
Eun-Ji did not seem completely convinced, her mother could have manipulated events to ensure he would be there and at the very least he would naturally make sure things went well without instructions. On the other hand, she had never known Master Sung to lie by commission or omission in all her years. She had no choice but to take him at his word upon rising back up.
She hadn't looked for an alarm, nor had she even considered the possibility that this abandoned manor had one; or a functional one if it used to. She used misdirection instead of answering. She was bailed out by Choi speaking up.
"Master Sung, this is Choi Yeong. Choi, …. Master Sung." She hastily made introductions. Then Eun-Ji gave the space over to Choi and moved back to the front steps. "By all means, please open the door." She directed it at him and gave Master Sung that polite look of, see … everything is under control, no need to stick around.
Choi bowed to Master Sung, then turned his attention to the door. Concentrating on the motions of dahnmudo, With one forceful flat-handed punch toward the door, a force was generated at the centermost point. Splinters blew inward from the force, leaving a gaping hole through which they could traverse.
Yeong glanced at Ein-Ji with a grin. She had caught him with her chaos. Now, he got to show her his.
Posted by : Lorem
Well that didn't help her case, maybe everything wasn't under control. She side-eyed Master Sung, not even having to look to know he disapproved with what just happened.
Her expectation was he would force open the deadbolt on the door and they would open it with minimal signs of forced entry. Now there was a loud noise and a large oval like hole blown out of the center of the door. There was no hiding that. Her hand went to her face to hide her disbelief on what just happened. She should have asked how he was going to do it, instead of assuming.
Ein-Ji did not smile back, she looked unamused, as she made eye contact with Choi. Nonverbally she was sending the message, what in goodness name made you think that was the best course of action. Inwardly she prayed no one in the neighborhood called the cops.
She righted herself, bowed quickly to Master Sung, and moved closer to the door before things could get any worse. As she passed Choi, she whispered, "Subtle." Inside the front entryway was a mess, splinters of the door everywhere on the floor. "That may have shortened our stay, so let's get to work looking for clues."
She held up her hand at Choi as he started to move. "Not you. YOU need to take this door off it's hinges and replace it with a door from inside the house. Then look for clues."
Posted by : Lorem
Alyssa watched the video feed on her screen with interest. 'No, oh wait there it is.' She thought, as her hazel eyes caught sight her target. The best taco truck around, or at least the best she had been to. It was only two blocks away and the young woman with the chestnut colored hair was starving.
The petite woman stood up, put on her grey hoodie, zip it up, and threw her hood over her head. She then stepped outside.
Like some creature of the night, after spending so much time in the van, she found the sun to shine far too brightly. A pair of dark purple sunglasses, easily remedied the situation.
Putting her ear buds in, she opened Spotify on her phone. Playlist number 5 - some retro was her mood - 90s to be particular - Radiohead filled her ears.
The walk and fresh air was a welcomed break for the computer hacker's body, even if Alyssa wasn't that keen on it. She was close, the sight of the truck, and - the line. There was always a line.
Still in her reach, when she heard a voice in her head Cassini's voice. 'Not now,' thought Alyssa.
The instructions went as follows - contact new agent in area - get them if necessary- wait for them if not. Contact Agent Satre let them know of new agent. Do it now.
Alyssa blew out a long sigh, she was so close - tacos would have to wait.
Back at the van, Alyssa sent the information about the new agent to Peter. Then contacted the new agent, "Agent Max Powers. It's Alyssa. Cassini assigned me to contact you. I am here." She sent him the address and coordinates of where she was. "It's a gray van. Do you need me to get you or can you get here? Don't make it seem obvious that you're going to the van."
Agent Max Powers was staring out the window of the limousine when he heard a voice in his head. It startled him at first as he looked around before realizing he was hearing the voice from his chip. He then replied through his chip, "Yeah I am in route to your place. But I am gonna get out early and walk a bit. Hold on, I am stopping and out of the car. I am making my way to… oh wait. There is a taco truck. You mind if I grab some? I can pick up some for you if you want." The smell of tacos was too enticing for Agent Powers especially since he was a growing teenager inside the adult looking power house.
"Oh, yes please get me some." Well that was serendipitous. "Four, beef, extra cheese. Spicy sauce. Thanks." Alyssa replied.
Agent Powers smiled as he got the green light to get a quick meal. So he strolled up to the taco truck and ordered his food. Then he paid in cash which made it hard to trace back like his stepfather taught him. This was drilled into his head since he was adopted. Once he got his tacos he began heading towards the area of the van as he used his chip to communicate, "Where are we meeting? The van or the benches nearby?"
"The van," Alyssa replied. She had no thoughts of going back outside for the moment.
Agent Powers then made his way down the street wearing a tight blue button up dress shirt, black slacks, black hiking boots and nice shades. Along his shoulder hung his black backpack and in his hand was a large bag filled with tacos. Eventually he arrived at the van and let Alyssa know he was outside.
Alyssa got up and opened the door. "Come in," she stepped aside to let him in. "Feel free to take a seat." Closing the door behind him.
Agent Powers came in and handed out the tacos and replied, "So what's the plan?" Then he began eating his tacos like they were candy.
"Wait here until we hear from the agent in the field. Have you met Agent Peter Satre before? That's who you'll be working with." She took the tacos. "Thanks. Do you want a soda?"
Agent Powers swallowed his second taco and cleared his throat before he replied, "Sorry I never met 'em." Then he pulled out a large bottle of green tea and showed it to her as he replied, "I'm good, but thanks anyway. So, any idea on our mission?" Agent Powers ate another taco as he listened.
Alyssa shrugged and retrieved a can of orange soda, sat down and opened it.
It was a little odd, he hadn't been filled in and she guessed they were letting her do it. "Currently, investigating a cryptic message tied to a crime scene. Here..." She sent Max the information regarding the investigation. "That's what we have so far."
Agent Powers watched the screen as he tried to make sense of it all. Despite looking like a muscular Agent in his 30's, he was still a teenager with low detective skills and high fighting skills. As he finished looking at the screen he replied, "Ummm. Yeah. What's a Ley Line? Is that like a phone line?"
"Ley lines are invisible lines of power that connect powerful monuments." Alyssa replied. She had been sent his information, so knew she was in reality dealing with a teen. So, the woman was patient with the questions.
Agent Powers then ate another taco before he nodded and then asked, "So how does one access this power or damage it? I can't imagine trying to plug in an extension cords or smashing the ground."
"I need to research that more." Alyssa responded. "I can't say at this moment but I doubt we'd want to damage the lines, even if we could."
Agent Powers nodded as he chewed his taco and swallowed it. Then he replied, "Well, sounds kind of complicated. I don't usually do all that crime solving stuff. Normally I just beat up the bad guys."
"My guess is the higher ups thought that might be necessary, eventually, or they wouldn't have brought you in." Alyssa took her own bite of a taco.
Agent Powers shrugged as he finished off another taco. He swallowed his taco and replied, 'Who knows. I guess we'll find out later on. Who else are we working with?"
"Don't know, yet. Peter ran into a few Dragons earlier but haven't seen or heard from them since. Of course, it's highly debatable whether any of the other factions will work with us." It seemed more likely from the Dragons though than the Templars.
That gave Alyssa an idea and she took her eyes back to the monitors, focused on the ones connected to cameras she had in the area. If the Dragons made an appearance she could notify Peter. One screen to the other with nothing, then, "There they are." She watched the two Green get into a cab. Now, to figure out where they were going.
Agent Powers continued to finish off his tacos as he watched Alyssa work on the computer. He was only taught the basics of using a computer by his father since he lacked the time and grades for it. Sadly he was an average student who was homeschooled and denied a decent childhood. While many boys played catch with their dad he was taught to punch bricks instead of. It got even more difficult as he had to endure going through puberty in a military like lifestyle. This meant he could only talk to females about work and was clueless when it came to dating or anything related to friendships and emotions.
Posted by : Cindy
Alyssa tried cell phones, internet access, even tried to figure out if the cab was more modern, some having mapping systems. No luck on any of the above, well that was annoying.
She switched to watching a few different cameras, they didn't show. Oh well - lost the Dragons. She wondered if there was a security camera by the abandoned house.
Back to typing away, "Found it," Alyssa just about jumped from her seat, completely forgetting Max was there. "I found them and - hmmm - someone new." A quick search brought up a one Mr. Sung Shun Shi - Dragon. "And then there were three." Thinking out loud.
"Hey, Peter the two Greens are at the Halliwell house and they've been joined by another Green, a Mr. Sung Shin Shi." Alyssa spoke to Agent Satre's chip.
Agent Powers was chewing a taco as he heard Alyssa speak up. He listened to her and continued to eat another taco before drinking from his tea bottle.
Alyssa was continuing to watch the Dragons when suddenly - what the? Her mouth fell open at what she had witnessed. Not that she didn't know some could do what the one Green had just done but that the young woman couldn't fathom any reason for it. She wished that hearing their conversation was an option right now.
"Peter, I hope you're close to the house. The Dragons are making a mess of things." Alyssa spoke then looked up, suddenly remembering she had company. "Max, you wanna go for a ride?"
Agent Powers finished off his tenth taco and wiped his mouth before he swallowed it. Then he washed it down with his bottled green tea and nodded to Alyssa and replied, "Uh sure thing. where are we going?"
"We're going to get closer to the Halliwell house. '' Alyssa downed the last of her taco and made her way to the front of the van. "Join me in the front, make sure you put your seatbelt on. Don't need a cop stopping us." She put her can in the cup holder of the black center console, and buckled herself in then started the van up. If something went wrong she'd be there to help with the get away. If not, well, a van in one place for too long could draw suspicion. It was time to move anyway.
Agent Powers made his way to the front of the van as he kept bumping things on the way. His large frame was not suitable for most vehicles. Once he was buckled in he replied, "All good here. Do you know the way or do we have GPS?"
The question made her look at him, almost as if he had grown a third head. Like she would have all this computer equipment and not have GPS.
"GPS, " Alyssa responded, as she plugged in the address. The van started down the road. "We'll be there in a few minutes."
They drove for a little while and Alyssa finally actually spoke to the boy. It was a little weird thinking of him as boy but according to his record that's what he was. "So, how long before you change back?"
Agent Powers froze at the question. He was shocked she would know about his secret identity. He didn't tell anyone about it since he didn't want to be seen as a weak kid. So he tried to play it off as he replied, "Huh? was I suppose to wear something different? I sent my luggage to the hotel." He was hoping that excuse would work on Alyssa.
Alyssa shook her head to Max's response. "The Illuminati knows all. I know what they know." A small grin accompanying her words.
She didn't get a chance to see Max's reaction before getting a response from Peter.
"I climbed in through the attic window. The Dragon blew the door open... if the sisters still lived here they would expect us to fix their door." said Sartre.
"I saw and I might be able to help with that. We're on our way." Alyssa responded back.
Agent Powers was not in a cold sweat as he dropped his jaw as he looked at Alyssa. He resembled the catch of the day at an all you can eat sushi bar. He had no clue his secret was out and the entire Illuminati knew about it. He had worked so hard to stay in his muscular adult form in the public eye in order to be taken seriously. However now he was awestruck that it was all for nothing. He was full of mixed emotions such as anger to his father, embarrassment from Alyssa, betrayed, hurt, confused and awkward. Oddly enough it was the same mixture of emotions he felt when he took a fancy to the girl working at the coffee place he liked to go to back home in New York. Oddly enough the only response he could mutter was , "oh..."
"Don't worry about it," Alyssa said, in a brief moment of helping. "It's impossible to hide things from the Illuminati. If they didn't think you were capable of doing the job you wouldn't be here. None of us would."
Agent Powers replied, "Oh...I see. (pause) my father didn't mention that." Agent Powers looked at his watch and sighed as he saw the time and muttered, "I only have two, maybe three hours left." He was worried now since he was pushing his luck now. It was a scary thought to know his muscular body could melt in the heat of battle. As a teen he was train in martial arts but he was no longer bullet proof and that was terrifying to him. He then asked, "Do you know what happens when my time runs out then?"
"I didn't read the details. I know you turn into or back into - whatever - a teenager. 15, is it?" Alyssa responded, as she turned a corner.
The woman spotted the house, not only did she know what it looked like, but it was the only one with the door blown open. Alyssa let out a deep sigh. "We're here. That's the house." Pointing it out. "Let's hope none of the agents in there are in a shoot first ask questions later mood." Looking at the agent next to her. "Well, you'd be fine - I suppose but my body personally doesn't like being shot."
Alyssa then spoke to the agent not in the van. "Peter we're here. Let them know we're coming because I prefer to stay in one piece." Parking the van as she spoke.
Posted by : Cindy
Sartre had made sure no one was watching as he placed his tactical letter on the side of the decaying building. Vines were everywhere, it had been abandoned at least for several years. Software would guess that it had been at least 18 years. He was still wondering how all of this would fall together. He was also curious about what these three sisters had to do with the case. He was able to climb the ladder and open the top window to the attic with a lock pick.
He had what was known as the "Mercenary" build. This meant that he could handle himself in combat when needed with the aid of an assault rifle. He can also use elemental magic. He never forgot about the pentagram around his neck. Though the thought of that did bring him extreme sadness. The reason he kept books around about mysterious disappearances in Chile and operation Condor. He had always wondered where the others had went. He still lived in Roslyn Smith's Ealdwic apartment.
He had kept all her Templer furnishings just as they had been before she disappeared without a trace.
He knew sometime you have to move. Perhaps to New York.
He carefully slid into the attic making sure that he still had his hand on his pistol. He immediately felt a strong and powerful sense of dread, he felt an extreme power coming from somewhere in the house. Somewhere below. The power was extremely dreadful. The attic was extremely hot . It was dark in there. As he was about to reach for his tactical flashlight he heard rumblings down below near the front door as if someone was trying to literally blow open the front door.
Carefully he made his way down the attic steps having he lowered his pistol.. He walked down the long staircase wondering what memories had been formed in this house in the late 1990s he wonder what the secret societies knew about these sisters Prue, Phoebe and Piper. He also wondered why they had never been mentioned.
There were always secrets about secrets.
He carefully approached the front door and saw that had been blown open, he holstered his pistol He was almost taken aback when he saw the young Dragon agent from the University.
"The green emerald." As Alyssa had called her.
"I don't think we've properly met miss . May I introduce myself before we start looking this place over and investigating. My name is Peter Sartre. And you?"" Said Sartre He extended his hand to the woman hoping this time their interaction will be better than the chaos that ensued at the University.
Posted by : Lorem
Halliwell Manor - San Francisco, CA
Choi Yeong wasn't surprised. He was certain it would only be a matter of time before their paths crossed. It wouldn't be the last time either.
"Well, well," he stated, "if it isn't Mr. Sartre. I suppose Alyssa is all eyes and ears somewhere around here."
Yeong turned in all directions, waving thinking somewhere the mysterious Alyssa would pick up the wave. "Tell her I said 'Hello!'"
He turned serious as quickly as he joked. "Have you found anything?"
Sung said nothing and just stood in the background in a shadow making sure his face was obscured. He had no idea who Sartre was but he would not say or do anything unless Eun-Ji or Choi did He would wait to see what happened.
"I just arrived through the window in the attic, if the sisters still lived here they would expect us to fix their door." said Sartre.
The Illuminati agent may have holstered his gun; however, Eun-Ji upon hearing and seeing a figure approach had pulled out both her hammers and held them ready. She lowered them marginally when Choi and the stranger began conversing, but no more than that.
She looked at Sartre with steel like eyes, sizing him up and an expressionless gaze. Fortunately Choi had started talking, because she had no intentions of replying. The man seemed unfazed by the state of the door, which made her think he must be experienced to not even bat an eye at that; he had seen his fair share of crazy.
"I …. don't have time for this." She said with a mixture of reserved irritation and as a matter of fact. If Choi wanted to be cordial with the enemy, she would leave him to it. Then she exited their presence and made her way up the stairs.
Posted by : Lorem
Choi Yeong looked around to where he last remembered Sung stood. He didn't see him, as he was in the shadows.
"Master Sung?" he called. "Are you with us? Or have you mysteriously disappeared as you appeared?"
This was getting to be too many people for Sung. The fact that the door was destroyed did not make him pleased. These kids needed restraint and Eun-Ji knew better. But that was not important right now they needed to start to look around and find some kind of evidence or sign. Stepping out of the shadows slowly. "As much as I would like to see all of you united. I think it is better to start looking for evidence. Let us not destroy everything doing that." suggested Sung getting to business. Sung was talking in a displeased tone
"I agree," Choi stated matter-of-factly to Sung as the older man caught up with him. Although he didn't think another person was needed, he welcomed someone who could help him to understand this girl he was sent to work with. Being raised in a monastery, Yeong didn't understand the opposite gender anyway.
"So," Choi said to Sung, entering the house, "is she always this difficult?"
Sung paused to make Choi think longer then answered in one ward "Warse" Sung started to look around "But she is confident and assertive at times. You get used to it," commented Sung with a grin.
Posted by : Lorem
"More Blue agents are coming in, dont get too jumpy." said Sartre
Choi wrinkled his brow. "I thought you only needed Alyssa to help you. You have more?"
Yeong began looking around the room. He hoped he would find something before the Illuminati did.
"Let's get this party started," he mused, "before the Templars get here and ruin everything."
Alyssa the computer hacker was her main job, really her main identity but there was more to the petite barely 5' 100 lb woman.
A little more...
Alyssa was 18 when the IIumanti decided that she should swallow a bee. It wasn't her idea, she had been quite content just being a computer wiz. Her father though was insistent. After all he was a bee... that went where it always did. He would be disappointed in her if she didn't. Alyssa didn't like disappointing her father because her mother was always disappointed in her.
So, she took the bee, but nothing went according to plan. The bee - well noone really knows what happened excately - but the bee didn't work. It actually made her sick with an awful headache for days. It didn't work, at first, but after a few months her first power emerged. Nothing had changed since then, she still only had one power. It was that power she was about to use to fix the door.
Agent Powers raised an eyebrow as Alyssa hinted that he be the human shiled for her if things got bad. He smirked as he knew it was not going to be the first or the last time that was suggested. He replied, "If it comes to that, I have your back. But I will need nore info on who I am dealing with and how dangerous they are."
Posted by : Lorem
Sung got a disgruntled look on his face. "What, Look Blue agents stay outside. We have enough here contaminating the possible crime seen," said Sung his tone stern and unwavering starting to walk down the hall past the stairs going up to the other floors following Eun-Ji. "Come on Choi, follow the princess," said Sung with some sarcasm.
"Good to know," Alyssa replied. "Let's go." She got out of the van, and when Max was out, hit her key fob to lock the door. "It's just the Green and Blue. And ours told them we are coming so shouldn't be a problem."
She arrived at the door, with the hole in it. "You can help me with this." Alyssa said to Max but then heard the Dragon - Sung go off on some annoying thing. Alyssa was an introvert but that didn't mean she was meek or timid. She just preferred the company of her computers to most people.
She also could be incredibly blunt at times and Sung had annoyed her - not his words, more his attitude.
She pursed her lips, "Huh? Last time I checked Blues didn't take orders from Greens." She didn't really care about being left out of the crime scene but she did care that this Dragon was the one trying to give her orders.
Agent Powers could see the tension was not good between the male from the Dragons and Alyssa. He knew the man was dangerous and it was not good to mess with him. True in his muscle form he was a living tank but it was not a good idea to risk it when his counter was still running down and a long fight could prove fatal to him and Alyssa. So he looked at Alyssa and talked to her through his chip, "What do you need me to do?"
Posted by : Lorem
Halliwell Manor - San Francisco
Eun-Ji ascended the creaking stairs of Halliwell Manor, her footsteps echoing in the empty space. She couldn't shake the feeling of unease knowing that other agents were prowling around downstairs, their presence a looming threat to her investigation. As she reached the top of the stairs, she glanced around the dimly lit landing, her gaze drawn to the open door leading to the attic.
With a determined stride, Eun-Ji crossed the threshold into the attic, her eyes scanning the room for any signs of disturbance. The space was bathed in soft light filtering through dusty windows, casting long shadows across the worn wooden floorboards. The attic was filled with an eclectic mix of furniture and curiosities, each item holding a story of its own.
Against one wall stood an old trunk adorned with intricate carvings, its lid slightly ajar as if inviting exploration. Nearby, shelves lined with dusty tomes and ancient artifacts hinted at the manor's mystical history. Pushed crudely off to one side, a round table was surrounded by mismatched chairs, as if frozen in time from a forgotten gathering.
As Eun-Ji moved further into the attic, she couldn't help but feel a change in the atmosphere. She hadn't realized how large the space actually was until fully inside. She began looking around more closely.
The place was strewn with papers, any of which could contain clues, so she took her time to focus on them as she passed taking pictures of everything with a smartphone. Most notable was on the walls, she saw something looking like freshly dried blood. It read, "RC, 1920 Warren."
In the middle of the attic she saw an alter surrounded by three candles. On the Alter is the famed "Book of Shadows, that appeared to be placed there recently by the way the dust was disturbed.
Eun-Ji felt a suspenseful sense of extreme dread tingle across her skin. This made her keep a tight grip on one of the hammers, while she continued to document everything she was coming across with her handheld technology. She decided to play it safe; however, and within seconds there were three other identical versions of her, realistic illusions, also seeming to search and balance out the space around the attic. It was exceedingly difficult to discern which was the real one, they looked the part and behaved with silent individual sovereignty.
Posted by : Lorem
Standing at the door Sung did not enter the room that Eun-Ji walked through. Sung just watched as she walked and was taking pitchers of items in the room. being her instructor at one time. and Eun-Ji was doing everything without a flaw in her actions.
Sung looked at the area around him the dust built up the pitchers on the wall the dust and dirt on the floor. This place had not been used much if at all the thing that struck Sung was the fact that there was nothing. The homeless in this area would have checked this place out by now kids or gangs would vandalized it as well. But no signs of anything it felt like they were the only ones who had been in here recently this bothered Sung. Running everything through what he had seen and knew so far what he was looking for was elusive. Like Sung could reach out and touch it like sand then it would just run through his fingers.
Sungs skills in Perception and Investigation were some would say he was a master at them. They were wrong here but he was not seeing the whole pitcher. Something was here something was near but with all the people in the house, it was hard to pin it down.
One of the four Eun-Ji in the room turned and spoke to Master Sung in the threshold of the attic. The latter action give this one away as the real one. "Since you ARE here Master Sung, your investigatory prowess would be useful."
She wanted to get as much recorded and sifted through before the Illuminati decided to come back upstairs. "It looks like that tome titled Book of Shadows was recently disturbed. It could have been by that Illuminati agent, she didn't bother saying his name, or it could have been something more sinister." She gestured to the book on the table in the center of the attic, inviting Master Sung to take a look if he so chose while she continued moving about the room's periphery.
Posted by : Lorem
Yeong didn't wait for Sung's approval. He knew Eun-Ji was in good hands. Sung was a master.
Choi found a door that led to a stairway downward into the basement. Finding an old lantern inside the door, along with a flint, Yeong lit the lamp. Thankfully, it had plenty of oil inside it.
As slowly and quietly as he could, Yeong descended the steps. He listened for any noise that would be associated with movement. It was dark and eerie down there. The hand that did not carry the lamp, carried the nunchucks.
Alyssa figured Peter was busy and she was getting a little bored just standing there outside the house. Besides, the young woman didn't know that anyone had gone down to the basement, as she had missed Yeong doing so. Turning to Max. "I'm going to check out the basement. You can came with me or stay here." He was built kind of like a truck so she wasn't even certain he could fit going down the stairs.
Posted by : Cindy
Eun-Ji continued her recording, utilizing the video feature as she moved about the room. Then she took individual photos of anything that required closer inspection. She could only imagine, what methods Master Sung had to use before cellphones were as advanced as they currently were. She laughed inwardly at the thought of a young Master Sung using a Polaroid camera and sketch pad.
Suddenly she got a ping on her phone. It was David. She had texted him what was going on and the images she was recording were uploaded to an encrypted server that he had access too. He was researching anything that seemed to stand out to him. Most notably the blood written on the wall at the moment.
The text read, "RC may mean Ruth Cobb. An evil witch tried to kidnap pregnant Charlotte Warren back in 1670. Rescued and baby born was Melinda Warren. Her lineage became the good witches now known as Halliwell Sisters. Still unclear about 1920 date?"
As she pondered that information, another text came through. "The Book of Shadows, often just referred simply as the Book, or the Halliwell Book of Shadows, is the magical tome of the Warren Line of Witches. It is the most powerful and coveted Book of Shadows in existence and is over 300 years old. The Book has been passed down every generation ever since it was created by Melinda Warren in the 17th century.
Besides information about the craft, the Book contains many entries on several beings from the magical community, including demons, warlocks, and other evil beings. It also contains many spells and potion recipes, most of which were written by Penny Halliwell."
Eun-Ji looked at the big tome with a green leather cover, two markers and the Triquetra symbol on the front. Could it be this was the real deal?
Another text came through, "Only reference about 1920 date is that is the year a witch named Nell trapped a warlock named Malcom inside a painting." David sent a picture of the painting.
Posted by : Lorem
Eun-Ji called across the room to Master Sung, explaining what David had sent her. She went over to take a closer look at the Book of Shadows. She was getting ping after ping on her phone, which kept interrupting her progress; however, since it was useful each time she kept checking. It was just more information on the Book.
One text in particular said you can't record pictures of the interior pages, it couldn't be removed from the house except by those aligned with goodness, entries were most likely in sequential order, and that the book could be corrupted if a Halliwell sister became evil; married an evil warlock for example. If one sister aligned with evil the other two would follow suite. That was all interesting, and she put the taking pictures of it to the test. All the images turned up blank, instead of representing the beautiful script calligraphy titles, pages of detailed notes, recipes, personal entries , diagrams and drawings.
Sung was not sure if was happy or bothered by the find of the book of shadows. Sure the book means a lot to people but it is also dangerous. Sung knew the owner probably was not far away he did find it interesting that the book was not locked up or there was no trap.
"Book of Shadows" questioned Sung. "Be careful with that we don't know if there are any wards or traps on that book or around the room. He stepped into the room and looked at the bookcase. checking the dust on the floor no slide marks. "The bookcase has no hidden space behind it," Sung said more like thinking out loud than making a statement.
He walked along the inter walls looking at every crack as he got to the closet he stopped. He stepped to one side and turned the door nob but did not open it. Sung waited with his eyes closed. Then opened the door some. "The door is clear," Sung commented. His skills in Perception and Investigation were very sharp and something about this was not right where the door was. taking out a small mag tactical light he turned it on and flashed it in the closet.
The light lit the closet it had some very old clothing hanging and other stuff cladering it. Some dust floated in the air. There was something more here but Sung would wait to check it out.
Sartre made his way to the attic. He was careful around Eun Ji, who had made her presence known. "have you found anything Miss Eun Ji? These papers probably contain something of value. Someone scattered them up here as well and painted the messages on the wall." He pointed to the book Eun-Ji was looking through with an awestruck tone in his voice, "We stand in the same room as the Book of Shadows."
Eun-Ji would glance over at Master Sung sporadically, especially when he was dealing with the closet. For the most part she just paid attention to what she was doing, quite confident that Master Sung knew what he was doing and could handle himself. She continued to flip through the Book of Shadows, having dropped her cautious approach once she read from David that it was a book written by good witches for holding evil at bay.
With the arrival of the Illuminati agent Eun-Ji missed having Choi present to run interference. She looked to Master Sung, but he looked busy. There was no avoiding him this time, because she was not yet willing to vacate the attic.
Eun-Ji looked to Peter with a disinterested expression and then returned back to what she was doing. "I am not here to collaborate with the likes of you." Her comment was as cold as ice.
Posted by : Lorem
Agent Powers was not too keen on standing around a bunch of intimidating Dragons so he nodded and replied, "Lead the way." He would rather follow Alyssa who seemed to be smart and much better at finding clues compared to himself. His adopted father often referred to him as a muscle head during his training. He just hoped he was not too big for the basement.
Alyssa made her way into the house and down to the basement. Upon descending the staircase a familiar person caught her eye. At least she recognized him, though he had never seen her. "Well, hello Choi or do you prefer Mr. Yeong?" Making sure there was a little distance between the two of them. Just in case. Though if he wanted to, Alyssa knew he could seriously injure her, distance or not.
She usually preferred to call people by their first names. No precursors either Mr., Ms. Agent. She personally hated all that formality. It was probably a slight jab at how formal the upper crust usually were. However, she wasn't stupid and used titles and last names when absolutely necessary.
Choi was looking around, lifting the lantern high so he could see with a better perspective. The glow of the lantern caused shadows to become distortions of the imagination. The shadow of a rake became the head of a creature with many teeth; the shadow of a shovel became a head impaled upon a stake; a seamstress mannequin was the headless body.
A voice from behind startled Yeong, which caused him to kick a metal bucket that clanged across the floor. Yeong readied the nunchucks, then saw it was the petite hoodied female blue. Then he noticed the mountain behind her.
"The surname is actually Choi," he responded in a voice that at first sounded stressed, then calmed. "But you can call me Yeong. And, please do not sneak up behind me." He placed the nunchucks back into his pants. Putting 2 and 2 together, he added, "So, you're the mysterious Alyssa? See anything interesting?"
The clang of the metal bucket startled her slightly, and the petite young woman was concerned for a second until it was obvious the green wasn't going to attack her.
It gave the man a certain amount of credit with her when he went with his less formal first name, "Alright Yeong."
"Sorry about that." She actually was, sorry she inadvertently snuck up on him, as she should have known better. "Yes, I'm Alyssa but feel free to call me Ally if you wish. And this guy behind me is Agent Powers."
Anything of interest? "Just a blown door." There was calm in her voice as if the state of said door didn't bother her at all "Impressive. I fixed it by the way."
"Oh yeah," Choi chimed. "Thank you for cleaning up my mess."
Powers? Choi thought. Fitting name. His chest bulged like a titanic boulder, hewn from the very mountains that cradled it. Each sinew and muscle etched with the story of relentless effort. His skin, stretched taut over the rugged terrain, seemed to strain against the forces within. He'd have to watch this guy. He could seriously do some damage.
"I'm glad he's on our side," Choi expressed. "Well, the good guys at least."
Agent Powers gave a polite nod to Choi along with a smiling smolder. By the looks of the nunchucks in Choi's hand, he could see that Choi was also a martial artist. However he was not motivated to find out how good Choi was. Since they had to work with the Dragons and Templars he found it best to follow the advice of the smart teammate and just play the part of a bouncer. He knew his large frame did scare others but he also knew he was vulnerable in his teen form so it was never good to push his luck. He replied, "I'll do my best not to break anything."
Posted by : Cindy
"No problem," Alyssa half-shrugged. It wasn't often she got to use her only power, there wasn't much use for it in her van.
"Well, I'm glad he's on our side as well." Alyssa agreed, glancing back briefly at the hulk of a man behind her and wondering what would happen if the Dragons saw him transform.
She focused back on the task at hand. "Well, should we start looking." She unclipped a small set of keys from her pants, and took off a small flashlight that wasn't as bright as the latern but good enough to do the job.
"Yes," agreed Choi. He lifted the lantern higher, looking for anything that seemed out of place. What would look out of place in a basement? Yeong had no idea.
There were cases of papers, belongings, and very old stuff all throughout the basement. An off room in the back had an old oil furnace that must not have run in quite a while.
"Maybe there's something in the plastic tubs," Yeong suggested. "Do you think we should search them?"
Agent Powers looked around in the dark basement as he saw Alyssa's small flashlight. Then he remembered he had a small headband flashlight that was used to work on cars. It was a gift from his father to use for work in the dark since he kept breaking his flashlights during fights. So he pulled it out of his pocket and put it on and adjusted it before turning it on. Oddly enough since he was tall he didn't blind the others when he looked around. He replied, "I found my light."
Choi Yeong wondered how Powers had lost a light in a pocket of pants that were so tight they were like a second skin due to muscles of which a steroid stuffed professional wrestler would be proud. He raised a brow and looked to Alyssa. At least she seemed to be bright.
"Good," Choi stated, "maybe you can search these tubs since you have a handless light. Let us know if you have something."
He looked to the petite Alyssa. She was young. Her expertise must have gotten her here. "Alyssa, care to join me in looking for anything out of place?"
Agent Power gave Choi a shrug and began to move the tubs aside and open them to see their contents. Seeing as it was going to be hard to tell what was important he began moving them in a series of rows and opening them to make it easier to check all the rows from both sides. He also stacked the lids nearby and then began sorting through them. Granted he had no idea what he was looking for.
Alyssa also had no idea how Max could lose anything in his clothing. Then again, he didn't seem like the sharpest tool in the shed. She decided there were more important things than trying to figure Max out, at the moment.
Leaving the tubes to Max, she was certainly willing to search with Yeong. "Sure," Alyssa said as she helped the green man look around.
Sartre made his way to the attic, he was careful around Eun Ji, who had made her presence known, have you found anything Miss Eun Ji? These papers probably contain something of value, someone scattered them up here as well as painted the messages on the wall. We stand in the same room as the Book of Shadows.
Looking around, Choi Yeong saw a stand. Lifting the lantern a little higher, it appeared a book was on the stand.
Posted by : Cindy
JP with mdman, Jaxx and Cindy
"Why would that book be out in the stand instead of in one of the tubs?" Choi asked Alyssa.
Alyssa looked around, to see if she spotted anything else out of place but nothing stood out. Of course, she also didn't know what they were looking for. "I don't know. It looks special, in some way. The Sisters were witches, could it be a spellbook?"
Yeong glanced at the front of the book. It read, The End Rite. It definitely sounded like a spell book. A creepy name for one, but a spell book for sure.
"Hey Powers," Choi said, "I think we found something here."
Looking at the small girl next to him, Choi said, "Well Alyssa, should we open it?"
The curiosity of the moment was getting to the petite young woman. "Yes, I definitely think we should open it." Hopefully, nothing horrible would happen.
Meanwhile Agent Powers was going through the tubs with some very mixed results. He was not sure what he was looking for but he found a lot of stuff that raised a lot of questions. He wondered if the people who lived here were actors or really liked Halloween. He found all types of clothing such as skimpy swimsuits, large rainbow fish scales, skimpy clubwear, skimpy Egyptian bikini wear, skimpy everyday wear, skimpy witch clothing, skimpy military clothing and more odd but skimpy outfits. Poor Agent Powers was not sure how to handle such risky outfits as a male teenage virgin with poor social skills. He was doing his best to not get too excited as he wondered what kind of women would wear such clothing in public. Among the skimpy clothing he also found a lot of odd jewelry that looked like it would be in a Halloween costume catalog. Then he found a large book and opened it. He was very surprised to see several pretty women in the photo scrapbook. It was obvious the women were close and possibly family. In the book he found photos of the women in the house and at some club. There were even some of them at their jobs trying to look important. He wondered if this was important so he held onto it for Alyssa as he looked to see where she was.
Yeong wanted to listen to the voice of reason. The End Rite kind of sounded final. But Choi was curious, and spurred on by the mysterious Alyssa, who still had her hoodie up, he gave into the temptation.
Reaching out, Choi said, "Here goes nothing." He opened the front cover to reveal the first page.
As the end rite is opened, a powerful purple light emanates through the room. Those surrounding the book, braced themselves as hard as they could. They would be able to stabilize themselves somewhat from what was about to occur. Visions. Dark visions. Ancient portals. Portals being opened. A portal opened in the woods. Frightening but yet comforting. The scalpel of Ragley. In a woman's hand. The man in black standing there. Flashes of various scenes throughout history. The pyramids of Egypt. What looked like John of Revelations writing in a dark cavern shrouded by candles that were lit but also bleeding red blood. A swamp. Somewhere. Screams coming from a crypt is a man holds an old early twentieth century telephone with a look of horror on his face.
Angels standing on a distant planet somewhere in the cosmos. "Dark days are here. Emma is now anima. She could be the key. Marquardt... This is the end of days. You have choices to make. " Illuminati, Templar and Dragon agents running through the jungles of the Congo. Rifle fire and the sounds of battle all around them. Were they helping or fighting each other? one of them yelled, "Marquardt is here!" finally after the clashes and chaos of the visions. A final vision erupted in the mind's eye of those surrounding the end rite. A burning shopping mall in Moscow, gunfire and grenades. The roof collapsing on the shopping mall. Finally another voice. "The end of days are coming."
Posted by : Cindy
The agents were able to withstand what had happened with the book, though they were all taken aback. Sartre ran in after hearing the commotion. Something was going on in this house, in this city and in the world.
Sartre picked up his phone as he was looking over the basement in the manor, what had just occurred was indeed shocking.
Mary Rivers, assistant director of the FBI was on the other end of the line.
"Are you available to consult, I know your former agent but we need some consultation immediately. Have you been watching the news?" Said Rivers.
His consultation job was actually a way for the illuminati to prevent the Templars from gaining a foothold in the American institution. They possibly already had.
No one was going to talk about it.
"There was a 911 call about a mass suicide. Not just any kind of mass suicide either. It's very familiar. I suggest you go see for yourself.
"I'm working right now, is it that serious?"
"It's very similar to something. We need a behavioral analyst there now. We could send Alicia Greely."
"I can take it." said Sartre.
"Call us when you're finished investigating."
"I will leave you all to investigate this crime scene, let's act like we are on our best behavior and that the Council of Venice is standing right here watching over the factions to prevent an unsanctioned fight."
"You all have my number, I'm sure Alyssa has all of ours."
"I will be back later."
"What the hell was that?" Alyssa expressed out loud. "I mean I know it was a vision or well...visions but ..."
It was clear this was outside anything the hacker had experienced before. She had never had a vision, and it was disorienting and disturbing. "This, this is why I rarely leave my van. Stuff like this happens in the field." Well, it was at least one of the reasons.
She barely even noticed Peter there. On the phone talking to whoever he was talking to. He was then gone. Investigate this scene. Alyssa was of the opinion maybe they shouldn't make whatever they pissed off any angrier.
Choi Yeong just stood there paralyzed. He had seen things before but only directing his future. He had never seen anything like this before, especially when not meditating.
Alyssa's voice broke his trance-like state. From the sound of it, she saw it too. Was visions her gift?
"You saw it too?" he probed. "Who's Emma and Marquardt? Powers? You okay?"
Alyssa looked up at Yeong. "Yes, I saw it and just so you don't have to ask later. I don't get visions, besides that one. I have no idea who they are but I can work on finding out. Kind of what I do. And yeah Max, what Yeong over here said - you alright? "
Posted by : Cindy
"I will leave you all to investigate this crime scene, let's act like we are on our best behavior and that the Council of Venice is standing right here watching over the factions to prevent an unsanctioned fight."
"You all have my number, I'm sure Alyssa has all of ours."
"I will be back later."
Dark storm clouds began together over San Francisco as he pulled up to the rented
Mansion house. It was shrouded by palm trees, and police cars, and ambulances.
As he approached the crime scene, was immediately approached by San Francisco police Sargent.
"Your're with the FBI?"
Just flasher badge and you can go in, try not to get sick."
Sartre did so and made his way through the front door.
As he entered, there was a large living room with double doors leading to a patio outside. In the living room were several cots and bunkbeds. The room smelled of the thousand dead and decaying skunks. Those lying there had passed away for some time.
A coroner kneeling on the ground said
"It was an anonymous tip."
"Does this seem familiar to you?" Sartre to the medical examiner.
"It's almost a re-creation... they have Nike sneakers on and everything.
Sartre noticed the purple shrouds in the jumpsuits with the same insignia patches on the side in the form of a triangle.
"Heaven's Gate Away Team."
In the front of the living room there was a high definition television playing a Blu-ray Marshall Applewhite's perverse lectures.
This was the sickest thing Sartre had seen both in the FBI and in the secret world."
"There's at least ten bodies, who or what to convince these people to do such. You'll find high levels of alcohol and phenobarbital sedatives and antiseizure medications in their bloodstream.
People should know better, did someone on the Internet tell them to do this? And where exactly is their Applewhite?"
He noticed a piece of paper on the center of the man's chest.
He put on a pair of plastic gloves and picked it up with a tweezer.
On a blind piece of paper torn from a notebook, where the words
"We fear nothing."
"You Disgusting..."
Sartre moved his voice to an extreme whisper.
"You convinced them to offer their souls to the dreaming ones. This was a morninglight cult operation. "
"Marquardt did this." said Sartre in a whisper.
"Let me in there, one of my best theologians and Bible students is in there! Natasha Boyer."
"We can't let you go in there pastor Duane." Yelled the county sheriff.
"I'm going in there even if I have to push past you and get a simple assault charge. My best theologian and best member of my congregation is in there." The pastor screamed.
Hearing the commotion, Sartre disposed of the gloves, and placed the note and a safe evidence bag, he placed the evidence bag in a backpack that he placed around his shoulders.
Going outside as the rain began to trickle down on the evening.
He looked towards the pastor who seemed to be in his 40s.
"You... You know, you all know what's out there.
"I've never met you before, but I can tell you're an FBI agent.
You let the sheriff take his hands off me."
"God knows things... God knows things are happening Agent Sartre... I've never met you before but I know your name. Red Blue and Green Meet. " The pastor would continue.
Sartre looked puzzled.
The pastor said,
as he produced a smile and a look of horror that was shared between the two men and soon to be shared between all three factions.
"The power of three will set you free." said the pastor.
To Be Continued.
Posted by : Cindy
Part 2: "I Alone"
Halliwell Manor Attic - San Francisco, CA
"You dont have to collaborate, though you can look for papers can't you miss Eun Ji? and what is bothering you?" Peter exclaimed in exasperation. As they talked, somewhat tersely, they all immediately heard a loud commotion coming from the basement. Suddenly there was a loud gust of wind as the afternoon began to storm. "There's something going on down there..." Peter shouted and then ran from the attic to the basement.
Eun-Ji wanted to throw the darn Book of Shadows at the smug Illuminati agent with a plucky know-it-all attitude. What did he think she was doing before he interrupted her? The three other illusions of her throughout the room shimmered subtly as if she were about to unleash their shattering effects on the man; however, the sudden commotion halted her actions.
The attic felt like it literally shifted with whatever commotion was happening below. It caused her to lose her balance and she lurched forward, using the table to help keep her upright and her right foot shifted to brace her weight. When her heel hit the floorboard, it felt unexpected in how much it depressed. That was interesting.
She waited until the Illuminati agent left and then dropped down to the floorboard to take a closer look. She was right, it was a false panel with a space beneath. She easily used the hook side of her hammer to pry it open, while thinking that hammers trump sword every time Master Sung.
Inside the revealed space, Eun-Ji found a very old copy of the King James Bible. Upon a swift once over, she noticed it was labeled "The holy Bible and the Apocrypha of Saint Ede the Pious " Now out of all things to hide, why this book? She planned to take it with her and placed it inside her side purse.
As Eun-Ji placed the floorboard back where it belonged, she noticed a piece of paper that had fallen off the table to the floor when she lost her balance. It mentioned a "P3 Apothecary" Shop that is currently in business in San Francisco. She grinned, after this manor was searched thoroughly, she had her next destination.
Sung was speechless he had never seen anything quite like this in his years. This was no normal wording and the magic behind it was old. It did not take a genius to see that. Any rookie would know this. Now Sung had a good idea of what could be in the closet. He wasted no time and taped on the back of the closet. there was a hollow sound as he taped.
it was an idem something from the past an anchor for magic that was used in a ritual probably. with little effort, Sung stepped in and just broke the back all in a cubby behind the closet was a small wooden box about the size of a cigar box. He turned and walked to the middle of the room. and slowly opened it He was correct it held The scalpel of Ragley, a pearl neckless of a woman, and a gold bracelet.
Sung looked at the others "The history, and some of the focus of the magic once used." commented Sung. "what did you find?" asked Sung knowing Eun-Ji got something from the floor and could not hide the noise.
Eun-Ji was beginning to think that an enormous amount of time could be spent investigating this attic. The Book of Shadows alone could become a life work, no doubt. Her mission wasn't such endeavors, though she would be sure to inform the Voice of the Dragon, when she got a chance about what they found at the manor. Perhaps the Dragon would have further plans when it came to the Halliwell estate?
"I found a Bible hidden under a floorboard and another address I think we should investigate once done here." She replied.
Unbeknownst to Eun-Ji, the spiritual energy that erupted from the book in the basement had caused several items in the house to shift or fall over. This included the attic and everything seemed to play out according to the laws of physics; nothing out of the ordinary. One of those objects was a container that toppled off a shelf in the attic, rolled and fell to the floor, shattering the seal on the exterior just enough to weaken its hold on the nightmarish creature it imprisoned. Though weakened over time, the Shade managed to seize this opportunity to escape.
It couldn't stay in the attic. The protective charms radiating from the Book of Shadows repelled its very existence. The book in the basement; however, was like a lure of negative potential. It seeped like a dark mist through the floor of the attic and made its way into the basement. It was currently immaterial, like a shadow merging with the darkness down below. It could sense living things present and was hungry to suckle on their fear while feasting on the marrow of their bones.
Posted by : Lorem
Halliwell Manor Attic - San Francisco, CA
Eun-Ji returned to the Book of Shadows, determined to delve deeper into its secrets despite the commotion echoing from downstairs. Ignoring the chaos below, unwilling to concern herself with other factions, she focused her attention on the ancient tome before her. Running her fingers over its weathered pages, she recognized that each entry held a wealth of knowledge and power, waiting to be unlocked.
Flipping through the pages, Eun-Ji's eyes scanned the intricate script and faded illustrations, absorbing the wisdom contained within. She paused at a page detailing a spell for protection against malevolent spirits, her mind racing with possibilities. The meticulous instructions and elaborate diagrams spoke of centuries of magical witchcraft expertise passed down, offering glimpses into a world beyond her own.
As she continued to read, Eun-Ji's curiosity deepened, her thoughts consumed by the ancient rituals and incantations described in the book. Each entry offered a tantalizing glimpse into the arcane arts, hinting at the vast potential of magic and a menagerie of evil beings. She had always been solely focused on her own chaotic abilities, that looking at the varieties that existed were intriguing.
Occasionally she would look up and to the attic door due to the commotion going on below. From the sounds of things it seemed whatever was going on was escalating. Illuminati dying didn't bother her as she returned back to her investigation.
Posted by : Lorem
Halliwell Manor Attic - San Francisco, CA
Eun-Ji returned to the Book of Shadows, determined to delve deeper into its secrets despite the commotion echoing from downstairs. Ignoring the chaos below, unwilling to concern herself with other factions, she focused her attention on the ancient tome before her. Running her fingers over its weathered pages, she recognized that each entry held a wealth of knowledge and power, waiting to be unlocked.
Flipping through the pages, Eun-Ji's eyes scanned the intricate script and faded illustrations, absorbing the wisdom contained within. She paused at a page detailing a spell for protection against malevolent spirits, her mind racing with possibilities. The meticulous instructions and elaborate diagrams spoke of centuries of magical witchcraft expertise passed down, offering glimpses into a world beyond her own.
As she continued to read, Eun-Ji's curiosity deepened, her thoughts consumed by the ancient rituals and incantations described in the book. Each entry offered a tantalizing glimpse into the arcane arts, hinting at the vast potential of magic and a menagerie of evil beings. She had always been solely focused on her own chaotic abilities, that looking at the varieties that existed were intriguing.
Occasionally she would look up and to the attic door due to the commotion going on below. From the sounds of things it seemed whatever was going on was escalating. Illuminati dying didn't bother her as she returned back to her investigation.
Posted by : Lorem
San Francisco, USF, Turner Kramer's Dorm, Afternoon After Kramer's Death
Lumina had been mildly infuriated when Corinth stamped out his cigarette into the carpet. Not only was it horrifically disrespectful, but it was also not an insignificant risk to leave such an obvious trace of their presence in a place upon which they were trespassing. She wondered if he had even been aware of his behavior, or if he had been acting mostly on habit and muscle memory.
Despite her anger, Lumina was thoroughly impressed with how quickly Corinth solved the cipher. The nature of the Halliwell Sisters was not known to her, but if Kramer thought there was something important about them, perhaps following up on this code could reveal more about him and why he had been killed.
"I mean, sisters of Fate? That's a bold claim. Still, this is something new. You're a Warlock, you like books and stuff right? Think the library here might have something? Shit, probably not, but it wouldn't hurt to check. Maybe I can find something on the sisters, address at least. Think There's a phonebook around here? Yeah, I doubt it. Haven't seen one of those in years. Still, I can make some calls and see what I can find. Meet you at the car in an hour to compare notes?"
"Sounds like a plan chief," Lumina replied to Corinth. "I'll also plan on trying to purchase some minerals for spells that might be hard to find elsewhere while I'm here, hopefully this won't take me too long, but I will let you know if I get held up." Lumina was about to walk out of the room with the fringe physics textbook but then paused as she looked again at the cigarette in the carpet. She wasn't sure it was her place to tell Corinth what to do, but considering the risks, she felt she needed to say something. Summoning as much courage as she could, Lumina pointed at the cigarette and stammered, "Oh, and one last thing… Can you clean that up? W-we can't afford to leave such obvious traces of our presence in this place that we are not legally supposed to be. We need to be more careful." Putting her money where her mouth was, Lumina took a photo of the code Corinth had detected and went back to the closet to place the book where she had found it. She then hastily made her exit from the dorm.
Lumina decided to go shopping first. Asking around, she found her way to the storeroom, where she was able to get directions to someone she could buy supplies from. Although she got a curious look when she provided her motley list of ingredients, ranging from phosphorus and sulfur to gum arabic and bat crap among others, the ingredients themselves were innocuous enough that they were willing to sell them to her.
Once she paid up, she made her way to the library, which was easy enough to find with additional directions. Lumina was starting to get used to helpful people throughout the campus aiding her by this point, so her first inclination was to ask the librarian what she knew about the Halliwell Sisters. It turned out she didn't know much, other than that she vaguely recalled seeing somethings in the news about them awhile back. While not super helpful, of note was that the librarian was pretty sure that she had heard about them in the local news, so at the very least the Halliwells had been at or near San Francisco. After thanking the librarian for her time, Lumina texted Corinth and asked him if he had found anything on his end. As he had predicted, He had been SOL when it came to finding a phone book, let alone one with the Halliwell Sisters in it. Lumina relayed what little she had learned to him, after which Corinth informed her that he had suspected that their address was most likely nearby and that he had already reached out to his handler for help in acquiring an address. Dalia would hopefully have something for him soon. This reminded Lumina that she could probably get such help from her own handler, so she reached out to Owen and asked him if there was any chance he could look up police reports on the Halliwell Sisters in the Greater San Francisco Metropolitan Area. He replied that he would see what he could find out once he got out of a meeting.
With that angle covered, Lumina decided to see what she could find out about the Warren Family. Warren was not a particularly uncommon last name, but after quite a bit of research, Lumina was able to cobble together a list of fairly well known Warrens, ranging from actresses and models to photographers and politicians. Apparently one rather infamous Warren had been a matriarch of a family in Salem Massachusetts that had been accused of witchcraft during the infamous period most people think about when they think of Salem Massachusetts. Perhaps she has some relation to the Halliwell Sisters, who seemed to have rather witchy vibes? Probably not.
Another detail that Lumina found during her research was that there had apparently been a Warren living in Florida over a century ago that had disappeared under very unusual circumstances. What those exact circumstances had been were not being elucidated in the article she found, but they had apparently been so bizarre as to be considered noteworthy enough to make it into the public record. She probably wouldn't have made much of this event except for her own unusual experience the night before when her Clairvoyance spell had reacted unusually with the trees near where Olivia had perished. A little bit more reading suggested that the Warren that disappeared in Florida was likely a descendant of the Warren matriarch in Salem. Certainly curious. If the Halliwells were related to these Warrens, then there was potentially a connection between Olivia Warren and Turner Kramer. Could there be a connection like this to Gail Iris as well?
All of this left Lumina with more questions than answers, but they weren't answers Lumina thought she was going to find in the USF Library. Just then, Corinth texted her back. Dalia had found an address. 1329 Prescott Street. Apparently the Halliwell Sisters had lived in a now abandoned manor in the older part of town, which was still known by the locals as the Halliwell Manor. Dalia had also reported that the place apparently had an ill reputation, which perhaps explained how a property like that in the middle of the city hadn't been bought up yet. Lumina asked Corinth to look up the street view of the address as she returned her books and papers and made her way back to the car.
As she did so, Owen called her back about his findings regarding the police reports involving the Halliwell Sisters. Apparently one of the sisters and a police inspector had been killed near the manor, and other deaths of neighboring residents were suspected. There were also reports of strange parties that occurred at the Halliwell Manor. By the time Lumina made it back to the car, it was obvious to her that it would likely be worthwhile to visit the place. There was just too much weirdness involving the place to overlook it.
Lumina met Corinth at the car and started to gush about her findings when he stopped her. "It sounds like we have a lot to talk about, and I'm famished. Let's get something to eat and catch up there."
Lumina's stomach growled as if in response, and she felt herself flush. The cheap complimentary breakfast at the hotel hadn't quite cut it, and it was getting close to two. Lunch was a good idea, especially considering that they were going to an abandoned house likely previously inhabited by members of the Secret World. Lumina had learned to be prepared for anything in a place like that.
Posted by : Sky
Halliwell Manor - Basement
JP with mdman, Jaxx and Cindy
Agent Powers was in awe by what he just saw. He had his mouth open and a blank look on his face. He was not sure what he just saw, but it looked oddly like a bunch of movie trailers combined into one. Was this some kind of magic vision or did they do commercials? Was it some kind of magical documentation for others to see later on? There were a lot of unanswered questions for the teen hiding in a large man's body. Then Alyssa's voice snapped him out of his trance and he looked around to see he was still in the basement. He remembered he was holding a family album and decided to mention it. He replied, "Uhhh yeah. I don't know what that was but I found some kind of family album if you want to see some pictures of the women who probably lived here." Agent Powers held up the album to show Alyssa.
"Well, then let's take a look," Alyssa took the album from Max, found an old dusty bin and put it on top so both men could see. "Well, according to what I found in the database. This was Prue Halliwell, she died a while back. This is Piper, Phoebe and their half-sister Rose." Alyssa pointed them out as she went through the pictures. "That was their Grandmother Penny Halliwell who raised them after their mother died. She left them this house." The other pictures seemed a bit more random. "I don't know who some of these people are."
Agent Powers looked at the many pictures and tried to remember the faces with the names. Sadly he was an average student so he would need to go over this a few times to remember who was who later on. As he pondered that he remembered the fancy technology Alyssa used in her van as he asked, "So can your computer copy the pictures and compare them to the ones on the internet?"
"Yes, I should be able to get info on a majority of them." Some of the pictures looked old, she wasn't sure about those, it could be wrong information or none. "I can work on them."
Agent Powers felt good as if he had contributed to the team. He smirked and nodded as he replied, "I hope it helps. Oh by the way in the tubs are a lot of women's clothing and costumes, but I also found a lot of jewelry, costume props and odd trinkets. I don't know if they are valuable or important. Should we get someone to check it out in case they are related to magic or something?"
Choi looked at the pictures. The sisters seemed very close on them. He wondered what had happened to them.
"How did Prue die?" he asked, then added, "I wonder if any of these others are Emma or Marquardt."
It was at that moment that chills went upwards from Choi Yeong's arms to his shoulders. The temperature in the room dramatically decreased.
"There's something else in here," he insisted to the others. "Do you feel that presence?"
Agent Powers looked around but not seeing or feeling anything. He was confused. Maybe it was magical or spiritual? He was not familiar with stuff like that since he was raised to be a fighter. His thinking skills were limited to home school, text books and some video games so he was rather daft in this environment. He replied, "Ummm...I don't see or feel anything." This was true for the muscle headed teenage boy, but then he wondered if his outer body was keeping him from feeling that "presence" Choi mentioned.
"I only got as far as Prue died under mysterious circumstances. However, there was more which I'll need to read later." The sudden shift in temperature distracted Alysssa for a moment. "Yes, I felt that. That sudden cold." It was an uneasy feeling, Alyssa just knew this couldn't be good.
Posted by : Cindy
Halliwell Manor - Basement
JP with mdman, Jaxx and Cindy
Choi lifted the lantern, seeing the same shadows upon the walls as before. Yet, there seemed to be a difference. Something was added or taken away. He began to look at each, drawing from his memory of them before he was joined by the blue agents.
