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2017 was a confusing time to be alive. It almost seemed at times that reality was starting to collapse on itself. The truth no longer seemed to matter, and facts could be fabricated out of pure fiction. This is the sort of thing that Aloysius thrived on. It was his bread and butter. With enough intellect and cunning a person could twist this political landscape to their will, and Aloysius planned to do just that. He wasn't after much: just the total domination of humanity would do and to him, this would be a walk in the park. But all revolutions had to happen somewhere. Every revolution starts with a spark.

Aloysius had left his chauffeur on a bridge several hundred metres away, telling him to call his family, or just do something to occupy himself while Aloysius got himself some fresh air. This wasn't the case though. Aloysius didn't need air, he just needed to get away for some mischief. Walking down a trail that splintered off from the road, Aloysius eventually found himself at the crest of a hill, looking down on a railway track that ran through the National Park and into Washington DC. Looking over to the other side of the tracks something he noticed bought a grin to his smug lithe lips. Just as he had foreseen, a group of naturists were producing a documentary on the damage the railway was doing to the ecosystem of the park. Aloysius should know, he was the one who funded the documentary. Unlike these hippies, Aloysius couldn't give two flying fucks about the park. Tress were tress as far as he was concerned. He just needed the camera to be there.

Aloysius moved over to the side of the trail, approaching the highest point in the crest of the hill and sat himself down on a dull grey rock. He then reached into the pocket of his tan brown leather jacket and pulled out a brass pocket watch. He rubbed his fingers along its outer shell, taking a moment to admire the engraved serpent that adorned its surface. He would then open it and check the time: only a few minutes left it seemed. Aloysius would take a deep breath, he knew how important this was. This was the beginning. He couldn't afford to mess this one up.

In exactly two minutes, a train was due to pass right through here heading for the capital. It was private train that housed several business men and low tier politicians. No one of import. No one that would be missed, but important enough for Aloysius to make a quiet statement. This was certainly going to get noticed. Sliding the pocket watch back into his leather jacket he observed the camera crew and the documentary presenter, standing there idly and talking about something to do with nature, Aloysius couldn't hear her and he didn't care. He did however hear the train coming. Standing up, Aloysius began to focus on the railway tracks. Here, timing and focus were key. He needed to strike at the right time, but also with enough power to cause some damage, but at the same time, not too much damage. Balance was key here.

The train was finally in sight, and Aloysius was ready to strike. He curled his fingers upwards in his left arm, making sure his arm was dangled down normally, not to attract attention. It looked stupid holding your arm out to call your power. Milliseconds after moving his fingers, a large gust of category 3 wind suddenly picked up underneath the train lifting it off the tracks and causing it to barrel roll off the tracks. The links between the carriages quickly shattered and each one became a bouncing projectile, the contents inside, no doubt killed or seriously injured as each rotation crushed the trains bodies more and more. The train eventually stopped moving, and the presenter who had been talking hadn't managed to escape the chaos, her body getting crushed by one of the carriages, directly on camera.

Aloysius observed the destruction he had wrought. His eyes scanning the wreckage for any survivors. His eyes managed to lock onto a cameraman who had survived. That was good. He wanted someone to survive. Someone had to send the video to the media. The panicked male rushed for his camera, surveying the wreckage as he tried to help his already long gone friends. With his work done, Aloysius turned on his heels and left, the grin he had previously now growing into a full blown smirk. The arrogant leader was in a state of euphoria. The rush of victory was like a drug to him.

Something he hadn't counted on however was that the camera had managed to catch him smirking, walking around and leaving. Granted it was only a few pixels in the corner of the screen. But that was evidence enough to people who knew what they were looking for. Sure, Law enforcement would have no clue but there were other people out there who were keeping a close eye on Aloysius's actions. Walking back along the dirt trail, Aloysius eventually found himself back onto the road where he had abandoned his chauffeur. His chauffeur immediately started talking the second Aloysius had gotten into earshot with his broad New York accent

"Where the heck you been!? i was bout to start calling the cops to find you" Aloysius would sigh and raise his arm to try and calm the rather panicked male infront of him. Before Aloysius could actually say anything a ringing noise came from his pocket. letting out a sigh he put his hand in his pocket and pulled out his mobile phone. Looking at the caller ID only caused his sigh to get louder, the chauffeur backing off and getting back into the black Jaguar when he saw Aloysius's increasingly annoyed expression. He would answer the call, raising the phone to his ear.

"Ah, Mothers Lapdog, what has got you calling me?" Aloysius started the conversation. He was never a fan of his mothers PA. She was a bitch to the 'n'th degree, always using her condescending, non-approving tone when talking to Aloysius.

"Mrs Leighton asked me to call you" She started, not sounding impressed by tone that Aloysius had used. "She wanted me to remind you that you are having dinner tonight with the Speaker of the House at The Lafayette inside The Hay-Adams. You are then staying there for the night and then heading back to New York."

"It is almost like you are telling me what to do." Aloysius retorted.

"I am. Your mother is working hard to help maintain her political power and business contacts. You are a very useful tool for this purpose. Just don't be late." With that the woman hung up, leaving Aloysius talking to himself. Putting the phone away, Aloysius walked to the backdoor of the car and opened it, observing the forest around him one more time before climbing into the car, his body almost melting into the white leather interior. Closing the door once he was inside Aloysius sighed once more, the Chauffeur quick to speak.

"I am guessing that was Miss Perry? Reminding us we have a job to do?"

"Got that right." Aloysius would lean back in the leather seat and let out a chuckle "We need to keep heading for DC." Running his hand through his hair he would look out of the window as the car began to take off. "We are going to a hotel just outside Lafayette Park. I have a dinner date with Politicians tonight at the hotel restaurant. Then i am heading out to New York in the morning"

"Guessing then you need me to find myself some place to stay for the night?" The chauffeur asked.

"Nah, it is OK. My mother has arranged for the Jet to take me to New York in the morning. Once you have dropped me off you can make your way back to New York. Don't worry about picking me up when i land either, you just park the car at the airport and i can drive home." Aloysius would pull out his phone once more and open up WhatsApp. He had a group chat that he had created with all the members of the Dark Shadow in it. He would twiddle his thumbs as he began to send a message:

Lana is anything but a morning person, so when her alarm started blaring at five in the morning, it was no surprise that she got annoyed and practically threw the blasted thing against the wall. It was a good thing those things were cheap, because that was the third one she had broken in the span of a week. It was beyond her as to why the store she worked at opened at six in the morning, but she couldn't complain. They were the only store out of the three that she had applied to that would accept her, and she had to pay the bills and her rent somehow. A supermarket clerk's wage was nothing to admire, and couldn't afford anything more than a shabby little apartment, where all the rooms were crammed into one, save the bathroom and a wardrobe. That wasn't so bad for someone living on their own though, like she was. It also managed to keep the food on the table, the lights on, the water clean and hot, and a roof over her head, so it was more than enough as far as she was concerned.

Once the room had fallen quiet again, the green haired female was given the opportunity to lay in bed for a moment and gather her thoughts. Her head was pounding and her mind was fuzzy, no doubt from how much she had drunk the night before. She didn't recall much, if anything, of what happened, but she knew it had to have been fun. Still, a hangover wasn't very pleasant to have to deal with, especially when she had work in less than an hour. That was her own fault though, and just like every other time it happened, she would have to push through it. Lana would allow herself another few minutes to lay in bed, before she finally decided to get up.

One of the convenient things of living in such a cozy apartment was the fact that her bathroom was only a few steps away from her bed. After a nice how shower, and a cup of coffee, as well as a fresh new change of clothes, Lana was ready to go. Before she headed out the door, she went through the list she had in her head of items she needed that day. Phone? Check. Keys? Check. Wallet? Check. Earphones? Check. With everything accounted for, all she needed to do was slip on her shoes and she was on her way. Obviously, making sure to lock her door as she left.

Having no money to afford a vehicle of her own, Lana was forced to take the subway to work, which is where her phone and earphones came in handy. The music blasting through her ears offered her some solace from the strangers around her, as well of warding off anyone looking to make small talk. It was either that or the semi-permanent scowl she wore on her face. Either way, she avoided it, and that made her happy.

Thankfully the store she worked at wasn't far from her apartment, only about twenty minutes between them, so she wouldn't have to stay on the over crowded subway for long. As soon as she got to her stop, she slipped her way through the crowds of people coming and going in all directions, and walked at a brisk pace towards her destination.

She arrived at 6:00 am on the dot, which was usual for her, because she was always punctual. Unfortunately her manager, and the one with the keys to the store, was always late. She could of course unlock the door herself, but that would only serve to raise suspicion, so she was forced to wait out in the cold instead. It was rather frustrating to have to work with someone so incompetent. But aside from quitting, there wasn't much she could do, and since she needed the job, she had no choice to put up with it. At least the cool morning air was refreshing, which helped to ease her headache a little.

By the time her manager had arrived, a whole quarter of an hour had passed. A couple more employees had shown up in that time, and were quietly talking amongst themselves in a small group off to the side. Though they had tried several times to converse with her, she had shown them she wasn'tinterested, so they no longer bothered aside from an occasional greeting. Lana wasn't one for pleasentries, but considering she had to work a whole eight hour shift with these people, she figured it would do her some good to keep things at least civil between them, so she would make sure to return their greetings with one of her own.

Once she was inside, she was able to relax a little. It was warmer indoors, fortunately, though the air wasn't nearly as refreshing. After taking a moment to adjust, Lana would head straight for the staff room so she could change into her uniform, before getting into her work stocking the shelves. She didn't have the patience to work the register, or the door, so she avoided those tasks as much as possible.

-Small time skip to a few hours later-

A few hours passed, and Lana was in the middle of a break when she got a notification from her phone. She didn't talk to very many people, so she already had an idea of who it would be from, but that didn't help to stop the sigh or the frown that came from seeing his name next to the message which read: "The plan is in motion. Meet at Base Tomorrow Night for full meeting. Don't be late or miss it if you value your life."

"Charming." Lana scoffed after she was done reading what Aloysius had sent to the Dark Shadow group chat. She would then lock her phone and slip it back into the pocket of her jeans from which she had received it. By that time her break was over, and she would -reluctantly- return to work.

She skipped down the street humming to herself, New York was a very big city, it was very easy to lose one little girl. She dropped her cigarette on the ground and blew out the noxius fumes. Her eyes wide in almost childlike innocence, but to those that knew the young woman, was aware she was anything but innocent. She cut through an alley on her way to Wall Street and her shadow followed her.

"Hey, look I will sate you soon I promise." She said to her shadow. She timed this perfectly, all the fat cats who are robbing the world were on their way to lunch. Circe walked through the busy crowd of men and women, most talking on their phones rushing to where ever their meaningless lives dictated. She walked through the crowd, like she was a boat on water. Circe's hands slipped into coats, and back pockets, into purses, and handbags. Pulling out wallets and coin bags, money clips, and credit cards.

She put everything in her pockets and weaved through the crowd. As she picked the last pocket a police officer turned the corner and spotted her. He called out to her and began running over. Circe smiled widly and took off running, the police officer gave chase as she ran through the crowd. Circe knocked people down to slow the officer down, and was met with many yelps of shock and surprise. She eventually ran down a side street and turned to a dead end. She leaned against the wall waiting for the officer to catch up. Eventually the man turned the corner, a little winded and locked eyes with her.

"No where left to run!! Your under arrest, for being a pick pocket!!" The officer pulled out his gun and hand cuffs and started walking towards her.

"Yes, yes, I know!! Hehehehehe, he fell right into it!! I told you I would take care of you baby. Now his blood shall feed you, hehehehehe!!" The young woman said to her shadow. Confused the man looked around and saw no one else in the alleyway. When he looked back, Circe was sporting two short swords made of darkness.

"Dispatch, this is Colleen's, I have a possible code 1096, please advise. Repeat, I have a possible mentally unstable individual, send back-up." He backed up slowly and bumped into a smooth surface, he checked behind and realized he backed into a black wall. His eyes frantically searched for an exit and realized that the mage put the wall there. Circe closed in to the man and he pointed his gun ready to shoot. One of the swords cut into his leg and he cried out in pain.

"See, see, see?? It's time lovely!! Hehehehehehehe, we have a new toy to play with, and I always love a man in uniform!! Hehehehehehehehe." She disarmed the man without a thought and went to work on him.

~Some time later~

Circe was rubbing the man's blood on her shadow, when her phone went off. She cleaned her hands off and grabbed her phone and read the message from Aloysuis.

"The plan is in motion. Meet at base tomorrow night for full meeting. Don't be late or miss it if you value your life." It was happening!! Circe was so excited she could barely contain herself!! She laughed, and danced around the bloody alley. Going as far as taking the police man's hat and wearing it. Her shadow wall lowered and she skipped out of the alley still wearing the hat, fun things where coming!! And she would have a bunch of new toys to play with!!

Salem de Silva

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Just like so many others in the large city, Salem woke to the sound of her alarm the second that the clock struck eight. She rolled over with a groan, hitting the button to make the annoying sound stop as she flopped her face into the pillow. She was comfortable in her bed, and the last thing that she wanted to do this morning was remove herself from the warm cocoon of blankets that she was currently wrapped in. But no matter how much she didn't want to do so, she had to go out into the world and adult. She had a normal mundane job that expected her to do as she promised, and then there was the Guild - she couldn't let them down under any circumstances.

So, with an irritated look on her face, she would toss the covers off, exposing herself to the cold air. The moment her feet hit the floor, she was sent into the motions of her morning routine. Pulling her hair back into a messy pony-tail, she proceeded to walk down the hallway of her apartment and find herself in the bathroom. Salem turned on the hot water, allowing it to warm up before she adjusted it to the right temperature. Stripping down, she would take her time with her shower, letting the hot water relax her. All to soon it was over. Yet another moment of comfort that she couldn't stay in forever. She got out, wrapped herself in a towel and walked back to her room, where she would throw open the door to her closet, trying to figure out what to wear today. She settled for a comfy gray t-shirt with a skull design, black skinny jeans and white converse high-tops. The woman towel dried her hair and quickly brushed it before pulling it up once more. Not the most extravagant outfit, but having a job as a waitress, she dressed for comfort, not to be fancy. She finished up her morning routine. Brush her teeth, eat some cereal (Luck Charms, of course, her favorite), grab her phone and earbuds off the counter and then she was out the door.

For Salem, it was easier to walk the three blocks to Huskers than it was to try and catch a cab. Why waist ten buck to be stuck in the car with an angry stranger? If there was one thing everyone living in the metropolis could agree on, it was that New York City traffic was a living nightmare. So off she went, walking down the familiar sidewalk path that she took just about every day. She was lucky enough to get the earlier shift at the restaurant. It was Friday, and she wasn't up for dealing with the parties of drunk people that came in - now matter how well they tipped. Her phone buzzed silently in her back pocket as this mornings various notifications came through. I'll check them later. After all, there was nothing to important going on right now. Hopefully.

Reaching her destination, the blue haired girl would push open the glass door to find herself in a familiar surrounding. The hard wood floors, the bright lights, the bar and the soft sounds of pots and pans clinging coming from the kitchen - it made her happy. The atmosphere of Huskers was something great, and any local could tell you that. Though the Bar and Grill didn't open until eleven, Salem came in early to help get everything ready for the day. She made her way to the back before slipping her apron over her neck and tying it around her waist. She would feel someone nudge her gently as they made their way by. She tensed, unable to help her natural reaction. When she looked up and seen Jaspers - the other waiter - goofy grin, she would relax. "What's up, Jazz?"

"Oh, you know, same as you, Em. Slaving away at a nine to five trying to make my way in the world."

Salem rolled her eyes in response, and gave him a slight nod of her head. She made her way back to the front room before she started taking the chairs off the tables and putting them in their usual places.



The restaurant was buzzing with the early four o'clock dinner crowd, nearly every seat in the building filled with a patron. Some were there for the beer, others for the steak, and some for the mere company that the workers and other customers provided. The TV above the bar was on the evening news, the volume just loud enough where you could tell that the news reporter was talking, though you couldn't hear what he was saying over the hustle and bustle of the crowd. Judging by the video that they kept flicking over to, there was a train wreck. The caption mentioned something about low-level politicians and civilian injuries, as well as deaths. "Hey Hus," she said in the direction of the restaurant owner/bar keep "Turn that up a bit, would ya?" The older man did as such.

"Breaking news. A train headed for the states capitol for tomorrows legislation meeting has been derailed, killing three people that we know of. One was a member of the camera crew that was on site, the other a civilian, and last, but not least, John Sinclair, a man who has served our government for many years. At this time, law officials have nothing to report to us as on what caused the train to apparently flip onto it side, derailing from the tracks. We'll update you with more information as we discover more facts through out the afternoon."

Salems arms were folded across her chest, a million thoughts running through her head as they played the clip once more. The train seemed to be running smoothly before the accident. And then ,suddenly, like the news caster said, it just seemed to tip over and fall off the rails. Maybe it was the fact that she was on the look out for any suspicious activity that would point to the Dark Shadow allegiance, seeing as there had been no reports of activity from them for months. Some of the elder members of the Guild were gullible enough to believe that maybe that maybe they had given up. Salem knew better. She stared at the screen doing her best to gather in every movement that she could from the scene. That was when she seen a brown haired figure in the corner of the screen. It could be her paranoia, but Salem was all but sure that she recognized the person walking off camera. She walked towards the back of the restaurant for the millionth time today, and pulled out her phone, opening the group chat that had her and the other Guild members in it.

---

---

"Welcome one and all to the magnificent Wonderland of Delights!" A beautiful voice called out to the entering family into the large toy and candy store. The sweet sing song voice came from a rather small polar bear wearing a red and white striped apron. Despite her incredible performance it wasn't actually a polar bear that was able to talk, but little Aliira wearing a costume. Aliira was only around five feet and five inches tall with a petite frame so she was the only one small enough to wear the costume, which she absolutely loved. It was truly a match made in heaven for Aliira.

Aliira practically danced up to the family who had entered the shop, moving effortlessly in the fuzzy costume. "Welcome, welcome!" She sang as she approached, crouching a little to get in eye line of the children. (Which if she is being honest wasn't much of a crouch...) The two children's, one boy and one girl, eyes lit up with excitement as they saw the signature figure of the establishment approach. "Why I hope you kept your appetite. As you explore this wonderful world you may taste many amazing sugary treats!"

The children frowned a little, "Our parent's told us we had to eat all our vegetables before we could come...." They practically whined.

Aliira gasped, fuzzy paws covering the mouth of the costume. "Did you not know!?" She spoke as if it were some secret knowledge these kids hadn't learned. As the children shook their heads confused Aliira continued. "Well let me share a little secret..." Her voice trailed off, looking either way as if to check if devious ears might hear the secret. She then leaned in closer

"Vegetables actually make candy taste better." She whispered the most secret of secrets. The kids seemed a bit in disbelief. "Oh, you don't believe me? Here, try this." She stated before stuffing her pawed hands into the pocket of her apron and produced two salt water taffies, holding them out to the two.

The eagerly took the candy, eager to find out the validity of the bears words. Quickly unwrapping the taffies they threw them in their mouths and began to chew. Their eyes lit up as they sweet candy coated their taste. They whispered back and forth in disbelief it was actually true. Aliira stood up tall (figuratively) and put her fists to her hips triumphantly. "See? Now then, remember to always eat your vegetables so your desserts taste even better!" She then looked behind the kids to their parents, they both giving her a smile in thanks.

"Come now kids, let's see the rest of the store." The parents cooed sweetly down to their children and ushered them deeper into the store. The children waved goodbye and thanked the Candy Bear, Aliira waving good bye with delightful enthusiasm.

----------Time Skip; End of shift, 6:58pm.

Aliira began to pull herself out of the costume as she stood alone in the employee changing room. She sighed in relief as the cool air hit her hot skin. Even though she absolutely loved being the store mascot she had to admit; she was not a fan of how hot the costume got throughout the day. She was only grateful that the store cleaned the costume after every shift so she didn't need to get into a gross and sweaty suit every day.

Once she was free of the costume in full she took a seat on one of the benches, taking a hand towel she had with her and padding off some of the sweat. She was wearing a casual grey tank top and some snug fitted gym shorts; her shoulder length brown hair a mess with sweat and constant tussling under the helmet of the mascot costume. She pushed her messy hair back and pinned it there with a couple of simple bobby pins. Grabbing her phone out of her bag she unlocked the screen to see she had a messaged. Opening it she gave it a quick read; 'A meeting tonight? Something must've happened...' She thought to herself as she quickly went back to her home screen and opened her news app. There, the first story on the screen. She quickly opened it and read through the details.

Her heart sank into her stomach. There's no natural reason a train would derail in such a way. Those poor souls that were lost. Why did the world have to be so ugly at times...

The day began pretty normally for Zeke, he woke up with a bed head and shook the sleep from his eyes before getting out of bed. He was perhaps up only a bit earlier that his usual, today was is first day at a new job and even though it was only temporary it wouldn't do to give a bad impression. To that end he set about getting ready in his small apartment. Having the ability to move things with your mind certainly helped to make most of the mundane things one does in life quick and easy, after a short shower he brushed his teeth as a comb ran itself through his hair, pulled on a shirt as his pants slid themselves up his legs, and threw on a jacket as his scarf wrapped itself around his neck.

Once he was ready the last thing he did was gather up his phone, wallet, keys and then he set out. His commute was easy at least, he just put his hood up in an effort to hide his facial markings and took the subway, no one payed him much mind he was just another person taking the subway in the Big Apple. He arrived at the store a few minutes after six, there he found a few of the other workers waiting for the manager. He joined the small group and introduced himself as the new guy and got a few introductions in return, save for one girl apart from the group who one of the other employees pointed out and said her name was Lana, explaining she wasn't much of a people person. After that it was just small talk to pass the time, him getting the inevitable questions about the 'tattoos' on his face, him answering with the "young and dumb" excuse. At least a few of them said it actually looked nice.

When the manager arrived and opened the store everyone went about their own work while he went with the manager for a quick rundown of what he was suppose to do. After getting oriented he got his uniform and went to the staff room to change. He was working shelves with Lana, assigned the task at least in part because of the mark on his face but the task suited him just fine. As his coworker didn't seem too keen on dealing with people he would stay out of her way. The day carried on and he'd do his job, occasionally using his power to speed things up when he was sure no one was looking, his other half staying remarkably quiet. It was around four that he felt his phone buzz in his pocket, checking it he saw the message from Salem. Even though it was short he got the feeling they weren't being called for something good. Putting his phone away he carried one for the rest of the work day.

-Later-

At the end of his workday Zeke finished with the last of his work and got back into his casual clothes. Heading quickly out the door he realized he actually still had some time before the meeting and, if he remembered correctly the restaurant Salem worked at should still be open. With a rumble from his belly reminding him that he skipped lunch he decided to head that way, not only could he grab something to eat but he could head down to headquarters with her afterwards. With that in mind he flagged down a taxi, intent on heading down to Husker's.

