Chapter 17: Fire and Brimstone
-Abstergo Entertainment HQ, Modern Day-
It was a casual day at Abstergo Entertainment Headquarters. Employees were going about their day conducting business or doing work in their offices and operating their Animus.
Meanwhile, their hidden Templar superiors were conducting operations against their Assassin opponents.
At least, all of this is what should've been happening.
All was going well, until—all of a sudden—the power started surging and sparking out.
Monitors went dim, wires sparked, machinery started going haywire, and all manner of chaos—but perhaps most bizarre—was the fact that classical Russian music—specifically Charkovsky—and the song Rasputin started playing over the intercoms while an animation of a Russian man dancing appeared on everyone's screens.
"What in the world is going on?!" One of the workers exclaimed in panic.
"I don't know!" Another exclaimed in equal panic.
"Hey Hey Hey Hey Hey Hey Hey Hey Hey!" The song played as the model on the screens kept dancing while any and all data in the building was being funneled away by an unknown attacker.
Meanwhile, in the main office…
"Somebody get this under control, NOW!" The CEO of Abstergo yelled into the intercom. As an elevator came down, a wheelchair bound Otso Berg rolled out of it followed by Viola.
"What the fuck is going on down here?" The woman questioned as Melony came up to them frantically.
"Something is attacking our systems! Our machines are malfunctioning and our data– all of it– is being sent somewhere we can't trace!" The woman exclaimed in alarm.
"Who is doing this?" Otso questioned.
"It's some kind of program, but it's too advanced to be normal! I… I can't make sense of it!" Melony replied, concerned about what was happening.
The two went over to a computer and looked at the dancing avatar as the music played.
"Who developed this? A child?" Berg questioned in confusion.
"Either that, or a college grad who has played way too many video games." Viola nodded.
It was then that things started to calm down as the screens went black and everything went dark… and then a large pulsating red orb appeared on the Jumbotron and something boomed in the speakers.
It was like an electronically distorted version of Russian… before it translated slowly into English.
"I am Rasputin. Ruler of all I survey. The First Warmind. I have an old name, it cannot be killed, and I cannot be stopped. If you are my ally I say to you: rejoice, for victory is inevitable. If you are my enemy I say to you: beware, for your defeat is inevitable." A voice boomed, the sound echoing through the building.
"For a computer program, you sound rather arrogant." Otso scoffed.
"It is not arrogance I speak with, but finality. As you've likely already surmised. My words are no mere hyperbole." Rasputin countered. "I am no mere program. I believe that the best way to describe myself is consciousness in digital form." He added.
"Why have you attacked us?! What purpose did this serve?!" Viola demanded.
"I am allied with those whom you so vehemently oppose. And I have just secured a new piece of their continued advance." The Warmind stated.
"Wha– You're an Assassin AI?!" Otso growled angrily.
"Indeed. I am the pinnacle of what they are capable of with modern technology and the right inspirations." Rasputin nodded. "You underestimated your opponents, and in doing so, you have made a critical error." He added.
"Wh-What error?" Melony wondered, intimidated that someone had a super-advanced AI.
"Desperation breeds the most macabre of innovations." The AI said. "You pushed the assassins to the brink. And they created a god among machines to defeat you." He continued. "My fists are the splitting of atoms and my sweat is an earthquake. I grasp your greatest weapons like a hunter does a spear." He added. "I am… Your ruin." He concluded as he disappeared—and a detonation countdown suddenly appeared in his place.
1:00:00…
"EVERYONE OUT OF THE BUILDING!" Viola practically screamed as she bolted for the elevator while Melony wheeled Otso in the same direction.
(Elsewhere)
-American Brotherhood of Assassins HQ, Present Day-
Meanwhile in the Sanctuary, the gang were having breakfast, which mainly consisted of donuts, breakfast sandwiches, breakfast burritos, English muffins and various bakery goods that were paired with coffee or tea, and also watching the news to keep informed on outside events.
It was at this point that Calvin changed the channel of their on base TV to Fox News, where the explosion and leveling of Abstergo Entertainment France was headline news.
"The fuck? Did our France branch do that?" Joshua blinked in surprise.
"No. We would've heard about it." Sarah replied.
It was at that time Rasputin appeared on one of the laptops, a chime getting their attention.
"What the? Red, where've you been?" Cal questioned as he turned to face the fledgling Warmind.
"I was putting my abilities to the test. I believe you just saw my handiwork in France." The AI replied.
"Wait, that was you?!" Ororo gasped in surprise.