"Headless body, check," he began to recount. Head on a spike, check. Shadow of a person, and toothy monster." Choi hesitated. There was another shadow between the toothy monster and the spiked head. "Here is something new," he verified to the others, beginning to seek out what cast the shadow, but nothing was between the shadow and the lantern.
Agent Powers was a bit confused as he looked around with his headlight lighting up the area. He was wondering if maybe a small animal was in the house like a bat, rat, racoon or squirrel maybe. He was not sure why the others seemed to be on edge. So he looked around for movement and was ready to punch it if needed.
Alyssa looked around and listened carefully but found nothing that would be making that shadow. She knew about entities, that they existed but that had more to do with training than any personal experience. The young woman, not being great at fighting, had really not wanted to encounter one.
She almost instinctively started to go for the small pistol she had strapped to her left ankle under her pants. It was her best method of self-defense, though she realized it might be useless depending on what they encountered she decided to pull it anyway and hold on to it.
"Any idea what's causing that?" Alyssa's voice had turned to hushed tones.
"My best guess is a shadow," Yeong said. "I mean, of course it's a shadow, but I meant a shadow entity. If it had a hat on, I'd say it's Hat Man, but this isn't him."
Choi began to recollect what he knew of shadows. "Whatever you do, be brave and don't be afraid. These things feed on fear."
How did one fight a shadow? There was literally nothing to swing at with the nunchucks. Maybe he could coax it to show itself in a physical manner.
Putting down the lantern, Choi retrieved the nunchucks and encouraged the others to step away. He began to masterfully twirl them, concentrating upon the figure on the wall. He approached it and struck the wall where the shadow was. Nothing happened. He backed away. Then the thought occurred that it was a shadow, so he swung where the shadow of the nunchucks struck the shadow on the wall. He physically felt something that time, and a force through Choi backwards through the cellar, over top of the tubs that Powers had organized.
Posted by : Cindy
Halliwell Manor- Basement
JP with Lorem and Cindy
The Shade had been passively observing them with a malicious intent. It was in a weakened state from generations of being bound and unable to feast on the misery and anguish of humanity, or else it would have made a direct assault out of wicked hubris. Therefore, it had simply been biding its time and soaking in the anxiety of those present in the dark of the basement; trying its best to go undetected.
It wasn't necessarily fear and anxiety associated with the situation in the basement it was nourishing itself with. Those present were unusually courageous for such a moment. Instead, it was tapping into their other anxieties to start. For example, Alyssa's anxiety being the center of attention in a crowded room of strangers. Or Powers anxiety of others discovering his secret.
It tried hard not to move when the burning sensation of light touched its form. That would have instantly given itself away. It was all in vain though, thanks to their keen observation. Once it became obvious that it had been discovered, it flung into action.
The shadow dives into the many other natural shadows in the room. There were too many to account for and it was instantly lost to their sense of sight. The air itself grew even colder as it no longer was masking its presence. A feeling of dread descended over the room like a thick fog, making those present contend with the notion of never being cheerful again. A pervasive whisper hissed throughout the air, the grating sound of grinding and gnashing of teeth. The few lights they had began to wane, as if straining under the weight of an evil covering.
Alyssa was able to move quickly enough to avoid being taken with Yeong as he went flying. "Yeong are you alright?" The woman asked.
Suddenly, the darkness in the room seemed to grow despite the lights. Her own small flashlight flickered, then started to dim. She clicked it off, as it wasn't doing any good at the moment and slowly reholstered her pistol as that would be useless and might even be more dangerous out, given the circumstances.
Then suddenly as if the floor had turned to glue, she felt unable to move. It wasn't fear. She was standing brave but the overwhelming sense of dread engulfed her. Her very soul feeling an invisible anchor that felt that it would never leave.
A whisper seemed to echo through the room. A whisper she couldn't quite make out. Alyssa could almost feel the shadow's hunger. She took several deep breaths in order to maintain her calm.
Alyssa was like a fly tangled in its web of despair and hopelessness. She could feel that unsettling feeling prey experiences when a predator is drawing closer unseen. The dark around her legs became more tangible and gripped her roughly all the way up to the knee. With a forceful yank, it tried to pull her to the floor and drag her off into the darker recesses of the basement.
Posted by : Cindy
Halliwell Manor- Basement
JP with mdman, Lorem and Cindy
Yeong's head popped out of a tub. A pair of the aforementioned lingerie was tangled about his head. "I'm okay!" he said, lifting a finger in the air.
He heard a whisper in his ear. "You failed. You are a failure." It was faint, but he could hear it. He understood. It was trying to pull his fear of failure working without Master Park for the first time. He wanted to prove his worthiness for being granted this mission.
Stupid! he thought. How do you take out something not physical with nunchucks?
He stood up, swiping the lingerie from his face. He wasn't certain where the shadow was at the moment.
"Alyssa," he sternly said, "you have everyone's information. I'm sure you can let the others know we need assistance."
He wondered what Powers could contribute. "Powers? If you're a bee, what ability can you do? Perhaps you can help that way."
Choi began to center himself. Closing his eyes, he began the dahnmudo. Reaching out, Cho tried to determine the other presence.
Finding it, Choi paused. He didn't wish to alarm her, but he had to warn Alyssa. The dark force was wrapped about her feet.
"Alyssa!" he authoritatively spoke. "When I say, jump to one side!" The motions of dahnmudo continued, building up the strength within him.
Alyssa's head began to fill with ambient noise at first, quickly becoming clearer. "It's your fault. Your fault. He's missing because of you. Your fault." It repeated over and over filling her mind with the words. Making it hard to feel or hear anything or anyone else. A tear fell gently down her face, she hated showing that side. "You are such a disappointment." However, the shadow or her mind changed to her mother's voice with that last statement. That sudden changed shifted something and she heard Yeong telling her to jump to one side when said to. Her mind was still echoing it was her fault but she managed to utter a hoarse, barely able to get out the words, "Got it."
The dark shadow around her lower legs maintained their more incorporeal appearance; however, behind her, out of the floor started to emerge a silhouetted shape. Her anguish was feeding it, making it stronger.
Like an alligator head surfacing from the waters of darkness, something that resembled a human face began to appear. It was void of all facial features, a blank canvas of pale sickly skin pulled too taunt over what lay beneath.
Yet that wasn't the most horrifying sight. Worse still was its slowly opening mouth. It was like a giant lamprey maw, circular and filled with rows of razor sharp jagged teeth. It could be deduced that if it latched onto Alyssa, then it would either suck her innards out or take her entire petite form into itself like a wood chipper.
Posted by : Cindy
P with Jaxx, mdman, and Lorem
Choi felt the strength within him. He had come to realize that spiritual strength is powerful. In some aspects stronger than the force that Powers might generate.
"Now!" he shouted, sending the built up force within him directly at the face that was forming.
Alyssa jumped, to the best of her ability, when instructed. Her legs being held though made that difficult, so it looked more like a fall to one distinct side. The force brushed past her legs and spun her on the ground like a top, effectively prying the hold the creature had on her lower body. Now though she should be concerned about striking into other objects on the basement floor.
The spiritual shockwave struck the dark entity, peeling back the darkness in layers like an onion and taking pieces of flesh from the front of its face, if you could even call it that, and ripping it back like a half peeled orange.
A terrifying sound pierced the entire basement, indicating that it was potentially wherever there was darkness, not just where they saw its mouth forming. Its semi-tangible silhouette was pummeled backwards. As it flew back though, it was like water being thrown into water, darkness into more darkness. And just like that it was absorbed and lost from their sight. The lights continued to dim, it was still feeding on their negative emotions. If the light went out completely no doubt they would be overwhelmed.
Almost as quickly as it vanished, it sprung up from a shadow behind Choi. It was more tangible the stronger it became, but also more deadly. This time the dark peeled back to reveal gnarled extra long arms reaching out to tackle into the man. It was fueled by revenge for the blow it just suffered. Its half mutilated face opened even wider to try and bite into Choi's left side.
Meanwhile Agent Powers was very confused as he began to hear whispers of a sinister voice telling him he was weak and helpless and never going to be good enough. It reminded him of his training with his adoptive father who was very spartan with his training. At first he was freaking out from all the harsh negativity. His body began bubbling as his muscular form was looking more like a mutated slimelike body. Then as it was becoming overwhelming he began to hum a tune that kept him sane during his harsh training in the past. He mumbling...dum de dum de dum dum de dum de dum...
I stay out too late
Got nothing in my brain
That's what people say, mm-mm
That's what people say, mm-mm
I go on too many dates
But I can't make 'em stay
At least that's what people say, mm-mm
That's what people say, mm-mm
But I keep cruisin'
Can't stop, won't stop movin'
It's like I got this music in my mind
Sayin' it's gonna be alright
'Cause the players gonna play, play, play, play, play
And the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate
Baby, I'm just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake
I shake it off, I shake it off (hoo-hoo-hoo)
Heartbreakers gonna break, break, break, break, break
And the fakers gonna fake, fake, fake, fake, fake
Baby, I'm just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake
I shake it off, I shake it off (hoo-hoo-hoo)
I never miss a beat
I'm lightnin' on my feet
And that's what they don't see, mm-mm
That's what they don't see, mm-mm
I'm dancin' on my own (dancin' on my own)
I make the moves up as I go (moves up as I go)
And that's what they don't know, mm-mm
That's what they don't know, mm-mm
Agent Power's eyes were glassy and unfocused as he was doing his Karate practice even though his body was in pain from his harsh exercise. He was reliving his training all over again and using the song in his head to keep his focus from giving up and disappointing his father. In his mind he was blocking baseballs flying at him from several directions and then ninjas were attacking him from the opposite side. He was drenched in sweat and breathing hard as he was fighting to the beat in his head and the dance in his step. He couldn't count the number of times this song kept him sane during his struggles.
Posted by : Cindy
JP with Lorem, mdman and Cindy
Yeong heard Powers singing a song. What the hell? He was fighting a shadow and the all-powerful Powers was singing and not fighting.
Choi felt the presence behind him, and heard the whispers. Somehow, he needed to build up energy. It would take too long. Balance was his thought. He could not give way to fear. Then, he felt cold teeth upon his side. He reminded himself that he experienced success, otherwise the shadow wouldn't be so pissed.
That caused Yeong to confidently laugh. He had hurt the thing. He was successful and would make better progress. The laughter continued at a crescendo.
Powers continued to sing. It was silly and this made Choi laugh harder.
The teeth were irregular in size and shape, jagged and sharp from forceful grinding. They were aligned in multiple rings of concentric circles radiating from a black hole in the center, no doubt a doorway to a hellish and grotesque fate. The teeth, especially along the outermost ring, pierced into Choi's side, effectively clamping against his flesh and creating a vacuum seal. The rest of the inner rings swelled with the creature's hunger and raised up to also press into his side. It was effectively turning its mouth into the same motion of a drill that bores through the rock of the earth. Choi was in a deadly predicament, made worse by its elongated arms wrapping around him possessively.
Interestingly enough, the lights still left flickered and got a tiny bit brighter. The laughter was cutting off its constant food supply from them; however, it had enough to have materialized its upper body. From roughly the waist down there was nothing but shadowy tendrils. Because of this, the creature couldn't gain its balance, and was completely dependent on its grip on Choi for stability.
Its face was applying a great pressure into just under his rib cage. Its cheeks began to ripple as if it was going to start sucking soon.
Alyssa felt worn out as the shadow left her, the voices inside left nothing but an imprint. She scrambled to her feet, with the sound of Max singing in the background.
The creature was surrounding Yeong, Alyssa glanced at Max who seemed useless in this fight, except the laughter his song brought on. The laughter seemed to be weakening the spirit.
She could see the spirit was holding on to Yeong.
In all the action the hood had fallen off revealing her face, which gave more credence to what she was about to do. She started laughing with Yeong. "Hey Max, think of something funny.," not even sure if the powerhouse could hear it. Physically attacking it seemed to be making matters worse, maybe bombarding it with happiness would be more than the shadow could stand.
Choi saw and felt the teeth. They were as ugly as a rusty saw blade, gnarled and twisted, each tooth a jagged remnant of some forgotten battle. The gaps between them whispered secrets of decay, and their uneven edges seemed to mock symmetry.
Yeong shouted, "You've been a bad boy, shadow. When's the last time you seen a dentist. You should know the drill by now!" His laughter became louder.
Where was the pain and anger? The fear and remorse? The half corporeal shade released its mouth's latch on Choi and gagged violently as if it tasted something horrible. As if allergic to mirth, it's mouth foamed like a rabid dog and stank like burning rubber and pestilent decay. Black gunk spewed out onto Choi as it coughed and heaved. It did not let go though, its fingers extended with claw-like ends and dug into his flesh, desperate to bring forth a different reaction from its prey. It seemed less confident, as if it knew it was vulnerable for the first time in this fight.
The wound in Choi's side stung and looked like a shark bite with the pattern of the rings of a bullseye. It was bleeding. It looked like a lot of blood, but truly it was more his blood just mixing with the generous quantity of shade saliva.
The creature let out a piercing wail, that could be heard throughout the entire house, trying to solicit more fear and trembling from those present; it needed the rest of its body to come forth from the shadows to murder them all.
Posted by : Cindy
Alyssa knew it was working she kept laughing thinking of anything she could to elicit that response. Of course, it helped that Yeong was a ball of merriment. The crack about the shadow's teeth made her laugh even harder.
The piercing noise was the creature's way of trying to bring fear back into the picture, Alyssa recognized that. "Oooh...scary" Her voice dripped with sarcasm, making wiggling motions with her fingers, like a cartoon witch.
Choi felt the pain, but remained focused. He was determined to win this fight. The claws dug into the side opposite of the bite.
"You need a manicure," Choi joked. "Those are pocket nails because that's where you should keep them. And that breath is like a decaying skunk carcass had crawled into your mouth and died a second death there."
Choi's laughter was boisterous despite the pain. "Come on Powers! You know this is funny!"
The shade made a gurgling and bitter sound from its disfigured face, the skin hanging like tatters around the front of it face flapping with the vibrations. It was an intelligent entity, and it realized that its current victim was responding in an unnatural way to pain. It's grip released and it hurled itself back towards Alyssa.
Before it did so though it began to dry heave until what looked like a bloody and dark ink covered mass was being coughed up. It emerged as the face of her father inside its mouth fighting to come out. Eventually it did, prying the shade's original face in half; it was clear the things bone structure was absent despite the commonality with human anatomy at first glance.
Her father looked at her with murder in his eyes as he dove at Alyssa across the room, covering more distance than expected without legs. Its arms and claws reached for her. "You miserable wretched child." Her father's toxic and verbally abusive tone shouted on route.
While Alyssa maintained her composure the disgusting mass that was expelled by the shadow made her stomach lurch slightly.
It wasn't her father, logically she knew that but that constant disappointment at being just not quite good enough seemed to shoot at her from the words the shadow leveled at her. The weight was dragging on her like quick sand. Words began to turn into images.
She closed her eyes for one brief moment and shouted. "YOU'RE NOT HIM! YOU'RE NOT HIM!" But it wasn't enough as the claws reached her and she felt her body dragged to the ground.
The few lights once again began to dim. The dark was shrouding around the creature, making it harder to see and leaving more of its frightfulness to the imagination. More of its lower body was beginning to form out of the shadows and it wrestled to pin her down beneath itself. Its goal was to hinder her movement so it could engulf her entire face in the slowly widening mouth of her father; once again revealing the lamprey teeth. Meanwhile, before any final strike, it's gruesome vomit and ichor was drooling down onto her.
Posted by : Cindy
Choi was losing energy fast. He began to lose the battle against the pain.
Looking across the basement at the now revealed pretty face surrounded by flowing red hair, Choi wanted to help her, but felt himself falling to his knees. Now, the reality was coming to Yeong. He had failed. As his eyes closed, he witnessed the disappointment upon Master Park's face.
"I'm sorry, Eun-Ji," he mumbled, blood oozing from both sides, "Powers, take good care of Alyssa."
He grunted as the room began to fade. He swore he saw the shadow but it was only darkness. Choi then fell face first to the floor.
"Alyssa, that sounds like quite a racket, you alright?" Sartre said through his chip.
"We..." Alyssa was having problems communicating due to the shadow pushing very loud thoughts into her head, and it being on top of her.
Her father's face with the gnarly teeth and slime coming closer.
Dark, damp, the rain hadn't stopped for days. Seattle weather. Alyssa was waiting in her gray nondescript van - like every van that came before and likely after.
Up to now she had spent most of her time in a computer room, only sent out on one brief mission in the past. Her father had asked for her on this mission.
The memories in her mind then disjointed into a nonsequential jumble. Blackness. A scream. The single word "NO". Blood.
Alyssa spoke what words she could get out, though they might have been said a little louder than expected. "Peter, Help. Dragon down. I'm down. Max ..." That was all before her mind went back to memories.
I'll be right There Alyssa!" He pulled out his Agartha ball to teleport to the nearest anima well near the house.
Posted by : Cindy
Alyssa was fighting valiantly against the creature. Despite her going in and out of reality, due to the assault on her mind, she was physically resisting its attempt to overpower her. Her father's face began to rip at the seams as it strained to get its maw closer. Like a great white shark, its jaws were unhinging to gain more inches past its face to get closer to her smooth skin.
The rest of its body had finished forming, it was completely material at this point. Its deathly pale skin was eerie. It looked malnourished and desperate as it violently thrashed atop her. A prehensile tail was the last thing to slip out of the shadows, the end of the length sported a claw like talon. Time was running out for Alyssa. Even if she could keep its claws and mouth from getting to her, how would she stop this tail once it gained control over it?
Sartre fired with his glock 19 but missed two shots. He hit the shadow on the 5th shot.
Sung burst into the room through the door and he took quick account of things. He moved around everyone and a sword appeared in his hands using his Draw Sword-Draw Blood technique he knew he could not miss and move before the shade. The KI ran through him and his sword. As he cut the Shade in a diagonal cut being of the Punisher class he would not miss
Satre fired three more shots and struck the creature, missing one shot. He had four more shots, he tried to get his first ever glance at Alyssa's face. Two more shots would hit before he ran out of ammo, and had to find cover to reload. He reloaded trying to get a decent view through the front sight.
"Hey Green Emerald, your fellow dragon is down here!" he had to scream over the chaos.
The creature had been so distracted by its failing attempts to get at Alyssa, that it had not been aware of the two new arrivals. In order to maintain its form, it needed to feast on real live flesh. Since it hadn't done so since biting Choi, it was racing against a clock. It had to get stronger or else it was more vulnerable than it was as a shadow form.
It flinched at an awkward angle as a sword slashed through its backside, followed quickly by several bullet wounds. The sword cut deep and the bullets blew large chunks out of the surrounding tissue. Black ichor sprayed out in large amounts; the toxic thoughts of those in the room. Everyone present could hear the negative emotions of those that it had been leeching off of since the beginning of the fight. The voices sounded resentful.
The creatures cringed and crippled in pain. It collapsed off of Alyssa and was doing its best to right itself. Its spiked tail flailed around randomly in the hopes of striking anything that neared it.
Posted by : Cindy
"Weren't these three sisters smart enough not to leave shades in Jars?" Satre commented. "Don't go chasing waterfalls" was probably on the radio when they put it in there." He fired once more, missing. Another shot missed. four left. The next shot was spot on. He looked the computer tech in the eyes and then fired at the creature.
Many of the images Alyssa saw were very real vivid memories. Memories usually play out in dreams. Some through the shadow created to make things worse.
Pinned to the ground, her mind being assaulted she came close to retreating into her mind but managed not too.
Next thing she knew the creature was collapsing off of her. She hadn't realized who had come into the basement until then.
With it off her, Alyssa wasted no time. She was worn enough that getting up required too much effort so the young woman crawled out of the way and away from the creature as quickly as possible.
The next shot Satre misses. He had two more shots, with Alyssa out of the way he hit a direct hit. Sartre had one shot left. Another direct hit. He dove for cover and watched the scene as he reloaded.
The monster was now fighting a war on multiple fronts. This was not how it operated. It had not experienced opposition like this before and was not prepared to respond well.
More shots came in its direction. One hit its right shoulder, completely shattering the connection to its torso. The right arm hung limp by a few strands of skin. Gravity was causing the skin to stretch, so it was only a matter of time before it completely fell off.
The other shots struck its midsection, causing wounds that would eventually bleed out for a living being, but in the short term it pissed it off into more of a rage.
The creature eyed the closest threat, Master Sung, and attempted to attack. It was a poor attempt due to its current condition; however, still potentially harmful if not defended or avoided.
"When we meet these sisters!" Sartre said.
Posted by : Cindy
Sung took advantage of the moment attacking the Shade with two attacks this time with another translucent Wakizashi cutting whatever could be left with the two strikes the swords cut like a hot blade through butter. this strike should kill the Shade thought SUng.
There was almost a whimper sound escaping the creature as one strike sliced through its prehensile tail with the barb on the end. The appendage went flying across the room and knocking over a bunch of junk. The right arm finally fell off completely and landed with a sickening thud on the concrete. The second blade would have ended it; however, it protectively brought up its left arm as it flinched backwards with an irregular arch in its spine. The left forearm was sent flying across the basement in the opposite direction.
The creature howled in spite and defiance at Master Sung. It lunged at him, face first in an effort to bite a gaping hole in the man.
The lights began to return to their initial luminosity.
Sung had been doing this too long to be fooled. He moved his swords using a patient Defense it seemed like Sung moved in the blink of an eye speed and almost appeared to the side of the Shade. his swords agen being ready to strike. The Shade probably did not stand a chance.
The vile and ruined creature was in no physical condition to avoid the killing blow. It's head was severed from its body cleanly. Due to the forward momentum of the lunge, when it hit the ground the body slid a yard before friction brought it to a halt. The head, though, rolled much further before it came to rest up against an empty basket. No further movement could be seen coming from its lifeless form. The coldness and sense of dread dissipated from the atmosphere. The fight had come to an end.
Posted by : Cindy
Agent Powers was feeling awkward and embarrassed after being caught dancing before the others. He was not sure what just happened or why he was flashing back to his spartan days of training under his father, but it was very weird. He then saw Alyssa was looking in bad shape and he replied back to her, "I think so. I had a weirdest dream just a while ago, but it felt so real. What was that?"
Sung nudged the shade some with his foot making sure it was dead. "That was a shade I think I am not an expert. We burn it now all of it possibly if we are smart the whole house. but that's not my call you should talk to your director to find out if they will send a cleaning crew out," suggested Sung.
Sung walked around the basement looking for any other clues to this ministry. This place was a mess now and he knew the chances of finding anything now were slim. Stopping he looked around one more time. "A guard was making something stronger attached to this place. That is how they got rid of any snoopy people," said Sung starting to guess at what was going on. "That means someone is taking care of the land there is a human involved somehow. something like a cultist. Lots of different moving parts and we are in the middle of it." Sung said thinking out loud.
Agent Powers looked around to see the mess and nervously rubbed the back of his head. He was in over his head on this mission since he main skill was hitting stuff. He wondered if he did all that damage during his hallucination. His past training was rather traumatic for him and he had to dig deep to over come it. Oddly enough his favorite songs aided in distracting him from being overwhelmed by his childhood trauma. Music soothed the savage beast was a line he told himself all to often. He then asked, "Did I make this mess? Sorry if I did. Fighting nightmares was not in my training."
"You alright Max?" Satre asked.
"Max, you didn't make the mess." All he really did was sing and dance. Alyssa was a little tired of looking at the dead shadow and still not feeling great. She though managed to stand. "I need to get some air, anyone else coming?"
Sung looked at the two and smiled. "I think my work is done here. I will be upstairs if you need anything more," said Sung his expression showing some annoyance. "Have a good day you too," Sung said. Turning to Choi "Let us go unless you want to be here all day." Sung suggested walking up the stairs and then outside and looking for Eun-Ji.
Alyssa took one of the orbs. She used the chip to say to Peter. "As I much as I appreciate Sung's help. Figures the Greens would leave us to clean up the mess." Then outloud, "We need to call a clean up crew. We can do that back at my van. Then we can go wherever we need." She then turned to Max, "Come on Max, let's get back to the van." The three of them could discuss things later. Alyssa then headed up the stairs, though taking it slowly in case she had another dizzy spell.
Posted by : Cindy
While they were leaving the basement and house and walking to Alyssa's van the conversation between Alyssa and Peter went on between the chips in their heads.
"Does Max have a secure location?" Peter asked.
"Max doesn't have a place to stay. His team leader usually took care of it." Alyssa responded about Max. "His situation is different. Not what you think." She went ahead and sent Peter a very brief explanation about how Max was really 15 and he would morph into his current state, then morph back at about 8 hours. "When he got to my van he said he only had about two hours left." She paused. "We could maybe get him another room." Adjoining? That would work. She wasn't going to leave a teenage boy on his own despite him being an agent.
"Alyssa. The secret world is always full of danger" Sartre responded.
The next thing the computer hacker heard was Peter asking. "Err… Alyssa, are you dating anyone?"
Alyssa thought that's an odd question. "No, why?
"I was just wondering. I find you more interesting than Cassini, the onsite Illuminati tech at the Labyrinth. Your skills seem to rival hers. What do you like to do for fun? What is your Illuminati rank?" Yes I'm asking you out. You looked stunning in the clutches of that shade. And you are literally a voice in my head.
Well, he was fast. Alyssa was stunned for several moments not knowing what to say. "I…I…" Her social awkwardness was coming through. "I've never been on a date before." Never even thought about it. "Fun?" Really they had just met, and she had no idea how to respond to the question. Awkward. "Look, we just met. Maybe, we could table this until we get to know each other a little better."
Good Idea!" He knew she was nervous, changing the subject . "Your van should have some interesting technology.
"It's great." Thankful for the change in subject. Her whole demeanor changed to excited and almost proud when discussing her van. It was, in a sense, an extension of herself. "I worked with Cassini to outfit it, so it has the best equipment. You'll see when we get there."
Before she knew it they had arrived at the van, with Max in tow and Peter was asking to see it.
San Francisco, Cozy Corner Bistro, Afternoon After Turner Kramer's Death
Lumina had been less than helpful when Corinth had asked her what she was in the mood for, and consequently he had followed his reportedly fine-tuned instincts for good restaurants, leading them to a place called the Cozy Corner Bistro. The place seemed clean enough at least, which was typically a good sign. As their waitress, Gloria, rattled off the specials, Lumina looked for something that might be particularly nutritious. Lumina considered herself fairly open minded when it came to food, but she generally took a food-is-fuel approach to eating, especially when she had a lot to do. Also, she hated working out, so anything else she could do to not ruin her figure was ideal. She decided to go with the house salad entree portion with blackened chicken.
Although the restaurant was not too busy at the moment, Corinth appropriately lowered his voice as they talked business. He was not terribly optimistic of a significant lead being found at the house beyond another possible scavenger hunt type note like the one they had found in Kramer's apartment, and he also seemed convinced that the other Secret Societies had likely beat them there as well, inducing a shiver down Lumina's spine. She had never had any run-ins with members of the other Secret Societies to her knowledge. If Corinth and Owen were right, that was very likely to change shortly.
And of course the question of the day. What indeed did this house have to do with the Mothman? Potentially nothing. At this point Lumina didn't have enough information to conclude that the Mothman had been involved in any of the deaths, but even if that was an established fact, that there was consequently a rhyme and reason for the targets the Mothman visited and presumably murdered somehow.
Their food arrived as Lumina was explaining the articles she had read at the SFU Library. Lumina was not a quick salad eater at the best of times, but trying to eat and explicate her findings slowed her down all the more. She still had a decent way to go when Corinth had finished his chicken fried steak and ordered pie for dessert for both of them, which did sound good, but the fats…
Dalia's findings regarding the ley lines coming together near the house was certainly encouraging though. Sonnac had explicitly ordered them to investigate ley lines, and here they were right in their path. It would be good for Lumina to get a feel for how ley lines appeared under the effect of a Detect Magic spell, and furthermore if given the time, she could hopefully learn how to tap into the power of those ley lines herself. As a Warlock, she was always on the lookout for more magical power to utilize, and it would be nice to not have to bargain for that power from callous supernatural entities. She was already thinking back to some of the methods the books she had read theorized that certain ancient peoples had tapped into such ley lines. Even if they found nothing else at the manor, this could very much be worth it. Having that power at hand if she could learn to extract it would be comforting for when they went to the morgue to pry secrets from Turner Kramer, Gail Iris, and Olivia Warren.
"If the house is as powerful as we think it is, do the ley lines boost its power, or are they the cause and what is their purpose? Just to fuel the witch's powers? No… ley lines are more powerful than that. I mean, yes, that could be one purpose, but I doubt that was their only purpose."
"I don't exactly know how ley lines work," Lumina replied," but if they work the way I think they work, then I would say having that nearly endless source of magical power readily nearby would be more than sufficient for these witches, if that is in fact what they were, to set up shop nearby. Maybe we'll get lucky and find out what else the Halliwell Sisters were up to that could shed more light on what they did with the ley lines, but I personally am very eager to see if I can tap into that power myself. And since if we know that these are indeed ley lines that we'll see there, I should be able to come to recognize them so that if we encounter them again in our investigation, we'll know what we're dealing with. I'd say this alone is reason to visit the manor, even if we don't find any other clues of note."
Gloria delivered the pies just then, and they did look good. "I am not going to eat this whole thing," Lumina promised, cutting her slice in half.
Once Gloria departed, Lumina pondered Corinth's last question and finally asked, "So, have you ever had to deal with the Illuminati or the Dragons before? I guess I haven't so I'm not really sure what to expect if we bump into them."
Posted by : Sky
Corinth took a bite of the apple pie. It wasn't the best he ever had, but it was decent enough to satisfy his sweet tooth. "Yeah, I worked with a few from time to time. We Templars want to keep the real world and secret world seperate. Anything that bleeds over, we take care of it. The Illuminate just want to exploit the secret world for money and power. Some don't have that way of thinking, but they are few and far between. If that wasn't the case, why be apart of that group? The Dragons like to cause chaos just to see the butterfly effect that ripples out. It has its uses, but mostly is pain in our sides." He pauses for a minute, pushing the plate away from him, finished. "We all have our uses and agendas. Some run parallel to each other, some don't. You find reasons to work with them and find reasons not to kill them."
Grabbing his glasses and hat, he put them both back on and stood up. He tossed some money on the table, including a generous tip. "We need get back to work before HQ calls for an update."
The GPS voice spoke over the music that was playing in the car, instructing him on which turns to take until finally they reached their destination. Doing a quick drive around the block to scope things out, Corinth parked a house away and turned the car off.
"There it is, Halliwell House. Be on your guard, there may be people inside still searching."
Exiting the car, he made sure his jacket covered his guns and preceeded to walk up to the house, Lumina at his side. Making it to the door, Corinth put his ear to it to see if he could hear anything. He shook his head at Lumina and then tried the knob. Curiously, it opened without any issues.
Slowly they entered into the house and once they were completely inside, he shut the door and unholsterd Powell. He listened, butbthe place was still quiet.
As they walked forward, there was a sitting room that opened to the right and stairs leading up to their left. Straight ahead was the dining room. Again, he listened, but the house was quiet. Satisfied for now, he holstered his gun.
"I doubt anything would be of importance on the first floor. From the look of the place on the outside, it appears to have an attic and I wouldnt be surprised if this old house had a basement as well, though I could be wrong." His investigative training began to kick in. "Best to work from top to bottom. If there is an attic, that would be a good place to start."
Heading to the second floor, he took note of the four bedrooms, all still having furniture in them. Continuing to look, he found the steps to the attic. Cautiously, he looked up the stairs and began slowly moving upward, hand close to his hip.
The attic was spacious. Everyday storage items were pushed to the side of the walls, leaving a large opening in the middle of the room. Off to the side, there was a shallow opening where there stood a pedestal. Corinth looked down at the dusty floorboards and took notice of the disturbed dust. At least two sets of footprints. The first set went to the pedestal while the second went to some areas around the room, a bookcase and possibly a closet.
Going to the pedestal, he saw a book that rested on it. Opening it up, there were a lot of words and pictures. He flipped the pages a few times and decided this wasn't his area of expertise.
"Come check this out. Looks like a spellbook. Wonder why it wasn't taken." He left it open for Lumina to look over. "Let's make sure we take it with us."
Moving to the shelf, he noticed a broken jar on the floor. Kneeling down, he picked up some of the pieces and looked them over. The jar lid had some writing on it. No, not writing per se, but runes. Not just any runes, containment runes. Something was sealed away, but was obviously released at some point. Today maybe? No, the other factions would have been more careful than that.
Moving on, there was a disturbance in the floorboards. Moving them around revealed nothing. "There may have been something here...hidden. If they found whatever was in here and took this, but not that book...did that mean whatever was here was more important?" He was speaking more to himself, but still out loud enough for Lumina to hear.
"Find anything in that book?"
Posted by : Dblitz13
Alyssa's van - near the Halliwell house
Sartre went with the Illuminati agents, he tossed Eun Ji, her orb in passing.
Agent Powers was glad he was not responsible for the mess, at least not this time. He replied, "Yeah I think I am fine." He then took the orb that was given to him and held onto it for now. He listened to the others talk before Alyssa asked him to follow her. He replied, "Sure I'll be right there." He picked up the photo album and followed Alyssa out. However as he was going up the stairs he noticed something on his shoe. He leaned forward to remove it and as he pulled it up he was shocked to see a very skimpy, lacy pair of black ladies underwear. At first Agent Powers was shocked but as he heard the footsteps of the others he panicked and stuffed them into his pocket. Sadly he realized he was now stuck with them for now. He was feeling nervous and guilty as he followed Alyssa to the van. At this point he almost forgot what time it was.
As they approached the van, he said, "Lets see your technology setup!"
"Sure," Alyssa opened the back door to the van. "My castle, as it was."
Inside the van a blue glow emitted from the multiple screens. Information appeared at speeds which was hard to keep up with. Multiple keyboards sat out. About five monitors were obviously monitoring different street cameras. One pointed at the Halliwell house. She sat down at one modular, turned on the only computer that didn't seem to be doing anything and started typing. After a minute or so, looked back at Peter. "Clean up crew is on its way." She then pulled her cell phone out of a zipped up pocket on her hoodie, and casually placed it next to the computer. "So, what do you think?" Alyssa faintly smiled at Peter.
"You... Err Your setup looks amazing. You look like a hacker with the hoodie, can you beat those Anonymous guys?" Peter asked.
"Yes, and I have." Alyssa responded, she was in her element so she was comfortable in the moment.
Agent Powers was nervous as he quietly listened to Alyssa and Peter talk. He was feeling nervous and awkward after the hallucination and the fact that he was hiding women's underwear in his pocket. He would die of embarrassment if Alyssa found out. So he just kept quiet and pretended to listen.
"What does hacking consist of for someone who knows nothing about it, Agent Wilson?" Peter asked.
"In its most simple terms it's using computer skills to solve a particular problem. Usually involving breaking into computer systems. Black hats do this with malicious intent. White hats do it with full permission of the sites they are hacking into usually to find and fix security flaws. Grey hats usually don't gave permission but don't intentionally cause problems and tend to report problems as they arise." Alyssa explained. She thought Peter asking might have been for Max's benefit.
"Which kind of hat are you?" Peter inquired, "And what does this other equipment do?"
Agent Powers was confused by the conversation and began looking around the van for a colored hat. Did Alyssa really wear a hat to do her "hacking" what was the point in that? It sounded like something he would see in an anime show.
A grin crossed Alyssa's face when asked what kind of hat she was. "I suppose that depends on who you talk to. I think I fall more in the Grey area but if the Illuminati asks me to put on one of the other hats I do that as well." Alyssa went through pointing out the different equipment. "This hacks into security cameras. These are tied to the databases of the Blue. These are tied to various other databases. I use these two for hacking into databases with the more advanced security system." Alyssa then went through a few others. "My base computer," Pointing to the one she had turned on when they arrived. "And my laptop," Pointing to a laptop bag sitting in the corner. "Can log into any of the others on the van. Everything is fully encrypted making it virtually untraceable."
Agent Powers was a bit confused by Alyssa's hat talk but he did know she was good with computers and could break into other people's computers which made her smart and important. He felt sad since all he was good at was hitting stuff. He noticed he was still holding the photo album in his hand. He then looked at Alyssa and said, "Oh I brought this for your research.", as he put the photo album on her chair.
"Thanks, Max," Alyssa nodded. "I'll look into that later."
"Oh," Alyssa seemed to be looking at something on her main screen. "The clean-up crew is almost here. I hope the Greens leave before they get there." Alyssa looked up at the camera pointed towards the house.
Posted by : Cindy
Sartre hastily ran back into the abandoned manor. "Real quick everyone, do not touch any jars or anything. They may contain angry wraiths from the 1990s that one of the three sisters left behind. I also heard that there was a fourth, could just be a rumor. Do not touch any jars!"
Sartre made his way back to the Illuminati van.
There was something happening, who was that? "Looks like there's more visitors to the house." The cameras zoomed in revealing a man and a woman. Alyssa got a clear enough picture of their faces. "I'll bet either of you they are Templars." Just a logical deduction.
She picked up her encrypted cell and texted into it. "Alright I told the clean up crew to hold off. I want to find out who the two vistors are."
She started running her fingers quickly over the keyboard as information appeared on the screen. "Got you. Yup, Templars. A Jennifer Hawkins and Corinith Whitethorn." Alyssa kept working. "Well, let's see what I can find out about them."
"Your toys are state of the art. Go Alyssa Go!" said Sartre.
Agent Powers was. Now curious by all the activity of the other factions checking on this house. He asked, "So what is so important about this house that all three factions are stopping by?"
Alyssa responded to Max without ever looking away from her computer. "I think it has something to do with the Ley lines. There has to be something more to them than just a source of energy for a few witches."
"OK, first we have Corinith. Good with guns. Avoids shotguns, it seems anyway. Magic user, but going back to some past events, it almost looks as if he doesn't prefer magic over other methods. Decent detective. It seems. I don't think he's at level as some others like Mr. Sung or you, Peter when it comes to investigative work.
A few notes - ends justify the means? Oh, I see - he seems to be all-out when it comes to getting results.
Drugs - well, look at that a Templar whose been known to take drugs. With how much they love their structure and rules i would think they wouldn't allow that for very long." Alyssa rolled her eyes but she was facing the computer so it was doubtful the two men saw it. "As much as I'd rather not help the Templar. I also don't want that shadow thing to reawaken. And I suppose Mr. Sung was right in that no one deserves to die at the hands of that thing. Should one of us go and warn them?"
"As I just finished shooting the thing, Powers, could you run in their and tell them not to open any jars...?" Alyssa, can you grab the address for the P3 apothecary? Should we take the night off before investigating further?"
Alyssa then turned around and looked at Max, furrowed her brow and spoke to Peter. "We know the Templars really don't like us. Is Max really the best person for that job?" She paused. "No offense, Max."
She just didn't think sending in Max - the boy/hulk was the best idea. Maybe, someone the Templars would take more seriously would be a better option.
"250 Ivy Street," being Alyssa had already been tasked with that, she had the address to P3 easily available.
As for taking the night off, Alyssa nodded, easily agreeing. "Yes," she still wasn't feeling that great and desperately needed a shower after having black ooze all over her.
I will go ahead and go in, I will be right back." Peter left the van, returning a few minutes later. Sartre returned, looking over the other two agents, "Alyssa; I also heard a rumor that there was a fourth sister some sort of half-sister, can you find out when Prue Halliwell and this fourth sister might've been?"
Agent Powers was not sure how to respond as he was told conflicting orders. He forced a smirk and shrugged as he waited to see what they were going to do. Since he didn't need to talk to the Templars he remained in place and acted like a bodyguard for the time being. He wasn't quite sure if Alyssa was saying he was unqualified to deal with the Templars or if she was worried he might get into trouble talking to them. His father had told him that the other factions did have issues with each other and didn't always get along. Since they were talking about ending the day he looked at his watch nervously to see how long he still had left in his muscle form and then asked, "So should I get a cab and a hotel now? I can give you my number if you need to call me later." Agent Powers was a bit nervous but trying his best to look serious as he accidently gave Alyssa a smolder.
Alyssa sent Peter all the info she had on the sister's then turned to Max. "Hold on," typing, once again to the computer. "You have a suite booked right next to Peter's. I say we just go ahead and go. The clean-up crew knows to go in to the house after the Templars have left."
" Yes we all need rest. Chinese or Pizza Alyssa?" I've got it covered in gold pax, We Lumies actually have the public thing that paper money is worth something. What if Team Red steals something in there...?"
"I doubt there's much we can do to stop them without drawing even more attention. Maybe, they'll be intelligent about it but who knows." Alyssa moved to the driver's seat. "Max, I think there's more room in the back for you. Peter you can take the passenger seat if you want."
Sartre jumped in the passenger seat. "Chinese or Pizza? It will be delivered by drone."
"Pizza. I'm good with whatever on it but no anchovies." Alyssa started the van and they took off.
Posted by : Cindy
No Anchovies got it!" Peter dialed the secret pizza parlor. "Yes paid in gold coin. One large supreme pizza with no anchovies. Sides" Alyssa, you want chips? Breadsticks? Cheese Bread? Salad?"
"Max, you want some pizza?" Alyssa asked, it seemed really rude to leave him out of ordering food.
Agent Powers moved to the back of the van and did his best to get comfortable despite being a bit too big for the set up. Luckily he was still managing not bumping his legs or head like he did on the planes before. He replied, "I am fine with anything food wise. My dad trained me not to be picky, but I tend to eat 2 large pizzas by myself since I have a high metabolism. Do we have a schedule for tonight or tomorrow? Just curious how long I can...ummmm relax my powers."
"Go ahead with three supremes. And a salad. Thanks. But I pay for the next meal." She said to Peter. Alyssa wasn't lacking funds and they had agreed it wasn't a date.
Peter placed the order, with the salad for Alyssa. "Sure thing Alyssa." Then he added. "What should we discuss over Pizza, Miss Wilson?"
The van pulled up to the hotel, there was Valet parking but it'd be a cold day in hell that someone else, especially someone she didn't know, got to drive her van. Besides, there's not an easy experience for the back. So, she found the parks garage and, fortunately enough, a parking spot on the lobby level. Then parked the van, when she heard Peter's question. She shrugged. "Let's wait and see what topics comes up." She went to the back and opened the back door, letting Max out. "I need to shut a few things down. I'll be just a minute."
True to her word, it took no time at all. She made sure to grab her laptop and its carrying bag, her cellphone (a lovely encrypted Illuminati one) and the back with her clothes and toiletries which was a mid sized duffle bag. She put them outside the van and once everyone was out and ready she locked the van with the key fob. "OK, I'm ready."
Sartre unlocked his room. "The Drone should arrive with the pizza soon, Take as long of a shower as you need Alyssa. I'm going to change into my t shirt and jeans while you shower."
They got Max his room, handing him his key card. She also showed him how to access his online key, on his cell. Then said, she'd call him when the pizza's arrived and dropped the boy off at his room.
Then arrived at Peter's suite, "Thanks," She said, when he offered her the long shower.
"You are welcome Agent Wilson, let the heat relax your muscles." Peter smirked, the chip worked wonders. He looked to gauge her response to the chip message.
Posted by : Cindy
Agent Powers had his backpack in tow on his shoulder as he followed Alyssa and Peter to his room. He felt a bit out of place as Peter was paying a lot of attention to Alyssa. Agent Powers was still feeling out of place when he was not fighting bad guys and being the third wheel with his teammates. So as he thanked Alyssa and Peters he entered his room and locked the door properly before he walked around the room and checked it out to make sure it was clean of problem.
He sighed before he went to the bathroom and stepped into the bathtub before he put his hand on the bathroom wall and grunted. He looked to be in pain as his body began to bubble and turn into pink slime. Eventually the muscular man was reduced to a large pile of pink slime jiggling in the tub. Then suddenly two hands popped out of the slime and desperately clawed free from the slime. A teen boy named Max was now in his street clothes covered in pink slime and breathing hard. As he was calming down the slime began to vibrate and turn into a gas as it evaporated away.
Eventually there was no trace of the slime on Max or on his clothing. At this point he stripped and took a long hot shower as he thought about his messed up day. Max was standing in the shower thinking about what makes a man an outlaw or a leader. Is it because they are thinking about power and the ways a man can use it or be destroyed by it? The water hit his neck and he was thinking to himself. Then as he was standing in the shower thinking he thought about the man named Peters, he didn't know not liking him. Did he not like the place Max was headed from? Was it a place he was headed to? Max knew Peter could beat him to it if he would, but would he do it? Peters reminded him of the other male adults his father talked to back home.
He was embarrassed how he behaved in front of the others and wasn't sure what to say or do when he saw the others. He was caught singing and dancing during a dangerous situation. He was having a hard time following the conversation of the others and he ended up getting ignored by Peters. As he looked down he saw the black lacy skimpy women's undies floating in the water by his feet. He forgot they were in his slime made clothing. When he turned into Agent Powers his slime also turned into clothing. if it ever got damaged it would fix itself unless he lost to much stamina.
He sighed as he picked the undies up and squeezed them dry before hanging them on the towel hook. As the piping hot water beat upon his neck his mind began to wander off. He recalled the images of the three female witches and wondered who's panties he had stolen? To a teenage boy the three women looked very pretty and were wearing skimpy clothing in the photos he saw in the album. He felt awkward that he was not good at dealing with girls outside of work. Once he was done with his bath he dried off and got dressed before passing out on his bed. He was tired, hungry and mentally worn out. He hoped Alyssa would wake him up for dinner.
Posted by : Jaxx
Peter said into the chip. "Alyssa, you can use my hotel room for a shower. I will also buy your dinner. Would you prefer a full dinner or just snacks? If so, what would you like?"
"Thanks. I would appreciate the shower." Alyssa responded. "A full dinner but we can do delivery. I'm not in the mood to go anywhere. Anything is fine. Maybe Chinese or pizza?"
"We can do delivery. You pick what kind. and wechat about tech!"
"Ok," Alyssa agreed.
They discussed in the van, on the way to the hotel about dinner and Alyssa insisted on paying for the next meal.
Sartre continued into the chip, "Meal after the next, I pay for from then on. And I take you shopping,"
"We'll discuss it later." Alyssa refused to not be independent and he was perhaps unintentionally but still pushing her a little too much.
"Whenever works best for you. White Hat Alyssa. I sense fire under that pale but surely attractive exterior." Peter said as they were pulling into the hotel
Posted by : Cindy
The steam rose from the water hitting Alyssa's back and neck. The pounding water and exhaust fan were only sounds, they weren't enough to drown out the memories of what had happened today, of what had happened before.
Her father… if she had only… maybe it was wasted energy to beat herself up internally over it, but, in the five years since his disappearance Alyssa had continued to think it was her fault.
Usually work, the ever glowing screens, the sounds of hard drives and sights of the nearby world distracted her enough to not think about it. Today that had been impossible and she knew that tonight would be worse. I need to get my own room.
However, she also didn't want to be completely alone tonight. Something she would never admit. She really wasn't used to what had happened today and it had thrown the hacker off her game.
So staying in his room didn't seem like a terrible decision. He had a bedroom. She could sleep on the couch. It likely pulled out. If he continued to insist that she sleep in the hotel, she'd get the room on the other side of him tomorrow.
Alright, that decided. His offer regarding the food and to take her shopping. Was weird. And to be honest a little off putting. Alyssa did want to be taken care of. She made a decent living, and could easily afford what he could. She had other money but almost never touched it. The hacker was trying to give Peter the benefit of the doubt, he probably was just trying to be nice. However, it came across like he was flaunting his money - then again that would be very much like many Illuminati agents.
Her mind had gotten distracted for long enough. Her body and hair sufficiently washed, she turned off the shower, wrapped a white cotton towel around her body and stepped on to the shower mat/towel thing that hotels seem to have.
The hotel's hairdryer was attached to the wall, making use of it to dry her chestnut strands of hair. She then got into some clean clothes - jeans and a blue t-shirt with a white sunflower on it. Clean,dry, dressed. A breath, it was just one night.
Posted by : Cindy
David's Apartment - Downtown San Francisco, CA
After briefing David on the events at the manor, Eun-Ji retreated to her room to begin her research. She meticulously examined the video footage and photos she had taken of the Halliwell Manor attic, noting the intricate details and peculiar artifacts scattered throughout the space. Among the items she observed were ancient spell books, enchanted crystals, and mystical potions—all remnants of the Charmed sisters' magical legacy. There was so much content that piqued her curiosity and offered new insights into the world of witchcraft and supernatural phenomena.
Turning her attention to her selective handwritten notes from the Book of Shadows, Eun-Ji delved into the clarifying knowledge she had transcribed from the ancient text. The passages she had chosen to copy, held clues to unlocking the mysteries of the occult. She had contemplated taking the book itself; however, decided against it on two accounts. One, it felt dishonoring to remove their family legacy from its rightful home atop the intersecting ley lines. Two, a gut feeling that there was a more interesting probability of entropy if she left it. Eun-Ji over 12 years had learned to go with these inkling; they usually caused favorable domino effects.
As she continued her research, Eun-Ji delved into the holy Bible and the apocrypha of Saint Ede, uncovering a trove of cryptic revelations and arcane teachings. Within the sacred texts, she discovered references to divine beings and celestial entities, along with accounts of miraculous interventions and divine judgments. Within the pages of the Bible, Eun-Ji found spells and incantations that hinted at Saint Ede's connection to these enigmatic entities, offering glimpses into the rituals and practices used to channel their otherworldly energies. References to a scalpel in the revelation section suggested the use of precise tools in magical rites, adding to the mystique surrounding Saint Ede's practices. However, the text also contained warnings of a formidable adversary known as "the master of the fades," hinting at a dark force.
Lost in her studies well into the night, Eun-Ji finally concluded her research, to be continued and relayed to the Voice of the Dragon in the morning. With her mind abuzz with newfound knowledge and insights, she grabbed a midnight snack and then performed her bedtime routine.
Posted by : Lorem
Alyssa emerged from the bathroom after her shower in clean jeans and a blue shirt with a sunflower in the middle of it. Sticking in the back of her mind that she probably should do laundry again soon.
When she saw Peter, she gave him a tired smile, it had been a long day. She noticed the food had been delivered. The smell of oregano hit her nose first causing her stomach to rumble a little. Her fault living on caffeine, a taco and a bag of chips all day. "That smells great."
As promised she texted Max but he didn't respond, then she called still nothing. "I should go check on Max." The boy probably needed food more than the rest of them.
The TV was showing old UFC reruns from 2008. Sartre had pulled out the extra bed from the couch and was in a t- shirt with a "1" on it and relaxing pants. Good idea Agent Wilson, the pizza will be warm when you get back. He still had the other delivery outside, "Good idea checking on Max, the full bed over there is all yours Alyssa."
After she left, Sartre placed his Pendant on the nightstand and tried to relax. He was going to try something he only occasionally used. "An intelligent but paranoid yet cautious Lumie Girl. "Dare I say Conservative?" He saw the haze as he entered into his profiling state. The haze would recede into the flashes
It succeeded. Afterward he went outside and retrieved the purple wrist talisman from the package. He left it on Alyssa's bed. With a note. Like Martial Arts, this is a strength and confidence builder. It increases your defense.
In her chip: If I'm bothering you, just let me know. I'm sure you built your confidence by destroying enemies in those online games. You probably had the best gear in record time! On top of all the leaderboards. You are strong Alyssa.
Alyssa went to Max's room and knocked, nothing. Alright to be honest she might have been slightly concerned at this point. She didn't know what happened when he transformed.
Well, simple enough pulling out her phone, she pulled up the electronic key to his room, opening the door. "Max, " Alyssa called out.
The computer hacker heard the chip but didnt respond, because to her not at all surprise, she found Max asleep, probably more like passed out on his bed. Into the chip she said, "He's asleep. Can you bring over his pizzas?" There was a full sized fridge in Max's suite. They could leave them there.
—-
He brought the Pizza over to Max's room. Letting him sleep, as he placed his pizza in the Fridge. His Eye noticed something. "The Hell, Did this guy err kid or kid err guy steal one of The Halliwell's lingerie." I'm going to have to tell Geary." She would probably think it was funny... " I told you someone was going to steal something from there Agent Wilson."
"Even I," said Sartre. He used "Agent Wilson" to reassure her. "Enough about these three sisters today. Lets go eat pizza and talk about video games Alyssa." he said. This was a New Secret World.
Alyssa couldn't help but breath a laugh about the underwear, that she might have never noticed if Peter hadn't pointed them out. "Well, leave it to an 18 year old to steal underwear."
She nodded to going back and eating food. Alyssa made her way back to Peter's room with Peter and inside.
Posted by : Cindy
He brought the Pizza over to Max's room. Letting him sleep, as he placed his pizza in the Fridge. His Eye noticed something. "The Hell, Did this guy err kid or kid err guy steal one of The Halliwell's lingerie." I'm going to have to tell Geary." She would probably think it was funny… " I told you someone was going to steal something from there Agent Wilson."
"Even I," said Sartre. He used "Agent Wilson" to reassure her. "Enough about these three sisters today. Lets go eat pizza and talk about video games Alyssa." he said. This was a New Secret World.
Alyssa couldn't help but breath a laugh about the underwear, that she might have never noticed if Peter hadn't pointed them out. "Well, leave it to an 18 year old to steal underwear."
She nodded to going back and eating food. Alyssa made her way back to Peter's room with Peter and inside.
Agent Powers was now just Max Powers the teenage boy sleeping like a baby on his bed. He was worn out from his father's Spartan training and back to back combat missions before arriving to this job. It took a lot of stamina to maintain his Agent Powers's form and a lot of food as well.
So as he was dreaming he was reliving life with his adopted father. Starting at the age of 9 he was taken on many "vacations" which involved being dropped off in a very dangerous area and told to survive as he had to walk home. His vacations ranged from being dropped off in jungles, forests, desserts, oceans, islands and foreign countries in war times. It was a rather traumatic time for the youth with super human strength. Each mission got harder and harder to prepare him for his work as an Agent in the Illuminati. To keep his sanity he developed a need to listen to music and dance his stress away. He even incorporated his dancing into his combat as he moved to a beat to keep him calm and fluid in his motions. So oddly enough when he got stressed out he would resort to singing and dancing to deal with stress.
Ironically his hunger pains woke him up from his nightmare of being pushed out of a helicopter into a forest. He woke up breathing hard and looked around to see where he was. He smelled some pizza and was curious as he remembered they order pizza. He looked at the time and checked the fridge to see two whole pizzas in the fridge. He smiled as he devoured one whole pizza right away and then took his time enjoying the second pizza. He drank a liter of water to clear his throat before he heard a female scream next door.
Posted by : Jaxx
Sung raised an eyebrow at the orb that Eun-Ji got. You have a ride I don't think I want to stick around here much longer." suggested Sung to Eun-Ji and Choi. "I think we have exposed ourselves enough for right now." Added Sung as he looked around making mental notes on the van of Alyssa's. Sung could not see inside. but something had been given away. It could have been communications equipment there.
The orb that Sartre threw at Eun-Ji passed right through her body and landed on the porch floor. It rolled and went under the outdoor couch, bumped against the side of the house, and rolled back out so that only half of it was visible. The Eun-Ji on the porch was just an illusion; however, she wouldn't have just willfully caught a mysterious orb thrown to her from an untrusted source, so even if it was the real one, she would have let it hit the ground with a side step anyway. The real Eun-Ji was nearby walking about and inspecting the unkempt landscaping of the front yard. It should be much more overgrown than it was. Perhaps there was a service still that came around to work on it. Anyway, she did not attempt to come out and mingle with the others. When Sung finally emerged with Choi, Moon joined them. "Everything handled I presume?" It was mostly a rhetorical question. "I can call for a ride." She looked at Choi's condition with a bit of a frown, "What happened to you?"
Choi Yeong was conscious, barely able to walk. That thing had drawn a lot of energy and blood from him. "I had a shadow attempt to eat the soul out of me," Choi mumbled, clearly in pain as his body regenerated. He lifted his shirt so she could see the claw marks on the right side and the small circular holes in a circular pattern on the left. The scars were there he figured for an eternity. "I'm glad the others weren't harmed," he said glad he could distract the shadow enough until others came.
"Let's get you back to my place we can do more healing there. but I think you are right the scars will be there forever I have my fair share of them. There is a first time for everything." said Sung with a crack of a smile. Helping Choi walk Sung said "This way I have an SUV over there." said told Choi and Eun-Ji.