Ah. A normal morning. Sitting in his small apartment in New York City, the young man by the name of David was simply enjoying a cup of tea and enjoying the day off, wearing a plain t-shirt and a pair of baggy cheap blue jeans. Certainly nothing stylish, but it was cheap, comfy, and what he preferred to wear when he was relaxing at home. Well...as much as a home as he could consider it. He briefly peered around the room, making sure things were in order, before sighing in relief. His family's bible was on the table, properly maintained despite its years, everything was put away in the closet, save for a shirt or two he hadn't bother to throw in the washer yet, which sat lazily in a pile. He accepted this as good enough. He'd take care of those later, anyways.

As he finished his cup of tea, he turned on his TV screen, looking to see if anything worthwhile was on. Notably, he avoided the news, because he already had to deal with the Guild. He didn't want to hear what the newscast were spreading around. He eventually settled on something immature. Classic cartoons. He leaned back against the chair he was sitting in, closing his eyes and simply relaxing. There was no point on simply focusing on the cartoons. It was just meant to be background noise, something for his mind to focus on instead of recurring thoughts of regret and anguish. Yawning lazily, despite having woke up a mere two hours ago, David allowed himself to take a small nap. Sleep was one of the few things he enjoyed. Despite the occasional nightmare, it offered him a great deal of relief and freedom from his current situation, and his brain didn't have to dwell on it, either. And so, he dozed off, his arms and legs going limp in the chair as he didn't snore, instead breathing softly...

Until a couple of hours later, he heard his phone go off. David groaned in response to this sound, quickly waking up and sounding rather irritated. He knew all too well what this meant. Guild business. Did it always have to be guild business? Well, to be fair, it was the only reason he was given the phone. He halfway wondered if the darn phone was one of the ways they tracked him. He unlocked it after pulling it from his pocket, reading the message in question and sighing. A meeting tonight? Ten sharp? That was rather uncharacteristic with such short notice. Might be something interesting...but then again, why did he care?...Still. Aliira was likely to be there, and if he didn't show up as her guard, he might just be in some trouble with some of the same guild members that dragged him into this in the first place. He did -not- want to be punished again.

And so, he reluctantly got up, moving to his closet and pulling out a black, light jacket, putting it on and adjusting the buttons along the front of the overshirt, as well as getting his things together. Time to move out. He wasn't usually one to be so prompt, but he knew he had to be, or risk being punished again. And he did not want experience with that again. He slipped on a black pair of tennis shoes, before making his way out the door. At least he wouldn't be considered late this time.

"Time's Up." A fatherly voice announced, rich with the twinges of Irish in his English. The ringing of the timer at his desk silenced by a hand tapping the button. The classroom shuffled before the whiteboards, last minute answers changed past the final bell, the fate of those few remaining sealed as they approached the front desk. Those who took this long were either unprepared, doubters, or scared, the stragglers who took the entire two and a half hours allotted for the exam. It was a fair cop, neither too tricky nor to easy to breeze by, and yet there were always a few students who never stood by their own work. For those afraid to let go of their papers, slow in stride and shaking as their fingers were pried off each page and gingerly placed upon the desk with the other piles, they'd need to get over their irrational fears and grow a spine. Don't they know life is just a long series of tests? Waking up everyday is the challenge, and this wasn't even the hardest of the three exams they will take this year. Then there were the doubters, those who held themselves back as they frantically changed their answers at the desk, their brilliance restrained by some strange delusion that they are wrong when they are right. Honestly in a way they were worse than the stiff-fingered cowards, since doubting yourself is merely just fearing your own self, and not believing in yourself is almost as the last of the lot. The Unprepared, those who surely did not care to learn anything, and depended on the work of others to claim something that did not belong to them. These were the worst, societal parasites who did not belong within the ranks of the talented and gifted, no they did not deserve to be waiting in the same line with their smug grins concealing their cheating eyes.

"Remember, the next lecture in is two weeks, so go enjoy yourselves a break while you can." Just as one chapter ends, a new one begins. Such was the cyclic nature of life, stretching into eternity, for at the end of every era and age, something else must rise. It was the same with how the age of reason and science paved the way for the return to romantic mysticism and superstition. Perhaps it was for the idyllic nostalgia that society shifted from one to the next, never quite satisfied with the progress which urged them forward into the future, while their roots anchor to tether them in their deep past. It was this internal struggle that set the stage for how the world worked, each revolution merely a rebirth of one predominant phase before the next counterrevolution. And he knew of cycles, far beyond an ordinary professor of biology would. For a man who died seven times so far, Rufus looked remarkable well, only bearing the faint suggestion of a scar across his right eye, and a bit of a limp as his gloved left hand carried his cane about him as he stalked the rows during the exam. For a man who had lived nearly two centuries, he looked good considering he appeared somewhere in his 60's as his grey hair was slicked back neatly with the gaunt features of his wrinkling proctor's eyes. There was more to the professor than his students know, the rumors perhaps that he was part of a war or something worse. The scar was real, but the limp was fake.

"Except for you, Mr. Anderson. Stay here for a minute." An ungloved hand placed heavily upon the young man's shoulder. There was a jolt, a twitch, a cheater's nip. They both knew this would not end well, but alas the fingers gripped tighter to finger the dishonored. Still the boy tried to wrestle away, and deny his guilt, but alas it was written across his face and more so the exam. Singled out for his act, and forced down to sit upon the desk. The scowl of the professor, looking dead into his darting eyes, looking for an exit, any exit like the rat he was. But Rufus would not let the student scurry away, not while his unwitting prey failed his test. How was it possible that a senior citizen- "Tell me, Mr. Anderson... What good is an exam... If you're unable to learn anything from it?" This was surreal was it not? An experience to be felt and seen, but perhaps it was a trip, but it seemed by the minute the professor looked younger, his grey hair turning darker, the wrinkles flattening out to a fierce look. And all the while the cheater felt weaker, drained of his energy as though he had just ran across the campus. His vision became blurrier, the hard desk gave no support to his back, his hairline receded. Receded? Alas, looking down in horror to see the changes. It was impossible, how was it? The digital numbers on the timer had stopped, the blinking counters paused as if the batteries suddenly decided to malfunction. And yet here he was aging, rapidly as someone unrecognizable if it were not for the scar over his eye stared at him. "Goodbye, Mr. Anderson."

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Lines. How he detested waiting in lines. Perhaps it was because a Time Keeper never waited, but rather be waited upon. As such there was a fundamental abhorrence towards standing around in queue, to people used to controlling the passage of time waiting was an insult. And waiting with these nonmagi? Certainly had he not recently engorged himself on three decades of life within the last week, Rufus may have been willing to act the angry old codger, yet in his current state, the man looked more like a yuppie dressed in his monkey suit. A few locks of hair escaping the orderly comb with an upper-class frown with each step closer among the uncouth masses. Older than his students, but certainly younger than the usual folk who came in and out to do banking business at this hour. Ahead of him a widow collecting her pension, ahead of her was a balding man looking for a loan, and at the kiosk was some fool no doubt withdrawing his riches for a transfer. It mattered not, Rufus would wait for now, because yesterday the dawn finally broke.

It was plastered all over the news, as such panic and pandemonium often did, milked of all the chaos and disturbance the ripples had. Even now in the lobby the networks tried to explain the facts, reviewing the data and grasp at the message of fear that seemed to dominate the news. It was how humans were kept in control after all, they were trained fear from a very young age, fear of abandonment and neglect was first, as a infant had no way to fend and feed itself at birth. Then once a child could act for itself, punishment and retribution was the next to fear, as its choices became weighed with trade offs of pleasure or pain. Then the mind evolved once more to consider the morality of its acts, the fictional concepts of good and evil conceived to justify the fear preceding. And finally, the maturity of fear into us and them, when the mind realizes the similarities and the dissimilarities, the great ability to compare and judge: the fear of the adversarial Other. It was psychologically ingrained, behaviors learned through growth and development, it was once fear of ruination that had once united the tribes and woe the war, now it is the morality of the Guild that kept the status quo of bitter peace, but soon it shall be the fear of the Dark Shadows that shall rise in persecution of the nonmagi.

The Boy finally did it. He first act of magical terrorism, brings back some memories of home. Such times they were, but surely the piping windbag had no idea what he just started. A series of events which would fall upon them all, it was finally time, and Rufus wondered if he should have gone with him. Timing was always the hard part, sure there was a few minutes in the interval window to have derailed the train, and should the boy hesitate or miscalculate, the old Time Keeper could always slow the passage of time to ease the skill required of timing the blow. But there was nothing Rufus could do to help the boy pick his timing. This was a choice the leader of the Dark Shadows had to make, the decision to stop suckling on his mother's breast and hiding in her shadow. It was time he stepped into the world a man and claim his stake in the world, now the world shall test him in reply to see what sort of man he was. Hopefully he would not be a disappointment as Mr. Anderson was, which is to say Rufus was a man of high expectations. A few dead, the nation searching for the enemy, and by now probably the ever-infuriating Guild. Ah, summoned to the kiosk, the call for next in line seemed far more polite than: Meet at base tomorrow night for full meeting. Don't be late or miss it if you value your life.

"Safety deposit please. MacFly. Martin MacFly. My papers." A curt nod at the teller behind the counter. A journey into the vault to retrieve an item just for this occasion. Tonight of all nights on a Wednesday evening, summoned to gather at the place to be to discuss where things go from here no doubt. And for this Rufus would need to come prepared for such an occasion, given the tenacity of their little society of sociopaths. A wise man would bring something to subdue them all with as two keys were inserted into the dusty metal box. A lifetime of treasures contained in a single bin? Perhaps not, but certainly for the persona of Martin MacFly, there was a wooden box waiting for him that filled most of the container. A treasured item no doubt, perhaps some ancient artifact or relic of great magical power that would suppress even the strongest of mages. No matter how powerful a man was, no one could stand against what legendary magic Rufus gingerly lifted box and all, held close to his chest. "Thank you, that'll be all for today."

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A collab between @HaleyTheRandom, @Grape. @PureHeroine, @Zetsuko, @Zakattacks, & @Strange Rodent
Location: Guild Headquarters.
Time: 10 pm.

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Salem had finished her work in the life of the mundane, and was currently at the Guild headquarters, sitting in a tall wooden chair at the center of the ‘stage.’ The chair was something as old as the guild itself, the shape of each of the previous Leaders marks carved into it. Salem’s was located on the very end of the right arm rest. She traced the shape with her finger, waiting on the others to arrive. The young woman was always sure to be early to her own meetings. If her members were expected to be punctual, then so was she. After she had got done with work, she had gone back to her apartment and researched everything that she could on today's train accident. She watched the clip over and over before confirming her suspicions: Aloysius was to blame. There was no way that you could deny the smirk on the mans face as he walked off camera, and there was no doubt in her mind that this was leading to some plan that was much greater. So there she sat, thoughts swirling in her head as she watched the first of the clan arrive.

Elizabeth wasn't one to sit still for very long, when she wasn't working as a receptionist at the local clinic, she was out partying or finding something else just as fun to do, and that day was no exception. Since it was still light out, clubbing was out of the picture, so Lizzie decided she would head down to an old abandoned warehouse she used to hang out in, and get in some more practice with her powers; after checking no one else was around of course. Before she knew it, the day was coming to an end. She had worked up quite the appetite and was on her way to go get something to eat when she got a notification from The Guild's group chat. It was from Salem, asking them all to meet back at headquarters, meaning something big must have happened. Lizzie decided it would be best to head back as soon as possible, but since she was still hungry she decided to grab some take out on the way. Elizabeth would arrive a few minutes after Salem had, drink still in hand. The meeting hadn't officially started, so she figured it would be okay to sip away at it while waiting for the others to arrive.

Augie was woken by the buzzing of his phone. Obviously he had been pissfaced last night, because he had a killer hangover and his phone was on. He usually left it off so that this exact thing wouldn’t happen. Begrudgingly, he rolled over and checked his phone. Oh fuck. It was 9:04 PM and there was a guild meeting he had to be at in an hour, and he hadn’t even started getting ready yet. He opened his drawer and pulled out his hangover remedy kit: Water, berocca, painkillers, a towel, and a glass for water. Berocca in first, then pop two painkillers in, and chug it all in one. Usually he wouldn’t, but time was running low. He moved as quickly as he could to the shower, then immediately regretted that decision as he threw his remedy up into the toilet. Well, half of it anyway. The other half got on the seat and floor. After this extremely dignified act, he ran a cold shower. He didn’t feel like standing, so he sat on the floor. Lucky for him, he wasn’t a complete slob and he’d cleaned the shower a few weeks back, so there wasn’t any mold lining it. After about ten minutes he was feeling considerably better. He dragged himself out of the shower and into some fresh clothes, and went to his fridge to raid it, but found a slice of pizza on a clothes iron and just ate that instead. He hauled arse to the train station and caught the next train in the direction of the HQ, and made it there with plenty of time to spare. He spied Lizzy in the room, and Salem up on the raised section, but apart from that he was actually unexpectedly punctual. He did his best to make himself look like he had expected to be here on time, then asked nobody in particular, ”Uh… do any of you chaps have a berocca?”.

When Zeke got to the restaurant he found that Salem had left already, but that didn't entirely thwart him. He sat down and placed an order, intend on eating and killing a bit of time until the meeting as he did. He saw the news on the TV while he ate, seeing the trainwreck from earlier in the day. A train suddenly derailing, as if by magic, did seem suspicious. Salem must have thought Dark Shadow was behind it. He felt a pang of worry for the girl, she'd lost her father to Dark Shadow and he wondered now if she would begin to see the Shadow's evil hand in everything. He pushed the thought away as soon as it came, He trusted her judgement. When he eventually finished his meal he paid and set off again to HQ. He arrived at the meeting room to find a few others already there, he gave a short nod in greeting to them as he came in before finding a seat to wait for the meeting to start.

Aliira arrived into the guild hall shortly before the beginning of the meeting; she had been doing small tasks around the guild that needed attention. As Aliira walked in she had a complacent look upon her face, no longer the perpetually joyful smile on her lips. This was a serious matter and it needed her to act as such. Though it truly wasn’t an act. Her heart hung heavy in her chest, all those poor souls lost for no reason at all. Aliira walked up the steps of the stage where the Leader and Second in Command remained during Guild meetings. Aliira was a simple dress, a soft salmon color made of elegant fabric that hugged her figure nicely down to her hips before blooming out to cascade down to just above her knees. Aliira got to the seat beside Salem, brushing the backside of her dress flat before taking a seat. She sat quiet for a moment before reaching over to Salem and taking her hand gently before giving it a supportive squeeze. Though Salem most likely realized it was Aliira who needed the support at this moment, she was definitely the weaker emotionally speaking.

Not long after Aliira arrived, David himself arrived, having managed to adjust his brown hair to be much more presentable than earlier in the day, it much more tidy and straightened out than before, still wearing a pair of baggy blue jeans, but at least managing to wear a decent-looking black overshirt with white buttons with a white undershirt. He soon moved to slowly sit beside Aliira. As a Guard, it was his job to keep her safe and watch over her, and as such, he figured he had at least enough permission to do this. Despite this, he felt a deep tension come over him as he looked towards Salem, the temptation to make a passive-aggressive quip at her rising by the second. He simply withdrew that thought from his mind after a moment, closing his eyes and reverting back to his lax, apathetic nature, soon deciding to watch the others arrive while not saying anything to Aliira quite yet. She knew how he was, and if she had anything to say to him, he was sure she would say it in time...though, to say he didn’t -want- her to talk to him would be a bit of a false assertion, as much as he hated to admit it.

Salem sat patiently, waiting for the others to arrive. She began to feel anxious, her mind running wild as always. She knew that some of her followers doubted her, no matter how loyal that they were. Was she to quick to jump to a conclusion? Perhaps that was the case. She sat up straight in the chair, crossing her right leg over her left, setting her jaw in determination. She would not start doubting herself.

The first to arrive was Elizabeth, her drink in her hand. Though Salem didn’t entirely approve, she said nothing. Then there was Augie. ”No beroccas here, my friend. Maybe you should have taken your Flinstones before coming,” she said, her tone slightly playful. Others started to arrive, the room filling quickly. Everyone knew that Salem did not like it when people were late. Salem returned Zekes nod, as she felt her mood shift towards the better as Aliira walked in. Something about having your greatest ally by your side did wonders for a person. When Li squeezed her hand, Salem returned it with a firm squeeze of reassurance herself. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Davids facial expression. She gave him a curt nod as he sat down. Taking a deep breath, she would stand and face the crowd of familiar faces before her, her hands making a fist behind her back.

”As I am sure that you all know, there was a train crash in DC today. As normal, the nomagi think that it was a technical difficulty on their end. However, I thought that something was off with the way that the train flipped, so I looked into it. I think that the Dark Shadow is to be held accountable.” She took a deep breath a the room filled with murmured questions and the sounds of people re-situating in their seats. Salem held up her hand in the air, and the room quickly feel silent again. ”I know what you’re all thinking, and I am not just jumping to conclusions. If you watch the clip of the wreck, there is nothing natural about the way that it flipped. For a split second, you can see that the train is lifted off the ground, and if you look closer, you can see Aloysius smiling as he walks off the screen. I am one-hundred percent sure that it is, indeed him. Now, as for if this leads to a bigger plan, I am not sure. All I know is that it has been quite a few months since there has been any activity from the Dark Shadow, and we should all keep a close eye on things. The topic is now open for discussion. Any questions or debates are welcome as usual.”

As the room began to fill up with other people, Elizabeth would excuse herself to go throw her empty cup in the rubbish, before quietly slipping back into the room. When she had left only Salem, Augie and Zeke had been present, however, by the time she got back, Aliira and David had arrived as well. Trying to avoid drawing any attention away from their leader and onto herself, Lizzie would take up a seat near the back of the room. The atmosphere surrounding Salem seemed pretty tense and serious, so she made sure to pay close attention.

She had to admit, given Salem’s history with Dark Shadow, it did seem like she might be jumping to conclusions, but rather than prejudging the situation herself, Lizzie decided to take out her phone and look up the news on the incident. She had her earplugs in, so as not to disturb anyone else, as she watched the video clip. She played it over a few times, paying close attention to different areas of the video each time, and sure enough she saw what Salem was talking about.

Lizzie wanted to wait and see what everyone else had to say before she decided to say anything, so after she was finished analyzing the video, she put her phone away and sat back in her chair, waiting to hear what the others had to say.

It seemed the others didn’t have much to say, which bothered Augie a bit. They were meant to be finding something out about this, and they were sitting around looking at Salem and waiting for orders. ”Uh… yeah. I have a question. When are we going to do something about this? At the least we could be down there offering support, and at the most we could use some of the guild’s vast wealth to buy a hitman or twenty. Just… anything more than sitting around and talking about it.”. His words wandered away towards the end, leaving his point dead in the air. The seconds before a reply stretched to weeks in his mind. His face swirled into confusion as he spoke in a voice inky with headache, ”Actually, why haven’t we hired a few hitmen yet?”.

”BECAUSE WE ARE THE HITMEN YOU IDIOT!” immediately after his outburst Zeke brought a fist up to cover his mouth, staying silent for a moment before moving his hand away "Sorry, but isn't this what we're supposed to handle ourselves? It's our job to stop these people even if it means killing them" he paused for a moment, making sure he didn't shout again "besides, I don't think there are many hitmen around that could handle any-err...most of us, let alone him, without magic. At best we could look into an investigator, I don't think any of us are really the best at it. All we'd need if for one to tell us where he is and what he's doing. then we come along to-kill them...ehm, catch them"

Surprise attacked Augie’s face, until realisation shielded him from that onslaught. He was still getting used to the not-Zeke part of Zeke. ”Yes, let’s do that. Something. Anything to help these people.”

Aliira remained silent as she remained seated behind Salem. Her warm brown eyes scanned the room as those in attendance voiced their concerns. As they seemed to all have spoke up Aliira pushed herself out of her seat and stepped up to stand beside Salem.

”I understand all your concerns..” Her voice trailed off, thinking of her words carefully before carrying on. ”And Zeke is correct, we are the ’hitmen’. But we must remember that if we simply go out their and hunt them down we become no better than them. Our purpose is to create harmony in this world. If we simply put our boots to the throats of anyone who opposes us we become the enemies of progress. Now, I very much agree we must do something about this. But killing indiscriminately those who do not follow our philosophy goes against what we stand for. We must come up with a plan to shut down their operations and put those that put the world in danger into custody. We have facilities that can handle these Magi. And that is where we shall put them.” Aliira instructed, her voice warm and assuring in nature. She knew not all would agree with her, she knew she was among the few that didn’t immediately jump to extermination. Though she hoped her words at least meant something to some.

David simply couldn’t help but halfway smile at Aliira’s words. Even if they were naive, he couldn’t help but admire her dedication to not be murderous or vile, in comparison to so many others in this particular organization. As such, he simply nodded to her words, which was more than what he gave others, his green eyes then slowly looking towards the others in preparation of a rebuttal. He knew they would give some excuse. This foe was too powerful to be held, and must be destroyed. Others would rise up if they didn’t make an example of this one. All sorts of excuses that they would, no doubt, toss out in time. But he said nothing. He saw no point. Anything he said would be discarded as a simple “recruit”, if not less. So he simply folded his arms, watching the others observantly.

Salem listened to all of the comments that people put forward. There was understandably a lot of mixed feelings, anger mixed in with restraint. She could understand the anger. She wanted Aloysius’s head on a pike. The thought of him lying in front of him begging for her to stop caused a rush of elation to surge through her body. Soon… so very soon.

If Aliira wasn’t standing next to her, this meeting would have gone in a different direction. Salem would be shouting at the top lungs for Aloysius head. Aiira was an important part of the Guild. She counterbalanced the more heartless decisions that Salem sometimes leaned towards. Salem wasn’t malevolent. The death of her father had left a sour taste in her mouth. She had tried so hard to keep the peace while she had been in charge, but Aloysius had always tried his best to disrupt that.

“I understand that people believe we should be careful about what action we take” She looked over to Aliira to acknowledge her. ”However, we need to take action. Aloysius is a bold leader, If we do not react he will just keep attacking with more an more daring.” A small sigh would escape her lips ” I know many of you have heard of the history between myself and Aloysius. Yes, that does make me biased, but do we not have any pride? Aloysius tried to plunge us into chaos. He murdered our former leader, my father, and thought we would collapse. We have never had a threat to us like this in modern history. If we make an example of the Dark Shadow it will send a message that the Guild is serious about keeping the peace” She decided to shut up now, her voice was starting to build up as she had given her speech, a mixture of sadness and anger combined.