"Well, that was one hell of a show." Joshua remarked. "Just don't do that too often. Not only will it draw too much attention, it'll indirectly teach Abstergo how to combat you." He added.
"Unlikely. For not only is my code, computational capabilities and protocols becoming more and more complex by the day, far more complex than they'd be able to catch up to in time, but I also utterly wiped my original presence from their hardware before leaving." The Warmind stated. "So even if they could salvage the data, they would be unable to know how to start combating me." He added.
"Point made, then. At least Abstergo was given a mean black eye." The second tallest in the group shrugged.
"Which means you just bought us some serious breathing room." Luca nodded. "Not bad for a test run." He chuckled.
"Yeah, thanks Red." Desa nodded with a smile.
"I think you've earned yourself the rest of the day off." Ororo told the AI.
"Thank you. I think I'll observe the next Animus session for myself, if you don't mind." Rasputin acknowledged.
"I'm not gonna stop you." Joshua shrugged, not really minding.
With that, everyone continued to enjoy their breakfasts until it was time for Josh to go into the Animus again, which he did soon after.
Animus Active.
Note: Presence of unknown AI in system.
Proceed with caution.
Resuming Current Sequence Session…
-Buffalo Ridge Pass, Wyoming, 1860-
Shin road on Demon through the pass that kept Pallimon quartered off from the rest of Western civilization (at least the wild parts), and past Snapping Turtle rock on his way to a nearby town called Valentine where Dr. Hannibal mentioned that he could find people to fill in the jobs needed in his town.
"Okay, let's see who's able to pick up the old mantles left behind." He hummed to himself as the two kept moving to the town.
Valentine, in terms of appearance, was a quintessential example of a Wild West town, echoing appearances of Dodge City, Tombstone or Driftwood but having a much friendlier atmosphere than those aforementioned towns.
As he rode in, he heard some gossip about some old faces, the Wellfields. What he heard had him very concerned. It appeared that their old home had been attacked, and by the Cormac gang, no less.
'Okay, I need to find them. Fast.' He thought, worried for the people who saved his life once already.
As luck would have it, it would seem that they would find him as he entered the Valentine Saloon to inquire about them.
Specifically because they were having breakfast at the establishment, one of biscuits, sausage gravy and coffee with a side of grits and eggs.
"It's been a while, you two." He remarked, getting their attention.
"Shin! My goodness, fancy running into you here!" Angie gasped in surprise.
The gunslinger Assassin chuckled as he sat down and waved at the cook, who was of Chinese blood like him—like a lot of people in the West, actually—and made a simple gesture as if to say that he'd take the Chef's recommendation.
The cook had long black hair in a pig tail, beady brown eyes and a fu manchu. He was dressed in a traditional Chinese suit for the period, with an apron, cap, and his braided pigtail was held up by a ribbon to keep it out of the way of the giant cleaver he used to chop ingredients.
The man gave a nod, understanding the gesture as he got to work.
"I came here looking for people to fill in some roles in Pallimon, and then heard some gossip about what happened to you guys." Shin explained. "If you guys are worried about possibly being attacked again, I can give you some sanctuary." He added.
"Don't suppose you're in the market for an inn and Saloon keeper?" Richmond questioned.
"That's actually one of the open roles. Think both of you can fill that in?" Shin asked.
"Oh, most definitely. We've helped out with the local Inn and Saloon a decent bit, so we know how to manage one ourselves." Angie nodded in reply.
"Good then. I can actually direct you to Pallimon so you can get settled in." The boy hummed as the cook arrived with his ordered dish.
Bizarrely enough, it looked like the Secret Ingredient Soup from Kung Fu Panda to the modern day crew.
It was a bowl of soup with a Chinese pork bone broth, sliced daikon radishes, diced Chinese scallions, and sichuan chili oil.
"Ahhh, that's good." The boy sighed, before he felt his eyes start to water. "Sorry, it's just that my mom used to make this for me on rainy days—I haven't had it since she and my dad died." He admitted as the cook seemed a bit concerned that the chili oil might've stung his eyes.
"I understand." The cook nodded in a thick Chinese—implying that English was a second language to him—understanding the boy's pain. "Soup is… On the mouse." He nodded with a respectful bow.
"I think you mean house, sir." Richmond corrected with a good natured chuckle. "But your English is quite good for a Chinese immigrant." He nodded.
The man seemed a bit embarrassed, but bowed in response to the compliment nonetheless.