Eun-Ji winced empathetically at the sight of the wounds. She didn't see anyone else from the basement in such shape. It made her wonder how he managed to monopolize all the injury. Before they left the property, she did ask them about the orb that was tossed at one of her illusions. Upon hearing their explanation, she retrieved it from the porch and hastened her steps to catch up with them. As they walked towards Sung's parked SUV she asked, "Would you mind dropping me off at my accommodations?"
Sung led them to his SUV it was a black Chevy Suburban it was nice. he helped Choi into the back seat to let him lie down. "It is a 30-minute drive to the place," informed
Driving through the streets "OK, Eun-Ji I will drop you off. But keep in touch. I trust in your ability the stuff we found is going to lead to something big. I can feel it. Like the book you found is not to be toyed with. You can take the box as well it is probably all linked somehow but that is out of my expertise." explained Sung I will take care of Choi you don't have to worry about him," said Sung as they turned a corner. The way Sung was going it was quite the zig zag. "I think we are cleared no one is following us," remarked Sung pulling up to here Eun-Ji. "See you around Eun-Ji, stay low for a while," suggested Sung.
"Book!" Yeong said forced out in pain. "You found a book? Did you have a vision too?"
Eun-Ji had to brace herself a few times on the drive to her apartment because of the acute angle and speed of some of the turns. For the majority of the ride, her thoughts were mulling over the variety of new information she discovered. She also half listened to Sung state the obvious, a technique she had perfected from lots of practice with her mother. She jumped in her seat at the sudden outburst from Choi. Turning to look back at him as the SUV was coming to a halt. "No vision, but I found a Bible on the floor …. and collected a lot of information from the attic. Sung found some artifacts too." Without wasting any more time, she exited the vehicle and bowed to Master Sung. "Thank you for the ride and for saving the investigation today." That was the best Choi would get right now and she was glad he didn't die. It was the only expectation she gave him after all. She paused, "I found a business in San Francisco that I think you may want to check out if you are up for it while I am researching … P3 Apothecary". Then she turned and went inside the building.
Choi waited until she entered the building. He sat up and braced his head against the back window. It was a painful endeavor. "Why of all people did Master Sung send me to work with someone who would rather be on her own?" he inquired. "You have been around a while. Why?"
"It was not so much me and to be honest I do not need to give you an answer. I do not need to explain myself to you, But I will," Sung replied backing out and driving. "I did choose you because of your record so Far and highly recommended. Like you I follow orders I was given an order and fulfilled it, that simple" remarked Sung with some annoyance in his tone. "Understand some families in the Dragons go back very far and have a high standing in the Dragons. Some families even go back to the beginnings of the Dragons organization itself. My family line is one of those families so are the Moon's families. Our Families never officially met until 20 years ago. This is your chance to be in the spotlight and be seen by our regional directors. To rise quickly in the organization." Sung informed Choi. Sung probably went into more detail than needed or had to But Choi impressed Sung with his actions back at the house.
Yeong had mixed emotions concerning this chastisement. He was embarrassed that he asked the question. He was surprised that he had caught the eyes of someone with more authority other than Master Park. He was angry from the pain. He was happy that Alyssa and Powers were safe. He was confused at his reception from Eun-Ji. But the compliment from Sung gave him the confidence to talk. "There was another book," Choi explained. "It was in the basement. It was called The End Rite I left it there because of what happened whenever I opened it."
Sung glanced in the rearview mirror. "It is probably in the hands of the Illuminati by now," said Sung now looking disappointed that he missed that. "I think we can trade information on that With the book that Eun-Ji got and now is studying. We might have not made friends but maybe acquaintances. Remember there are times in life when you have to call on others. So do not burn your bridges with the Illuminati or The Templars." said Sung advising his experience. Sung paused thinking. "Does not mean you have to like them but be professional it is the best course of action.
"I have no issues working with the Illuminati," Choi admitted. "They do strange things, especially that Powers guy, but I have no issues with them. The Templars seem to be less likely to share information. I'm surprised we haven't run into them yet." "Do you have any idea who someone named Emma or Marquardt maybe?" Yeong then pursued. "Those names were mentioned in the vision I had after opening the other book." He refused to mention the name, for it seemed to imply the end of time.
"Emma and Marquardt, I don't think so. I thought you guys saw them in a vision right?" asked Sung. "we are almost to the condo I hope you can get some rest there." said Sung turning down another street. the condos and houses are nice this was the better part of the town. Nothing luxurious but a nice area.
Choi managed to look out the window of the Suburban. The neighborhood looked nice, he agreed. San Francisco, as much as many liked it, wasn't South Korea. The thought of working with a grandmaster and a member of an ancient family from within the Dragon made him more confident. He had always been confident in his abilities. Run-Ji was a lucky one. She had a family. Yeong didn't know his biological family. As far as he was concerned, the monks of the monastery were Choi's family. Master Park was like a father to him. "It was strange, the vision," Choi agreed. "It seemed apocalyptic. I saw all three organizations running from something in Africa. A woman holding a scalpel. A man dressed in black. A voice announced, Dark days are here. Emma is anima. Marquardt…This is the end of days."
Sung drove into an underground parking lot and parked his SUV. getting out Sung helped Choi "I saw in your records you were raised in a monastery. I bet that was ruff." said Sung helping Choi to the elevator. Sung thought about the end of the day's comment from Choi. and the names. But how many times have they said something like that before? better do it right or the world will end thought Sung.
Posted by : red_sword7
The icky blackness crept into Alyssa's room engulfing it in dread and fear. It crawled up from the floor, pulled away from the wall and ceiling forming a ball of darkness.
Alyssa was powerless against it. She could not only see but feel the creature move closer, growing taller, then taking form.
Feet, legs, hands arms, body, head. A gelatous oozing form of her father. He slimed on top of her, hissing the words. "You're fault. You did this to me. You. I should have never asked for you on assignment." One head turned to two. Her mother's head, a green ooze that turned into acid upon hitting Alyssa's face. With the words. "You are worthless. Not good for anything. Your fault." The body had become serpant like
Slithering over her, making it impossible to move. "No, no..." She yelled to no avail.
The two heads morphed back into one. Large pointed teeth protruded from its acid filled mouth. "NOW, YOU PAY!" The mouth opened wider, it was going to consume her.
"No, no..." The screams from Alyssa's room started quietly but quickly gained volume. To finally there was no mistaken the loud. "NO! STOP!" And very loud scream that came from behind the closed door.
Sartre was jolted awake by the loud scream enough to be prepared to use something than a firearm. All the lights were out in the hotel suite no time to turn them on in this city. Raising his pistol into a fighting position he made his way into the bedroom expecting an edritch horror. He flicked on the light to find... Nothing. He lowered the pistol, sat it on the nightstand "Alyssa, are you ok. He realized he was in a state of of undress except for his boxers. He flung the covers back still weary of a cosmic abomination from a centuries old book of shadows. He was concerned nothing about appearances. "Alyssa wake up" He positioned himself not to be injured when she jolted awake.
The loud noise startled Max next door as he was eating pizza. He then flexed his muscles as pink slime oozed from his skin and cover him till it took the shape of a muscular man named Agent Powers. Then with a slice of pizza in his mouth he burst out of his room and made his way to the room Alyssa was in. He tried the locked door but over did it and broke the handle as he forced the door open. He burst in to look around ready to fight while holding a slice of pizza in his mouth.
"Alyssa, was having a nightmare." Peter explained.
Agent Max was ready to pummel any bad guys but the whole nightmare thing made him pause like an idiot with the pizza dangling from his mouth. Then he pulled out the slice to talk as he replied, "Oh...is she okay?"
Alyssa was slow to come out of her nightmare, then the sound of Peter's voice made it to her mind jolted her suddenly awake. She was breathing as if she had just run a marathon and the young woman, felt him hold her. She was about to break down into tears but only a few came when Max burst through the door, pizza in hand. She moved back and released the hug, so the big guy could see she was alright, physically anyway. Wiped the few tears from her eyes. "I'm alright." Alyssa said probably unconvincingly.
"Shes physically alright. He relaxed the hug "Alyssa, remember your're on the beach in the winter. "She'll be alright Max." He wiped away more wetness. not bothering to look at anything else. I'm here with you for the rest of the night." Max you can go back to your room. Sorry for waking you."
He heard the contents of her mumbling but was in no way going to bring it up. Can you go go back to sleep Alyssa?" What was wrong with this city? He gently laid her down and squeezed her hand. You need the light Alyssa?"
Agent Powers was a bit confused as they told him she was fine despite her tears. He remembered crying during his training but eventually stopped since it didn't help him. He then replied, "Okay. Sorry about your door. Sometimes I get bad dreams about going on vacation with dad. Its bad enough I have to camp in the middle of a jungle, but I hate it when he pushed me out of the chopper instead of landing it. (pause) Well I'll be next door if you need something." With that Agent Powers ate his pizza as he left the room to go back to his room.
"Thank, Max." Alyssa really did mean that. "See you for breakfast."
Once Max left, Alyssa turned to Peter. "I really don't think I can go back to sleep. I need to do something. Why don't I fix the door, then see if I'm more ready for sleeping."
"Sure", he finally respectfully but discreetly looked down at her in the light unable to help himself. " It was just a dream." He was going to ask if he should step away while she fixed the door but decided against it. She was vulnerable, so was he, so was the world. "Use your power. "
She was wearing a sleep outfit that amounted to grey sleep pants and a light green tank top. She threw a sweatshirt that had a Guns and Rose's logo on over her tank and went to the door. In a matter of minutes it was fixed. This allowed her to clear her mind a little of the nightmare.
The young woman yawned, "I think I can try to go back to sleep." She paused a moment as if almost embarrassed to ask. "Would you sit with me, while I go back to sleep?" She asked Peter.
Agent Powers then returned to his room and locked the door before releasing his muscular form back into slime. Once he clawed his way out of the pile of slime he caught his breath and then washed his face in the bathroom as the pile of slime evaporated. Then he went back to eating his pizza as he put on the tv and watched re-runs of the "Outer Limits." He found it entertaining and oddly similar to his everyday life.
"Nice shirt! and I absolutely will Alyssa." Peter said. He waited for her to lie down. The sweatshirt. He reached to politely help her remove it as she sat down. "I enjoyed Chinese Democracy. "You want the light left on?"
"Thanks," Alyssa's sweatshirt it was the more known logo of the band with guns crossed and roses intertwined. Chinese Democracy. "Yeah...that was good." Why was she so suddenly exhausted?
She slipped down under the covers, letting her head sink into the pillows. Light? "Yeah, sure." Coming out as a half mumble before drifting back off to sleep.
He noticed her exhaustion. It seemed odd. Something with the cosmos. He left the light on. lightly stroked her hair. embraced her, turned towards her and closed his eyes. The Cosmos. A pale blue dot.
Posted by : Cindy
"Best to work from top to bottom. If there is an attic, that would be a good place to start."
Given Corinth's belief that the other Societies had beat them to the house, his warning that the others might still be inside, and the fact that the front door was unlocked, Lumina was on her toes as they made their way to the attic. Lumina naturally had a light step, but even the most gifted burglar could make creaky stairs creak.
And creak they did. By the time Lumina followed Corinth into the attic, felt in her bones that if they had been noticed. Thankfully, there was nobody waiting for them up there, and she followed Corinth's example in taking a look at the dusty place. Shattered jars and prints and indicated that Corinth's intuition had been spot on. Somebody else had been up here. Recently.
"Come check this out. Looks like a spellbook. Wonder why it wasn't taken. Let's make sure we take it with us."
Lumina grinned as Corinth drew her attention to a book on a pedestal, and not just any book. A spellbook was a very good find for any warlock. "I didn't realize it was my birthday!" she exclaimed. Then her smile faltered. In her experience, if something seemed too good to be true, then it usually was. Lumina brought up yet another Detect Magic spell. There were wards on the spell book. If she was a betting woman, there were probably traps that would be tripped if she tried to take that book too far. No wonder the other Societies hadn't taken it. "I think it's rigged," Lumina moaned. "Well, I guess I will just have to pick the best spells to learn now, and maybe I'll get a chance to learn more from it later."
Lumina began looking through the spells in the book. She was just starting to understand the notation the author used for the spell incantations and motions when she heard something from downstairs. Was somebody shouting?
"Did you hear something?" Corinth inquired.
"Somebody yelled something about jars I think," Lumina whispered. "A male voice. You were right about one thing. We are not alone. So you are sure that the other Societies won't shoot us on sight?"
Corinth assured her that was the case, but again advised staying on guard. Lumina left the guarding to him as she returned to reading the spellbook. She was starting to be able to wrap her head around the contents of the book pretty quickly, and she had to admit that she was rather disappointed. She would have assumed that spell book of three witches who supposedly held the very power of fate in their hands would have a terrifying collection of reality warping magics at their disposal, but most of the spells she was reading about were spells she already knew, spells that didn't seem terribly helpful, or spells that seemed far too situational. Surely they would at least have a spell for tapping into the ley lines they built the house on…
There it was!
As she wrapped her head around the Tap Ley Line Spell, she took her own spellbook out of her bag and began copying it down, which was a fairly time consuming process. Actually learning how to perform the spell would take even longer, and a quick glance at Corinth informed her that he was already getting impatient. She did the best she could with her transcription, and then pulled her phone out and snapped photos of the page in the spell book. "Alright, let's keep moving."
Lumina reactivated her Detect Magic spell once she and Corinth made it back to the second floor. The two of them split up and swept the second floor, and didn't find much, but thankfully they didn't bump into any other agents either.
That changed as she and Corinth began heading back down to the first floor. Lumina immediately spotted a man in the foyer looking at his watch.
"Watch it cowboy," the man stated, glancing up in her direction, and Lumina only then noticed that Corinth's hand had drifted toward his holster.
"Who are you?" Lumina demanded.
"Your cleanup crew," the man responded.
"What?"
"Look, our instructions were to wait for you guys to go, but I have things I want to do with my evening besides being here at this haunted house at midnight cleaning up ghost shit, so if you don't mind, can you hurry it up a little bit?"
Lumina glanced at Corinth. "Umm…"
"We are done with the attic and the second floor if you and your team want to get started with those. Stay out of our way and we will stay out of yours," Corinth informed the man.
"Fine, I suppose that's good enough," the man grumbled. "Just make the rest of your investigation quick."
As he went back outside, Lumina and Corinth began their sweep of the first floor. Lumina's detect magic spell picked up that a transmutation spell of sorts had been used to repair the door, and she started to pick up traces of and unfamiliar magic pervading the area, which she concluded must he the ley lines. Corinth found stairs into the basement, and after finding nothing else of value, they made their way into the basement…
Posted by : Sky
Corinth didn't like the cleaners attitude, but it was getting late. Had Lumina not been there, he might have shown the man just how disrespectful he was being. But she was and they had work to do.
While she scanned everything with her detect magic spell, Corinth moved to the kitchen and began looking around. He opened cabinet after empty cabinet, only to find a small bottle of tequila resting in the far corner back against the wall in one. He looked it over and slipped it into his pocket.
Opening a door he thought would lead him to the pantry, was actually the door to the basement. There was a stench that flowed up the stairs and into his lungs. It wasn't pleasant by any means.
"Hey," he shouted, "I found the basement." Pulling his gun from its resting place, Corinth descended the stairs, Powell leading the way.
The lights were still on, allowing him to see everything when he reached the last step. On the ground, to his side, lay a black shadowy creature. Keeping his gun on it, he nudged it over with his foot. It was a Shade and it was slowly beginning to dissipate. This meant, that whoever killed it, hadn't been gone too long. It also might explain the broken jar upstairs.
Looking around, he noticed all the disturbed dust on the floor. Made sense, there was a fight here. But how many people were involved? Kneeling down, he studied the scene as best he could and concluded there were at least three people in the basement battling the Shade. One of them had a gun and was either really scared or couldn't shoot worth a damn. There where bullet holes scattered about the room. If the person was shooting into the fight, it was a miracle they didn't hit anyone.
Continuing to look around, he noticed that a lot of the boxes and tubs had already been rummaged through. If anything important was found, it was probably long gone by now. At least, that's what he thought before he noticed a small black book off to the side. Picking it up, he read the title, "The End Rite." The buzzing in his head picked up as he held it in his hand. His fingers felt like there was a small amount of electricity running through them.
"And what makes you so special?" He opened the book and received flashes of pictures, but they moved too fast to fully comprehend. It was like someone was flipping a stack of polaroid's in front of him and only seeing glimpses.
"Well...shit." He rubbed his eyes and blinked a few times. "You're definitely coming with me." He looked to see if Lumina had made her way down yet and tossed her the book. "What do you make of that?"
Posted by : Dblitz13
The man Dozuk, an occult leader dressed in dark clothing looked into the round glass orb with interest. Only his face was lit up by the ornate magic candles around him. He had been with the Mistress for 10 years now and was a trusted cult leader. The strange liquid swirled in the orb as the man spoke the ancient magic words.
Dozuk knew something was wrong with the Halliwell Estate. The magic was disturbed there on the grounds. Dozuk used the remote eyes of seeing to look around the estate. The jars with eyes and ears in them were like magic cameras and mic being able to see and hear what was going on there. Most would not even think of the jars much and some were even hidden from plane view.
Dozuk saw the intruders like he had always done and normally would not worry about them but something did not feel right. when the Shade was relisted he relaxed the Shade had killed and devoured most who showed up leaving no trace of anyone behind. This was the normal way to guard things for the madam. and how Dozuk likes to deal with unwanted people.
He watched the stuff unfold and thought the Shade had dealt with the intruders until the gunfire erupted. Dozuk knew then this was no random group. they did not just run at the sight of the Shade they fought it. and the people looked skilled it was when an older man showed that they defeated the Shade this bothered Dozuk deeply. He would have to report this to the Madam. Dozuk knew the Halliwell Estate was compromised now and probably the Books that had been safe for centuries were no longer there and probably taken.
He walked into the chamber of his of the Lich Witch who sat on a throne separated by a red veil. The smell of old leather and other incense filled the room as Dozuk entered the room and took a knee.
"Madam Demonia, I hope you can forgive my intrusion have a report The Halliwell Estate has been compromised the books stolden and the Shade killed." He started. There was a hiss from behind the veil that frightened Dozuk. Madam Demonia had killed people for less draining the life right out of them. Turning them into dust.
The voice sounded horse and slurred S's "Who" is all the shadow behind the veil asked in anger. Dozuk studdered some "I... I.. don't know yet. Waiting to see if something comes from our contacts, Madam." replied Dozuk with respect and humility. The shadow stood up slowly and then pointed at Demonia. "Find, Kill them, get the Books. You will pay if you Fail, Dozuk," the voice hissed.
Dozuk bowed his head to Madam Demonia. "I will die trying, I will not fail, Madam," he replied at first. "I will put all our resources into this task. I will alert the Chosen Ones' leaders," said Demonia standing turning and leaving the room.
Posted by : red_sword7
Choi got cleaned up, unassisted by Sung. It was painful, but Yeong was finding it easier to block the pain by first meditating.
While meditating, there came that familiar buzz, which led to another vision. In this one, Choi witnessed several bodies, all dead, wearing Nike shoes and the same shirt. What did this mean? The vision faded out as if Choi was going backwards out of the house. It was another mansion. Yeong was certain if he came across this place, he'd recognize it.
After a soothing hot shower, Choi looked for Sung. He was famished from his energy use and needed to be replenished.
In Sung's apartment, He made some tea and some simple snacks, for Choi. Sung for some reson felt like being nice. It was culture to be hospitable. When Choi came out and into the living room Sung looked to see if he was moving better. "I hope the rest and shower helped you feel better," said Sung poring some tea for Choi.
Choi bowed to Master Sung, saying, "Yes, thank you, Master Sung!" Looking around, he affirmed, "Your accommodations are splendid. Thank you for inviting me tonight."
Yeong notes ces the spread of nuts and fruit. He notice geum gyuls, gam, and podo for fruit. There were ginkgo nuts, pine nuts, walnuts, and pistachios. It was a perfect snack.
"You are quite generous, Master Sung!" Choi announced to his host. "So, tomorrow we check out the apothecary?"
"That would be a good start and anything that Eun-Ji wants us to look into. Understand I am not in charge so you can do what you need to complete your mission. But it was good to take the initiative to bring us together. So we can compleat the missions given to us. That shows leadership," said Sung now setting two bottles on the table. They were a flat green color made of glass with a clear liquid in them. The Koren drink Soju. "From home" commented Sung with a smile.
Choi raised an eyebrow. The monks at the monastery didn't drink. In fact, except for some rituals, alcohol is forbidden within the monastery's confines.
Choi wasn't a monk. He was simply raised at the monastery. He trained there with Master Park. So, Choi took one of the bottles.
The taste was sweet and clean, very smooth. Choi's expression took on the look of pleasure. It was rare Yeong drank anything but tea. However, during missions, he made exceptions once in a while.
"Aju johayo," Choi calmly stated. (Very good) "I believe we should follow the lead Eun-Ji gives to us. I also may have another," he confided to Sung. "While meditating, I had another vision. Another mansion containing many dead bodies. They all had the same Nikes on and the same shirt."
Sung sits back in the chair "I am sure all of this has to do with what they call the end times maybe. Visions are not my expertise. I do get them sort of. But only in fighting or danger. I might get a flash of what's to come. " replied Sung thinking.
Takeing a sip of his Soju. "It could be a warning for you what is to come. This is different from what I have heard. Never met anyone that has them so often that does have me concerned. what might be coming our way soon." stated Sung looking up at the ceiling.
Choi took a sip, wondering what Eun-Ji was doing on the case. If he knew, he'd branch off and assist in another way. She seemed very focused on what she was doing.
He sipped the soju, then replied, "I think something of great importance is about to happen or has already begun. What I see usually has something to do with what is needed for the investigation."
Sung thought for a moment. "There was that saying. Oh yes, All roads lead to Rome or China in some places. In this case, we all came to the same house. two different groups and different people This type of thing does not happen much. Most of the time different organizations go their own way and do their own thing," explained Sung taking another drink. "That would lead me to believe that something is brewing. All will reveal itself in time, Choi," said Sung thinking about it.
Yeong completed the soju, ate a few pieces of fruit and nuts. "So," he thought aloud, after a quick breakfast tomorrow, we check out the apothecary."
"Yes," Sung answered then looked at Cho. "Time for a healing." Sung got up and placed his hand on the shoulder of Choi saying some ancient words his hand had a white hue. "You should be good by tomorrow," remarked Sung.
"Thanks!" Choi said with a yawn. "I will see you tomorrow. Thank you for the accommodations for tonight. It was much needed."
Posted by : mdman
San Francisco, Halliwell Manor, Basement, Dusk After Kramer's Death
The basement had clearly been the site of a struggle between members of one (or at least most likely one) of the other Secret Societies, and some terrible spectral creature which Corinth seemed to recognize. Granted he was a monster hunter, so such knowledge must come with the territory. Unfortunately the thing's carcass was making the place smell bad, and Lumina had work to do. The ley line's presence was very potent here, and Lumina very much intended to take a stab at tapping into that power.
Before she got a chance to pull out her spellbook, Corinth made his way to a small black book away from the dead creature and announced the title.
"The End Rite"
Not spooky at all. The book emitted a strange purple light and appeared to immediately have some effect on Corinth as he looked into its contents. He seemed dazed as he subsequently tossed her the book, which she barely managed to catch. The book had similar wards to the spellbook in the attic, but there was a very different sort of power to this one as well. Lumina hesitated, then opened the book. Before she could even attempt to read text, she was bombarded by images and scenes from all over the world. Portals, pyramids, a strangely familiar swamp, angels, and gun battles in jungles and malls appeared in her mind and left just as fast. She also heard some names spoken. Emma and Marquard. It all happened so quickly that Lumina couldn't process it all.
Lumina found herself on back, the book lying on the floor near her. The left side of her hip, her left shoulder, and the back of her head hurt. She must have fallen while she was seeing whatever vision the book had shown her. Lumina pushed herself up as she struggled to recall all the things she had seen. It took her a moment to realize that Corinth had said something, and when she looked up, she could see concern etched in his expression. "Marquard… I've heard that name…" she murmured. She tried to explain to Corinth what she had seen but found she could barely describe her experience. "Shit, I'm going to need to do this again…"
Deciding to remain seated in case she collapsed again, Lumina forced herself to open the black book again. This time she was able to focus more on the visions and events that seemed to make more sense to her, burning those pictures and words into her mind. She noted the backdrops of the portals, the face of the woman holding the scalpel, the form of the man clothed from head to toe in black, the man dressed in an ancient tunic surrounded by bleeding candles, the swamp she had seen through her clairvoyance spell through the anomaly the prior evening, the visage of the terrified man with the old telephone in a crypt, and the angelic figures gathered in an alien environment. The voice, whoever it belonged to, claimed that someone named Emma was anima, and that she was a key, while also mentioning the end of days. The voice seemed to be speaking to Marquard, which as the scene transitioned, appeared to be the target of agents of the Templars and other groups. Following the scene of violence in a shopping mall, another voice reiterated that the end of the world was imminent.
The next thing Lumina saw was Corinth kneeling beside her, and it took her a moment to realize that this new image heralded her return to reality. Shakily, she was able to elucidate what she had seen, after which she pulled a notebook and pen out of her bag and began writing it all down to make sure they would have a record of it. Corinth did a quick sweep of the rest of the basement while she did this and helped her back to her feet. Although the stench of the dead creature and the haunting visions were oppressing her, Lumina had one more item of business to address while she was still in the basement, and it wasn't going to be quick.
Going to where the aura of the ley lines had been strongest, Lumina pulled open her spellbook and reviewed the photos she had taken in the attic, and then got to work figuring out how to cast the spell the Halliwell Sisters had recorded for tapping into the ley line junction. Through careful attention to annotation, intuition, and trial and error, Lumina at last felt something happening as she adjusted the position of her left index finger during the umpteenth attempt at the spell. A few more adjustments and she finally got it. The power of the ley line flooding into her was not quite familiar, but it was nonetheless comforting. It felt almost like a certain fog she had not even realized she had been wading through had been lifted, replaced by clarity, focus, and energy. For a moment, she felt like she was the queen of the world.
And then she came back down to earth. Lumina quickly jotted notes into her spellbook to clarify the actions she needed to take to make the spell work, then performed it again to make sure she had dialed it in. The effect was significantly more mild this go round, leading Lumina to conclude that there was a limit to the amount of power she could hold from the ley line at any given time. Her business was done here.
Lumina persuaded Corinth to leave the The End Rite where he had found it due to her suspicion that the wards might trigger a trap if they tried to leave with it. There had to be a reason the other Secret Society(s) had left it after all.
As they made their way out of the basement, Lumina asked Corinth, "Is there anything else you think we need to do here, or do you think it's time we hit the morgue?"
Posted by : Sky
"I think we are done here. Book upstairs, book downstairs...I doubt there is anything else in the middle. Still not sure I agree with you on leaving those books here at the house, but if upper management asks me why, I'm telling them I trusted a Warlock's judgement."
Exiting the house, he gave the impatient cleanup crew the go ahead to do whatever it was they were supposed to do. "What did that Ley Line spell do? Turn you into some type of battery? I mean, I felt the surge and you did have a funny look on your face when you everything was over with."
Getting into the car, he looked up the hospital and turned on the GPS. It was a little ways deeper into the city, close to downtown. It was the only hospital that was close enough to all three crime scenes so it made sense all the bodies were taken there. At least until the funeral home comes to collect them and that could be any moment, depending on religious beliefs and other factors. Hopefully, still being part of an investigation, the bodies were staying put.
The drive was minimal and most traffic had died down by the time they were on the road. A few twists and turns, a few stop lights, and they were there, pulling into the parking lot, the sun moving behind the horizon not to be seen until the next day.
"This may be a little tricky. You're not exactly dressed as anybody official so convincing the right people to let us through might prove...annoying." He looked over at her as they made their way into the main entrance of the hospital. "Might want to start having a little forethought in your clothing if you plan to stay my partner. I'm not saying FBI business suit, but something a little less...," he pointed at her,"...that."
The automatic doors opened and Corinth went to the information desk and greeted a nice old woman. He showed her his fake police badge and asked her for directions to the morgue.
"Take the elevator over there and go down to basement 2, then follow the signs." Corinth smiled and thanked her.
"See how easy that was? Regular people rarely question a badge as long as you have the confidence and the look to back it up." He pushed the button to the elevator and the doors opened up for them. "After you," he said, gesturing her inside. Once in, Corinth pressed the button marked B2 and down they went.
The basement level of the hospital was very stereotypical in it's look. The kind of long, white, cinderblock hallways one would normally see in a horror movie. The temperature was colder than the rest of the hospital, partly for being so far underground and partly for having large refrigerating units to keep the bodies cold. Leading the way, Corinth walked with the swagger of a seasoned investigator, but maybe not so much a detective.
Pushing through a pair of swinging doors, the duo were now standing in the morgue with no less than five naked dead bodies on gurneys and one very surprised, and soon to be angry, coroner.
"John Doe number 445 has a deep laceration to his...what is the meaning of this? You are not supposed to be down here," said the coroner as he pulled off his bloody gloves and turned off his microphone. "What is the meaning of this?"
Corinth put his hands up. "Easy there. Where detectives from the San Fran PD and we need to have a look at the bodies."
"Again," questioned the coroner. "Your people were just here yesterday and the day before that. How many times do you need to look at them?"
"This is the last time. I have a special consultant with me and she needs to look them over."
The coroners eyes squinted, "what kind of consultant?"
Sighing, Corinth moved to the coroner and placed his arm over his shoulders, turning him around and away from Lumina. "Look, I'm not supposed to say anything, but she's a," he whispered low so only the coroner could hear, "a psychic." Corinth made a face and rolled his eyes. "The department is looking into some of that new agey stuff and I got stuck with her. Her names Lumina for Christs sake. Give me twenty minutes and we'll be out of your hair, promise."
The coroner looked over his shoulder at Lumina and then shook off Corinth's arm. "I'll need to see the warrant."
"The warrant's up with your Dean of Medicine, alright? We've already talked to her before we got here. Now, we can either go back to her office and listen to her spill it, or you can give me the damn twenty minutes I've been asking for. Let's make this easy, okay?" Corinth was losing his patience, but he knew the coroner wouldn't want to go see his boss just to get chewed out over a lousy twenty minutes.
"Alright, alright. Twenty minutes. I got to go make a few calls anyway."
"We'll be done by the time you get back, promise," Corinth shot back with a smile. When he looked back over to Lumina, the smile was gone and in a serious no shit voice, he sternly said, "You got twenty minutes, Hawkins."
Posted by : Dblitz13
David's Apartment - Downtown San Francisco, CA
As the early morning light filtered through the windows, Eun-Ji stirred awake well before the alarm clock was meant to sound, her mind still buzzing with anticipation from what she had learned the previous day. She wasted no time in starting her day, moving through her morning routine. After a modified travel workout and a nutritious breakfast, she settled into David's apartment to resume her research. With multiple tabs open on her laptop and access to the Dragon-owned server provided by David, she delved deep into the secrets of the holy Bible and the apocrypha of Saint Ede.
In her meticulous examination of the sacred texts, Eun-Ji stumbled upon a passage that piqued her interest—a cryptic reference to the machinations of the master of the fades and the subtle marks left on victims. According to the text, those who fell prey to the master's dark magic often bore a unique mark, imperceptible and untraceable to the untrained eye but unmistakable to those attuned to the secret world. This mark manifested as a faint, crescent-shaped scar, nestled discreetly on the back of the retina inside the eyes, near the fovea. To those familiar with the hidden truths of the supernatural realm, it served as a telltale sign of the master's sinister influence. Intrigued by this revelation, Eun-Ji formulated a plan to visit the morgue and investigate further. She just needed to finished typing and uploading her findings to the Dragon server and then she would be out the door.
Posted by : Lorem
Alyssa awoke the next morning to Peter sleeping next to her. Which caught her off guard. It took her a moment to remember she had had a nightmare. She could recall Peter helping her, Max breaking the door to get in to help with the pizza hanging from his mouth. She remembered fixing the door. Asking Peter to stay with her - oh, that was it. But the actual nightmare - that was like some weird haphazardly put together collage that made little sense. She sighed, not again.
Alyssa made her way quietly out of the room, pulled out her laptop. She fired it up. Spoke to Max through his chip. "Hey, Max. You awake?"
Max had taken a nap after downing two large pizzas and watching several hours of the "Outer Limits" series. At this point he was awake and ready to transform if needed. He already ordered room service and munching on a huge family size breakfast consisting of waffles, pancakes, scrambled eggs, bacon, ham, sausage, crepes, omelets, juice, chocolate milk and hashbrowns. He was mostly done with breakfast and nibbling on the last few waffles as he was watching reruns of "Kung fu Theater" on the tv. Then he heard Alyssa ask him if he was awake through his chip. He replied through his chip, "Yeah just chillin for now and eating a snack. Feeling better?"
Alyssa wondered for a moment what a "snack" consisted of for someone like Max. "Yeah, I'm good, thanks. I'm headed to breakfast soon. We're going to be headed out later to check out a shop run by the Halliwell sisters. Just wanted to let you know so you could decide which side you want to go as." She didn't know if Max going as the 18 year old or hulk-man was better but it should be his choice. "Anyway, I'll talk to you later. Feel free to join me for breakfast. I'm not sure when Peter will wake up."
Despite the shower last night Alyssa had a feeling that, after last night, she needed another one. So, she quickly got in the shower and got dressed into a pair of jeans and a plain black t-shirt, and her shoes and headed to breakfast with laptop in tow.
Alyssa had been to breakfast areas in hotels before most were either restaurant like where food was ordered or a buffet area where guests got their own. The latter always seemed to be the case when the breakfast was free. This seemed to be a combination of the two. Their was a waitstaff for anything the guests wanted but also a buffet for those that wanted it. She opted to get some scrambled eggs, bacon and a bagel from the buffet. Also, grabbing a cup of coffee. Back at the table, Alyssa put two sugars and two creams into her coffee, stirring it. She turned her food into a breakfast sandwich by placing the scrambled eggs and bacon on the bagel. Then cut it in half, to make it easier to eat.
Alyssa still didn't see Peter or Max . She had gotten a table on a corner, big enough for four people as that area wasn't particularly bust at the moment. The computer hacker set up her laptop and started going to work.
Sartre awoke, Alyssa was already up. He thought of the cosmos. He and Wilson seemed to have bonded quickly, for the wrong reasons: her nightmare, its contents. Whatever was causing problems in the city and the world was big. As he showered he knew today was a day to get answers. After drying off he hastily got into his suit. Today was not the day of the factions, it was the day of the three sisters. Well at least two of them... As he headed to the continental breakfast, he spoke to Alyssa Wilson in his chip. It was business for now. "The three living are Piper, Phoebe and Paige, though something tells me the other sister Prue is one of the keys. Also after I left the cult crime scene, I spoke with Charles Duane, a Pastor, he seems to know something as well, we need to stop by his church after the apothecary. Approaching Alyssa at her table he said, "Check the surveillance footage Alyssa, The Templars stole the book of shadows from the manor. who knows what team green has or is up to. I was not going to take things from their home, though we perhaps should have grabbed the book of shadows. After ordering a quick breakfast, in the headset he said, "we're in the same bed every night until this case is over. I'm not letting anything happen to you."
Alyssa heard Peter's voice in the chip and looked up to see the man entering the breakfast area. She had been down there long enough to eat half of her sandwich and get some work done. "I'm ahead of you. I already checked. It doesn't look like the Greens took anything." She wondered how he knew the Templars took the Book of Shadows. He seemed adamant about the sleeping arrangements, she had planned on getting her own room today. It was all making her feel a little crowded, but she was also uneasy about what was happening. Alyssa changed the subject and spoke back into the chip. "I got information on the other Templar. I'll tell you later."
Max was debating on going to eat breakfast with Alyssa. It was nice to hear her give him a choice on what form to come for breakfast, but his dad would lecture him if he was in his teenage form during work hours. Not to mention he was used to eating and sleeping alone be it a fancy hotel or the middle of a jungle. Then he heard a knock at the door and opened it to get his second room service tray of food. He replied to Alyssa through his chip, "Thanks for the invite but I already ordered room service. Just let me know when we are leaving so I can meet you downstairs." Then Max began opening his trays to eat his second breakfast. He knew he needed the calories so he splurged on breakfast while watching his Kung Fu Theater
Peter spoke through the chip, "Information, way to go Alyssa!"
"I'll be right back. There's one way to see what Team Green are up to." It had worked yesterday, so he was going to risk it again. Entering into a bathroom stall, he would relax, close his eyes and see through the haze. The book of shadows being removed from the house by the Templars, Eun Ji the dragon in possession of the bible of Saint Ede the Pious. The End Rite in the Halliwell basement. Then images of the Silver City bridge collapse. A man being questioned by the inquisition... Armed men making a tactical entry against a man in his early sixties, something about "Green Dammit" followed by bursts of automatic gunfire. An Angry Theodore and Ammirillis Wicker arguing with a woman in the hell dimension. A dark haired woman in the woods. A portal. That same woman stabbing Alyssa with a scalpel then saying "Dark days are here..." He awoke shaken with a slight headache but it was manageable, returning to the table with the team he said, team green took the bible of Saint Ede. They left the End Rite in the basement. We will pick it up after we convince the sisters to go back to the manor and help us. "
"Hold on, let me get Max in on this." Alyssa tapped into Max's chip, so he could hear what Peter was saying.
Alyssa herself messaged Max through the chip. "Meet us in the lobby. 15 minutes good?"
She then spoke to Peter, as she was packing up her laptop. "I'll need to grab more coffee on the way."
Max was scooping food into his mouth when he heard Alyssa's voice in his chip. He replied, "Sounds good. I'll meet you there." He continued to shovel his food into his mouth so he could have enough time to transform and race downstairs. Once he was done he transformed back into Agent Powers and raised down the stairs since it was faster than waiting for the elevator. As he stopped before the last door to the lobby he calmed down and took a deep breath before he muttered, "I am at home with me. I am rooted in the me who is on this adventure. Now take a deep breath, and realize that this is me breathing." Once he was ready he opened the door and made his way to the team.
Alyssa was in the lobby waiting for the team to be ready. She carried her laptop in her backpack slung over her left shoulder as she absent-mindedly squeeze a firmish stress-ball that looked like a small globe. Her mind drifting to the events of last night. Her nightmare. She knew it was a nightmare. The feeling upon being woken from one was unmistakable. Certainly wasn't the young woman's first and wouldn't be her last but ...
Her mind played back to the day her father went missing, as it turned out there was also huge gaps in her memory from that day.
Not just that day but every nightmare since then nothing, and she could could vividly remember dreams before then. There was more but not what Alyssa was focused on at the moment. Why was last night's nightmare different? Why did bits and pieces of it hang her mind. Her parents, black nothingness, a few words spoken, those hideous teeth but nothing else. The images were jumbled as well changing as the day went on. She now saw the blackness engulf her parents, the teeth were green. And for the life of the woman, there was no remembering the images that came before and less, and less of them were invading her brain. Leaving more empty spots in her mind.
Agent Powers did his best to not bump the other staff and hotel guests as he passed by. He was trying to look professional but ended up giving everyone a smoldering grin. Eventually he met up with Alyssa and gave her a smoldering smile as he said, "Ready to roll?"
The sound of Max's voice came as a jolt to Alyssa who had been lost in thought. She jumped slightly, "Max. Hi. Sorry, um..." What did he say? Ready? "We're just waiting on Peter."
He arrived in the lobby anxious, "lead the way Alyssa."
Agent Powers replied, "Oh just saying I'm ready to roll when you are," Do we need to bring or do anything?" Agent Powers looked dashing as he put his hands on his hips.
"Any ideas Alyssa?"
"Nothing I can think of. I guess we wait until we get there." The computer hacker replied.
She lead the two men to her van and unlocked it. "Max, I'm sorry I can't give you more space than the back of the van." Though it was more spacious than the front but still. She crawled into the back of the vehicle. Put her laptop back into its place and started it up. Typed a few things in and the equipment she had shut down started back up.
She then typed a few more things. The mointors for the cameras went blank, the one still focused on the Halliwell house. She kept typing.. "I'll be ready to go in a minute."
Agent Powers nodded and grinned as he replied, "It's cool. I am used to it. i just hope I don't break anything by accident." Then he did his best to get secured for the ride. He quietly watched Alyssa and Peter try to figure out their next move. As he watched them work he felt out of place and was reminded of the huge gap in experience they shared. At best he was an average student he felt even dumber next to Alyssa who was a computer genius. All Max could do was play a few games on his phone and use simple apps. Then that Peter guy seem to know a lot of stuff even if he came off as a bit of a jerk by ignoring him during conversations. Most of Max's experiences involved learning to survive in horrible places and honing his combat skills in life and death situations such as being dropped off in a South American jungle full of cannibals and told to make it to an extraction point if he wanted to get home. Sadly this meant his social skills were very warped and he struggled to make friends thus making dating an impossible option. However he needed to prove to his father that he could still be a good agent so he was given the opportunity to work with others for a change. It was awkward for him and he didn't know what to say outside of work. As he saw Alyssa he noticed she was tired and had dark circles under eyes. He wondered if she was also having a hard time in her life. Sadly he had no idea how to bring that topic up.
Sartre sat in the front. "What are you typing?" He then added, "We leave here, hopefully with them to see if they can handle The End Rite in the basement at the manor. "Should we tell them that the Templars took the Book of Shadows?"
When Peter asked what she was typing, Alyssa held up her index finger to tell him to give her a minute. Then said, "There." The screens showing the cameras, except the one for the Halliwell Manor, had changed. She had hacked into other street cameras.
Alyssa got up from her seat and pointed out the different images, "I'm going to keep this one on the Halliwell house." Pointing to the different screens as she went. "This one is Sung's house. He has a long and somewhat odd background with the Dragons. I can't be sure but he might be in charge of the mission. This one is our hotel, with all the weirdness going on, never know if that will be useful. This last one is our destination today. P3." Alyssa paused. "Hey, Max if you want you can keep an eye on the screens. Especially P3 and let us know of you see anything usual." Forewarned is forearmed after all.
Agent Powers was puzzled by this shadow book they kept mentioning so he decided to ask about it, "Uhhh sure. What is this shadow book you keep talking about?" He moved in position to see the screens.
Satre would let Alyssa answer.
"Oh, I went over the surveillance footage of the house and saw the Templars leave. They didn't take the Book of Shadows." Alyssa moved into position in the driver's seat. "The Book of Shadows is basically a spellbook. It was in the attic of the Halliwell house."
"They used it for at least 8 years. If it's still there, then they won't be upset." Peter added.
"True. It probably had protections on it. Maybe, the Templars didn't want to mess with that?" Alyssa said.
When everyone was seated, and the ones on the front buckled in, Alyssa took off out of the parking garage and down the street.
"First, coffee." Which is what she had said at breakfast.
The sign read Sycamore Coffee, clearly a local place. She pulled into the drive-through. "Anybody want anything?"
An iced coffee." Sartre thought that hot food and drinks ruined the taste.
Agent Powers was feeling like he was getting along with Alyssa so he decided to request a coffee. Granted he did like it but he was not sure if he would get odd looks for his preference of coffee so he took a chance to request it. He asked, "Hit me with a double venti organic, chocolate brownie, caramel Frappuccino, extra hot with one inch of foam... Non-fat please." As he tried to look serious he gave her a smoldering smile.
Alyssa was behind a small red sports car, as they pulled around the brick building when she heard the two men's orders. Not even batting an eye at Max's. "Got it." It took another few minutes but they made it to the order window. It only had one window.
"Iced coffee, " Alyssa gave Peter's order first, then without missing a beat. "Double extra large organic, chocolate brownie, caramel, Frappuccino, extra hot with one inch if foam, not-fat." The woman, who looked to be maybe 18, wrote down the order and then looked at the two people in the front seat and shrugged. Alyssa knew only Starbucks used Venti as a size. "Large cappuccino, vanilla syrup, 2 extra shots of espresso." The young barasta gave the amount, and Alyssa paid. While they were waiting she filled in the two men through the chip.
"The other Templar is a woman named Jennifer Hawkins. 26. She's a bit of an enigma. Not much is in her record before three years ago and 1/2 years ago. That's when she started traveling a great of the time to Europe. She was working with a known Templar agent, a warlock, Cheryl Somerset. She worked with Somerset for about a year. Then there isn't much except Hawkins traveled quite a bit." Not unusual for any agent. "That was until a little over a month ago, when Hawkins went to Hyderabad, India. She stayed there for longer than one would expect given her record. There isn't much on what happened there but matching the timing of Hawkin's arrival and her departure, the photos taken in customs on the way there versus the photos of her afterwards show she was very battered upon departure." Alyssa paused long enough to get the coffees, hand their orders to each of the men, take her own coffee and put it in the cup holder. She then drove out of the drive through before continuing. "There was an unusual diplomatic incident that occurred in between the time Jennifer arrived in India and the time she left in which an "Interpol" team violently eliminated a "terrorist cell" in the Hyderabad area." Alyssa made a turn. " The rest is really that Jennifer appears to have been out of commission until her trip to San Francisco."
Agent Powers smirked at the information and sipped his coffee. He replied, "Wow...(sip and swallow)...sounds like my vacations with my dad. So, are these Templars the violent type or the social type?" Agent Powers sipped his strong coffee again.
"They hate other factions, especially us. And the feelings are mutual. The Templars are annoyingly rigid. They have all kinds of rules and such." Alyssa paused. "Personally, if we have to work with another faction, it's better it be the Dragons. Sometimes though working with the Templars is unfortunately unavoidable."
Agent Powers nodded as he swallowed his coffee. He understood what she meant by the lack of cooperation. Sadly he experienced it at a very young age as he met a lot of people with bad intentions like cannibals, terrorists, crime lords, drug lords, slavers, war lords, tyrants, dictators, North African Royalty, Dark Clubs, Mafia, Triads, Yakuza and the occasional mad scientist. Over the last ten years he was trained to get used to violence by his adopted father. Sadly he was in the dark as to why he had to go on all those "family vacations" and his adopted father kept him in the dark on a lot of stuff. It was hard to please his adopted father, but now and then he would get some level of approval to reinforce his loyalty. If Agent Powers did come across any other faction in the past he had no clue so he had to depend on Alyssa for that part.
"How did you get involved in the Illuminati Agent Powers?" Peter asked Max
Alyssa was interested in Max's response as well. He had a definitly unique ability that the Illuminati would want to their advantage but he didn't seem much like a typical agent even without that.
Alyssa reached up between the driver's and passenger's area and light hit a small area that jutted out just a little, it revealed a little compartment. She pulled down a pair of dark purple sunglasses and put them on. The sun had been getting progressively more annoying as the morning went on.
Agent Powers swallowed his hot coffee as he thought of his answer. Then he gave a smolder as he replied, "Well my father adopted me when I was around eight and had me home schooled along with his special training. In between my lessons we would go on vacations around the world. At first he would go with me and teach me to camp in the forests, but as I got older he would push me out of the chopper and I had to find my way back to him. It was hard having to deal with the bugs, cannibals, wild animals, terrorists, criminals and bad weather along the way. To be honest I don't get why anyone would want to lived in a mansion in the middle of nowhere. I lost track of all the places I had to destroy for my dad. Anyway this is my first mission with a team so I am still learning the ropes." Agent Powers seemed calm as he sipped his coffee.
That answer, while certainly interesting and it made Alyssa feel for the man, didn't really answer the question about how Max ended up working for the Illuminati. "So, did your father get you involved with the Illuminati then?" She asked.
Agent Powers nodded as he sipped and swallowed his coffee. He replied, "Yeah my dad is some big wig in the Illuminati, but doesn't say much about it. He said I need to not rely on his position and make my own achievements. So the only thing he provides me with is some money and missions."
"Nice sunglasses Alyssa." said Sartre.
"Thanks," Alyssa replied. "I personally don't know how people stand the sun without them." She took a sip of her coffee which was now a reasonable temperature to drink. The sip turned into a longer drink before putting the coffee back in the cup holder.
Her eyes glanced into the rear view mirror, then she looked back to the street, back to the rearview mirror and shook her head slightly. Must have been nothing, just a trick of the light.
"Are we being followed?" Sartre inquired.
"Uh...no. I just thought I saw something but it probably was just the reflection of the light. " Alyssa shrugged, trying to portray seeming unconcerned.
Agent Powers noticed the topic switched from him to sunglasses to Alyssa checking her mirrors if they were being followed. He was doing his best to keep up with the thinking of the other two. He knew they were smarter than he was since he was a good student. At best he was a "C" student according to his strict father. However when it came to mass destruction and high end combat he was way above average. Sadly as he was working on an investigation with two people who were smarter than he was and he felt a bit out of place. Since he was clueless on what to talk about he pulled out his phone and looked at his game apps. He scrolled through them till he found one he was into. He smiled as he selected the "Spirit Hero Quest" game app. There he got to be a cool hero type that saved the world and gained a lot of popularity. In the game you need to do quests to gain popularity and experience points till you can summon a spirit to combine with to get stronger. Many players liked getting the dragon, Fenrir, Fire Fox and so on but they were hard to get and took a long time to level up in the end. By mere chance he managed to get a rare spirit offshoot which appeared to be a flaming chicken, but had the power of a fire phoenix. In that form he was handsome and super powerful so he was no longer teased by the competition. So since he was on his own again he began playing his game and took a quest to defeat some undead frogmen. He was once again in a good mood as he was in his fantasy world.
"What did you think you saw? Peter asked.
"I'm not sure. It was ..." Alyssa wasn't certain how to explain it. "Something black. Like a spot but different." Then she quickly added. "It was probably nothing."
Part that was because she was forgetting what she had seen, Alyssa knew, or felt there was more to it but it just wasn't there. Odd things had been happening to her for five years with little memory of them but leaving strong feelings. This was not, perhaps, not the time to bring that up.
Max was oblivious to what Peter and Alyssa were talking about as he was getting into his game. He was in his Phoenix/flaming chicken form which was a fit good looking guy who could easily be the hero of an anime or K-Pop group. He was blasting the bad guys with fire balls and racking up the experience points. He even managed to level up in a short time as he rescued the cute princess that was kidnapped going to be used as a sacrifice to bring back a Demon Lord. Agent Powers continued to smile as he tapped his phone and entered the part where he uses his charm to win the heart of the princess and return her to her home before having to leave for a new adventure. He looked up from his phone to see Alyssa and Peter were still talking on their own. He looked around to make sure nothing was falling in the back of the van before going back to his game.
Posted by : Cindy
Choi rested well that evening, awaking fresh and alert. He performed a quick exercise routine to get the blood flowing and then meditated. Thankfully, there were no visions this time.
He flipped on the TV in the guest room, listening to local news. He hopped into the shower to clean up.
After drying off, Choi listened to the news while brushing his teeth. His surprise came at the news of a mass suicide that was discovered yesterday in San Francisco. Yeong dropped the brush and intently listened to the story, seeing what he saw last night in his vision. Quickly he got dressed and searched for Master Sung.
Looking out off the balcony of the condo Sung sipped his tea watching the sun come up it was one of the things he liked in life the peace of the sunrise. There seems always to be a quiet moment just as the sun rises. Sung was in that moment in thought. Sung had already finished his meditations and workouts He did hear Choi get up but just left him on his own this morning. Sung was already dressed and ready to go.
Seeing Choi in the living room. Sung looked back out at the sky. "When you are ready he can leave. Did you need something?" said Sung appearing unamotional.
mdmanosfan
—
Today at 2:11 PM
Choi thought for a moment. He doubted if nunchucks would do much against what they would face. Yesterday attested to that.
"Yes, Master Sung," Yeong admitted, "I could not bring blades with me from Korea. I could use two. One waist sword and a bonguk geom. For jedok geom; my style of sword play. One for slashing. The other for stabbing."
Sung
—
Today at 5:53 PM
"I am not your master, Mr Sung, or even Sung in the US is ok," replied Sung. Turning around Sung walked back into the Condo. "The organization did not give you anything?" asked Sung "What are you trained in and what type of training have you gotten?" further questioning Choi.
"I do not recognize you as my personal master," Choi confessed, "but I honor you as a master. You deserve honor in that regard."
have plenty," Yeong admitted, "at home. I didn't believe it was safe to bring on a flight from South Korea. So, all I brought was my nunchucks."
Choi grinned. "As far as training, I am trained in the dahnmudo, taekwondo, the jedok geom, the dangpa, and the hyeopdo. Most of the weapons are too bulky to carry on the streets of San Francisco. But the two swords of Jedok geom can be more concealed and carried next to my body. Perhaps you know where I can purchase them?"
Sung shook his head in disappointment. "Thank you for the master part. I imagine you are right. I know a shop we can go to in the meantime I can lone you something," replied Sung walking into a room he came out with a sword in a lather shoulder case.
"This is a Jian Sword," Sung said handing it to him. "An old one, if you lose this break it. You will wish you were dead when I am done with you." Sung warned. His tone was harsh and stern his eyes said everything they looked like Sung was looking at a dead man. "Now let's get going I don't want to get there first if passable," remarked Sung picking up his fob and walking towards the door.
Yeong looked at the intricate detail of the sword. He hurriedly strapped it to his back. He reached up and over his head to get the memory of where the handle was. It felt natural in his hands.
Hurrying after Sung, Choi called out, "Thank you, Master Sung! Yes, we must get there first."
The drive was not too long. The drive itself was uneventful there other than a few bad drivers or pedestrians that were not paying attention to where they were going. Pulling into the Apothecary parking lot it was small, the building was old and mixed in with other buildings. The area was not the best. That made Sung wonder what could be behind the scenes. seeing the A Van "Look, the Mystery Machine." remarked Sung as he parked his SUV. "they got here first, not a good start." commented Sung getting out of the SUV
mdmanosfan
Choi grinned as he got out of the Suburban. He strapped the sword on his back once again, since he had to remove it in the vehicle to be comfortable.
"Let the competition begin," he said with a smirk
Posted by : red_sword7
oon enough they arrived at P3. The store was a white wooden building with deep purple trim. Alyssa went towards the back of the van and looked at the screen showing outside the store. She downed her coffee, before saying. "It looks clear."
Peter spoke to her through the chip. "Alyssa can you come in with me, they will have more rapport with you, you can do this! Do you want another room tonight? I worry about you having another nightmare."
"I was thinking about taking the suite on the other side of you, but we can discuss that later. Yeah, I'll come in and try but I'm not really skilled at talking people into things." Alyssa responded
"You will do great Alyssa!" Sartre gave words of encouragement.
The computer hacker wasn't so sure but agreed to go into the store. "Max can you wait outside the van. Watch for anything suspicious. Let us know of we need to get out of there?"
Agent Powers put his phone down as Alyssa spoke to him. He paused his game and put his phone in his pocket. Oddly enough it didn't bulge out like it should have. There was something odd about his clothing when he was in beefcake form. He replied, "Uhhh...yeah sure." Agent Powers then got out of the van and pulled out his phone to pretend he was talking on the phone as he looked around. He after seeing no threats he replied through his chip to Alyssa, "Looks clear so far. If it gets bad I can make a distraction for you to escape." Then Agent Powers played a song with the volume very low so only he could hear it as he mouthed the lyrics along. He whispered, "Well, you can tell by the way I use my walk
I'm a woman's man, no time to talk
Music loud and women warm, I've been kicked around
Since I was born
And now it's alright, it's okay
And you may look the other way
We can try to understand
The New York Times' effect on man
Whether you're a brother or whether you're a mother
You're stayin' alive, stayin' alive
Feel the city breakin' and everybody shakin'
And we're stayin' alive, stayin' alive
Ah, ha, ha, ha, stayin' alive, stayin' alive
Ah, ha, ha, ha, stayin' alive
Oh, when you walk"
Alyssa responded to Max, in her chip. "Sounds good." Then to Peter. "It's clear. "
They got out the van and headed into the shop.
The apothecary was full of several trinkets and items. The legalization of hemp products was very noticeable. A lot of the products on the shelves were labeled as "magical."
Sartre stated into Alyssa's chip "You're going to have to start slow but eventually let them know that we know who they are and that they can help us fix whatever is wrong in the city.
A young woman and her teenage daughter were leaving the store, San Francisco was still busy despite all the bizarre occurrences that have been going on.
"Those conventions are the geekiest damn things I've ever seen." Said the woman. "Who looks better that one girl or me."
"Honestly I thought that one girl looked alright "said the daughter."