And with that, David had more of his suspicions confirmed. More selfish, self-serving words. She says she wants to make an example. And it is true that it does make an example, it makes the -wrong- example. The kind where, eventually, a group would rise up against them. Even if it ensured short-term peace, more forces would grow in the shadow until it was too late. In a way, they were lucky the Dark Shadow was making waves now. Usually, he would keep these thoughts to himself. But in a way, the fact that Aliira’s idea had been thrown away had slightly ticked off the young man. Perhaps it was because it was the only one he saw merit in. And finally, for once in a great while, he spoke up, his voice calm and detached, unlike the others who had spoken thus far. “For only so long. To show such swift force is to send rats scurrying into the sewers, where they will simply multiply and then return. This is no mere criminal you’re dealing with, where destroying one would destroy all. Surely his ideals would remain, and do you not think others would continue his legacy as if he’s a martyr?” He asked, his eyes closing as he spoke further. “No. The best thing to do now is to take action, quickly, to ascertain his position and those associated with him and await a proper chance to arrest him. If we kill him violently now, you risk more like him coming to fruition, and many more innocent lives will be lost. As a recruit, I know I hold no weight, but the best thing to do, in my mind, is to send a scouting party out to the region of activity and have them blend in with normal people. I’m sure that there are those in the Guild with capabilities to sense others magic. Furthermore, if we locate them, I recommend we play our cards to our chest, so to speak. If they know we know where they are, they will hold the advantage. But if they do not, we can wait and see how things will turn to our advantage instead. Then when they reveal their nature through their actions, strike and capture them, arrest them properly, giving those with magic the proof they need to know that this was done in a proper manner so that no others with possible seeds of dissension form.” David finishes, finally sighing. “Not that I care. It just annoys me to see the Guild acting more like criminals than the protectors they say they are. And the yelling annoys me, too.” He comments with some disdain, moving to lean back in his chair and saying nothing more.

Augie facepalmed. ”As much as I hate the pretentious way you said that, I kinda have to agree. Although I disagree with what you think we should do next. I reckon we should improve our relations with the non magic users as much as possible… The Dark Shadow clearly aren’t going to, so we may as well have them on our side…”, he took a breath, and then looked straight at David, ”But seriously man, I don’t care how cranky you are. Zeke can’t control that yelling, and is higher up than you. Lay off him, yeah?”.

Sitting at the back had its advantages. No one was watching Lizzie. In her mind she was still processing the video. The video was pretty clear. Something wasn’t right. Someone was behind it. Was it Aloysius? The Dark Shadow? Possibly. There was no way to be sure. She could see that Salem was clearly passionate about this, and Lizzie could understand that. If you let a jerk at party keep being a jerk, he would eventually ruin the party for everyone. Lizzie had seen that experience many atimes. But did that mean it was acceptable to get a knife and stab the jerk to death and hold him up as an example to other partygoers about not being a jerk? But if the jerk was to disappear from the party and never appear at other parties again? That was a far more amenable solution.

”I think we have to be careful here.” Finally speaking out from the back. ”While I trust Salem, we do not know for sure if Aloysius was behind this. We have a video with a blurred figure in the background. If we start an inquisition and we are wrong, we look like the fools. If Aloysius was behind it, then we need to arrest and shut down the Dark Shadow and then once they are here, decide their punishment. Even if that includes death.” Lizzie would slump into her seat. She had said her piece. She just wanted to disappear now.

"Aloysius has killed I don't know how many of the nonmagi with his train attack, he's killed the former leader of the guild and attacked us directly in the past. He's likely to be executed for what he's done, even if he isn't done in by our hand in the field” Zeke spoke calmly looking off into space. He looked to Salem as he continued "But it won't matter at all if we don't get him and arguing about it now isn't going to help. Like August said we need to do something, whether it's finding a professional investigator or, like David said, sending a group out to locate them ourselves" He sat back and looked up at the stage to their leader "What's our plan?

Salem watched the scene unfold around her. It was clear that the members of the Guild had mixed opinions. With Zekes final question, it was time for her to speak again. She had to be honest with these people. She cared for them, even if it was only to the slightest degree. It was her duty to protect them. Her mind flashed back upon a previous text message that she had received earlier that day. It was from an unknown number, and when she had tried to call it back, the line was disconnected.

"Auction house tonight. Aloysius is after something valuable. Be there if you care about humanities fate as much as you act like you do.

"Our plan," she said at first, her voice hardly audible. Salem cleared her throat. "I have received an anonymous tip about Aloysius's plans for this afternoon. Aliira will accompany me. The rest of you need to stay here and train your asses off. Zeke, Augie, since the two of you are so willing to do something, pick your team and keep a close eye on our city. Lizzie, help train the recruits. They need your assistance." There was a slight murmur of voices once again. "I know that this wasn't the call to action that you all had in mind, but it is the best that I can do for now. I will update you all on how tonight goes as soon as I can. You are dismissed." Salem watched as people got up to leave their seats, the room in a brief moment of chaos as they moved around. She was glad to see some of them pairing up for their training.
She turned to Aliira. "You and I are going to get a little... dressed up tonight," She said with a smirk on her face, in a whisper as to where only her friend could hear her. "Follow me."

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A collab between @jakeb1993, @The Grey Dust, @PureHeroine, @Cerces22, @HaleyTheRandom
Location: Dark Shadow HQ.
Time: 10.10pm.

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The trip from the airport to the base was a rather uneventful one for Aloysius. He had drove right from the airport to the base, which was located deep within the cityscape. Aloysius had toyed with the idea about having his base of operations somewhere in the high rises of Manhattan. However the real estate was far too expensive for his needs. Instead he found a place just outside in the downtown area in Harlem.

The place he had found was only a few blocks away from Marcus Garvey Park. Between two buildings was a small concrete path, cordoned off with a rusting, bent metal chain link gate. The area looked abandoned, and most people wouldn’t even notice it as they walked past. Which is exactly what Aloysius wanted. Pulling up onto 118th Street, he would park on the street just outside the gate. His black jaguar looking pristine, thankfully didn’t look too out of place here. It wasn’t a run down area after all. Getting out of the vehicle he would walk on over the gate, running his hand down the the centre and lifting up the locking mechanism before opening the gate and letting himself inside. After walking through he made sure that the gate was properly shut. At the back of the concrete back was a small set back recess, which housed a small set of stairs. Aloysius walked on over and went down the steps, which eventually led to what looked like a normal basement door. The door was actually heavily enchanted, made that way so only members of the Dark Shadow could open it. If anyone else even dared to try then they would get killed.

Opening the door Aloysius was greeted with even more steps, that would eventually lead down into a vast underground basement. The basement was the remains of an old arms factory in 1943, the above ground had been renovated into apartments, though the underground had been all but forgotten about. The place was littered with cables, wires, tv screens on stands and other various apparatus. They may have been Magi, but they weren't luddites. In the centre of the basement was a large round table, filled with seats running along the edges. That was where they had their briefings. At the back was the barracks, comprising of two floors. The lower floor had small, tight rooms, made for members, the senior leaders had spacious upper floor, and Aloysius had his own room of course. There were various doors scattered around the outskirts that lead to other places in the complex, but this was the main part. Aloysius would go to the table and take his seat. Of course his seat was special: It was a tall leather chair, whose back was actually taller than him. Sinking into his seat he would pull out his phone and wait and see who was the first to arrive.

The day seemed to drag on, and by the end of it, Lana was exhausted. Even if all she had done was stack shelves and sweep and mop floors, being on her feet all day was tiring, especially since she wasn't given much opportunity to use her powers to lighten the workload. Due to her unstable emotional state, she was always under close watch from her manager, and even when he wasn't watching her, there were always customers mulling around.

When her shift finally ended, she was looking forward to going home, having a hot shower, and going to bed; until she remembered that there was meant to be a meeting at headquarters. Thankfully there was a shower in the staff locker room, so she was able to quickly wash up before she changed out of her uniform and into her casual clothes, before making her way to Dark Shadow HQ. As much as she was dreading being there, she knew it wouldn't be wise to not show up.

After at least a forty minute taxi ride -and a ten minute walk from where she had had the driver drop her off- she would finally find herself outside the entrance to HQ. Lana would give herself a minute or two to gather herself before she entered. Which only turned out to be a waste of time, when she saw Aloysius was the only other person in the room. All the resolve she had gathered disappeared, and she became tense, which was a natural state for her whenever he was around.

She wanted to turn back around and wait outside for the others to show up, but pushed forward anyway. Lana would choose to sit around the opposite side of the table, as far away from him as possible. As soon as she was seated, she would retrieve her phone from her pocket and open up a game, to keep herself entertained until the meeting started.

“Lana” Aloysius called out as she sat down, half in a greeting tone and half in a surprised tone. “I wasn't expecting you to arrive until the very last possible minute. It is unlike you to be early"

“Isn't it normal to put off doing something you don't like for as long as possible?” Lana never took her eyes off the screen of her phone as she spoke, save for the few seconds it took to roll her eyes. She was normally early, just not as far as he was concerned.

“Oh my…” Aloysius started. “You don't like me?” He said with mock hurt lacing his words, before letting out a dark chuckle. “You know, if it wasn't for me, The guild would have killed your telekinetic ass by now”

It would be a few seconds after Aloysius made his last comment before one of the empty chairs around the table jolted into the air and went hurling right towards him. If he had the chance to look over in her direction, he would be met with a death glare. The arrogant prick actually had the audacity to imply she needed his protection, and needless to say, that really pissed her off.

Circe skipped the road humming Ozzy Osbourne's Crazy Train to herself. It was such a nice day out and the policeman's hat dipped low on her head. It was a good night last night, two more humans lay dead in Central Park. Her shadow always keeping pace seemed to be in a good mood as well.

“Don't worry baby, hehehehe, I am sure Aly has something positively destructive plotted out. We might break all the toys we play with!! I know, I know!! I can't wait either hehehehe.” She said to her shadow. She found the entrance to base and bounced in excitement. Circe looked around to see if anyone had followed her.

“Don't you dare say that!! We might be a little hahahaha, but still we are not stupid. If someone found this because of us, why Aly might just want to play with us ahahahahaha!!” She opened the door to the base and stepped into the big meeting room.

The first thing she noticed was a chair flying towards Aly’s head. Lana stood there with a look of pure murder on her face. Circe broke into a huge grin at the sight.

“LANA!! See I told you baby, she would eventually give in and enjoy killing just as much as us, patience is a virtue!!” She said to her shadow.

As the chair came hurtling towards Aloysius, he raised his right hand a gust of wind propelling forward from his palm, sending the chair flying in the opposite direction. “Just remember...” He smirked “While I appreciate your telekinetic power, i have more magic power in my right pinky. So be careful” It was at this point he finally heard Circe’s voice. “Ah Circe…” He said while wincing from the volume of her voice. “Nice you could make it”

Lana was distracted by the sound of Circe’s voice yelling out her name, making her wince and turn her gaze in her direction, missing the moment Aloysius blocked the chair with a gust of wind. It wasn't until she heard the chair hit the wall and break into pieces that she realized it didn't hit him, a disappointed scowl falling over her face. “Asshole…” She muttered through clenched teeth, as she resigned into her seat once more. Lana leaned back in her chair slightly, and lifted her feet up to settle on the table. Then she pulled out her earbuds, plugged them in, and let the sweet sounds of, Rubber Bullies by TFS, flow through her ears. This would help to soothe her temper, and block out their irritating voices.

”Now why did you guys stop?! You were just getting to the good part!!” Circe almost sulked over to her empty side of the table. As she began to sit down her chair rose out of the ground. Made of darkness, the chair was very ostentatious, only about a half an inch smaller than Aloysius’s chair. “Shhhh baby, Alys got important killy things to tell us. We should listen to him.”

For a brief second Aloysius felt bad. While he did enjoy pressing Lana’s buttons he couldn’t help but feel he went a little too far. Lana was powerful. Aloysius had to respect that. She had trained her powers and was most certainly one of the organizations more powerful members.

The Dark Shadow. It was a rather stupid name wasn’t it? Picked out like some angsty teenage definition of cool. Perhaps it was only fitting that some kid ran the show, as a troubled Patrician trying to masquerade under the guise of a battle-hardened warrior. No matter what allies and pockets he pulled at with his elite access granted to him by through a tiny hole in his father’s rubber, he knew nothing of the world’s cruelty first-hand. It was this way with those high-born Princes, thinking themselves above the common man and common law, striving to make the world into their perverted dream. All the theory they could master, all the knowledge in the world they could be exposed to by the hours of tutoring and education granted to them by their uppity-upbringing, and yet when it comes to practicality they didn’t know shite. So that’s how their little organization got such a comical name as Dark Shadow. Shadows are already dark, what in the nine-blazes was that braindead mutt thinking when he came up with such a name. The Corpus ought to shudder to see what had became of their legacy.

Hiding in old haunts, under this old abandoned ghetto, like rats in the sewers. Sure it was an old weapons factory, but it was still buried beneath a rotting corpse of a rundown apartment. Rust and ruin reigned here lined with littered streets. Broken bottle bits of a drunkard, wraps of unsealed rubbers, and forlorn flying yesterday’s news, all the trash of humanity dredged up in this godforsaken alley. The irony perhaps is that beneath the sealed door was just that: The Forgotten. For the most part, they had done nothing for months on end, only the small incident here and there, isolated events which neither drew the attention of the national authorities nor the Guild. But now, which three-letter government organization was looking for them? Hunting for clues on who caused the derailment of the train? Wouldn’t they see that idiot’s smirk in a frame? Who cared to know that there beneath their noses were a coven of dangerous magi the world has yet to understand? If only they had a more fitting name to strike terror into the hearts of the nation.

“So… Looks like you’ve finally had your balls drop boy.” The mockery arrived to herald his arrival. A younger Rufus openly challenged the found of the Dark Shadow, walking into their dilapidated lair with an air of nonchalance and a box tucked under his arm. “It’s finally about time. Try and keep this circle jerk short, I’ve got a class to teach in the morning. Some of us work, and aren’t living off sucking daddy’s money and senators. So let’s not waste my time boy.” Such insubordination, and yet Rufus would never let anyone that failed to earn his respect have anything less than his biting Irish tongue. Regardless while the other three present were waiting around seated, the eldest member of their twisted society remained standing, almost as if he was the one in charge here. “And evening ladies. Having a fine night yet with our lad or are we waiting for that tattoo parlor to get here and join us for this little tete-a-tete?”

Oh joy. If Lana hadn't killed Aloysius’ mood, now it was dead. The dull Irish times rang through the open room. “Ah look. The granddad who has all the time in the world, still manages to arrive almost last. You would think you would be the first to arrive” He quipped, running his temples in frustration. This was why he didn't call meetings. While he was grateful for their support in his crusade, they were just all a tad bit unbearable.

“But yes, I have made a move. I felt it was time to shake up Salem. I don't expect it to do much, but at least it will force Salem to make a move. We just need to observe her response and take notes.” While he wouldn't say it out loud, he did value Rufus's opinion. He had alot of life experience, he had seen the recent blight of the magi.

“Anyway. What exactly is in that box you appear to be holding? Is it something I can use to defeat the Guild perchance?”

“Oh I’m terribly sorry, I had to go find a strapping young lad to help an old man across the street.” Said the most patronizing of sarcasm. “But a Time Keeper is never late boy, I just had better things to do with my time than stand around playing your wet nurse.” Tit-for-tat, truly a meeting of egos, and despite the chain of command at work here, it seems that the Dark Shadow was not as popular as the Guild by far. Sure he may have attracted a following of misguided youth, but to turn the attention of the old guard, veterans of magic who have been active since he was still waiting to pop from his mother’s ovaries, Aloysius would need more than just a handsome face and money. “But I didn’t come here to change your diapers boy. Onto business: stirred up trouble that you did, and you had to get your pretty little girly face all over the networks. Frame by frame on the Camera boy, the Guild ought to know by now, and it’s only been a day. You’ve forced the pieces to move lad, now follow through. Go and strike the next target, we still need to give the impression our recruitment’s just as strong as theirs. Or would you rather let them know all you have is are the lot of us?”

Time wasn’t on their side. The Guild was the establishment, they had already won once, all they had to do was play the game of attrition, and they would win again. This piping windbag needed help to claim a victory, all the help he could get looking around at the state of their affairs. Though indeed all revolutions started small, they needed the numbers on they just didn't have on their side. This was no IRA, but Rufus could work with what little resources he had, these young and eager boys and girls would be a good start. “What’s in the box? What do you think is in the box you airhead? If it’s something you could use to defeat the Guild, why in the Seven-Heavens would I just hand it over to you and never used it myself all these years? Go make yourself useful boy, bring us five glasses.” Opening the wooden box and reaching into the treasured casket, Rufus retrieved the object inquired of: “Jameson Reserve. Kept this bottle safe for a few decades. Thought now would be a good a time as any to break the seal and quaff the draught. Now that we are declaring war against the Guild and all, might as well make it proper.” Indeed a green bottle of whiskey, not because Rufus was the stereotypic Irish drunkard, but rather because at least one person had something to contribute to this meeting since their leader had evidently just called them all to tell them what their eyes could already see with and admit to a plan of doing nothing more than watchful waiting after.

Her next song was just coming to an end when she heard the door to their headquarters open and close, signalling the arrival of another of their members. It was either Tiberius or Rufus, and to be honest, she was hoping for the latter. Lana paused her music, stopping the next song from playing, and removed her earbuds. She then shifted her feet off the table and straightened herself in her chair so she could comfortably turn and see who it was. Seeing the not-so-old time master brought a hint of a smile to her face. They weren't friends or anything, but her and Rufus usually got along well. Mainly because he seemed to have as much dislike for Aloysius as she did.

The dislike was quite obviously mutual between the two males as well, as they would begin to trade insults almost immediately after Rufus had made his entrance. The whole exchange was rather amusing for Lana, as seen by the small satisfied smirk on her face.

”So I see the Dr. Who has finally arrived, have a hard time parking your Phone Booth did ya?? Old man when will you let me kill you and make it permanent??” As Circe finished her sentence she threw a knife made of shadows right at Rufus’s heart, knowing full well the Time Keeper would dodge it. A sadistic smile slowly spread across her face.

”First Aly derails a train. Lana tries, and fails horribly I might add, to kill Aly for making jokes. Now it looks like Rufus has gotten younger again!! Which means… he's been dipping into those Lucky Charms baby hehehehe. All I did this week is kill a boring police officer, and all I got was this lousy hat.” She said to the group of collaborators.

Tiberius hadn't had that busy of a day, and as usual, this left him with quite a bit of energy. Spending his whole day at the tattoo parlor - one had to make a decent living somehow - his curiosity would be at its peak, remembering the message from Aloysius that he received yesterday. Al hardly ever called for meetings, which meant something was about to go down. The day had been filled with a few customers. Two of them being a young couple wanting each others names tattooed on their wrists. While Ty obliged, as was his job, he found it stupid. Though some young couples did last, he doubted that getting their names tattooed on each other was a smart move. They would move away to college, someone would cheat - it happens more often than not.

Turning off the lights and locking the door for the night, he would slip the keys to the building in his pocket before walking out onto the busy sidewalk and whistling for a taxi. Giving the driver the address to a nearby restaurant down the street from the DS Headquarters, he would relax in the back seat, pulling out his phone and putting his music on shuffle. The first song to come on would be The Unforgiven by Metallica - one of the young man's favorites. He watched the various buildings and people go by out the window, and sooner than he would think, the car came to a stop right outside of the pizza place. Tiberius handed the driver a fifty dollar bill. "Keep the change, buddy," he said, patting the other man on the shoulder as he hopped out of the vehicle. He would walk into the restaurant and order a large pepperoni with extra cheese. He had to make the cab driver believe that this was his destination, he was hungry, and he had a few minutes to spare. Once the pizza was ready, he would pay for his order and walk five minutes down the street before opening the gate that lead to Headquarters.

Why the hell Aloysius had chosen a place with so many fucking steps, Tiberius had no clue. Maybe he figured it was a good way to get his exercises. Nonetheless, Ty walked down the steps, the smell of pizza filling the hall and the room as he entered, just in time to hear Circe's final sentence. "You killed a cop? Niiicceee. Hope you made it brutal. Though being you, I'm sure he enjoyed his death quite nicely."

Tiberius walked over to the table before setting the box down and handing out the paper plates that had came with the pizza to the others in the room. The King was there, as well as Father Time, Little Miss Basket Case, and Miss Wicked. Taking a closer look around the room, he would see the chair in pieces against the wall. He raised a brow in suspicion, but said nothing. "I see the old man brought the booze. Lovely." He sat down in the chair between Circe and Lana, promptly grabbing one of the largest slices of pizza from the box. He ripped the crust off first, and proceeded to stuff his face. You had to save the best part for last. "So. Somebody care to tell me what the fuck we're here for, or did Al just miss us and want to see my sexy face again?"

Listening to everyones words Aloysius just scrunched his face slightly. This was embarrassing. His order, his resistance… was this. These people. He had no hope. Letting out a sigh he stood up to address everyone while grabbing the glasses that Rufus desired. “Now that everyone is here, I hope I can begin?” He took another deep breath, clearly prolonged exposure to the entire group caused him some form of stress.

“Yes, I have started everything. I launched the attack and derailed a train and I made sure that the Guild were aware to some degree of my involvement. That was deliberate. I wanted to get their attention without exactly alerting the Nonmagi” He waved his hand dismissively. “I want us to be careful. I want to poke the bear, not stab it. We can not afford to go into open warfare with the Guild. Every member of the Magi community is apart of the Guild by default, even if they don’t sign up. We couldn’t win… yet” He would then lean forward, resting his hands on the table as he carried no addressing everyone.

“So here is what I want you to do: Rufus and Circe…” He started, looking at the two of them “Go out there and cause hell. Okay…” He stopped for a second considering he was speaking to Circe, his instructions would have to be more… precise. “Go cause some havoc. But not too much. Show the Guild we are capable of striking, but please...please for the love of me, don’t attract too much Nonmagi attention. The last thing I need is those ‘Conspiracy nuts’ hanging around here” With his briefing to them done, he turned over to Lana and Ty, sitting on the table to address them.

“Meanwhile, us three are going on a date! Well, not really a date, but a sorta date. Later tonight there is going to be a midnight auction. I happen to know that a magical artefact is being sold off tonight. I was going to steal it, but it would attract way too much attention if i just grabbed it, so we are going to go by it. I am hoping it has slipped under the Guilds radar as before this swindler conned me out of it, i had done my best to keep its nature under wraps.” He would then smile at Lana before pushing off the table. “Any questions?”

”Define too much?? Because once I get started, baby here will be hard to stop!! And why do I have to be teamed up with John Conner?? Can't I have someone more fun like Ty, or a pissed off Lana?? Hehehe, in fact I vote for pissed off Lana, she's fun when she loses control!!” Circe took a shot of the alcohol and stood up. Her smile spread even wider at the thought of destruction.

Still stuffing his face with the warm gooey pizza, Ty would have a look of shock on his face. “A date? Damn. I knew we were close, but I didn’t know we were that close, Al. I mean… if you want a night of romance, I guess I could probably work with that.” As he finished his last sentence, he would lean over, wrapping his right arm across Lana’s shoulders. This would surely get him killed, but as long as he could bug everyone, he didn’t really care.

