Mutants & Masterminds: Lake City Universe - HoH: The Early Bird Killer (IC)

[Heritage]

Heroes' Hall of Fame:

"Oh, nothing to worry about with the fever, Doc. I just tend to run a little hotter than most people. You know how it is with this Hellish business. Comes with the territory."

The good doctor had given Russ an odd look after that comment, but his demeanor remained friendly and helpful; clearly the occult specialist now had as much to think about as Hellhound!

"Colby, I'm not sure if ghosts can ever become solid or anything, but if our Jane Doe was one of Strick's victims, we could be dealing with two restless spirits rather than just one. While I'm not a fan of raising the spook count, I'm sure the spirit of this girl isn't a fan of being tortured at Strick's hands repeatedly. Is there any way you can fire up your spirit senses and contact her? Like a seance or something? She may be able to give us some insight into this thing. Worst case scenario, I could always go see if she's hanging around on the Ground Floor anywhere. Though I'd like to try to avoid three trips in the same day. I've already got a chill creeping up my spine like crazy and I feel like I'm pushing my luck as is."

A few minutes later, Russell found he had a text from Colby:

Yeah thought Strick was a poss ID for our perp. Seance is a poss but can be dangerous, other things can come thru. Dont go to hotplace!

Near St Dom's:

“I can do this all damned day. Now, you wanna talk about a few things? Like who told you I was the Tempter?” Of course, that was the important thing to her.

Francis was doubled over and shaking, knees on his legs and panting like a dog; his words came in clumps between gasps. "Captain told me...Tempter wears...many faces, but always...always the same face...underneath." He then began to cross himself and mutter what was clealry a prayer. "Padre nuestro...que estás en los cielos...Santificado..."

Back at HQ:

"Seems our Strick the Ghost has been warded for quite a bit, sent up the river styx since he was such a nice guy for a penthouse suite in hell. Thing is we need a Native American angle on the ward. Do we know of any elders or shamans who'd know how to strengthen a ward or help round up a ghost? Finally, we may have to do some legwork and gather the components necessary to make this work." She sighed. "Can't believe I'm figuring this out. I'm not Hermione."

She sighed as she put a couple books back on the high shelf by hovering up. "Also, a little update on the wayward schoolboy would help."

Kiki poked her head in, carrying another tray of 'research fuel' (more drinks and sugary snacks). "Knock knock! Sort of pathetic den mother with more stuff to rot your teeth!" She put the tray down and brushed her bangs out of her eyes. "Hey, if you need help on a magic run, I've got a few of the local vendors on speed dial; just gimme a list of what you need and I'll start making calls." The young redhead smiled and shrugged. "As John used to say, this isn't my first rodeo."

[quotemyname]

A few minutes later, Russell found he had a text from Colby:

Yeah thought Strick was a poss ID for our perp. Seance is a poss but can be dangerous, other things can come thru. Dont go to hotplace!

Russell's phone blipped just after he'd radioed back to Naomi. He read the text from Colby and frowned. She sounded as if she expected a seance to go badly and that he did not like. At least she agreed that he should probably stay in their world this time around. He replied to her message:

<Should’ve mentioned Cpt. Sooner. Dangerous? More like expedient IMO. About ready to beat answers out of something Rgr, no hotplace. Update on St. Dom’s Hood?>

Russell remained standing atop the building he'd perched on downtown. He leaned up against the railing, letting his coat flow in the crisp autumn air. He stared down at his phone which he held in both hands. No response from Blitz yet... Russell felt the dull itch of worry creep into the back of his head.

Gee, I hope she's not dead in a ditch somewhere.

Why is it whenever I hear from you it's never helpful?

Hey, I'm always helpful. Someone's gotta tell you all the things you don't want to hear.

No, they don't. I'm good without, thanks.

Actually they do. Can't help but notice that you're smitten like a damned puppy after just one kiss. You of all people should know what a burn feels like.

...

I'm telling you this because you need to hear it, not because I like saying it. Just watch out. Where there's smoke, there's fire. And you're leaning way too close.

Alone with his thoughts, Russell waited to hear back from the rest of his team.

[Superball]

Naomi giggled for a second realizing Kiki knew a few things about the one thing that a girl of science and technology can't wrap her head around even though she knew the quantum physical possibilities.

"Thanks Kiki, I'm still clueless on the materials necessary, that is going to need a bit more research and this girl doesn't know where to start."

Naomi hovered there, crossing her arms. "Okay..." Naomi says over her comlink and to those around her. "I promise no more Potter references if someone hooks a nerd up here. I need to know what sort of materials one would need for a sealing ritual AND a warding ritual. Seems there might be two layers to this process."

She lets her suit reset slowly to gently land on her feet again. "Also, I need... cookies."

Naomi starts to munch down.

[quotemyname]

"Come on, Naomi, you should be able to figure out a jumping off point for that. I think you've already got the answer in front of you, actually." Russell's voice echoed over the radio. For the next few minutes the radio was silent from his end. But it wasn't long before he materialized just outside the glass doors of the conference room bringing with him an increase in the temperature of the room and the hint of a sulfur smell.

As he pulled open the doors to where Naomi and Kiki were standing, the girls could see that wasn't all he'd brought with him. He held out a package of Keebler Chocolate Chip cookies for Naomi to eagerly seize, "Because who doesn't love Chocolate Chip?" Russell flashed the girls a smile. Suddenly, the two had no doubts about why anyone could consider their dapper-yet-rough-around-the-edges-teammate charming, "Like I said, you should have everything you need now." He spent a moment rifling through the evidence bags they'd collected from the construction site until he came up with what he was looking for, "You've already taken samples of the materials used to create those spells," He flopped one of the evidence bags down in front of Naomi. "You can't tell me you haven't already figured out what this is. I see only a few colored paint chips, but I'm sure you've already identified exactly what type of paint it is, who manufactured it, and how long it's been on that wall. Just filter out everything that's not from the 'Cowboys and Indians' period and you should know exactly what you need to get those spells started." Russell took a minute to smile at the female duo once more, "What? Gary's not the only one who's allowed to have good ideas, you know."

[z-Blitz]

Near St Dom's:

Francis was doubled over and shaking, knees on his legs and panting like a dog; his words came in clumps between gasps. "Captain told me...Tempter wears...many faces, but always...always the same face...underneath." He then began to cross himself and mutter what was clealry a prayer. "Padre nuestro...que estás en los cielos...Santificado..."

“There’s no need for that,” Val huffed, planting her hands on her hip. “I’m not the Tempter; I’m not a demon. I’ve met demons and trust me, hon, I’m not anything like that. You know what a man means when he says women wear the same face under different masks? It means that some woman broke his heart and he never got over it, so he lamely persists in making all women he meets into her in his head so he has another shot at her. And when that new woman rejects him, he tries to make her hurt like the first woman made him hurt. It’s pathetic.”