"謝謝 (Thank you)." Shin nodded with a grateful bow to the cook, who reciprocated and returned to his work.
There was a pleasant silence before Angie spoke to break it.
"Your parents passed away?" She asked, getting a nod from the lad as he ate his soup. "That's odd, I was under the impression that the Marshal that came to get you—Jaren was it?—was your father." She admitted.
"Only by adoption. My birth parents were killed when the original Pallimon was sacked years ago." Shin corrected with a sigh. "Specifically, they were lynched." The boy added bitterly, sipping his soup and slurping up some of the noodles, the taste mending his soured mood.
"Wha–What for?" Richmond stammered, unable to get a grip on what he was just told.
"A series of charges that were all completely fake that they were innocent of." Shin sighed somewhat bitterly at the memory. "Guilt by association being one of them." He added as he finished his soup. "But enough of the past. Let's tend to the present." He added as he stood up.
"Right." Richmond nodded. "Me and Angie still have our horses, but we're worried that the people who attacked us before will try and do it again." He told the gunslinger.
"Follow me, then. I know a shortcut that no one else knows about." The boy told them as they paid for the meal and went to the stables to get their horses.
After getting their horses, Shin proceeded to guide the people who saved his life to Pallimon. The trek was mostly uneventful, apart from some rowdy wildlife (boars, wolves, etc.) trying to jump them. Granted, they needed to let their horses rest every now and then, but that was pretty much it.
"Well, this is rather bland." Rasputin remarked.
"This happens from time to time. Life isn't always gonna be a lively, chaotic destruction festival." Joshua told him in response.
Upon reaching the town, the boy soon took notice of the fact that Ban, Clover, Mansa and the rest of the guys were finishing up the last bits of the new in and Saloon.
Well, at least the permanent structure versions, there had been huts in earlier stages.
"Hey Shin!" Ban called as he saw the Assassin head their way.
"Saloon and inn look good, guys. Great job." The gunslinger said as he dismounted Demon, giving the horse some corn.
"Aye. Definitely our best work yet." Clover nodded.
"Looks like it." Shin nodded. "Guys, this is Mr. and Mrs. Wellfield. They'll be handling these establishments for us." He added.
"Hey, you two." Ban nodded at the couple.
"Nice to meet you boys." Richmond smiled.
"Oh, Shin." Lumier chimed in. "There's a boy here who says he knows you." He told his friend. "Does the name Fritz mean anything to you?" He asked.
"... Yeah, yeah it does." Shin said after a beat passed. "Where is he?" He questioned.
The French boy pointed inside the newly finished saloon where a young boy, barely eight or nine years old, was drinking a cold glass of milk.
"Thanks." The deputy nodded as he went in and sat next to the kid.
"Are you the deputy?" Fritz asked, hardly able to recognize Shin at this point.
"Yeah, and you're the kid I got a feather for at one point." Shin chuckled in reply, causing Fritz to snap his head at him.
"Shin?!" He gasped, finally recognizing him.
"Hey Fritz." The gunslinger smiled as he hugged the boy who jumped into his arms. "Well, you're certainly heavier than you look." He grunted as he set the tyke down. "What're you doing all the way out here? I thought you disappeared." He asked.
"My parents got killed when the old Pallimon was sacked." Fritz replied, still clinging to him. "I was put in an orphanage after that. Then I started hearing about Pallimon being rebuilt, so I ran away and came here." He continued.
"… I'd ask why but I'm afraid that I may not like the answer." The gunslinger nodded slowly as the Wellfields stepped inside and examined their new home.
"Well, this place looks good." Richmond hummed as he looked around.
"Yes it does." Angie nodded before taking notice of the young boy sitting with Shin. "Oh hello, dear." The woman smiled.
"Oh, um, hi." Fritz replied awkwardly with a small wave.
"Guys, this is Fritz. He's one of Pallimon's original residents and only survivors." Shin told the couple.
"Welcome back, kiddo." Richmond said as he walked up to Frits and patted his head.
"Fritz's parents died in the sack and his living situation at the orphanage in Strawberry (a town a good few miles from here and Valentine) was… Less than ideal." Shin explained. "So I was hoping that you guys could let the little guy stay here. This town is just as much his home as it is mine." He added.
The Wellfields looked at each other, like they were having a silent discussion. Then they smiled and nodded.
"We'll do one better. We'll adopt him." Angie told the Assassin, causing Fritz to snap his head at them with a look of shock and hope.
"Wait, really?!" The boy gasped.