“Fine then, poke it all you want boy, but you’ll never be a man if you just poke about and never learn to penetrate.I can drink to the beginnings of our revolution, and I’ll gladly raise some fresh Hell for us.” Well that was it, all members present and accounted for by the time the pizza delivery boy showed up. Not quite warm enough to offer a toast to their newfound movement, but rather quietly pouring out his Jameson and taking the brisk Irish shot and distributing out the second rounds of the firewater neatly. Smooth as time and kissed by angelical malt, the emerald bottle from the emerald isle, a brief reminder of home, or at least it were before things got English. “Suppose I’ll have to get to some supplies for the job. Your mother’s not the only one your daddy’s laid in bed with after all.” Another jab and a quick turn of the wrist for another drink. “Now then, I think it’s time for me to go.”

Finally the dagger hit the wall. Rufus parting the rest of the guild to do his assigned task. The boy was played like a fiddle at a true pub, getting the glasses, and falling to the suggestion of Rufus to strike while the iron is hot. A job had to be done, messages to be delivered, even if his apparent dancing partner was the twisted shadow girl who threw a miserable knife in a pitiful attempt to vent her sad little state of sorry frustration at being unable to kill the Time Keeper. She could will the shadows to her desires, but certainly Time was his element, a bubble of time around Rufus halted the attempted attack in mid-air. Paused indefinitely as the man calmly went about his way enjoying his liquor, although refraining from digging into the pizza brought in which probably would be better with a heartier stout. Only was it after the Time Keeper walked away from it all that the dagger escape the time bubble, continuing on its trajectory as it struck the wall behind where Rufus had been. It wouldn’t be a Dark Shadow meeting if they didn’t try to harm each other.

The strong smell of pizza would signal the arrival of their last member, Tiberius. Not someone Lana would typically get along with, but not someone that annoyed her that much either. The fact that he brought food and was willing to share it certainly put him in her good books, at least for the moment. She had skipped breakfast that morning and had only a sandwich at lunch, so she was quite hungry. Although pizza wasn't her go to food, that wouldn't stop her from happily helping herself to a piece, while she waited for Rufus to finish pouring the drinks.

Time always dragged on painfully slow whenever they came together for a meeting, so she was grateful when Aloysius finally brought it to the point. Turns out he did have a plan, something that would involve all of them. Which she was actually happy about, because she had been itching to do something for a long time. Even so, she wasn't very ecstatic about the part she was going to be playing in it all. She would much rather be wreaking havoc with Rufus and Circe, than going to some auction with Aloysius and Tiberius. A whole evening with an asshole and a playboy sounded like hell, and what's worse is she would have to wear a dress, just the thought of it made her gag.

As if she wasn't already in enough of a fowl mood, Ty just had to push her even further. The moment she felt his arm around her shoulders, her whole body tensed and went stiff. Lana would turn her head to glare at him, and as she did, his chair would suddenly jerk out from under him, leaving nothing holding him up. "If you value your life, you'll never touch me again." The chair that he had once been sitting on would now be hovering over him threateningly. It would stay like that for sometime, but nothing more would happen, as it was only a warning. Lana didn’t have the patience to stay there for any longer anyway, and would eventually get up to leave; she had some shopping to do.

As the chair was yanked out from under him, Tiberius would land flat on his ass, his facial expression going from casually flirty to borderline murderous. “Don’t be such a bitch, Princess. Maybe if you got some dick from time to time, you wouldn’t be so damn grumpy.” He hopped up, took a few steps to the side and set the chair on fire, watching it turn to ashes as the remains floated to the ground. He returned Lanas glare and then glanced at the table where Rufus was pouring the drinks. "You aren't worthy of any of this delicious pizza, either," he added, shooting flames at it as well. By the time Ty looked up, Lana was walking out of the door.

Usually Aloysius would join in with all the jokes and the mocks towards Lana, though right now, he could see she was pissed, almost full blown angry. The Dark Shadow was already a small and generally weak organisation, Lana was, although Aloysius hated to admit it, important to him. “Can it Ty” Aloysius said sternly. As sternly as he could. “I know we mock sometimes Lana” he sighed “But you are an important part of the team. I have a dress for you as well, so you don’t have to get one. Same for you Ty, we only have an hour to go” He walked across the room towards the barracks at the back, beckoning Lana to follow him.

Lana was pissed, but she was also quite amused at how hilarious it had been for her to see Tiberius fall on his ass, and then resolve to throwing a tantrum over it. It was his own fault. He knew what happened if he pushed her buttons, yet he did it anyway, and then couldn't handle the consequences that followed. It was the most annoying thing about him, and why they could never, and probably would never, fully get along. That and the fact that he was so fiercely devoted to Al, and the two of them seemed to take delight in teasing her. It was for that reason that Lana was ready to snap when she heard Aloysius speak up, expecting him to throw on more taunts of his own.

She stopped just at the door and spun on her heels, ready to raise hell, when his words finally hit her. It wasn't exactly an apology, but it was probably the closest she would get to one coming from him. He even admitted -aloud- how she was an important part of the team. Knowing how much it would have killed him inside to admit that was enough to put her in a relatively better mood, but more than that, it was actually nice to hear. She had no intention of telling him that though. Nor did she have the intention of telling him she was grateful he had thought to prepare a dress for her beforehand, even though it took a lot of stress of her having to find one on her own off her shoulders. She simply remained quiet and followed him to the barracks.

Aloysius always wanted to believe that he didn’t need anyone. Lana was one of the people that reminded him that he stood no chance if he tried to go it alone. “Look” Aloysius bowed his head slightly, this was going to put a dent in his ego “You weren’t here when I attacked the Guild for the first time a few years ago. I used to have to have a second of command: Rebecca… She had been with me since I first started the Dark Shadow. The night of the attack, I had just finished killing that bastard of man that was Salem’s father. In anger, Salem hit Rebecca with a fully charged lightning bolt. She was dead before she hit the ground” Aloysius’s tone had changed when it came to describing Rebecca. An observant person would notice that his tone had headed towards sadness, potentially something had happened between the two of them.

“I was never able to replace her. Part of me didn’t want to. I could never let go of the fact she was gone.” Aloysius walked over to a wardrobe and pulled out a black dress on a coat hanger. The dress was a mixture of both conservative and modern. It was sleek and slim around the waist, but flowed as it reached the legs. Coming at just below knee height it was long enough to be classy, but nowhere near long enough to hinder her if a fight kicked off. “This was what I was thinking you could use” He passed it over to her for inspection.

Lana could tell he was sad, and she understood his pain. She knew what it was like to lose someone she cared about, and not be able to save them, even with the power she had. She also understood how it felt to be racked with hatred and a desire for revenge. It wasn't long after she had lost her brother that she found Dark Shadow, or rather, they found her. Despite how rough her relationships were with the other members, they had been the only people around to help her get through. It didn't seem like Aloysius had had anyone there for him though. Even so, it came as quite a surprise that he was opening up to her like he was, she thought she would be the last person he would tell, and she couldn't help but wonder why he had chosen to bring it up. Not just to her, but now of all times.

“Why are you telling me this?” It felt a little insensitive to ask, but there had to be some point to him bringing it up, more than just him spontaneously deciding to confide in her, and she wanted to know. She took the dress from him when it handed it to her, and gave it a close inspection, while she waited for him to answer her question. She had no complaints about the garment, but it really wouldn't have mattered if she had because she had nothing else to wear anyway. Lana was just grateful it was modest at least. When she was done, she gave a nod to show she approved.

Aloysius observed Lana checking the dress. He has spent a while, longer than he would of liked to admit, picking it out at a store in Milan. She also ended up asking the inevitable question. “It is quite simple…” He looked out of the window, watching the rest of the Dark Shadow preparing to leave “... I have acquired a strange bunch of people. Most are pawns, that I intend to discard eventually, once they serve their purpose. You however are different” He turned on his heels to face her once more, his eyes serious, but that bite of pain from before was still visible.

“Your power is strong, stronger than Ty, hell, stronger than Circe. There have been people here who want me to call you out, challenge you then dispose of you. Clearly they feel threatened” Usually Aloysius would make a dig about him being stronger, but he refrained this time. His body language would betray him however, giving away that it wasn't because he didn't want to say, it was more about Aloysius being unsure if he would win. “Your current power and potential power makes you my best asset. I tease you, mock you and belittle you, not because I hate you. But more like I want to keep that fire burning in you. That hatred makes you stronger. It makes you terrifying”

Aloysius ended up sitting on the bed, leaning back against the wall as an impromptu chair. “So I want to offer you two things: firstly, I want to offer you the position as my right hand woman, my second in command. And before you ask, I am not joking. Secondly, after the auction I want to take you away to a warehouse on the docks so we can train. I don't think I have actually given you training while you have been here” He would chuckle slightly for a moment “Yes, that does mean you get to beat me up slightly”

Lana's expression was stern and serious, not giving anything away, while inside, her mind was going a mile a minute trying to process what was happening. First his admission to her and the rest of Dark Shadow, then his spontaneous opening up about his past, then his honest thoughts on the rest of the members, and finally a proposal for a promotion to second in command and training. None of it seemed real, it's like she was dreaming, except that she would never dream about him, so it had to be real.

"Okay..." It had felt like an eternity had passed before she gave an answer, but she finally did. The uncertainty in her tone would give away how skeptical she was about the whole situation. Obviously she didn't trust him, at all, but she was interested to see where it would lead. It seemed like an odd note to leave the conversation on, but they were running low on time before they had to be at the auction, and she had nothing else she wanted to say, so she left to go find another room to change in.

Aloysius gave a weak smile as she accepted and then left. Clearly there was no trust there. And he could understand that. He was not exactly the most trustworthy or the nicest person on the planet, so what he just did betrayed his character. But it was a necessary betrayal. The meeting had highlighted the fragility of the Dark Shadow. Rebecca was the one who used to keep the troops in line, and was the one who would deal with all the bullshit so that Aloysius could focus on making trouble. While it was approaching four years since the attack on the guild, he had never gotten around to fixing the Dark Shadow. Many members died that night, and since Rebecca was gone, he had never actively went out and recuperated his numbers. Sure, he bought the current set of people into the fold, but beyond that… nothing. Sighing, Aloysius got up and ran a hand through his hair. Maybe he would get that drink Rufus offered after all.

Circe watched as Aloysius took Lana into a back room. She looked at the other members of Dark Shadows and sniffed. Her chair dissolved into a puddle of darkness and dispersed. Circe walked to the door with confidence only a madwoman could possess. She turned and look to Rufus, a mischievous glint to her eye.

"Bet my mayhem will be more fun than yours, hehehe. Try and keep up old timer." She walked out the door laughing to herself. She made it back to her abode, which was an abandoned apartment. She changed out of clothes and into pajamas. Circe sat at a decrepit table trying to formulate a plan. But the voices in her head prevented anything to elaborate.

"No no baby, there will be plenty of blood. I will not take it easy, hehehe. The people must fear us!!"

--------

The night if the auction approximately 11:30 PM

Sirens lit up the night sky, this was not the first tradegy of the night. Not would it be the last. Bodies we're discovered in a church, a night club, and a restaurant. The news would report that close to a hundred bodies were found eviscerated, with most needing dental or D.N.A records to identify. The news would also mention that some bodies were arranged into a pattern spelling out "Don't be scared". Aside from that, the news would remark that the only other puzzling thing about the mass murders, was the fact that every victim was found with a Nintendo Developers System. Broadcasts began naming the murderer, the DS Killer. Across from the night club, atop a tall building, a figure stood, a cape billowing out from behind her.

"I am Batman baby!!" Circe said with a gruff voice, while watching the lights flash and people run about. Her Batman costume disovled away leaving just her standing there. "Why can't I be Batman?? I don't care if he's a good guy!! He's spooky, hehehehe. What?? Oh those?? Who cares where I got them from, if this was just an other story the how would be unimportant to where the games all came from, hehehehe. No, no baby!! Blood is fun to play in, we will play in every blood soon enough, you will love it than, hehehe." And with that Circe turned and ran off.

---

Everything was hot. It was the kind of heat she'd expected to live in on the road: latent, awful soup heat. It was the kind of soup that condensed in her skull and poured out of her ears. It rolled down her sides, moist and steamy and stinking of pot and wild yeists and mud but she could retreat into her van and watch the world run past her on the road. The sensation wasn't overbearing because reprieve was just a key turn away. The drama of moisture and warmth coming from the world and not just other people could be left to other people.

But her van's air conditioning had died in the night, and now she had to stop in the middle of nowhere because, in all likelyhood, her van's front axle had cracked again. Even if Mani were here he'd not patch the axle a second time. No sane mechanic would. She would have to replace it. This, the air conditioning, and the waning transmission. And maybe the driver.

"James says we have to start moving again soon."

...and Rozzle.

Paulie didn't move, her face still pressed into her folded arms. She was laying out on the browning grass in the empty lot beside parking for Gordon's station, face down. There had been good rains all over the northeast this year, but Gordon's was in an almost fifty mile patch experiencing this weird micro-drought. The surrounding woodlands and pastures seemed one accidental spark short of a brushfire. And here was Rozzle walking up with her tenth cigarette of the afternoon. Paulie winced into her arms, shaking her head and mumbling unintelligibly.

"Oh come on, cheer up! You can pack up your shit in like, ten minutes. We squeeze into Nancy's bus and hit the city limits a little after sundown." Chipper as a sunbeam in a winter storm. Paulie felt a weight against her lower back as Rozzle flopped onto the ground and rested her head. "James can tow your van to his parents' place in Rhode Island. You head west for a trimming season, save up, fix everything by the end of next spring."

A part of Paulie wanted to reach back and shove Roz away. But it wasn't as though Roz could actually make Paulie feel any warmer than she already did. Besides, a much larger part of Paulie still wasn't sure she could function without knowing Rozzle was near by. She needed Roz when she saw Simon tonight; someone to ease the tension. Paulie lifted her head to prop her chin on her arms, staring out at the empty highway. From her vantage point she could see Nancy's converted school bus and James' truck side by side in the parking lot, over a dozen people crowding around and busying themselves while everyone waited for Mister Gordon to tell them what they already knew. Paulie's van was fucked.

"Rozzle... Nancy hates me." Paulie said, watching a pair of Nancy's weird cult people wrestle with one another. Wirey young men tumbling in the tall, browning grass. She and Rozzle had shared an evening with one of them. His movements now reminded her of his movements then. Rozzle followed her gaze, not really seeing what Paulie was seeing. Rozzle was like that, present for everything.

"Yeah, but she looooves me." Roz cooed. Pauling felt Roz rolling onto her side to look at the back of her head. She ran a hand through Paulie's mess of corn husk hair and started scritching gently at her scalp. "It's like, three hours to New York from here. Preeeetty sure she owes me that much for keeping her so comfy during tear-down." Paulie moaned something between mirth and disgust, closing her eye and delighting in Roz's touch.

They rested like that for a minute or two, Roz sitting up after a while to scratch with both hands at Paulie's back, digging nails deep. Then Paulie opened her eyes as Herb Gordon's voice rang out from his little garage.

"Yup! Your van is fucked! I dunno how ya'll got it here with this axle in one piece!" For being open fifteen years somehow Herb still had his accent, a southern drawl so twangy it reminded Paulie of her cousins on Sand Mountain.

It was still putting her back up, so obvious that Roz squeezed her shoulders comfortingly before rising from the ground. Paulie pushed herself up to her knees, looking through her mop of blonde hair over at James whom, like the rest of the convoy, was looking over at her. He was the calm center of a small little crowd of mournful faces sharing a sudden and pointed silence.

Then Nancy came out of the store with her daughter in her arms. Nancy was the big, billowy, bosomy whirlwind leading this mad tornado of people back to their homes. Her daughter was wailing, an appropriately timed funeral dirge for Paulie's van. She didn't want to go west again this year. She wanted to stay in one place for more than a month for once. She didn't want her van.

Maybe it was the sheer discomfort of the situation, or maybe she just needed to mourn for a little bit. Paulie wasn't going to fix her van, and sitting there in the dead grass and dirt, with Rozzle offering her a hand, she started to cry.

---

Paulie and Rozzle sat against the wall across from Simon's door, leaning against one another, Rozzle's phone murmuring with today's stories from All Things Considered. Paulie was barely listening to the story, just concentrating on the smell of Rozzle's pungent odor and her weight. Rozzle leaned up for another kiss; anything to keep Paulie present. Paulie couldn't remember the last time she'd gone more than a few minutes in a city without Blanking. This had been the most uncomfortable night of her life, having to pay for food and talk to everyone she needed something from. It had to be worth it to keep Rozzle here. It was the strongest connection to her normal life she'd had. Rozzle had been around since Paulie's first burn. She meant everything.

"...Virginia today." Paulie snapped out of it, jerking her lips away from Rozzle and staring blankly at nothing, listening to the radio stream. Rozzle moaned and tried to pull Paulie back in but Paulie reflexively butted her head at Rozzle's chin gently. The girl laughed, leaning back against the wall with a resigned grin as they listened.

"Confirmed reports state that only five people died from the crash, but many more are still presently in critical condition at several local hospitals. Among the dead are three civilians, one of the documentary employees on site that day and former congressman and Secretary of Defense John Sinclair. A viral video of the accident has already made its way through social media, with several outlets hosting the video file after multiple youtube uploads were taken down for--"

The elevator down the hall made its ding'n shuffle, drawing Paulie and Rozzle's eyes. Simon strolled out into the corridor, with two friends of his Paulie had met beforehand and one she hadn't. They all teetered behind Simon in various states of intoxication as she stood up, helping Rozzle to her feet. Simon just looked at them, his crew noisily making their way into the apartment. He closed the door behind they and Rozzle, who threw herself into the mix like the relentless lapdog she was. Simon just stared down at her for a few moments, Paulie staring back, each of them defiant.

"Look, I can explain,' they said in unison. Paulie guffawed and fell back against the wall laughing, and Simon looked away in that sheepish way he did when he felt guilty about something, ginger curls hiding most of his face.

It's going to be a good night. Paulie thought, grinning. She leaned down to pick up a couple of luggage bags, Simon following to help her as they began to tell each other the stories about their day. Paulie's van. Simon's latest production gig. Rozzle's hands. One small story after another, each wrapping the sharp stone that floated between them... burying it as the night carried on into early morning.

Maybe things would work out.

---

"Maybe things don't need to work out." Rozzle said, thick clouds of smoke churning from her mouth as the first morning's toke left her. She was about to say more but found herself with a coughing fit and leaned across the small patio table to hand Paulie the joint. Paulie took it up and had her second toke, closing her eyes to just bask in the sensation as she leaned back in her chair, face to the smoggy, glowing heavens above. Seconds holding the breath, then she exhaled slow through her nostrils.

Both of them were wearing matching grey-blue sheets, tired-eyed and slow to move. Paulie's expression was a softening sullen, her nose full of the stink of good herb and the bagels she'd walked out for earlier in the morning. Rozzle just looked hateful. She hadn't liked Simon. She hadn't liked any of Simon's friends. It kept reminding Paulie that she didn't really like Simon or his friends either. It hurt, not liking Simon. But she wasn't going west. It stopped being about liking anybody when she knew that.

"Things don't need to work out," Paulie yawned, sitting back up in a dejected slouch. "I just need Simon to get my foot in the door. This gig could mean connections with a lot of influential people. Apparently there's some hubub tonight. Simon wants me to meet someone and if I do a little dance that someone will get me where I need to go with whom I need to be. But it's gonna be a minute." Her expression turned to a wan smile, "adjusting to normal people time is gonna be a minute too."

Paulie leaned forward to pass her joint back to Roz, and then finally had her first bite of bagel. Roz had made up a cream cheese, bacon and sriracha spread. "To forestall munchies," she had explained. That was probably going to work out. Paulie chortled with delight as Rozzle flashed a devious smile mid-toke, watching Paulie's expression enliven as she chewed. The two of them dissolved into a fit of giggles.

The morning passed like this for a couple of hours as they grazed on bagels and coffee and baby carrots and talked about their plans. They talked about where they'd meet up next, who was picking up Rozzle today, whether she would still be in town (she was heading up-state), and how likely it was that Paulie would get the job... all of this while Simon and his friends busied themselves sobering up or making their own breakfast or joining Roz and Paulie on the patio to swipe a bagel and make a pass at one or both of them. Where Rozzle had been languid and coy the night before, she was sharp as a knife and attentive as a badger this morning. It was comforting to watch her take charge like that, and Paulie just let Rozzle take over until they left.

Eventually it was just the three of them, with Simon nervously smoking and leaning over the balcony as if waiting for something.

"Didn't you say it'd be like, another two hours before Luka gets here?" Paulie asked, absent-mindedly scrolling down a news article on her phone. Rozzle had decided to change out on the patio, rolling on a blue tank top and donning a green-plaid button down shirt... left unbottoned.

"Yeah, but..." Simon sighed, exasperated with himself as he turned to look back at the two of them, "Luka freaks me out, you know? Like if True Blood did an L Word crossover episode or something."

"What, so he's a hot androgynous vampire?" Paulie quipped.

"Does he sparkle?" Rozzle asked, looking up from her bluejeans, only halfway up her legs. Rozzle knew the situation, took Paulie at her word that she could do magic. But she still had no idea what that really meant. So her question was serious--serious enough that Paulie didn't even laugh, waiting expectantly for Simon to answer.

"No, he doesn't fucking sparkle," Simon scoffed, "he just... he's exactly an androgynous vampire. Like a Vlad from League of Legends kinda deal, but very Russian. Freaks me right out." Simon's expression was turning pale just thinking about Luka. It wasn't the first time Paulie had seen it. Simon was very uncomfortable either thinking about or being around men he considered effeminate. It was cute in a sad sort of way. But it was embarrassing now, with Rozzle there.

"Vlad's the guy who shoots blood at people and stuff, yeah?" Rozzle pulled her pants up, buttoning and zipping before looking up at Simon again.

"Yeah. That is what I'm talking about." Simon said, then took another drag from his cigarette. He also grabbed another fistful of baby carrots too, popping one into his mouth. That was something Paulie and Simon had bonded over back when they'd first met. Now it was just another resentment. Just a little bit of sourness and Paulie was already hating him for liking any of the things they liked. What the hell was her problem?

"You couldn't pick a more fitting spokesperson for The Bad Guys if you actually just called him Vlad and straight up gave him a Vampire House from World of Darkness." Rozzle said, stretching now that she was fully dressed and yawning silently.

"I mean, he's a nice guy... just really looks the part. Like, a lot." Simon had another bite of carrot then.