The mother looked in shock inhaling a gasp of what seemed to be terror.
The two agents stepped into the shop. Alyssa started looking around at the products.
A dark-haired lightly heavy woman stood behind the counter. A woman with a tan and long blonde hair was stacking the shelves.
Sartre realized the two aged Yet familiar faces as those of Piper and Phoebe Halliwell. Alyssa also realized who they were having seen their pictures on her computer.
The dark haired woman came out from behind the counter, she glanced over at Peter but focused her attention on Alyssa. "Can I help you with anything?"
"Oh, thank you. This shop is great, to be honest I'm not even sure where to start." Alyssa replied. It was easy to fake not knowing much about the items in their because she really just didn't. Most were not what she focused on. As for the supply of THC, Alyssa really had no idea because she wasn't going to risk it with a not quite right bee inside of her. "I was looking for something to help with sleep, maybe stress."
The back haired woman, Piper, thought for a moment. "Well, you can go with CBD with no THC or THC. Personally, I've always thought this one works best for anxiety." Pointing out a small bottle of drops, encased behind glass.
Piper and Phobe seemed to eye Alyssa, then Peter, then Alyssa again. Piper then said. "Perhaps you like to see some of the things we have at the counter."
"Yes," Alyssa went to the counter with the woman.
Piper pretended to show Alyssa some books from behind the counter but said, "OK, I'd buy you wanting something for anxiety but the guy with you - really, who are you and what's going on?"
Alyssa spoke in a hushed tone. "We are agents - IIlumanti agents. You must have noticed odd things happening here. I mean stranger than usual."
By thus point Phobe had joined the discussion, "Yes, of course we noticed. What about it?"
"We think you might be able to help us," Alyssa said.
"No, we don't do that any longer." Piper replied.
"But..." Alyssa started, but was cut off.
Piper repeated. "No, look we get what you're doing and why but we want no part of it. And to be frank if I were you I'd want no part of it either." She wasn't cold, just matter of fact.
Satre heard all of this because that's when he spoke up, "You can't help us or you won't.
Sung walked in almost feeling out of place he was overdressed with his slacks and a button-up long slive shirt. Sung did not look like a cop or give that impression. More like a businessman.
A dark-haired somewhat heavy woman was talking to Alyssa. Then looked past Alyssa at Sung as we walked up behind Alyssa. The dark-haired woman smiled "Sir be with you in a minute" She told Sung.
A tan woman with long blonde hair was stacking the shelves behind the counter and looked over to Sung and Choi. now things were looking a bit wired and the feel of the place shifted. some.
"Thank you" replied Sung giving his own polite smile with a slight bow to the dark-haired woman. not wanting to possibly blow any covers he got a supervised smile "Hay
Velma, I did not think I would find you in a place like this aren't you a little young?" Sung said his tone almost sarcastic but nice it was kind of strange. Like long-lost friends but playful in some way.
As Agent Powers was acting casual on his look out he saw an SUV parking nearby and a familiar face get out. He used his chip to let Alyssa know the Dragons have arrived.
[i]Oh, great. What, are they going to blow another hole in the building?[i] Alyssa thought. In to the chip she thanked Max, then spoke to Peter. "We're about to have company of a green kind." When the very same people would enter the store.
Is she too young? She responded by barely looking at Sung. "Aren't you too old?"
Piper and Phobe looked at each other. Then Piper spoke up, pointing at Sung. "Let me guess, Dragons? Look we were telling these two," she pointed at Alyssa and Peter. "We don't want any. We'll have nothing to do with it."
When Choi saw Alyssa, he smirked and gave her a wink, "Well, if it isn't the Little One! I thought we may get see you here!" Then his face turned more serious as he said, "I am glad you are alright."
Yeong heard what Piper had said. "Perhaps you can lead us in the right direction," he encouraged. "Do you know who Emma is? We," he pointed at Alyssa, "have seen things. Things too awful to imagine. What does this mass killing in a mansion have to do with it. Right now, we have a bunch of dots strewn all around. We're hoping you can connect them."
Meanwhile Agent Powers was still keeping watch as he was lip sinking his favorite songs from his phone. He thought this was a good way to look like he was having a real conversation in public.
Outside a gray overcast seemed to envelope the sky as it began to lightly rain.
Agent Powers sighed as it began to rain. So he reached into his backpack and pulled out an umbrella. Once he opened it and was good he resumed his lip sync to his favorite songs from his phone while trying to pretend he was talking on the phone.
Alyssa gave Choi a small smile, "Good to see you healed well." She wondered if Sung had anything to do with that or Choi somehow healed himself but didn't ask.
Piper shook her head at Yeong's question. "Emma, no I have no idea who that ..."
The look on her sister, Phoebe's face stopped Piper dead in her tracks. The blank look in Phoebe's eyes, a clear indication her mind was somewhere else. Only uttering the words, "It can't be."
Piper waited for her sister to come out of whatever state she had been in. Phobe blinked and was back as quickly as her mind had wandered. Phobe pulled Piper aside and the two whispered to each other in a conversation only meant for their ears. There seemed to be some kind of slight disagreement until Piper said in an exhausted tone, "If you must."
Phobe went directly to Alyssa "Be careful, no one knows who might show up in hotels. Some are unfriendly."
Piper spoke up, "That's all any of you are getting from us. Now, if none of you are buying anything can you kindly leave."
In the chip. Satre said,"Lets get out of here. Max, Alyssa, we have a few things to pick up before we head to Lunch. Speaking of lunch, what would you two like later?"
Alyssa heard Peter through the chip and sighed, then said through the chip back to Max and Peter. "Let's discuss lunch in the van." It seemed like this had been a wasted effort.
She turned and addressed the two Dragons. "Mr. Sung - I would say it's been a pleasure but well you know. Yeong, I am glad your doing well. Hopefully, the next encounter will be more productive."
As Alyssa was about to leave, she suddenly felt frozen in her tracks. However it lasted a mere second before she was able to turn around and see Piper's smirk turn into a slight surprise. Alyssa glared at the woman, "Not only are you uncooperative but you're also annoying." The computer hacker felt more energetic than she had in a while. With out another word, Alyssa turned around and started out the door, but not before hearing Piper yell out, "Are you sure you don't want to try any of our baked goods?"
In the chip as Peter still felt tired, "Alyssa aggravated? Did you two feel frozen for a second?" Then Peter added, "Lunch later; now we need to pick up the End Rite before anything else. It's spring so we still have a few more hours of daylight? What should we do? Theres got to be a connection to all this. What or who could gain their trust?" The wind and rain began to get heavier.
"Yes, I was frozen for a second or so." Alyssa responded in the chip. "Why don't we get to van to discuss things without using the chip." She, unlike Max, hadn't bothered with an umbrella. Alyssa took off to the van, quickly opening the doors so everyone could get in, but she was drenched. Between the cool temperatures and her small frame, there wasn't much to keep her insulated and the woman started shivering. "Damn. Hold on." Going into the back of the van, Alyssa pulled out a duffle bag and threw both Peter and Max towels, taking one for herself. Drying off as best she could, before throwing on a black sweatshirt. "Okay, now. Yes, I agree let's get the End Rite. Then I really probably should get back to the hotel and get changed. Then we can go somewhere for lunch or order in and maybe the three of us go over what we know and what to do next?" Alyssa shrugged and started the van. "Where am I going?" She asked Peter.
Max was oblivious to the fact that someone tried to freeze him as he was grooving to his jams. After hearing Alyssa and Peter tell him to meet in the van through his chip he made his way back to the van. Luckily he was not to wet since he had an umbrella. However he was confused by the " End Right " topic. He asked, "What is the End Right? Is it some weird stop sign?"
"Peter, can you answer that one? I need to keep an eye out for annoying and not so annoying green men." With that Alyssa started down the road.
Posted by : Cindy
Yeong turned to the lady that was requesting them to leave. "But oh," he stated, "I would like to buy something. I don't suppose you would have any Korean ginseng here, would you?"
Piper sighed, clearly agitated the two men wouldn't leave. Phobe went to a shelf, looked at a few jars and pulled one down. She handed it to Yeong, "Chinese ginseng."
"Chinese?" Choi questioned in disbelief. "Is it red ginseng?"
"That jar is white but we have red. We don't get many looking for Korean ginseng." Phobe explained. "We can order Korean if you'd prefer. "
"Red is fine," Choi stated, although he was disappointed it wasn't Korean. "I am truly sorry for the intrusion," he added, while handing her a credit card. "I had wished we could all work together for Gaia's sake. Something is telling me she's in for a shake. If you think of anything that might help, we'd appreciate it."
Phobe got Yeong a different jar so he would have the correct ginseng. Piper responded to the man's words. "Sure." She took the credit card and ran it. Handed him back his credit card and the receipt them waited for the two Dragons to leave.
"Are you ready, Master Sung?" Choi asked the older and wiser man. "Where to next? The mansion?"
Posted by : Cindy
Peter explained, "We're headed to the Halliwell mansion, to pick up an extremely powerful spell book. It's more powerful than the book of Shadows. Only someone as magical as those two back there can handle just opening it. I can…"
He touched his pendant thinking of the one who gave it to him.
Agent Powers looked at Peter with a bit of confusion. He replied, "Ummmm yeah…so it's magic, huh?"
After a few minutes Peter said, "It is a book of spells specifically related to summoning portals and spells that can cause Madness. A woman in the woods, That same woman in your hotel room Alyssa, she's joking. A red portal… A city in Arabia. Something huge. Masks. "
"What woman?" Alyssa, expressed outloud not really meaning to, she had no idea what Peter was talking about. Portals? She kept on driving wondering more and more what was going on.
"I… used my profiling skills on those two back there. I don't know who the woman is." Peter would whisper to Alyssa about the other things he saw.
"You ever tried any of that kind of stuff they sell back there?" Peter asked Alyssa and Max.
"Oh, the edibles?" Alyssa responded, the store did have other things after all. "No, I have watched others do it. It's pretty popular at colleges."
Agent Powers shook his head no as he replied, "Naah man. My dad would freak out if I did drugs. As it is he had me traveling the world on our family vacations and destroying the drug lords, their farms and their armies. It was not a good time for me. Besides, dad said I wouldn't make it in college since my grades were too bad."
The mansion had once again had visitors. These visitors however were not the previous owners. As the Illuminati agents stepped into the house, they could definitely make out the smell of copper. What remained of the furniture had been turned over and along the walls were strange sigil's written fresh blood.
The Book of Shadows, lay by the open door, Sartre had remembered in reading the research that Alyssa had gathered that someone that the house considered evil could not remove the book from the house."They must've dropped it right by the door. Someone has been in here, with fresh blood. Before going down to the basement, we need to go armed," Sartre removed his pistol and slowly led the way for the other two agents.
As they crept down the stairway, Sartre used his flashlight to scan the room for any threats. There were none.
He saw the End Rite lying on the floor.
It was open to a page showing what looked like a tendrilled mess coming out of a portal.
Someone had scribbled in pen in the margins,
"You don't have to go through this. You can leave. They're coming. Don't suffer."
Sartre knew it was not proper to touch the book when it was opened. He removed his pentacle pendant and used the necklace to close the book. He put the necklace back on.
And picked up the book.
"Alyssa, put this in your backpack."
"Whoever has been in here, was doing some sort of magical ritual with that blood," he said.
If we could get someone to decode those occult sigils on the walls for us, you might have a program for that. Can you take pictures of these on your phone?"
We need to get out of here fast.
He went the other two up the stairs and made sure to lock the door behind him as they left.
If you two are not hungry for dinner yet, we can perhaps run those sigils through a computer program. He returned to the safe haven of the van.
Agent Powers nodded as he gave a smolder to both Alyssa and Peter. He replied, "Then I'll keep a look out while you do the research stuff. This stuff reminds me of the Pagan cults I had to take out a few years ago for my dad. They like to use odd symbols with blood for paint. I never learned what all that meant but it didn't help them much when I punched them through a wall. If anyone pops up I might have to get a little violent so take cover if it happens." Agent Powers seemed serious as he looked around the place as he tried not to knock anything over.
Alyssa really didn't want to be back in that basement. She kept glancing around as if something was going to jump out from the shadows. However, nothing occurred. Weird as the scene might have been.
Alyssa was also completely unsure about taking the book, but there wasn't really time to argue so she put the book in her backpack and then quickly took pics of the symbols on her phone.
They arrived back at the van, she ran the symbols through the computer and sent the info directly to Peter's chip. Handy device it was.
Alyssa said nothing though as she worked, her mind focused. Not really on the task at hand because it took little brain power to wait for the database's response but on who the strange woman might be, and if her father's disappearance could be linked to all of this as well. Logically the last part seemed unlikely but it wasn't impossible.
Agent Powers was alert as he kept watch for Alyssa till she was ready to move to the van. It was obvious that she was not used to being in such places full of blood. Sadly, he didn't even flinch by the smell or sight of death since he was used to it despite being only eighteen years old and hidden inside the body of a thirty year old muscle man. Granted, he was not an egg head like Alyssa, he did his best to make her feel safe as he kept a lookout. He replied, "Sure. Whatever helps you out is fine with me. Did you need any medicine for sleeping or upset stomach? I guess most people aren't used to seeing that stuff." Agent Powers was looking out the van windows but had a sad expression as he did.
"Thanks Max, I'll be alright. I've not been on a lot of missions." The blood wasn't really what was bothering her but she appreciated Max's thoughtfulness. "I just need to get dry and warm. Oh, lunch. I could really go for a burger, fries, and a milkshake. You know. completely bad for you stuff."
Agent Powers nodded at Alyssa and smirked as he gave her a smolder. He replied, "Well, I can vouch for the room service at the hotel and we don't have to worry about noisy people watching us either. Unless you have another place in mind?" Agent Powers was laid back and easy going even under stress.
"That's fine with me." Alyssa replied. She didn't know if Peter had another suggestion but staying in the hotel did sound like the best option.
Agent Powers then replied, "Cool. I can use that time to power down and recharge myself with some chow. I usually eat alone so I am sorry if my over eating freaks you out. I have a high metabolism and it takes a lot of energy to look like this." Agent Powers gestured with his hand to advertise his muscular body like a shiny new car. Then he smirked as he gave a smolder grin and a chuckle in hopes to cheer up Alyssa.
Posted by : Cindy
The trees were twisted in the darkness. He stood there in the middle of the San Francisco woods. These are the same places where the zodiac killer had run amok in the 1960s. That case was never solved.
The man couldn't help but laugh at the thought of "a case."
He thought back all those years, if he hadn't taken that case.
He would not know the words he was about to speak.
He knew the danger that the words evoked and that the language would evoke.
He was still confident he could get it right.
He hated that language.
He hated where it came from.
He carefully began to chant, knowing what could occur if anything went wrong.
A hard rain began to fall on the twisting trees, splattering on his black coat.
"N'gha ahornah ah'mglw'nafh.
l 'drn ah'f'nah ch'nglui.
bug Iiahe persephone.
epshuggog.
llll mgehyee ot wicker's uh'eagl.
mgahnnn shuggnglui"
He felt as if his intestines were swimming in water. Everything he had said and done was from memory. No spell book needed.
He fell down after reciting the powerful incantation. He knew what would happen if he got it wrong. The thing was that he didn't know what would happen. He knew he would not know. Not knowing was terrifying.
The man in black heard a helicopter above him. That was odd, such a supernatural disturbance could not be interrupted…
Not a helicopter…
Flapping wings…
After all these years.
Had he got it wrong?"
In the distance he saw a quick flash of a human-like creature with a head of a moth and glowing red eyes.
The same when he saw a few nights before.
After a few blinks the creature had disappeared.
A large red circular portal shone through the trees.
The thunderstorm began to increase in intensity.
Finally; something stepped out of the redness.
"Listen, I need you to relax, it's no longer 2001. You are now in the year 2024."
A branch would snap from a tree and nearly fly directly into the man's head.
A young woman in a black coat was standing in front of him. She was wearing jeans and her hand was close to her pocket.
"And the World Trade Center came down, the US government lied about the Iraq war, they ended up losing to the Taliban, there was a pandemic, and Russia invaded Ukraine. I don't need the history lesson, I watched it all. Not from where you might think." The woman said somewhat angrily.
"You move things with your mind when you're upset." Said the man.
"The branch missed on purpose." The woman would continue.
"I feel like I know you from somewhere. I have seen you before.
I've been around this world a lot longer than you.
One must act with cautiousness. With prudence."
The woman drew a scalpel-like blade from her pocket in anger."
She would say, "Whoever you are, Theodore and Amarillis, send their regards. You're close to getting to meet them."
"It's almost as if you were destined to be here, you even have the blade. How did you get that scalpel? I know Amaryllis and Theodore. I know Sonnac and Geary and Arturo and the voice of the Dragon, even though they have never met me."
"Who?" asked the woman angrily clutching the scalpel.
She was prepared to rush towards the man.
"The secret world needs you, your sisters need you."
The woman loosened her grip on the scalpel.
The rain began to lash both their faces.
The man said, "Welcome back, Prue Halliwell."
Lumina had been unsure of how they would make their way into the morgue without being turned back. In hindsight, she should have expected Corinth would bluff them through again. It was a neat trick for sure, but it had been even riskier this go around, and had very nearly gotten them in trouble. But in the end, he had secured them twenty minutes to talk to the victims. That would hopefully be sufficient.
There were five corpses on gurneys in the room that presumably made up the morgue. Ideally, three of those corpses were from the crime scenes involving the Mothman. If things went according to plan, they would find out soon enough.
Lumina had been pondering how best to go about getting the information she wanted from the victims throughout the day. The first question then, was, what information did she want? For starters, Lumina was planning on getting clarification from the victims on what had transpired to them before their demise, and hopefully confirming that the Mothman was indeed involved if not responsible for their deaths. Additionally, Lumina hoped to get clarification from Kramer as to what his interest in the Halliwell sisters had been, and perhaps also ask him what he knew about the Warren family if she still had questions to spare (bearing in mind the general five question limit Lumina taught was the rule of thumb for how many answers she could be expected to get with the spell from a given corpse). Lastly, she would ask Oliva about her family, again assuming she had the questions to spare.
Lumina approached the bodies with trepidation. There was nothing pleasant about death, let alone violating the tranquility of the dead. This was going to be challenging to deal with, but there was a lot riding on this. As this was her duty, first and foremost to the Templars, but also to the other potential victims of this monster prowling the streets. She also had a coworker to impress and her career to rescue, so Gail, Turner, and Olivia were going to have to take a break from death to spill their secrets.
She decided to start with Gail, as Lumina had less questions in mind to ask her than the others, so any unproductive questions Lumina asked while getting into a groove could be better afforded from Gail than from the others. Gail was easy enough to recognize from her photos in the newspaper and distinct wounds. Ideally the wound to Gail's neck would not be problematic, as it was Lumina's understanding that for the Speak with Dead spell only required the target's mouth to be intact.
Lumina was so deep in thought as she prepared to perform the spell on Gail that it took her moment to hear the commotion behind her. Not understanding what she was hearing, Lumina turned around… and shrieked.
Lumina had looked just in time to witness Corinth get pummeled and thrown across the floor by a corpse that had been occupying one of the gurneys. As the violent corpse turned toward her, she recognized it as Turner Kramer from the TV News she had seen that morning, except his eyes were glowing red and his skin was rapidly becoming an inky black.
"The Bees, THE BEES! They COME FOR ME STILL! No peace, NO PEACE! Not for me, not while the Dreamers dream!"
Lumina nearly panicked, backing away from the monstrosity that Turner had become. Then she saw Corinth prone on the floor near the door, and she recalled the conversation she had with him in Heathrow Airport.
"Can I trust you to do what needs to be done should things go sideways? To, shoot, to kill… all the things. I need to know you got my back no matter what."
"I got your back, chief," Lumina muttered, forcing herself to stand her ground. Taking a piece of leather out of her pack, she quickly performed a Mage Armor spell just before Turner charged. The spell immediately proved its worth, subtle wards considerably tempering what may have been a debilitating blow. But it still hurt quite a bit, and Lumina staggered as the strike was deflected to her shoulder. Turner's next attack was rather clumsy, as perhaps he had been thrown off by her ward. Lumina was able to raise her arm to protect herself, after which she was able to get close enough to shove Turner away. Earning herself a bit of space as Turner staggered, Lumina followed up with Hellish Rebuke, causing flames to sprout up around the fiend for its insolence. Turner howled in pain but regained his balance quickly. Backpedaling to gain whatever space she could, Lumina reached back into her back and felt around for a nail she had purchased. Getting it out just as Turner got ready to charge, Lumina cast a Hold Person Spell as Turner rapidly approached her.
Turner froze only about two feet away from her as the spell paralyzed him. His momentum still carried him toward her, but Lumina had bought herself enough time to get out of the way. The fiend toppled to the floor and came to rest near a pull-out compartment for additional bodies. Unsure how long the spell would last, Lumina started to back away toward where the fight had started, and then she saw that Corinth had recovered and was making his way toward them. Lumina felt her confidence soar as the monster hunter got back in the fight.
"Let's finish this!"
Posted by : Sky
Corinth leaned against the wall and watched as Lumina prepped for her conversations with the dead. He knew some magic, mostly combat based, but he knew nothing about necromancy or anything related to the dead. He knew how to make things dead, but that was about it.
There was a creak behind him. Turning his head, he saw a very angry, very naked Kramer standing behind him. Before he could react, Kramer spun Corinth around and punched him across the face. Staggering, Kramer reached out, grabbed him, and tossed him up and out of the way. The dead Kramer now had a clear path towards Lumina.
Corinth shook the cobwebs from his head and started to stand. Letting his coat fall to the floor, he took his hat off and laid it on the chest of the nearest cadaver. He watched as Lumina was holding her own against Kramer and was genuinely impressed with her skills. She set him on fire and then froze him in place, causing him to fall over. Moving quickly, she took her place by Corinth's side and said, "Let's finish this!"
"It's already over," was his reply. The buzzing in his head was so loud, it felt like it was vibrating his whole body. Moving closer to Kramer, Corinth was able to get a better look at him. There was black ichor running out of his eyes, nose, and ears. He was a Filth and if there was one thing that Gaia feared, it was the Filth.
Filth stood in stark opposition to everything Gaia represented. It was the night to Her day, the water to Her fire. While She created, it destroyed. Gaia dreaded it, for as of now, there existed no sure way to eradicate it entirely. Though it could be slowed, its relentless spread remained unstoppable. Filth pervaded even Agartha. Should Gaia tremble before it, then it became Corinth's solemn obligation, as one of Her guardians, to vanquish it.
Kramer hissed at the couple and Corinth immediately went for his gun, but stopped. Gun noise would bring too many people and that is exactly what they didn't need right now. Kramer's skin ripped as the Filth oozed and crawled around underneath it.
Kramer opened his mouth and a long tentacle shot forth heading for Lumina. Corinth's eyes sparked blue and in an instant, his arm was in front of Lumina and the Filth's tongue was wrapping around it. Corinth jerked his arm back in front of him, gripping the disgusting tongue with his hand and squeezing. Another flash of blue and electricity arced from his shoulder, down the creatures tongue, discharging into it's face.
While the creature was stunned, Corinth pulled the Filth towards him by the tongue. He grabbed a scalpel from the gurney next to him and shoved it under Kramer's chin, directly in the soft spot between both jawbones. He followed it up with an uppercut, shooting the scalpel deeper inside and causing Kramer's jaw to slam shut, severing the tongue. As Kramer staggered backwards, Corinth grabbed him by the back of the head and slammed it repeatedly into the wall. Kramers's face was nothing more than black ichor bubbling up where his facial features used to be.
Tossing Kramer aside onto the mortuary table, Corinth went to the front of it and kicked it back inside the drawer. He moved to the side in time to see Lumina send three fiery rays of light inside the drawer and then he slammed the door shut. A moment later, there was a muffled thump as the body of Kramer exploded, keeping all the poison contained. Human Filth had a tendency to explode once they were defeated, a dead man switch to cause a bit more havoc during the victory celebration.
"Smooth," Corinth said as he made his way back to his jacket. reaching in, he pulled out his pills, spilling one into his hand and then popping it into his mouth. That toss to the ground didn't do him any favors. He started putting his coat and hat one while he said, "we lost some time there. Might need to hurry up."
Posted by : Dblitz13
Sartre said, "Burgers and fries from room service will be good. Great idea Max. There has to be a way to fit all this together. Maybe Pastor Duane can help tomorrow, Alyssa can you run those programs while we eat lunch. Oh, another thing, about tradecraft, new agents, the best way to hide things is to have them in plain sight. We can talk about the secret world in a public place, if we do it right no one will notice."
"Sure," Alyssa replied. "I can run them from my laptop." She started the van and they headed back to the hotel. She mentioned to Max to come to Peter's room when he was ready.
Back at the room, Alyssa managed a hot shower to warm up, dried and into clean and not soaking jeans and a white tank covered by a red and black flannel shirt.
Back in the main part of the suite. She turned to Peter, "I'm sorry. I'm really not used to people wanting to take care of me, even for safety reasons. I realize I'm probably over thinking and perhaps over reacting to your offers."
Sartre wanted to speak to Alyssa as well, there was no easy way to put the questions that he was going to ask. "Alyssa; you can sleep anywhere you want tonight. Are you strong enough to take on the nightmares? The other night, while you were having a nightmare, you were mentioning something about your mother and your father. When I….. did some profiling, I saw the images of your father disappearing in a portal, do you know anything about that? Are you willing to talk about that? I just don't want anything happening to you. And that vision of someone in your hotel room. I don't know who that was. You think you could handle them?"
"Well, my mother is still alive and well and living on Long Island though I don't speak to her often." The computer hacker began.
Alyssa sighed and took a seat on the couch. How could she explain what has been happening to her or that she never told anyone? "I don't know if I can handle them. I've dealt with nightmares for the past five years on my own but last night's, it feels like it was different."
She was sure that sounded odd. "I can't help much. I don't remember what happened that day with my father. I remember being in my van, him using my chip to tell me he needed something but even those details are fuzzy. I remember going to the building he was in and then nothing. I woke up two days later in my van with no memory of anything for that entire time. Ever since then, weird things have been happening. I feel that they happened but I come out of whatever it is with no memory of any of it, just a strong feeling. I sometimes find myself doing something I don't remember why I'm doing it or how I ended up somewhere. I used to always remember my dreams and now I don't remember anything about them."
It was in a sense terrifying, Alyssa would sometimes think she was losing her mind. The only thing probably keeping her from committing herself was that she knew enough about the secret world to understand that wasn't it. "I wish I could tell you more."
Posted by : Cindy
Meanwhile, Agent Powers secured himself in his room and went to the bathroom to turn back into Max. Granted he was not wet from the rain in Agent Powers form, he still rinsed off. Then he ordered a large number of drinks, burgers and fries from room service. Once he hung up the phone he took a shower. He found a hot shower helped him relax. The memories of the blood writing flowed in his thoughts as he wondered if he had ever seen them before. Sadly all that voodoo stuff looked the same to him since he didn't see the difference in the design. He felt like he was useless since all he could do was fight while Alyssa and Peter could figure out the clues to the investigation. He figured this was another crazy test by his adopted father to give him more experience. Sadly some of the members of the Illuminati looked down on Max and had better ways to use him, which was why Max worked so hard to impress his father. Once he was dressed up as Agent Powers, he heard the knock on his door and found the room service guy with his food order. After he tipped the waiter he rolled his cart to the room he was supposed to meet Alyssa and Peter in and knocked on the door.
Sartre spoke in a whisper. "It's going to be storming again tonight, just as it did today. You asked me to stay with you the other night, May I do so again? I felt safe with you. Also; after you fixed the door To the room and asked me to stay with you as you were nervous. You immediately got extremely sleepy. How did you get so fatigued? Max should be coming in a few minutes."
Alyssa looked confused for a moment. "I got suddenly exhausted?" She closed her eyes for a moment and shook her head. "I don't remember that." Thinking for a moment. "I don't know what's safe but it's probably safer with you in the same room as me. Alright, I'll stay here, and you can stay with me in the bedroom." She felt like there were little options. Things were getting too dangerous to be alone.
She heard the knock on the door, "Speaking of Max, that must be him." She opened the door. Alyssa was surprised to find Max with a cart full of food. She opened the door wider. "Come in," Alyssa smiled at Max, "Thanks for getting the food. You know if you ever get tired of being an agent you could try your hand as a food server."
Agent Powers chuckled at Alyssa as he pushed the cart in the room. He replied, "Ha...Ha...I don't know about that, but I think I could make a career at professional wrestling. What do you think?" Agent Powers flexed his muscles and then gave Alyssa a smolder. Then he winked at her and said, "Can you smell it? Can you smell the burgers?"
Does one have cheese bacon and mayo? How do you think this all fits together Max and Alyssa? How long should it take for your computer to decode those sigils Alyssa?"
Agent Powers looked at the food then at Peter as he replied, "Uhh…. Feel free to add or take off whatever you want. The sauces are in the cups if you want them." Agent Powers pointed at the silver metal cups with ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise or bbq sauce. Then he fixed himself a burger with everything on before he began eating.
Posted by : Cindy
"Sure," Alyssa smiled at Max's joke about becoming a wrestler but he did look the part. "Food. Let's eat and talk." She started putting together a burger with bacon, swiss cheese, lettuce, tomato, ketchup, mustard and mayo. Then she took some fries, ketchup. Looking around, the drinks were mostly sodas. While she grabbed an orange soda, she also got on the phone."Hey, I'm calling down to room service for my milkshake. Anyone need anything else?"
When she found out if the guys wanted anything else, Alyssa gave room service the order, including a chocolate malt for herself. She then sat down with her food. Pondering on Peter's question. "The signals should be done by the time we're done eating." Many had been done in the van earlier and already sent to Peter. Some were just taking a little longer. "I don't really know how it all fits together. If I go through what we know, it feels like we're missing something needed to piece it together." Alyssa took a bite of some fries, then continued. "I think maybe the Dragons know part, and we know part. It might be to the advantage of both sides to work together. I doubt the Templars, without a mandate to do so, would work with either side." Just her impression.
Sartre slowly ate his cheeseburger and fries. "The End Rite and Saint Ede's bible have something to do with it. What could the Scalpel of Ragley be? And the RC written on the walls?"
Alyssa shrugged, "Maybe we should list what we've discovered and try to find a link. Some kind of order to it." She stood up and went into the bedroom, coming out with a notebook and a pen. Then sitting back down, crossed legged on the floor, near the table. She put the notebook down and opened it. Ready to take notes. "Okay, so what was found first. Was it that cryptic note that we decoded?"
Agent Powers was quietly eating his burger and fries while drinking his pineapple Fanta. He listened to Alyssa and Peter as he chewed his meal. He had very little knowledge of the occult other than video games and the aftermath of the cults he crushed in the past. The symbolism in blood varied greatly and made no sense to him. He reply, "I had a few missions in the past with cults like this. They like to use blood to write stuff and use a virgin sacrifice, but it's all Greek to me. I never understood the whole point of what they do or why." Agent Powers then took another bite.
"Yes the decoded notebook with the statement about the scalpel," Sartre said.
"Notebook - Scalpel of Ragley. Why call it the Scalpel of Ragley?" Maybe that should be the next question, Alyssa thought as she opened the door to retrieve her milkshake from room service. Then closed the door, as soon as the server left.
"That's what it's called in the notebook." Peter responded.
"I meant more, why is it called that in the notebook?" Alyssa tried to explain, as she downed some of her shake. "Let's just get back to that. What was next? Was anything found after the notebook but before we went to the Halliwell's house?"
"Nothing after the notebook." Peter responded.
"So, the Halliwell mansion. The Book of Shadows, anything in that I need to note?" She hadn't actually seen that particular book, and as far as Alyssa knew it was still in the house.
"The fact that someone broke into an 18 year old abandoned house, conducted rituals and left a very powerful book there along with a wraith in a jar. and wrote "RC" and "104 years ago" on the walls in blood." Peter commented. "The End Rite is much more powerful than The Book of Shadows."
"Well, there's all of that, but I was getting there." Though Alyssa said it matter of fact, not any kind of snark to it. She did write all that down however. Then added. "And basement Shade creatures and the End Rites." And sighed, as she looked over the list. "This is more like advanced math than 1 + 1 = weird things happening." She still thought they were missing something vital to the equation when her cell phone buzzed. Alyssa had a fully encrypted Illuminati phone and so she knew it was someone from there. "Yes," Alyssa said after answering the call. Then a look of surprise, followed by a slight grin. "I certainly will. Thank you."
Alyssa hung up the phone, looked at the two men and said. "Apparently, the Dragons reached out to our side. They want to collaborate on the investigation. I was given Sung's number."
"Sounds good. Are you enjoying your burgers?" Sartre finished his.
"Yes, it's good," Alyssa had been eating it but in-between the other things she was doing so it was taking her a while to finish it.
"I'll call him." Alyssa made the phone call.
Posted by : Cindy
"Are you ready, Master Sung?" Choi asked the older and wiser man. "Where to next? The mansion?" asked Choi
"Yes let us go back we need to move fast," said Sung walking out of the store.
Sung raced through the streets. Knowing where someone was going to help as they headed to the mansion of the mass suicides. Sung did not like the idea they could walk into a trap or the others as well whatever was behind the scenes was powerful he could feel like that last time. The little hairs stood up when the shade showed up but there was more. The magic was stronger than that. Arriving Sung watched for a moment seeing anyone watching the place or hiding.
Choi saw Sung running toward the SUV. The mansion he wished to search, the one where there was a mass suicide, that's where they headed. They had already searched the Halliwell mansion. What more could they find? Yeong wondered along the way what Eun-Ji was investigating. He hated that they were divided. He broke away from the group yesterday and it got him a bunch of circular holes in his side. However, Choi realized they must stay on the same page. So Choi bounded, utilizing his parkour skills to keep up with Sung. He ran well for an older man. "You're pretty fast for an older man," Choi confessed. But then he saw the serious features on Sung's face. "What is it, Master Sung? Is there danger?"
Seeing it was clear Sung stepped out of the SUV and started to walk towards the place carefully. Watching every shadow Sung could feel the energy just walking up to the house. Sung thought about what all the victims had in common and that the trial went cold for law enforcement and that is why Sung was pulled in for. This had to be a bigger problem with all three organizations working on the same case. Sung felt at a loss those kids were rushing around and they would get killed if they didn't watch what they were doing. They need to work together one way or another. He walked to the door.
Choi saw a terrace to one side. Most likely, the police had the front door sealed, so Choi looked for another entrance. He climbed quickly up the terrace. There was a roof to it, leading to a window. Choi tried the window. It slid open. "Master Sung," he quietly quipped. "I'm in. I'll be down shortly and open a window for you."
Sung stepped to one side waiting on the window the magic energy was used for something. it was channeled somewhere Sung closed his eyes he had a direction but that was it the trail was cold now. Sung heard the window slide open and looked Choi was there on the other side. Hopping through the window was not a problem for Sung even at his age. Sung pulled out his flashlight. It was getting dark now and the clock was ticking. The little tactical light lit the whole room up. Looking down he could see where the most traffic was and followed the steps to a door that led downstairs. The light smell was still there of old blood. the basement still had all the markings of where the bodies lay. It was a mess with all the blood stains on the walls.
Looking along the walls next was a message over and over "We Fear Nothing" Along with other symbols blood ran down the walls with the people's blood. A disturbing sight this must have been for the Police. "Now I know why I was called in for this investigation," said Sung out loud. "Be glad Choi you did not have to deal with this first," stated Sung. "Women children whole families all drank some cocktail and died. This occult sickens me.
Choi saw the room as he had seen it before. He could envision each body that he had seen in the morning. He could handle the blood. It was seeing them appear as if they were asleep that was macabre. "Fear nothing?" Yeong wondered aloud. "I guess they didn't if they drank what they did. They didn't fear death, that's for certain."
Sung rubbed his chin and looked around "They would have made that a message "We Fear Nothing" for others to read but do not take it literally. There is something about it in my files this is not the only place this has happened or the message and the symbols." remarked Sung. He started to stir at a jar on a beam in the basement. He shook his head and chuckled. "Choi, I have been a fool now I know how they are hiding in place sight. They know we are here maybe. The jar on the beam over there with the eye they use it like a survivance camera," said Sung sounding aggrieved. "We should warn the others." Remarked Sung walking around the room.
According to the vision and the news report, Choi knew that they were in for a huge fight. This seemed to follow the same MO as the Heaven's Gate Cult, led by Marshall Applewhite. More than likely, the same entity was behind this cult. Master Park was part of that investigation. In fact, it was this entity that almost killed Master Park. Choi winced as he imagined this entity had probably grown more powerful through the years. "Master Sung," Choi quietly spoke. "We are up against something big. I believe my master had fought it once before and almost died. We need to work together, I mean, all of us together. Not just you, me, and Eun-Ji. All of us."
"I don't think we should do this alone the level of magic is even higher than mine," said Sung. He pulled out his phone. and took some pictures of the walls in the basement. "Let us get out of here," said Sung looking a little worried. Sung took a small spray out of his pocket and sprayed anything they touched Sung moved swiftly first checking before they went out the window. Before closing the window Sung took the spray and sprayed the wood to the window.
"We need to leave," said Sung pulling out his phone and dialing a 1-800 number. The voice on the other side was female. "extension Lima India Oscar clearance November" said Sung into the phone. "Wait one transferring you now." said the other voice. There was a ringtone. they got back to the SUV and got in. Sung dialed a number and waited "Yes," is all the voice said. Sung said "Payback, Alyssa, Van, and a license plate number, danger close, all in. Number Sung pulled another phone out and gave the number in the red, Thank you." finished Sung hanging up. "we need to find Alyssa," suggested Sung.
"What about Moon?" Choi replied. "She is by herself and needs to be with us." Yeong recognized by the look on Sung's face that he had already thought of that fact. So, he concentrated on his original statement. "I know her energy," Choi confirmed. "Get me to a high place overlooking the city, and I will locate her."
Driving Sung was thinking and hearing the question. "Call her if you have a phone from the dragon's office If not call the operator and get patched through and talk to Moon," explained Sung. maybe the kid forgot thought Sung. "I am waiting on a call from Alyssa. There got to be an easier way to do this stuff," grumbled Sung.
"Easier is the same as normal. It doesn't exist," Choi returned in response to Sung. "What is normal for the spider is chaos for the fly. What is simple for the mind often appears difficult for the heart." Yeong was explaining that the use of his gifts came naturally to him. For Choi, it was an extension of himself. It was why Choi never carried a phone. "However," Choi did agree, "it would be better if we utilize technology so that we can communicate with each other at will. Like the Illuminati, but without chips."
"We will cross that water when we get to it." Sung sighed "Here use my phone it is an office one." explained Sung He had the other phone with him.
Choi dialed a number to the South Korean office. Speaking the home language, he was patched to Moon Eun-Ji's phone. There was no answer. This girl was just frustrating Choi to no end. He left a message that he and Master Sung were headed to the place where she was dropped off. The danger is rising for one to be working alone.
Sung answered his phone and started to talk.
Choi patiently awaited the conversation to end. He had always been confident in his abilities. However, he also acknowledged that the entity they were facing was that much greater. Single-handedly, none of them could defeat this foe. Together, they stood a much better chance. It wasn't often that Choi had worked with the other factions. At least the other team was likable. Alyssa's tech, Power's strength, although as slow as it was, and Sartre (whatever he did. He must be like the Sung of the team. The older, wiser, experienced of the three.), would all be needed to defeat what they were about to face. He'd even welcome some Templars, although, for some reason, they hadn't run into any this time.
"Sung, here, Alyssa?" Sung said he had some urgency in his voice. "Yes," Alyssa responded. "I got word the Greens want to work with the Blues. We just had the same thought." Letting him know they were good with that.
"That is good to hear. I think we are all in danger there is powerful magic involved. They probably know we are not the police." Sung started to explain. "I will send some pictures they link everything together somehow. I have seen the symbols before next to the writing in blood. Sending the pictures now." said Sung. "They are using magic to watch us like a remote viewing," Sung explains.
"Yes, I'm pretty sure we are all in agreement." Alyssa paused a moment and looked at her phone. Tapped her screen a few times, then back into the phone. "I got the pics. Maybe we should all meet and discuss things."
"Anywhere you feel is a good place?" asked Sung. "I'll send you the address to the hotel we're staying at. Come by tomorrow morning. Just message me when you get here." Alyssa sent the info. Hotels were that public-private sort of Mashup. They could talk privately but public enough to not seem like an odd meeting place. "OK, you guys need help just call I will try to get to you," said Sung. He was worried that this whole thing could come undone
"Sounds good," Alyssa hung up.
Posted by : red_sword7
Alyssa hung up the phone, she scrolled through the images that had been sent. Not saying a word for several minutes. "Sung agreed to come here tomorrow morning. I'm guessing at least Yeong will be with him." Alyssa really didn't know about Eun-Ji. "Here, you should see these." She passed her phone to Peter so he could see the images. "Personally, I really think we should wait until the Dragons are here to discuss things. I need time to do some computer work. Is it okay if we just take the rest of the day to work on individual things?" There was just stuff she couldn't do going from place to place.
"Good idea. We can show the images to the dragons, to see if they know anything. I'm going to research Ruth Cobb and different "RC's". The afternoon was only beginning to fade into evening.
Sartre was willing to let Alyssa take as much time as she needed to complete her work.
Sartre did a computer search on all of the illuminati files containing references to any cases of an "RC" he found references to a seventeen century witchfinder in Salem who was up to her own nefarious deeds. She had a connection to the Warren bloodline that would later become The Halliwells.
Though he already knew this.
Then he saw something interesting.
A folder.
It was buried deep within the illuminati intranet.
The previous form file was as well but this one was uniquely marked by a designation that Sartre had wanted to see for twelve years but had never been granted access to
"Vault Data: RC Statement."
He clicked on the folder and entered the proper information that he had known since attaining the illuminated agent rank twelve years ago.
The screen would respond with.
"Illuminated agent rank insufficient."
"This folder is classified."
"Higher ranks required."
Consult your Labyrinth computer technician."
Twelve years and vault data access still remained a mystery.
Alyssa started on the computer, she would be there for hours. Stopping briefly on occasion to order snacks, and coffee amd soft drinks. If course, she would ask if Peter wanted anything but it also back to the computer. Checking and rechecking things. This was how she usually lived, so there was a comfort level to it even if the information was less than what she had wanted.
Turned the sigil's were A study of the sigil's were an ancient form of Mesopotamian mixed with an unknown language lost to history. The computer was really only able to decode "Chaos Crawls."
She closed her eyes and rubbed her temple. Diving back into it but here seemed to be no way translated the rest. That was frustrating to her.
The computer hacker then started on another project of adding the information gathered, the images the Dragons had sent and the ones Alyssa already had to an encrypted database for her own use.
Alyssa also had discovered, for reasons unclear to her, the Dragons seemed to be using burner phones. Most people would do that if they didn't want the calls traced but Dragon cell phones, like Illuminati or Templar phones were the most untraceable ones out there. They were safer than either burner phones. However, she'd keep that mind if needed in the future. Late afternoon turned into late night in, what seemed to Alyssa, all to fast a time.
A yawn escaped from her despite the numerous cups of coffee she drank. Alyssa realized bed was probably a good option, especially when meeting with the Dragons the next day. If Peter happened to still be up, she told him she was headed to bed and went into the bedroom. Changed and opened the door back up. He'd come on when he was ready she was sure. It didn't take long after her head hit the pillow to fall asleep.
Posted by : Cindy
Later that night.
It was storming outside, the lightning made it seem as if there were shadows of individuals on the walls like someone in the room.
As they lay in bed with Alyssa sleeping, maybe dreaming of the cosmos, Sartre looked at Alyssa, her paleness was alluring. He thought about waking her up to ask, but then thought of a beach in December, he lightly stroked her hair and placed his finger on her lip. He removed his pentacle necklace and placed it on her chest before falling asleep.
There was a buzzing and whirring. The End Rite came out of the backpack and it was enveloped in a purplish glow as it floated above her head. Sartre's pentacle began to float above Alyssa's chest. They were startled awake by the sight of the floating objects and by a loud knock at the hotel room door.
Alyssa jumped awake, staring at the direction of the knocking. An uneasy feeling crept over her.
Sartre slipped his shirt on. Carefully opening the door he and Alyssa found a woman with black hair and a dark jacket.
The woman barged in carrying a scalpel with strange sigils; it had a greenish glow.
"You really think you're something? Agent Sartre?"
The woman would continue angrily.
"That's funny. I much preferred Heidegger's "Being in Time" over "Being and Nothingness"
What have you bees done, you think you can burn down my sisters' shop ?"
"That guy brought me back in an unpleasant fashion". Said the woman
"Prue Haliwell?" Sartre asked.
"Yeah."
"And who's this chick with you?" Prue asked, pointing to Alyssa.
"The names Alyssa, last time I checked I wasn't fuzzy, little and yellow." Alyssa's snarkiness coming through, before getting more serious. "Back up, your sisters' shop was burned down?" It was clearly a surprise. "Sorry that happened but we didn't have anything to do with that."
The computer hacker had spoken first, and then realized Prue Halliwell? Wasn't she? "Aren't you supposed to be dead?" Though the question was more rhetorical than anything.
"I was until a few hours ago. You people have been in and out of our house so many times it's not funny. And then someone burns down my sister's shop? you should really see what one of you has done to our house now, actually a few minutes, I think you should come with me. Another thing. Prue pointed her finger in Sartre's face. "Take anything of Phoebe's you want, but don't take anything of mine." The dark-haired woman was clearly angry. "If you want someone's panties why don't you get her's off." Prue motioned to Alyssa. "Hey!" Sartre yelled, looking at Alyssa. He pulled the dark-haired woman close and whispered something into her ear. Within seconds; he was seemingly pushed back by telekinesis. "That Knife, it's a scalpel. We've been looking for the scalpel of Ragley" "You can do better than that agent Sartre." said Prue. "One of you was rummaging through drawers taking necklaces and something you thought to be this scalpel."
Prue raised her scalpel. In its greenish glow, it was noticeable that the engravings on the knife were the same sigils found on the walls of the mansion earlier. "Ragley, was a purposeful mispronunciation by a disturbed mind. Can you guess the real pronunciation Alyssa? Such a coward. Sleeping with night pants on." How do you pronounce this Alyssa?" Prue asked seemingly uncaring to how she made anyone feel .
"Being I am not a mind reader, how would I know what that pronunciation is supposed to be?" Any fear by Alyssa seemed to be replaced by annoyance at Prue. "And you do seem like the type to sleep naked next to a man you recently met, but hey I'm not into shaming people like that. Do what you want." Alyssa shook her head at the woman,"You seem to have all the answers, why don't you tell us what Ragley really is." She was now thinking it might be Riley but that meant nothing to her. Besides, she wasn't going to give Prue the satisfaction of answering her.
"The correct pronunciation is The Scalpel of Ryleh..." Prue fired back.
Alyssa knew Prue would give up the answer if she was just annoying enough. Trying to figure out why that sounded so familiar. Like something she read or saw or ..."The Lost City" said in a whisper as if worried the Gods themselves might hear.
Alyssa had no idea how or why she knew that. She looked at Prue. "Look I get why you're pissed, I would be as well. But you're pissed at the wrong people and I think I can prove it."
"Prove it." Prue lightly swung the glowing blade in the air.
Alyssa got out of bed, "Follow me." She went into the main area of the suite and fired up her laptop. A few moments of typing and clicks, and then she turned the screen to Prue. One half of the screen was the surveillance footage of the shop, the other of the house.
Alyssa clicked on the shop first, it was easy to see people in black robes going around the shop, mere seconds later the shop burst into flames. Then Alyssa went to the footage of the house, also people in black robes this time in the house, no fire but they likely stole items. "A cult is involved in all of this. I would bet that's who you should be looking for. Black robes aren't really our style. And I doubt any of the factions would be careless enough to leave that kind of a trace." Maybe, but unlikely. "Besides, this all happened tonight and we have been here since the afternoon."
Alyssa sighed. "It seems to me you can help us and find out who really did it or just continue to be pissed at the wrong people. Your sisters refused to help or more like Phobe was uncooperative, Piper was far more reasonable about it but it seemed as if Piper was following Phoebe's lead. You however could help or maybe get them to help." Alyssa sighed, and brushed a wayward strand of hair behind her ear. "Things are likely going to get worse, day by day then moment by moment. We're not safe - no one is safe, not the factions, not your sisters, not the world at large unless we stop whatever is going to happen from happening." The words coming from somewhere buried inside of the young woman. "So, Prue Halliwell are you going to just stay pissed or will you help us?"
"I came here to ask you two and that guy in the other room to come with me back to the manor, my sisters are there and we can place wards around the house that will protect it for 24 hours. Grab the End Rite and those Item's you stole Alyssa."
"Let me get a hold of Max," Alyssa tried to reach Max on the cell, not wanting to give Prue the information that the Illuminati had an other way of communicating. While she was doing that, she was making sure anything taken from the house was in her backpack. There wasn't much they had actually taken. It was mostly there however the End Rite, where was that? Alyssa searched the room and found it on the bed, along with Peter's pentacle. She put the book in her backpack and handed the pentacle back to Peter. Alyssa didn't realize it had been placed on her, as she slept.
It was just up to trying Max again. If he didn't respond, Alyssa would go over there.
Max answered his cell as he was watching an old episode of the outer limits. He answered, "Sup? Are ya having bad dreams again?
"No, I'm good, thanks. Can you get dressed and come over? We need to take a trip back to the Halliwell house, right now." Alyssa responded. "Oh and bring *anything* you might have accidentally gotten from the house." Alyssa really didn't know if the underwear had been an accident but it wouldn't have surprised her.
Posted by : Cindy
As they drove, it had been a few minutes since Alyssa had awakened Max. There was a light rain that was pelting the van.
"The guy who brought me back, I don't know who he was. I really don't know why. All I know is that in 2001, a demon nearly destroyed the whole house. They couldn't save me. Later, my half-sister would join them. She always had a problem of trying to hold up to my standards. It isn't what you think, I wasn't directly sent to the hell dimension. I never came back as a ghost either. Alyssa, I'm sure you would say that I have the personality of a wraith "I assure you that's not the case. I've always just wanted to have peace of mind. I never really hadn't after a friend of mine Detective Andy died back in 1998. This knife, no one knows its exact origins. It is a very powerful artifact that can deal with creatures and entities that the book of shadows can't. It is called the scalpel of Ryleh, does that sound familiar to you Alyssa, you are extremely pale am I scaring you or do you spend way too much time in front of that computer?" asked Prue. "The woman who gave me the dagger, Alyssa is a woman named Amaryllis Wicker she and her brother run the politics of the hell dimension. Sartre over here and several other agents helped clean the place up. There was a revolt and fight between several factions. Red, blue and green would make sure that Theodore Wicker would come out victorious. Even Amaryllis Wicker does not know the exact origin of the scalpel. What ever is going on in the city, it should do the job though." said Prue.
As the van pulled into the old derelict mansion, the three walked in the front door. The walls were once again covered in a bloody grafity "Marquardt" "Congo." "RC." You three are really going to want to see what's happened in our attic…" Prudence would lead them up the stairs into the famed attic that was recently filled with flying bullets.
The Book of Shadows rested in the middle of the room, just as it had since October 1998. There were differences though, pictures of Emma as a young girl where around the room. Pictures of her as an adult as "Anima" were also around the room. She was extremely powerful, perhaps the key to the entire ministry that had been going on for twelve years.
Along with those photos, there were freshly written messages in blood on the walls.
"Roald Amundsen" "Lost Expedition."
There were photos of the Explorer and his various teams standing in the Arctic cold.
All of the photos had been meticulously placed around the attic.
The photos of the Explorer were placed to surround the book of shadows.
"These items are related to your world, not ours. I guess from the same secret world now. " said Prue.
"It's a new secret world." Said Sartre.
Come downstairs, the three of us want to talk with you.
The forward had downstairs and sat on the couch in the living room, the three sisters were directly across from them.
Piper said, "not having met you, I can't thank you enough. I knew ever since Prue's funeral in 2001 that I would see her again, you agents have helped us with that somehow. It's almost as if it is destiny."
A Teary-eyed Phoebe said "it's good to see you again Prue, you are home now."
Phoebe would become quiet immediately, it was easy to see there was some tension between these two sisters. Piper being the middle sister was literally caught in the middle and had been for over twenty years.
"Prue would say, we all have to work together, to figure out what's going on here. Whoever you secret world agents are after, have an interest in this house. It's probably because of the ley line under the house as well as that powerful spell book we never found in the basement. It was something Mom or Grams, never wanted us to find. Though our name is Halliwell, our original family name was Warren.
"The first victim to be killed in the recent days, Piper would continue, had to been an extended relative of ours, she probably didn't even know of our existence. This has to have something to do with our bloodline. At first, we thought that the RC might've been a reference to Ruth Cobb, she was a witch finder that we had to travel back in time to fight in 2001. However; I think were dealing with something much more powerful. If there was some way we can figure out the identity of this other RC." For some reason Phoebe looked stoic and then said "that book, The End Rite is mainly a portal opening book. I won all three of you to get as far away from us as possible, go to the back of the room, take the salt container and for a circle around yourselves. Do not move.
The three agents would do so. The three sisters took the book out of Alyssa's bag and placed it on the table.
Phoebe what open it is a large blast of light would come from it enveloping the three sisters.
Phoebe would collapse as the other two hastily read as much as they could and flipped pages.
After about two minutes, they closed the book.
"You three agents can come out of the circle now."
They would do so.
Phoebe awoke. "I had a premonition, tomorrow night. Portals being opened a huge battle. Chaos. A man here opening portals. Something crawling, something chaotic. Another man here, the same one that brought you back Prue. Prue, Andy Will be here…"
"That's impossible." Her sister would respond.
"It would've been impossible for you to come back as well, Prue but you're back. Phoebe would continue. "You."She pointed to Alyssa. "You lost someone in a portal. Someone you cared about, you can't or don't want to remember it. "
Phoebe's eyes would well up in tears.
"No, no,not again. What happened to him can't… can't happen again to…" Phoebe would look directly at Alyssa and then glance to someone else in the room.
"We have to do everything right from here on out," said Phoebe."
"The three of us, the three of you, and anyone else involved have to do everything right." Piper looked worried at what Phoebe saw with her power premonition.
"One mistake can't be made." Said Prue
Sartre felt extremely nervous. Not one mistake could be made. And what had Phoebe seen that related to Alyssa, and who was it that she had looked at in the room.
"We have plenty of bedrooms here, they have TVs in them. Did you like what I was able to do with the pennant and the book outside your hotel room? Go grab yourself some drinks and head to bed Chick Chicken." Prue would smirk to Alyssa.
Everyone was wiry, Sartre helped Alyssa lay down, and was lying down next to her similar to the way they were in the hotel room. He himself was so nervous and wiry he had to turn the TV on for a few minutes.
"Beverly Hills 90210, this is an old show, when I was in college Alyssa, one of the other students said something about a character on here. He said he had a dream that the character Brenda Walsh had killed his dog."
After about thirty minutes he shut the TV off. Alyssa was still awake. He would stroke her her and once again admire her paleness. He took off his pentacle and placed it around her neck. As he closed his eyes, he embraced her in hopes of coming her and himself down.
Agent Powers was quiet the whole time. For starters he was hiding some very skimpy women's underwear in his pocket since he had a feeling Alyssa found out about them. He was nervous he would get a lecture for having them even though it was an accident. Oddly enough no one mention them after he had transformed and met up with Alyssa, Peter and a dead girl who was very much alive before his eyes. He was relieved he didn't have to fight a dead girl since his knowledge in the occult was limited to sci-fi and phone games. The ride to the estate was uncomfortable as the dead girl was very snotty and arrogant. She seemed to have it out for Alyssa and Peter though. He was surprised he was ignored in his muscle form. Once they arrived he quietly did as he was instructed and learned that the three sisters were witches with their own adventurers. Through the rest of the days he did his best to try to understand the others were going on about but it was like they were speaking a different language. Once again he felt like an outsider in a group of super natural types. When it came to bed time he was left alone as they all went to a room to sleep in. Seeing as he was in the living room all alone he sighed and reverted back into the 18 year old Max next to a pile of pink slime.