"There's something we never mentioned, but our first son was originally an Assassin who served in the War of 1812 and the Texan Revolution with Davy Crockett at the Battle of the Alamo." Richmond stated. "His name was Frederick, Frederick Wellfield." He added.
"Really?" Shin blinked, listening with interest along with Fritz.
"Yes. He served with another assassin six years his junior, who saved his life several times, and carried him home to us when he laid down his life for his comrades when their enemies closed in." Angie nodded. "We never got the Assassin's name, but in his journal, Freddy called him "The Bear"." She added.
"Wait, that was my dad's old Assassin nickname!" Shin gasped.
"Your father was the one back then that brought our son back for burial?!" Richmond gasped in surprise.
"He was called the Bear because he was an Assassin with good stealth skills but far and away preferred to tear apart those fighting against him with his bare hands and any weapon he could get his hands on." Shin told him. "He was also called that because he was larger than most of the other guys and had a poor temper." He added.
"How in the world did he get that strong?" Angie wondered.
"Honestly, I have no clue. I never got the chance to ask." Shin admitted in reply. "But I think it had something to do with my grandmother…" He mused.
This seemed to lull the conversation to a sort of conclusion.
"I better get moving, let you guys get settled in." The gunslinger sighed, giving Fritz a ruffle on the head. "Glad to have you back, Fritz." He smiled.
"Glad to be back." The boy smiled back in reply.
(Later)
Shin sighed as he made his back to the Assassin Headquarters and Jail house, where he saw everyone else going about their business—until he noticed that Raven looked like she was concerned about something.
"Hey, Rae, you okay?" He asked, approaching the girl.
"I just managed to get a Kanien:keéha girl who was at one of the "Indian Schools" on the reservation, a Baptist one or Catholic, I can't remember which. Run by nuns, priests and what have you." The girl replied. "According to her, they beat, burn, lock them in boxes in the badlands heat, wash them with sharp wire, tie them down, break bones and even bury them alive if they don't abandon their native ways and accept the "Christian" ways." She continued. "Last I checked, the Bible teaches against this bullshit." She spat.
"And I agree with her. Shit like this puts religion in a bad light!" Joshua hissed in clear displeasure.
"Zealots and criminals who hide behind the faith to defend their evil actions. The worst kind of hypocrites." Shin spat. "Where's the school?" He questioned.
"It's here in Wyoming, in the wilderness surrounding Pallimon to the east." The native girl replied.
"So they're in my lawful jurisdiction. Perfect." Shin groaned.
"You gonna hang them for this?" Raven questioned.
"That's not even a question. Of course I am, after I get a judge to make them stand trial. I wanna make an example of them." The gunslinger replied, displeased that this had been happening under his nose. "Can you lead me there?" He asked.
"I can, and we might wanna bring some backup to keep the criminals in check." The girl replied with a nod.
"I'll get Jaren, Ban and Mansa. They should be good enough." The gunslinger nodded as he went upstairs and opened the door—and saw that Cereza and Jaren were in the man's office with an unexpected guest—Mentor Bowery. "Mentor? What are you doing here?" He asked.
"I came in person to see how the new Pallimon is doing. I'm pleased with what I'm seeing." Bowery replied with a nod. "As well as to retrieve the map fragments and the Apples you found so that I can keep them in the sanctuary vault." He added.
"Oh, right!" Shin nodded as he bolted over to the office safe and got the artifacts out. "Here they are." He said, handing them to the man.
"Good work. I assume you'll be looking for the next outlaw on your list?" Bowery asked as he fed Liberty a sardine from her perch as he took the objects, getting happy chirps from her.
"I will, though not before I deal with a local issue." Shin replied, frowning.
"What happened?" Jaren questioned, Cereza seemingly equally concerned.
"Apparently a group of religious zealots have set up shop in the wilderness to the east of Pallimon. They're torturing native women who refuse to convert while hiding behind the Bible to justify their actions." Shin spat in displeasure, which was now shared among the others.
"Hypocrites! I can't believe this has been happening under our noses!" His fiancé shouted.
"Which is why I'm getting Jaren, Ban and Mansa to help me and Raven out with shutting that place down." The gunslinger nodded before looking at his teacher. "You up for rounding these fools up?" He asked.
"You don't even need to ask." Jaren nodded in reply, a stone look on his face as he checked the Last Word's cylinder, seeing that it was fully loaded.