The thought that she might have been unintentionally baiting the ghost never occurred to her as she barreled on. “So who’s that Captain who told you that? He the ghost or demon or whatever has you so shook up?”

[Heritage]

The HQ:

<Should’ve mentioned Cpt. Sooner. Dangerous? More like expedient IMO. About ready to beat answers out of something Rgr, no hotplace. Update on St. Dom’s Hood?>

Russ's phone vibrated as a text from Colby was received.

potentially VERY dangerous. if youre trying to bag him i want in, if only so you dont all end up dead. hold off on stupid shit until i get there

Near St. Dom's:

“So who’s that Captain who told you that? He the ghost or demon or whatever has you so shook up?”

Francis finally sank down to his knees, his breath finally slowing. "The captain...he came to me in my dreams." He pointed at the side of his head, and a creepy ecstatic smile spreading across his face. "He showed me that all you bitches are the same. He knows about pain, just like me, but he was hurting, too. I made a doorway for him to come back to our world; he needed to come through because-" And now his grin was positivly satanic."His worked isn't finished." And as he said those words, Val heard them whispered in her ear, and felt hot breath on the back of her neck.

[quotemyname]

Russell stood in the conference room sipping at another cup of coffee. He'd shed his coat and loosened the tie around his neck as was his typical rough around the edges style. He was close enough that he could help if Naomi needed something, but for the most part he just didn't want to get in her way. She moved around and thought far too quickly for him to have any hope of keeping up.

When the text came in from Colby he answered her, <No worries. I'm well familiar with the concept of 'putting a leash on it'. RTB then, I'm already here waiting.>

To Naomi, and Kiki he said, "Sounds like Colby is on her way back here. She might have some insight on the magic side of things. Hopefully, we'll make some headway when she gets here." as he slipped his cell phone back into his pocket.

[z-Blitz]

As Francis delivered his chilling information via his creepy stalker O-face, Val’s expression shifted from surprised to annoyed. Fucking ghosts and their damned obsessive influences. I hope Colby has something in her magic bag of tricks that can help him. Things with the occult were tricky enough; add in humans—particularly teens—being manipulated or influenced, and you had a real mess.

However, when the ghost showed that it was right there and worse, standing behind Blitz in a prime horror-story position, it was pure fright that covered her expression. For a second—an eternity to her—Blitz ran, rabbiting away from the ghost and the threat it represented to her.

She was eighteen city blocks away before she stopped. Blitz wanted to stay right here, but her brain rammed in the stray thought that she’d left Francis behind. Yes, he was in thrall to, or at the very least bro-mancing hard on, a ghost. The ‘Captain’ was dangerous; he could kill Francis—or worse. And while Blitz wasn’t eager to give up her life for the kid’s, she was aware that this is what she was paid to do: protect the citizens of Lake City, even from themselves. Being young and full of her own power, Val even thought she stood a chance going toe-to-toe with a ghost.

Her phone came out and, without looking at the last message on there, typed out <Strick here. I’m protectin kid. Backup b nice.> and sent it to Russ. Her phone disappeared as she started to run again.

She was back in front of Francis within the next second, putting her back to the boy and hoping the ghost was where she’d left it. Why is it hot!? That thought alone was enough to scare the shit out of her; ghosts were cold, not hot. “Francis, listen to me,” she said, looking around nervously for the ghost even as she knew how dumb that was. “The Captain isn’t a friend. He’s not a nice guy. And women aren’t all bitches. Jesus Christ, do you kiss your mother with that mouth!”

Val was channeling her fear into anger: anger that Strick was killing, that he was a douchebag and that he was manipulating Francis. “Strick, since you’re here, I just wanted to say: you died a loser who couldn’t get laid. Enjoy eternity of lameness, asshole!” Oh, god, oh god, I’m badmouthing a ghost. Jesus. I am so, so, so dead. I hope it leaves Francis alone.

[Superball]

the 'ritual ingredients', upon closer investigation using the various tools in the lab (might be a good time for a 'science!' montage) appear to be fairly mundane, mostly herbs that can be purchased at the nearest 'magick shop' (angelica, dragon's blood, garlic and a few others), commercial paint and avery small amount of human blood (eek!). Based on the amount in the mixture, this did not come from any sort of sacrifice, more than likely the caster gave him/herself asmall cut and shook afew drops in. Youhave samples of three types of protective charms (Chinese, Hebrew/Kabbalah and Celtic/Druidic) and could probably get the proportions figured out accurately. You are unsure of the casting procedures, but have a good feeling you can't make things any worse.

Naomi steps out of the lab, looking quite happy but the fatigue was starting to set in.

"Well at least I finally figured out the base ingrediants out here, hopefully."

She pulls out a list she printed out of the various potential ingredients she discovered. "Luckily only a couple drops of blood were required, not a whole like... person's worth."

"Hopefully Colby can work with this."

[quotemyname]

Russell accepted the list from Naomi. He was dimly aware that his cell phone was going off again. He pulled it from his pocket as he began to scan the list, and the new text message at the same time. The list had a lot of things on it. Household things that weren't that interesting. The text message, on the other hand, was from Blitz. Finally. Russell thought, as he began to read.

<Strick here. I’m protectin kid. Backup b nice.>

No...

Hey, remember what happened the last time you left someone you cared about alone?

YOU SHUT THE @#$% UP!!!

Russell's inner demon, that he carried constantly, finally wormed it's way under his skin. It had been dogging him all day. And now Blitz was in trouble. And there were too many things happening at once for him to deal with. And to make matters worse there was someone else talking. And it didn't seem like they'd be shutting up any time soon... And then Russell snapped.

"Hopefully Colby can work with this."

"Damnit! Colby can wait! Blitz's in trouble." The clipboard and Russ's cell phone both hit the conference table at the same time. The phone still displayed the message Blitz had left him. A cursor below the message blinked, waiting for a reply.

There was a brief sound like igniting kerosene, and Naomi felt a rush of air leaving the room. Hellhound was gone.

Outside their headquarters, Hellhound materialized a few feet above the sidewalk and hit the ground running. He was faster on foot. The weather was cold and he'd left his coat inside. But that didn't matter, his blood ran hot anyway. As he tore through the streets of Lake City, he ripped his tie from his neck.

The rubber soles of his Chuck Taylors smoldered. Any faster and he'd risk igniting them. Blitz may have defined the word speed, but Russ was no turtle. He peaked at the speed of a racecar. With any luck he'd make the school yard inside of a minute.

But would a minute be too long?

His heart pounded faster than his feet against the pavement. In his head he counted them ticking away... Every. Last. Red. Second.

One one thousand...

Two one thousand...

[Superball]

Naomi blinked... "But if she was in trouble... she could have needed... a... medic..."

All she was talking to was empty air and a whisp of brimstone.