He sighed as he adjusted his clothes to get the extra slime out before it evaporated. Then he grabbed a pillow off the couch and slept on the floor with no blanket. Sadly he was used to this since he was rarely given a room or bed while on his missions. He had to sleep on the cold wet ground to many times, so the pillow was actually a luxury for him when out of a hotel room. As he looked up at the ceiling he did his best to sort out what was going on around him but it was way to complicated for him. Then he remembered he had the undies in his pocket and his eyes opened up wide as he looked around and dug them out of his pocket and shoved them under the couch cushion to get rid of the evidence. Then he sighed and hummed to himself, "One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
Two can be as bad as one, its the loneliest number since the number one
No is the saddest experience you'll ever know
Yes is the saddest experience you'll ever know
'Cause one is the loneliest number that you'll ever know
One is the loneliest number even worst then two
Yeah"
Eventually he closed his eyes to sleep.
Posted by : Cindy
Within about half an hour, in the darkness, Peter could feel Alyssa moving. He definitely wasn't doing anything but someone was. He knew who. Alyssa's night pants were starting to slide off and anything under was certain to come next. It was light enough in the room to see, Prue had to know this, she also had to know Sartre couldn't help but look. He looked but jerked up Wilson's sleep pants. He could not avert his gaze. "That Bitch" he said to Alyssa, thinking back to the hatred of that character on that 90210 show.
Alyssa had laid in bed, unable to sleep due to the events kn the evening. Questions just became more questions, answers she thought she had made less sense. When Alyssa suddenly found herself unable to move, floating above the bed, her sleep pants starting to come off but fortunately Peter was there and able to rescue the moment and the hacker from complete embarrassment.
With no warning, the young woman fell on to her bed, the momentary paralysis gone. Alyssa's anger however was in full gear.
Gritting her teeth, a look that could have possibly killed some wrote the absolute hatred for the guilty party all over Alyssa's face. She stormed out of the bedroom and slammed opened Prue's door, not even bothering to knock.
"You Bitch." Alyssa started. "What are you jealous or something?"
Prue laughed, "Hardly, chicky. I was just helping you two out - seems like you both could use more action."
"Ugh," Alyssa snarled. "We don't need any relationship help from you."
"Oooh...so it is a relationship then?" Prue said with a sarcastically stickiness to her voice.
"It's not...it's...just... Stop being such a pain in the ass. Or you incapable of such a feat?" Alyssa though saw the slight grin on Prue's face.
"You know maybe if you came out from behind your computer every once in a while, you'd know more about men." Prue seemed unbothered by anything Alyssa said.
"Maybe, if you weren't such a bitch you would have more friends." Alyssa's saw the look on Prue's face, and knew the fight was momentary over. The hacker turned and left.
Posted by : Cindy
Alyssa returned to the room she was sharing with Peter. Before saying anything to the man, she left a text for Sung.
Meet at Halliwell House tomorrow morning. A lot has happened. Or come tonight. Important but no one in urgent danger.
She then sighed and said to Peter, "I'm never going to get to sleep tonight."
"Yes you will. Your anger is attractive. Relax. go to a beach in winter." Peter thought, 'one mistake.' They would all have to work together.
Posted by : Cindy
Max stirred awake as he heard some women argue from afar. He was tired and didn't understand the conversation since it stopped without violence he closed his eyes and went back to sleep. He was once again dreaming of a former adventurer in his past where he was in the jungle hunting and destroying a drug lord and his estate.
While trekking through the jungle with a machete, he was softly singing to himself, "Weeheeheehee dee heeheeheehee weeoh aweem away
Weeheeheehee dee heeheeheehee weeoh aweem away
In the jungle, the mighty jungle
The lion sleeps tonight
In the jungle the quiet jungle
The lion sleeps tonight
Wee heeheehee weeoh aweem away
Wee heeheehee weeoh aweem away
Near the village, the peaceful village
The lion sleeps tonight
Near the village, the quiet village
The lion sleeps tonight
Wee heeheeheehee weeoh aweem away
Rrr, la la la weeoh aweem away
Hush, my darling, don't fear, my darling,
The lion sleeps tonight
Hush, my darling, don't fear, my darling,
The lion sleeps tonight
Wah oh oh, wah oh oh, wah oh wimoweh
Weeheeheehee dee heeheeheehee weeoh aweem away
Weeheeheehee dee heeheeheehee weeoh aweem away"
Then as he finished his song he found a mansion in the middle of a jungle. For the life of him he could not understand why someone would live like that in the middle of now where. It was like painting a huge target on their backs whie acting all high and mighty. So he found a few fallen trees and used some supplies from his backpack to turn them into huge torches. Then one by one he held them over a small campfire and lit them before launching them like a javelin at the estate. His targets were the areas that were very flammable like the ammo shed, propane gas tanks, wooden parts of the house and the vehicles. He continued to sing his songs as he launched his attack from a distance.
He sang, "Let the bodies hit the floor
Let the bodies hit the floor
Let the bodies hit the floor
Let the bodies hit the... FLOOR!"
Then when the whole place was a blaze he ran into the complex as he continued to sing, "Beaten... why for?
Can't take much more
Here we go... Here we go... Here we go (now)
One - Nothing wrong with me
Two - Nothing wrong with me
Three - Nothing wrong with me
Four - Nothing wrong with me
One - Something's got to give
Two - Something's got to give
Three - Something's got to give
Now!
Let the bodies hit the floor
Let the bodies hit the floor
Let the bodies hit the, floor!
Let the bodies hit the floor
Let the bodies hit the floor
Let the bodies hit the, floor!"
When he was done only soot remained from the entire estate and all the people there. He pulled out his radio and called his father for his next mission. Max's dreams were usually of his past and sometimes he would dream of being a game character from his phone but in the end his dreams ended up back to his violent past. His father trained him to live in a world where violence was a normal thing and to not get emotional about it. Max could kill an entire Cartel and sleep like a baby. He was clueless that his father turned him into a sociopath. However he was also eager to earn approval from his peers which was a condition he also learned that contradicted his violent training. His father was pleased by his conditioning but disappointed in his poor academics.
San Francisco, Morgue, Evening of Day After Kramer's First Death
"We lost some time there. Might need to hurry up."
"We also lost an interviewee," Lumina noted.
As the adrenaline rush from the attempt on her life by the corrupted Turner Kramer ceased, the hits Lumina had taken from the creature made themselves known to Lumina, particularly the hit to her shoulder. She was going to have a nice bruise there in the morning. Corinth certainly had it worse though.
Back to the task at hand. Approaching Gail Iris's corpse again, Lumina took a sample of incense from her bag, then chanted the incantation and performed the appropriate gestures for Prestidigitation to ignite the incense, after which she chanted a different incantation and performed different gestures to cast Speak with Dead. Thankfully, both were fairly quick to cast spells, and within a few moments, Gail sat up and looked in Lumina's general direction through sightless eyes. The corpse said nothing.
Taking a deep breath, Lumina began the preamble she had been thinking about on the way there. "I am sorry to disturb your rest, Gail, but people are suffering at the hands of an assailant that we do not know, and we think you can help us identify the nature of this threat. I will ask you some questions, and then I will leave you in peace.
"I told him they would do it, but he wouldn't listen to me!" the corpse rasped.
"I'm listening to you," Lumina reassured her as she struggled to suppress her unease with the uncanny situation.
"No one listened to me, they all think I am crazy," Gail moaned.
"I don't," Lumina again assured her, "Now, did you see a man with the head and wings of a moth before you were shot?"
"He had red eyes, and he was in front of the school! He should have listened to me!"
Lumina glanced at Corinth. This was something. Question two. "Who shot you?"
"I did," Gail rattled.
That confirmed the official report that Gail's death was a suicide. Question three. "Why did you shoot yourself?"
"I had too!"
Lumina was fast running out of questions. How could the mothman force Gail to kill herself? Or did he even do so? "Who made you shoot yourself?"
"The man in the black suit, he was coming for me, and nobody would listen to me!" Gail cried.
Lumina glanced at Corinth again. So there was somebody else wrapped in all of this too? Last question. "Who is the man in the black suit?"
Gail appeared confused by the question, "Nobody wears a suit like that in this heat. It's too hot for that suit. Aren't you listening to me?" Gail's voice grew louder and angrier as she continued, "Why would anyone wear a suit like that when it's this hot?! You aren't listening to me, and now too late, now I've been shot, just like I told him would happen! Nobody listens to me, they think I'm crazy, and now you think I'm crazy! You should have listened to me! Now it's too late! Why aren't you listening to me?!"
Lumina cut off the spell as Gail became aggressive. As she did so, Gail's voice and motions ceased, and the corpse collapsed back onto the gurney.
Lumina shuddered, closed her eyes, and pinched her temples as she processed her conversation with Gail. She had confirmed that the Mothman was indeed involved in this mess, and she also mentioned the presence of another man, a man in a black suit, that had reportedly been approaching Gail that had somehow prompted her to shoot herself repeatedly. Apparently there had been something very strange about the man, but Lumina didn't understand how a black suit in and of itself was that unusual. Men wore formal black suits in a lot of industries. Presumably Gail didn't mistake this man for a school administrator or a father in one of those industries coming to pick his kid up. Surely there had to be something else.
Then Lumina recalled seeing a man in a black suit featuring prominently in a vision The End Rite had induced. Could Gail have seen that man?
Time was ticking, and Lumina had one more interview to do. Perhaps Olivia had seen this other man as well?
Unfortunately, none of the bodies on the gurneys matched Olivia's description, so Lumina and Corinth had to use precious minutes searching through the pullout body drawers along the back wall (Lumina was careful not to open the drawer Turner had exploded in) until Corinth found the corpse of a young auburn haired girl who looked like she had been impaled by a great number of needles. Lumina immediately got to work pulling out another sample of incense and repeating the spells she had used to initiate a conversation with Gail.
Like Gail had, Olivia sat up as the Speak with Dead spell went into effect. "What do you want from me?" the girl whimpered.
Lumina launched into mostly the same preamble she had used to initiate her other conversation. "I am sorry to disturb your rest, Olivia, but people are suffering at the hands of an assailant that we do not know, and we think you can help us identify the nature of this threat. I will ask you some questions, and then I will leave you in peace."
"The needles," Olivia moaned, "They're everywhere."
"Did you see a man with the head of and wings of a moth before you were attacked?" Lumina inquired.
Olivia nodded, but said nothing.
Question two. "Did that man attack you?"
"He flew at me, his eyes glowing so red, and he screamed at me, but it was the man who came from behind me that hurt me with the needles."
Lumina paused. Another man again. "Why did the man hurt you with the needles?" she asked gently.
"He told me not to move, and I tried to get away, to get to the trees,"
"Why were you going to the trees?"
Olivia froze. "I-I saw a swamp, from 104 years ago, and I saw men screaming in a crypt, and I felt it calling to me…"
As Olivia trailed off, Lumina racked her mind for the last question. "What do you know of your ancestor that disappeared in a Florida swamp 104 years ago?"
"I don't know anything! I don't know why this happened to me! I just want to be left alone!" Olivia broke into sobs that did not relent. When she did not desist, Lumina knew she had gotten all she could. With a sigh, Lumina broke off the spell, and Olivia got to return to her eternal rest.
Sufficiently rattled for one night, Lumina helped Corinth close the drawer that held Olivia. "Let's get out of here," she intoned. Corinth wordlessly led her out of the room.
Thankfully, nobody gave them too much trouble as the Templars made their way back through the hospital. Lumina was feeling pretty done with the day as they got into their sporty red Nissan Maxima. "I'm feeling a shower right now," Lumina groaned as Corinth started the car. He seemed to be in agreement as they pulled out onto the streets.
Posted by : Sky
orinth pulled into the hotel parking lot, annoyed at the lack of information they received from the bodies. It shouldn't have been no surprise really, they were dead. How much sense could a dead person make after being dragged from the afterlife? Mothman...man in black...swamp...nothing was making sense and he wondered if this was one of those situations where anima collected over time, creating a font that seeped into the real world, affecting those that came to close. Probably not...but it could have something to do with the Ley Lines.
Making his way inside, the scent of food overtook his want for a shower. It wasn't that he smelt bad, it was that Filth had a way of making one feel...well,filthy. He motioned for Lumina to follow him and he pulled seat out from the bar for her and took his own.
"What can I get ya," asked the bartender as he stereotypically tossed a towel over his left shoulder.
Corinth pulled out a red card and slid it over to him. "Bourbon for me and whatever she wants. If I have to ask for a refill, the cost is coming out of your tip. You read me?"
"Loud and clear." The bartender pulled out a tumbler and filled it halfway and put it in front of Corinth.
"Go ahead and hook me up with one of your large burgers and fries while you're at it. Whatever she wants, just put it all on the card." The bartender nodded and went to put the orders in.
Taking a sip of his drink, Corinth sat in silence for a few minutes before speaking. "All this stuff isn't adding up and it's making no sense. Mothman, murders, man in black, Ley Lines, witches, the manor, a freaking swamp 104 years ago? This is nothing but a ridiculous headache."
He took a longer sip of his drink and placed it on the bar a little harder than he meant to. "Here's my theory on this," looking over to Lumina, "I think the Mothman was doing what he always did. Warning people of a disaster. That's his M.O. He showed up in front of two women and then they died. Man in black is probably some magical serial killer. No one ever said magic was used only by the factions, so real creeps out there use it too." He rolled his eyes at her. "Look, nobody here is listening to us. If anything, they probably think we are talking about a movie or a podcast or something."
"Where was I? Witches. They're bullshit. After thinking about it, there is no way all three of those sisters had been accepted by Gaia. It is rare, very rare, to have multiple members of the same family be giving the gift by Gaia, much less three sisters. And then there is a half fourth one? Bullshit. I have a better chance of meeting Gaia herself than Her giving four sisters bees. No, they did something."
The bartender brought out the food and then refilled Corinth's drink. He took a few bites of his fries and then continued. "Ley Lines. That's the key. They tapped into the Ley Lines just like you did and I think I know how. Keep up. The Book of Shadows is a spell book and I'm sure it was passed down from generation to generation, but not because they were witches, but because they took it off a Magus or found it somewhere. They then found Ley Lines and tapped into them, thus allowing them to use magic. That's why the Halliwell Manor was built where it was, at the intersection of two Ley Lines. The house acts as a reservoir, absorbing all the residual magic that flows down the lines and the people that live inside it effectively slowly get charged up like batteries. This would explain why most of the event of the sisters took place on a weekly basis. It took a week for them to fully charge up and be able to use magic."
"You tracking so far? Alright, there are three sisters and three is the big magical number. Lots of things happen in threes and that's why it's considered to be important. If we factor that in with the sisters, three sisters pulling on the Ley Lines could create some type of impact. Magic would be stronger and all that jazz. For all we know, them screwing around with the Ley Lines for so long is what is causing all this. And this half sister nonsense...you work with three full blooded sisters and then one gets offed so you bring in a halfling who can only really work at 50% capacity...that's got to mess things up. Mess things up to the point that you need to start pulling in more magic than usual to get things done." He trailed off and took a bite of his burger.
"What's your take on it all? I personally think we should-" Corinth's phone buzzed in his pocket. Pulling it out, he saw that Dalia was calling and decided to answer it, holding up a finger to Lumina. "Yes, Dalia?"
"I was just telling Lumina my thoughts on this investigation. No, I think it's a bust. The other factions are here and they are days ahead of us in everything. We're just picking up breadcrumbs at this point. Me? No, I think it's a waste of time at this point. I mean, we could stay but by the time we get anywhere, it would be less than pointless. Uh huh. Wait, what about Jack Stone?" He leaned forward and took another sip of his drink, his eyebrows furrowed as he listened to his handler. "That doesn't make any sense. He may have visited some questionable places, but he never would have stepped out on her. They loved each other. Oh, she did what now? Now that's interesting? Plus two more? One is weird, but three..." He muted the phone for a second and looked to Lumina, "see,, three."
Unmuting the phone he went back to listening. "That has gathered my attention more than this place. We can debrief you on what we found so far when we get back. How about some coordinates for an Agartha Gate? I don't feel like flying for another 15 hours. Just text them to me. Ok, thanks." He hung up.
Lost in thought, he took another bite of his burger, followed by a few fries, and then another hefty drink, emptying his glass. Even though he had eaten, his head was a little swirly as the bartender refilled his glass. He would sleep well tonight.
"Got another case back in London. Gonna leave this one to whatever faction is working it. You can come or you can stay here and finish up if you desire. Choice is yours." He flagged the bartender down to run his card and cash out for the evening.
Corinth finished his meal and waited for Lumina to finish hers. He was feeling good, but he still wanted, no, now he felt he needed a shower. Once everything was taken care of and a generous tip was left, the duo headed back to their rooms. Before Corinth entered his own room, he looked over to Lumina and said, "You did good today, Jennifer," then disappeared inside.
Posted by : Dblitz13
Sung drove around for a little while. they stopped at a drive-through for food and drinks. and drove back to Sung's apartment. Getting back and eating food Sung did the one thing Sung does not like to do pulled his computer out. Start to look at the case again and the evidence Sung had collected. "Choi, how does that dream vision or whatever it is called work?"
Choi took a bite of his burger. He grimaced, not knowing how people could eat this stuff. He guessed that when in a time pinch, people would eat just about anything if hungry enough.
"It usually happens while I'm in meditation. There's a buzzing, as if it's warning me to focus. Then I see things I don't completely understand until later." It was difficult to explain. "For example, I saw Eun-Ji's face before I met her. When I saw her at the university, I knew she was the one I was to help. The same morning, I saw mothman and the ley lines, which I didn't know were left lines until Eun-Ji discussed them. I tend to see things before actually experiencing them."
"It wasn't those that cause me anxiety now," Choi confessed. "It's the vision that Alyssa and I had, and maybe Powers too, when I opened The End Rite." Yeong thought for a moment, then added, "I tell you what, see what you can find in the Dragon Database on Emma and Marquard."
Typing Sung gave a nod. "Do get rest tonight it is going to be a long day tomorrow," suggested Sung still looking at this lab top. "It is not the organizations but the foundations," Sung said thinking out loud. "The evidence is lost on the Foundations. This is where investigators make the mistake. They are all dead-ends due to deaths," continued Sung. "So there Mo is they start a foundation get the money and pepole or followers through the foundations then end the trial by killing them then it looks like an occult death case closed," suggested Sung not sure if he was right.
Sung smiled. "The one common fact is a man who does investments, Jack Rentals, or the company Creed Existence which does everything within the law. This way does not attract attention. They operate out of Congo." said Sung now sounding tired.
Choi reached up and scratched the back of his head. It made sense. There was a jungle scene in the vision.
"The part of the vision we saw that mention Marquard was in a jungle. I'm sure it must be the Congo. Agents of all three factions were running and being shot at."
"All three factions? As in The Dragon, The Templars, the Illuminati," asked Sung.
Choi nodded in an affirmative fashion. It was unnerving. He was not used to seeing operatives running from danger.
"Have you ever run from anything?" Choi probed. What could be so horrible to cause operatives to run?
Sung thought "I would like to lie and say no. It was a demon and some minions. I was by myself so I ran not that I did not kill that demon later and all the minions. That was the first time I thought I was going die," replied Sung with a small smile on his face. He sat back and took a drink from his glass.
Choi nodded again. "I'm glad we'll have the help from the Illuminati at least. Have you heard from Eun-Ji?"
Sung looked like he was thinking "No not yet she has a lot of research to do so I will let her do her work if she needs help she will call," Sung said leaning back and looking up at the ceiling.
Choi didn't expect that answer. If she were working alone, wouldn't that make her susceptible?
"What if something happens to her?" Yeong asked. "Master Park told me to watch over her and make sure she was successful."
Sung sighed "Give Eun-Ji a call, Do I need to hold your hand? said Sung sounding a little irritated. "Do not let me slow you down," stated Sung. Sung's phone chirped. " Got a text from Alyssa. Meet at Halliwell House tomorrow morning. A lot has happened. Or come tonight. Important but no one is in urgent danger," Sung said reading the text.
Sung texted back: Received, green team will come if needed.
"We might go, and see the blue team be ready to move but make your phone call." Suggested Sung.
Choi thought a moment. He didn't want to stir the pot. Eun-Ji already didn't seem to like him. If he called her to check on her, he was certain she'd be even more angry with him.
"Like you said," Choi pensively replied, "if she would need us, she'd call."
Sung looked at the clock "Dam, 2 am, let us get some sleep another long day tomorrow. We will wake up early and head over." suggested Sung.
Choi stretched and agreed. Later in the night, when Yeong had thought Sung was asleep, he would sneak out and go to the place they dropped off Eun-Ji. He would meditate, concentrate on the sounds around him, slow his heart rate and breathing, listening only for anything out of the ordinary. This way, he'd still get rest, while remaining on guard. It was a way for his senses to be heightened while his body rested.
Posted by : mdman
The Morgue - San Francisco, CA
Disguised as a lab technician, Eun-Ji confidently made her way into the morgue, thanks to the fake ID provided by David. However, her entrance did not go unnoticed, as the head of the morgue intercepted her path, questioning her presence. The man was beside himself with irritation, that was obviously spilling over from something that occurred earlier.
In a split second, the illusion of her shattered, leaving the man dazed and bewildered as he stumbled backwards, slumped against the wall, and collapsed onto the floor. Seizing the opportunity, the real Eun-Ji slipped inside and calmly walked past his prone form.
She was greeted by the sight of disorder only partially cleaned up. Undeterred by the apparent aftermath of a recent altercation, Eun-Ji focused on her objective: examining the three cadavers—Gail, Olivia, and Kramer. Swiftly locating the necessary equipment, she retrieved an ophthalmoscope and proceeded to inspect the eyes of the two identified female victims still out in the open. To her confirmation, she discovered the telltale crescent-shaped scar on their retinas, evidence of the master of the fades' sinister influence.
However, Kramer's body was nowhere to be found, and a sealed container with scuffing around the exterior edges drew her attention. Trusting her instincts, she refrained from investigating further and swiftly concluded her visit to the morgue, satisfied with the confirmation she had obtained.
She was picked up by David, who had been patiently waiting in the parking lot with a plethora of technological devices now stashed in the backseat. He assured her that he had been successful in looping the video feeds inside the hospital so that her presence there went unnoticed by surveillance. She had some more information to upload to the Dragon archives, every Dragon with access would now benefit from all the findings and knowledge she was gaining.
Posted by : Lorem
In the morning, Choi was soaked from the rain. He stood vigil outside of the home where Eun-Ji was staying. He broke from his tactical breathing and soon his heart rate returned to normal. He was glad Eun-Ji remained safe.
Yeong ran back to Sung's home, sneaking back into the window of his room. He removed the soaked clothing and took a warm shower. It did wonders, increasing the blood flow. He dressed in clean clothing that Sing had provided for the past couple of days, since Choi's clothing was still at his underground suite. He then headed to the kitchen, hoping to find breakfast.
Sung was sitting near the window sipping on some tea it was weird like you could not even feel his presence there by the window. Sung turned to look at Choi. Then back out the window. "There is some breakfast on the table and hot water for tea," said Sung politely. Sung was not going to ask about the night or when Choi returned. It was none of Sung's business as far as Sung was concerned.
"When you are ready well will go" said Sung finishing his tea.
Choi nodded and smiled. "Good morning, Master Sung," he expressed. "I'm famished. There is no better way to start the day."
Choi ate the breakfast and downed a cup of tea. As he ate, he wondered what the day working aside the Illuminati would bring. At least these three seemed pleasant enough with whom to work.
"I am ready, Master," Choi acknowledged. "Shall we go," he added putting the sword over a shoulder in its sword bag.
Sung did the same grabbing his sword bag and hanging it on his shoulder using its strap. His family sword felt fairly familiar. Sung hoped this day he would not need it.
Posted by : mdman
San Francisco, Stanyan Park Hotel, Night after Kramer's First Death
Lumina hadn't been too hungry after the stomach churning ordeal she had been through in the morgue, but by the time they got to the bar, that had changed a bit. Corinth again offered to pay for the meal (Lumina really was saving on expenses by hanging around the man; even in the twenty-first century, certain aspects of chivalry weren't yet dead) and alcohol. Lumina ordered a club sandwich and a Stella, and she made herself comfortable as she listened to Corinth's theories regarding the case. She had gotten a refill and was almost halfway down again when Corinth got a call from his handler.
Lumina took that time to nibble on her sandwich as she considered her own opinions on the monster hunter's theories so far. His belief that the Halliwell Sisters were not all bees was most likely on the money, for the reason he listed, and it was likely that much if not most of their magic instead came from the ley lines at the house, however, there considerably more sources of magic than just ley lines and Gaia's Bees in the world. Magic could be granted, taken, or bargained from supernatural entities (people liked to think the Devil was a popular choice for this, but in truth a warlock or witch had many options they'd probably prefer to go to before they resorted to reaching out to Hell Dimension entities) or drawn from magical artifacts, and that wasn't even getting into blood sacrifices. Not that she seriously suspected that the Halliwell Sisters were sacrificing people for magical power, but maybe the family had gotten their power from other sources before they settled in the Manor.
She also didn't quite get where Corinth was going with his conclusion that one of the Sisters dying and then being replaced by a half-sister critically disrupted some sort of magical equilibrium, but Lumina supposed there had to be some sort of explanation for why the sisters weren't living in their nice, if dilapidated, manor in the heart of San Francisco. Lumina wondered if any of the sisters were still hanging around the city elsewhere…
Then Corinth dropped the news. He was skipping town. Apparently one of his other jobs was blowing up. Any thoughts she had of contesting points of Corinth's theory left her mind as Lumina reconsidered her plans for the week in light of this development. Hypothetically she could still continue the investigation on her own, but it would take longer, and if Corinth's point about them being days behind the other societies was true, then continuing the investigation at a slower pace could likely be an exercise in futility. It also wasn't only her call to make. Owen also had a say in whether or not she should continue the investigation alone, especially when he was the one who wanted her to work with somebody else here in the first place.
The meal ended in silence as Corinth paid the bill (she'd also miss that), and she followed him as they made their way to their rooms.
"You did good today, Jennifer."
Lumina smiled. "Thanks, it was fun to watch you get us into places, crack a cipher, and stab a zombie too."
Her second shower that day was as long if not longer than her first. There was certainly weirdness to this case, with many disparate findings that didn't seem to fit together at all. Why was a magical killer attacking people right after they saw the mothman? Why did Turner write a coded message about the Halliwell Sisters? Why did the Sisters have that book, The End Rite, that showed visions about a bunch of seemingly random things, happen to be in the basement? And why did those visions potentially include scenes of the magical killer and the Florida swamp that Lumina and apparently Olivia had seen at the twisted trees at the site of Olivia's death? Lumina's gut told her there was a connection to all this, but what it was she did not know, nor did she have any ideas at the moment as to how she could go about finding that connection.
But even more concerning was, "So what?" With Corinth leaving, was the investigation just going to end? What was going to happen with all the details they had worked to discover? Had the other Societies found all this out already? Did they already know about the Florida swamp and the magical killer? Lumina and Corinth would no doubt report everything they had discovered to the Templars, but what would they do with all this?
In the end, the one thing she knew was that she wasn't going to find the answers to these questions in the shower. After drying off and brushing her teeth, Lumina changed into loose fitting sweatpants and a T-shirt and considered her next course of action. She probably should write up a synopsis of the day's events to prepare for Owen tomorrow morning, or she could read more into the tomes she had taken about ley lines.
Or she could go see Corinth since there was a good chance that he was leaving early in the morning and she might not get a decent opportunity to talk to him again after this.
Lumina decided to go with the later option, and found herself checking the mirror. What did she care what she looked like at this hour? Corinth didn't seem like the type of person who expected a woman to always be looking best around him, and it wasn't like she was trying to impress him or anything. Well, she was trying to impress him professionally, and considering the unsolicited compliment he had given her, she felt like she had done all right at that. But surely Corinth wouldn't think less of her professional performance if…
Why do I have to overthink everything?
Before she gave herself the chance to further paralyze herself, Lumina marched out the door (after making sure she had her key card), no shoes, no makeup, and her hair down and still rather damp, and marched over to Corinth's room and knocked.
Posted by : Sky
Sartre awoke, with both a message from Kiersten Geary from the Council of Venice,
He noticed that Alyssa had gotten up and placed the pentacle back on the nightstand next to him.
He would use one of the other bathrooms to shower. There were several in this old mansion.
Each of the three sisters still had their doors closed . He was certain that they had things to discuss among themselves. He would leave them to it, he was quite impressed by Alyssa's actions the previous evening. This was their home after all, something was causing trouble both in it and the city. Something that tied into the secret world.
He felt as if today would please bring some answers.
He thought back to the previous night's conversations about how one mistake could not be made. He read the message from his faction handlers as well as from the Council. He was to report to Charles Duane's church. He knew he had to come armed. He looked for Alyssa somewhere in the mansion, to see if she was arming herself as well.
She was going to have to be the driver.
Alyssa had arisen early, she had wandered the house a bit, being careful to not disturb anyone and avoided the basement and attic.
While it was, understandably, in need of repairs in the light of day, without menacing things happening and given the time to explore it a little more it seemed nice, homey in a way.
The young woman made her way into the kitchen and found that one of the sisters had stocked the coffee supplies recently and made sure their were clean cups. Well, making a pot of coffee was an idea. She did that and grabbed a cup for herself, then heard someone downstairs.
Finding Peter, she smiled at the man, "Mornin. Do you want some coffee? I just made a fresh pot."
"Sure I think we'll need the caffeine, are you sure you did not drink a bunch before laying down last night?"
"I wish," Alyssa responded, with a hint of a laugh. "What's the plan for the day?" She asked, leading Peter back into the kitchen, pouring him a cup of coffee and handing him the sugar, cream and a spoon.
"Visit Charles Duane's church with the other factions." He drank the coffee black.
"Well, The Dragons are meeting us here this morning. But we've heard nothing from the Templars." Alyssa said, highly doubting the third factions would be there. "We should probably wake up Max."
"Indeed." Peter said. "Don't go in Prue's room. You are pale fiery lightning Alyssa. "
Alyssa breathed a laugh. "Thanks, I can be not very subtle at times but Prue deserved it. I'm a little surprised she didn't do anything worse." The young woman finished her coffee, and put the cream back in the fridge. "Max was asleep in the living room, last I checked. Not sure why he slept there instead of one of the open bedrooms. So, we go together to wake him?"
"Sure."
Max was in the nearby bathroom since he woke up when people began making noise. He washed up and then looked in the mirror as he sighed and muttered, "Its showtime." Then he transformed into Agent Powers and checked himself out in the mirror before he left to look for the others. The smell of coffee filled the air and he followed it to the kitchen. He then asked, "Did someone make coffee?"
Alyssa was about to leave the kitchen when she saw the big guy headed their way. "Mornin' Max. There's fresh coffee if you want some." She pulled out the cream and put it back on the counter with a mug and a spoon, the sugar was still there. "There's eggs and things in the fridge but I don't know how to cook."
Agent Powers gave Alyssa a smolder smirk as he nodded to her. He replied, "Why thank you Alyssa and good morning to you as well. Well I guess I can make myself useful then since I can cook. It was part of my training since I had to fend for myself." Then Agent Powers put on a pink frilly apron and began collecting eggs, bacon and bagels from the fridge. He began to sing to himself as he was cooking away, "Yummy, yummy, yummy
I got love in my tummy and I feel like a-lovin' you
Love, you're such a sweet thing, good enough to eat thing
And it's just a-what I'm gonna do
Ooh love to hold ya, ooh love to kiss ya
Ooh love I love it so
Ooh love you're sweeter, sweeter than sugar
Ooh love, I won't let you go
Uh, uh, yeah, oh". He had a groove going on as he cooked breakfast. Then he began making some scrambled eggs on one plate, over easy eggs on a different plate and hard boiled on a third plate. The fourth plate had the cooked bacon and the fifth plate had toasted bagels on it. He then pulled out the jam, jelly, cream cheese and butter for the others to add to their breakfast. Agent Powers let the others serve themselves as he made his own plate on the side with four large omelets and 4 bagels dripping with cream cheese and grape jelly. Once he was done he fixed himself a large coffee with coffee and sugar as he leaned on a counter to eat his big breakfast. He then asked, "So what are we doing today?"
Alyssa was a little surprised to learn Max could cook. The young woman had never had much of an opportunity to learn. She took some scrambled eggs, a bagel, two pieces of bacon. Buttered the bagel and then made a sandwich with the food and cut it in half. After taking a bite, "Thanks, Max. This is good." Another bite before pulling some orange juice out of the fridge. They were on small bottles so no need for a glass. Alyssa opened the bottle and drank some. "The Dragons should be here soon, then we're headed to Charles Duane's church."
Agent Powers nodded to Alyssa as he swallowed his food. In his big form he had a big appetite. He replied, "Well it's the least I can do since my skills are limited in helping you solve the big mystery. All I am good at is combat, survival and cooking. True, I play some games on my phone but I am only average with those. I lack the brain power you guys have so I need to step up when I can." Agent Powers gave Alyssa a smolder smirk then began to eat more food.
Sung and Choi pulled up to where the Blue team was staying, pulling up to the Halliwell mansion. After parking Sung paused looking into his rearview mirror for a minute it was clear none drove by or paused looking in. He pulled out his phone and sent a text to Alyssa.
SungText: We have arrived at the Halliwell mansion The area looks clear."
"OK, it is Clare Choi. We can head in unless you want to stay here," said Sung, picking up his sword and getting out.
Alyssa heard the buzz of her phone and looked at the message. Texting back a thumbs up. "The Dragons are here." She finished the last of her sandwich and OJ and went towards the front door.
Agent Powers continued to eat quietly as he listened to Alyssa speaking from the other room. He was ready for fight anytime but he had no intention of messing up any teamwork they managed to make in the process.
As Sung's Suburban roled to a stop at the mansion, Choi unbuckled his seatbelt. Getting out, he replaced the sword bag over his shoulder. It didn't reveal the hilt, so some people, especially law enforcement, might take it as pool cues on the inside.
He waited for Sung to exit and do the same. Then together, they walked to the front door. Knowing others were on the inside, Yeong simply knocked instead of forcing his way.
"You going to be wearing your hoodie today Alyssa?" Peter asked.
"Probably, why?" Alyssa responded to Sam.
She then opened the door. Greeting the two Dragons with a, "Mornin" then stepping aside to let the two men in.
"You look like the perfect hacker in that hoody with those shades." Peter said.
Choi nodded then bowed to greet those in the house. "My favorite Illuminati!" he enthusiastically stated as he rose with a wink at Alyssa the Hacker. "I'm glad you are still okay. We believe we have a difficult battle ahead. Glimpsing at the big guy, Yeong inquired, "Agent Powers, you have a song for us today?"
He then saw Sartre. Choi didn't know how to take the man. He had mixed feelings from him at times. But then, he wasn't with him as long as he was Alyssa and Powers.
Alyssa nodded at Peter's compliment. "Really? Well, then I might have to keep the look."
She smiled at Choi, "Yup, all good and I'm glad you are still alright as well. Both of you." Alyssa paused, listening to Choi talk about a difficult battle ahead she could only nod.
Choi was chipper for being on guard all night. The tactical breathing he did gave his body all the rest he needed.
"So, why are we back here? We didn't find everything the first time?" Yeong asked. "No way I'm opening that book again."
"We were asked to come back here last night, when Prue Halliwell showed up at our hotel." Alyssa paused. "And yes she was dead but isn't any longer. Anyway the sisters are here, upstairs. Something happened last night but overall I think they're going to help us."
Agent Powers merely smiled at Choi and he gave a smolder before he replied, "You never know. Oh and take her words with a grain of salt. That Prue girl can be harsh."
Alyssa sighed, "I didn't know we were that loud. Prue doesn't particularly like me but whatever." She shrugged. The feelings were pretty mutual.
Choi raised his brows at those last two comments. He shook his head and asked, "How could anyone not like Alyssa the Hacker."
He gazed upstairs. He never knew an undead person, let alone one that seemed to be good. Choi had thought those entities were all evil. Maybe that was why she didn't like Alyssa. That was all conjecture, so he could wait to meet the third sister. The first two didn't go so well. They had been uncooperative. Why the cooperation now?
Agent Powers shrugged as he replied, "Who knows why people do what they do."
Sung had just been in the background and not saying anything. He bowed to them when he entered but was quiet, opting more to sense the Anima in the area and house.
"I love the look, Alyssa, especially when you're at your computer." Peter interjected.
Choi's lips tightened. What was up with Agent Sartre? He wrinkled a brow some more. He began to think the guy was a creeper himself, making these types of comments to a young girl. Admittedly, she was cute, but Sartre was older. Much older.
Changing the subject, Choi asked, "So, what do the sisters have in store for us?"
Alyssa didn't know why Peter was going on about how she looked in a hoodie in front of everyone when there were more important things to discuss so out loud she didn't respond but in the chip said to Peter, "Remember when you said to tell you if you were making me uncomfortable well that would be now."
"Don't know." Alyssa responded, outloud. "Maybe we should talk in the living room." She started leading the group into the living room, so everyone could sit down. Once everyone was in the living room, she said. "The plan was to go to Charles Duane's church. Were the sisters coming with us?" That question was more targeted at Peter because he should be the one who knew that answer.
In the chip, Peter responded, "I was trying to lighten things up, I feel we should be as relaxed as possible."
Peter then spoke out loud about the sisters, "They want to stay here and discuss things themselves. For some reason Charles Duane wants only the factions to come. Alyssa, are you armed? Everyone else? The sisters want us back here tonight."
Somehow, Yeong couldn't see Alyssa with a weapon. Her weapon of choice seemed to be behind the scenes. Covert, online tactics.
Reaching up and over his head, Choi opened up the bag and slid the sword up slightly. "Thanks to Master Sung, I left the nunchucks behind. This should do the trick."
He turned to Agent Powers. "How about you, Agent Powers? Anything besides those two huge guns?" He pointed at Powers' biceps as he asked.
Sung sat cradling his sword bag so all could see the ornate leather bag folded over on the top and tied. "I am a master swordsman and do not use firearms but can attack at range if I Need to," added Sung, his tone professional and not boasting more reserved.
Alyssa lifted her jean leg slightly to reveal an ankle holster and a small pistol, "That's all I've got weapon wise." She had a feeling whatever they might run across was unlikely to be bothered much by her little pistol.
Agent Powers gave a smolder smirk as he replied, "Funny you should ask. I have a pistol and knife in my boots and a lot of ball bearings in my pocket. But with these two guns (pointing at his arms) I can turn anything into a weapon like a desk, tree or a car." He smiled at the others as he felt confident.
Choi smirked back. "Good for you, Powers. Well, what do you suppose will come out of this church thing?"
Choi had never experienced a Western church. He didn't expect it to be anything like the monastery.
Sartre retrieved his bag, "Alyssa this is my Anima Charged MP5, can you use it?" He showed her the rifle.
Agent Powers rubbed his chin as he pondered the answer to Choi's question. He then replied, "Well from my experience churches can be old and boring with normal people arguing over what fundraiser to go with. However on the other hand there are churches that run as a front for drugs running, slave trafficking, kidnapping, occult practices, money laundering, military bases and political support." Agent Powers nodded his head a bit before the smolder came and he replied, "At least that is what I learned when I crushed a bunch of them in the past."
"I know how to use an MP5, the IIlumanti kind of insisted I had training with all kinds of guns but I've not used one since then." Alyssa responded to Peter's offer for the rifle.
That was the most Choi had heard from Agent Powers. He was impressed.
Hearing Alyssa, Yeong responded, "You'll be fine. Just aim and pull the trigger. When are we heading for the show?"
Choi looked to Sung. "Master? Perhaps we should alert Eun-Ji."
Alyssa nodded to Yeong's response. "Well, I'm ready if everyone else is. We'll have to take two vehicles, with Max there won't be enough room in the back of my van for everyone."
Agent Powers shrugged as he replied, "Sorry for being a big guy."
"One thing I would like Alyssa, Make sure we are not in front of you when you shoot," added Sung. Turning to Choi I know you have a phone, use it" Sung now sounding annoyed. "I am not your secretary or in charge of you yet," replied Sung. Letting out a sigh. "Sorry, I know I am the more experienced Dragon here. When Eun-Ji completes her task she will join us," said Sung looking a bit uncomfortable.
Alyssa rolled her eyes at Sung, "I thought you said I was Velma - the smart one. Velma is certainly smart enough to not shoot the people on her side, as am I." She paused, "Are we ready? Oh, do we want to mix up the groups in case there's problems on the way there?"
Agent Powers was confused by the odd comments and asked, "Who is this Velma you keep mentioning? Is she some legendary person I should know about?"
Choi wasn't sure who Velma was either. He didn't see much TV at the monastery, and only used the internet on smart TVs when on a mission. He did watch a movie here and there, but it wasn't his main focus.
"I wouldn't know," Choi responded, "but she must be intelligent."
"She's an animated character. Old animation, like way before my time." Expressing the word "way" to indicate how old Sung must be. "Scooby-Doo. It came back several different times but Sung's probably referencing the original. Everyone in the group had their niches, Velma was the intelligent one."
Choi smirked as he said, "See? I told you so. Intelligent, just like Alyssa."
"Take the Rifle. I'll use the pistol. Everyone ready?" said Sartre
Choi felt a vibration in his pocket. "Hold on," he said, pulling his phone from it. "Well, what do you know?" he said with a grin. "Eun-Ji has beat us to the punch. Let's go!"
Alyssa smiled at Yeong's compliment. She nodded at Peter, "Alright, I'll get it from you when we get there."
Alyssa led whoever was riding with her to the van and opened it. She got into the driver's side, buckled in and waited on the others.
Choi looked to Sung. He saw the man as being wiser than he. He would allow Sung to decide on whether he would go with the Illuminati or remain with him.
Sung looked around the room. "Choi, you can go with them, it will make communication easier. If one of you with a gun would like to come with me that would be appreciated. I don't know if your van is heavy so I will take the lead and deal with any trouble if needed." said Sung with a grin. "Scooby-Doo" added Sung walking out of the house.
Agent Powers followed Alyssa to the van since he was assigned to her anyway. If she got hurt it would be his responsibility since he was assigned to work with her. His father was rather strict on his missions and Max did his best to finish each mission to the letter. However this was a tough mission with a lot of brain work and other members.
Choi nodded to Sung. He headed for the van, opening the back and entering. "Looks like I'm with you," he said.
That left Peter to ride with Sung, in a way it gave Alyssa a bit of a breather. It wasn't that she disliked Peter but was truly the most time she had spent with one person in a very long time. In general she felt like she needed a break from everyone but it was just the way Alyssa was.
"Well, then climb in. Take the front passenger's seat." She responded to Yeong. "Give me a minute." The computer hacker went through turning on what was needed and then climbed her way back into the driver's seat. "Max the back is all yours. Do your usual and keep an eye out for anything suspicious." She plugged the address into the GPS and then once everyone was seated, started off down the road.
Choi took the sword bag off his shoulder. He buckled himself inside the passenger seat and laid the sword upon his lap.
"Are you a good driver, Alyssa?" Choi inquired in a teasing manner.
Agent Powers nodded as he sat in the back of the van again. He preferred having some elbow room since he was not fond of cramped spaces on his past missions. As he settled down he asked, "Hey Choi you seem rather easy going for a Dragon. Did you grow up in a monastery or something?"
Choi raised a brow, turning to look at Agent Powers in the back of the van. He laughed, then turned to Alyssa.
"I'm sure you can answer that question," he said to Alyssa. "You seemed to know me before we even met."
Alyssa grinned, "I guess you'll have to find out." She thought of Max's question as odd. Well, the monastery part anyway. Easy going = growing up in a place surrounded by very religious people didn't go together in her mind.
"How do you figure that?" Alyssa asked, with a bit of a grin forming on her lips. "I'm certainly not a mind reader but I guess you could say I have ways of seeing pasts. Yeong, you were raised in a monastery."
Agent Powers chuckled a bit then replied, "Sorry if it sounded odd. During my travels in the past I have been to a lot of churches, temples and holy places. I learned a lot of stuff from them, especially the Shaolin monks. You kinda give off the same vibe as them. If I offended you I do apologize."
Alyssa knew Yeong's parents had been killed but thought it best to not mention that. She had little filter, it didn't mean she was unnecessarily bringing up difficult subjects. "So, Yeong, you have any questions for us?"
Sung unlocked the large black SUV climbed in and started it "Peter, is it? If you do not know me, I am Sung or Mr Sung." He said. pulling out and waiting for the van to get behind him. "Keep an eye out for the Van and anything that could be a threat." instructed Sung to Peter.
"Well, let us get the ball rolling." He said. Sung pulled out and drove through the streets to their destination. Sung driving also like a pro it felt like he knew what he was doing. Stopping when needed and making sure not to lose the mystery machine. Sung knew Alyssa was trained as well and she had no problem staying with Sung's SUV. So far nothing was getting in their way.
On the way to the church, the conversation continued. For some reason, Choi trusted these two Illuminati. It could be they went through the shade attack together, but their personalities and attitudes meshed with Yeong's. It wasn't because of age, as Powers was in his thirties.
"No hard feelings," Choi voiced to Powers. "I feel I can trust you two Illuminati. We've been through a battle together. I'm not sure about Agent Sartre though. Is he a good man or do we need to be careful around him?"
Agent Powers shrugged as he replied, "Well to be fair this is my first group mission with the Illuminati, Dragons and Templars. Normally I do solo missions and only work with a handler for a short time. Alyssa is easy to work with but Peter and I barely talk to each other, so it would be best to form your own opinion on him. However Peter seemed pretty sure we were going to be facing some danger, so if he is right we may need to know a more ideal way to fight. As you can guess these guns (flexing his arms) are not just for show. I can be the tank and use whatever is around as a shield. Is it safe to assume you can flank as an attacker Choi?"
Yeong grinned. "We seek peace in our individual lives at the monastery," he said. "However, I am trained in martial arts. I have been trained in all forms of blade as well. So, to answer your questions, I can assist in a fight."
The one thing Choi was confident in was his skills. Through routine practice and training, he was well versed in all aspects of defensive and offensive strikes.
"Peter is a good man, from what I've seen," Alyssa responded. "He's a little overprotective of me but there's reasons for it." Maybe overzealous about some things, Alyssa was trying to still figure all of that out.
"Anything physical is not my forte. I can use the rifle, not convinced it'll do much good but that's what I've got." Alyssa responded.
"Don't worry too much about that," Choi sincerely stated. "I realize your skills lie elsewhere. Your man Powers and I will protect you."
Choi was confident in his abilities, but also had learned from Master Park's patience with him. "I'm sure when it comes down to it, your training will be sufficient." He winked at her and smiled. "I have confidence in you. If you had not helped in the cellar of the manor, that shade may have eaten my soul."
Agent Powers then replied, "Yeah what exactly was that "Shade" thing? Apparently it made me relive my first missions taking down a Cartel in South America while plowing through cannibals and animals. To help me stay in the zone I often sing a song to stay focused. Is that what you all saw me do?"
The van pulled into a parking space, they had arrived at the church. "Maybe, we can discuss this later?" Alyssa had a feeling the explanation wouldn't take longer than they had time for.
Posted by : Cindy
Seated across the street from Charles Duane's church, reading on a park bench, an illusion of Eun-Ji blended seamlessly into the the surrounding city block. She was dressed in her typical hanfu attire which covered her tactical outfit underneath. She also had a small backpack sitting next to her on the bench, giving her the assumed appearance of a college student perhaps to any onlookers. In addition, she strategically placed the backpack next to her to prevent anyone else from sitting down.
The church, a majestic structure with intricate Gothic architecture, stood as a beacon of faith amidst the urban landscape. Its towering spires reached towards the heavens, casting long shadows over the streets below.
Surrounding the church, storefronts and businesses operated with minimal activity, while pedestrians meandered along the sidewalks, lost in their own thoughts and conversations. Across the way, a small and sparsely attended community park provided a serene oasis amidst the urban chaos, where locals walked their dogs and children played on the playground.
Despite the normalcy of the city block, an air of mystery and anticipation hung in the air as Eun-Ji appeared to patiently scope out the place behind the pages of a book she was reading. Over the last two days she had been focusing on research and investigation. The clues had now led her to this place.
"You have a standard dragon sword Sung? I have a feeling you will need it." Sartre watched for surveillance , as they arrived.
After parking, Alyssa said both in the chip and outloud. "Hold on a minute." She went into the back of the van. Typed a few things and watched a screen which showed the church. After a few minutes of this the computer expert said, once again both outloud and into the chip. "It looks clear. Eun-Ji seems to have already arrived."
Agent Powers asked, "Okay so what's the plan? Do we go in peaceful or do I break the door down?"
Sung opened the sword bag and pulled out his sword. When they arrived. No Peter, it is not this has been in my family for a long time it is hundreds of years old. It has been my family's focus for our sword technique. That is a mix with in its self." answered Sung to Peters's question.
Alyssa got out of the van, as she was opening the backdoor she heard Max's question. "I doubt we want to attract that much attention until it's absolutely necessary. But let's ask the others what they think." She stepped aside to allow Max out if the van, and waited for the others.
Choi saw Eun-Ji on the bench as Alyssa was pulling into the lot. He was glad that they'd actually be working together today.
Unbuckling and getting out, he swung Master Sung's sword over his shoulder until it was snug against his back. He walked over to the bench and bowed to his partner.
"I am happy you are safe," he sincerely stated. "What have you found out concerning the church? It looks like a basic Christian church."
Sung sighed. "Choi, never judge a book by its looks. I think how it is said. Nothing in our line of work is how things look. " commented Sung.
The illusion on the bench looked up at Choi and said nothing. Then he heard a voice from behind a nearby tree, as the true Eun-Ji revealed herself. "I have learned that you all have no idea how to come upon an establishment without making a scene." Referring to their pulling up as a group of misfits on a mission with an air of frustration.
She walked over to the bench, as simultaneously the illusion of her continued back to its reading. "My investigation left a trail of breadcrumbs to this place. I do not know what will be found inside, but what I learned makes me think it will be dangerous." She then gestured to the people he brought. "And why might I ask are you mingling with the likes of the Illuminati?"
As Agent Powers waited he looked at the church and sized it up. He remembered in the past he had to find a drug cartel boss hiding in the church and trying to ambush him. Little did the Drug Boss know, Agent Powers was very creative in make a weapon out of anything with his insane strength. He used the pew or benches the people sat on as objects to hurl at the people shooting at him. He felt a little bad about destroying the place but it belonged to the Cartel so it had to be destroyed according to his father. He remembered the crushed bodies he left behind that had a pew for a head. For the Drug Boss he used a chair to crush his head into his torso. Then as a warning to any who would want to continue the Cartel biz, Agent Powers left a note in the Drug Lords hand. The note read "I quit! Sincerely, Chairface Chippendale." Agent Powers still giggles when he remembers that note. He wonder how confused it would make anyone who read it. He then looked around to see what the others wanted to do.
Alyssa looked at the ones standing by her and asked, "Should we go in?"
Agent Powers nodded as he replied, "I'm game."
Posted by : Cindy
Pastor Charles Duane welcomed each of the members of the factions into the church, "Thank you all for coming, I'm certain the fate has brought us here, I've lost one of my best theology students back at that cult suicide. If you have a seat, in a few minutes I will be right with you."
Each member of the factions would look at each other and take a look around the church that had been around since the days of Spanish colonization. It was definitely a Protestant church but several hundred years old.
Madam Demonia hissed at the presence of the teams in the church and the sanctuary. "Dozuk, deal with them now!
Dozuk steps out from the back dressed in Protestant robes. "Welcome my you be blessed what brings you to our humble sanctuary." said the man eyeing each one of the people there.
Everything looks to be in place the way it should be but to the Teams, you start to pick out symbols that do not belong even on the man's robes.
Choi felt the negative energy almost immediately. Something was not right. How would the best theologian become involved with a heretical cult. Then Yeong spied a pin with rising sun.
Choi looked to Sung and Eun-Ji and nodded with a slight tilt of the head toward the pin. He slightly bent his knees, arms loosely to his sides, hands at the ready. He was glad his bag was already opened, making it easier to grab the sword, if needed.
Eun-Ji was not pleased with how this group was operating. All walking in together was silly. She held herself back a couple of minutes before entering herself; however, she was concerned the element of surprise that could have been an advantage by entering in staggered intervals and under false pretenses could have provided them.
She moved off away from the others in a pew and just pretended to pray.
Alyssa was just carrying the rifle at her side, pointed down, she had taken it out of the bag the moment the stepped in the church, best not to take any chances.
Something seemed off, it felt familiar but then again not. Alyssa eyed the man's robes but she hadn't been raised going to church, so the young woman really didn't know what she was looking for.
Alyssa saw Eun-Ji starting to prey, and thought it odd. The minster had known they were coming, no one else was here. Why act like she was here for another reason? Whatever.
Agent Powers had no fear of what might pop out. If it came down to violence he would grab a pew and hurl it at his targets. He was in a good mood as he hummed to himself, "Your own personal Jesus
Someone to hear your prayers
Someone who cares
Your own personal Jesus
Someone to hear your prayers
Someone who's there
Feeling unknown
And you're all alone
Flesh and bone
By the telephone
Lift up the receiver
I'll make you a believer"
Meanwhile Eun-Ji entered again. That was interesting. She moved off to the side and was lighting a candle. Another Eun-Ji came in moments later and looked to be admiring the stain glass windows on the other side. And yet one more entered, and just stood patiently at the back of the room and watched.
Alyssa thought she felt something, then turned and raised a brow at the multiple Eun-Jis. 'Cool trick,' the hacker thought and was now curious as to what the other woman was capable of.
Sartre said in the chip, " Some Protestant denominations dont wear vestments or robes..."
A blood curdling scream could be heard coming from the pastor's office. "Get off me!" "Duane, Chaos Crawls closer" You are made of stars..."
Upon hearing this Sartre whispered "Those guys in robes are morninglight cultists... fight at any time. "
hoi bounced into action, using parkour skills and jumping to the top of a pew to leap over a few pews. Landing upon the seat of one, he headed directly to the place from where the voice was coming.
Yeong had his hand upon the hilt of the sword, pulling it from the bag. The very front pew, Choi launched himself into the air, flipped and landed upon a solid footing in front of the pulpit. Instantly, he ran toward the office door, which was behind the platform.
The black dot came closer hanging above Alyssa. "It's time. You should belong to me." It whispering the words which felt like a noose around the young woman's neck.
Alyssa couldn't stop what happened next, she could move, felt like breathing was even a strain. Then the black nothingness opened wider sucking Alyssa into the void.
From the outside, it seemed as if Alyssa was frozen where she stood. Then, as if a magician snapped their fingers, she vanished from existence
"Where did she go?" Peter exclaimed. "Where the hell did Alyssa go?"
Posted by : Cindy
There was a knock on his door. Corinth looked into his room from the balcony he was resting on, his feet propped up on the rail and the small bottle of tequila that he swiped from the Halliwell estate sitting on a table beside him, unopened. He wondered who it was and decided that it could only be Lumina, but what could she want at this hour? He was freshly showered and was wearing loose pants and a t-shirt. Grabbing one of his guns, just in case, he opened the door and peeked out first, before fully opening it.
It was Lumina. "Everything ok," he asked, unsure of her visit. Looking her up and down, she was dressed down, much like he was, and it was good to see her in a more relaxed state. "Come in."
He tossed Bale onto the bed and turned to the kitchen area, grabbing two small glasses before heading out onto the balcony. He reclaimed his seat and motioned for Lumina to sit in the second chair opposite the table.
"What brings you out tonight," he asked placing both glasses down and picking up the tequila bottle, cracking the lid open and pouring them each a shot.
"I just wanted to... You know, chat, to know you a little better since you're leaving tomorrow. And talk about where we're leaving off our investigation."
"Leaving off? I've already told you my theories and how futile it is to chase cold leads that have probably already been sifted through by the other societies." He takes his shot.
"What if,she said, "the sister's didn't use the Ley Lines, but used something else to get their magic? Like they were granted their powers from something or maybe an artifact with magic imbued in it. Or even...blood sacrifices?
He considered the ideas for a moment and then refilled his glass. "Could be any one of those or a combination. Magic is power and people always want more power. If one avenue channel stops working, they try to find another." He sighed. "I don't know what's going on out here, but I do know time is working against us and if it is working with the other societies, more power to them. Let them have this headache."
"Would it be bad if we gave what we've found out to one of the other Societies?"
"No, but that's your call. I don't trust the Illuminate because all they care about is exploiting the Secret World for power and money and they Dragons just like starting chaos to see what will happen. At least with them, sometimes good things come from the butterfly effect."