"Normally I'd ask why not assassinate them, but seeing as you two are lawmen, then having them stand trial and having them hanged is a more poetic and publicly acceptable response." Bowery nodded. "… Actually, if you'd like I could direct a judge friend of mine here to act as Pallimon's judge." He added.
"That would be helpful. Please make that happen." Shin nodded in reply, knowing that a judge would help make things easier here. "… Hey, mentor." He said as he turned to leave. "Does the name Frederick Wellfield mean anything to you?" He asked.
"Yes, actually. He was a brave Assassin who served under your father. Why?" Bowery asked in reply.
"His parents are here." The boy replied. "I gave them a job as the Inn and Saloon keepers." He told the man. "Their home was stolen from them by the Cormac gang." He added.
"Of course it was. Those hooligans will go after anything remotely related to us." The mentor sighed in exasperation. "But enough of that. You have zealots to arrest." He added.
"And an outlaw to hunt down." The Marshal nodded.
"Who's next on the list?" Shun asked as they headed downstairs.
"Alameda Slim and his nephews the Willy brothers." Jaren replied. "Ban, Mansa, grab your gear and follow us!" He called.
"Yes sir!" The two called back.
Memory: Fire and Brimstone
(Later)
A couple of hours later, the group was now riding through the wilderness towards where the fake church was set up. Raven, true to her word, was leading them where they needed to go.
Fenrir, meanwhile, was following the trail of the scent that was on a ruler that the girl that Raven found said was used to beat her and the other girls.
After riding their horses through the woods and then the river beds, they found themselves in front of an isolated church that looked abandoned…
The perfect place for criminals to roost.
"Alright, let's get these sons o' bitches." Jaren said as Raven free ran to the top of a tree to get a good vantage point. Walking up to the front of the building, he knocked on the door. "This is the US Marshals! Open this door right now!" He yelled, banging on the wall of wood.
"This house of worship is closed at this time! Try again tomorrow!" A gravelly voice responded.
"That wasn't a request!" Jaren barked as he shot the door handle and kicked the door open, allowing him and the others to enter.
Upon entering, they could hear the pained cries of women coming from an underground torture chamber.
"You can't enter here! Not without a warrant!" A nun shouted, only for Shin to grab her and point his Hidden Blade in her face.
"Give me a reason, I dare you." He snarled.
"We know what you people are doing to the natives here—and it ends today." Jaren stated. "Ban, Mansa, head downstairs to check for the women." He ordered. "Shin, subdue these men and nuns. We'll be hauling them into Pallimon for trial." He added.
"You got it!" Shin growled as he tied up the fake nun he was holding, making sure her wrists were firmly secured.
"You can't do this! You have no right! No proof!" She shouted.
"We're bringing the Indians out of these savages! Doing the world a favor!" A holy brother—only in name—barked, not wanting to attack as Shin had his gun within reach.
"I don't think conversion by abuse and violations of human rights and dignity was in the New Testament." Shin retorted as he stood up, gun hand hovering over his holster as he took the man down and tied him up.
"And as for proof, one of your "followers" informed me of the crimes going on here." Raven stated. "Pallimon has no tolerance for zealous behavior like yours." She added, narrowing her eyes.
"You have no right to judge us, you lawless savage!" The Holt father—in name only—spat at her, only Shin to kick him to the ground and hold his blade to his throat.
"One more goddamn word, and this blade goes right through your throat, you understand me?" The boy hissed.
"Hey, get back here! Let the lady go!" The voice of Ban yelled as one of the zealots ran up the stairs dragging a woman behind him, a knife in his free hand.
"Nobody move!" The zealot yelled, holding the knife to the distressed woman's throat.
"Let that woman go or I swear you will be dead before you hit the ground." Jaren warned as his hand drifted toward his cannon.
"I don't think so! All of you are going to leave and allow us to resume our great work, and you'll leave that lawless woman behind so we can show her the light! If you don't, this Indian dies!" The insane zealot demanded.
"You act like you have sway here when you don't. Look around you." Shin told the fool. "All of us have guns that we can whip out in a second and kill you not even a heartbeat later. You won't even get to carry out your threat. I know it. You know it." He continued, sending chills down the zealot's spine, but he wouldn't back down.
"Then so be it!" He yelled as he moved to slice open the native woman's throat.
Before he could finish the motion…
ROOOOOAR!
The ferocious roar of a big cat tore through the air as a giant feline figure leaped through the broken window and landed on the zealous criminal, separating him from his hostage, who scrambled to safety.