"Guys..." Naomi says over her comlink to all active comlinks in the building. "I think one of our own is in trouble. I can start a back-track on Blitz's or Russ' comlinks crossrefrencing with cell towers to pinpoint a general location. What's your call?"

Suddnly, Naomi was quite worried. She doesn't wait for orders. She starts the process of finding her teammates. She thought how she was going to make up for almost leaving the group entirely. She was going to pull her weight one way or another.

"I'll find you, guys... I promise!" She whispers as she starts to work.

[quotemyname]

Three one thousand...

Four one thousand...

Okay, would you please stop counting. It's not going to make you get there any faster.

Maybe not, but at least I'll know what I'm talking about when I end up saying, 'If only I'd gotten there a second sooner'.

You're almost to the school and it hasn't even been a whole ten seconds yet!

You sound bitter. No clue why. Isn't this what you wanted? Isn't this why you got me so pissed?

Yea. But the psychic said not to do anything stupid...

Stupid?! Stupid! I can't @#$%ing believe you! You rile me. You instigate! You poke and prod all damn day and now you're worried I'm being stupid?

You want to give her backup. That's noble, but may not be smart. What if your back up isn't enough. You could just be signing to death warrants rather than one without waiting for the team.

Why?! You wanted this! Why are you trying to talk me down now?! When did you trade your horns for a halo and switch shoulders huh?

Because I hate seeing you like this, okay? Every time I do I remember why you're the one in charge here...

Arrgh!!!

Hellhound was livid. He pushed himself harder, and within a few more seconds he'd arrived at the school they'd dispatched Blitz to. He came to a hard abrupt stop across the street and scanned the area. There was the school, but there was no sign of his teammate. No Blitz, and no ghost. Cursing silently, Hellhound checked once more, hoping he might have just missed her thanks the angry red haze clouding his vision. No. If she was here, I'd know. I'd see her. Just a throng of teenagers out front of the school steps.

Unlike most kids, High school wasn't a nightmare for Russell. He'd been the rich kid. He knew that when you were the rich kid, every one was your friend. When everyone was your friend, you were always the center of attention and the center of all the groups that stood in front of the school steps.

Hellhound's unnatural speed carried him across the street and straight into the crowd of kids before any of them had even realized he was there. He leaped over the ring of high school students and landed directly in front of what could only be the current ring leader.

Met with Hellhound's enraged visage looking very much like a bat out of hell, "...D-d-dios mio.." was all the poor kid could muster before turning heel and tripping over another boy in his attempt to scramble away.

Hellhound caught the kid and set him back on his feet. "Kid, I ain't angry at you. But so help me, if you keep from from the guy that's got me pissed off..." He didn't bother finishing the sentence, his glare implied the rest, "Where is she?"

"...W-w-who?"

"Kid,..." His patience was wearing out, "It's after school hours, and you're expecting me to believe that anything other than a pretty girl stopping for a chat with you is gonna keep you hanging out at school? Where is she? I do NOT want to ask again!"

With a composure that was shaky at best, the boy turned and pointed toward an alley that wasn't far from the school grounds. Before he turned back to look at what must surely be El Diablo, Hellhound had vanished from the ring of kids.

The poor boy collapsed to his knees, "Ir a la iglesia, dice mamá! Te arrepentirás si no lo hace, dice mamá. Siempre salir con todas las chicas y las pandillas! No me sorprendería si el diablo vino a llevar, dice mamá! Lo siento mamá! Yo llegué a la iglesia! Te lo juro!"* A soft wimper escaped the boy. He'd crossed paths with El Diablo, and he lived to tell about it. Suddenly, he was the happiest kid in the neighborhood!

---

Translation

*Go to church, mom says! You'll regret it if you don't, mom says. Always hanging out with all the girls and the gangs! Wouldn't surprise me if the devil came to take you, mom says! I'm sorry mom! I'll got to church! I swear it!

[Heritage]

The Alley near St. Dom's:

The young Latino was shocked by Val's sudden reappearance; he no longer wore the creepy expression, and was back to looking scared.

“Francis, listen to me,” she said, looking around nervously for the ghost even as she knew how dumb that was. “The Captain isn’t a friend. He’s not a nice guy. And women aren’t all bitches. Jesus Christ, do you kiss your mother with that mouth!”

This last comment shook him out of his stupor, and Francis became defensive. "Hey, don't talk like that about my mom! She's a saint! And the Captain has been a lot nicer to me than my own old man! He listens to me!"

“Strick, since you’re here, I just wanted to say: you died a loser who couldn’t get laid. Enjoy eternity of lameness, asshole!”

"ENOUGH!"

And suddenly they were joined by Captain Jonothan Strick, or at least his spectral remains. He appeared in a burst of flames, hovering in the air in broad daylight, a translucent figure some six feet tall in full battle dress (the comic book Russ saw was clearly way off, probably inspired by old John Ford cavalry movies). The face was distorted with rage as he drew the sabre from its sheath.

"HOW DARE YOU TAUNT ME, YOU LITTLE BITCH!" Spectral spittle flew from his lips, which passed harmlessly through Blitz's face."YOU'RE THE SAME...YOU"RE ALL THE SAME!" He turned his wild-eyed gaze to Francis, who now looked more terrified of his 'good friend' the Captain than of Val. "DO YOU WANT ME TO SHOW YOU, FRANCIS?" He began to float towards the blonde speedster, with his free hand outstretched. "ALL IT TAKES IS ONE TOUCH, AND YOU'LL SEE THE TRUTH! THE TRUTH THAT LIES BENEATH HER SKIN!" The fingers of his hand began to darken as they grew more and more solid-looking.

(Russ shows up at this precise moment.)

Back at HQ:

"Guys..." Naomi says over her comlink to all active comlinks in the building. "I think one of our own is in trouble. I can start a back-track on Blitz's or Russ' comlinks crossrefrencing with cell towers to pinpoint a general location. What's your call?"

At that moment, both Mike and Kiki came hustling into the room; Mike was all managerial and business-like, Kiki more nervous and sympathetic. Mike leaned over to look at the terminal Naomi was using. "What is it, what's the situation?" He blinked when he saw all the search windows she had open. "Uh, all this occult stuff..." He waved his hand over the screen. "Which case is this for?"

Kiki rolled her eyes and punched his arm. "Dumbass! As I've been trying to tell you all morning, the Early Bird case is starting to heat up!"

Mike looked surprised. "This is Early Bird?" The handsome millionaire looked back at the screen and began to gently knead his ponytail. "Uh...I'm no expert, but this looks bad. 'Protection and binding spells'?"

Kiki leaned over and pointed at the keyboard. "Start with cell towers near St Dominic's; Blitz is super-fast, so she could be miles away by now, but that's where I'd start."

[Superball]

"Already on that I wagered that would be the logical place to start on my search pattern."