--August 2nd 2017, 11:40AM

Rozzle left shortly after, goodbye kisses for everyone, and then she was heading down the elevator. Simon and Paulie still had some time to shoot the shit and so they did, playing a couple games of League while they waited for the new arrival. They were spread out around the living room, Paulie hunched over a coffee table and facing the door Luka would be coming through, her laptop and mouse in front of her. She was already blanked, just waiting for Luka to show so she could begin her audition.

---

---

A dark room. Only a single light in the center shone, and even then it was dim, blocked by a thick layer of dust that covered the edges of the bulb. The room had nothing of import, save for one of the walls. Dressed on the wall was an intricate web of string and photos. The display was clearly split into two distinct halves, with very few connecting these almost separate entities. A woman with bright green hair was currently staring at the aforementioned wall, a small smirk tugging at the edges of her delicate lithe lips. She was looking at the two pictures at the center of both webs. One was a a picture of what seemingly looked like the green haired woman standing next to a happy Salem. The second picture on the other side was almost a duplicate of the Salem photo except this time Salem had been replaced for Aloysius, looking slightly happier than his normal self.

"Quite the band of vagabonds they have assembled, do you not think?" The woman spoke out, her voice quiet and timid. At first you could mistake her for talking to herself, however two others were in that room also, only distinguished from the darkness by a small trace of light bouncing off the smallest fraction of their bodies. The mysterious woman took a step forward, the rest of the wall now coming into focus. Branching from each of these two central images of the faction leaders were photos of every other known member of their respective organisations. Of course, The Guild was huge, and only contained most of the central leadership and anyone else below that, that was worth a mention. The Dark Shadow was alot smaller naturally, after all, they were supposed to be the guerrilla unit.

"It seems these two are about to go at it again. How many more people do you think will die in their little of game of chess this time? hmmm?" It was hard to tell if the greenhead was asking a question, or asking it rhetorically.

"It doesn't matter though. We are coming to put them all out of their misery. They have no idea of the power we wield" The two figures would finally step out of the darkness, basking in the dim light: One male, one female. Both had blonde hair that shine the brightest in the dimly lit room. Both had fire in their eyes. They both had their reasons for being here. Revenge. Revenge was a catch-all term to describe their reasoning. All three were hungry for war. They might have different targets, but they were united in the goal of bringing both Salem and Aloysius down. They didn't care about the Magi, or the NonMagi. They couldn't give two flying fucks about the stupid war between The Guild and the Dark Shadow.

"Who are you looking forward to killing the most?" The woman turned around to face them, the small smirk from before had grown in size, her heart beating faster now as the thoughts of the upcoming hunt raced through her mind. Just like the other two, she was just as hungry. She couldn't wait to see Aloysius and Salem, to see the looks on thier thier faces. She could picture it now. The looks of horror, confusion and terror pasted on their faces. Hell had returned.

"Soon...so very soon... We shall rise. No one will stop us. We are Artemis, and we are unstoppable!" The female almost shouted the last part. Pride taking over. She had waited years for this. She did not need an army, she had the two strongest comrades she could ask for."Bring them all on. We will rip them all apart!"

11:47 PM, August 2nd, 158 East 23rd Street, New York.

"Sweet Mary Mother of Jesus... Christ... God Protect Us All, there's a fucking psychopath on out there."

Graphic images were seen, countless bodies pulled out under white sheets, a tally of the ever rising number. One report was not enough, three sites attacked, but dozens of networks seemed to cover the story. First the train, and now this, what was the world coming to? Madness it seemed with the authorities baffled on who would do such heinous acts. What sick, twisted individual would butcher people like that? Mutilated bodies, shredded beyond recognition, disemboweled with dried blood oozed out from every remaining orifice identifiable as the remains of a mouth or ear whatever hole that ought to align with the anatomical approximation. There would be no witnesses to come testify, and no family members would be allowed to see the sorry state of the last memory of the dead who were adequately identified by dental records and surviving prints. And what ever could possess someone to leave the only solid piece of evidence behind with such terrible market branding? The game makers were quick to release a public statement, expressing concern and more so severing any affiliations the company had over these horrible acts of depravity. Yet the damage was done, it was over, and within 24 hours, the media was exploding with whatever the "DS Killer" topic was about. Of which certainly on some forums there would be some would be hoodlums who would claim to be the dark artist behind the chilling act, but certainly none could provide the evidence. Young kids who wanted to dabble in the gory glorious infamy, punks who wanted to prove their dangerous edge, even the occasional actual demented deviant who got off to this sort of stuff. What times to be alive, what times to die.

Whatever the case may be, whatever that demon girl decided to do, yes it had her signature of mindless maniacal mayhem to it, Rufus took little care. She wanted to make it into a farce, a competition of who could stir up the masses more, and for what? Let the child have her carnage and slaughter, there was something more tactical Rufus had in mind. Sitting down to his dusty dark pint with a side of whatever passes for potato skins around here, the Timekeeper looked within the regular limits of age for such a rowdy crowd. Somewhere in his late thirties or so, enough to pass without requiring to be carded, and certainly intimidating enough with his appearance to unnerve the bartender from thinking twice, let alone anyone else sober enough to stay away from the man with a scar across his eye. The two screens were blaring out the latest updates on the investigations that shook the city. A church, a club, and a diner, most of the public places were on high alert, with blue and brass swarming out looking for clues like teenage detectives and their stupid bloodhound. Sure the lass was messy, but she was keen enough on not leaving a trial of blood right back to base, hopefully. What Rufus did however was far less flamboyant and mysterious, sticking to his guns and what lifetimes of conflict prepared him for. On Third and Twenty Third, a stone's throw way from where he was this morning to collect some old personal effects he had left there as his time serving in the american forces during the great war.

He once was Captain Herb G. Wells, or "George" as the Americans tended to call him on the fact they never felt right pronouncing their damned H's. Correcting them became tedious enough, but the nickname stuck to the character's grave. Rufus certainly looked the part however back in the day, dressed in uniform with that wicked scar across his face. They wondered, but all those who knew the false story behind the mark were dead now, the respectable men he had worked with during the so-called 'War to end all Wars' would be rolling in their graves in knowing that a scant decade later the world would be once again at war. But that, as Rufus learned, was the nature of the human race, war was the one language that they all spoke, and one principle they all understood. It mattered not their family ties as King, Kaiser and Tsar fought. It mattered not nationalities: Serbian, Italian, french and Ottoman came to the fray. It mattered not vast distances: America, China and Siam came to partake as well dragged by the global pull of strategic alliances. It was the greatest ability of mankind to unite against a common foe, and that was what Rufus was placing his bets on. It was only matter of time before The Guild would be forced out to make a reveal, a public announcement of the existence of magic in the world and the danger the humans were in from rogue magi. Of course centuries ago humans burned witches and wizards alive for being ousted, and with a little luck and clever manipulation Rufus could aim the human fear and hatred directly at The Guild. Let all magi be suspect, let The Guild tremble at the wolf they have been protecting.

"Looks like it, what kind of sicko does that sorta stuff and sleeps at night?"

The discussion around the counter seemed to revolve around Cerce's murdering spree, sober and drunkards alike watching in horror as reporters scrambled picking up news of whatever investigation was leading underway, advisories about safe practices, looking out of suspicious characters, reporting to the local authorities and the numbers running across the screen. All the resources and time spent dissecting apart three random sites for the trinity of means, motive, and murderer. All the perfect distraction for Rufus to do his part in their dark orchestra, and to finish the job, a glass or two of Guinness. Watching the clock on the bottom of the screen as the time came closer and closer to the midnight hour. In and out, the old ways from the old days, a way to cause trouble, the Troubles. A random target, unknown and faceless, with not a single care who or what would be destroyed. Somewhere in the city, a bomb was rigged to explode tonight filled with ancient explosives from another era, if the car belonged to someone and would be driven, or if it would just stay there sitting in the lot or structure or street mattered not. A message needed to be sent, it would be small, almost meaningless compared to the recent crimes and usual problems the city had, but for Rufus it was a symbolic act to mark just the beginning. The beginning of the old spark returning in him as his tankard ran close to dry. And evidently as the seconds ticked away towards midnight... A new spark started within the vehicle.

"Aye, terrible little bastard I'm sure, Lass, give me a shot of Jameson to cap off the night." And all he needed now was a shot of cream. But Rufus already made himself a proper car bomb earlier this morning, and this was just the pièce d'occasion he would drink as the hour, minute, and second hand aligned themselves.

00:00:00
Boom.

---

Luka tapped his foot on the way up the elevator, it was quite a ways up to the penthouse but that just gave him some time to look over a few messages on his phone. He’d missed the meeting Aloy called last night but thankfully someone sent him a summary of what happened. Simon was still anxiously trying to prep Luka as well.



Another minute or so of tapping and reading and the elevator finally dinged at the penthouse floor. Slipping his phone back in his pocket Luka stepped out of the elevator and into the hall, following it till he got to Simon’s door, knocking when he got there. Luka could hear Simon’s heavy boots approaching before the door opened, revealing a familiar mop of ginger curls over hazel eyes and the same grimace Luka had seen on the man’s face last time. Coincidentally, Luka also heard an aged woman’s voice cry ”Victory!” from within the apartment.
"Simon," Luka nodded in greeting, looking over the man’s shoulder at the sound coming from the within. Simon put his back to the hallway as he opened the door wide and Luka wrinkled his nose for a second at the thick smell of bacon grease and stinky cheese as he stepped past Simon and went down the hall. Luka followed the short hallway into a wide and lavishly furnished living room. Taking up almost a fifth of this room was a rectangular depression with an L sofa and some chairs lining a coffee table. Sunlight poured in from the windows of the southern wall, which looked out onto a neat patio area. Much of the floor was otherwise open, rich brown hardwood.
A single laptop was on the coffee table, with a mouse still moving beside it. Someone was clearly sitting in front of that laptop--leaving a shallow depression in the black leather sofa cushions. But as far as Luka could see, he and Simon behind him were the only ones in the suite.
“Hi.” said a voice from the general direction of the sofa... not the aged woman, but a young and throaty smile of a voice, rough from overuse or cigarettes. “I’m Poet.”
If Luka was surprised by the phantom sitting on the couch, it didn't show.
"Luka," he gave a slight smirk at the disembodied voice. "Nice trick."
He strode across the room and sat down on the other side of the corner couch. Without really looking in her direction he jokingly asked, "So is the name for show or can you string beautiful rhymes together as well?" His voice matched his looks, somehow still seeming soft and graceful despite a heavy Russian accent.
“No.” Poet laughed, and Luka recognized Poet’s own Russian accent. Then, she was speaking fluent Russian, “[my mentor gave me that name for my grasp of language and dialect. One of my gifts.]” and then Poet’s accent changed as she spoke English again, a waspy midwestern drawl, “Though I do write songs in my spare time.”
Luka actually cracked a smile at hearing his mother tongue, not missing a beat.
"[Hah, so no rhymes but she's good with words.]"
The laptop clapped shut gently as the depression in the cushion shifted. Poet was clearly leaning back now. Simon had already retreated to the kitchen and Luka could hear him rummaging.
“Tea?” Simon called.
“Lap Sang, yeah?” Yet another change in accent, something close to American southern. As Poet spoke, Luka felt a brief tingle in his ears, as though they’d been full of water and only just now his head had come out of it… and there Poet was on the sofa, sitting with her legs crossed. She was wearing earthen brown cargo pants and a very baggy hoodie, her blonde hair tied back in a thick ponytail that draped over her left shoulder. Luka took the moment to look her over now that she was visible. Pretty thing her, Simon must feel lucky.
“And you, Luka? Maybe a soda? Liquor?” Simon sounded irritable for some reason. Luka couldn’t recall him ever sounding irritable.
"hmm? No thanks Simon, I'm fine" he leaned back and switched back to Russian to talk with Poet. "[So Simon's only told me a little bit about you. well, he's told me enough. But I'm curious, what're you looking for with this? what do you want?]"
“[I find myself stuck. From everything I’ve seen, Dark Shadow can get me unstuck. It survived one clash with The Guild, so anyone speaking out from Dark Shadow is heard.]” As Poet spoke Russian this time, she kept that vague southern twang. Her smile, initially warm, had taken a rather sullen shade, her eyes dulling from the bright gleam she’d had when she’d first appeared. “[I am useful. I’ve worked for your people before. I want to do so more closely.]”
"[Stuck hmm, well I won't ask. Aloysious probably won't care anyway, so long as you can get things done.]" Luka's smile faded a bit along with her's. He glanced away for a moment as if in thought, checking the time before looking back toward her "[They're a bit busy on a job right now, but once they're back we can go meet the gang. Introduce you to our glorious leader.]" the last part was said with a sarcastic tone, an exaggerated hand gesture accompanying the words 'glorious leader’.
“[Our Glorious Windbag, gusting with the heavenly updrafts on which we intend to ride?]” Poet’s smile brightened again with her words. “[If I have to I will. Simon’s told me about others though.]”
Poet was looking into Luka’s eyes, cocking her head slightly as if listening for something. Then Luka heard it too--the electric kettle roiling as Simon took it from the stand and filled some cups. Footsteps, then Simon came into view, setting a large, steaming mug by Poet’s laptop that had two teabag strings hanging from the rim.
“I’ll be in the studio if you need me,” Simon said gruffly. His tone didn’t even phase Poet… in fact she didn’t seem to notice he was there, still watching Luka’s eyes. As he left to another area of the suite they could hear doors closing just a little too noisily. Poet eventually winced and shook her head, sighing.
“[He never likes when I affect, thank god,]” Poet said, looking back up with a returning smile. “[Anyway… he told me about you.]”
Luka's attention drifted toward the kitchen as the kettle went off and Simon came in with the tea, coming back to Poet as he dropped of the tea and left. He returned her gaze, smiling back at her until Simon was gone and she spoke again. He raised a brow and tilted his head curiously.
"[Oh has he? he's said good things I hope?]"
“[Not who you are, just what you can do,]” Poet said. “[Which is less important to me than who you are, as it turns out.]”
Poet stopped to take her first sip of tea, transparently looking Luka over from above the lip of her mug. Her gaze steadied on what was clearly Luka’s neck.
“[When did you get that collar?]”
Luka brought a hand to his neck, rubbing a few fingers over the tattoo there. "[Some years ago, when I was still with the Mafia,]" he let his hand fall away, "[some of them called me an angel when they found out what I could do, but they didn't want to let me go because of it; 'my wings were my collar,']" He shrugged. "[Heh, well. that's what I thought at the time at least.]"
“[A friend of mine has a very similar tattoo. Each wing is hinged against the back of their neck.]” Poet explained, clutching her mug in her lap, stroking her thumb absentmindedly on swirls near the rim. “[They thought they couldn’t live a life without god and so they sought a binding to represent their abstinence from magic.]”
"Hrrmm." Luka didn't have a response to that, instead asking "[what about you hmm? no ink hidden on that body of yours?]"
“[No ink, just the mark.]” Poet answered, taking another sip of tea. “[I wasn’t really given time to pursue one before I lost interest.]” She leaned back on her sofa again, her expression ponderous.
“[Why are you in Dark Shadow?]”
"[This life was one way to keep the old one from haunting me. Like you in a way. I was stuck, Dark Shadow got me unstuck.]" Luka smirked.
“[Sure, but you were stuck to the Bravta. I’m stuck to the Guild.]” Poet spat, her smile turning to an acid grimace. It wasn’t clear whether she was offended by her own situation or by Luka’s comparison. Either way, letting the Dark Shadow know she had any connection to the Guild was something she’d avoided until now, with this first meeting. But now was no time to admit she’d screwed up.
“[And I’m stuck in this city, too, while we’re at it. According to Simon and the news though… I’m just in time for the show.]”
Luka simply shrugged again "[Yet you still wound up here. we may not be so different...you are right though, thing are starting to get in motion. We may want to head out soon.]" Luka shifted slightly and half-smirked half-grinned at her "[unless you'd like to get to know each other more?]”
Poet just watched him for a time, her thumb still worrying at her cup. She bit her upper lip as she considered their setting, eyes swaying gently around the room. Then she locked eyes with Luka again.
“Do you know push-hands?”
Luka chuckled, grin getting a little wider "I'm afraid not, you may have to show me."
Poet rose slow, mug in hand, and came round to Luka’s side of the coffee table, offering him a hand up. She lead him to the patio, the lone table still holding a couple of dishes. She pointed with her free hand to the side of the living room window. For all her baggy clothing, the temperature seemed to not affect her in the slightest.
“Tai-Chi teaching game,” Poet said, moving one of the chairs. She seemed intent on keeping her mug at the ready. “I assume you’ve fought without magic before?”
Luka took her hand to be led out to the patio, moving to where she pointed to before turning back to face her. "Only a few brawls really, I'm no martial arts expert."
“Did you ever have fun?” Poet asked, walking up to stand in front of Luka. He could tell from her tone she didn’t expect the answer she wanted.
"Most of them were drunken brawls between companions so...yes, I've had a bit," Luka smiled at her, awaiting instruction.
She sighed.
“Time to unlearn.”
Poet assumed a stance and directed Luka to mirror her, holding the back of his left hand to the back of hers, and keeping their left feet side by side. And then they started to move.

“I’ll walk you through it… you’ll understand in a minute.”
Poet guided him through the basics, the two of them teetering back and forth for half a minute before she pushed Luka off balance. She didn’t even come forward out of her stance, just waved her hand in beckoning for the next bout. He smiled, rejoining Poet for the second bout which lasted slightly longer. Then Luka was off balance again, this time falling past Poet who stood rigid.
“Again… and close your eyes.”
Luka came up, mirroring Poet’s stance again and immediately starting to sway with her closing his eyes. He could count the moments as they swayed in the sun… listening to the faint sounds of the city below… the gentle breeze tossing their hair… Poet sipping her tea as they kept the flow of balance between them.
Then Luka felt that strange sensation in his ears again. The noise of Poet sipping her tea seemed to swirl and shrink, like listening to a sound poured down a sink drain. The shock of it made him open his eyes. Poet wasn’t there… just her balance and his, keeping them in sway.
Luka was momentarily surprised when he saw she wasn't there again but he soon let his eyes drift back closed with a slow sigh, exhaling through his nose as he worked to keep his balance. In this moment he forgot that he was meant to be shifting her off balance, instead just maintaining the calm swaying he'd taken a liking to.
And so the third fall didn’t come on him like the others--it wasn’t a sudden shift, or his pressing forward glancing off of Poet’s mountain of motion. Luka just fell forward, as if cast off from a funnel spinning slow as the sea, but with just as much force. And with that disorientation came a splitting headache and a sharp tinnitus in his ears. His eyes shot open, looking up at Poet who was visible again, still frozen in her stance. But her eyes were open and her expression apologetic.
“[It’s ... of being let ... blank.]” She murmured, her voice still slack with the rhythm they’d been keeping. Luka’s hearing was returning slow as Poet bent down to offer him a hand up. As she continued, her voice was close enough for him to make it out over the ringing in his ears. “[The closer someone is to me when they’re in the blank, the more intense the shock is when they’re let out.]”
The fall wasn't bad, he was hit more by the effect from Poet's power leaving him a bit disoriented. He recovered quickly though, taking Poet's hand to get back up.
"I see," he smiled at her as he stood, then getting a thoughtful look on his face. "Hmm, are you able to use your ability on others? make them invisible too?"
“No.” Poet sighed as she switched back to English, flopping into a chair. “At least… not safely. It’s not me being invisible. It’s me reaching into your brain and suggesting I’m not there.”
Poet reached a hand to rummage in her hoodie’s central pocket and pulled out a pack of smokes, American Spirit Light Blues, and stuck one in her mouth, offering the pack to Luka and rummaging for fire. She took a long drag first, then spoke again as she exhaled.
“It works a few different ways, but how I just suggested to you I can only do with one person at a time. It’s hard for me to switch on and off with only one person. With multiple people I can strobe it... keep the headache going, make their ears ring so hard they can’t hear anything else, make it bad enough for them to pass out. If I want to do more I can’t control it. So I don’t.”
"Ah, still could get up some mischief, power like that," Luka said as he took a cigarette from her pack, lighting it with his own lighter. He found a seat in another chair, exhaling smoke from through his nose. He nodded as she spoke "Ever kill someone with it?"
Poet took another drag from her cigarette in response and left the silence between them, exhaling through her nostrils as she watched Luka closely. She bit her lower lip, looking down at her lap.
“If I want to do more…” Poet paused for emphasis, looking back up at him, “...I can’t control it. So I don’t do more.” She looked at the tip of her cigarette, flicking away the ash so she could watch the ember. “But yeah, I did. I killed my mentor because he figured out how to see past the blank. I wanted him to not, and he didn’t.”
Poet had started tapping her foot against one of the legs of the patio table as she spoke, and took yet another drag as she fell silent again.
Luka only nodded. He didn't have much more to say at this point so he just sat in silence with her, his gaze soon drifting away from her as he relaxed and let time pass. Poet tapped out more ash.
“So what do you do?” Poet asked, looking up at Luka again. “Simon said you were a hemomancer, but he’s also an impotent. I learned not to trust muggles at about the same time I learned not to trust mages.”
Luka snapped his gaze back when she spoke again.
"Well my magic does use blood, either directly or as power, but it's more than that,” he leaned forward, looking at his hands in front of him. "I can...manipulate people’s flesh as well. I can change appearances, shift features around and make you look like someone else. I can mend almost any wound, hell you could get your guts spilled out all over the floor so long as you aren't all the way dead I can fix you. Then of course there's the other side of that. I can inflict unimaginable pain on someone, and keep them alive and conscious for all of it." He paused for a second, looking from his hands to Poet. "And I don't know if Simon mentioned anything about being a Vampire again but that is pretty much true if he did."
“Heheh-he’s very insistent about that, yes,” Poet chuckled. “You’re features are a bit more masculine than he lead me to believe though.”
Poet stood then, rubbing her cigarette out into a tray. She left it there, putting her hands on her hips and looking at Luka with an expectant smile.
“So, when do I start? Simon didn’t really explain how all of this was supposed to work. I’m kinda guessing that’s because he didn’t know.”
Luka smiled back up at her and flicked his cigarette over the patio railing, sending off into the street below. "Oh really?" He stood up with her. "Well at any rate, we'll go find Aly. Powers like yours and you've already been helping us? you'll be starting right then. I, for one, look forward to working together" he held out his hand and Poet took it awkwardly, clearly unused to the gesture. That didn’t stop her smiling, though her grip as she shook was rather weak.
“Lunch?”

==========================================
A collab between:[@Ceres22]@pureheroine
Location: New York City rooftops
Time: 12:15 AM
==========================================

Circe ran off from the crime scene, soon her work would be all over the national news channels. A bridge made of darkness connected two buildings as she neared the gap. The smile on her face as she moved on to her next target, was neither friendly or warm.

"See baby!! I knew this was a good idea, hehehe. And you said you didn't want to do it!! Let's see if the little time wizard can have as much fun!!” She kept running, looking for another crowded area.