Looking closer, the Assassins were startled to see that it wasn't a common panther, but another Wampus Cat that had the man pinned to the ground and was snarling at him angrily. Shin noted a scar on the left cheek of this one.
"Okay, this is a shocking turn of events!" Ororo exclaimed in surprise.
"Thing must've heard the commotion and didn't like all the noise in its territory!" Calvin said in surprise.
"An accurate assumption." Rasputin chimed in agreement.
"Get off of me you–!" The zealot tried to demand before the cryptid flexed its claws and sliced his throat open in a display of blood, the fool choking to death on his own blood—before mauling the man face first.
Snarling, the six legged panther looked at the rest of the group before its gaze settled on the hostage, who had frozen halfway to Raven in fear.
Surprisingly, it visibly calmed down and approached the woman, ignoring the guns trained on it.
The second it was close enough to the woman to possibly maul her… It instead licked her face, causing the already frightened woman to blink in surprise before she calmed down herself and allowed the cryptid to do what it wished.
"What the…?" Jaren uttered, completely bewildered since he had never seen this side of a Wampus cat before.
"Yeah, this is new to me, too." Shin nodded in agreement, blinking owlishly at this unusual display.
"... Okay, this kind of thing could be classified as life's highest honor. How else does one classify the affection of a cryptid?" Joshua commented, just as perplexed and surprised as everyone that was there that day.
"I agree with that sentiment. I guess some cryptids aren't violent creatures 24-7." Sarah commented in agreement.
"… Let's get the criminals and hostages out of this place, slowly." Shin suggested. "Taking care not to piss off the two hundred eighty pound jungle cat that's having a zealot for dinner." He added.
"Uh, yeah." Mansa nodded, warily eyeing the cryptid that had started feasting in its kill. It was sickening to look at, but it couldn't be helped.
(Later)
After all the criminals and hostages had been rounded up, the gang was now on their way back to Pallimon. The Wampus Cat had gone off (presumably) back to wherever it was before the commotion started.
"If you ladies don't have anywhere else to go, you're free to stay in Pallimon." Shin called, leading the way on Demon. "We got plenty of room, and our current workers could always use the extra hands." He added.
"Some of us do have families to go back to." One of them replied, being able to speak English well. "Not all of us, though. These brutes killed some of our families in front of us, claiming they were "evil." Delusional fools, they are." She added with a sigh.
"That much is clear." Ban nodded in agreement.
"Raven can help those of you get back to your families. And help you spread awareness of these false preachers." Mansa told them. "The rest of you? Welcome home." He nodded as they reached town.
"Welcome to Pallimon." Jaren nodded as the current town population stepped outside to see the hostages and the arrested felons being brought in.
(Timeskip)
The following day, Bowery made good on his word and sent a judge to the town to take up his role in the courthouse. Said judge was a middle aged man with German roots, and was garbed in judicial robes for the time period.
"Shin, Jaren, I'd like you to meet Judge Adolf Johan Strauss, a friend from Washington." Bowery said with a smile as Ban and Mansa got the false preachers out of the town jail to be brought to the courthouse. "He's agreed to become your town judge." He told them.
"Welcome to Pallimon, Judge." Shin said as he shook the man's hand.
"It is a pleasure to be here, Herr Malphur." The man replied with a German accent.
"Well, it seems we have your first case here." Jaren noted. "I've already gotten a couple of drinking buddies of mine to set up a law firm here to get away from the competition on the east coast, lawyers, both of them." He stated, jabbing a thumb at the newly built law firm where two men dressed in suits were packing their briefcases. "Dutch guys from Hamsterdam. They should do the job." He added.
"Alright. They'll definitely help out with these posers." Shin nodded as he looked at the zealous criminals, who were aggravated by what was happening to them.
"Then let's begin." Strauss nodded.
(Later)
Later in the courtroom, all the town folk and available assassins that weren't serving on the jury were all seated in while Clover acted as bailiff.
"All rise!" Clover called, everyone rising. "The case before the court is the case of the town of Pallimon vs Father Obadiah Olsi and associates, the counts are kidnapping, wrongful imprisonment, abuse, assault, battery, rape, murder, torture and other related crimes in the first degree." He listed off.
"How do the defendants plead?" Strauss questioned.
"Not guilty, your honor." Obadiah's appointed lawyer, Aart Bakker responded, everyone who was involved silently calling bullshit on that.
Aart was a man in his thirties who had a thick mustache and a well developed paunchy build, fitting for a well fed small town lawyer.