She turns to Mike. "To fill you in, we have been sorting this whole Captain Strick situation which ties in with the Early Bird Killer I am afraid. Seems the seal keeping the not so good Captain at bay have been broke, so like a good little hacker he's walked unwelcome into our mortal realm..."

Using her clearances from Law Enforcement she starts pulling up the frequency for each comlink and starts cross-referencing with when they were last picked up on by the cell towers.

"Now, suddenly like... a minute or so ago, Russ' Hellhound sense started tingling that Blitz was in some sort of danger and he teleports over leaving me with just the smell of brimstone in my nostrils and a whole lot of 'not good' in my head."

"Kiki, I'm going to need my medkit and that portable defibrulator over in the lab. I got a bad feeling about this."

Then... mercifully, a signal.

"Bingo... It's Blitz. It's close to St. Dominic's. In a Alley 120 meters from the front entrance."

She super-imposes the Cell blip on her laptop's screen where Google Maps was loaded. "There, we got a location!"

Kiki runs back in with what Naomi asked. "Thanks. I am going to need the beast and do we have a experienced driver that can get me there and like.... safely break speed limits?"

She puts on her helmet, and closes the visor. Slipping her laptop into the slot she has on her backpack and it interfaces with her helmet's HUD.

"Okay... time to get stuck in..."

[Heritage]

At HQ:

Mike did not seem pleased about the whole 'supernatural killer' situation, but greatly appreciated the update; his brow was furrowed as he paced around stroking his beard, lost in thought.

"Kiki, I'm going to need my medkit and that portable defibrulator over in the lab. I got a bad feeling about this."

Kiki nodded, her normally cheerful face now pale and grave. "Yeah, okay, I hear you..." She dashed off and returned with the requested gear in short order.

"Thanks. I am going to need the beast and do we have a experienced driver that can get me there and like.... safely break speed limits?"

Mike chuckled ruefully as he pulled out his cellphone. "Huh. 'Experienced' yes, 'safe'..." He winked. "Hey there, Bo, it's the big man upstairs. Listen, how would you feel about driving to a 'ghost fight'...yes, as in a fight with a ghost...Really? Okay, groovy!" He snapped his phone shut. "Done and done!"

The Lair of the Beast, Five Minutes Later:

Bo was waiting inside the massive armored SUV, blasting the Ghostbusters soundtrack on the stereo. He was wearing a Dale Earnhardt driving jacket, his huge sunglasses and the same Dallas Marvericks cap he had on earlier. Popping open the passenger door, he leaned out and flashed a dazzling smile at the teenage tech.

"Hey there, lil' darlin'!" He had to yell over the blasting Ray Parker Jr track. "You need a lift?"

[Superball]

Naomi hopped in, setting her emergency supplies in the back, on the floor as close to the center of gravity as possible. She then hops in the front passenger side.

"Indeed. Let's burn rubber."

"Mind you, and this isn't a knock towards your driving skill, but you can let loose within logical limits. My suit is just as good of a airbag as any restraints built into your riiiiiiiiide!!!!" Bo hits the gas and the Beast starts to live up to it's name as it feels it hits "beast mode" when in the hands of a trained driver. Naomi's suit puffs out to adapt to the sudden inertial changes.

"I guess... this... is logical!"

[Heritage]

"I guess... this... is logical!"

Bo laughed maniacally as he threw back his head and shifted gears. "Hang on, Stay-Puft! You ain't seen NOTHIN' yet!" He hit the lights and the siren (which sounded exactly like the one on the ECTO-1), then flipped up a panel on the dash, exposing a ridiculously huge red button marked 'NITRO'. "'See you on the other side, Ray!'"

slap

"YEEEEEEEEEEEHAAAAAAAAA!"

[Superball]

Naomi held on, then a grin crossed her face as she whispered.... "Yolo..."

She opened her helmet visor. "Doc Brown was right! When this baby goes over 88 Miles an Hour You're gonna see some serious S...."

The roar of the Beast's engines hitting peak RPM drowned out Naomi's exclaimation as they sped through the busy streets of Lake City.

[Hellhound]

"HOW DARE YOU TAUNT ME, YOU LITTLE BITCH!" Spectral spittle flew from his lips, which passed harmlessly through Blitz's face."YOU'RE THE SAME...YOU"RE ALL THE SAME!" He turned his wild-eyed gaze to Francis, who now looked more terrified of his 'good friend' the Captain than of Val. "DO YOU WANT ME TO SHOW YOU, FRANCIS?" He began to float towards the blonde speedster, with his free hand outstretched. "ALL IT TAKES IS ONE TOUCH, AND YOU'LL SEE THE TRUTH! THE TRUTH THAT LIES BENEATH HER SKIN!" The fingers of his hand began to darken as they grew more and more solid-looking.

(Russ shows up at this precise moment.)

Hellhound wasted no time at the entrance to the alley. He was past thinking. At this point he was little more than reacting to the situation unfolding around him.

One last jump through the fires of hell brought him right between Strick and Blitz. He stared the ghost down, hands held by his side, ready to pounce like a loyal guard dog, "Don't you @#$%ing touch her, you son of a bitch!"

Hellhound's eyes narrowed, and his hands clenched. Exploding with energy, his eyes and hands became wreathed with an unnatural purplish-blue flame.

[z-Blitz]

Hellhound’s flaming arrival was exactly what Blitz needed. Clenching her teeth, she balled her hands into fists and unleashed a volley of blows at the ghost’s midsection. She’d try this; if it didn’t work, she was grabbing Francis and getting him the hell out of Dodge, no pun intended. Later, someone would probably tell her she’d done it wrong, but Val was doing what she knew best: beat the shit out of it and run if that didn’t work.

The rapid-fire punching of her fists had little effect on the ghost; she could feel her hands passing in and out of his form. He was still hot—too hot, and it felt like she was Rockin-Sockin the interior of an oven. Terrified, Blitz jerked back, pressing herself against Francis. It was less a defensive instinct as him being in her way when she tried to backpeddle into the wall, but it looked protective.

[Hellhound]

"Blitz!" Hellhound roared, unable to stop her from exchanging blows with the ghost, "That kid's our one good lead," he told her over his shoulder after she'd retreated in front of Francis. "Get him outta here! You're the only one fast enough to do it. I'll hold this ass-clown off and give you some cover."

With that, Hellhound stepped between Strick and the his girlfriend, and adopted a rather unrefined fighting stance, His hands exploded with the magical fire that had wreathed them earlier. "Come here, you piece of shit. I'm gonna make you wish you'd never been unborn."

All the pent up frustration at an investigation that was going nowhere; All the rage and paranoia that came with a Blitz's penchant for getting in over her head; All of Hellhound's, of Russell's, emotions came to a head as he lunged for Strick. Hellhound went to town on the ghost, swinging for the fences with little thought to any defensive maneuvering.