She thought for a moment and then took her shot, placing the glass back on the table which was immediately refilled, whether she wanted it to be or not. "Do you really hate the name Lumina? You made fun of the name to the Coroner and then you called me Jennifer earlier."
Corinth smiled as he popped the top of his pill bottle and dropped a pill into his glass. "Do I hate the name Lumina," he said slowly as if processing the question. "It's a strange name to call oneself. but it's what you chose, so it's yours. Sometimes you have to use what you got to get around people. If I play you off as an eccentric psychic with an eccentric name, it helps move the lie along...easier to manipulate people. One of the things you'll learn with time." He took his loaded shot and placed the glass back down. "And I called you Jennifer to make it more personal. Thought it might show more sincerity. I'll just stick to Lumina now."
He leaned his head back into the chair and propped his feet back up on the rail. The new alcohol mixing with the old, letting him relax. The fog slowly creeping in on his memories, helping him focus on other things instead of the past.
Lumina took her second shot and then asked her next question. "What time are you planning on getting out of here tomorrow?"
Corinth lifted his head and looked at her. "You really came over here stacked with questions, huh? I don't know." Putting his head back down again. "I guess whenever I wake up and get my things together. I need to get back and process the scene at Stone's house before the Bobbies get to it. It's under Templar control at the moment, but it won't stay that way for long."
She nodded and then thought carefully about her next question, wondering if she should stop there, but the shots were making her feel a little more braver than usual. "Tell me a story?"
He turned his head to look at her, a brow arched. "A bedtime story?"
She shook her head as she poured herself another shot, the bottle almost empty. "No, not a bedtime story. A Corinth story. Tell me a past mission or something.
"Oh...ok." He had to wipe away some of the fog that had folded over his memories, but he managed to find one that might work for her. "Everyone knows New York is full of rats. Small ones, medium ones, and sometimes, very large ones. And the bigger they are, the braver they are. They get less and less scared of people the more they hang around them and the bigger they get." He sighed. "There's an entity we call The Rat King. Not a very original name, but it fits. He controls a lot of the rats in the city. We are not exactly sure how he does it, but we think it might be like a hive mind situation."
"We go into the sewers of New York, which is an adventure all unto itself, one that I wouldn't recommend if smells are your weakness. We crawled through those pipes for hours, eventually making it to one of the old subway tunnels. Deeper we trekked until I don't even know if we were in the same Burrough anymore. Luckily, if you want to say that, we finally came across this thing and it was some weird amalgamation of human rat hybrid. More human traits than rat, but you get the idea. We were sent in to straight up kill this thing. No talking, no negotiations, just wipe it off the map."
"And we did. Killed a bunch of rats too. Burned the place and ashed it up. Wasn't a hard fight. The problem we didn't know about, was that the Rat King can transfer its consciousness or spirit, to another rat. When it does this, it takes time, but it can regrow itself into the hybrid again and then start taking control of more rats. We can't kill it. All we can do is every now and again when we hear that the rats in New York are getting more active and larger, is go back down and kill the Rat King to reset his power. As long as there are rats in New York, they will have a king. Maybe I'll take you on the next one."
His eyes were closed, but he wasn't asleep. "Anything you want to contribute or are you just trying to see what makes me tick?"
Posted by : Dblitz13
Spiraling through time itself was the only way to describe what Alyssa felt like. She thought she heard music, a sympathy of disjointed sounds that somehow worked together.
Falling into a dark chasm where all thoughts of the past, present and future seemed to mingle accompanied by overwhelming distress and the sounds of screams which pierced the young woman's ear she had to use her hands as makeshift ear covers.
Visions of her father appeared. "Your fault," It whispered, "You are the only one that can fix it." The words in a never ending loop. Over and over repeating until he was sucked back into the darkness, screaming as he went.
Alyssa fell to the ground, curled herself tightly into a ball. It was no use, the blackness began stretching her skin in a painful manipulation. Her bones seemed to break and then heal only to break again.
The computer hacker was losing all sense of reason, certain this was the end. She would remain in this kind of private hell forever. "No, please," She screamed. "Stop."
Suddenly a swirling vortex came towards her, it wiped her of all thar had just been and sent Alyssa crashing back to the world.
Posted by : Cindy
San Francisco, Stanyan Park Hotel, Night after Kramer's First Death
"Anything you want to contribute, or are you just trying to see what makes me tick?"
"I mean, mostly the later," Lumina admitted, "but I suppose I owe you a story now."
She was less prepared for this than she should have been. Lumina didn't want to tell him a boring story, but she also didn't want to tell him one that made her look bad. "Umm, alright, my turn… my turn… How about that one time I felt like a badass after taking on the big bad?"
"Okay, so, long story. At the time, I was still apprenticing under Cheryl Somerset, a Warlock like me if you haven't heard of her, only, well, a lot better, 'cause she's been doing this for a long time and she's awesome. Anyway, we were alerted of strange acts of occultism and terrorism occurring in Eastern Germany, so Cheryl and I brushed up on our German and made our way over to investigate. It took us a few days to make much headway, but eventually we were able to predict a place where the terrorists would attack next, and we were able to ambush the raiders. Once we got the upperhand, some of the crazy buggers committed suicide and a few of them ran away, but we were able to interrogate one guy who we had incapacitated, who informed us that some villain had apparently reactivated Operation Werwolf, which had been an old Nazi plan to maintain a guerrilla war as things were going south for them.
"The history books would tell you that the plan was poorly organized and implemented and never amounted to anything, but like a lot of things, this wasn't actually true. Apparently there was a lot of occult spells, artifacts, and drugs involved that were used to turn Werwolf commandos into mindlessly loyal, nearly superhuman berzerkers (although thankfully it didn't turn them into actual werewolves) which the Templars of 1945 considered enough of a threat that they intervened personally to put down the program. Sixty-five years or so later, some former Stasi guy found out about all that stuff people weren't supposed to find out and eventually decided to reinitiate the program for reasons he tried to explain to me, but I confess I didn't at all understand it."
"Oh wait, I'm getting ahead of myself." Lumina didn't consider herself to be much of a storyteller, as she generally preferred to listen and inquire, and avoid talking about herself, but there was something about Corinth's rapt attention and all the alcohol she had consumed that encouraged her to continue her rambling. "So we were able to figure out where that guy's home base had been, after which we handed him over to the local police to deal with. We then planned our attack and stormed the base. Cheryl did the heavy lifting, of course, cause she's awesome. Some of the spells that woman can use are utterly terrifying, but I had her back and did my part to keep the bad guys suppressed while she blasted them all. Things started to happen pretty quickly after that. We found notes that indicated where home base, aptly referred to as the Wolf's Lair, was located and we found samples of the drugs these terrorists were using. We came up with a plan to spike the chemicals the terrorists were using, and then we'd call in a team of heavies to clean up the operation while the terrorists were sick from the corrupted chems they were going to juice up on."
"After stocking up on a pretty impressive amount of a pretty impressive poison and getting a team of Templar heavies on standby, Cheryl and I approached the Wolf's Lair and began snooping around. You might not know this about me, but I can be quite stealthy when I want to be. I find I have a naturally light, almost silent tread if I'm wearing appropriate shoes, and invisibility spells make my red hair a non-issue. Nonetheless, we eventually got spotted. We ended up splitting ways, with Cheryl creating an illusion of me getting wounded and teleporting off while I actually turned invisible and snuck past our assailants as Cheryl led them on a merry chase. I proceeded to our objective, and after quite a bit of sneaking about the old bunker, discovered the labs where the vats of Werwolf juice were located. Unfortunately, there was a guard standing watch nearby, so I had to take him out stealthily, which I did, then I got to work getting poison into the vats. While I was doing this, two more guards came in and spotted their dead comrade, but fortunately, I wasn't spotted, and so I had time to put up another invisibility spell. They did hear me cast the spell I think, but I was still able to get the drop on them while they were investigating, and I was able to cast a charm spell that put one of them out of action and then got into a pretty tough fight with the other guard, but I was able to get an edge over her quickly, although not before she fired a few rounds off at me which thankfully my Mage Armor deflected, after which I fried her."
Lumina smiled as she recalled the next part. "That fight did put me in a bind, yet it was one I was able to get my way out of with a rather clever bit of trickery if I don't say so myself. I was able to cast Modify Memory on the dude I had charmed, and I convinced him that he had wounded me after I had dispatched his comrade and that I had immolated myself to avoid capture. I then incinerated the bodies and snuck back out of the room as the remaining guard explained his version of events to the fellows that heard the commotion and came to check."
"Fortunately, nobody discovered what I had done to their doom juice, so I then had to hide in the bunker for quite a long time before the cavalry arrived. Everything went almost as planned. I don't think I spiked all of the chems, but as the Templars scythed through the front line of insurgents, the backup team juiced up in preparation to counterattack, only for most of them to get sick or die. I had found a decent vantage point from which to monitor much of the activity in the Wolf's Lair, and as the Templars began mopping up, I then spotted a figure that looked like the leader of the operation as he had been described to us by the insurgent we had interrogated and by tidbits I had overheard throughout the day, making his way deeper into the bunker with a few of his bodyguards. With the benefit of invisibility, I was able to follow them unnoticed as they went into what I could only assume to be an emergency escape tunnel. As we emerged back into the world, the bodyguards left their charge to scout the area and cover his escape. I continued to follow him for a bit, and then my invisibility expired."
"The bad guy noticed me pretty quickly after that, so I ordered him to surrender. Instead of calling for his bodyguards, the guy then gave me his villain spiel about why he believed what he was doing would make Germany a better place and some other nonsense. I confess I didn't really understand much of what he was saying, as he had a thick accent and was very excited and thus spoke quite quickly, and my German comprehension isn't quite that good. I'm sure the plot was the maddened dream of some lunatic anyway, although it was apparently one he had been able to sell to quite a few folks."
"Oh, one thing I forgot to mention. Cheryl and I had deduced that it was highly likely that this guy was a wizard of some kind due to the occult shenanigans involved in the making of the Werwolf juice, and so I had prepared the spell Counterspell in case I got into a fight with the guy or any cronies he had that might wield magic as well. Let me tell you, Counterspell is a wonderful spell to have in a wizard duel. Anyway, so yeah, we started fighting each other when he wouldn't yield, and even though he was a spooky old wizard, he didn't have access to the resources and training of the oldest and most prestigious Secret Society in existence like I did, and using Counterspell, Fireball, Hellish Rebuke, Dispel Magic, Scorching Ray, some luck, close calls, and some injuries, I was able to defeat him. Unfortunately I had to kill him, as I didn't know if his bodyguards were coming back or not, and I didn't think I could take them on if they did with how banged up and exhausted I was. So yeah, then I called Cheryl and let her know where I was and what I had accomplished, and then I cast invisibility one last time and limped away into the sunset I suppose."
"This mission ended up being the last time I worked with Cheryl. After infiltrating a bunker, achieving our objective, and then single handedly preventing the bad guy from escaping, she felt I was ready to work on my own. I did too…"
Lumina leaned back into her chair and sighed. "Wow, I sound like a total psychopath, don't I? Killing all those people. It was self defense. Mostly. Except for the guard defending the chem vats. I snuck up on him, cast sparking touch, put him in a headlock, and electrocuted him to death." She shivered. "I don't think I will ever forget the way he struggled in my grasp until he didn't. It was easier killing the old wizard, as I put him down from a distance, and he was an evil old codger who definitely deserved it. The guard in front of the vats? I don't know why that stupid kid was working for terrorists, but because of me, he never got the opportunity to learn from that mistake."
"I guess that's the nice thing about hunting monsters. Those rats had it coming, and no doubt all the other monsters you've taken out are better off dead. I suppose a lot of people are better off dead too, but people have the potential to change… I guess I'll just have to keep coming up with justifications to cope…"
Corinth poured another shot of tequila for her. Lumina gave him a grim smile. "This works too I guess," she murmured and then put it down. She was going to sleep well tonight.
Posted by : Sky
Corinth paused for a moment as he took in her story. It was a good story, he'd give her that. He poured her a final shot and then finished the bottle off himself.
"I think I remember hearing about that, but I was bogged down in my own stuff to really follow along with it. Glad it worked out." He paused again. Grabbing his pack of cigarettes, he pulled one out and lit it in his usual manner. "But something kind of bugs me...," he looked over at her as he blew out a stream of blue smoke into the wind. "You're a killer. A stone cold killer. In your story, you killed multiple people in one mission. Not monsters, not supernaturals...people."
He let his words sink in and then continued. "And when we were out in the field today, you were quiet, walking on egg shells around me, and nervous to speak up." He shook his head. "And here I was treating you like some delicate flower, trying to show you some of the ways to do things and you're walking around with blood on your hands. That's good. You can use that in the future. And speaking of future," Corinth stood up and stretched his back, "I need to get some sleep. Who knows what I'm walking into tomorrow when I get back."
After bidding their farewells, Corinth closed the door behind them and settled into the bed. The room wasn't swirling around him, yet a sense of contentment enveloped him. Before long, the soothing embrace of sleep began to draw him into its depths.
The next morning, he arose before the sun came up and was dressed and ready to go. His bags were packed and placed on his bed and his guns were loaded and holstered. Checking his phone, he typed in the coordinates for the Agartha Gate and saved them. It wasn't too far away, but he's need a taxi to get there. Putting the phone away, he looked over the letter he finished writing to Lumina and folded it in half.
Leaving his room, he pushed the letter under her door and began walking down to the front desk. He told the desk clerk to grab the bags from his room and to send them off to his address in London. He made sure to leave a big enough tip as an incentive to not screw it up.
The drive to the Agartha gate was a smooth one. It was still dark outside, but the sun was beginning to crest over the horizon. The pink, purples, and blues creeped across the skyline and reminded Corinth of the colors often associated with cotton candy. Buildings were slowly starting to wake up and more and more lights behind windows began turning on like many sets of eyes opening to greet the new day.
Arriving at the address, Corinth paid the taxi and sent it on its way. He was standing on a small bridge that overlooked a large drainage ditch that had only the slightest sliver of flowing water moving through it. Making his way down, he saw that under the bridge, was a small hole that led into the side of the slope towards the city. As he moved closer to it, he could feel the buzzing in his head.
The buzzing acted as a counter vibration given off by the Agartha Gate so Gaia's Guardians could pass through with no problem. For mortals, it would make them ill and if they continued getting closer, could eventually kill them, or at the very least, drive them insane. But for Corinth, it was a sign that he was on the right track to find it.
Corinth had to slouch as he walked into the tunnel, but as he moved further in, the space grew wider and the buzzing grew more vibrant. Soon, the dark tunnel was opening up to a larger and brighter area. The buzzing slowed to a gentle, almost soothing vibration and he was now walking on what looked like a branch of sorts. There were small moths flittering around the sky and a few people that have stopped and set up trade stands for all of Gaia's favorites to buy from.
As Corinth continued on, he was met by a familiar face; the Stationmaster. He was in charge of making sure people found their proper exits and destinations and was usually the first person who alerted the guards should something seem out of place. Corinth smiled and shook his hand as he approached. Before he could say anything, the Stationmaster pointed to a branch that veered off towards the right and disappeared into the distance. The London Branch. Smiling again, Corinth tipped his hat and began walking.
Time was irrelevant in Argartha. It was as if it stopped completely. If one entered at six in the morning, it would still be six when they exited, although one would have to factor in time zones and such, but it would still appear as if time didn't move. How this worked for multiple people entering at different times and staying for long periods, Corinth didn't know. that was far beyond his mental capacity and it hurt just to even think about it. So he didn't. He accepted it as one of Gaia's many abilities and moved on.
Following the branches, he opened a door and found himself in what appeared to be a basement in a building. Closing the door behind him, he looked around and saw a staircase on the far side of the room. Keeping his hand on the butt of his gun, he walked up the stairs and then out the front door into the streets of London. The building was old and uninhabited which made a good place for a gate and the Templars had purchased it a long time ago to help keep it extra secure. Still, it was always better to be ready, just in case.
Once outside, he called Dalia to let her know he was back in London. She gave him Jack's address, but he knew it by heart from all the times he had to stake it out. "Who's going to meet me there? Jones?" He gave a disappointing grunt. "He's like a little puppy, always seeking approval from the work he's done. It's annoying. He's annoying. This is me being nice."
Ending the call, he phoned a taxi and thirty minutes later, he was pulling up to Jack's flat. It was a small two story apartment building with four units; two on top and two on bottom. Jacks was at the top left.
"Ok jack," Corinth said as he stepped out of the cab. "Let's see what kind of trouble you got yourself into this time."
Posted by : Dblitz13
The apartment building was on the smaller side compared to the much larger ones around it. With just four units, the upkeep was easier, it didn't take up much space at all. Small alleyways on either side of the building kept it separated from the buildings on both sides and connected to a larger alley in the back where the tenants parked their cars instead of out front on the street.
Corinth approached the front door that was in between the two bottom apartments. Pulling on the door, he wasn't surprised it opened as the people inside often left it unlocked due mostly to complacency. Stepping in, there was a door to the left and right of him and postal boxes about midway down. On the right side leading up, was a stairway that did a 180 degree turn about halfway up. There was no reason to stay on the first floor so he headed up the stairs.
At the top, the door to Jack's flat was cracked open. Corinth gave two knocks and then pushed the door open to find Templar Jones standing in the kitchen going over some paperwork. He was thorough like that.
Jones was tall man, but also a young one. He was probably mid twenties with dark brown hair that he kept short and was clean shaven. Brown eyes and a baby face. He gave Corinth a nod when he walked in and went back to looking at the papers he was holding.
"San Francisco didn't need you anymore," said the young Templar, still focused on the papers.
"Pointless more like it. Seems we were a couple days behind others that were looking into things. Like following breadcrumbs, but never getting the bread."
"We," Jones asked, looking up.
"Yeah, Lumina and I. SO I take it you and whoever already looked everything over?"
"Lumina? That's a weird person for you to team up with." Jones leaned on the counter, his mind rolling with all kinds of useless theories and reasons why the two of them went on an assignment together.
Corinth turned to Jones, getting a little annoyed with the questions that had nothing to do with the setting. "Yeah, thought I might need a partner and that's who I was assigned with. Body in the bedroom?"
"Right. We had a Magus come in and do a preservation spell on the body so it wouldn't rot away until you got here. Same for the other two across the hall."
Corinth nodded. "I'll take a look around here first and then go over there." Jones shrugged and grabbed his papers again.
Entering the bedroom, the body of Jack Stone laid on the bed, shirtless with his arms spread out to both sides. His eyes were wide open and if it wasn't for the large gaping hole in his chest and the large amount of blood soaking into the bed, it would look like he was simply lying down staring up at the ceiling. Corinth moved closer and looked at the wound and indeed, Jack's heart was completely removed. On a closer inspection, it was torn from his chest. The edge of the wound told him that whoever or whatever did this, pushed their hand into his chest and then yanked the organ out.
"Damn Jack, what did you do to piss her off this bad?" Checking his nails and looking over the body, it was clear that he didn't fight back. She got the jump on him.
Yelling back out to the kitchen, "did you ever find his girlfriend, Ivy?"
"No," Jones answered back, his voice closer as he appeared in the doorway. "We think she skipped town after finishing off the neighbors."
"Probably, but where's his heart?"
"Shit," Jones said looking shocked. "They didn't tell you? She ate it. She ate his and the neighbor's daughters, but only took a bite out of the daughter's moms."
Corinth looked confused as he processed the new information. "That doesn't make any sense. Ivy didn't have a violent bone in her body and to eat a heart, that's escalation at an incredible pace. We need to find her."
"Already ahead of you. I got some of our best trackers on her and even got the local police involved."
"That's good for the time being. I need to look at the other bodies. You said they were across the hall?"
Leaving Jack's flat, Corinth moved across the hall and entered the flat of Abigail and Charlotte Morrison. Abigail was the mother and Charlotte was staying with her while she went to university. Now, the body of Abigail layed sprawled out on the bedroom floor and Charlotte was face down in the hallway, both had pools of blood underneath them.
Looking over Abigail, her chest wound was similar to Jacks. Someone had pushed into her chest and pulled her heart out. Next to her, was said heart. Corinth picked it up and turned it over. There was a bite mark in it. Looking at it more closely, he noticed that some of the teeth marks were sharp and some were flat. That was interesting.
Making his way over to the body of Charlotte, instead of having a chest wound, she had a back one. Ivy had pulled her heart out through her back. A feat that was both terrifying and impressive, especially if she killed all three and pulled their hearts out with her bare hands. Unlike her mother, there was no heart to find around her. The timeline of events were falling into place for him. Standing back up, he went back to Jack's flat to meet back up with Jones.
"Alright," he said moving to the kitchen sink and washing his hands, "I think I know what happened for the most part, but motive is still illusive. I think she killed Jack, ate his heart, and then moved across the hall. She then attacked Abigail, but got interrupted when she took a bite of her heart. She then went after Charlotte, killed her and ate hers. Is that what you got?"
"More or less, yeah."
"Ok. And you did a thorough search of both flats?"
"We did."
"Then where is she? Where's Ivy?"
Jones looked both confused and insulted. "What do you mean?"
"Killing three people by ripping out their hearts creates a lot of blood. I'm sure you've noticed that. I'm sure you've also noticed the blood that's out here when she left the bedroom. You did notice the trace blood, didn't you? There's a clear trail of it leaving this apartment and going across the hall."
"Yes, Corinth. My team isn't stupid. We know how to check a crime scene." Jones crossed his arms in annoyance.
"I'm sure you do. So I'm sure you also noticed the trails of blood all through the flat across the hall. It goes from the bedroom to the hall, off towards the kitchen, and then back out the door."
"What are you getting at?"
"You want to take a guess on what I didn't find downstairs or even on the stairs coming up? That's right. Blood. Meaning she never left." Corinth dried his hands off on a towel and then tossed it back onto the counter. "Hundred bucks says I find her."
"You're on, but you might as well pay me now."
Moving out of the kitchen and into the living space, he looked all around for any kind of hiding space large enough to house a small woman. He then looked in the bathroom, in cabinets, everywhere. Nothing. Once again he was in the bedroom with the body of Jack. He looked under the bed, but found nothing and even looked in the closet.
And that was when he saw it. In the ceiling was a small square that had a border around it. It was an entrance to an attic space. Most apartments didn't have an attic, but this one was an exception and probably had insulation and maybe even the water heater up there. Whatever it housed, it was large enough for a person to crawl up into and reset the cover. To top it all off, there were traces of blood along the edges. They were faint, but they were there.
"Did anyone check the attic space," he asked to jones.
"What do you mean? There isn't an attic space?" Jones moved Corinth aside and looked in the closet. "That wasn't there when we did our search. I promise you that."
"Well it's there now. Stand aside and let me check it out."
Corinth moved into the closet and jumped up, knocking the covering away from the entrance. Maneuvering himself, he was able to stand on some shelving and hoist himself up. It wasn't something he was happy to be doing. Sticking one's head up into a dark space had him at a hefty disadvantage. Plus, he didn't know what he was pulling himself up into.
Jones gave him a flashlight when he requested one. Corinth was now sitting on the edge of the opening, his feet dangling through the hole and into the apartment. He clicked on the flashlight and slowly began scanning the room with his left hand, while his right rested on the hilt of his gun. Movement to his right sent the flashlight beam over into that direction and it focused on a young woman, cowering with her knees pulled into her chest.
It was Ivy or it looked like Ivy, Corinth could confirm that. Her dark hair was disheveled and her clothes were covered in dried blood. Her hands rested on her knees, her knees hiding the lower half of her face.
"Ivy? You ok?" Corinth kept the light on her. "Hey. I'm going to need you to come to me so we can get you out of here and some place safe. I can get you some help."
"Is...is...," he voice was cracking and it looked and sounded like she had been crying for a long time. "Is Jack going to be ok?"
Corinth wasn't a negotiator or someone capable of dealing with this type of situation. If you were about to jump off a ledge, Corinth would not have been the person you wanted to talk you out of it. It wasn't a skill in his wheelhouse. "Um...no, Ivy. No he's not. He didn't make it and neither did the Morrisons."
"I did that. I hurt...hurt them."
"Yeah, you did. You hurt them very badly, but...," Corinth began to move closer to her, very slowly. If he could grab her, he might be able to subdue her though he wasn't sure how just yet.
"I didn't mean too...it was an accident."
"That was a helluva'an accident, Ivy." He moved closer and closer, until he was just within arms reach of her.
"I know...but...but..."
"But what, Ivy?" He could almost reach out and grab her arm.
"But their hearts were so delicious." There was a malevolence to her voice and when she looked at him, her eyes were a start orange and red. She lifted her head and smiled at him reveling a mismatched set of sharp teeth and normal human teeth.
Corinth jerked his hand back towards his gun, but she was faster. She dashed forward knocking him over and then making a rush towards the opening. By the time Corinth could regain his balance, he saw the last bits of her legs sink out of the opening and down into the apartment room below, followed by a startled scream from Jones.
Dropping down from the opening, Corinth gave chase, jumping over Jones who had been pushed over in the doorway to the bedroom. By the time he made it out of the apartment, Ivy, or whatever she was, was running down the stairs heading for the front door. Corinth followed as quickly as he could.
Outside the building, he turned and followed the sound of bare feet slapping on cement. Ivy was running towards the alleyway behind the building and if she escaped from there into the city, it could be days before he finds her again. She took a hard right and disappeared behind the building next door. When Corinth followed, he was grabbed around the neck and slammed to the ground in a surprise move. Ivy had never been strong, but she was more than that now. Her other hand grabbed his right wrist as his left hand grabbed the wrist of the hand that was secured around his throat.
Corinth looked up into the wicked smiling face of the woman that was once Ivy, girlfriend to Jack Stone. The smile slowly faded and the real Ivy pushed through. "Help me," she pleaded.
"I can," Corinth tried to reassure her. "How did this happen?"
"I don't know..." Her grip was still tight on his wrist and it was beginning to hurt. "I just smelled the perfume..." And then she wasn't Ivy anymore. The smile was back. "A Templar's heart will do wonders for my complexion."
"Not this one." He moved his left hand away and three magical purple darts appeared. With a flick of his wrist, the darts shot upwards before turning over and coming back down. Ivy's gaze followed then and quicky rolled to the right as Corinth rolled to the left once he was free. The three darts slammed into the ground creating a set of mini explosions. Both Powel and Loy were in his hands and they were both pointed at Ivy.
"Help me," came the voice of Ivy one last time, but before Corinth could respond, Ivy turned around and dashed off into the bushes that lined the alley way. Corinth gave chase but once she was out of sight, she was gone. He cursed and cursed and cursed again, before holstering his guns in anger. The though of a heart eating monster loose in the city of London did not sit well with him. Not at all.
"Did you get her," came the voice of Jones as he ran up behind him. "I got back up coming, they should be here in ten minutes."
Corinth sighed angrily and turned back towards the apartment building. "You owe me a hundred bucks...or quid...or whatever."
Posted by : Dblitz13
Sung leaned forward and then moved in a graceful motion forward drawing his sword at the same time. The blade ignited in a translucent flame. giving Dozuk little time to defend himself. the sword cut deep into his chest sending Dozuk back into the wall behind him. blood spilled from the slash Dozuk started to be consumed by the translucent flame. Dozuk starts to scream trying to put out the flames.
Sartre took aim at the cultists firing.
Choi tried the office door, holding the sword in the opposite hand. It was locked, so Choi stepped back and gave the door a power kick, which broke the lock. The door went inward and Yeong pounced inward, his sword prepared to fight.
Agent Powers threw a few pews at the enemy firing weapons at the team.
Sung ducked as a pew bearly missed him and slammed into Dozuk crushing him as blood gushed out of the Dozuk slash and mouth.
Two more rushed out one from the door from the right and one left of the podium. both with handguns shooting short bursts they looked better trained than most. both had 9mm glocks with high compacity magazines.
The right cultists fired at Sung. He saw the morning light cultists but could not do much because of moving to doge the pew. Sung was hit at close range fell to his right rolled and growled.
The cultists to the left fired at Agent Powers with big eyes. Everyone could tell he was frightened a little.
Agent Powers grunted as the small caliber bullets hit him. As the bullets hit his muscular body, they made ripples before bouncing off him. This was a bizarre thing for anyone to see. Though Agent Powers was not in dire pain he could still feel the impact which was annoying. Agent Powers then continued to throw pews as the bad guys. He then said, "I can do this all day. You Kandy ass roody poo!"
Sartre took aim at the cultists that were shooting at Max. Success.
—-
In the office one of The Morning Light cultists. hand a teenage girl pinned down on a couch in the office. The cultist looked back at Choi and had a 9mm in his hand shot at Choi that missed and hit the wall beside him.
Choi ran up the wall next to the cultist in an arc fashion while slashing with the sword at the neck of the cultist, striking the man precisely between the vertebrae. The head rolled to the floor, blood splattering upon Yeong, as he flipped off the wall, and the girl, whom Choi now faced.
Quickly, Choi announced, "You are safe! I am not of the cult. I have friends outside of this office that may need my help. You will be okay if you stay behind me."
—-
In the melee, Sartre said in the chip, "Alyssa, where are you, can you hear me?" Nothing.
As chaos erupted inside Charles Duane's church, Eun-Ji remained calm and focused amidst the flurry of activity. While she was hiding safely away in the narthex, the morning light cultists posed a serious threat to her Dragon colleagues; the Illuminati she wasn't very concerned about.
Eun-Ji sprang into action, her mind calculating the best course of action. Utilizing her chaos abilities, she had prepared prior to the combat, she controlled two of the four strategically placed versions of herself around the interior of the church. While two illusions remained in place, appearing to pray and observe, the other two (at the stained glass windows and candle lighting) oriented themselves and charged towards the cultists, drawing their fire.
As the illusions closed in, the cultists' bullets passed harmlessly through them, causing confusion and disorientation. The two illusion swiftly closed the distance. The two remaining cultists both were about to engage in close quarter physical combat, when suddenly the illusions shattered on impact with them. As if their synaptic signals in their neural pathways had been disrupted, both men's brains went into a dis functional daze. Unless they had a form of protection from such chaos abilities, they would become incapacitated and collapse as if their minds had been turned off.
Sung sat up rubbing his side then looked at the hole in his suit jacket. "Damit Just purchase this jacket. That hurt I hate guns," said Sung standing up slowly sheathing his sword. looking around "Anyone hurt?" asked Sarne sounding more annoyed than anything.
Choi walked out of the office with a young lady in tow. He had noticed that the clamor from outside had ceased. This relieved him, as he did not wish to create more trauma for the girl, as she had already witnessed the decapitation of the man atop her.
He saw three of Eun-Ji, Sartre, Powers, and Sung. "It looks like you are hurt," Yeong said to Master Sung, "Is it bad? Where is the Little One?" he continued, looking to Powers. "What happened to Alyssa?"
Choi still held the sword in hand, not yet trusting the quietness of the situation. There was one of them missing, and therefore, it may be needed.
Agent Powers was in full smoldering pose as he looked around while on guard. Whoever or whatever took Alyssa was still a threat and out there somewhere. He said, "Someone or something took Alyssa and vanished." He saw the female with Choi and asked, "Who is she?"
Sartre bounded quickly for the priest's office "Max, where is Duane? Was that all of them?"
Agent Powers replied, "Dunno. There may be more hiding around here and they might have Alyssa."
"Where should we go?" "Hey Green Emerald!" he shouted to Un Ji, lets work together!"
The old church that had been around since the days of Spanish colonization. It was a Protestant church but several hundred years old. Wooden pews, arranged into rows, a shelf on the back of each pew holding a bible and song book, an altar, pulpit, crucifixes, crosses, rosaries, decorative banners with key scenes depicted from the bible or symbols of a specific religion, flowers, clean, polished surfaces, high windows, stained glass windows, statues of important religious figures
Now the beautiful look was ruined. pew thrown around the wall with bullet holes and holes from the impact of the pews. Glass wood and books spread across the sanctuary. the smell of gunpowder burning candles that are now extinguished wood polish and wood hanging in the air. Two men lay alive but babbling on the left and right of the stage and podium. The cultist's leader corps now smoking as it turns to ash. another with his head separated from his body lay in a pool of his blood.
The teams were spread around but still in the sanctuary. now looking at one another.
The two remaining Eun-Ji's inside the disheveled church interior were but convincing illusions with nearly indiscernible painterly edges. They did not respond to Peter Sartyre when he addressed one of them, either the one in the pew praying that had risen and moved closer to the group or the one standing in the back still observing, for neither one was real to be capable of a reply. The real Moon was still comfortably situated in the narthex, looking in through a glass panel of one of several ornate entryway doors. It was a good thing too she didn't pay his comments any heed, because she would have just ignored his misguided request anyways.
She couldn't believe the mess that was made of the situation. It was a wonderful display of unnecessary mayhem and carnage. This group had the strategic planning of an impulsive infant and the tactics of one track minds. There haste, as well as their unquestionably impressive skills, led to overconfident reflexive reactions instead of intelligible responses in her opinion. She hated to admit it, but she missed her older brother's aggressive and controlling leadership.
With the sound of cop sirens drawing nearer off in the distance, someone must have called the cops due to the commotion, she pulled out her cellphone. She decided to take advantage of an opportunistic moment to deter the Illuminati and called the cops. Perhaps she could get them tied up with the law and out of the way?
"Where do we go from here?" Sartre said.
Agent Powers was looking around for any clue as to where Alyssa was taken to. He slow looked around for any threats or clues that could help him find the female hacker. As he scanned the area with seriousness he gave a strong smolder expression. He replied, "We need to find Alyssa."
Sartre looked around the church for any sign of the hacker.
Almost as if she heard them, Alyssa reappeared, but then vanished. Almost like TV static where the picture goes in and out, until she fully remateralized. The hacker seemed to look at Peter, then Max, then proceeded to pass out, collapsing to the ground.
"Get Alyssa some help." Sartre rushed towards her.
One of the men a fake Eun-Ji took out began to move as Choi approached him. Yeong simply placed the point of his sword at the man's Adams Apple. The second man began to come conscious as well.
"Easy now, men!" Choi announced. "You were beat! Let's have no trouble!"
He nodded to Powers. "Help the Little One, Alyssa. This girl was being molested by the man in the office. He's of no concern now. I'll watch these two."
Evidently, Eun-Ji didn't attack to kill. Or, more likely, her illusions couldn't kill because they were not real.
Agent Powers did as Choi asked and helped secure the young female away from any know threat. However he didn't drop his guard since he knew they was the posibility of more danger.
Looking Sung walked over to the cultist who had shot him. Sung gave a cold stair as the cultists were waking up. Sung kicks the gun away from him. He puts his foot on the man's chest and pushes down slowly. Placing his sword tip to his throat a trickle of blood ran down the side of the cultist's neck.
"Give me a reson so I can kill you slowly," said Sung his tone cold and with little emotion. The cultist's eyes got big and he started to breathe heavily fear was in the man's eyes. Then change to anger. "When Madam Demonia finds you, you're dead." The cultist's tone was defiant.
Eun-Ji finished up her phone call with the police, where she anonymously reported a homicide taking place at the church. She gave the police the physical descriptions of the Illuminati agents she had seen prior to entering the building. In addition, she reported a questionable vehicle, Alyssa's van, parked near the scene of the crime; including the license plate. Then she hung up.
Eun-Ji, the real one, then entered the main part of the church and shouted to her fellow Dragons in Korean, "성 사부님과 최씨는 이제 가야 합니다. 경찰이 오고 있습니다.!"
Without waiting, she turned and exited the church while ensuring her face would not be recorded by any external camera, made her way across the street to the park, and continued onward from there. She trusted the two men would bring whatever they found of importance with them. Her illusions faded from everyone's view as well.
Speaking in English "Who would do such a stupid thing. Call the police?" said Sung loudly. "You always call your organization first! it is hard to cover up if the police show up first," Sung said, looking angered. "jen jang, byeong-shin. ( damn it, morons) Sung said in Korean looking around.
"Take the living with us, leave the dead. Call your organizations and let them know the site is compromised," ordered Sung telling everyone.
Sartre Immediately bypassed Geary and Called Yukko at the Council of Venice. "This entire operation may have just been compromised by a new Dragon agent. She called the mundane law enforcement agents, this could expose the secret world. Tell Arturo to take it easy on her. If you could send some Council agents out, they might be able to do something like wipe the memory of the officers. I know Arturo wants no more compromises. But take it easy on her and where the hell did Duane go? Which way did he go?" Agent Wilson; come with me, we're going back to the Halliwell Manor, did anybody see what happened to Duane?" Sartre attempted to fumble with his phone and drag the hacker back to the van.
Sartre called the Halliwell house, "Prue can you lift a body into a van for me. She's alive and passed out. Be gentle. "Forget that. I'll carry her back, Max, come with us." He carried Alyssa to the van, watching for Max as Max entered, he began to speed back into the manor.
When Eun-Ji made the announcement, Choi looked at her with a face of disbelief that said: Please tell me you didn't do this? The decapitated head coach in the office wouldn't point to the Illuminati, as none of them have swords.
He looked at the man below his sword, "It looks as if you will be coming with us." Then, as an afterthought, "If you value your life, get up and don't make any sudden moves or you'll end up like your buddy in the office."
Posted by : Cindy
As they arrived back into the manor, The two illuminati agents, Sartre carrying Alyssa. said "Close and lock the damn door Miss Halliwell." Prue drinking coffee walked to the door, closing it with a wave of her hand just as she had first done twenty-six years ago. Sartre laid Alyssa, gently on the couch.
Sartre texted Kirsten Geary. Geary responded with "Way too many days playing online games for money in those Internet cafes in Seoul. Ciao Ciao."
Agent Powers was unable to carry Alyssa since he was still carrying the young female that Choi rescued. After making it into the house he put the female on the couch to rest till it was decided on how to handle her. He then asked, "Are one of you guys going to deal with the damage control or do I have to make a phone call? If I do it will fix everything but at a high price. We also need to know what exactly happened back there and what happened to Alyssa." Then he sighed before he gave a smoldering look.
"I'm already working on the damage control, I've already contacted the Council of Venice who handles these types of matters as well as contacting Kiersten Geary. We need to quietly wait here and see what we need to do. "
Sartre said," Wiping memories is not as easy as you think, we would need to transport whomever back to the labyrinth in New York. We could use in a Garth entrance if we could find one and travel underground, even so Arturo is not going to be very happy." A dressed Piper said "New York; that's where our half-sister Paige moved to eighteen years ago. She hangs out in cofee shops She said she was done with all this. Phoebe is still sleeping, I think we will want to talk to her."
Agent Powers rolled his eyes up as he heard Geary's name. He was not fond of the woman from his past experience and it was best if he avoided talking to her altogether. She didn't like knowing that Max didn't answer to her due to his father. Agent Powers then said, "If it's Ms. Geary, don't mention my name. We don't get along."
"I hope the Dragon realize that with all of these supernatural occurrences going on in the invasion of these unknown beings from the stars And their thoughts being manifested in the form of the filth as well as the interference of Angels, we don't have time to reignite the secret war. "Was Green Emerald not given a proper briefing, I tried to explain things when I met her." said Sartre.
Orr was at that precise moment Sung pulled up in the Suburban. Choi was in the very back, his sword drawn and ready, the two prisoners in the middle seats.
Choi marched the two into the mansion and awaited Sung. They had their hands tied behind their backs with zip ties.
"You can question them," he said to Sartre. "I've some business to attend."
Separating himself from the others, Choi texted Eun-Jo: At Halliwell. Please tell me you didn't call the police. Somehow, with all his earlier dealings with Moon, Choi already knew the answer to that.
Alyssa started to come to, her mind was foggy and for a moment she thought she was back in the chasm, being tortured. "No, no more," she cried. Then she felt something soft underneath her, and the fog lifted. She saw Peter's face, but said nothing.
Agent Powers looked at Alyssa and said,"You're safe now Alyssa. But I am not sure what happened back there."
"I need you to remember what I tell you," Why this most recent encounter was staying in Alyssa's brain was beyond her but she was worried about forgetting it again. "It's already in bits and pieces. Something took me, I can't describe it. It wanted to keep me. Then it...it..." The memory was fading fast, but not before she got out. "It was torture...or it tortured me. I ...I..." gone, it was gone. "Is everyone alright?"
Choi listened to Alyssa's tale. He swallowed hard. What Master Park had endured, Alyssa got just a little.
"I'm sorry you had to go through that," Yeong said empathetically. "If this creature is what I think it is, it almost killed my Master. This is why I believe Gaia wants us to work together on this."
He wanted to add the Dragons took full responsibility for what happened at the church. However, it would wait until Choi knew all the truth. He knew, but there was still hope Eun-Ji didn't do it.
"We are fine Alyssa, just rest." Sartre remarked.
Sung now back at the manor was working on the damage control at his end to arrange pick up of the suspects. Sung did overlook to make sure that everyone was ok. Sung took a deep breath and let it out slowly. he was wondering about Alyssa and her experience and wondered if they were in over their heads.
Sung phone vibrated again this time with a point on the map and orders to retrieve a person of interest, Charles Duane. Well, they found him thought Sung, and realized that it was underground. Being underground was never a good thing for Sung. Too many things can go wrong and nowhere to run normally. there was another entry point the address given. with all the information given.
Sung replied with acknowledgment and accepted. there was an additional message "play nice" is all it said. Sung understood what it meant.
To Yeong's words Alyssa could only shake her head, and utter a "thanks" she was convinced it was related to her father's disappearance. Since arriving in San Francisco everything had felt different. Things had been odd for years with her but this felt even odd for the odd.
Maybe, it was somehow all related. Maybe being so close to the Lei lines gave whatever it was easier access to her or changed the way it was doing things.
Agent Powers was worried about Alyssa since she looked shaken up. Sadly he lacked the skills to help her. It was frustrating for him to feel helpless when he couldn't help the team. He sighed as he rubbed his bald head and neck. Then he asked, "So does anyone know what happened back there?"
"Max, could you get me some water?" Alyssa asked, then motioned to the girl that was laying on the other couch. She didn't know who the girl was but it looked like she had been through something. "Bring her a water as well. Thanks." Max had just looked so unsure of what to do.
Agent Powers nodded as he walked to the kitchen to grab several water bottles from the fridge and pantry. Then he returned to the room and gave one to the new girl and Alyssa before he put the rest on the coffee table for the others to grab from. He then took one bottle and opened it before taking a sip for himself. He sighed after looking around at the others. It was hard waiting for others to figure stuff out. He was used to mass destruction on his solo missions.
As Sartre looked to Alyssa only hoping at this point that she was getting good rest, a serious looking Phoebe entered dressed in casual business attire. "All this, none of this was supposed to happen, in 2006, I thought I saw the future, I had seen it so many times before, it wasn't just dropping plates, eventually I was able to push people away from moving cars before the cars would strike those that were unsuspecting. This bleakness was not the future I saw, Piper was supposed to have daughters and granddaughters, she was supposed to run a magic school out of this house." Phoebe continued. One of her granddaughter's is named Prudence. Phoebe paused and bit her lip for some reason.. "After Prue... I believed in fate, "There is no predestination in this world, That would mean that we had no control over our lives How many of us in this room think that we were destined to be here? If you don't have free will then what is the purpose of living?" asked Sartre. He waited for a response from one of the people in the room. "The secret societies are powerful, but they are not as powerful as some think they are. What ever is there in the cosmos beyond the stars, is something of extreme power. Some would argue that everything is conditioned by the environment, by the material world. Some Marxists would argue that. They say economics is everything. You go to the store, purchase things you need, buy things you don't need to make yourself feel better for a little while. But what if of the environment didn't decide everything about you, what if there was no destiny and you had free will to making a choice you wanted away from any dogma or doctrine? Those products, do they have power over you then? Do you own your products, or do they own you? There is no destiny Phoebe, nothing is certain." said Sartre. He made his way over to Alyssa and took her hand. He noticed that he had received a text message from Yukko at the Council, they were aware of everything and the factions have been told to calm down. None of the faction leaders wanted to reignite the secret war during times these serious.
Choi walked over to the girl on the couch. What he had seen in the office was lewd. The man was about to rape her, he was certain.
"Are you okay?" he asked. "You are safe now. Can you tell us what happened to you?"
As Peter took her hand Alyssa's phone buzzed. It was a similar message from Cassini. The higher ups said to work together. Cassini was sending over more maps if the area. Alyssa clicked off her phone and sat up to drink some water, but let Peter keep his hand in hers. It was just a grounded feeling she needed right now.
Choi's phone vibrated. It was a message from Moon.
[Acknowledged … on my way.].
Agent Powers sighed as he saw everyone getting a phone message. He was feeling a bit left out but then remembered not many people had his number to begin with. He sipped his water as he quietly listened to the others talk. Then low and behold his phone buzzed as he got a message. He pulled out his phone and looked to see who was sending him a message. At first he thought it might be a message from one of his game apps, but it was non other than his father texting him. He rolled his eyes up as he saw the message and felt annoyed. The message read, "Do Better!" Agent Powers was annoyed that his father was still keeping tabs on him and still looking down on him. Though he kept it to himself he did wish to get a compliment from his father after all this time. He wondered how many more missions he would have to complete before his father acknowledged him. It was heartbreaking so he quietly put his phone away and kept his thoughts to himself.
Sung knew that his message was a warning as well the last operation was a fiasco he could imagine the regional coordinator was saying in this office. Sung was sure it had profanity in her words. Sung sighed looking at Alyssa. he wanted the group to suffer some to remember that just happened and blamed himself a little too.
Sung stood up and walked over to Alyssa "Well I would say you have had enough young lady," remarked Sung with a smirk. "So I will help." Sung drew his sword taping it on the sheath of a medal ring noise that vibrated right through Alyssa. Sung spoke some words that made the sword blade runes glow. Alyssa could feel the mystic energy build in her as all her fatigue and pain faded from her mind and body. "you will be back to your normal self now. I heald you of any condition you might have had," said Sung as a drop of sweat ran down the side of his head. "now if you will excuse me I must meditate for a while," informed Sung with a bow then walked away.
"Thank you," Alyssa was grateful to Sung for the healing. She sat up completely as he left to go rest. She was feeling better. "Cassini was sending me more maps of the area. Including historical maps and ones of the catacombs. I'm not sure if they'll be of use but we have them."
Alyssa, later I want to ask you want you saw. Anyone have any idea where Duane could have gone?" asked Sartre.
"I'll try to tell you," Alyssa didn't know what else she could tell him, but maybe something would linger.
Choi watched Master Sung separate from the others, saying he needed rest. He admired the older man. He hoped to tap some of his experience and energy.
"I'm glad you are back to yourself," Yeong said to Alyssa..
He bowed to the Illuminati agents and said, "Excuse me," then followed after Masrer Sung.
Finding him, Choi asked,, "Are you alright, Master Sung?"
Agent Powers drank more water from his water bottle as he was feeling a bit restless. He was not in his comfort zone and depended on others for skills he was lacking on. This was hard for him since he was not used to trusting others this much. He was in the dark on a lot of the mission and was to slow on catching on to a lot of the details they spoke of before him. However it was a weight off his shoulders when the older guy named Sung did some kind of magic to heal Alyssa. Then he gestured to Alyssa as he pointed at the new girl on the couch that they rescued earlier. He was hoping she could do something before they shared to many secrets in front of her.
Phoebe said. "I had a premonition, something ancient in the catacombs, the man you are looking for is there. Masks. Not and end, but a beginning."
It would be a little easier to check info on her laptop but figured her phone would work, it was all tied together anyway.
The girl was 22, Clarissa Deright, a Berkley college student. Probably in San Francisco on a excursion of some sort. There was a missing person's inquiry about her with the police, Alyssa would let whoever was coming to get the girl (she assumed someone would call one if the agencies to take care of it and getting her back to where she should be).
"Are you hungry?" Alyssa asked Clarissa who responded in the affirmative. "Why don't you come with me into the kitchen then?"
Finding some sandwich fixings, she let the other woman make a sandwich while the two talked. Alyssa convinced Clarissa to call her friends and let them know she was alright. That would make things easier.
They eventually came back into the living room, after Clarissa ate. It was then Alyssa, gave info to Peter through the chip about who the girl was, and the phone call.
It was then on to the five cult members. All of them were from Louisiana or Florida. Interesting, as those two states didn't border each other. It left a few questions. She got the names of the cult members, ages, past crimes if any, anything else of use. She then transferred all the information to her main database to add to the information about the case. And she sent a copy to Cassini who would get it to the correct people.
An Uber pulled up to the house across the street from the Halliwell Manor. Eun-Ji calmly exited the vehicle after paying for the ride. She then proceeded to wait until the car had left before turning and making her way across the street.
She walked across the hand placed stones of the path leading through the front yard to the front porch. Eun-Ji paused at the door hearing multiple voices inside, it made her briefly wrinkle her nose followed by an extended sigh.
The door opened and Eun-Ji (illusion) elegantly entered the Manor. She stopped a few feet inside the establishment. She didn't speak, but just stood contently in silence. The real Eun-Ji still remained outside the front door, her calculating mind taking a moment to collect her thoughts.
"Anyone know anything about the catacombs?" Sartre asked.
"I'm getting some maps sent, including those of the catacombs from a few different years." Alyssa said, it was about all she could do regarding that.
Agent Powers rubbed his neck as he listened to the smart people talking. Now granted he knew what a catacomb was and he himself has been in a few in the past while hunting people his father ordered him to. However he was also given a map and detailed instructions before his mission, so he never had to look for them on his own. If he did have to look for any underground hide out he would probably get lost trying to find them as well as getting lost trying to get out of them unless he had a map. So looked around at the others and did his best to stay out of their way.
"Max, can you do me a big favor and get my laptop from the van? Wait, the van is here right?" Alyssa realized she had been unconscious when they drove here, she assumed someone must have driven her van here, she hadn't checked.
The real Eun-Ji entered and stood near her identical self. She was simply observing what was going on, taking in the scene.
Agent Powers turned and gave Alyssa a smolder as he paused before saying, "Its cool. Its outside. Do you still need your laptop?" Agent Powers looked rather dashing and heroic as he gestured to Alyssa that he would help her get her laptop.
"Yes, everything should be in my black computer bag. Thanks." Alyssa responded. She noticed the two Eun-Jis and thought it odd that the woman was willing to do that in front of civilians but said nothing about it.
Agent Powers took the van keys and passed the two Eun-Jis to exit the house. He walked outside and opened the van door before looking for a black bag. After a little bit of searching he found the bag and looked inside to see the laptop. Once he took the bag he looked around and shut the van as he locked it. He had the keys in his hand and looked around before entering the house again. He passed the two Eun-Jis again and gave them a serious smolder and pause before he made his way to Alyssa with her van keys and black bag. He replied, "Oh yeah next time we are out we might want to get some air fresheners for your van. It's starting to smell like fast food in there." He gave her a smoldering grin.
"Thanks," Alyssa took the laptop and started getting it ready. She breathed a laugh at Max's comment. "Fast food doesn't make a great air freshener?" Alyssa joked. "But it's what I live on."
Posted by : Cindy
She started typing away, and then said. "I have the maps of the catacombs. Apparently, a bunch of them. Does anyone want to look them over?"
After ensuring Master Sung was okay, just needing rest from the energy drain of healing Alyssa, Choi returned to the room. Seeing Eun-Ji, he nodded with a serious look. This was unusual for Yeong; usually he was light and joking, having fun.
It wasn't fun having a partner he still didn't trust. Oh, she was good. And when he had first met her, Choi was charmed by her looks. He still remembers the decoy Eun-Ji on the trolley flashing her eyes at him. Choi couldn't deny that it had an effect upon him. But now, this girl's demeanor was not attractive.
Choi had been waiting for Master Sung to address this. It was his burden as the older and wiser of the three. It fell to him as a former trainer to Eun-Ji as well. Yeong wondered if this would dishonor the lineage of Moon in the Dragon faction.
Choi crossed to Alyssa. "Master Sung just needs rest," he assured them in case they were concerned. "Show me what you got."
Eun-Ji ignored Max's smolder as he passed by them. And proceeded to move about the room to get a better vantage point. The illusion moved about and reacted to its environment convincingly as a sovereign individual. The real Eun-Ji did the same. Both had the graceful poise of a dancer, saturated with feminine charm; however, there was a hint of danger, much like a spider spinning a web for its prey.
She nodded back at Choi, indifferent to his passive aggressive demeanor. Simultaneously, she was soaking up what was being discussed and was mentally cross referencing it with what she had already discovered.
"I'm glad he's doing alright," Alyssa said to Yeong as he came towards her. She moved over slightly and patted the seat next to her as an offer for the man to sit down, so he could see the images on the screen. "This is a current map of the catacombs. It can move completely through them in any direction, or I can zoom out. It works similar to something like Google maps but is far more accurate, and detailed. So, what are we looking for?"
Prue said, "Chick Chicken my sister here said something about masks. When I left here, people were still using dial up. See what you can find on masks and the occult. Just advice."
"Dial up? How old are you?" Alyssa quipped. "Anyway, I'll work on it. But first come, first serve, so I'll work on it after I help Yeong."
Agent Powers was very confused by that comment on cult masks. In his past he killed a lot of criminals wearing masks like bandanas over the mouth, Wooden animal/demon masks for the guys claiming to be ninjas in the Triad, Black ski masks from ex-mercs working for crime lords and so on but none of them ever related to magic. He was curious by what they meant by a cult mask. Was this some kind of theme that the cult members used to ID each other? It sounded like a terrible way to be sneaky in public, but he has seen some very dumb criminals be for.
Yeong looked at the map. It appeared familiar, simply because what everyone referred to the catacombs was actually underground San Francisco. His eyes widened when he spied where his accommodations were under the restaurant.
"I wonder how many people died in the earthquake in 1906?" Choi thought aloud. "I think it was around seven hundred. I'm sure they didn't clear everybody out. They simply built over the rubble. The old city is underneath, which means plenty of spirits."
Eun-Ji interjected and directed her query at Alyssa, "Are there any indications of a crescent shaped marking? It would be crudely formed, like a healed scar from a wound."
Choi looked at Eun-Ji, shocked at the sudden cooperation. He grinned, pleased with the change.
"Also," Yeong suggested, "The symbol of Morninglight, which is a rising sun. It is the horizon with the sun peaking over it and beams headed in all directions."
Eun-Ji noticed Choi's grin and micro expression. It made her wonder if he was Dragon material, or his temperament more aligned with the Illuminati, the way he so freely interacted with the enemy. Choi was conflating collaboration with instrumentation. Eun-Ji wasn't working with Alyssa, she was using her to fill a gap in her current investigation.
Alyssa responded to Eun-Ji and Yeong, "I believe that might be seen better in the pics that were sent to me." Alyssa spilt the screen and then explained, "The images that are on the left, should line up with the map on the right. Let's see what we can find." True to word the pictures of the catacombs did seem to line up with the map.
Yeong motioned for Eun-Ji to join them as he sat next to Alyssa. He glanced down at the laptop screen, hoping to see something that will aid the investigation.
Sung walked back into the room and sat down "I heard pepole are on the way to pick up our guest they should be here in five minutes." commented Sung. The different group's phone texts confirmed this.
Eun-Ji was content to stand where she was. She could see things just fine from her current location. She patiently waited to see what Alyssa would uncover with her state of the art technology.
When Sung emerged she acknowledged him with a gentle bow, out of respect, before returning her attention back to the matter at hand.
Alyssa noticed that Eun-Ji didn't sit down, but didn't care that much about it. She didn't feel like attempting to figure out the Dragon woman. She continued to watch for anything of use.
Posted by : Cindy
"I don't know, Jones. All I know is that she's possessed by something."
Corinth reentered Jack Stone's flat with Jones right behind him. He was annoyed that Ivy had gotten away, but there wasn't much he could do about it. For now, he needed to to try and find clues that would or could, point him in any direction.
"Ok, Stone dabbled in a lot of magical artifacts. He collected, sold, fenced, bartered, traded...whatever gave him the biggest payout. Whatever happened to Ivy more than likely came from his collection."
Moving back into the living room, Corinth began grabbing trinkets off some of display shelves and looking them over. Nothing magical was going to stand out or jump out at him. Magical artifacts were subtle. If they weren't everyone would be looking and fighting over them...even more so than they already do.
"So what exactly are we looking for," asked Jones, skepticism in his voice.
Corinth turned around and stared daggers at the young Templar. "God damnit Jones. Anything that looks out of place or heaven forbid, anything that looks like it might belong to the Secret World. Maybe something with sigils on it? Maybe something with some residual magic? Do I need to hold your hand or can you start looking for yourself."