"Your honor, there is overwhelming evidence and testimony to the nature and fact of these crimes perpetrated by the accused against the native women that were rescued and are a serious flight risk." The prosecution lawyer, Dan Aalbers, stated. "As such, we request that these individuals be held without bail." He added.
"Your honor. The testimonies of those women have no value given their lack of citizenship!" Aart protested.
"Physical evidence is another matter entirely, Mr. Bakker." The judge stated. "And according to the reports given, including photos and physical objects that were either used or shown as proof of what occurred in their alleged captivity—I can see no other course of action for your clients other than to flee justice." He continued, putting the documents away and taking off his glasses. "Defendants are remanded without bail pending trial." He declared, slamming his gavel.
(Timeskip)
Two weeks in court later and the whole lot was found guilty and sentenced to hanging, which was occurring right at this very moment.
On the hanging podium, the zealots were standing on the trapdoors with nooses around their necks as the gathered crowd roared angrily at them.
"Ungrateful peons! This is the thanks we get for doing our great work?!" Obadiah yelled angrily.
"Quit hiding behind the Bible to justify your actions!" Shin barked. "It won't save you from what you have coming to you." He added with a glare.
The boy then turned around and walked away, raising a hand before clenching it into a fist, prompting Ban to pull the lever—deploying the trap door—and sending them down.
Their necks were snapped in an instant, leaving their lifeless bodies to sway lifelessly in the air. The crowd was pleased that justice was served and dispersed to go back to whatever they were all doing beforehand.
Shin, meanwhile, headed home. It had been a long and stressful ordeal and now all he wanted to do was relax with his lover.
"You heading home, Shin?" Bowery called, having stayed to watch everything.
"Yup." The boy nodded, not looking back.
"Well when you see Cereza, tell her I said congratulations about the baby!" The man said as the boy kept walking.
Shin didn't respond, he just simply waved and kept walking, unphased that his mentor already knew that his fiancé was pregnant—the man seemed to know everything these days.
When he reached his homestead, however, Cereza was waiting for him with a concerned look on her face.
"Were you worried something would happen to me at the hanging of those hypocrites?" He asked, having no clue what she was concerned about.
"No, but I am concerned about what's in the backyard." The woman replied, causing Shin to blink in confusion.
Deciding to see what the deal was, he went to the backyard. He figured it wasn't that big of a deal… Or so he figured, until he saw the Wampus Cat lounging on the grass there.
"... The fuck?" He uttered as he blinked owlishly in confusion. What in the world could draw a cryptid to actively approach a human settlement?
The six legged cat heard him and turned to look at him, and Shin realized that this was the exact same Wampus Cat from the fake church since it had the same scar on the left cheek.
As the two continued to stare at each other, Kassandra approached the cat and tossed it a piece of venison.
"I've encountered more than a few strange beasts, but never one this tame." The Spartan woman chuckled as she gave the cougar a pat on the head and left her be.
"Uh, yeah. This one is odd for sure." Shin nodded in agreement with his semi-immortal grandmother as she walked away.
Cereza was silent for a moment before Luna and her pups dragged a fresh carcass in, which every carnivorous animal from Liberty to Fenrir partook in.
"… This may be an utterly mad idea, but what if we kept her?" She questioned.
"Two things. 1. What makes you think this is a female Wampus Cat? 2. Are you sure that's a good idea?" Shin questioned in response.
"1. The slim build of the body. It seems like a universal thing, I suppose." The amazon replied. "2. She seems harmless enough. She didn't even try to attack us." She added.
"… Damn it, I hate to admit it when you're right." The boy cursed, scratching his head. "Alright fine, we can keep her." He sighed.
"Excellent, and I already know that perfect name: Cleopatra II, after a Sphynx cat I had as a girl in London." The woman smiled.
"Well, that would certainly fit. She's equally gorgeous and fierce, for a cat." Shin hummed knowingly. "Though I've always preferred dogs. They're easier to read." He admitted.
"Funny, you seem to enjoy trying to read me." His bride teased, kissing his neck.
"That's because you're a book I don't mind reading." The young man said as he kissed her back… before noticing a letter on the table, which was already opened. "Hm?" He hummed before walking up to it and picking it up.
"It's a letter from Morgana, love." Cereza told him. "I've already read it." She added.
"What the?! She's pregnant?" The boy gasped, before facepalming. "See? I told you that threesome was a bad idea." He groaned.