[Heritage]

In a morbid sort of way, the sinister specter's reaction to all this hubbub was oddly humorous; he actually paused and shook his vaguely transparent head as first Blitz and then Hellhound wildly flailed their fists through him, while also running and popping about in unusual ways. But when he saw the hellish fire that wrapped itself around the hell-touched man's form, he cocked his head as a strange glint entered his eye.

"AH-HAH! IT APPEARS I WAS MISTAKEN! TRULY THE TEMPTER WEARS MANY MASKS! AND I SHALL BRING YOU OUT INTO THE LIGHT, YOU DREADFUL HAG!"

And then he reached for Russell, which had two interesting effects: firstly, Captain Strick howled in shock and pain as his now-solid fingers encountered the cloak of flame Hellhound wore, and he etreated back several feet, clutching hs hand as he hovered fearfully above the ground. But the second effect was much more disturbing. Russ felt a sudden weakness fall upon him, a light-headedness that spread in waves from where the Captain had touched him. He felt short of breath, like he had a severe chest cold. There was a burning behind his eyes, like a bright electric light buzzing and burning just beneath his skull.

And then he began to change.

Russ fell to his knees as his clothes began to warp and fade to pale white, all the contents in his pockets suddenly falling to the pavement; his body seemed to collapse into itself as his form become smaller and smaller, and his hair grew out until it covered his slender shoulders.

Caucasian female, early twenties, wearing nothing but a rough white nightgown...

[Hellhound]

There was a moment of silence in the alleyway. The pure fury that had encompassed Hellhound's will to defend his own like a faithful guard dog that had been pressing upon the situation like a hot iron on skin evaporated almost instantly. There was nothing, but a moment of silence. Silence, and Captain Strick's whimpering over his singed fingertips.

And in that moment a shaky voice uttered weakly: "What...What did you do to me?"

It had come from what used to be Hellhound. A hand reached out for Strick, shaking. The hair fell away and revealed the pale face of a waif for all those present to see.

But the eyes didn't match the form.

It's eyes were a burning red torrent of hatred. Absolute, sheer, unquenchable, hatred.

Caucasian female, early twenties, wearing nothing but a rough white nightgown... and Hellhound was locked away inside of her...

[z-Blitz]

Blitz stared aghast at the hell-touched woman who had been her hell-touched boyfriend. She wasn’t really into women, though she could fake it, if necessary. But this wasn’t the same as being attracted to a woman—not when he started a man and was forced to become a woman. As always, her emotions were rapid to change, and now they shifted with a vengeance. “Fucker!” The word popped of Val’s mouth as her shocked expression twisted into one of rage. “What did you do to my boyfriend?!”

She didn’t wait for an answer. Instead she lashed out, her fingers extending and her palm flattening as the speedster unleashed her Hammer attack. And though she was almost shaking with outrage, Blitz was utterly focused on it hurting the fuck out of the ghost—regardless of how hard it was for her powers to damage them.

Extra Effort – powerstunting an alternate effect of her weapons array.

The Ghost Hammer: Damage 8 (DC 23; Accurate 2: +4; Penetrating 6; Affects Insubstantial 2: full ranks) 18 PP

Attack roll: Carver *rolls* 1d20: 8+8: 16

HP: Spending an HP at the end of the round to negate the fatigue

[Heritage]

"AAAAAAAAAIIIIRRRRGGGGHH! IT BURNNNNNNSSSSSSS!!!!"

The look on the Captain's face as the blast of energy ripped a hole through his chest was priceless, a mixture of shock, terror, pain and disbelief, and the whole of rage and agony was almost as satisfying. Val's attack might not have laid the fiend to rest, but the big missing chunk in his torso showed that he could be hurt with the right kind of blow.

For his part, young Mr. Guzzman was curled up on the pavement, whimpering and shaking with fear.

[Superball]

"Okay... that sounds like a good idea..." Naomi thinks to herself out loud.

"What's that?" Bo asked, focussing on the road.

"This beast has one hell of a power plant to it. Enough energy to create an electromagnetic field..."

"Umm... I'm not following."

"You have watched Ghostbusters... and I have watched Ghost Hunters... Ghosts create a disturbance in EM fields. They have a charge all their own! So... remember your physics classes from Junior High?"

"Opposites attract. Not sure how I can rig-up a trap that can put off a em field strong enough and of an opposite frequency... but if I can have it work, I can hold that ghost we've been chasing long enough for Colby and company to deal with it once and for all."

"Wait, you wanna use MY girl to power this?"

"Well it either was that or draw power from the city's grid... I do that and potentially I could black out a hospital."

"But... you're not gonna do anything permanent right?" Bo asks, turning to Naomi, but taht moment at those speeds was all that was needed...

"BO! LIGHT POST!!!"

Naomi's world for a few moments is filled with shattering glass and the sound of a light pole smashing the roof.

CRASH

There is Hero Point #2... The First was from the guys dealing with the bad Captain...

"Ohhhhhh..." Naomi holds her head as the world was fuzzy for a moment, and started to turn red in one eye... she pulls away her hand and sees her own blood. "...son ofa... should have had my visor down on the... helmet..."

"Bo, you okay?"

"Yeah... my airbag is in the wheel... you didn't pop?"

"No... but I got a crimson mask now." she says, pointing to the gash on her forehead from some of the glass cutting her. "That and I think I got my bell rung."

It did. She got concussed as well. She looks back and saw her defibrulator was what hit her in the head. It's smashed frame litters the back seat.

"Well... here's hoping no one needs that... WAIT! The voltage regulator!"

"Huh?" Bo asked.

"Can the beast drive?"

"The beast doesn't care about light poles. The Beast doesn't give a..."

He revvs the engines up. "See? Honey Badger all the way."

Naomi smiles letting the air out of her suit and grabbing some tools. "Okay, try to get there without hitting anything else..."

She grabs her first-aid kit as well, putting a gauze bandage over her left eye... she didn't have time to cut it properly. "Okay... let's get to this!

"I can generate the EM field from the paddles here... the voltage regulator from the defibrulator can properly detect the field If I... Hah! Simple electronics! Dumbed down so anyone can use it or someone like me can simply use it's natural tendency to read electrical fields!"

She starts putting wires and coils together from the smashed device. "Now... all I need is... Ah that pop can on the floor!"

She punches a hole out of the bottom, and cuts the top off with a can-opener on a swiss-army knife. Placing the electronics in the can then pushing the lid shut, making sure there were some leads sticking out of the top and one main power lead on the bottom.

"Just remember, Don't look at the trap." She says with a grin.

Invention note

Spending 1 HP to create the trap device. 2 HP remaining

PSA

Remember, Kids, always wear your helmet, and wear it properly!

Once they arrive, Naomi stumbles out, her balance still off from the concussion. She takes the power leads and hooks them up to the power regulator of the Beast.