"Look," Jones said sternly pushing back against the Gunslinger, "locating magical things isn't my specialty, I-"
"Then get me someone whose specialty it is because right now, you're about as useless as perfume on a pig." Corinth stopped dead, his mind replaying the standoff with Ivy.
"I just smelled the perfume."
Corinth dashed passed Jones and once again into the bedroom. The bed and body were still in the middle of the room. To the right of the bed was a dresser that was cluttered and its contents tossed about, no doubt from the shitty Templar investigation led by Jones. The closet was a mess and there was a chest at the foot of the bed, opened and disheveled. To the left of the bed was a lone nightstand with a lamp on it and one drawer.
First, he went to the chest. He knelt down and started sifting through the contents, but only found bed sheets and comforters. No doubt put there by Ivy as Stone didn't seem like the type of guy to care for matching sheets and comforters. He removed everything until he could see the bottom of the chest and then tossed everything back in.
Next, he moved over to the dresser. There was make-up, brushes, both for hair and face, lotions and a slew of other skin care items. Opening the drawers offered him nothing and he even pulled the dresser forward a bit to look behind it, but there was nothing. He moved to push the dresser back into place when his foot kicked something. Looking down, he saw a pile of shirts and when he nudged the pile with his foot, there was something hard hidden underneath.
Tossing the clothing aside, he saw a small round glass object. No, not glass, crystal, he thought as he picked it up and examined it. Turning it over in his hand, the crystal container went through the gamut of colors from reds to greens to blues. Looking through the crystal, he could see that there were etchings on the inside, but they were very hard to see. He tried to look through the top of the opening, but the angles weren't in his favor and he couldn't make out the markings. The only one he could semi make out was one that was often used in containment rituals.
Looking around, he managed to find the stopper to the crystal container and placed it back on top, securing it in place. He turned it over a few times in his hand and it did look like an old perfume bottle.
"That wasn't perfume, Ivy. Damn." Putting the crystal in his jacket pocket, he stood up and exited the room. Jones was hanging up the phone as Corinth entered the room.
"Find anything worth mentioning?"
Corinth looked at him for a second and replied, "nope. You might want to go ahead and make a call to get this place cleaned up. I doubt Jack had anyone besides Ivy that would notice his disappearance, but the people across the hall are going to create some waves if we don't put a lid on it. See you back at HQ."
Corinth left the apartment building and lit a cigarette as he walked to the road. He forgot he came by cab and cursed under his breath. He exhaled and took out his phone, calling the cab company again. He seriously thought about putting them on retainer, but decided against it. Once the cab showed up, he gave the driver the address to the Templar headquarters. He would need to visit the vast libraries under the building to find out more about the crystal object and who or what, might have been in it.
Posted by : Dblitz13
Deep in the underbelly of the Templar Headquarters in the neighborhood of Ealdwic, Corinth sat at a long table stacked with books that he had pulled off the shelves. He had spent hours combing through the old books, cross referencing pictures as well as having to translate various words and phrases. He took a deep inhale off his latest cigarette as he flipped another page, his eyes scanning for anything that might be important.
"You seem to be burning the midnight oil," came a voice behind him. The taps of heels on marble flooring coming closer. "Find anything useful or are you catching up on your reading?" When she reached the table, she pulled the cigarette out of his mouth and stamped it out on the floor. "No smoking in here."
The voice was Dalia's. She always seemed to know where he was, and honestly, that was pretty much her job. Give out assignments, make sure they get done, and report back to the higher ups. Repeat. Sometimes her presence was wanted, but this wasn't one of those times. Corinth was in work mode and he hated getting distracted, especially from his boss, no matter how friendly the exchange was meant to be. And he especially hated when she killed his cigarettes.
"I'm finding plenty. How useful it is remans to be seen." Corinth reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his pill bottle, shaking one out and chasing it with a swig of his water that rested near him. "Stone operated outside the Darkside Market so there is no telling were he got that crystal container from." He pointed to the object that he found from Jack's flat and watched as Dalia picked it up, moving it around in her hands. "With him being dead, there's also no telling how many or what kind of artifacts he still has tucked away. When it gets discovered, that's going to be a bad day for us."
"No point on dwelling on it now. What have you got on this Ivy girl?" Dalia put the crystal back down on the table.
"On her? Nothing that is important as to what is actually inside her or possessing her." He flipped a page and continued scanning away. "She ate three hearts...two and a half if you want specifics, and then stayed in the house for about three days? Why? She could have left whenever she wanted too."
Crossing her fingers in her lap, Dalia leaned back in her chair and watched the veteran Templar. He was her best Charge and she loved watching him work. It was almost as if she could see the cogs and wheels spinning in his brain. "What are your theories?"
"I think her human body was having a hard time digesting those hearts and she had to lay low until she was finished. Then, the Templars came and she had to continue to hide. I believe the entity inside her has the ability to use illusionary magic which is how she hid the entrance to the attic from Jones and his men. The magic must have waned by the time I got there, which is how I noticed it." He flipped a few more pages. "I think this thing is trying to go all Jeeper's Creepers on us."
Dalia had to think for a minute, but decided to ask anyways. "What do you mean by that?"
"I think she is eating the hearts to rebuild herself into her true form. I think what has possessed Ivy is the spirit of something and every time she eats a heart, it makes her stronger and slowly turns her back into whatever the spirits original self is. Which is why when it got the upper hand on me, it said that my Templar heart would be good for her skin. Now, I'm trying to find out what eats human hearts."
Leaning forward, Dalia pulled a book to her and looked it over. "You think the Aztec god Xipe Totec...," she wondered if she pronounced that right, "could have taken over Ivy?"
"Nope, that's why the book is over there. Totec wears the flayed skin of their victims. None of the three victims were missing their skin."
"And no to...Cherufe?"
"Cherufe consumes hearts the hearts of those sacrificed to it and mainly hangs around areas with volcanic activity." More pages were flipped.
She pushed those books away and pulled another closer. "And a no to the Bakunawa?" She read a few sentences and then said, "guess not since this is a large serpent."
"And it's not a Manananggal, Lamashtu, or Abyzou because none of the victims were pregnant and not infants. It's not a Krasue because those feed on animals, it's not a Chindi because it survives off the essence of people and only sometimes the heart. It's not an Ekek, Kelpie, or an Aatxe because those are mostly made up of animals."
"Wow," she said, genuinely surprised. "You really did your homework. We know what it isn't, do you have any idea what it is?"
"Yep," he concurred, tossing a book over to her. It was a book on Greek myths and literature. "She's an Empusa."
Dalai looked the page over, focusing on the picture more than the words. "Are you sure? It says here that an Empusa seduces men."
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"If you've been trapped in a bottle for who knows how long, I doubt you'd be very picky on where your meal came from." He leaned back in his chair and rolled his neck around, trying to loosen it up from being hunched over. "When she finally returns to her true self, she's going to have flames for hair, a brass leg, and a donkey leg. Maybe to donkey legs with one of brass...I don't know. Too many sides to the same story." He sighed heavily. "And the worst part is going to be if she gets her wings back and her shapeshifting powers."
His head tilted to the right and he looked over at his Handler. "The world is a smaller place with more people in it. She is living in a buffet right now. Hell, if she learns about the internet, she'll have guys eagerly walking up to her door. She could get very strong, very fast."
"So," asked Dalia placing the book back on the table and crossing her fingers in her lap again. "How do we find and kill it?"
"I don't know yet." Corinth had a real look of worry on his face as his forehead wrinkled from thinking too hard. "We're going to have to wait until she feeds again. Keep that PR team on standby." He reached into his pocket and pulled another cigarette out. He snapped his fingers and lit it.
"There's no smoking in here," huffed Dalia, annoyed at his defiance of the no smoking rule.
"I know."
Posted by : Dblitz13
Corinth gazed at the electronic map of London, its vivid display casting an artificial glow that enveloped the room, emanating from the colossal 100-inch screen adorning the wall. With his finger, he marked Jack Stone's flat and drew a line in the direction that he last saw Ivy running away. It would be impossible to figure out where she went on his own and he would have to wait until she killed again before knowing where to pick up the investigation. It was a terrible way to do things, but he didn't have any other option.
He wanted to try a Locate Creature spell, but he hadn't seen her true form yet. Sadly, more people would have to die before that was to happen.
His fingers traced over a few areas and he marked locations that he thought would make good feeding grounds. Areas that were out of the way, places were the homeless gathered, drug dealer alleyways…anything that would allow a super predator to hunt without distraction or notice.
"But if she was to feed off the dregs of society," he thought, "would she be getting her strength back as fast? Younger, male hearts would be her preferred meal, but I doubt she has the looks or the skills in Ivy's body to accomplish that."
Corinth heard someone enter the room behind him, but he was to focused to turn around and look to see who it was. Their footsteps were heavy, so he knew it wasn't Dalia. They sat something heavy down and were now walking closer to him. Looking over his shoulder, he saw Magdalena in all her Demolisher glory. Behind her, leaning against his desk was her war hammer, Soul Ejector. It was blunt, to the point, and had some sharp edges to it, much like Magdalena herself. When you carry a hammer, everyone becomes a nail.
Magdalena was tall, easily over 6 foot and had tightly braided blonde hair. She wore traditional Templar red leathers and often looked like she belonged in some futuristic renaissance fair. As she drew closer, she stood beside him and slapped the back of his shoulder hard enough to make him lean forward a bit.
"How goes the hunt," she asked as she looked over the map and the marks he made. Her voice was softer than one would expect and her London accent carried a hint of elegance that did not match her physical presence.
"Slow," he responded, turning his head back to the screen. "I have a feeling things are going to get worse before they get better."
"They usually do." She paused and then turned her head to him. "People's talkin' 'bout you leavin' the San Francisco job."
He shrugged. "That's what happens when you get late info and the other factions get a jump on things."
"An' wot 'bout yer partner, eh?" She crossed her arms and smiled. ""Did she decide to stick it out then, or is she scarperin' too?"
"I don't know what her plans are," he used his finger to mark another spot on the board. "She's her own person and can make her own decisions."
"I s'pose you're right. 'Ow about you give yer eyes a rest and come down to the Horned God with me, eh? First rounds on you?"
He smiled at that. "Nothing would make me happier than going beer for beer with you," he turned to look at her, "but there is a really nasty bitch out there that needs to be put down."
It was her turn to smile, "I reckon you say that to all the birds ya try to dodge." She sighed at the declined invitation. "Alright, what's the score then? What do we know?"
Corinth gave her all the information he had since his return. He gave her his theories and what he thought would be the best approach once they found Ivy, but that was more a guess at best. He really didn't know what he would do if he saw her again except kill her. That seemed to be the best course of action, but if there was a chance to save her and expel the spirit, he should at least try too. It's what the Templar's would want him to do, but he knew things like this never played out like he wanted them too. Ivy was as good as dead already and it would be more humane to just go ahead and put her out of her misery while at the same time, getting rid of the Empusa.
"Seems like you got yourself a proper bloody mess, mate," she said with some concern in her voice.
"Pretty soon, it won't just be my mess."
Static erupted from a police scanner on Corinth's desk. Both he and Magdalena turned to look at it.
"Ya got a police scanner goin' too, eh? Every little bit counts, yeah?"
"The cities too big for just us. I figured the locals would find her first."
The police scanner came to life again and a staticky male voice filled the room. "All units, we've got a 10-40 at Breckenridge and Birmingham. Requestin' backup and a coroner. Detective Sewel, switch to private channel 8." Corinth grabbed the radio and quickly tuned it to the proper channel. "It has been reported that the victim's heart has been removed," clarified the same males voice. "Units are on standby waiting for your arrival.
A different males voice responded. "ETA in 10 minutes, tell them not to touch anything."
"Copy, Sir."
Corinth rubbed his hands together and looked over to Magdalena. "You coming?"
Posted by : Dblitz13
Alyssa first went through and noted all the entrances. She then started going through the tunnels, for a while there seemed to be nothing, then something caught her eye. The computer hacker backed up the images and the map. "There," pointing to what might have seen like a small spec on the screen, but then zooming on the image. It was a crescent shaped, looking a little like a mark someone might make with a finger nail. She moved slowly to the previous image, there was no marks. Then the image after the marked one, and then another and another. She kept pointing out the markings as they went. It seemed to be marking a path which Alyssa followed. The path kept going, around a few corners, down several passages until it stopped. Alyssa went two more images and said, "I've got something. It looks like a possible crypt with an upside-down star sigil on the door."
Earlier three agents came to pick up the two suspects and the girl they were dressed as FBI agents and had a black van. Tt only took 5 minutes before they were gone.
Sung watched as Alyssa showed all the footage she had quickly running through the information but not missing any details. Sung was impressed by Alyssa and her skills. If it was not for Alyssa's skills Sung would have not caught the jars and bones. "Alyssa wait hold that freeze that footage." asked Sung as she did "Go back frame by frame," asked Sung Alyssa worked her skills even improving the frames. "Stop, does that look like a jar and the bones look like a symbol to you? asked Sung
Agent Powers watched as Alyssa was looking up maps of underground tunnels and talking to the two Dragons about her findings and realized he was about as useful as a handful of sand in a desert. So he sighed and went to the kitchen and made himself a sandwich to deal with his stress. Then he looked in the fridge and found a gallon for Orange juice. Since he was feeling peckish, he poured himself a glass of OJ and enjoyed his snack in solitude as he pondered what he had experienced so far. Sadly he had little to go on with and was just glad he didn't have to do all the smart person stuff. After finishing his snack he cleaned up and made his way back to the room to see the others still working on the case. He tried to look serious and ended up making another smoldering face.
Eun-Ji continued observing their collaboration. She was measuring the information being uncovered to determine when she would have enough to take her leave of them. She was about to, when Master Sung discovered something that was worth sticking around a little longer to see what it entailed.
Meanwhile the illusion of Moon moved closer to Max and sized him up with a judgmental expression; like looking at a strange painting.
Alyssa did as asked, and when Sung said stop, she did. "Yes," she responded. It did look like a symbol to her.
Piper said, "That symbol is supposed to be good, it was carved on the trees… We read about it in the End Rite."
"Someone turned it upside down to make it evil. It. I had a vision of it carved on trees in a Florida swamp and in woods in Louisiana;" said Phoebe.
"The men with the cult, the ones that were just taken away, were from Florida and Louisiana." Alyssa realized that connection, useful or not.
Sung shook his head looking down. "Now you know why our organizations said to work together. Every time we find something new this problem gets bigger. They must have seen it was a big threat to order us to share information and work together." Sung said with some frustration in his voice. "I almost feel we are being set up. Whatever is at the end of this search will have the ability to kill us if we do not work as a team, " suggested Sung grimly.
Even in Eun-Ji's limited experience, she had come to the realization that most things in the secret world had the ability to kill. She had expected nothing less than that since her assignment began. Her instructions, coming from the Voice of the Dragon himself, were to undermine the other factions anyway possible. Ensure victory of the mission and strike a crippling blow to the other factions was her directions. It was something she had not yet shared with Master Sung and Choi, both men seemed all to eager to make nice and she feared they were emotionally or morally compromised.
She spoke up, "Does this upside down symbol provide any useful details on what we will be up against?" The crescent scar meant the master of the fades were likely involved. But what did that actually mean in regards to tangible threats?
Agent Powers caught on to part about them working as a team since this mission was way to dangerous for just one group. He knew he was being observed by someone in the room and ignored it since he was used to it. His presence alone intimidated many enemies especially in combat. He then thought about what type of monster the cult might be trying to summon like in the video games he played when alone in his room at night. He then asked, "If this mission is to big for only one faction then does that mean we have to work with the Templars as well? I can see this getting more difficult already." He then looked as Eun-Ji and gave her a smolder then looked at Sung as he said, "As you already know not everyone will play nicely in the same sandbox."
Sung looked over at Eun-Ji's exasperation at Sung's comment. Sung sighed. Then looked at Agent Powers. I am not a well-arcane specialist. Yes, I do hold some skills in that field I am no expert in the use Anima at this level. This is someone well-trained and experienced with expertise in necromancy. They are not using live creatures for their magic. whoever they are more powerful than a Ghoul. Probably closer to a Vampier or Lycanthropes perhaps. I am talking from experience a Vampier could kill all of us even if we do work together." Stated Sung with no uncertain terms.
Looking back at Eun-Ji, we don't have to like it. We do not have to like each other. But we do follow orders! And do what is expected of us." Sung expressed with a smile. Looking at the screen "Alyssa, which entrance to the catacombs has the least traffic and people let's say in the last two weeks?" asked Sung looking at the big map on the second screen.
It took Alyssa a few moments but she then said, "It looks like the one between 7th and 6th street. It's down an alleyway, so not much traffic." She said nothing about anything else Sung said, but was glad he said it, Alyssa would likely not have been as tactful talking to Eun-Ji with the way the other woman had been acting.
Alyssa turned to Max, "If the Templars are meant to work with us, they can reach us. So far, as far as I know, there's been no communication from them."
Agent Powers nodded as he thought about what Alyssa and Sung talked about. He knew the tension was going to be an issue either way. He was used to the death stare considering his past missions. If he left anyone alive he targeted he would have to worry about revenge plots. However it was not a good idea to point out that the relationship with the Dragons was shaky at best so using the Templars as a reference made his point clear for all. He then gave a smolder to Alyssa as he asked, "So the Templars are either avoiding communication or are being blocked from it by a third party. Either way we look at it, we will be dealing with some trouble when we do encounter them. Just out of curiosity, if we are dealing with the supernatural as an enemy, what weapons, tools or precautions will we need to take before we reach the point of no return?"
"The cultists, they have a connection between those two states. As if they've been operating in both states for a long time. Something connects the states to each other. Perhaps what ever the veneration of the cult's worship. It might have something to do with portals.
Speaking of which, Prue, you said you came back here through a portal that a man dressed in black opened.
Did he say his name?" asked Phoebe.
"He didn't say his name, but he said he been around quite a while. Around this world quite a while." He didn't say much, he gave me the address to Chick and Sartre's hotel room." Prue said
"The way he was dressed… he looked like he was dressed like people would have 100 years ago. He had a fedora hat. It's been twenty-three years since I've been here, so yes Chick Chicken, I remember when people were still using dial-up. It made me think of time travel, if things are not predestined as in your vision you had in 2006. Then what exactly is the universe?" said the raven haired sister
"I have a feeling you know soon enough Prue. I know you want answers." said Piper.
"I want answers now! How soon is now?" Prue asked angrily.
Alyssa didn't answer Max because she didn't know what they should arm themselves with, funny enough, she thought that was one area Max would be more knowledgeable than herself.
Alyssa, had been two years old or so when Prue had been last on earth, it was a strange concept for the hacker. "Well, alright old lady, glad I don't have to deal with the 1900s torture device that was dial-up." Well if Prue insisted on calling her Chick, then she would call Prue "Old Lady" and possibly rub it in occasionally.
As Alyssa was talking though she was also adding all the new info to the database about the investigation.
Eun-Ji locked her gaze intensely at Master Sung, in a way that indicated him to be careful, as if he was walking on thin ice. She maintained a polite demeanor despite her sudden urge to rebuke him with a hammer upside the left temple. She owed him the respect for being her past trainer and being an elder; however, she did not appreciate what he was insinuating publicly in front of strangers. Likewise she did not appreciate his patronizing remark about knowing how to follow orders.
With a smile on her face, masterfully fabricated to conceal her chaotic rage, "Master Sung knows full well my desire to uphold the Voice of the Dragon's commands. Thank you for stating it so plainly." Eun-Ji held her eye contact a moment more, before bowing to the man. That exchange solidified her thought not to share what she had been told by the Voice of the Dragon with Master Sung.
Meanwhile the illusion of Eun-Ji, the one that was scoping out and taking measurement of Max Powers, moved gracefully closer to the giant smoldering muscle. She was now socially unacceptably close, but not touching, merely standing in front of him as if undressing him with her eyes. She was messing with him to test how he would respond. Would he hold his ground, become aggressive, or defer the space to her realistic illusion. What kind of man was this giant inside?
Agent Powers looked down at the smaller but older Korean woman who was looking at him as if he was some kind of oddity. He gave her a smolder as he was about to make a comment to her his phone rang. He then paused and sucked his teeth before let it ring two more times as if he was not in the mood to answer it. Then he gritted his teeth and picked up his phone and answered it. He answered, "Yeah its me. (pause) Yes. (pause) I understand. (pause) Yes. (pause) Alright. (pause) I get it already. (pause) But…(pause) Are you sure? (pause) So when will I get it? (pause) Okay then. (pause) Okay thanks pop. (pause) Yeah. (pause) I promise I will. (pause) Love ya to pop. (pause) Give my love to Mr. Tinkles. (pause) Okay. Later." Then he hung up the phone and took a deep breath to calm down. He then looked at Eun-Ji and gave her a smiling smolder for a moment before he paused. Then he said, "You remind me of my former nanny. She had that whole strict psychopathic loving assassin thing going for her too." Then Agent Powers kissed his fingers and blew them up in the air as if he was thinking of his former nanny in the next world before making the sign of the cross on his massive muscular chest. He then muttered, "Till the next world Nanny Fran." He then looked at Alyssa and said, "Dad said he is sending me a package through you. So please let me know when you get it."
Alyssa watched the interaction between Max and the other Eun-Ji, she softly bit her lip. It was coming across as Eun-Ji liked to mess with people or attempt to. Alyssa then heard Max talk about a package sent to him through her. It didn't take but a few moments before she saw a message on her screen. "Max, you want to come over here and see if this is it?"
Agent Powers smiled at Alyssa and nodded as he popped his chest muscles for Eun-Ji before he walked to Alyssa to see what she was showing him. He looked at the screen and asked, "Watcha got?" He then looked at the screen and saw the FedEx email notice and nodded as he replied, "Wow that was fast. I might get it tonight at this rate."
Eun-Ji's illusion moved on, having completed her objective of testing the large man. She observed deflection through comedy and charm in his body language and tone. It made her consider he was potentially hiding some form of insecurity, was a self absorbed narcissistic, socially awkward or just immature; maybe all the above. Of course she didn't have enough repeatable evidence yet to be certain, but it did make her seriously question his reliability and prudence.
In short, having been observing the Illuminati in action, and up close, she had a gnawing concern that they were more liabilities than assets for what they were about to undertake. Master Sung and Choi would be carrying this so-called "team-up", if it were to be successful.
The real Eun-Ji continued to patiently listen.
Walking and sitting back down Sung thought for a moment. While in thought he had forgotten that Eun-Ji was trained in Sabotage more like espionage. Eun-Ji skill set and training were the best for what she could do. How Sung contributed to her training in many areas but she was not like him. An enforcer more or less. Sung knew to buy time and wait to see what would unfold. Not that he trusted anyone but Sung would not let that show.
Sung spoke loud enough for everyone to hear. "When everyone is done and ready to go Let me know if we should split up and leave at different times and arrive that way too," suggested Sung looking relaxed. "Eun-Ji, what do you think is the best way to approach our target area?" Sung asked genuinely interested in her answer.
The illusion Eun-Ji stopped what she was doing and looked over at the center of mass of the gathering of individuals as if surprised by the question, while simultaneously looking at the real Eun-Ji as if to wonder what she would say. The real Eun-Ji paused to think. They had a meager amount of useful evidence. It made the operation similar to sticking one's arm down a dark hole and hoping there weren't pit vipers inside. That was not her style.
After collecting her thoughts, she replied, "Prepared and prudent." Though she did not necessarily know if they had the luxury of wasting more time than already spent. She paused to see if Master Sung and the others wanted her to continue, reading their body language. It was clear by the hitch in her voice that she could continue. She was skeptical on why suddenly her opinion mattered in present company.
Sartre removed his MP5 from a suitcase in his bedroom.
Alyssa did one of those things she was quite good at watching and listening. She didn't think that her contributions would be best served in the catacombs. Fighting just wasn't the young woman's forte, would probably be more of a hindrance than a help. "I have small cameras I can attach to people. So, I can keep an eye on things from my van. Drones if needed, as well. And I can block-off the alleyway from others." As for what Eun-Ji had said, she wasn't wrong but it was doubtful they had the time to find everything. If the other woman wanted to keep going she could.
Agent Powers put his hands on his waist as he pondered what Alyssa said and nodded his head up and down till he gave her a smile and smolder. He replied, "Awesome Alyssa! You can guide us from your van in case we take a wrong turn or encounter something bad like a cave in. In the past my handlers had to do that stuff but sadly not all of them were good at it. I had to dig my way out a few times from the tunnels after the enemy set off some grenades. If you need to attach any gear to me, I'm cool with that." Agent Powers liked the idea of extra eyes on the team. It would make it harder for them to get in deeper trouble.
Eun-Ji did not agree with Alyssa staying in the van, in a sense it felt like she had less skin in the game. Decision making on high was removed from the pressure of immediate threat. It could lead to lag between inputs and outputs; especially if any interference or distance messed with the signals. She was apprehensive of letting the illumnati place any form of technology on her person.
"I recommend you come with us." She directed to Alyssa. "I doubt your signals are going to work the more we descend and that is when your technology MAY be of the most usefulness. I have a person that can handle the topside tasks you proposed." She was referring to David.
She then addressed the group. "Once down there I propose pairing off in an order for confined spaces. Big guy and Choi in the front, keyboard and I in the middle, gunslinger and Master Sung in the rear. Perhaps climbing gear would be appropriate with attachments between in case the environment is unstable?" She looked to Alyssa to see if she could verify the necessity of such items or not. She didn't know their names, so descriptive nicknames were the best she had to offer at the moment. She also intentionally paired one of them with one their own, to keep tabs on them better.
Alyssa didn't like the idea of being in the catacombs. She wasn't scared of the place, or even the cult members, as formidable as they might be. She was aware there were those who would protect her, it was more the question what if what had been happening to her happened again. What if whatever was after her, somehow had even greater access to her down there. These weren't things showing on her face, but they were certainly running through her mind.
Alyssa logically knew she was likely no safer in her van but the grey large metal vehicle felt safer than most other places.
Not wanting to voice her concerns, though unclear as to why she suddenly felt that way Alyssa responded, "From what I've seen climbing gear could be useful in some areas." She paused, "Does your tech person have their own drones will I have to hook them into mine?" There was no way Alyssa was given her van over to a Dragon to play with, especially one she had no idea of their actual technical skills.
Agent Powers scratched his head as he was amazed by what he had just heard. True there was a logic to it much like in his RPG games but what irked him was the source of this plan. He then gave a smolder to Alyssa and then Eun-Ji as he asked, "Did you know that is the most you have said to any of us this entire time? Not to mention you are being very helpful all of a sudden, especially for someone who doesn't even know our names." Then he looked at Alyssa with a smolder and asked, "Now back to the weak signal she mentioned earlier (pointing to Eun-Ji), if you need me to I can carry some signal boosters to lay them out like bread crumbs in the tunnel. This way you can still work from the van. I mean that is an option we can look at since I am a bit concerned her friend (pointing to Eun-Ji) might panic and call the police on us … again." Then Agent Powers smiled at Eun-Ji and gave her a smolder.
Eun-Ji met eyes with Max, wondering if he had a point or if he just wanted to try and discredit her suggestions with ad hominem attacks. It took a double portion of patience to switch gears from what was important to talk about to his present foolishness.
"Words are not a measure of worth. Value the substance of what is said, not the frequency of speech." She would leave it at that, in a battle of wits it was dishonorable to engage an unarmed man.
Eun-Ji then moved onto the next point, "My colleague does have equipment, but his aid would be only useful in securing our entry and temporary in regards to communication. Wireless signals, like radio waves, weaken underground due to the thick layers of earth and rock. Even with boosters stationed along the path, the signal would still be unreliable, akin to shouting across mountains – it might get through, but unclearly. I do not recommend putting ourselves in more of a vulnerable situation then is necessary. I once again recommend a localized alternative." She hoped she didn't have to break out more of her physics degree to explain to them how such things scientifically worked.
"And one more thing…" She returned her attention back to Max and the other Illuminati. "It was not the Dragons that initially notified the police to the church, but the foolishness of the Illuminati to cause such a clamor with gun fire and smashing furniture inside a church along a public city block. Next time think before you act, or at least learn like my colleagues here to use more silent techniques." It was true she didn't initially call the police; however, once they were already on the way she did take advantage of the opportunity to call them in the hopes of pinning a crime on the Illuminati. Of course, they couldn't know that from an anonymous call … and they never would.
Alyssa rolled her eyes at Enu-Ji's comment. "Silent? I believe it was a Dragon that busted the down the front door to the very house we're standing in. I had to clean up that mess. So, why don't you give that advice to your own or at least get rid of that attitude - at least while we're attempting to work together. " Alyssa had definitely felt it since coming in proximity with Enu-Ji and it was getting on her last nerve. "The part about the radio signals is accurate, normally. However, perhaps you've heard of the Through The Ground communication system. It sends low frequency voice signals through soil and rock, at least 300 ft down. Miners use a form of it, but the IIlumanti has better equipment than that." Alyssa then turned to Enu-Ji. "You're not the only one with an advanced degree. Try thinking that some of us might know what we're talking about. However, if you're going to insist, sure I'll come with you. There's really little point in your friend coming if that's all he can offer."
Were all Illuminati logically inept Eun-Ji considered? The petty rebuttal came off to her like the type of schoolyard retorts used when there was no articulate argument to be made. Instead the subject got switched. How does breaking a door of an abandoned manor in a slow neighborhood compare to a gun fight in a public church building? It was like comparing apples to oranges; even though she did agree that Choi had been foolish to break the door. It would be a waste of time and energy to say any of these thoughts, so she kept silent.
Taking the high road and sticking to more important matters, "True … the through-the-ground communication system is a method of transmitting signals or messages through solid substances like earth or rock. It typically involves technologies like ground-penetrating radar, seismic waves, or specialized underground communication devices to send and receive signals through the ground over short to moderate distances. Need I emphasize short to moderate distances? Once again I am not in favor of something unreliable and untested when faced with the large amount of current uncertainty. In addition, having someone secure our entry could prove somewhat useful for when we have to exit, hiding our activities from the public, or for keeping things from coming down behind us."
She paused, "I insist you come, you are a Bee after all, computers are not the only thing you can do?" She was inferring this from her comment about fixing the door, such skills could be needed in the catacombs.
Alyssa didn't want to get into a entire session of what the IIlumanti equipment she had could do that the regular equipment couldn't, there likely wasn't time to walk through all of it anyway. "You're not really up on the latest equipment, if that's your knowledge of it." Alyssa was either insinuating that she knew more about that subject that Enu-Ji, as it was completely in her wheelhouse or insinuating that the Illuminati just had better equipment than the Dragons.
Either way, the subject moved on to her going into the tunnels. Alyssa didn't want to give Enu-Ji the satisfaction of knowing about her messed up bee. The only person Alyssa had told about her bee situation was Peter, who she glanced at quickly. "I already said, I'll come." As reluctant as the computer hacker was about it.
Eun-Ji conceded the technology point. "If your Illuminati equipment is beyond the industry standard specs, then I am sure you can have someone man it topside alongside our Dragon operative. Maybe it will work as intended, maybe not; we can call it a backup plan."
Finally, progress Eun-Ji thought. "Good…. So if time is of the essence, perhaps we should gather what we each need and meet at the designated entry point?" She was concerned this grouping could easily waste time spinning over things which were mostly distractions. In addition, the sooner she could get this collaborative mission over and behind her the better.
Agent Powers gave Eun-Ji a raised eye brow after her snotty response. She reminded him of some handlers and targets that had to prove that they were right regardless of the circumstances. He didn't understand why they had to be right all the time. Perhaps it made them feel important or something. He sighed as he shook his head side to side and then looked at his watch. He then said, "Wow. Anyway… we should all agree on who we team up with since not everyone is good at combat and tech support. Oh and my package should be arriving soon via drone so let me know when it arrives at your van."
"Alyssa do you have a weapon preference?" asked Sartre.
Sung watched all of the exchanges between the groups there. Giving a smirk Sung stood to his feet. "I am going to get a drink, be right back," stated Sung walking to and out the front door. " Try not to annihilate one other while I am gone," Sung remarked sarcastically opening the front door and walking out. Sung wondered if they would be like this the whole mission. Sung grinned getting to his black SUV going to the back he pulled out a pack of four bottles walked back into the house and sat back down.
The bottles were green in color with white, black, and red on the label. They were written in the Korean language (Jinro Soju). Everyone could see as he pulled it out Sung twisted off the top and took a sip. Sung's face had an expression of satisfaction on his face.
Alyssa responded to Peter, with a shrug. "Not really, I'll have my pistol. Just whatever firearm's available."
A brow raised at Sung's reaction and when he came back and started to drink something written in Korean, Alyssa shrugged, and turned to Enu-Ji. "Well, the IIlumanti are ready. We come prepared but certainly if you need sometime to gather things we can meet you there."
A notice popped up in the computer hacker's phone, "Max I think your package has arrived at my van."
Eun-Ji prepared herself to leave, the illusion went to exit right through the door as if phasing through it. "I am ready." She looked to Choi and Master Sung to see if they were too. She intended to have David bring anything she needed to where they were going to meet, including himself and any necessary stakeout equipment. "Please give the address to Master Sung." Without waiting, she left the house and began heading towards the street. She was on the phone with David. Her double was already standing waiting near Master Sung's black SUV.
Agent Powers gave Alyssa a nod and smolder as he replied, "Thanks. I'll get it." Then he made his way outside to the van to see the large drone drop a box above him. He raised his muscular arms to catch the box the air and grinned as he tucked it under his muscular arm before he came back inside to open it next to Alyssa. Inside it was a golden modified shotgun with a revolver barrel, a large box of special ammo shotgun slugs, some golden inscribed knuckles, inscribed glass ampules of water, a dozen white phosphorus grenades and military backpack to load everything in. After packing his gear into his bag he pulled out the instructions and looked at them quickly. They were for how to used the gear for special combat against the super natural forces. He scratched his head as he kept reading them. It made sense since he used similar gear in the past for different reasons. Then he looked at Alyssa and replied, "Looks good. I'll read up on my gear in the van. Do we need to do anything else?" Agent Powers gave Alyssa a smolder as he smiled at her.
Well, there's gotta be one. Alyssa thought watching the Enu-Ji's leave. The hacker then looked over towards Prue. And I have two to contend with.
She did something on her phone, then said to Sung. "I've sent you the address."
Max came back with enough stuff to bring down the tunnels on top of them. Alyssa just sighed. "I'm ready. If everyone else is."
"Alyssa; don't forget to put on the wrist talisman I gave you. It will increase your confidence and strength." " Sartre also tossed her a mythical level shotgun that he had as an extra in his suitcase. He said to the room "Is everybody ready to head to the catacombs, I wonder where Charles Duane went?" Sartre loaded his weapons and removed the safety on them.
Alyssa lifted her wrist, to show the talisman. "I've got it." She caught the shotgun, and quickly looked it over. "Thanks. I'm ready."
Since was still waiting on the others, Agent Powers continued to read his instruction manual. The first thing he read was about the Shotgun (also known as the crucifix shotgun). That weapon shares some visual similarity to the Streetsweeper shotgun. It has a cross-shaped barrel. with the Dragon's Breath flamethrower at the bottom and a flashlight on top. It has a 12-round replaceable drum magazine for shotgun shells. The slug shells are made by smelting gold from religious symbols, molding them and putting them in 12-gauge slug shells. He needed to keep in mind the loud noise it would make and the high penetrating and recoil power it had. He also read on how to load and unload the sliding barrel. On the next part of the instructions he found the Gold/ brass knuckles that are used to fight demons and undead. They have engravings that read "fiat iustitia et pereat mundus", which means "Let justice be done, though the world perish". The gold/brass knuckles have 4 crosses engraved above each finger hole. Overall, they do significant damage to half breeds/demons/Undead. Then he read up on the glass balls full of water and they turned out to be holy water ampules for weakening demonic/undead enemies. Of course the last part he was already familiar with and that was the white phosphorous grenades which exploded and continued to burn in oxygen which alone was highly dangerous and should be used with caution. Of course this was on top of his pistol in his leg holster and his boot knife in his other leg holster. Now he was feeling rather confident like a character in one of his RPG games.
Sung packed up his bottles and walked to his SUV seeing Choi and Eun-Ji waiting on him. He stored his bottles and got his other equipment ready. then climbed into the Suv putting some K-pop on through the playlist. They waited for everyone to leave and then started driving themselves.
Alyssa got to her van and waited on Peter and Max. Once they were in the van she'd leave.
Agent Powers followed Alyssa to her van and got in the back. He took off his tactical backpack and pulled out the gold shotgun and ammunition. He proceeded to load it and turned the safety on. Then fill his pockets on his tan cargo pants with the extra shells. Then he put the gold knuckles in his front pocket. Oddly his pockets didn't bulge out and still looked tight. Then he put the backpack on again and attached his head lamp to his head and checked the light before turning it off. He was feeling confident as he checked his shotgun over. He knew by the looks of the shells that they were expensive and should not be wasted. Since that was an issue he was glad to have his pistol in his boot and some extra clips.
Sartre grabbed his MP5 assault rifle as well as his pistol and several talismans each of the legendary variety. As he climbed into the van, he reminded Alyssa "Put on your purple wristband. It will increase your confidence and strength. Does anybody have any idea what we will be dealing with down there?" he said.
Agent Powers replied, "Not exactly, but my dad sent me some gear for humans and super natural. My shotgun, knuckles and holy water ampules can deal with anything supernatural and I can already deal with the normal people and animals that could be a threat. I've been in tunnels before but we need to be careful with cave ins, blowing out our eardrums and using fire since it will reduce our oxygen. If things get bad I can deal but I am worried about you guys dealing with no air or getting trapped underground. So it would be a good idea for Alyssa to keep an eye out for many escape plans in case we need them." Agent Powers checked his 45 cal pistol on his boot holster and his silver/Damascus steel hunting knife in his other boot holster.
Alyssa showed Peter her wrist, to show that she had on the talisman. "I have no idea what we're dealing with, could it be a demon or demon- like creature?" Being it was just the IIlumanti in the van, when Peter asked the question about what they were possibly dealing with, that got her even more concerned. Peter was the senior Illuminati in this case, if he didn't know that didn't seem like a good thing. "I can keep an eye out for escape routes, but it will really be dependent on what I can see while I'm down there." Alyssa didn't know, she already had shown all the exits she could find on the maps. "If there are additional exits than what were found on the maps, those exits shouldn't be there. Which means they could be unstable." The computer hacker said. "I do have headphones. They can minimize loud sounds without blocking softer ones like talking. We can have those in case we need them."
Alyssa hooked her phone by Bluetooth into her car and put on a mixed playlist, which started off "Welcome To The Jungle." Then she took off down the road.
Posted by : Cindy
Corinth drove through the wet streets of London with Magdalena sitting beside him. The weather had shifted from overcast to a gentle drizzle, transforming London into a blurred watercolor painting as seen through the car's windshield. The Templars remained silent during their journey, a fact that suited Corinth just fine; his mind was too preoccupied with numerous thoughts to engage in casual conversation or to even make speculations about what they would find when they got to the crime scene.
Breckenridge and Birmingham was an abandoned warehouse area. The homeless often gathered there due to the abundance of vacant buildings, while various petty to medium-level crimes unfolded in the vicinity with alarming frequency. Normally, that was regular beat cop work in a regular beat cop area, but now that an Empusa was running amok, it crossed over into Templar jurisdiction.
Pulling up in front of an old warehouse, Corinth counted at least three cop cars and about five cops milling about under a large awning to keep clear from the rain. When he exited the care, he drew all their attention. Or maybe they were all focused on Magdalena and her hammer. Either way, it wasn't a comfortable feeling, but one that he was used too.
The warehouse was old, probably built in the fifties. The inside was cleared out with only random scattered pieces of wood, metal, and other junk. Junk, being what most of the illegal inhabitants brought inside and then left when they were forced to vacate for one reason or another. Most of the windows were broken and the metal stairs leading up to the second floor looked to have seen better days, but were still sturdy.
"Looking for Detective Sewel," he asked the group.
One of the older looking cops motioned his head to the side, indicating that the detective was around the back of the building. Corinth gave the man a nod and followed the sidewalk in between the warehouse and a perimeter fence. Arriving at the rear of the warehouse, Corinth spotted Detective Sewel standing over a prone figure on the ground, umbrella in hand.
"I had a hunch your lot might turn up." said Sewel looking up as the two Templars approached. "This is bound to give me a bleedin' headache, ain't it?"
"No more than it will give us," Corinth replied looking down at the body.
The body was a male, and judging by his clothes, wasn't the homeless type. Blue collar worker that was most likely walking home or passing through. Or...maybe he was passing through looking for some company and chose the wrong companion.
"Should I expect to be stumbling upon more corpses like this one?" Sewel had returned his gaze down to the corpse, his eyes drawn to the empty hole in the middle of it's chest.
"That is a distinct possibility. We'll need some time to find this thing and it's not going to be easy."
Sewel turned back towards Corinth and stepped towards him. "What won't be a walk in the park is keeping this under wraps if the press catches wind of it. By the time we're done, I'll be needing someone to take the fall."
Corinth nodded in his understanding. Luckily, that wasn't his department. The Templars had a lot of allies and contacts in the police force as well as in other mediums across the city, but even their resources could run dry if an investigation ran on longer than it should or more noise was made than could be silenced.
"The coroner's been held up, but he should be arriving shortly. Do what needs doin', then make yourself scarce." With that said, Sewel moved past the Templars and made his way back up to the front of the warehouse.
"So wot's the plan now, then," asked Magdalena as she leaned on her hammer.
Kneeling down, Corinth took a better look at the corpse. "Not real sure. He looks just like the other ones. Heart ripped from his chest, he has some bruising around his throat from where she tried and maybe succeeded in choking him." He lifted up his hands to look at his finger nails. "No signs of him fighting back...she moved quick." Lifting up the mans head, he saw a small puddle of blood on the ground. "He either hit his head when he feel or...," Corinth rose to his feet and turned his attention to the brick wall, his gaze drawn to a small tuft of hair snagged on the jagged edges of the bricks, "...she slammed his head into the wall to help knock him out."
"She's a right handful, she is," quipped Magdalena.
"She was hungry," he corrected. "She needed him silent and subdued." Continuing his investigation, he noticed more blood droplets leading away from the body that were slowly disappearing because of the rain. Following them with his eyes, they trailed off in the direction of Ardent Road which was about a block or two away.
Motioning for Magdalena to follow him, they walked away from the body and towards the direction of the blood. Reaching Ardent Road, he saw that to the left of him, there were a few vacant office buildings that were being renovated for future buyers. There were three that were almost complete and more that had yet to have been started on. Corinth sighed at the possibility of having to canvas so many large building.
"Be nice to have some extra help."
"You sayin' I ain't up to snuff, are ya," asked Magdalena as she slapped Corinth on the shoulder. "Oi, come on then. Let's 'ave a butcher's 'round."
The first building was a three story building that was completely gutted, but smelled of fresh paint. Nothing looked out of place as the Templars investigated the empty rooms. Most of the rooms had no doors so it made looking in closets easier. The second and third floors were the same; all open spaces with nowhere to hide.
As they exited the building, they made their way to the two story adjacent one. Before ascending the steps to reach the door, Corinth's eyes caught a drop of blood. Upon closer inspection of the door handle, he observed traces of blood smeared across its surface.
"She may not be inside, but she was here at some point," he told Magdalena as he pulled Powel from its holster. She gripped the handle to her hammer and readied up beside Corinth.
He motioned for Magdalena to open the door while he took aim inside. Nothing. Unlike the previous building, this one had a front desk and partitions set up to create makeshift offices. They were flimsy little walls, but would make searching difficult. Boxes of unopened office furniture were stacked up in piles at various intervals, remnants of the space's previous identity, now overshadowed by the sleek modernity of its renovated form.
The floor layout split in two directions with pathways leading down each side of the building. Magdalena took the left side while Corinth took the right. They each slowly moved forward, peeking into each office space before moving on to the next. It wasn't long before Magdalena called out that she had found some blood on the floor and it looked to be leading towards the farthest back room on the floor.
Corinth moved to join her. The room was situated well away from everything and it reminded him of a janitors closet as it was next to the restrooms, advertised by the male and female placard next to the other doors. Upon closer inspection, the door knob had smeared dried blood on it. Looking over to Magdalena, he nodded and reached out for the knob.
As he he gripped it and started to turn, the door exploded off its hinges, throwing Corinth backwards with the door landing on top of him. Inside the small room, was Ivy. She wore a wide bloody grin across her face. Her lips were dry and chapped and looked to have had pieces missing. The whites of her eyes were jaundiced with her normal blue eyes being replaced with a yellow and red explosion of color. Normal fingernails were gone, replaced with sharp points that were either sharpened nails or worse, sharpened bone. It was too hard to tell. Her clothing was mostly intact, but she had developed some rips since the last time he saw her. Bloody feet completed her look as she had been running around for hours and hours without any type of foot protection.
Magdalena wasted no time and swung her hammer, missing Ivy, but taking a huge chunk out of the door frame with an explosion of power that sent splinters in every direction. Ivy looked wide eyed, but still kept her psychotic smile on her face.
"Too slow," she hissed.
"Just 'avin' a little dip in the pond, ain't I?" Magdalena shot back as she spun around, swinging the hammer with extra momentum and closing the distance. She missed again and hit one of the doors to the restrooms, shattering it in half, with the top half hanging off it's hinges.
Corinth tossed the door that was on top of him to the side and rose back to his feet, aiming his gun at Ivy. Unfortunately, Magdalena wasn't doing him any favors by constantly getting into his line of fire. "Dammit Mags! Move! I got a shot!"
But Magdalena was too focused, too much in the zone to stop. She was a Demolisher and if her enemy was still standing, like the walls around her, then she wasn't doing her job. Ivy rolled to the side as another swipe of the hammer cut like a scythe through the air, breaking and knocking over anything that was in its way. Corinth ducked, barely missing the flying pieces of office deco that went flying towards him.
Ivy leapt forward taking a swipe at Magdalena's arm, drawing blood and leaving four long red streaks from shoulder to elbow. Magdalena howled in pain, but Ivy over extended her reach, allowing the Demolisher to get in a heavy swing into her back with her war hammer. The force of the blow sent Ivy across the room like a wrecking ball, taking out numerous office walls and knocking over a stack of unopened office furniture.
Magdalena flexed and stretched her shoulders and neck before stomping her way over to Ivy. Before she could get there, Ivy was back on her feet, the smile gone from her face replaced by a sinister snarl. Swinging her hammer again, Magdalena aimed for the creatures head, but only caught the wall behind it, making a new hole to the outside.
Ivy ducked the swing and then ran off towards the stairs leading up to the second floor. Corinth took two shots, but missed them both due to the remaining walls that were still standing. He cursed and tried to make his way towards the stairs, stepping over and around all the debris in the room. He watched as Magdalena raced up the stairs after Ivy.
"Mags! Wait," he yelled after her, but she wouldn't listen. Corinth stepped on some broken wood and then jumped clear of everything else. A few seconds later, he was running up the stairs after Magdalena.
Posted by : Dblitz13
Running upstairs after Magdalena, Corinth came to a halt and pulled his other gun, Loy, from its holster at the top of the stairs. With both guns now pointed at Ivy, or what was once Ivy, Corinth slowly moved closer to his fellow Templar. He looked the crazed woman over, trying to see if there was anything left of Ivy. He had only met her a couple of times and she seemed nice. Way to good for Jack Stone, but there was someone for everyone out there. She didn't deserve this.
"Ivy, I need to know you're still in there," shouted Corinth, his grip on his guns getting tighter.
Ivy looked over at hm and smiled a wicked smile of bloody sharp teeth. The smile caused her skin to tear at the edges. Upon closer inspection, there were a lot of rips across her skin, much like her clothes. Instead of there being bloody tissue or even muscle showing, there was only more skin. It was like she was shedding the skin of Ivy and there was another...or someone new, underneath.
"Ivy isn't here anymore," she replied in a deep sinister voice. With speed they had not seen yet, Ivy lunged at Magdalena, digging her claws into the shoulders of the Demolisher. Magdalena howled in pain and anger, pushing the woman off of her, sending her flying away, but managing to land on her feet.
Corinth succumbed to the fact that Ivy was gone and opened fire on her. He sent four bullets her way, two from each gun. All four hit their target causing Ivy to stagger and then focus her attention on him. Shaking his head side to side, he dared her to move at him.
But Ivy didn't get the chance. Magdalena lifted her hammer high in the air and brought it down like a meteor, creating a loud thunderous roar. The force of the blow blasted both Corinth and Ivy away from her, sending Ivy out a window and Corinth slamming into a wall., dropping his guns in the process.
"What the hell...," gasped Corinth as he tried filling his lungs back up with air. He looked around and saw that Magdalena was still standing with a defiant look on her face, but Ivy was gone. The floor was cracked in many places and wasn't going to be able to be held together much longer.
"Mags...we need to-." Before he could finish his sentence, the floor gave way, sending both Templars plummeting to the level below. The landing was hard and there was so much dust in the air that it was near impossible to see anything. Corinth coughed a few times and tried to sit up, but there was a large piece of debris laying across his abdomen and right arm.
As the dust began to clear, he felt immense pressure being applied to the debris on him. When he looked up, Ivy had one foot pressing down on him and a smile on her face. She pressed harder as she leaned down to get closer to him.
"So close," she purred. "You might of had me if you hadn't brought that titan of a woman with you. See you at the party tomorrow...maybe." She laughed as she walked away and out the front door.
Meanwhile, Magdalena erupted from underneath her own pile of debris. She looked around the room with anger in her eyes, but there was no one to focus on. "Give us a shout if yer still kickin', Whitethorn."
"Over here," growled Corinth as he tried pushing some of the weight off him. Magdalena approached him and assisted in freeing him from his partially buried confinement. He took her hand and she pulled him to his feet.
Looking around the room, he sighed. "Don't you think this is a bit excessive?"
She smiled wryly, "You do know wot the word demolish means, yeah?"
"What I do know," he said as he began looking for his guns; finding one and brushing some dust off of it, "is that I now know why they usually send your people far away from the mission area as a distraction."
Magdalena gave him a good hearty laugh. "True that."
He stretched his back before finding his second gun. "Come on, we need to get out of here and I need to lie down." Reaching into his pocket, he was relieved to find that he still had his pills. Twisting the lid off, he shook one into his mouth and swallowed it.
"I see you're still on them. Ever think maybe... not," she questioned as they exited the building and onto the street.
"Every day." He sighed as he looked both up and down the street. "She's going to get another victim tonight. All we can do is use their tragedies as stepping stones till the next encounter."
That's one way of lookin' at it. I just keep tellin' myself we can't save 'em all." lamented Magdalena. "How about that pint now, then?"
Corinth took a deep breath and exhaled heavily. "Yeah, why not."
Posted by : Dblitz13
Corinth stirred from his slumber, greeted by the relentless intrusion of sunlight invading his room. Cursed with a window aligned perfectly with the rising sun, each morning at the stroke of nine, its golden rays assaulted him with unyielding persistence. And when he was up, he was up.
Sitting up, he stretched his arms and felt movement to the left of him. Looking over, Magdalena stirred under the covers, no doubt being slowly awoken by the sun herself. She pulled the covers over her face and moaned in annoyance.
"How many bleedin' times 'ave I gotta tell ya? Move yer bloomin' bed or get yerself some blinds, innit?" she moaned again.
"And yet you still keep coming back," he replied as she growled and pushed her head under her pillow.
Their relationship was a simple one. Meet up from time to time, work together or have a few drinks, sometimes both and at the end of the night, go back to his place. He knew she wanted more and sometimes he thought about it. Sometimes spending hours thinking of what could happen and would he be happy with her. If he had to be truly honest with himself, he probably would be. Except both of their lives were crazy hectic because of Gaia.
Leaning over to her, he kissed her shoulder and then left the bed to get a shower. In true Magdalena fashion, she would be gone by the time he got out. There was no need to stay for friendly good-byes if both knew that the relationship wasn't going any further. Keep it casual. Still...
Once fully dressed, locked and loaded, Corinth left his flat and headed back to the Templar Headquarters. He needed to see of there were any updates on the case. And by updates, he meant murders. The odds that the Empusa wouldn't have fed last night were slim and if she was smart, she would have hid the body afterwards, but currently, that didn't seem like its style.
"What do we know so far," asked Dalia, coming and standing beside Corinth's desk.. She was wearing her traditional work attire of a long sleeve dress shirt and a pencil skirt with matching heels.
Corinth spun in his chair to look at her and then leaned back, "She is feeding a lot and it looks like she is shedding the skin of of Ivy. I believe Ivy was a host or some type cocoon and now the Empusa is molting, so to speak. She won't need to feed too many more times until the process is completed." He yawned from being out too late. "She also said something about maybe seeing me at a party tonight so that is what I'm currently trying to see what I can find. A party in London...those are everywhere."
Dalia took a deep breath, "I don't know of any parties and I don't remember seeing any advertisements for any. Nothing special that I know of. No concerts...no DJ's in town. Night clubs aren't really booming in the middle of the week, but that may be an option to look into."
"Yeah," he sighed. "I'll keep digging." He turned back to his desk and started typing on his computer, looking for anything related to a party happening around the city. It was the only clue he had and it was also the worst.
Posted by : Dblitz13
The sun had been set for almost an hour now and Corinth was leaning back in his chair, feet on his desk, hat over his eyes, resting from looking at a computer screen all day. He had a headache that had been pulsing since mid afternoon and he was waiting for the aspirin to kick in, but it seemed to be taking its sweet ass time. Hearing heels on linoleum, he knew Dalia was getting close, probably going to ask him if he found anything to which he would reply, for the third time, nothing yet.
"Then shouldn't you be looking instead of sleeping?"
Lifting his hat, he cut his eyes to her, letting her freely see his annoyance with her question. "I have been staring at computer screens and newspapers all day. Cut me just a little bit of slack here." Dropping his feet to the floor with a thump, he spun his chair around to face his desk and start tapping on his keyboard again.
"Hey, mate," came an excited voice from behind him. Corinth looked over his shoulder to see one of the younger Templars running over to him and slapped a piece of paper on his desk.
The kid was probably in his early twenties and hadn't been a servant of Gaia for long. He had just transferred over in the last few months. "I heard you were lookin' for an off tha grid party. I think I found it. I had an informant ov mine ask around an' he came back with this."
Corinth looked the paper over while the kid continued. "Looks like there is a rave goin' down by the wa'ahfront tonight around 11o'clock. Very low key and seems to be targeted only ta people in tha know through social media." The kid looked pleased with himself.
Shaking his head in approval, Corinth rose from his chair and slid his trench coat on. "Remind me to buy you a case of beer later," he said, rushing out of the office.
It was over an hour drive through London to get to the wharf that was addressed on the paper. It took another hour to survey the area and find a good vantage point so he could watch who was coming and going, but he knew that if he really wanted to find Ivy, or what she was turning into, he would need to go inside at some point. Something that he wasn't too inclined to do, but needed to be done.
As the night dragged on, people started showing up in their fancy cars and their designer clothes. This was a party for the rich and entitled kids of the area. A social media rave to show off how grand their life was and how other kids wished to be them. It was nothing but a grab for internet fame and attention. Corinth rolled his eyes at the thought. If they only knew how much danger they were in, but he surmised that they wouldn't care as long as they could film it and post it for likes. He would wait another hour before entering, letting the party get good and rolling first.
As the time rolled on, he could start to hear the music coming from the wharf and lights flashing from the windows. It was about time he made his appearance and see if the Empusa would make hers, assuming this was the right party she was talking about. Exiting his car, he walked towards the deep bass rumbling from the building. A line was forming outside, most likely by all the plebs that heard about the party, but weren't invited or were invited for the off chance of getting in. Corinth didn't envy them one bit and moved passed them to the front of the line and straight to the bouncer.
"Whoa guy, you can't just walk up and expect to go in," said the large bouncer, holding his hand out to stop the Templar.
Corinth opened his jacket showing his badge and the hilt of Powell. "I either go in and check on what I need to check on and leave or I can shut this place down and take my time." The bouncer looked like he was making a hard decision in his mind, but then concluded that it would be best to let Corinth pass. The Templar nodded at the man and then moved past him with a purpose.