"Yes, sorry about that. We… Kind of got spurred up in the moment." Cereza apologized with a sheepish chuckle. "But I wouldn't worry. This happened before we decided to marry so it isn't adultery just… Well, a poor decision on our parts." She said.
"Does this mean that she's going to keep the kid away from us?" Shin questioned, realizing that trying to raise a kid with an assassin would put him and Morgana in a bad situation.
"Unfortunately, that's how it's going to have to go." Cereza sighed. "She has said that she plans to tell the baby about you when it's older, however." She added.
"Well, hopefully I can meet the kid at some point." Shin sighed.
"Yes. I don't want our child to not be able to meet its soon to be born sibling either." His bride nodded a hand patting her now cantaloupe sized belly. "Ooh! I think he likes the sound of that." She smiled.
"I should hope so." Shin chuckled. "Come on. I've had a long couple of weeks, and I'd like to relax at the moment." He added, motioning for Cereza to follow him upstairs.
The tall woman smiled as she took his hand.
"Lead the way, darling." She cooed as she followed her fiance, more than willing to simply relax with him.
Memory Synched
User brain fatigue detected.
Suggested two days recovery before next session.
Ejecting…
-Sanctuary, Modern Day-
"… Alright, who added the neural monitoring system to the Animus?" Joshua asked as he sat up, pinching his forehead.
"I did." Rasputin replied. "While in Abstergo's network, I noticed that they had a similar system to prevent bleeding effect overload in their Animus operators." He explained.
"It's true, I was in charge of monitoring Desa's." Luca nodded.
"Well, I won't say no to anything that'll keep me from turning into someone else, or get chronic migraines." Joshua shrugged. "But that Wampus Cat… I didn't even know that kind of behavior was possible for a cryptid." He whistled in surprise.
"I mean, there have been weirder coincidences." Mael chimed in.
"Well regardless, let's pack up for the day." Cal sighed as he stood up and stretched.
"Yeah. I need to process what just happened today." Joshua nodded as he left with Ororo.
"This whole thing makes me want to go home to Laura." Ororo nodded.
"And go home to our place so we can start picking out things for our nursery." Sarah nodded, her crop top just barely showing the growth in her belly.
With that, everyone left while Rasputin powered down for the day. This session was not what anyone expected.
Then again, who expects a Wampus Cat to act so friendly to people it likes?
Dragon Emperor0: Hey guys. Sorry about the wait but we literally just finished the backlog last week and now we're trying to catch up on stories we put on hold because of said backlog. But don't worry, as soon as we're caught up, normal writing schedules will commence as usual.
ThermalsniperN7: Yeah, and onto what I know people are gonna ask about: Why did we decide to have a friendly Wampus Cat in this chapter? Well, we started thinking about how it usually goes and wondered if there was ever an instance where they weren't a vicious maneating cryptid, and this came out… Plus, it feels like a breath of fresh air to us since we can show an instance of a cryptid working together with a human. It's new territory for us to explore.
Dragon Emperor0: Additionally for those of you who are subscribed to the Paramount+ streaming service, you may recognize this little side mission as a reference to the to the Yellowstone spinoff show 1923 where the reservation has "Indian schools" that have these exact same kinds of zealots running it. Now, I personally haven't come across any explicit documentation of such schools, but given that journals from the period recall law enforcement ripping apart mixed families by deporting husbands and wives of different nationalities (Chinese, Indian and Mexican in particular) and threatening to kill the spouses who resisted and their "mongrel children" I wouldn't be surprised. Especially since there was a Wild West serial killer named Henry Howard Holmes or H. H. Holmes who used a hotel to torture, toy with, kill, and dispose of his victims and we only just found out about him in the last decade or so. So I could totally see something like this going on.
ThermalsniperN7: I'm not totally sure how true any of that is, but given that crazier things have happened in the shadows in the past, I wouldn't be surprised if this shit happened for real. But yeah, we have zero tolerance for zealous behavior, and we show that. Nothing justifies torturing innocent people like this. Nothing.
Dragon Emperor0: Yeah. And side note, as a Catholic myself, reading about this kind of behavior in historical records that is, by every stretch of the imagination antithetical to the Bible and Jesus' teachings—I just always wonder what the hell was going through their heads and wonder if they were really Bible fearing Catholics or just pretending to be and doing the work of something evil. It really gives us a bad name. I find it especially egregious now that I've been actively trying to move away from bad sinful habits to try and follow my faith more so… Yeah. This kind of thing IRL or in fiction really ticks me off.
ThermalsniperN7: Ditto. Anyway, see you guys next time.