"Okay, once I toss this over... rev the engine and have it go as hard as it can fo.. for as... long as it can... got it?"

Bo nods as Superball sees her friends...

"Oi... Captain! consider this a court martial!"

She tosses out the can, and as it sails through the air... "Bo... HIT IT!"

The engine revvs up to maximum and Naomi sees a spark from the can. "Please work..."

[Heritage]

At first Captain Strick, still reeling from the pain caused by Val's intense energy blast, didn't seem to take much notice of Bo, the Beast, or Naomi; but when the little can slid under him, trailing wires back to the armored vehicle and looking slightly ridiculous, the infernal specter was able to muster up the strength to throw back his head and laugh, though his face twisted in pain with every guffaw.

"AHA-HAHAHAHA! FOOL..FOOLISH MORTAL! DO YOU THINK...THINK TO BIND ME WITH YOUR SILLY-"

And then Bo revved the engine, and he wasn't laughing anymore. The tiny can rattled like it was possessed, and then a cloud of sparks shot out of it.

"Holy shit, that's fucking awesome!"

Heads turn up the alley to see a handful of kids from St Dom's watching the proceedings; Bo and Captain Strick both yell "GET OUT!" at the same time in an odd shared moment of annoyance. The boys quickly scatter as tendrils of purple lightening erupt from the can, warping themselves around the fallen soldier's form which seems to be growing slightly more solid; some fingers reach into the hole in his chest, causing him to scream in agony as he attempts to rip himself free, but to no avail.

"YOU LITTLE WITCH! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME?!"

The pavement below the can begins to crack as Naomi's improvised device starts to smoke and blacken; time appears to be of the essence!

[Superball]

Naomi deduced that the girl in the nightgown was Russell. Those eyes, the fact that Blitz was here and Russ' belongings were on the ground... yeah, don't need to be Sherlock Holmes to figure it out. He got transformed somehow... and Naomi's demeanor cracks a little in rage... no one has the right to alter someone to their whim!

First, there was disbelief, then shock... then the anger reached Naomi's surface. In a low tone, almost one of a barely-reined in righteous fury... "Read him his Rites, Russell."

[Hellhound]

The girl in the nightgown was busy staggering to her feat. She seemed weak, but only in body. The way those unholy eyes burned there was no doubting the strength of her will, or the strength of her soul.

There came from the girl a voice like a haunting specter. It echoed of the cavernous walls of the alley: "Strick... You have the right to remain an asshole. You have the right to remain dead as a fucking doornail." There was a sound like a gunshot, and a burst of energy exploded from the girls chest.

Suddenly in there midst was something out of the Hound of the Baskervilles. There was Cerberus. There was a demonic dog, chained to the girl, both of them by the collar. Yet, some how, she managed the strength to handle it.

The girl wraps her hand around the chain that binds the spectral hound to her own neck and restrains it but only momentarily. "You sack of shit." It was Russell's voice that spoke, not the girl's. Even if it was more gravely than normal, "You've done enough. Enough suffering. Enough problems. This ends now! Get in the fucking can!" The girl released her grip and the hound flew from it's restraints, the spectral chain that bound the two together somehow extended to allow the hound it's momentary freedom. With a mighty leap and snapping jaws, the demonic doberman lunged at Strick's throat!

[Heritage]

At the sight of the snarling hell beast, the already 'wounded' Strcik seemed to flutter like a flame in a sudden wind, and he held up his hand in a warding gesture.

"NO! YOU WILL NOT TAKE ME BACK TO THE BURNING PLACE! I STILL HAVE WORK TO BE DONE! AND WHEN I KILL ALL THE BITCHES, MY SOUL WILL FINALLY BE FREE-"

And then the beast was upon him, tearing into his throat and leaving ragged tears in his vaporous form; freed from the grip of its human host, the creature seemed possessed by a manic fury and a savage delight at its temporary freedom.

And then the trap snapped shut.

Both Strick and the Hound were sucked down into the small smoking can as the purple lightening wrapped around both their forms and they were both gone.

Bo pulled off his sunglasses and looked stunned, throwing rapid glances between the other three teammates. "Whuzzat...whuzzat supposed to happen?"

An unmarked police car pulled to a screeching stop, and out leaped Det. Colby, her eyes wild and sidearm drawn. "Freeze, LCPD!" She tried to assess the scene, including the young woman in the nightgown and the small can, surrounded by blackened pavement and still shooting out period sparks. "Uhh...uhh..." Her mouth was working, but her brain clearly wasn't.

Audible to only Russell was the mad howling off the hound, slightly muffled like it came from far undergound.

Unseen by no one, a slight ripple was starting to form in the air above the trap.

[SalmonMax]

Meanwhile, in the Mists...

It was cool, in the Mist, and numbing. Sigil knew that spending too long there could cause one to slowly unravel. The body would dissolve into spirit...and the memories that made that spirit -you- would bleed away until you were just another mad haunt, blowing through the infinite grey clouds of the Mist. Most were too weak to do harm. She'd encountered several already. Some were powerful enough to convince her to hide from them.

And all the while, the blood on her finger tugged, giving her a heading. It was getting noticeably stronger now. A distant light sometimes flickered through the fog ahead. She was getting close.

Sometimes Sigil saw the Mists thin, giving her a grey and hard-to-understand glimpse of the mortal world beyond. Never for long though. The veil was too thick. But in that nothingness, she still saw that light, and now felt a sound. Her body seemed heavier.

Other shapes, dark shapes, writhed in the Mist not far away. They were attracted by the Real. Some long-dormant memory of being alive, of having warmth and memory and substance, drew them towards that thin place she saw. What it was, she didn't know...but she came upon it suddenly. Distance was in many ways as illusory as time here for those that understood how to travel it.

What she saw was startling. The Mists suddenly faded to transparency, showing a dim, wavy gray image of the mortal world around her. Before her was a ring of crackling light, and in it...half in and half out, was what appeared to be a man. Ghostly and ephemeral on the mortal side, but as solid as she was in the Mist. There was a rift in the veil there, and a sentient spirit was trapped in it, or trying to get through.

Then, unexpectedly, something that looked like a small flaming figure manifested...she saw it shadowed by a doglike shape in the mortal world, but its features marked it as a demon, if a fairly minor one. It threw itself across at the spirit in the rift, and knocked it OUT of the Mist, fully into the mortal world...where they were drawn into some kind of magical device. The same one, she realized, that was creating the rift in the first place.

Mortal wizards...capturing the Mistborne spirits for some reason. That wouldn't end well...but that wasn't her concern.

The rift was disintegrating...closing off. Sigil launched herself at it, just managing to get the very tip of the Wand poked through it at the last moment. Lucky. The former fey queen sent strength through the Wand, surging into the collapsing rift, and pried that aperture open one last time as she let herself fall through....