Elizabeth was still sulking over the fact she hadn't been chosen to go on the reconnaissance mission with Augie and Zeke. Her initial thought was to go out to a club and blow off some steam with some friends, but all of her friends were busy, which she took as a sign to begin an investigation of her own.

So there she was, soaring through the sky over the city, keeping her hawk eyes peeled for any suspicious activity, when low and behold, she caught sight of a young woman dashing between two building roofs on what looked like a bridge made out of...shadows? Darkness? Whatever it was it obviously wasn't natural. Using such obvious magic so openly was against Guild rules, so of course Lizzie had no choice but to get involved. More than that though, she was curious.

She dived down to land on the second building's roof, changing form into a pigeon to look less conspicuous as she perched herself on the edge of the roof and watched the other female.

Circe’s feet pounded on the rough top as she scanned around for a new target. Finally she spotted a movie theater, her eyes sparkled with murderous intent.

"Hey look, new play things!! Hehehe, there is a new “super hero” movie out tonight isn't there?? She said to her shadow, as she came to a stop next to a pigeon. "Let's give them a real life villain baby!! Hehehehe, shhhh it's ok, you will like it this time I swear!! You can bathe in all the blood you want. Aly will be so proud, we will be legends!! Shoo bird, don't bother me, hehehe.” She sung out the last part to the spectating avian, soon she would drop in on the unsuspecting patrons, and the news would have a new report!!

'Aly? That couldn't possibly mean Aloysius could it? In that case, is this girl from DS? That would explain why she seems like a complete fucking psycho, who the hell is she even talking to?' All these thoughts and more were swirling around in Elizabeth's head, meanwhile she was busy preening herself and doing her best to act as pigeon like as possible to avoid suspicion, which seemed to be working.

The crazy girl didn't even seem to notice her, aside from the brief moment she took to shoo her away. Lizzie ruffled her feathers and hopped a few inches to the side, trying to keep up a natural bird act, but still remain close enough so she could get as much information as possible. She had initially been planning to follow the girl around for a little while, and see what she could find out, but when she heard the girl was planning an attack on the theater, she knew she had to do something to stop her.

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that." Elizabeth stated while shifting from the pigeon form and into her original form. Once her transformation was complete, she moved to stand in the other girl's way.

Circe was about to drop down and have her fill of more humans, when the pigeon she had tried to shoo turned into a girl. Her small angled face peered at Circe, with big blue eyes. The little pixie had the nerve to tell Circe she wouldn't be allowed to kill anymore people.

"If you were that birdie, does that mean you take shits on the statues?? Hehehehe, now why would one of the Guildies want to ruin me and babies fun?? They are only humans, weak pathetic little creatures. I am only trying to give them what they want, something that goes bump in the night.”

Waves of darkness rolled out of Circe, like smoke. Some of it turned into forms, crumbling buildings, people stuck with perpetual fear on their the faces. Explosions of shadows erupted behind Circe.

"Human nature is evil, I am the chaos born from their hearts!! Everything came from darkness, I only wish to return it to that darkness!! Hehehehe, shhhh it's ok baby, she can't hurt you. A weak little bitch like you, I hear your heart. Begging to be returned to the darkness, come little bird. Let us Grant your request!!” Twin swords of shadows appeared in Circe’s hands as she lunged at the Shapeshifter, striking out at her ribs.

Elizabeth had gone to great lengths to improve her overall agility and close quarters combat, because she knew her powers alone weren't very strong against other mages. As the girl launched at her, striking out at her chest with her shadow blades, Lizzie threw herself into a backhandspring; which she executed and landed perfectly.

"You're going to have to try a lot harder than that little girl." She shifted into a large brown bear and charged at the girl. When she got within a few feet she reared up on her hind legs and swiped at her neck and chest with her large paws.

One of Circe’s swords dissolved and became a shield blocking the bears swipe. Her other sword grew in length becoming a polearm. Striking out at the beasts legs.

"Oh Winnie, if you thinking I am trying hard at all, you have another thing coming!! Hehehe, you sure would make a fine rug on my floor!! No, no baby, we mustn’t feed the animals!!”

Lizzie roared in pain as the polearm pierced her leg, that hurt like a bitch, but it would heal soon enough. She stumbled back a little, pulling her leg back from the blade of the weapon, allowing the wound to heal a little more once the weapon was no longer obstructing it. Then she charged at the girl again, slamming her shoulder into the shield, putting all her weight behind the hit.

Circe was satisfied to hear the mage roar out, and to see the blood flow from her leg brought on her bloodlust. She was so elated to wound the girl that it gave her the chance to counter attack. Circe was sent sprawling on the ground by the bears charge, she sat up momentarily dazed.

"Sheesh, someone didn't have their morning honey. Hehehehehe, that's fine, makes this game so much more fun!! How are you going to hit me if I stay out of your reach??” As the words finished the now cracked shield and polearm warped into a bow and quiver. Circe pulled out a small handful of arrows and fired two quick shots at the bears chest.

Elizabeth transformed out of the bear and dropped to the ground, rolling to the side, narrowly avoiding getting hit in the chest. One of the arrows still managed to skim her back, cutting through her clothes and into her skin, drawing out another shout of pain. "Bitch! This is my new jacket!" She snarled at the girl. It was probably a little childish to be so fussed over a piece of clothing in the middle of a fight, but it was expensive and she really liked it.

Lizzie quickly pushed herself to her feet and turned to face the other mage, then she morphed her forearms into blades and extended her limbs just long enough to strike at her.

Circe laughed with psychotic glee at the girls scream, and was caught off guard by the blades coming at her. As she felt it sink into her arm she let out a feral growl.

"When I am done with you, princess, you won't be worrying about much of anything anymore. Hehehe, I think playtime is over!! Now I am going to be mean!!” With that Circe stomped her foot onto the roof and spikes of darkness rose up like a wave, rushing towards the Shapeshifter.

Lizzie shifted into a hawk to fly up and over the wave of spikes that were coming towards her, missing them just in time. When she landed again, she was back in her human form, arms morphed back into blades, ready to make another charge at her opponent.

Circe saw her chance, as the young woman was landing, she let loose another arrow. She knew this one would hit home in the shifters chest, no one was that fast. She began running after her arrow closing the gap, not wanting to give her toy a chance to escape.

Elizabeth hadn't seen it coming, and had no time to react, the arrow hit her square in the chest, sending her toppling backwards into the ground. It wasn't an injury she couldn't recover from, given enough time, but as she looked up she saw the girl was already running at her. Lizzie took a swing at her as soon as she was close enough, trying desperately to fight her off, but she was losing quite a bit of blood.

Circe easily swatted the girls hands away. She straddled the injured woman's hips. Circe grabbed the arrow and twisted it a little more, making the blood pump out faster.

"A fighter to the end?? I like that in my toys, hehehehe. But look baby!! Her batteries are running out. Just between me and you shifter, oh your ganna love this. Baby was hoping you would win, hehehe. But, it looks like I broke another toy. Now stop fighting, shhhhhh, shhhh it will be ok. Let the darkness come, let it fill your every fiber. We all must return to it's embrace some time, just now it's your turn.” Circe tried soothing the fighting girl, though the act of kindness was lost to the dark mage. She produced a long wicked curved dagger, and quickly flashed it under the shifters chin.

Elizabeth knew it was over, she was too weak to fight her off and save herself, but maybe -just maybe- if she could injure the other girl enough she could still succeed in stopping her from killing anymore innocent people, at least for one night; and that would still be a win in her mind. With all the strength the had left in her body, she made one last strike at the shadow mage, aiming for wherever she could possibly get a hit in, right before the girl summoned a dagger and slit her throat. Blood spurred from her throat and her mouth, causing her to cough and gag, making each breath a struggle. Until finally, her eyes fluttered closed, her head dropped to the side, and her arms returned to normal as the last sign of life in her body.

Circe felt a sharp pain in her side, the shifter bitch got her good in her ribs. She swore under her breath, she would have to go back to base to heal. Her fun was done for the night.

"Stupid, stupid silly little guildling, how dare you impede my work!! Gasp!! Look, our blood it mingles, hehehe. Drink up baby, it's mage blood, make you nice and strong hehehehe. Now, my oh my, how are we going to get someone to notice you?? Hehehehe I know!!” Circe lifted the shifter up, stripping her jacket off and putting in on her self. She carried the body over to the edge and looked down. She laughed more to herself than anything else as she let the young woman's body drop.

With a solid thud, and crunch of bones breaking, Circe turned and dipped her hand in the blood. She found a smooth part of the roof to accomplish what she wanted.

1-0 Guildlings!! C She brushed some blood on her shadow and started making her way back to base, holding her side. She barely made it to the third rooftop before the screams hit the air. She laughed out loud at the joyous sound, than had to stop because it hurt her bleeding side. Tonight was a great night!!

---

---

A collab between: @jakeb1993, @PureHeroine, @HaleyTheRandom, & @Grape
Location: Jones & Hamilton Auction House
Time: 11.40pm.

---

---

Aloysius decided to use his Jaguar to drive to the auction. Originally he was going to let Lana drive while himself and Ty sat in the back. Given the tension from before; however, he decided to trust Ty with the keys while Lana and himself resided in the back.

“This should be a simple operation” Aloysius mentioned to Lana. “We buy the artifact and we get out. However, there will be a catch” A smirk began to form on his lips “I may have told Salem, well… I got someone else to tell Salem we were going to be there. If it works, she will be joining us.”

Lana would have preferred to be driving, as it would give her something to distract herself with, and it meant she wouldn't have to sit in the back with Al. Her mind was still reeling from the conversation they had had earlier though, so perhaps driving wouldn't have been a good idea anyway.

The mention of Salem attending the auction with them put all other thoughts to rest, however. The green haired woman would turn from staring out the window to look at their leader with utter disbelief plastered all over her face. "Are you insane?!" It really was beginning to seem like he had gone crazy when she took into account everything that had happened in the last few hours.

“Insane? Heck no” Aloysius would chuckle slightly “Okay, given your recent…promotion I suppose I should let you in on a few details” Aloysius tugged at his bowtie slightly as it was making him feel uncomfortable. He hated things that restricted his neck space.

“So, this artifact we are going to pick up is going to help tilt the odds in our favour. I don’t intend to take Salem on head on. I need her to fall into a trap we are going to set.” He would adjust his position on the seat and then smirked “All I need you to do is to look confident. If we look strong it will buy us more time before Salem makes a move. Think you can do that?”

Lana was absolutely dumbfounded, she didn't believe he was still sane for a second. She was also furious that she hadn't been warned of the situation earlier. Though if she had, she likely wouldn't have gone, and he probably knew that. "This artifact of yours better be worth it, or Salem will be the least of your worries." She hissed at him before turning away from him once more.

Of the three of them, Lana had the least to worry as far as Salem was concerned. The woman seemed more intent on getting her to defect than she was on killing her, but that didn't mean she wasn't at risk. To say she was pissed off would be an understatement.

While others might have laughed off the threat that Lana was dishing out, Aloysius knew she was serious. Yes this was a massive risk. But he had it all planned out in his head. He just needed Lana to play her part. “It will, trust me.”

Ty simply minded his own business from the front of the car, keeping his eyes on the road. Though it did feel a little weird to be driving in a tux, he was more than stoked to drive the Jaguar. He had to admit that giving Salem a tip as to them being here was just a little…. Not so smart. In his opinion, it would be much easier to get this artifact without adding the Guild in the mix. But to each his own, he supposed. He came to a stop at his destination, looking in the rearview mirror to smile at Lana and Al. “Let's get this party started, shall we?”

Salem and Aliira had had a brief discussion in the back of the Guilds headquarters, ending in Salem promising to give the other woman details on the ride to the Auction House. Luckily, Salem had stopped by her favorite dress shop earlier before the meeting. She had planned to go to the auction the second that she had received the message earlier that day. Sure, it could be a trap, but as of now, all she was going off of was a train wreck. Salem herself had decided on a short black dress with the back open, perfect for showing off her mage mark. The dress came down to mid-thigh, leaving her unhindered if there was a fight.

Salem took a deep breath before beginning her explanation to Aliira. ”I got a message from an untraceable number earlier. It stated that Aloysius was going to be at an auction tonight. Coordinates were attached. It was vague, but I figured that we needed to check it out. Though he has his father’s money to blow, I don’t think he’d be going to an auction for nothing.”

Aliira sat quietly in the back of the nice car beside Salem. Her mind lost in thought to this adventure they were having. She was wearing a simple and elegant black dress; modest in nature though it accented her natural curves. Her left thigh casually draped over the right, her hands over her lap and loosely holding onto a small black handbag.

After almost countless moments of silence Salem finally began to speak, causing Aliira’s gave to shift towards her curiously. Finally Salem would divulge the point of this entire endeavor.

Concern spiked in her mind. Everything seemed a bit… shady. Untraceable number. Coordinates. Things rarely dropped in their laps so easily. ”Are you not concerned this might be a trap?” Aliira asked kindly, concern obvious on her lips.

"I am a little worried about it being a possible trap. I'll admit that. But as it stands, this is really the only lead that we have. I'm just.... I'm trying, Li."

Entering the auction house the Dark Shadow crew found themselves inside an extravagant reception area. The floor was covered in polished marble, the true sign of exquitness. Aloysius led the gang to go and sign in at the reception desk. He handled all of the details himself, preferring that his two associates just stand around and keep watch. After he had had signed in and got everything he needed he ushered the group to start near the stairway in the center of the hall. “Okay, it won’t be long until the auction starts. We just gotta wait until they open up. What we want is lot number twelve”

Salem and Aliira signed in together - under aliases, of course. Salem decided to be Lilith Drake for the night. She watched Li sign in. On the list of things that Salem could say about her friend, was that she had the far better handwriting. ”How about we split up? I’ll keep an eye out for Aloysius. You keep an eye out for any of his… accomplices.”

After signing in under the alias of Naomi Hiramoto she heard Salem over her shoulder. Looking back and giving a simple nod of understanding she carried on her way away from Salem.

She started her way around the room, a bystander offering her a glass of champagne on silver platter filled with other glasses. She politely declined. That was when her eyes found him. She walked over gracefully, the look on her face neutral. Salem allowed a low current to run to the her fingertips - just enough power to feel like a static shock. The young woman tapped Aloysius on the shoulder.

Aloysius was currently talking to Lana about the lot they were going for when all of the sudden a tap on the shoulder, followed by shock, caused him to jump, almost completely off the ground. Recomposing himself, he turned around to face the figure. Seeing Salem caused his face to sink in disgust. “Oh, look what the cat dragged in?” He retorted “You are a long way away from the basket”

Salem laughed light heartedly. ”Oh please. Did mommy finally let you have permission to go out on your own for the night?”

“Oh wow… what an original insult. I haven’t heard that one before” Aloysius snickered. “Trust me, if there wasn’t any Nonmagi around, I would have smashed you into that wall behind you already”

”So now you’re so degenerate you have to threaten me with walls? Someone’s feeling kinky.”

“Kinky? Walls. You don’t deserve to get kinky with someone as godlike as me. Maybe that sheep of your Aliira can get on her knees or something”

The comment about Aliira made Salem pause for a split second. Who was he to bring her into this? ”I think we’ve found the root of your anger issues, Al; Sexual Frustration. After all, one can understand that, seeing as the last person you loved stabbed you in the back. I’m surprised there’s anyone left that you could trust enough to bring here with you tonight. Which of your play things did you bring, Aloysius?”

That hurt. Really hurt. There was a line and Salem just crossed it. Aloysius’ smirk fell and turned into a glaring snarl. He was having to really restrain himself from outright fucking Salem up then and there. Still… breathe. “Fuck you. Just fuck you. You sent her to me. You had her stab me in the back! And besides, I have a new second in command. I have Lana…” He motioned his hands towards the green haired female.

So Aloysius had a thing for green haired women.. Interesting. It was nice to see him acknowledge her handywork. Sending Rebecca to him had been her plan. ”Lana? Congrats on your promotion, sweetie!” Salem said, mock happiness in her voice. ”Tell me, Aloysius. Do you plan to fall in love with her to? You know even making her second in command won’t make her stay with you forever. It sure didn’t for Rebecca.” Sure, it was childish to bring up Rebecca, but Salem admitted that she loved to get under Aloysius’s skin. And she did have a point - practically everyone in both the Guild and the Dark Shadow knew that Lana’s loyalty wavered.

Deep inside Aloysius there was an crushing blow. Not that he would let Salem see it. He was doing his best to hide it. But his best wasn’t quite enough. The corners of his mouth sank, his cheek points fell and his eyes widened in both shock and horror from reliving painful memories in those brief seconds. So maybe he didn’t say he was hurt. But his face was giving it away. “Just….Remember...I…” Words carried on escaping him. His brain failing and drawing blanks. A second or so later, he finally mustered something. “I didn’t need Rebecca, she was just a useless pawn. Lana is actually the real deal. She has the power a second-in-command should have, unlike your tree hugging bitch you have by your side”

Salem noticed the slight changes in Aloysius’s face, and was ever so slightly pleased with herself. Even after all these years, he still had some sort of feelings for Rebecca. If it had been any other person, Salem might have pitied them. But Al? Never in a million years. ”Real power? So that’s all Lana is to you? ‘Real power.’” As Salem said her last two words, she would use her fingers to make air quotes before crossing her arms across her chest. ”I sent Rebecca to you. Her ultimate goal was to betray you - you know this. But the real reason she never returned your feelings is because of the way that she watched you use the others around you. She pitied you. Becca knew you’d never be able to show any real emotions. People are only worth something to you for as long as you can use them. Tell me I’m wrong, Aloysius? Or are you man enough to admit that I’m right?

Aloysius took a step forward, closing the distance between the two of them, so their breaths almost touched “Listen carefully” he muttered “I had real feelings for Rebecca. I wanted us to do well together. And all this time it was ruse, by a weasel like you.” Aloysius would take a deep breath to calm himself “You hurt me way more than I would have hurt you… So in that respect, I am glad I killed your father. He was a weak, useless man who never had the spine to do what needed to be done.” Aloysius would step back to where he was standing before, smirk plastered back on his face.

Usually, Salem was the most reserved person in all of the land - anyone could tell you that. Though Aloysius retreated, Salem advanced, taking a few steps towards him. The neutral look on her face would falter, her eyebrows knit together in a brief moment of anger. The young woman could feel the adrenaline surge through her body as she took a deep breath to steady herself. Aloysius wanted to get under her skin, and she would be damned if she would let him see it. ”Weak and useless? Describing ourselves now are we? He may have never infiltrated your base, nor planned an outright attack to stop you, but he hindered you in many other ways. He knew his time was coming. Now you have to deal with me. I’ve already crushed your soul, now I just have to shatter your bones.”

Oh how tables could turn. If Salem was hitting low, Aloysius could hit low too. Her father was a sensitive subject. Time to apply some pressure. “Okay, let me tell you something you may not know: I have killed a Guild Leader. The most powerful person in the world. Your father was just the first course in three course meal. You have no idea of the power I wield... “ His lips curled into a smirk “Later on after the auction we settle this… I will gladly leave your blue haired punk bitch ass in the gutter to rot in hell!”

Salem smirked now herself. He honestly thought that he could kill her like he had her father? He thought wrong. If only he knew what secrets the Guild held. The secrets that the de Silva clan held alone. One thing that she did notice was the way that he said after the auction. Why not here? Why not now? She knew good and well that he had no regard for any NoMajis life. ”Unlike my father, I have studied you. I have trained harder than you can ever think humanly possible. I killed my people to get where I am today. You know nothing of me or my family. Unless you want to be the next corpse in this city, I suggest you leave me the Hell alone.”

Aloysius smirked at Salem, He was clearly getting under her skin. It was time to leave shortly, but he might as well milk this for what it was worth, and help make sure that Salem was at her peak anger. He knew he was… tonight, someone was going to die “Just remember… you have your father’s blood on your hands. You, not me!”

It was now Salem’s turn to shake with rage on the inside. Her father's death was something that she tortured herself with daily. He had a valid point. She supposed they had both lost someone that they loved that day. She clenched her right hand into a fist. ”All in good time, my friend,” she said, reaching out to pat him gently on the cheek, her fingertips leaving pink marks on his face where they were previously, Salem giving him another jolt. ”All in good time.” The auctioneer was now calling everyone into the main room. Salem turned and started making her way there.

The idea of spending the evening with Salem and Aloysius in the same building was actually rather terrifying, there was no telling what could happen, and it made Lana extremely tense; although she did pretty well at keeping up a calm, collected front on the outside. At least while things were calm and going well. She had hoped that the night could go by without the two of them meeting, but that hope was dashed almost as soon as it appeared. Salem walked in and the two of them were drawn together like magnets. She of course was fine to just let the two of them have at it and release their frustrations through throwing insults at each other, but the moment she heard her name mentioned, her resolve was gone. There wasn't exactly one of the two she could say her anger was directed at more, since both of them said things that got on her nerves. Salem with her quip about her wavering loyalty -which everyone seemed to take great joy in pointing out- and Aloysius with his careless comment on her power. Which of course the blue haired bitch just had to emphasize. If there was one thing Lana hated, it was being used, and she had to admit given the circumstances, that's exactly what it felt like Al was doing. Lana wasn't really one for words, and preferred to let her actions do all the talking. As such she would have liked nothing more than to blast the two of them through a wall -or several- but as angry as she was, she wasn't stupid. She didn't have the power to handle the consequences that would come from such actions. There were also a lot of nonmagi around, and even if she didn't care about them getting hurt, using her powers so publicly was likely to expose herself and the whole magi population. So instead, Lana was left to try and calm herself down by reciting a series of numbers to herself in her mind, while taking deep calming breaths. It was something her brother had taught her to do when she had no other outlet for her emotions, and it worked like a charm. Before she knew it, Lana was relatively calm again and ready to follow Aloysius after he stormed off up the stairs to the auction room.

Aloysius couldn’t help but feel quite smug about what had just happened. Sure he had rattled the cage, and he was fairly sure that Lana was glaring at the back of his head right now, but you should never miss an opportunity to mess with your rival. Still, revenge would come later. Finishing the climb up the stairs into the auction room. The number of people here for the auction was actually quite small. Only a select few had the interest and the wallets to be able to come here. Aloysius would take a seat at the back of the room, Letting Lana and Ty sit by him side by side, that way they wouldn’t annoy each other throughout the day.

Salem made her way to the auction room, Aliira meeting her just in time at the entrance to the room. As Aliira opened her mouth to ask a clearly disturbed Salem what was going on, Salem shot her a look as if to say ‘can it.’ Aliira did so. She did a quick scan of the room. There were about twenty seats - far less than she expected. She seen where Lana, Aloysius and Ty were sitting. She made her way towards them, taking the seat behind them as to keep a close eye on things.

Aloysius could feel the bitch behind him. Breathing down him like there was no tomorrow. It was okay though. There was nothing she could do to stop him. It took roughly 15 minutes for the other 11 lots to pass over. Eventually the auction reached the lot he wanted.