The warehouse sprawled before him, vast and cavernous, reminiscent of the one he had visited the day prior. Yet, this one dwarfed its predecessor, its expanse amplified by the myriad shipments and containers it typically accommodated. The absence of goods hinted at their recent dispatch, leaving the space eagerly anticipating the arrival of fresh cargo to occupy its emptiness. But for right now, it was filled with a different kind of cargo, lights, music, dancing, and the energy of youth. The perfect environment for a hunter seeking prey.
Looking around, it was hard to see anything with the bright lights circling the room, much less trying to see faces. He walked down a short set of steps and onto the main floor. The smell of perfume, cologne, and body sweat filled the air. It was a scent he hadn't smelled in a long time and brought back some memories from his youth.
Moving towards the makeshift bar, he posted up near it so he could scan the room better. It was damn near useless though. Looking for one specific person in a room full of dancing, sweating people? It was a nightmare. At least it was at first.
By chance, one of the mounted lights swung across a dark corner of the room and glanced of the face of Ivy. She was dancing with a young man who didn't seem to care how she looked now. Her face, as best Corinth could tell, was distorted from all the changes her body was going through. He concluded that she must have been using her illusionary magic on the man or even some type of seduction spell. Most likely the latter.
Corinth pushed off the wall and pulled Powell out of its holster. He kept it behind him as he walked closer towards his target so as not spook her or the people in the room. The last thing he needed was a room full of people scrambling towards an exit and him losing the Empusa in the process. Losing her now was not an option.
Posted by : Dblitz13
They arrived near 7th and 6th Street and pulled into the parking garage. The church was just a few bulging over all the buildings in the area were old and made of brick. everything seems to be from the 1890s to the 1900s. On this side, there did not seem to be a lot of people. The sun was setting and the shadows of the building were casting their shadows over the city. This part of the city was not so clean with paper and other trash tossed around the area or blowing in the breeze.
As the teams arrive. There are some people walking mostly lower-income and homeless milling about on the Street. A few dogs and cats with birds flying around. The area is not being well taken care of except by the church.
By what Alyssa had shown of the area the church had owned most of the land in the area and the alley led to an old building that once belonged to the church and now a warehouse. Sung stepped out of the SUV and looked around. Sung walked to the back of the SUV and opened it pulled out his equipment, a vest, his sword in a bag and a shoulder sling for two knives.
"Get your gear ready, we will meet up with the others soon," said Sung to the other dragons.
Choi nodded to Sung. Getting out of the SUV, he put the sword bag over his shoulder. The sword, his hands, and feet were Choi's weapons of choice. His parkour skills gave him an advantage. Yeong looked to Eun-Ji. Up until now, all he saw from her was the illusions. However, illusions could confuse, couldn't kill an enemy.
Alyssa's van pulled in right behind Sung's vehicle. She climbed out and started unlocking the back to let out Max, and so weapons could be grabbed. Herself grabbing the rifle Peter had loaned her.
Agent Powers then had his gear loaded on himself and put the snacks from his other backpack into his tactical pack. Then he stepped out of the van looking like an action character from a movie as his bulging muscles held his golden holy shotgun. Once he was out of the van it bounced a bit as if it lost a heavy load. Agent Powers looked around to see who was around them then gave a smolder to Alyssa and Peter as he said, "Let's roll."
Sartre had his Heckler and Koch MP5 slung over his shoulder. He kept his hand close by his Glock nineteen which was holstered on his side.
"Does anyone think that pastor Duane is down there in the catacombs? "Which way, Alyssa?". He looked over to the pale hacker. He was surprised that the sun was shining outside.
"Over there," Alyssa responded, pointing to the entrance down the alleyway. "I think it's very likely the Pastor might be down there." She figured anything was just guessing at this point
Agent Powers then asked, "Okay so do we capture the Pastor unharmed, somewhat harmed or kill him on sight? I need to know these things since most of my missions in the past were kill on sight." Agent Powers then gave Alyssa and Peter a smolder.
Seeing that Eun-Ji exited the SUV, Choi was inquisitive enough to ask her a question. "What weapon do you have? I realize your illusions are defensive, but what can they do to an eldritch?"
"Why would we kill someone who is innocent?" asked Sartre.
Agent Powers rolled his eyes up as he replied, "Sorry man but this is my first team mission and I have been left out of the loop on mission details. Just to make it clear I need specific instructions on a mission. Normally I just kill my targets and destroy their base in the process. It's rare for me to do a search and rescue mission." Agent Powers sighed as he thought they knew about his past.
Sung shook his head surprised by the conversation. "We don't need to kill anyone we don't have to. I know we are part of secret societies the term is secret let us try to keep it that way. Our societies would just as soon as kill us than let their secret out." warned Sung.
Sung gave a stern look to the others "So hide what you have on you or cover it at least. We are visitors and that is all. That's what we want people to think," said Sung buttoning his jacket.
"I am ready to go when you guys are. If you think it is better we can leave in groups until we get to the back of the buildng." suggested Sung.
Alyssa shook her head, at Max, "Your past is a little of an enigma. I told Peter what I found out, clearly that wasn't everything."
The computer hacker had her pistol well concealed, in an ankle holster but the other weapon was a a rifle. She had on jeans, a t-shirt and a hoodie, and no way to hide it. "Anyone got any ideas how I can conceal this," indicating the rifle. Well she might have one idea but it would be a pain.
Before Eun-Ji had a chance to respond an SUV pulled up to meet them. It was her confidant, David. She excused herself and went over to catch him up to speed, retrieve the items she asked him to bring and give him clear instructions about keeping guard till they returned.
She removed her hanfu outfit to reveal her form fitting tactical attire beneath. It looked like a hybrid between antiquity and modern design; giving her the appearance of a tactically armored ninja built for both mobility and protection to vital places. Her twin hammers could now be seen strapped to each upper thigh.
The extra items she retrieved were placed into a backpack for now and she carried it back over to the group. On returning, she pointed to the hammers on her hips to answer Choi's previous question. Her illusions could do harm, but she wasn't about to admit anything about that until it was necessary.
As she waited for them to begin, she took a garment out of the backpack and began putting it on. It was a traditional style South Korean outfit that was designed to cover her combat attire.
As Alyssa was trying to figure out what to do with the rifle, she added. "The entrance is in that building, in the basement." Pointing out the building. "From what I can piece together I believe the entrance is likely bricked off." Of course, her bee ability didn't just put stuff back together. It worked the other way, something which might come in handy.
Agent Powers thought about what Sung told them and scratched his head a bit. It did make sense not to run around in public with weapons hanging out. So he scratched his head and thought for a moment before he had an idea and went back into the van so he was out of sight and imagined himself wearing a brown leather trench coat. Suddenly his slime body moved into the shape in his mind and now it looked like he was wearing a trench coat. Oddly enough the clothes he was wearing as Agent Powers were made of slime so he could alter them as needed. He then made a gun strap under his coat to attach to the shotgun so he could hide it under his trenchcoat. Then he came out of the van with a grin on his face as he said, "Hey Alyssa I can hold that for ya if you need me to." Then he gave her a smolder.
Choi grinned, bringing his hands together before him and bowing to Eun-Ji. She was proving to be well prepared to use the resources she had. In some ways she was beginning to prove to be a valuable partner. He knew she didn't trust him. Hopefully, that would come.
He turned to Master Sung. "Let's go!"
"Is the entrance to the catacombs inside or outside the church? Is there another entrance?" asked Sartre.
"I'm ready. lead the way." Sartre said.
When everyone was ready Alyssa, because she knew the way, led the group to the building. Standard old brick church, done in a Spanish style, not uncommon for California but old, very old. "I don't know what shape the building is in but it is very old, so, just watch your step." Alyssa then pointed to a hallway on the right. "The stairs leading down should be that way."
Agent Powers nodded and gave Alyssa a smolder as he followed her lead. He kept in mind the update to their mission since he had to rescue the pastor and maybe some others if needed. So he stayed alert and kept his wits about him as he put on his led headlight headband.
Sartre slowly made his way down the stairs, his pistol at the ready.
Choi stayed loose and limber, ready for any altercation. He tried to reach out for the pastor's energy. However, he didn't interact enough to have a good feel for the energy. He wished he wouldn't have been so hasty upon meeting the pastor, but the young girl that was in the office needed help.
Alyssa cautiously navigated the stairs, as luck would have it they were in decent enough shape. They arrived at what was supposed to be the entrance but, as predicted, it was walled off, bricks blocking the way. Alyssa moved to the side, "I believe a few of us could take care of this, who would like the honors?"
Agent Powers rubbed his chin a bit as he looked at the wall. Then he tapped on it to gauge how thick it was as he nodded at it. He then popped his neck and turned to give Eun-Ji a smolder. Then he said, "As I recall we got a lecture on being to loud and destructive last time. Now I can easily bust through this wall but it would loud and destructive which are things I am very good at. Since you (pointing at Eun-Ji) are better than everyone around you why don't you show us how to break this wall in a stealthy manner or do yuou need to call for some support?" Agent Powers was being petty and childish since he was only 18 years old inside the huge muscular body everyone else saw. Then as he looked at Eun-Ji he made his pec muscles move up and down so each side moved the opposite direction.
The wall didn't make sense to Choi. Hearing Powers, Yeong said, "Something isn't right. This is the path they would have taken to escape. So, either this wall was just built, which means the mortar would not have had enough time to completely dry, or it's a fake wall and there is a lever or pressure point somewhere near."
Choi began to feel around the walls, as he did not see any levers. For once, Choi had stopped and evaluated the situation before forcing himself impulsively ahead.
"What should we do?" asked Sartre.
Eun-Ji had to tap into a mountain of patience in regards to Max Powers pettiness in the middle of a dangerous venture. She glanced at her fellow Dragons with an incredulous micro expression and whispered in Korean. "우리는 바보를 상대하고 있습니다. 조심하지 않으면 그 사람이 우리를 죽일 거예요."
(OOC: translation = "We are dealing with an idiot. Be careful or he is going to get us killed.")
She was pleased that Choi had taken the opportunity to pause, think and check before going full steam ahead. This was encouraging progress and he was indeed on to something. While the wall wasn't a fake door, it was clear on closer inspection that the mortar was newer looking than the other surrounding walls; too clean.
Not to back down from a challenge, especially when it was underhand pitched so easily, Eun-Ji moved to the front of the group where Choi and Max were located. She removed a spike from her backpack, which contained various climbing gear. She then started tapping with her knuckles over various points on the stone wall and listened to the sounds it made. Simultaneously, her chaotic intuition converged on a point of weakness. She took the nail and placed it against the mortar joint. She then retrieved the hammer from her right thigh and made a precise strike.
As the hammer moved through the air to the nail, the space around it warped causing the hammer to take on an animated appearance of stretch and squish as it moved swiftly towards it mark. The weapon accelerated miraculously as if time altered around it and sped up. Upon contact the nail was driven up to its head into the mortar. There was a single hammer hitting metal sound, that waxed and waned as if the Doppler effect was acting funny.
From the epicenter of contact there was a subtle ripple effect in a two foot radius as if the wall was displaced and behaved like a fluid to the eye. Everything settled and Eun-Ji returned the hammer to her thigh holster, ignored Max, and made her way back to her middle spot where Alyssa was positioned.
Ten seconds passed and nothing happened. Then there was a slight gritty shifting sound. A series of cracks could be seen from where the nail was driven into the wall and they spread randomly throughout the structure. The pieces started to crumble and give way in a slow, natural looking progression. When it was all said and done, the noise was indeed minimal and there was a hole just big enough for everyone to climb through one at a time, except Max. The break was not big enough for him. Eun-Ji had a pleased look on her face at the results; she had an inkling her probability of getting the hole to be small enough to exclude Max might manifest itself.
Alyssa let Enu-Ji, do her thing without comment. It was without a doubt a interesting way to go about it, and petty. As petty as what Max had said.
With a sigh, and a roll of her eyes, Alyssa only said, "Pardon me," and walked to the wall that now contained the hole big enough for everyone except Max.
She touched the wall where the opening was, and it quietly crumbled down, leaving a much bigger opening, one certainly big enough for everyone, including Max, to fit through. Yeah, she probably could have done this before but figured to let Enu-Ji have it, only stepping in because the pettiness was ridiculous and holding them up.
Alyssa returned to her spot, without saying another word.
Agent Powers quietly watched as Eun-Ji made her small hole in the wall. It was impressive and she was indeed skilled. If also gave him a clue to her skills in the process she was not to be trusted. He then raised an eyebrow to Eun-Ji as she was all smug about her little hole in the wall. It looked like she did it on purpose to exclude him from entering and before he could say anything Alyssa fix the hole problem much quieter and easier. He then gave Eun-Ji a smolder before covering his mouth a shocked surprised look as he whispered in a girly voice, "Oh looks like some's better than you." Then he gave a big grin as he moved toward the hole and looked into it with his led head lamp light. If anything came out he planned on being a shield to protect Alyssa. Then he asked Alyssa, "Want me to go in first?"
Choi grinned as Eun-Ji did her thing, but winced when he saw the size of the hole. He was glad Alyssa could compensate, but took offense at Powers comments. The way Yeong had observed, they all had their specialties and abilities, and not one was better than the other.
"Powers," he firmly said, "you may proceed, but do not make negative comments about my partner if you want to keep your smolder. She has been very effective. Let's work together as our agencies have asked us to do."
Eun-Ji appreciated Choi's rebuke of Max's immature and mistimed behavior. She had been wondering what faction his loyalty belonged to after seeing how quickly he collaborated with them earlier in this investigation.
She felt Power's comment was unnecessary. He asked to put a passable hole in the wall without making much sound and she had delivered. It wasn't her fault that he was supersized. Though it was sweet Justice; Chaos wasn't an exact science, but it never seemed to disappoint her. It was irritating though that the Illuminati had wasted time asking her to do it when they already had someone present that could handle the situation with ease.
Now that it was time to enter into the unknown, several more versions of Eun-Ji fabricated into view around her; each identical to the original.
She did play around with sending one of them to make Max Powers break his own neck, but dismissed it for now. They might need him to tank.
Agent Powers grinned at the dragons before entering the dark hole. The led light on his head illuminated the walls and he saw a passage as well. He told the others what he saw and described any concerns he had. He continued to move forward before he let the others know that they could enter. He was on guard as he hand Alyssa her rifle and whipped out his shotgun.
Choi was cautious, but not overly. He didn't sense anything yet. He remained focused before them, attempting to feel any presence that may be a threat to the team.
He walked through the hole that the two females on the team had made. He stood in the glow of the light generated from Powers' forehead, closing his eyes, reaching forth with his senses. It recalled times that Master Park made Yeong fight blindfolded.
Sartre climbed through the entrance carrying his MP5 rifle behind him, he looked to see how the others were doing. "It's very dark in here." said Sartre.
Alyssa finally spoke up, "It would nice to have the pettiness not be a thing from both sides, during this mission." Alyssa was to the point of aggravation, she didn't even want to be in the tunnels but adding the back and forth between Max and Enu-Ji it was getting on her last nerve. "Let's get out of here alive then you can both get back to annoying each other." Alyssa also wasn't convinced that Enu-Ji didn't deliberately make the hole too small for Max. An advanced degree in physics meant she should have known what would happen. Alyssa then turned to Choi, "Look, the two of us have worked together just fine so far. I'd like that to continue, but don't threaten one of my teammates. Especially, over words. Can we all agree to just tolerate each other long enough to finish this and not get killed in the process?" Alyssa was almost wishing that she was zapped out of here again without all the ...damn ...stuff that she had forgotten about, again.
Choi grinned at Alyssa. All along he had the feeling the teams would need to work together on this one. He couldn't explain it, but as soon as he met Sartre and knew that he was also being watched by someone else, namely Alyssa, whom he hadn't met yet, it seemed he got a gut feeling.
"Anyone ever tell you that your cute when you're angry," he said with a smirk. She reminded Yeong of a chihuahua nipping at someone's heels. "Yes! I've known for a while Gaia would pull us together on this one. I've been open to that from the beginning."
Eun-Ji stayed securely tucked away in the center of their processional train, near Alyssa. There was a total of four each interacting and moving with their own unique responses to the environment. With the darkness and distance traveled, it was now impossible to know for certain which one was the real one.
"Shhhh" Came a stern reprimand from one of them; which one was unclear. Eun-Ji was disgusted by the unnecessary chit chat and lack of professionalism. They were not on some pleasure stroll, they were in a perilous situation and at a disadvantage due to the unknown variables, lack of visibility and terrain. She did not want their ability to hear threats, or changes, in the darkness to be compromised by noise.
Alyssa bit back a half-smile, and rolled her eyes at Yeong, but didn't get a chance to respond before hearing a "shhhh." Probably from one of the Enu-Jis because if anyone said that it would be her. Alyssa just let it go. Damn, she missed the solitude of her van.
Agent Powers ignored the others behind him as he moved forward at a slow but reasonable pace. He kept a look out for traps, vermin and possible dangers both natural and man made. Every now and then he would encounter a rat and he just gave it a small kick. It would sent flying and before it died from the impact of a wall. Since he had experience with this before he only kicked it hard enough to break its bones without making it explode open. He was not to fond of the smell of dead rats in the tunnels since he knew they would be there a while. He didn't say anything since he was focused on pressing on. As they continued on the dark tunnel he looked for any clues left on the walls that could be useful.
Choi silently walked beside Powers. His senses hyper. He figured he'd sense something before Max saw something.
He sniffed the air. "Hey Powers," Yeong whispered. "What did you have for lunch? Mexican? Do me a favor and ease up on the refried beans next time."
Of course, he was only joking with Max. It's what those working together did. Talk smack.
Agent Powers smirked as he kicked another rat deep into the tunnel. The small squeak was the last sound it made before hitting a wall and getting crushed. He then spoke in a low tone, "Your funny Choi. I am not sure where you smell beans though, Mr. Secret Asian Man (from the song). Seriously though all I can smell is dead animals and mold in this place. Though they are annoying its good that we do see the rats though. It means no traps nearby. If we find a bunch of dead rats in one place it's a good sign for traps. Also keep an eye out for odd marks to walls that look odd. It's possible to find hidden passageways inside a tunnel to throw us off. The Cartel and Voodoo masters like doing that stuff." Agent Powers continued to light the way with his head lamp.
The sound of the rats being kicked made Alyssa jump slightly. She took a breath and calmly spoke, to Max. "Maybe, you could leave the rats alone. They might be the only actually innocent things down here, and all the noise can only attract attention." Really, the rats would probably just run from the group, why kill them?
The computer hacker was trying to keep her eyes peeled but everyone around her was taller than her, so it made it a little difficult.
Sung had been in the back walking with the others. Watching them and studying the way they reacted to things. The only thing sung was not keen on what the rats. the darkness did not bother Sung was used to working in places like this. He did wish the others would not joke as much and Sun figured they were nervous.
Sung A multitude of bodies locked together in death, fitting perfectly like one enormous body. Skulls in arches and rows broke up the pattern. Some had holes in them, some cracked and others smooth. All had the dull patina of age and seemed to be cemented together as if they had sunk into each other after years of standing here, sentinels to death. The ancient dead don't smell and the earth scent. Certainly not unpleasant, more like a cave.
The teams walked for about 15 minutes. The echo of them walking could be heard it was almost impossible to be quiet. The dust in the air was heavy enough to be seen. there were some red night lights now and then in the ceiling. This helped to make this place even creepier. there was a turn in the tunnel as they went through the turn. Yeong could see that the dust started to flow to the right and through some bones. After a closer inspection, the Bones are arranged a little differently. Max and Yeong can feel the air moving in that direction when all of this is realized. Something is hidden there.
Agent Powers raised his arm to halt the others from moving forward. He moved his light around the area to illuminate it while looking with his eyes for anything that look odd. Then he spoke softly as he said, "Looks like we found a trap. Who wants to disarm it?" He didn't take his eyes off the scene since he didn't have time for a smolder.
"The air is flowing that way," Choi announced. "It is dustier that way too. Either the air flow is pulling the dust that direction, or it is the path less taken."
Yeong knew that just as in the jungle, more use means a path is hewn. Even the smallest of rodents leave a path of a heavily trafficked area. The path here would be less dust, as it would tend to cling to the feet of the travelers.
"What kind of trap is it?" asked Sartre?
Sung made his way to the front where Choi was. Sung looked around. then pulled out a small Tactical light flashlight from his jacket. then started to look around carefully. He passed to the far side opposite the wall they were looking at. Then turned to look at the ground and ceiling. Sung touched the dirt near the wall they were examining. brushing some of it away.
After Sung moved some of the dirt there were scrape marks from something sliding. "Not a trap but a concealed door I think," commented Sung showing what he found.
"I can probably unconceal it." Alyssa commented, as she moved forward. This time not wasting time asking others to do what she could quietly and quickly do, and with no equipment.
The young woman double checked for any traps or things that might be triggered, finding nothing, she put her hands on the bone. Was quiet for a moment, the bones disintegrated, falling quietly down.
Agent Powers was ready to grab Alyssa and pull her to safety in case things went wrong. He was no longer in a joking mood since knew of the many dangers inside tunnels. He watched for anything that was a threat.
"If there is a ladder to climb down, I can go down first." Sartre offered.
There were stairs leading down in the tunnel. there was no light and did not look as old as the other tunnels they had walked through. This tunnel was more narrow. Agent Power's head would be near the ceiling and his shoulders near the side walls. so it would be one at a time to walk down the stairs.
Agent Powers looked down the hole and lit it up with his head light. Since it was narrow he described it to the others and replied, "I appreciate the offer Peter but my dad won't be happy if you and Alyssa got hurt. Its best if I was the tank on this part." Agent Powers didn't give a smolder as he responded. He looked very serious at this point. It was almost like he was expecting to get his by an ambush or trap at any moment.
"I got your back," Choi replied to Powers, drawing the sword Sung had given him from the bag. "It's best to be prepared."
He looked at the others, "Powers and I will check it out and let you know if it's safe."
Agent Powers nodded as he slowly went down the stairs and looked around with his head light. He was looking for any possible traps and damage to the tunnel that would be a concern. The climb down as a problem as Agent Powers was rather big for the tunnel so he altered his form a bit to fit a bit easier down the ladder. When he reached the bottom he reverted back to his original big muscular form and looked around before Choi came down. He was very thorough in looking the place over.
"What do you see down there?" asked Sartre.
Agent Powers kept on guard as he looked around with his head light. Then after hearing Peter speak he replied, "Looks like an old tomb, but I don't see any bodies yet. If it is a tomb we need to be careful of dead bodies, rats and poison from the dead. Stay on guard."
Sartre walked down and armed his MP5. He swept the area for enemies, moving slowly.
Alyssa descended the stairs and looked around. "Catacombs have skeletal remains but not usually dead bodies." Actual tombs with bodies should be elsewhere, still it did look very tomb-like. She kept her rifle pointed down but was ready, if something came at them.
Cjhoo looked at skulls piled atop one another. Hundreds of empty eye sockets stared upon them. He poked the point of his sword inside a few of them.
"Just in case," Yeong declared.
Agent Powers looked at Choi with a raised eyebrow then replied, "Be careful doing that. Some Cartels I hunted in the past hid bombs in the skeletons and dead bodies to deal with grave robbers. I got blown up a few times before I realized what happened. Trust me you don't want to dig yourself out of a cave-in. It's not fun even if you survive." Agent Powers had a pained expression on his face as he spoke. It was like he was reliving a horrible past while in the tunnels.
"Just checking for spiders or snakes," Choi admitted with a smirk. "You never know in these places."
From the other side of the room, there is movement in the shadows as everyone gets down the stairs and into the room. It was safe at first glance and there was nothing to detect. from a passageway, something starts to walk out of the dark with red glowing eyes.
Skeletons infuse its bones with a dark vitality, adhering joint to joint and reassembling dismantled limbs. This energy motivates a skeleton to move and think. An animated skeleton retains no connection to its past, although resurrecting a skeleton restores its body and soul.
The skeletons were in tattered clothing and carrying rusty machetes. They walk towards the party, 10 of them spreading out trying to encircle everyone.
Agent Powers popped his neck as he pulled up his golden shotgun and got ready to aim for the heads of the skeletons. He was serious and had no mercy for his targets. He then said to the others, "We got 10 skeletons ahead! Aim for the head and chest!" Then Agent Powers took aim and shot at the skeleton in the middle.
"Looks like I poked the wrong eyes," Choi suggested to the others.
He immediately hurled the sword straight for the eyes of the skeleton in front of him. Dashing toward it, he intended to jump and do a forward flip over the skeleton while retrieving the sword from the skull. He rarely missed.
Eun-Ji readied her twin hammers and her clones formed a defensive perimeter around her. Being in the middle of the group, she and Alyssa were already surrounded with the protective expertise of the others. If all went well, then hopefully the threat would be neutralized before they had to take action. Regardless of this possibility, she remained situationally aware and got ready to react when the time became necessary.
Sartre raised his rifle towards the ivory formations. He burst fired three volleys, the sound of the anima charged mp5 Releasing bullets resulted throughout the walls of the catacombs.
Sung watched as things unfolded. His first thought was just to let the others deal with the skeletons. The skeletons walked forward with the sound of clacking bones. He also knew the guns there had no sound suppressors and the noise would be deafening. Not that he likes guns anyway for that reason.
Sung knew what he had to do to help out. Sung drew his sword and made a circular motion and a word was spoken. Then a metal ringing noise. As the ringing faded there was no sound in the area. Sphere centered on the group. The room was void of sound, not even talking or even the guns were heard.
Alyssa had a choice, she could wait which was what Eun-Ji had done or try to somehow shoot, from the middle of the group, around people that were all taller than her. That second option seemed difficult at the moment. So, she followed Eun-ji in not attacking but staying abreast of the situation.
Posted by : Cindy
The charm spell had ensnared her prey entirely; he was firmly under her spell, tethered to her will. He wouldn't be slipping away anytime soon. Her gaze drifted above him, scouring the room for her Templar hunter. Engaging in the cat-and-mouse game brought her a perverse pleasure, even if neither player fully comprehended their roles. Both danced on the edge of awareness, manipulating each other with subtle finesse. The triumph, when it inevitably came, would taste all the sweeter for its hard-won victory.
Corinth moved closer. He could see the Empusa looking around, her arms draped over her prey in the corner. He slowly slid in between dancers, trying to stick as deep into the shadows as best he could, but it was hard with the lights spinning around the room. As he moved around a dancing couple, he looked eyes with Ivy.
She smiled a wicked smile his way and then pulled her prey through a door she was blocking from view. Corinth began to hurriedly push through the crowd, but it was a struggle. The party goers were packed in tight and he was doing everything he could not to start throwing people out of his way.
"Move," he yelled, squeezing in between people, but the music was too loud to make any difference.
Finally cutting his way through the crowd, he made it to the door and flung it open, gun pointed forward. The room he entered was another large open area, but this one was filled with shipping crates. Slowly moving forward, Corinth needed to be cautious. There were ambush spots in almost every direction and if he dropped his guard even a little bit, Ivy could get the jump on him.
That's when he heard the piercing scream of a man towards the back of the room. It started out loud, but was instantly cut short. Running in the direction it came from, the Templar started hearing a familiar wet sound he had heard more often than he would care to remember. Picking up the pace, he charged forward faster.
Rounding one of the last shipping crates, lying on the ground was the body of the man Ivy was with before, his chest ripped open and the familiar organ removed. Corinth squeezed the grip on his gun tightly in anger as he looked around for the monster. The blood trail showed that she moved away and towards a red container in the far corner next to a door marked exit. He grit his teeth and followed it.
Before he could even get close, something wet splattered on the floor in front of him. Corinth looked down and easily recognized it as a clump a shed skin. The Empusa was shedding the last bits of Ivy and that meant a whole new set of troubles for him.
He looked up and he didn't need to track her anymore. She stood a few feet away, stretching her arms and back. All her clothes had been removed and there was only a few bits of Ivy's skin still adhered to the Empusa's. Corinth watched as she peeled a piece off of her face and then reached down and peeled one off her leg. Both pieces dropped to the floor with total disregard that they once belonged to another person.
Raising his gun, he pointed it directly at the monster's head. "That's enough! I'm not letting you leave here."
Her hands moved down her body as if feeling it for the first time. In this case, it was the first time in a long time. She smiled that same wicked smile again and replied, "as if you have a say in that matter."
Her hands moved up to her head, fingers moving through her oily hair. As she pulled them away in almost a dramatic fashion, her hair was suddenly ablaze with fire. It was such a surprise and so bright, Corinth had to avert his eyes for a moment before focusing them back on her. "Shit," he cursed to himself.
A slender ring of fire ignited, coursing down her form, consuming the dried blood and any lingering traces of Ivy. As it descended to her legs, it seared away the flesh from her right limb, leaving behind a copper-covered appendage in its wake.
"Shit, shit," he cursed again, whether it was in his mind or out loud, he couldn't be sure.
Before him, she stood, her hair ablaze like a fiery halo, the copper leg gleaming in the dimly lit space. Assuming a defiant stance, she dared him with her gaze, silently challenging him to make a move against her. Licking her lips in anticipation, she smiled again, like a predator sizing up her prey. But Corinth wasn't prey. He was another predator challenging her for dominance. For territory. For rights to rule the kingdom. And he never lost.
"Are you going to use that gun or continue to-"
Corinth squeezed the trigger, sending two bullets her way and slamming into her chest, causing her to stumble backwards in shock. Her eyes were wide and full of anger as she regained her balance. Keeping Powell aimed at her, he took a small step forward.
"How are we doing this, Ivy. Easier or hard?"
"My name is not Ivy. My name is Callista and soon, you won't ever forget it."
She turned on her heels and bolted for the exit door. Corinth cursed again and charged after her. Bursting through the door and knocking it off its hinges, she ran out into the night, heading up the road and towards the city. Corinth poured out right behind her, but she had a good head start on him.
As he gave chase, he noticed she was jerking from side to side, almost like she was getting attacked by something invisible, but she never slowed. And then, the worst thing that could have happened, did. A pair of wings burst from her back and began flapping. Corinth's eyes grew wide in alarm and he started to open fire, but couldn't. The city was in front of them and he wouldn't be able to tell where the bullets would go once they left the chamber if they didn't hit.
Three flaps from her massive wings and she was airborne. Not letting up, Corinth pushed forward as hard as he could, but he wasn't going to be able to catch her on foot. Putting his pointer and thumb between his lips, he whistled calling to his side an old friend.
Posted by : Dblitz13
The whistle's shrill cry sliced through the air with the precision of an arrow. Corinth dashed forward in pursuit of Callista, but the distance between them stretched further with each stride. In his periphery, the familiar light blue hue of his steed intensified, drawing nearer with each passing moment.
Pyrois surged forward with a swiftness that defied mortal comprehension, his spectral form gliding effortlessly above the ground. As he ascended, each stride propelled him higher, until he raced across the asphalt with a velocity that matched his master's urgency. From his mane, brilliant blue spectral flames cascaded, while smoke billowed forth from his mighty exhales. His coat, a glossy onyx hue, shimmered under the flickering streetlights, casting an ethereal glow with each passing stride.
Corinth jumped on the hood of the next parked car he passed, stepped up to its roof, and then leapt of it to the back of the passing steed. It neighed loudly like the engine of a car when the pedal was pressed to the floor. Lowering his body mass to be closer to the spectral horse, the reduced drag allowed Pyrois to increase its speed more.
A red aura flowed off of Corinth as his shotgun formed in his hand out of the ether. It was locked, loaded, and ready to go, he just needed a clear shot at her. Pyrois dodged cars driving down the street, causing them to swerve left or right. The spectral horse even went up and over one that didn't move out of the way in time. Its hooves digging into the hood and roof of the car before landing back on the road, never slowing down.
Looking up into the sky, Callista was moving fast, but Corinth was doing his best to keep up. He needed to slow her down or he was going to lose her once she made into the city, disappearing between all the buildings. His only option was to shoot her down.
Motioning for Pyrois to move out of the street and onto the sidewalk, Corinth took aim with his shotgun. The motion of the horse and the tall trees that passed by were creating havoc with his aim. With the shotgun shooting slugs, he didn't have the added benefit of scatter shot.
His eyes darted forward and he saw a break in the trees. Through that gap, he would be able to fire on her and hopefully slow her down. If he could damage a wing, then he would be able to catch up and maybe even put her back on the ground. Maybe was a long shot, but it was all he had.
The gap in the trees approached and he took aim, leaning back on the horse, keeping his back straight, he pulled the shotgun across his front and aimed. As Callista came across his sights, he squeezed the trigger, sending a slug shooting through the air. With trained muscle memory, he spun the the shotgun around, loaded it, and re-aimed and fired again. The second shot was more wild as he didn't have enough time to properly sight in his target.
The winged woman dipped to the right and dropped altitude as one of the slugs slammed into her right shoulder. She screamed loudly and her hair blazed even more, but she was dropping. Corinth watched as she vanished on top of one of the taller buildings in the vicinity and steered Pyrois in that direction, cutting across a small park to close the distance.
It didn't take long for the spectral steed to pull up to the front door of the office building and Corinth jumped off of it as soon as it came to a stop. Corinth didn't know what the building was used for, but there were many lights still on inside, which hopefully meant that the front door was unlocked. And it was.
He pulled the doors open and rushed to the nearest elevator. Luckily, there was one already on his floor and he rushed into it as soon as the doors opened. Pushing the button for the top, he waited as the elevator began it's slow climb.
The music, or muzak, that played was very outdated, but then again, was any muzak not outdated? He reached into his pocket and pulled out his pill bottle, twisting the cap off, he dumped two pills into his hand. He looked at them for a moment and spilled two more out to join the previous. Tossing all four into his mouth, he swallowed them down and put the rest of the pills away.
The elevator doors opened with a ding and he moved out fast, looking for the stairs to the roof. The floor he was on held the more fancier offices. The offices of the owner of the company and CEO's. Fancy art, expensive wooden desks, the works. He wondered why he didn't have an expensive wooden desk at work and made a mental note to ask Dalia about that.
Following the signs, he found the stairs that led upwards to the roof access. Charging up the stairs, he rammed into the door, flinging it open and letting it slam against the wall. Shotgun raised, he made his way out onto the roof, the flaming hair Empusa waiting on him with an angry, yet wicked smile.
Posted by : Dblitz13
Corinth leveled his shotgun and fired. The thunderous roar of the gun cascaded over the entire rooftop, the flash from the muzzle, a brief lightning strike. The Templar flipped the gun around, reloading it much the same way The Terminator did in the movies and aimed it back at his target.
The blast hit her in the chest causing the Empusa to stumble back a step. She growled in response and lunged forward, propelled with a newly gained speed from her wings. In a flash, she had closed the distance and was in striking range. When she took her swipe, Corinth wasn't there. Only a faint red haze of where he once stood.
Haste was a hell of a power. It allowed him to move faster than humanly possible, but only in short bursts. Short bursts that came in handy when evading fast moving demons. Once he was out of range, he turned and fired again, sending another blast into her left shoulder, removing bits of flesh in the process.
"We can end this now without one of us dying. I can put you back in the bottle, but at least you'll be alive," he said as he flipped the gun again.
She turned back to face him and growled. "To live in an eternal prison? I'd rather die!"
She lunged again, moving faster. Corinth shot, but she managed to strike the gun away, deflecting the bullets away from her and knocking the gun from The Templar's hands. She grabbed Corinth by the throat, lifted him up, and then slammed him down on the roof, forcing all the air out of his lungs in the process.
"You should feel privileged. Not many humans have lasted this long against me and when they couldn't kill me, they locked me away. You will not live long enough to do either." She lifted him up again and tossed him across the roof. "But first, I want your heart pumping. I want it engorged with your fear."
Callista began running towards Corinth with a look of predatory hunger in her eyes. He had other plans for her rather than becoming her dinner. As she drew closer, and he tried to get his breathing under control, he opened up his right hand as the red aura outlined his body. A yellowish light filled his hand and then shot forward as a beam of energy as bright as the sun. The blast sent Callista tumbling away from him and screaming in pain. Rising to his feet, he pulled Powel and Loy from their holsters and aimed them at her.
The sound of an approaching helicopter drew his attention. It hovered above the building for a few seconds. Long enough for someone to jump out and land with a mighty slam on the roof. It was Magdalena holding her Soul Ejector with both hands. The helicopter flew away once she had landed successfully.
"Oi, reckon ya could do with a bit of 'elp, mate."
"How'd you know where I was," he questioned her, focusing back on the Empusa.
Magdalena smiled and took up her position beside Corinth. "We 'eard there's this phantom horse gallopin' through the city, innit? Thought to meself, there's only one bloke daft enough to pull a stunt like that. Then, I just followed the blinkin' lights, didn't I?"
"Fair."
The Empusa rose to her feet, her hair blazing brightly in the night sky. All expression from her face was gone except for anger and savagery. All she wanted was to kill these two, everything else could wait. She wouldn't be happy until all their insides where scattered across the city and their blood drained into the sewers. A fitting end to the ones that have caused her misery since she was released from her containment.
Magdalena charged ahead and swung her hammer. Still partially dazed from the sunbeam attack, Callista took the full force blow to her side and with a crack, went reeling away. Not wanting to give her time to recover, Magdalena jumped toward her, bringing her hammer down with both hands as if the demon was a nail. But the demon was gone. Vanished.
"Where'd she scarpered off to? Vanished into thin air, like a bloomin' ghost!"
Callista sat off to the side, holding her injury and breathing heavy. She was invisible. Using the time to catch her breath and come up with a plan. She could simply leave, but that wasn't an option for her. If she didn't kill the Templars now, they would keep following her and making her life miserable. They had to die tonight.
The Empusa moved slowly around the two as she watched them looking around for her. The one with the hammer stayed her guard, but had no clue where her enemy was. The gunslinger kept looking around, aiming his guns in every direction. He also had no idea where she was. The Empusa smiled as she slowly stalked forward to Corinth. If she could take him out now, the one with the hammer would fall easily next.
Holding Loy out in front of him and Powell to his right, Corinth looked for signs of any movement. He knew the Empusa wouldn't have given up so easily. Her pride was wounded about as much as she was.
"I don't see her anywhere," he called out to Magdalena. "I think she may have gotten the better of us," he said as he holstered Powell. Then, he turned his head all the way to his left and looked at Callista face to face. His eyes were fully silver in color and he brought Loy around, pointing at Callista's head. "Just kidding," he joked, pulling the trigger at point blank range.
The shot forced Callista's head back with a jolt that knocked her out of her invisibility. Corinth's eyes returned to normal as he cancelled the See Invisibility spell. A spell he hardly ever used, but was invaluable when he needed it.
Callista recovered and shook the stars away from her vision. She let out a defiant scream at the Templars and her orange flames burned brighter. "Enough of these games! I will eviscerate you and swallow your souls as well as your hearts!" The Empusa dashed forward once again with renewed determination and strength.
Posted by : Dblitz13
It was suddenly quiet to the point of hearing your heartbeat. There was no sound; could not even hear the scraping of the skeletons.
Agent Powers fired his shotgun flame and smoke but no sound. what people could see was the recoil of the shotgun so in the people's minds he shot it. Hitting center mass on the skeleton. it exploded into pieces flying back and hitting the floor. The pieces slid to a stop. Powers was able to get another shot off before they got there. It also exploited sending fragments all over Choi.
Choi with the expertise of a sword expert took a few steps and threw the sword it flew end over end. Jumping into the air flying over the skeleton as the sword cut the skeleton splitting its head and some of its chest bones. Choi caught the sword in the air as he landed. With a twist and swing cutting down another skeleton. then was sprayed by bone fragments from the last skeleton Powers shot.
Sartre raised his MP5 submachine gun towards the skeletons. He burst and fired three volleys, There was no sound of the anima-charged bullets there was no sound at all as the weapon fired. Some of the Burst fire hit the their marks chipping away at the bones of the skeletons as one fell two others lost parts of their bodies. The other bullets hit the back of the room with sparks and dust rising from the gunfire.
Sung drew his sword and made a circular motion and a word was spoken. Then a metal ringing noise. As the ringing faded there was no sound in the area. The sphere of silence centered on the group. The room was void of sound, not even talking or even guns were heard. moving the sword in another direction. Sung gracefully moved the blade, Sung turned the blade toward the ground.
Sung was gone from sight Briefly surrounded by a silvery mist that flowed through the group to the right side in the blink of an eye Sung stepped out of some silver mist that formed to the right side of the Skeletons with lighting speed he obliterated two of the Skeletons. Fragments flew from the powerful strikes from Sung.
The last three Skeletons turned to Sung they could sense he could be the most destructive and all attacked Sung at the same time. Sung looked like he was going to move right by them. He moved and two of the Skeletons missed with their blades. But the last Skeleton managed to get a hit on Sung's left arm. Blood ran for the cut as Sung spun and moved away so as not to get surrounded.
Agent Powers saw that Sung had distracted the remaining skeletons as he took aim and fired at them again. He ignored the flying bone debris since it would just bounce off his muscular body as he took aim and was careful to not hit Sung with his shots as he pulled the trigger. He was glad the ammo seemed to work since he had encountered a few situations where he had been given the wrong ammo during past missions.
Choi's chest, arms, and legs were riddled with sharp bone fragments. He had acted on impulse once again, and it caused him the pain of dozens of prickly bones stabbing him as if he were attacked by a giant porcupine.
With the adrenaline pulsing, Yeong did not feel the pain. He would have forced it out of his mind if he had. So, Yeong advanced and swung at a skeleton from behind, as its attention was upon Master Sung.
Eun-Ji's ears were grateful for the silencing spell from Master Sung. Firing guns in a confined space, underground, was nothing like it was in the movies. Bullets that missed their mark ricocheted off the stone walls, and in some cases embedded themselves in the softer mortar or weakened surfaces. Bullets likewise reflected off the bones of the skeletons that fell victim, altering their straight trajectory at an angle to suffer the same fate as any missed shots. Eun-Ji was about to yell at them to stop using their firearms as she could have sworn a few bullets whizzed past them; however, there was no time to.
She remained safely tucked away in the center of the group with Alyssa. The four men where attracting the skeletons and dispatching of them rather easily. Eun-Ji couldn't help but wince seeing Choi turned into a calcium pin cushion. Despite the chance to jump into the fray for the remaining skeletons, she continued to remain on the defensive.
The silencing spell allowed Sartre to take closer aim at the remaining skeletons. He focused specifically on one and looked through the front sides of the MP5. He decided to use his single shot "Red Mist.", which would be a powerful blast to the skull of the undead creature. He was glad he did not have to hear the ricocheting of several bullets. The echo would be deafening.
Sung used the moment to back away from the skeletons. It was hard even to see Sung move. He was standing there in the blink of an eye 15' past the skeletons behind them and on the left side of the group. Silver-gray mist swirled around his feet. His action getting himself out of the line of fire.
Alyssa still thought it unwise to try to fire around people, she wished her ability didn't require her touching the skeletons as she had no intention of getting that close to the remains, at the moment. She, almost simultaneously, winced with Enu-Ji at the sight of the attack on Choi. The silence was welcomed, especially considering the ear assaults that would be happening right now. For now she just continued to remain as is, waiting and watching.
With the attacks of the others Agent Powers, Choi, and Sartre the last of the skeletons were destroyed. As the last skeleton fell from the gunfire so did the silence in the room. There were bones everywhere; this was a mess to behold.
It was a deathly quiet now eerie type of feeling. the smell of decayed bone, dust, and gunpowder filled the air. something was not far off something that instinctively made the group question themselves about what they were doing in the catacombs, more like a crypt now.
As the adrenaline wore off and his heart began to slow with Choi taking deep breathes, Yeong began to realize he was wounded. Looking down, he saw the splinters sticking from his body, as if he had been dragged over several cacti.
"Ouch!" Choi whimpered, plucking one from his chest. A small crimson dot showed from beneath his dobok. He looked up and said, "I may need a little help," as he plucked another with a wince.
Alyssa went over to Choi. "Sung, I might need backup with this." Knowing the older Dragon had healing powers. She said to Choi, "Unfortunately, this might sting a little. You might want to sit down, if you can find some place."
Once Yeong was settled, she touched his arm gently, the splinters started to leave his body. She had to repeat this measure a few different places to make sure to get everything. Something noticeable happened, once the splinters hit the ground they disintegrated. Her mind had worked like this: fixing people was part of her power. She couldn't fix everything though. Broken bones, cuts - sure. An internal organ not so much. But this was part of putting Yeong's skin back together and in doing so it forced the splinters out. She had no idea the fragments would disintegrate like that. After about two minutes, and checking over Yeong twice, Alyssa finally said, "I think I got them all."
With each gentle touch of Alyssa's hand producing a healing from within his body Choi was amazed at what the petite one could do. Her abilities were proving to be quite useful, especially for Yeong's rash actions.
Choi held out a hand and gently took her into his. His face displayed sincerity. "Thank you for helping a Dragon. As an Illuminati, you could have left me to my fate. I appreciate it."
Choi stood back on his feet. "Now what?" he asked. "Should we look about, to see if they were guarding anything in particular?"
"Let's check the ground and see if there are any tracks. Also; Look for anything that might have been dropped such as objects for rituals." Sartre would continue. "Nice work on the skeletons everyone. Interesting healing action there, Alyssa." said Sartre.
Agent Powers reloaded his shotgun while standing guard quietly as the others tended to their wounds. He kept his thoughts to himself for the time being. He scanned the area with his head lamp to see if anything remained from the skeletons or if any traps were triggered in the process. He then gave the team a smolder as he said, "I'll take watch while you check stuff out."
Alyssa gave Yeong a small smile at his words, "No problem." The thought had never occurred to her to let the wounded Dragon continue to suffer. She was perhaps a little different than some or even most Illuminati because of that but it just wasn't Alyssa to be that way. Bickering with words was a long way from wanting someone to suffer. Still, she either couldn't or didn't want to put all of that into words. "Working together, kind of means helping each other out, doesn't it?" Her words were to Yeong, but were more directed at everyone.
"Thanks," The hacker responded to Peter's comment. Interesting? That could mean a lot of things, but Alyssa would just take it as a good thing. "I can help look." She was looking to tracks but keeping an eye out for anything else they might need to know about.
"Agreed!" Choi said to Alyssa. He pulled on his dobok, revealing the small holes left by the splintered bones. "Now I have a aerated dobok." He grinned at his own joke.
Looking about, Choi searched for symbols. Perhaps those of the cult had etched into the walls, much as the old Templars used to do. Too bad there weren't any Templars with them. They'd probably spot things like that quickly.
Walking through the left archway there was another tunnel leading to the left. The tunnel leads off at a 45-degree angle. The tunnel is black and dry, with less dust and dirt there is an alcove a little further some clothing catches the party's attention. With further inspection, it is filled with bones with more recent types of clothing mixed in with the bones and other personal items.
Between the two the entrance and the alcove a symbol. It would have been missed with everything going on. Sung pointed it out and looked in his notepad on his phone. It had several connections with the Warren, Carter, Florida, 1920 incident. The forensics Sung was working on was starting to come together. The upside-down pentagram with a flat circle in it. In the circle is a flam. Some runes on the inside of the five points.
With another pentagram on the ceiling of the entrance a little smaller and different markings.
"Does anyone have any idea what the symbols could mean? Have you seen them before Alyssa?." Sartre carried his MP5 as dust fell from the ceilings of the catacombs. "Someone was definitely having occult ceremonies down here," said Sartre.
Choi gazed upon the upside down pentagram. His lips tightened as he took on a more serious demeanor.
"This pentagram, being inverted," Choi discussed, "suggests the idea of matter over spirit. I've seen it before. My mentor, Master Park, explained its meaning to me."
He gazed to the one on the ceiling to try to discover the meaning of its difference.
Alyssa relayed the information about the Warren, Carter, Florida incident. Then started taking pics of the other symbols. "I'll run the others through the database and see what comes up."
She acknowledged what Yeong said and decided to keep that in mind and add it to whatever she discovered.
As the hacker was letting the database process everything, her eyes wandered around, glancing back over the ceiling, the walls. Wandering not far, just enough to see around a corner or two.
From the mysteries of the symbols yet to be decoded, came one that rang of familiarity. Lines curled into a swirling mass.
Alyssa's brow furled, for a moment caught in a glimpse of the past, then it was gone. Why she looked down, even the young woman could not say. A glimpse of silver caught her eye. Kneeling down, Alyssa quietly picked up a coin. An antique silver dollar, encased in a silver holder. Her mind kept repeating it was a coincidence, surely the back wouldn't…but there it was - the inscription. MW - fortuna sua fortuna - SM. The coin hit the ground suddenly, with a soft clang. Alyssa just stared at it, as if she expected it to bite her.
"Alyssa; that coin translates to "Luck is Luck. Is there something special about it? It seems to be bothering you. " said Sartre.
Agent Powers continued to scout the area for any new threats while guarding the team during their investigation. It bothered him that he was lacking in detective skills when he listened to the others compare information and share information. Though he didn't plan on sharing his feelings with the others, it did make him feel a bit on the dumb side. Granted he was confident in his combat skills, but he was a poor student at best during his homeschool program. Max wondered if he would eventually learn some detective skills in time since he was now working with a team as being a solo agent. Alyssa seemed pretty smart and was like the complete opposite of himself when it came to brains and muscles. Then he noticed Alyssa from the corner of his eye and saw looking nervous about a coin. He asked, "You okay Alyssa?"
"Actually, in this case it translate to "fortune is luck". Alyssa said, and took a breath. "It's my father's." She said quietly. The two other IIlumanti should know why that was so disturbing, but Alyssa didn't really know what Max knew about the situation.
Her gaze fell upon the Dragons, yes, they were working together she even kind of felt friendly towards - well some of them - but she didn't want to tell them this part of her life. It felt like too much. However, it was also true they might already know.
"What would something of your father's be doing here now?" asked Sartre.
"Good question," Choi said.
He envied anyone knowing their father. Not that he wished all would not know their parents, but he knew neither father nor mother. Master Park was as much any father he would ever know, and he was old enough to be his grandfather.
"Is your father on our side?"
Alyssa shook her head, then answered the last question first. "Yes, he's IIuminanti but - well - nothing of his should be here." This was going to be complicated, if she didn't just tell them. Alyssa didn't need or want more complicated - anything. "He vanished five years ago, in Seattle. Most likely into a vortex."
"A Vortex? Like a portal?" What caused the vortex?" asked Sartre.
"Is that what happened to you back at the church?" Choi observed with a question. "Perhaps it runs in the family." Choi grinned, adding, "You truly are a mystery girl. Maybe we should call your van the Mystery Machine," he jested, trying to lighten her mood.
Normally that Scooby Doo comment would earn a giggle out of Max, but right now as Agent Powers didn't like the fact that this mission just got more complicated. If Alyssa's dad was a hostage or enemy it meant he could not just kill him with the other enemies like he usually did. He took a deep breath and looked at Alyssa with a smolder before he said, "I know this sounds bad Alyssa, but can you show us a pic of your dad? I'd hate to get on your bad side if he was caught in the crossfire as we press forward." Agent Powers was not sure how to say that any better since he was lacking in diplomacy skills as well.
Alyssa felt a little bombarded with questions, even if she knew that wasn't the intention. This time to answer in order. She turned to Peter first. "I wish I knew."
To Yeong, her response was a little longer only because it answered a lot. "We were on a mission five years ago, together. My father had been asked to investigate an abandoned mental hospital where disappearances had taken place. He had discovered a vortex. It was around day five. I was in my van, and he called me to bring him some tools. I went to bring him the tools." Alyssa paused to pick the coin back up. "That's all I remember. I woke up a few days later in my van. Ever since then, weird things, have happened. Like I'll be one place, then suddenly somewhere else. Or the fact that I no longer remember my dreams, any of them. I used to remember all of them. So, yes I believe what happened at the church is directly related to my father's disappearance." She allowed a fleeting smile, Yeong was trying but her mood wasn't there.
She left the data running in the background, but scrolled through a few pics. "Here," showing them an image of a dark haired, brown eyed handsome looking man. "That's him, but I get the feeling that he's not here. That maybe this is a warning or notice."
Choi respectfully bowed to Alyssa, the mystery girl. She had been a mystery from his first contact with her through Sartre. He respected her for her courage and her abilities.
"I explained to Master Sung that I believe this entity we seek almost killed Master Park, my mentor," he explained. "So, we shall work together to seek revenge for our mentors: your father, and my trainer."
Her father, yes. Her mentor? Alyssa wasn't so sure about that. She though knew this was the wrong time and her relationship with her parents too personal to discuss, so she nodded in agreement, but then added, "If it is the same thing - I have an overwhelming feeling that it wants me. I can't say why it hasn't taken me, if that's the case."
Agent Powers did his best to memorize the image of Alyssa's father but since he knew he would mess that up he whipped out his phone and took a picture of the screen image so he could see it more often to remind himself to not shoot him if possible. He replied, "Thanks. Let me know if we run into anyone else I need to avoid shooting at." Agent Powers then gave a smolder before scouting the area again.
The database revealed answers, though Alyssa wished there were more. "It says here that. Randolph Carter went insane and an occultist named Harley Warren disappeared in a Florida swamp as he was investigating with Carter. Carter claimed that he had not killed Warren, but Warren had entered into a decaying mausoleum in the swamp and was accosted by several strange creatures that Warren could not describe before being killed. Carter, supposedly, ran away from the scene." She paused, waiting to see if any additional information came through. "That's all I have for now but I'll keep running it."
"How could the coin get here specifically and at all times, why now? Do you remember this coin?" asked Sartre.
"I don't think we should dwell on questions we might never get answers to," Alyssa responded. "I believe maybe it's the …whatever it is…way of telling me that it can reach me anywhere. Or maybe it's something else but without being able to ask my father we might never know. If anything else comes up, I'll let you know." They needed to get on to the actual pressing issue.
"Does anyone have suggestions, which direction we should go?" asked Sartre.
Choi gave an empathetic facial expression toward Alyssa. She and he, it seemed, had a common goal.
"Just give me a moment," Yeong answered.
He began the slow methodical motions of dahnmudo. Eyes closed, breathing slowed, he began to reach out with his inner senses. The two ways were as different as night and day. One way, Choi sensed no presence. The other, pure evil. He had no way of sensing any mechanisms, as they would have no spirit presence.
After taking in the input, Choi opened his eyes, saying, "No spirit sensed that way," he pointed to the right. Pointing to the left, he added, "That way….is heavy with evil."
Alyssa sighed, "Well, I guess then we should head left." Part of her really wanted to go right, though.
Agent Powers popped his neck and prepared his golden holy shotgun for action. He replied, "Left it is then. If Choi is right about what's ahead, then Alyssa make sure you stay behind me. When all hell breaks loose." Then he began walking down the left path.
"Then; I guess we'll go left." said Sartre as he reloaded the magazine to his MP5 assault rifle. "Alyssa, that purple talisman I gave you the other day, Do you have it on? Does it make you feel more powerful and confident when you use it?" he asked.
"Yes, I'm wearing it. And yes it does." Did she need to feel more confident, Alyssa wasn't sure. She was pretty confident but exploring catacombs with evil entities running around wasn't exactly something she was used to. Still, she wore it, it made her feel better which made Peter feel better, she assumed. After all, this was the third time today he had made sure the hacker still had on the bracelet. So, she took it as important because it was important to him.
Choi looked at Eun-Ji. He had an idea that just might help bring the group fair warning of any traps or ambushes.
"Miss Moon," Yeong inquired, "Do you believe some of your images can go ahead of us?"
Eun-Ji had been silent as the grave. Her attention was but partially on the group's conversation and more focused on the uncertainty and unpredictability of their present environment. During her hunts with her older brother, she learned that evil was not like a video game where it just waited for you to trigger hit boxes or arrive at certain locations. Evil could be calculating and easily be irrational, passive aggressive as easily as violent, and spinning a trap as much as on the assault. Though she looked calm, Eun-Ji was in her feeling of her chaotic potential; exercising her intuition.
She nodded to Yeong's request. She spared one illusion of herself to venture down the path towards pure evil. It moved convincingly, as it held two hammers, like she was cautiously exploring. Her other illusions stayed with her. "One should suffice as bait, giving any ambush the confidence of an easy target."
Sartre followed close behind the illusion, His rifle shouldered at the ready. He checked to make sure that everyone else was following behind the leading illusion. He listened for indicators Like footsteps or for signs like puffs of dust being moved across the dirt floor.
Choi waited for powers to move out, then followed. He held the sword down by his side.
Inwardly, Yeong was proud of his partner. She was utilizing her skills and abilities for the good of the party.
Posted by : Cindy