In the alley...

As the team turned to deal with the arrival of the policewoman, the ripple over Superball's impromptu ghost trap sparked, flashed...and then suddenly gaped open in a visual display that wouldn't have seemed out of place in a movie like Poltergeist. The edges of the circular gap in the air flowed in ways that crossed the eyes if one tried to work out how big it was, or if it was flat, or where exactly it was relative to oneself. Out from that tear spilled eerie, chill grey fog that poofed out and roiled out along the ground, clinging to the surface tenaciously.

And then a person emerged from that fog.

She was gorgeous. A combination of adult size and curves with an innocent, almost childlike face. Big green eyes and cherubic cheeks that dimpled around a luminous smile...and all framed under the kind of firey orange-red hair that someone normally got out of a bottle, but here looked quite nature. A pattering of freckles dusted her cute, slightly upturned nose and cheeks.

She was dressed in some kind of gown...simple in design and cut, but with an air of elegance to it as well. All in greens, with forest green dominating and lime green accents, it left her shoulders just barely uncovered, but had a modest cleavage-concealing neckline. The skirt went to her ankles and had a slit up the side that showed just a glimpse of her leg. Her feet were bare . In her hand was a long tapering spiraled object, white and sharp at the end, like a unicorn's horn.

Her ears had distinct points, though were not of unruly size or appearance other than that.

The woman looked around the alley, her eyes widening almost comically. Her mouth gaped open in abject shock. Quickly she looked around, taking in the beings around her, including the strange revolving light behind one of them.

She seemed to quickly gather her composure, then took a deep breath and asked in English accented with something that sounded vaguely Irish or Scottish, but not exactly like either... "Who here is the wizard that opened the Mists? I need to have a word with him."

The wound in reality behind her winked out, stopping the flow of that 'mist' stuff...though what was already there vanished as well, all at the same time.

[z-Blitz]

“Later!” Blitz went from standing in shock to kneeling next to the waif in the funny dress. Her green eyes were wide with concern—and fear. The elf blinked and opened her mouth. “Later, Keebler! It wasn’t a wizard anyway! And we have a real emergency here!”

The young hero turned back to the ‘girl’. “Russ?” she asked, touching her hair lightly. “Are you still there?” Blitz knew he had been, but wasn’t sure what was his status now that the Hound was captured. And the thought that someone could do that to her boyfriend, to catch part of him in a ghost-trap scared the hell out of her. A lot of women might have been relieved to know that the demon trapped in their boyfriends could be trapped, and Blitz was, a little. But more than that, she knew that the Hound was part of the man she liked, and that he wouldn’t be the same without the demon. She might not like the man without the demon.

[Superball]

"Well... all I wanted to do... was hold that guy in place, not trap him... well, I should take notes about that once the ringing stops in my head..."

She wobbles over to Russ first. She had brought her visor down when recognises the symptoms Russ showed. "Blitz... s... keep a distance from Russ, He... or she right now... is showing symptoms of... Tuberculosis. Like the other victims."

She looks over the sprite that appeared. "Oh my... unintended... consequences... one second we got a biohazard..."

She turns to the cop... she started feeling overwhelmed as her conciousness starts becoming tenuous. "Please use gloves... when... dealing..."

She collapses to her knees then slumps to the ground.

Naomi is nursing a concussion currently,

while she isn't in any real health danger, all this

stuff happening at once overwhelmed her injured

brain.[/code]

[Hellhound]

Both Strick and the Hound were sucked down into the small smoking can as the purple lightening wrapped around both their forms and they were both gone.

No sooner had the trap shut on the demonic half of his being, than Russell began to feel part of himself bleeding away. The spectral chain that had linked the two of them lay shattered on the ground and through it, he felt part of his life force seeping away. That hound was as much a part of him as his arms or legs. Without it, what was he? He couldn't seem to remember.

The events unfolding around him seemed to speed up as he collapsed to the ground. He was dimly aware of Blitz speaking to him. Her voice was muffled, though. Her already accelerated speech and movements combined with the way time seemed to be getting away from him made it impossible to understand her. He just stared blankly up at her, through eyes that were rapidly losing their coloration. The irises faded to a dull, emotionless, grey. He was losing himself, but he couldn't seem to raise enough nerve to do anything about it.

Colby's arrived. Good. Perhaps she could help.

Naomi collapsed. That's bad. But why? What was bad? What was collapse? Words were starting to lose their meaning. Without his other half, he lacked part of his soul. A soul he'd already sold once, now severed, it seemed the world around him was losing definition just as he was. Or maybe he just wasn't able to perceive it any longer.

His vision began to dim. A light... But what... is it... A woman? From... Where... How...?

With the last of his ability to concentrate he poured all of his energy into a final gesture. He urged to frail form of the woman to reach out. A small, thin arm, extended toward the trap that held his other half, grasping, yearning.

Then, everything went dark. Russell collapsed, and all was nothingness...

[SalmonMax]

Sigil wasn't sure what she'd been expecting. She'd been prepared for the world to be different than the vague shadows in her memory. Time moved in the Marches, but slowly and erratically. The years of her reign would have been multiplied here.

But this.

Lights floated in the air, casting shadows from hulking things of stone that were too regular to be natural, but too BIG to be buildings. The people around her had all the appearance of human beings, but their reactions were...strange. As if people appearing from the Mists were commonplace.

The girl who moved quickly had been rude, but Sigil was not inclined to pursue that at the moment. Another girl had simply fainted...she seemed young for a mortal though, and was perhaps not as jaded. The other girl, sick on the ground, tended to by the first, reached out towards the device on the ground by Sigil, then also collapsed.

She looked down and spied a small metal cylinder. Utterly unremarkable, but she could feel there was power in it. Not...magical, not exactly. More like during a thunderstorm, in the spot lightning had just struck. Little pinpricks over the skin.

Then the sickly girl was the wizard, perhaps. The gown she wore implied as much. Its color; white...a white wizard then. A stroke of luck. She hadn't been pleased at the prospect of materializing in a diagram in a necromancer's laboratory, but it was still better than the Mists.

Briskly, Sigil scooped up the can, wincing when arcs of lightning crawled from it over her hand briefly, discharging through her. But only once, and it was over. If it had been a protective spell, it hadn't been much to speak of.

"Mortals," she said, addressing the girl near the fallen wizard and the one near the flashing lights in her rich brogue. "I am Sigil, once and future Queen of Summer. I will need accomodations for the evening. If one of you will show me the nearest inn, I will show my appreciation."

[Heritage]

Russell and Naomi weren't the only two out fo the count; young Mr. Guzzman, the teeanger who'd brought everyone over to this particular stretch of alley, was also kind enough to pass out. That left Blitz, Bo, Colby and the new arriaval alert and oriented. Not that anyone really had an idea what was going on.