“Now moving onto lot 12, a rare tablet, suspected to be of greek descent. This item is one of the least known items in this action tonight. We are going to start the bidding at $125,000. Anyone advancing on that?” The auctioneer was a drab bloke, stuck up and far too complacent to realise the power he had in front of him. Aloysius raised his paddle and offered $150,000.

Salem recognized the tablet at once. Both her mother and her father had described it to her in full detail. Seeing Aloysius raise his paddle, her blood would run cold. Of course he knew what it was. Salem made her move and offered $160,000.

She made a bid. She fucking made a bid. How dare she. She was not going to stop him now. He would put in a bid himself, upping the price to $170,000.

Salem raised a brow in both suspicion and defiance. She placed another bid, bringing the total to $200,000.

This bitch wasn’t rich. There was no way she was going to outbid him. No fucking way. Taking a breath he would place another bid “$500,000” he said aloud, several members of the auction gasping in shock.

There was now nothing that she could do. Salem placed the paddle on her lap as some of the members gasped. Then an idea popped into her head: no one ever said that she had to pay for the merchandise….

It seemed that the blue haired bitch had finally given up. This was going to be easy. However someone else suddenly sniped in with a bid of $750,000. In annoyance, Aloysius would furrow his brow and raise his paddle, knocking the bid upto the fabled $1,000,000. It seemed as if he had won, until another bid arrived, knocking the price higher. Aloysius couldn’t complete and bowed out. But nothing stopped him from taking the tablet by force. In a moment of anger he got up and motioned for his team to get up, storming to the back of the room and back down the stairs again to the reception area.

Salem watched their small group leave the auction room, ready to take action herself. However, if to many people got up and left at one time headed in the general direction of where they kept everything, it would look suspicious. For the time being, she and Aliira stayed put.

Lana hadn't expected it to happen, but Aloysius had lost the bidding for the lot, which meant acquiring the artifact just got even more complicated. She, just like him, was quite frustrated with the outcome, though she managed to keep her frustration better hidden than he did as she followed him out of the auction hall. "So what now?" Lana asked once they were back downstairs. She knew Al would already have a plan in mind in case the auction didn't go his way, and she knew it would likely be along the lines of stealing the tablet, but in an auction house full of priceless items, the security was bound to be tight, so it wasn't going to be easy.

"Simple, we steal it" He turned to face Lana and Ty. "We are going to have to move quickly, and please, no killing anyone. They may be Nonmagi scum, but we don't need a murder investigation on our hands. That also means no using fire Ty, I don't want to cause the fire alarm to go off." Checking around for anyone who could spot them, Aloysius opened a door into the staff only area, beckoning for the others to follow.

Given it was approaching midnight, the place was deserted. Only the odd security guard remained. It was easy for the trio to avoid them, keeping low and moving from desk to desk when needed. Eventually they worked their way over to the the item lockup. The lookup entrance was locked, however the wall that contained the door also had a grated window. Looking through, Aloysius could spot the key, hooked onto the wall opposite. Moving away from the window he motioned his arms towards Lana "Would you do the honours of passing me us the key?"

No fire? How the Hell was Ty supposed to fight? Sure, he could punch a lot of things, but fire was fun. He felt like a five year old who had just had his favorite toy taken away. Sneaking from desk to desk did cheer him up though. He felt like a really sexy ninja. It was enough to keep his mind grounded, anyway.

It surprised Lana how little security there actually was, considering the amount of priceless items they had stored away, it was like they were asking for it all to be stolen. No one even noticed them as they walked right into the staff only area. 'At least it won't be difficult.' She was already having a hard enough time trying to sneak around and duck behind desks in a short dress and heels. She felt ridiculous, but they weren't allowed to kill anyone, which meant the only way they could avoid leaving any witnesses was to stay out of sight.

When Aloysius motioned her over she moved up to the window and looked through the grating to see the key hanging on a hook on the wall. By the time he had finished asking his question, the key would have already been lifted from the hook, levitated through the grating on the window, and sat hovering in front of his face. When he would go to reach for the key, however, it would move just out of his reach for a second, before moving back. Lana would tease him like that a few times before finally letting him take it. She had to entertain herself somehow, so far the night had been a bore.

"Gah! Will...you...just...give me the...key!" Aloysius cried out in frustration, each word accompanied by an attempt to grab the key. When the key was finally in his hands he would let out a triumphant laugh. "Finally!" Walking over to the door her slide the key into the lock and unlocking the door. When the door unlocked a look of joy came over Aloysius. "Right, Ty, you guard this door, the exit is just to the right of us so it makes for a quick escape. Lana on me"

Ty chuckled when Lana decided to tease Al, but kept silent otherwise. "Whatever you say, dad." he replied in response to having to guard the door. It seemed as if Lana was now Als new pet, considering her promotion and such. Ty would admit that it made him angry. Lana had anger issues. Didn't Al worry about her making a hasty decision in the future because if it? Though he now resented Lana and had a bone to pick with Al, he kept his mouth shut on the matter.

Walking into the secure lock up it suddenly became apparent that finding the tablet wouldn't be so easy. The secure room was covered entirely in safes. "Great, now how are we going to find it" Aloysius spoke out in frustration, walking over to one of the safe handles and tugging at it, trying to unsuccessfully open one of them.

"Getting a little slow in your age there, Al?" Lana remarked with a smirk on her face, she really did enjoy teasing him, it was definitely more fun than being teased. She was still snickering to herself as she followed him into the room. Looking around and seeing all the safes didn't phase her at all, she was quite experienced with breaking into things. "Stand back, I got this." She was looking quite smug then, and she was feeling it too, she was having fun being able to show of her power like she was.

Lana closed her eyes, letting her mind focus on the locks of each safe in the room. It wasn't often she worked with multiple locks at once, so it required a little more concentration on her part. It still only took her a few seconds to unlock each lock, letting off a series of clicking sounds, followed by the squeaking of the hinges, as the doors on the safes swung open. "Before you ask, yes, I could have just done that with the door."

"I forgot" Aloysius sighed "You have the ability to unlock things" He rubbed his temples slightly in annoyance "You are loving this right now aren't you?"

Lana had moved to the side once she was finished and was leaning back against the wall with her arms crossed, watching him with an amused grin on her face. "Every second of it."

"Right! Let's just find this tablet" Aloysius started looking into each of the safe compartments like a toddler going through mommy and daddies clothes draws. Eventually he found what he was looking for "Ah-ha! Here it is" The tablet was fairly plain, an old piece of smooth rock that had, what looked like latin etched into the surface. Time had made most of the writing illegible. Aloysius reached out and went to place his finger on the tablet, fingers oh so close to brushing the surface, when he suddenly stopped and withdrew his hand with haste. "Lana, would you be kind enough to grab the tablet for me?"

The grin on Lana's face drooped into a frown when Aloysius suddenly pulled back from the tablet and asked her to grab it instead. At first she thought nothing of it, but as she walked over to pick it up, a thought suddenly occurred to her. "What's so great about an old rock?" She asked while 'accidentally' letting it slip from her hand. Lana would stop it just before it hit the ground.

"NOO!" Aloysius shouted as he dived to the ground, desperate to try and stop the tablet from impacting the hard ground. As he lay his hands out to catch the tablet he noticed that it had stopped falling.Letting out a huff of annoyance he stood back up, brushing the dust and dirt off his tuxedo he had picked up on from the floor. "That wasn't funny Lana, this tablet is really important okay. It is a family heirloom of sorts. And with it I will have an unimaginable amount of power!"

"Interesting..." Lana commented as she watched Aloysius throw himself to the floor in a desperate attempt to catch the tablet before it hit the ground. As if that wasn't enough proof to her how important it was to him, he went on to explain that very fact to her, after standing to his feet and straightening himself up again. "Well if it's so important to you, why don't you carry it? Wouldn't want to risk me dropping it again, right?" She asked while pushing the tablet towards him.

As the tablet came towards him he would put his hands up, pushing them backwards, doing anything he could to keep himself away from the tablet "Heh... I would just prefer that you carry it. Afterall, I trust you implicitly"

"Oh, is that so?" Lana kept pushing the tablet towards him until it came within inches of touching his face, where she held it for a few seconds before pulling it back and finally taking hold of it again. She knew by the way he had reacted that there was something about the tablet that was preventing him from touching it, she just didn't know what it was. She doubted he would tell her though, no matter how much she asked. Of course she could just make him touch it and find out that way, but not knowing what would happen was too much of a risk for her. She also didn't want to hang around in the auction house for any longer than she absolutely needed to. The heels were killer on her legs, so the sooner she could take them off the better.

"Let's just say if I touch that thing, there won't be any power left in me" He would turn on his heels to face the exit "Come on, we need to leave" Leading Lana out to the exit they would quickly link back up with Ty. Signalling with his hand he pointed to the fire escape that led out to the back. Running to the door he pushed the door bar down and walked out, keeping it open for Lana and Ty for slamming it shut.

The alleway they had come out to was fair dark, only two lights on either side shone dimly into the area. It would have been the perfect escape route, if not for the fact that it was a long walk to the street, and the thing that was blocking them from moving forward.

Salem and Aliira had made it through security fairly easy. The dim lit corridors had made it easier to sneak past the guards. If Al did manage to get the tablet, he would take the alley way, no doubt. It would allow him to get away unseen. Salem motioned to Aliira, and they slipped out the exit. No sooner than her feet hit the ground, Salem heard movement behind her. She turned to see Aloysius and company."Now tell me what exactly the Hell you think you're doing?"

"Oh no it is the One Time" Aloysius said mockingly "Oh wait, it is just The bitch and her peace loving slave" He sneered towards the duo, feelings still raw from their previous encounter in the lobby. "I am stealing the tablet. Since I didn't win it. Are you really that stupid?"

Salem rolled her eyes. "It's called sarcasm, you fucking idiot. I'm smart enough to beat you to your escape route. Now just hand that thing over so we can call it a night." Salem had heard stories of such a tablet when she was little, though what power it was capable of, she had no idea.

Aloysius just looked at Salem with a smirk. "Okay, you got us. We surrender" He put his hands up and urged Ty to do the same. "Lana give Salem the tablet. There is no point trying to resist. We can always win it back later"

"You're kidding me, right? You want me to just hand it over?!" Lana knew she didn't really have any choice, since neither Ty or Al were going to fight, and she didn't have the power to handle Salem on her own, let alone her and Aliira at the same time; but that didn't mean she had to be happy about it. All she could think about was how all their effort had gone to waste as she handed the tablet over to Salem, and that infuriated her to no end.

These people were outright fucking crazy. What was going on? Al was just willing to surrender just like That? Ty found it strange. He held his hands in the air as told.

Salem watched as Lana handed over the tablet. She was hesitant to take the object. Aloysius had went through all this trouble just to surrender? Something wasn't right here. Salem reached out reluctantly and grabbed it. The moment she did, the tablet started to shake violently, causing her to have to hold on to it with all of her strength. In a single sweep the tablet began glow bright blue and a stream of light began to emanate from it. At first the stream began to dance around Salem naturally attracted to her. But then it suddenly rushed over to Aloysius and hit him in the heart. His body hunched over as the stream continued to pour into his heart until the tablet stopped glowing.

Aliira's eyes quickly whipped over to Salem as the light began to swirl around her body. She was bewildered on what to do. She stepped hesitantly closer but came to a stop. Unsure whether or not if she interacted it would become volatile. So for the time being she stood ready for what might happen next.

For a second, Aloysius didn't move. His body still hunched over. He would suddenly raise his hand out to his side. His hand would burst out in flames, just like Ty did, then as the flames ushered away, it was replaced with stark blue lightning. He carried on flicking through elements, Lightning replaced by water and then by wind. Standing straight up again, a large smirk was plastered on Aloysius's face. "Well, this is...different"

As the lights traveled from Salem to Aloysius, Lana watched as it trailed through the air. Her face twisted with confusion; trying to make sense of all that was going on. As Aloysius began to display the array of elemental affinities she nearly gasped. What could this possibly mean? What the hell was that tablet?!

"What the he-" Lana wanted to tear into Aloysius for acting so cowardly, when out of the corner of her eyes she saw a flash of blue light. As she looked over she realized it was coming from the tablet. The light swirled around Salem for a moment, before suddenly launching itself at Aloysius, striking him in the chest. Lana could do nothing but stand by and watch in a mixture of confusion and curiosity.

At first nothing happened, Al was simply standing there hunched over, then suddenly he raised his hand and it burst into flames. From there it continued to cycle through several other elements, and it was finally clear to her what had happened.

The tablet must have contained power that was somehow linked to Aloysius, which is why it flew directly to him when it was activated by Salem's touch, rather than being absorbed by her or anyone else closer to her.

The fact that it was Salem's touch that activated it, and not anyone else's must of meant it was connected to her too. Which also meant his willingness to hand it over was apart of his plan all along. Not even she had seen that coming, even though she knew how crafty he was, and she had to admit she was a little impressed.

Salem had to admit, the light was pretty - but also freaky. She watched as Aloysius flipped through his new options, slightly more ticked off at the fact that he could now use lightning than anything else. Though, if he used it , she would just absorb the energy, it pissed her off that he now had access to her craft. It pissed her off more that she had been tricked. What really made her mad, however, is that no one had ever bothered to tell her what the blasted tablet did. She bent over, gently laying the tablet on the ground before standing up again. Feeling the adrenaline rush through her veins, she would ring her hands together behind her back, her body now tingling with electricity as well. She let the energy flow to her hands, slowly creating a orb of lightning as she spoke. "Well would you look at that.... Seems as if you've finally gotten more power than me." In one swift movement, she would throw the orb of energy towards her enemies.

It was time to see what these powers would do. As the orb came towards them Aloysius raised his hands and summoned a wall of water to between them, the rob impacting it and electrifying the water. He would then force the water to disappear, negating Salem’s attack. "That it?" He smirked "Looks like this will be easy. Do me a favour" He looked over to Lana and Ty "Deal with Salems lapdog. Keep her alive if you can."

A simple smile slowly crept across Aliira's lips at the mention of herself being a lapdog; she preferred being underestimated. Though that was often something long gone nowadays. Aliira had become quite prominent in the Guild and her powers just as well known. Taking a few steps off to the side away from Salem she allowed her beautiful marking begin to glow. All across her body intricate designs began to illuminate with a soft orange glow. Not an inch not covered by the glowing marks.

Alongside her mage marks came a light ethereal energy that seems to draw out from Aliira's surrounding environment. From the Earth and walls the translucent blue light tendrilled out and wound around itself until it formed many ethereal tentacles of energy.

Salem let a small growl escape her throat. "You son of a bitch..." She heard Aloysius's orders to the others. Though she wanted to protect Aliira, she knew the other woman could protect herself. Salem allowed the electric flow to stay in her hands as she charged Aloysius.

Aloysius watched as Salem charged at him. Great. She was going for close quarters again. Every time they fought, Salem did her best to make sure they were as close as possible, given that she had always been the better hand to hand fighter. Aloysius would raise his guard, prepping his wind magic in his one hand ready incase she tried something silly.

Soon - but not as soon as she liked - Salem was close enough to touch him. Normally, she would have settled for a good old fashioned punch in the face. However, today had been a bad day. She grabbed Aloysius by his throat, releasing an electrical charge strong enough to lift him off of his feet. She would use her strength to slam him into the pavement on to his back.Hopefully, she had at least bruised a rib or two.

Everytime they fought, Salem usually went for the face. And that was exactly what he had been expecting.So he was caught off guard when Salem lifted him by his throat, struggling to breathe for a second. The electric charge just shocked him and stunned him, leaving him unable to defend himself as Salem smashed him back first into the ground with a nasty thud. No doubt she was trying to show off to Ty and Lana. The impact caused Aloysius to heavily groan in pain. "Fuck you" He muttered. He would point his hand at her and release a pulse of wind, trying to blow her into the air and getting her away from him.

Aloysius's blast had worked, causing her to be lifted a few feet into the air. Salem had braced herself for this, however. The two of them had spent way to many days training together when they were younger not to be familiar with each others ways. When she was tossed into the air, Salem tucked her legs and rolled, getting back up on her own two feet before turning to look Aloysius in the eye -also on his feet now. Salem had landed about five feet away from her target, and closed the distance once more. This time, she decided to give him an electric charged kick to the chest.

"How can you fight in them?" He motioned down to her heels. Aloysius would bend backwards as he kick came, letting it fly past his bent chest. "Time to see if this will work" He would summon energy, and take a trick from Lana's book, using telekinesis to lift a trash can on the side of the alleyway and sending it flying towards Salem’s side.

Salem just smirked at his comment. She was a woman of many talents - he knew this. She heard the trash can rattle as Al lifted it, sending it her flying her way. She did her best to dodge, but as she did a flip to get away, it would knock her legs out from under her anyway. This caused her land on her back. She quickly recovered, and stood back up. He was right though. The heels did suck. She took them off quickly, tossing them to the side, hitting Ty in the head.

Aloysius was going to launch an attack, but all of the sudden he felt a burning sensation in his body. He was now struggling to breathe, his breaths getting shorter and shorter. He had absorbed too much power. His body couldn't cope with what was going on. He began to stagger away from Salem, heading towards a battling Lana and Ty. He would grab both of them by the shoulder. "I can't... I can't control all this. So... so i am going to give you some" He couldn't say anything else as he passed the power from himself to the other two, giving just the minimum amount he could give, giving more to Lana than Ty. As he transferred the power his power returned to normal, his breath became more and more stable. Everything felt better. He would pat them both on the back as a way of saying thanks before making his way back towards Salem.

The fight with her and Ty versus Aliira had barely begun when Aloysius suddenly came stumbling over to them, mumbling something about how he couldn't contain all of the power and he had to lend some to them. She couldn't even begin to process what he was saying before she felt his hand on her shoulder, followed by a sudden burst of power flowing through her.

Her body went into a brief state of shock but the feeling didn't last for long, and she was able to recover fairly quickly. With her newly gained strength, Lana was feeling a lot more confident about fighting Salem's second in command.

As Aloysius moved towards Salem his eyes glanced at the wall behind the fighting Dark Shadow. Paint on the wall was a symbol, almost like graffiti. Aloysius stopped. He had seen that before. But he couldn't quite remember where. He racked his brain for a second and his eyes widened once he figured out what it was. Though he wouldn't be able to react, as the wall suddenly disintegrated into brick dust, creating a cloud that almost covered the whole area.

It took for a few seconds for people to realise, but out in the dust cloud three people walked forward. As the dust settled their profiles would be more visible. In the middle was a woman with green hair, accompanied by both a blonde male, and female. All three looking rather proud of themselves.

"Surprise Motherfuckers" The green haired woman said, snapping her hand like she was some sort of ghetto gangster. "Remember me?" She looked over to Aloysius and Salem, Aloysius's eyes wide eyed. "What’s wrong hun? Seeing ghosts?"

As the figures emerged from the cement dust Bell stood to Rebecca's right and slightly behind. Her posture was relaxed, hands clasped and hidden behind her back. Her warm brown eyes slowly scanning over the scene before her. As she finished assessing the small group her eyes returned to Salem, locking on her firmly. Bell was no longer the timid little girl Aloysius would have remembered; no longer a blurred image of a background. Maybe it was the emotions she held against Salem, but something seemed darker. A pure and rigid focus radiating from her form.

Salem was prepared to strike once again, but Al seemed to have different plans. She watched him curiously as he walked over to Lana and Ty, transferring his power. That ment that he was now weaker, and the fight was now back on more levelled ground. She seen him now focused on the wall, and turned her attention towards that now as well. The mark looked strangely familiar, though she had a feeling that she hadn't seen it in years. That was when the wall exploded, surrounding her and nearly everyone else in dust. She coughed, waving her hand in front of her face, trying to see what had caused the explosion. Seeing the three figures before her, she would realize that it wasn't a something - but a someone. Her facial expression was one of shock, but she quickly composed herself, returning to one of default determination. Her eyes were focused in the green haired woman. [Color=6ecff6 ]"R-Rebecca...... bitch! You're supposed to be dead!" Salem scanned the rest of the trio. The blonde haired girls eyes seemed murderous. If she wanted a fight, Salem would give it to her. The blonde man seemed vaguely familiar. Something about his eyes reminded her of her father’s.

Rowan surveyed the scene. Aloysius looked exhausted. Salem looked tense. He kept her eyes focused on her, picking out the changes in her face since the last time he had seen her years ago. He didn't know how to feel at the moment.

Rebecca would smirk at both Aloysius & Salem. Their reactions were priceless. She motioned to her associates "See this sorry bunch? Deal with them, though please Aloysius and Salem to me. I want to deal with them" Rebecca took several steps forward. "What's wrong Salem? Truth is honey, I ain't dead. Thanks to little old Bell here i survived your little murder cover up attempt" She stood firmly in front of the two of them "You used me bitch, you fucking used me! You got me to get this dumb fuck..." She pointed to Aloysius "You got me to do your dirty work to manipulate him to your bidding" While Rebecca was eager to rip into Aloysius, she wanted Salem more, and she sensed that Bell wanted to rip into her too. "Al darling, go play with the others. I want Salem to myself"

"Screw you!" Aloysius spat at Rebecca his heart really hurting from her return. "I want to be the one to kill Salem, I sure as hell am not going to let you kill her!" Aloysius would prime his powers waiting for Rebecca to attack. "You are a water user and Salem is lightning, you are outmatched here!"

Salem couldn't help herself. She hated being called a bitch, rather she was one or not. Her hands still charged with electrical energy, she slapped Rebecca square in her face. "You will not disrespect me. Whether you admit it or not, I'm the leader of the Guild. I am the leader of all Magi. Don't call me a bitch."

Rebecca would take the slap, her face tingling from the jolt of electricity she took on impact. Her face was turned to the side by the force and she just straightened her face with a smirk "Oh come on! You have no integrity Salem, we all know that. You are just a power hungry Bitch who likes fighting. You don't care who you kill, even if it’s your allies"

Salem did have integrity. She did like fighting, but she wasn't power hungry. She had more power than any other mage. Why would she need more? Rebecca's arguments belonged to that of an angry twelve year old. "What happened to you, B? You used to be so..... You've changed for the worse."

"What happened to me? You. You happened to me" Rebecca sighed "I was so happy until you came along. I used to be Second in command, I used to be happy. Then daddy's girl had to come along, acting all tough to and take my place. And then have the gall to send me to come and infiltrate some shitty rebellion"

"I didn't just come along, you dumb ass bitch. The right to the throne was and is mine. It's not my fault you were to stupid to know how things work. You enjoyed your mission. Tell me I'm wrong."

"Stupid! Fucking Stupid! I knew I was never going to be leader, but you didn't have to brush me aside like that and take my spot. You, power hungry cow!" Rebecca was clearly getting emotional and returned the favour from before by slapping Salem.