Colby, ever the professional, finally started to process some of the insanity; the first thing she did was put away her gun. 'Uh, okay, so we have multiple situations going on." She pulled out her Nokia and called in. "Dispatch, this Detective Colby; what's my ETA on that ambulance?" bee-deep

"It should be there in less than two minutes, detective." bee-deep

"Ten-four, dispatch. Please notify the EMTs that we have a biohazard situation, possible TB, and that they take all precautions. Do you copy?" bee-deep

"Copy that, detective." bee-deep

Colby tucked away her phone and started to approach Blitz and 'Russ' with her hands out.

"Blitz, honey, I know you probably don't want to, but you need to step away from the, uh,...Russ...lady."

Then she blinked. "Hold on a sec." She dug into her jacket pocket and tossed her car keys towards the young speedster. "I have sample collection kit in the trunk; it's got face masks and prophylatic gloves. Hand 'em out to everyone." Then her eyes flicked to the newcomer. "Or at least, all the locals. Bo, is Naomi concussed?"

The normally gragarious Texan was still speachless frrom all that was going on, his glazed eyes still trying to take it all in; Colby shpoke sharply. "Stalwart Beta, is your teammate concussed?"

That snapped him out of it. "Uh, yeah, she might be; I'll tend to her."

As the former crimefighter limped over to the fallen teen, Colby finally focused her attention on Sigil.

"Mortals," she said, addressing the girl near the fallen wizard and the one near the flashing lights in her rich brogue. "I am Sigil, once and future Queen of Summer. I will need accomodations for the evening. If one of you will show me the nearest inn, I will show my appreciation."

"Uh, well, your majesty, welcome to the mortal plane." She held a hand over her heart. "I am Detective Morena Colby of the Lake City Police Department, the local...city watch, you might say. And I'm also a witch of some ability." She took a long slow breath. "To be homest, I've had some dealings with the Winter Court; not all so positive, I'm afraid. We'd, uh..." She looked around. "We'd be happy to put you up for a while, but we've got some dark magic we have to deal with first, if that's alright."

[SalmonMax]

Whatever relief Sigil might have felt at hearing some proper manners was almost instantly dispelled on hearing tell of the Winter here. The chill that ran down her spine had nothing to do with weather.

It's too soon! But...it could be someone other than her. Someone from deeper in Twilight...but how would they get here?

She strode over to Detective Colby.

"The Winter Court is here? Have they always been here? Stragglers from when the silver paths closed? Or did they arrive recently?"

She glanced around at the woman in white, with the girl huddling over her. Yes, that smell was dark magic. A curse most likely. Maybe the white gown was misleading after all. Well, that wasn't her problem. Dealing with dark magic, either to promote it or dispel it, was witches work.

Unless...

"As for the dark magic, let me know if you need a hand." She smiled; a perfectly friendly smile that anyone who understood fey wouldn't trust for a second. "I could use someone to show me around the world. It's changed considerably more than I expected."

[Heritage]

"The Winter Court is here? Have they always been here? Stragglers from when the silver paths closed? Or did they arrive recently?"

Colby shrugged and laughed half-heartedly. "Well, perhaps I should clarify; there's a vigilante in our city known as 'Grimalkin'. Used to be a good guy, actually, and a damn good one; helped the, uh, 'city guard' a lot. Anyway, she was born human, but became transformed into a dark fae by powers I'm not a hundred percent sure of; she doesn't talk about it much." Looking down at the small charred can in Sigil's hand, she cocked an eyebrow and pointed at it. "Actually, can I have that? There's an infernal ghost trapped in there, as well as some sort of totem animal I think we need to get out somehow..."

"As for the dark magic, let me know if you need a hand." She smiled; a perfectly friendly smile that anyone who understood fey wouldn't trust for a second. "I could use someone to show me around the world. It's changed considerably more than I expected."

The world-weary detective gestured at the Special Deputies. "Well, we'll do what we can do, y'know? Hey, what do you know about transformation curses?" She indicated the woman in the white dress with a jerk of her head. "She used to be a man before the ghost got her; now he's a girl with several very bad diseases coursing through her body."

Just then, the ambulance with the paramedics arrived, the flashing lights and siren loud and jarring; the EMTs took one look at the situation, then shook their heads. "Jesus, Colby; you guys really do get the weirdest shit in EC, doncha?" They slipped on their masks and gloves and pulled the gurney out.

[Superball]

Bo opened Naomi's helmet. Her makeshift bandages looked like there was some more bleeding since she had worked on her head injury. He pulls out some smelling salts and hopes her concussion wasn't something more severe when Naomi's eyes opened.

"Ohh... I think... I... I might nead to... head home I..."

She resisted the urge to hold her head. "Bo, Got a spare facemask?"

Bo nodded, handing over a facemask, although with the way the rest of her suit was designed, she pretty much was wearing a biohazard suit.

"Luckily I was far enough... away where I've not had... contact with Russel. Help me up here."

"Remember where you are?"

"Yeah... the alley, that was where we were dealing with Strick."

"That's good... we can cover the rest once we get you back to HQ or the Hospital, your choice."

With Bo propping her up she walks over To Colby with Bo's aid. "I don't think I'll need the ambulance, but I think I'm going to need to head to base to get my suit cleaned... then I'm probably going to need some time to rest."

She pointed to her bandages on her head. "Luckily the gash here isn't needing stitches."

"My head's still ringing though. I'm seeing Faries now?"

Colby nodded. "That is a Fairy, Naomi..."

"Well... then this concussion isn't that bad... That... and I should consider redesigning the front faceplate to have better transparency."

Naomi nodded to Sigil. "Well whoever you are, welcome to Earth."

[SalmonMax]

Sigil eyed Colby appraisingly, then held the can out for her to take.

"A token of my goodwill then. You may have this. As for curses, yes...I can help. But that aid I will not simply give away. You, or someone else here, must..."

She broke off as an ambulance pulled up in front of the alleyway, wailing and flashing. The fey ex-queen's face hardened and she lifted her wand towards it...fortunately pausing long enough to see that people were getting out. People that Colby seemed to know. They weren't armed or wearing armor...perhaps members of her coven, though in her day witches had been a good deal more subtle in their appearance.

Sigil glanced over at Naomi as she awoke, but without any real interest. Just noting her return to consciousness.

Since it had been Colby who had communicated most meaningfully with her so far, it was Colby she finally resumed speaking to.

"It doesn't matter what he was turned into...sever the magic, and he will be himself again, as he was before the curse was laid. I can do this. But I need a small assurance; a trifle really, considering the difficulty of the task for mortal magic."

"One of you...any one will do...must agree to attend me for a turning of the moon. I don't have time, or desire, to fumble my way through an unfamiliar world. Therefore I need help."

She looked back at Naomi, nodding as she was greeted. "Which of you will help me, so that your friend may be free?"