Salem just laughed off both the insults and the slap. "You've gotten weak, old friend," Salem said, forming a sphere of lightning in her right hand. "I'm done with your cry baby bullshit. Get away from me." As she said the last word, she thrust the orb at the other woman chest, hitting her there. The orb impacted against Rebecca and although it didn't do alot of damage, it did send her flying backwards.

"For fuck sakes." Lana grumbled. She was becoming more and more infuriated as time passed, and didn't have any outlet to focus that fury on. All she could do was stand back and watch what was happening. For the most part her attention was focused on the other green haired woman, who was engaging in an argument with Salem. By the sounds of what they were saying they had history, which seemed to include Aloysius as well.

As she looked over at him and saw the way he was reacting, and heard what the three of them were saying, something clicked in her mind. Could this be the woman he mentioned earlier? His former second in command?

Before Salem impacted Rebecca a bolt of speed rushed past her with Bell practically vanishing from Rebecca's side. With unnatural speed Bell rushed at Aloysius down the alleyway. In her right hand, no longer hidden behind her back, held a piece of wax parchment paper with a symbol foreign to all in attendance. As she quickly closed the gap towards Aloysius she threw out her hand towards him, the parchmented Rune leading the charge now.

Ty had been watching the scene unfold before him, a few questions running through his mind. Who were these people? Why were they here? How did Al and Salem know the green haired chick? Why did she call Salem a bitch and attack Salem with her words instead of her magic? When the blonde haired female ran towards Aloysius, Ty had barely enough time to move in front of his leader, the parchment hurling towards him.

Bell was surprised as she felt her hand press into flesh far earlier than calculated. So focused on her eager attempt to test out her newly crafted Rune she wasn't expecting anyone to so dumbly take the hit. She knew the face, she had read the personnel file. Goes by Ty, uses fire, virtually inconsequential in the grand scheme of things. Seeing as this was entirely a test run of her newly crafted Rune with a softly whispered under her breath a harsh burning sensation surged through his neck; outwardly from where the Tube was placed, sealing it to his body.

As the rune sealed Bell quickly hopped back a few feet. Beginning to channel her magic and feed the freshly sealed Rune it began to start its effects...

Ty felt the rune attach to his neck, the burning sensation surge through his body. He dropped to his knees, grabbing the side of his neck with both hands, as he tried to pry it off. He looked the blonde woman in the eye, noticing how she was muttering under her breath. "What kind of shit is this," he asked, his teeth gritted. Blood started to drip from nose.

For a brief moment, Aloysius thought this was going to be it, only to be saved at the last second by Ty. "Ty.." Were the only words he could muster out as he saw the male in front of him fall to his knees.

As Bell began to notice the blood drip from Ty's nose a small smirk spread across her lips. Either this was working perfectly... Or Ty would experience backwards motor functions. Runes were funky that way, but Bell was confident in her creation.

Ty was doubled over now, the pain and newfound pressure in his head was unbearable. He was no longer clawing at the rune, but instead pressing his hands on either side of his head.Tiberius looked at Aloysius, a look of pure anguish was on his face; his eyes pleading like a sick puppy. "Al... dude.... make the bitch stop." The blood coming from his nose was now flowing steadily. He could feel his heart beating out of his chest, and it wasn't the good way like when he seen a hot chick.

Aloysius didn't want to put his back to Salem, but Ty had been there for him through thick and thin. He would rush over to him and kneel by him "It's going to be OK. I... I will do something" His eyes glared over to Bell, his voice commanding and dark "What did you do to him? Make it stop!" He would then look at the rune. He had never seen it before. "Okay, maybe I can use negation magic, I don't know....Fuck!"

"I don't know either! Sure as Hell doesn't feel okay." Blood was starting to pour from his ears now as well. He glared at Bell once more. "And to think you were going to do this to him.Ty wanted to fight. He was angry at this new person, angry at himself for not being able to do anything. Tiberius tried to stand, but fell back just as quickly. "I'm good man. Just peachy," he said, his vision starting to blur.

Bell's ever faint smirk remained on her lips. The painstaking time and research was paying off. The rune she spent so many days detailing and crafting were reaching their fruition. She heard both their pleading but hardly cared. She needed to make sure it worked, stopping now would leave doubt. And this was her only sample. There was not another she could test on some low life later in the day. She held no grudge against this Ty, nor Aloysius if she were being fully honest. But she wasn't about to waste a dud on her true and eventual target.

"Nothing personal kid.." Bell began, her tone devoid of any moral obligation to let him live or struggle against the ethics of her actions. "But sadly you won't be able to learn from this mistake. Shouldn't have taken the bullet."

"You bitch, Bell!" Aloysius shouted out at her "Remove this rune now! I know you can do it! That's an order!" He shouted, malice dripping from each word coming from his mouth "Buddy..." He said softly looking at the bleeding Ty infront of him. "I honestly don't know what to do... I don't think I can stop it"

A twinge of annoyance flashed across Bell's expression. Her brows furrowing at Aloysius' order. Who did he think he was? She was no longer his lapdog. No longer a tool for him; She was Rebecca's. She vowed herself to Rebecca's cause and this child King so arrogantly believed she could be controlled still. Through frustration Bell sent a powerful surge of magic through the rune on Ty's neck, quickening the effects and causing a burst of pain; causing the man to cough out blood.

"You think you still control me, Aloysius?!" Bell nearly growled the words out, her fist tightening. "I am no longer some disposable item for you to use and get rid of when you're done with me. I am not the weak girl you remember! Did you even notice I had left? Or was it like when you lose a lego? Pretty certain you had more pieces but ultimately unphased by the absence?!" The usually calm and emotionless Bell practically yelling. She hated how she felt during her time with the Dark Shadow. She felt inconsequential. Rebecca saw her. Saw her potential. Valued her! Aloysius didn't even spare Bell the time of day.

"Of course I noticed you were gone!" Aloysius spat out. His eyes widening when Ty began to cough blood. "Let him go Bell!..." Aloysius would swallow heavily, bringing about the courage to say a word he rarely spoke "...Please"

Ty was coughing up various amounts of blood, slightly confused. Al knew this chick? He could feel the energy leaving his body. His eyes, ears, and nose ere now leaking blood, getting it all over his brand new suit. Tiberius grabbed his leaders hand with what little strength he had left.

Bell scoffed audibly at Aloysius' perceived blatant lie. She felt bad for Ty, he was just another lapdog that knew no better. He didn't deserve this fate. But ultimately they were all her enemies. Rebecca's enemies. They were all coming to the butchers block; shame the kid was dumb enough to jump in the way in such an inopportune time.

"Don't bother pleading Aloysius. This rune was made special. This was merely the test run. Even if I am killed the rune cannot stop. A special fail safe designed in to make sure it could not be stopped, not even by me. There is no back peddling here. No kill switch. Ty sealed his fate when he got in the way."

He was going to die; Ty knew this, and accepted his fate. He had fulfilled his duty to keep his King alive another day. He looked Aloysius in the eye, his own pleading. The young man's voice was barely audible. "Avenge me, dude," he said. Ty closer his eyes for the final time, his grip on Aloysius's hand slacking. He was dead.

"No! Shit! Come on Ty. Please!" Aloysius reached into his pocket and pulled out a small crystal and placing it against Ty's chest. The crystal glowed brightly as the final pieces of life escaped Ty. The glorious leader was now at the point of tears, holding onto Ty for a few seconds longer after he passed. Ty had meant so much to him, and they had been through so much. Aloysius held the bleeding mans head to his chest for the moment, letting the tears roll down his face. It may have been a battlefield, but right now, Aloysius didn't care. He only sat there on his knees and cried, cuddling a now dead Ty, reminiscing in how they met and the adventures they had together.

Seeing Rebecca thrown back against the wall, anger flared inside of Rowan. Rebecca had gave him a home after years of having nowhere to go. He was forever grateful to her for that reason. The fact that Salem had hurt her ticked him off. In the apartment building across from the building they had exploded the wall from, there was flower pots in the window seal. He used his will power to make them grow rapidly, the roots trailing the wall like a snake. The flower pots broke, showering Salem with pieces of broken ceramic, leaving shallow cuts and scrapes on her skin. The roots continued to grow, splitting into more. Once they reached Salem, they began to wrap around her legs and arms.

As if she wasn't already pissed, Salem was now confused. She had killed Rebecca... and now she was alive? Her train of thought was interrupted by the pieces of sharp ceramic falling on top of her. She raised her arms above her head as she moved out of the way as to avoid the rest of it. The roots aggravated her, causing her to panic ever so slightly. She hated to feel like she was restrained. The wan used her hands to rip them off of her arms and legs as fast as she could, but they kept coming.

Aloysius was done. That was it. He had finished crying for now, and the sorrow he felt for Ty, had been replaced with raw anger. Ty wanted vengeance. Fine. Rising to his feet, Aloysius glared at the group of three. He turned his head towards Salem, seeing her trapped by the roots. He summoned a fireball and fired it with his left hand towards the roots, burning them clean and freeing Salem.

"Everyone behind me. Guilders and Shadowers" Aloysius took a step forward, making sure that everyone was behind him. He hated Salem and Aliira, but right now... They weren't his concern. "YOU!" He pointed at Bell, his voice screaming with both anger and venom "You didn't have to kill Ty! You could have let him suffer then freed him. But no. You had to go be that stupid fucking bitch that you are" Aloysius would use his hands, summoning a huge hurricane like wind from behind him. Everyone behind him would just feel a rush of heavy wind, but to those three in front of him, it would send them flying right back through that wall they had smashed to make their grand entrance.

"RUN!" Aloysius screamed out at them, summoning two large fireballs in both his hands "FUCKING RUN!" Aloysius would throw the two balls forward, aiming for them. In reality the fireballs wouldn't hit them, but instead hit the building, setting most of the room they were in on fire. Aloysius stood there, seething with anger.

Rebecca slowly climbed t oher feet after being tossed into the building from Aloysius wind power "Fuck, I forgot he could do that" Hearing him shout and seeing the fireballs, Rebecca would shout to her two comrades pointing towards an exit "Get out! Fast!" Rebecca would summon as much water as she could to throw at the fire, the fire and water mixing and creating a large cloud of steam that conveniently hidden the trios retreat.

Aloysius would be standing there, taking several deep breaths to try and calm himself down. "THAT WAS FOR TY!" He shouted into the steam cloud, not realising they had fled. Aloysius then collapsed into his knees, whimpering slightly, threatening to go over the edge and cry once more.

Seeing Aloysius so torn up about Ty was actually beginning to tear at her heartstrings. He was pleading and crying and holding him in his arms, just like she had been with her brother three years ago. Reminiscing on those painful memories and seeing Al in such a broken state actually hurt. Not to mention having to watch Tiberius suffer like he was.

Lana wasn't close with either of them, and a lot of the time they were at each other's throats, but that didn't mean she didn't care. Which is why she felt so angry with herself for being so completely and utterly useless. She could do nothing but stand by and watch the scene unfold before her. The corners of her eyes began to prickle with tears but she fought them back. She refused to cry, especially in front of anyone else.

Lana began to walk towards them, stopping only when Aloysius got to his feet and ordered her and even Salem and Aliira to get behind him. Hearing the pain and the anger in his voice was enough of a warning for her to do as he said without protest. As an added measure she put up a ward around herself to protect her from any backlash that could come from whatever Al was about to do.

She wasn't surprised seeing him lash out like he was, nor could she blame him, even if his actions caused a lot of damage to the area around them. She had been the same not so long ago. Lana stayed where she was until he was finished, then, just as he collapsed to his knees, she defused her shield and rushed over to him, crouching down beside him and placing a hand on his shoulder to keep him steady. All the while keeping her eyes on the two guildies behind them, watching them closely in case they tried to make a move and she needed to step in.

It might have come as a shock to see how loyal she was acting toward Aloysius. Even though it was clear as day how much she disliked him, she was still loyal. Especially after seeing how he reacted to Ty's death, as it proved to her he wasn't just some heartless asshole.

Salem had witnessed everything in the last fifteen minutes in pure shock, and Aloysius crying and attacking like he did only added to that. She was grateful that he had united her binds, though she would never admit it. Knowing the potential that the man had, she stood beside him when told to get over there. She wasn't about to stand behind him. As the cloud of steam was dispersing, she locked eyes with Aliira, a mutual understanding passing between them as Salem turned, pressing a few small objects into Lanas hand. She started to run from the battle scene.

Aliira had accompanied Salem down the shock train. Quickly shaking her head as she felt Salem's eyes. With a simple nod of understanding she took off as well.

On his knees, Aloysius felt as if he had lost a part of himself. It felt good to lash out, but it never solved anything. Ty was dead. Gone. There was no coming back. Looking into his hands, he eyed up the crystal, it was giving off a faint hum and Aloysius seemed to be calmed when he was holding it. It would be a few moments before he rose to his feet once more. Turning to face Lana with his eyes bloodshot and wet. "Let's go. You will need to drive" He tossed the Keys towards Lana, and started to walk out to leave the alleyway.

After a few steps however he stopped. He turned to look at Tys body and sighed. "Lana, bring the car around. We can't leave him lying here like this" He spoke softly walking back towards Tys body and kneel down while Lana went to get the car. He would rest Ty's head on his lap and stroke his hair, humming to himself quietly, trying to make peace with himself.

Tonight had proven to be eventful at least.

Well, well, well. This was a surprise. Elizabeth was nowhere to be found, and David had no one supervising him. No Aliira to protect, no one telling him what to do or to return to his quarters. Not that this was rare, but rather Aliira and Salem both were guaranteed to be absent. Perhaps it was a chance for him to do some snooping...

Except for the fact that as he made his way about the Guild, guards were still posted, particularly around Salem's Offices. Dang. So much for that idea. He had really, really wanted to see what the Guild was really up to, but every time he got close to seeing if there was some dirt that would truly paint the Guild for what he knew it was, he was either caught and punished, or he had to abandon his position to avoid the aforementioned catching. He wasn't about to risk it tonight, as well, given the lack of patience the Guild likely had given what had been revealed. On a normal infraction, he got the tar beaten out of him publicly as an example to others, but on -this- night? He would be getting much worse treatment if he had. Instead, he had to apply his mind which had been endowed with curiosity elsewhere.

And that's when said mind was hit with a quite obvious realization. In fact, so obvious that it caused him to stare dumbfound down the hallway he was walking as he paused. The Library. Why the heck had he not checked out the Guild Library before? It was so obvious. And the best thing is, the Library was open to all Guild members. He would most likely not be bothered at all by anyone with authority unless they knew exactly what he was up to. And even if they did, what proof would they have? 'What's this? I'm not allowed to read this book? But its the Guild's History, it'd be a shame if I didn't read about the Guild's Heritage.' And what the heck could they say to that? Not a single dang thing, as far as he was concerned. Still, if they wanted to, they could still get him in trouble, but it was highly unlikely, and if he did find something, he would be further enlightened to this place's true nature. Or rather...the proof of such a nature.

And so, he continued on into the Library. As he walked into the Library, it looked rather typical, boasting a couple of stories in height and many books, but it wasn't the Great Library of Alexandria. He shrugged, making his way towards the History section in a typical fashion, not really drawing any attention to himself as he looked through the books. At first, nothing truly caught his eye. A little bit about the history of mages here, magic impacting non-magi history there, but then something caught his eye.

The Salem Witch Trials

(docs.google.com/document/d/1l0cvHFade…)

Now. This would be much more interesting. He quickly picked up the small book and opened it up and passed through its pages silently. As he read through it, his eyes caught several things which his mind clenched onto. The Guild had a non-intervention plan before? So when the Dark Shadow acted before, they had done nothing until it effected them? How selfish was that? Typical Guild. He continued reading on, considering the facts at hand, and clenching onto the things that truly interested him. He was already aware that the Dark Shadow had taken Salem's father, but he had no care for that. They took -his- family away, after all. Though, there was a little tinge of guilt as he thought about that. Losing family was...no, don't focus on that. Focus on the task at hand. His eyes dashed back onto the pages in front of him and he soon relaxed back into his quick reading habit, one he was quite accustomed to.

And then immediately, his eyes turned to slits upon three words. Three. Words. Which made him absolutely infuriated, his usually calm emotions erupting for a brief moment, as he clenched the book tightly. Magical. Anonymity. Mandate. With that, David felt the sharp pain of anger, as his thumbs seemed to imprint on the pages themselves as he just barely managed to keep his anger in check. After a second, he finally relinquished his anger, sighing and pushing it away mentally. That stupid, stupid mandate. If he had his way...no, don't focus on that. Back on the book.

Now, the covert operations Salem and her group were doing were interesting. At least someone was doing something to stop the group, though, he was sure the Guild was only doing it out of the idea of survival of their own kind rather than for the sake of non-magi...ok, maybe they cared a little. But they certainly contradicted their actions with their much more foul deeds. As he continued on reading, he found it all more typical. Salem was angered by her father's death, of course she would do her best to dismantle the Dark Shadow. Though something did catch his eye. Aloysius and his senior leadership got away. How very peculiar. So there were other members that escaped, and they must have rebuilt the Dark Shadow together. He somewhat wondered how they knew to escape before this happened. Perhaps there was a double-agent in their midst? He wondered just how many got away.

As he continued reading, he took note of how harsh Salem's punishments were, slowly raising his right eyebrow in surprise. Jeez. And he thought he got it bad. Salem really was revenge driven. Death for -that- many people was...sad. He understood why, but...even he couldn't help but feel a little bad for them. If he saw the world as other magi did, he would even be tempted to wonder if the Guild wasn't at all the darker force working against the true light that was the Dark Shadow. But make no mistake. He had no such sympathy for them, or the Guild. To him, they were both the same in the end. True, one was more preferable to the other, but they both imposed their wills on others in a forceful way that deemed them superior to non-magi. And he had some real issue with that. The only difference was that there were some small glimmers of light that defied the attitudes he saw in the Guild, one of which he was happy to be assigned to, though he hated admitting it sometimes.

But then, the end of the book caught his eye. 'TimeCubes'. Now that was an interesting item. Aloysius' personal history? If he could get a hold of one, maybe he could find some -real- dirt on the Guild. Something that would expose them for who they really were, underneath all the talk of protecting non-magi. But then, they were in Salem's possession. Likely heavily guarded. Ungh. No thanks. At least...not yet. Maybe someday. He then quickly closed the book, putting it away, and made his way back to his quarters silently. He was feeling tired, and he didn't want to stick around here for much longer than he needed to. But he was thankful to learn a little something. he would have to keep an eye out for these 'TimeCubes' in the future. And so he headed home, to retire for the night.

The first drag always felt like the first time to Paulie. Every one after felt forced, a fling accidentally turned relationship because it was the thing to do. This is why she preferred to smoke with friends, passing rolled tobacco or pot around like a shared experience. It was just another example of community working itself into something to be wanted if you were looking. Alone, she had all of these singular instances where engaging felt like the first time every time. The next man she pulled into her van felt like the first man pulled into her van... and then he was every other man she'd pulled into her van.

The next friend she'd abducted at the end of a burn to take on an interstate journey for comfort felt like the first friend she'd abducted at the end of a burn to take on an interstate journey for comfort. Then, they were every other friend she'd abducted at the end of a burn to take on an interstate journey for comfort.

Paulie was sitting cross-legged on a street bench, laptop in front of her, her expression sleepy and pensive. She had a cigaratte in one hand and a homemade mug in the other. The mug held coffee from a vending machine and irish from a bottle in the backpack at her side. She was wearing some of Rozzle's clothes; a kaleidoscopic, baggy tie-dye t-shirt, manycolored patchwork baggy pants, and a pair of Simon's boots that fit her giantess feet. Music played faintly from a usb speaker plugged into her phone. Ms. John Soda, part of a playlist of their complete discography a friend had sent her some time ago.

On her screen was an open browser with a series of tabs. There were news reports about a killing spree in the streets of NYC and a detailed article about the train crash in Virginia from the previous day. There was also Paulie's custom browser for Guildserv, open to a few pages with to-the-minute intelligence reports detailing Dark Shadow's attacks. Paulie's custom browser encrypted everything behind walls of intermingled languages and syntax that her eyes could pick apart in a moment. It was one of those most precious secrets about her magic.

The next job she did for a secretive, draconian and dangerous magocratic entity with delusions of grandeur and a casual disregard for life felt like the first job she did for a mysterious, selective, and nobly misguided entity with relatable interests and a genuine concern for life. Then it was every other job she'd done for a secretive, draconion and dangerous magocratic entity with delusions of grandeur and a casual disregard for life.

It reminded her of being too stoned to stop.

Several years ago when she'd read about how The Guild had broken Dark Shadow's back, it was what brought out Paulie's sympathies in the first place. Yet more victims of the De Silva dynasty, whose crimes against mages and non-magi spanned almost three centuries back. It was why she was happy to work for Dark Shadow in secret and at a distance. She'd helped break a Guild cell upstate. She'd ousted an agent in Gainesville. She'd compromised the compound where they'd sequestered her for most of her teenage years in Virginia. How many of the people she'd screwed over were still alive if this was what Dark Shadow was actually capable of?

That was what had sent Paulie pulling Rozzle's pants on and running out the door without a phone or a word to anyone about where she was going. She still felt a sick little stone in her stomach, tunbling with the current of her thoughts. Getting inside NYC had been easy. Getting out wasn't going to be now that she'd logged onto Guildserv. She was trapped and she was trapped in a Dark Shadow cell. She was getting ready to joing their ranks as more than a faceless confidant. And that meant she was too useful to leave.

Paulie reviewed the reports again, pouring over each tab one at a time as the hour went on. A drunk tuxedo who appeared to be as in the mood to say and do nothing as she was had a seat on the bench beside her. Eventually she packed the mug in her backpack, then her laptop. She pressed her face into her hands, air hissing through her fingertips.

How do I play this out?



The next clip she emptied into a mannequin for target practice felt like the first clip she emptied into a mannequin for target practice. Then it was every other clip she'd emptied into a mannequin for target practice. It didn't matter how good your headphones were or how much the room you were in felt like a corporate grotto. You could feel the tension snap against your arms, round after round. You could watch flecks of plastic tear like hide canvas. You could, if you felt creative, stuff the mannequin parts with goosedown. It was a liberating experience every single time. It was more honest than people.

If nothing else, Aliira was right.

Paulie emptied the magazines from her pistols in a few quick motions, loading them again, safeties on, and stowing them back in her backpack. It hadn't been a good night. She didn't want to stay. Simon was getting worse. The pattern was thicker--every few minutes the conversation would flow one way and Simon was stone. It made her sick to think about now. Rozzle shouldn't be here. Paulie shouldn't be here. But they both had needed money, and Paulie owed Rozzle her time and protection. Her companionship.

If she was already this close, Paulie needed to stay the course. Rozzle at least was leaving today. That'd save her some time. Paulie knew she'd be meeting multiple mages from Dark Shadow, so she might as well be prepared. Paulie knew who her targets would be. She knew who her friends would be too and, if nothing else, The Guild knew to be on the lookout for her. Hopefully Aliira knowing Paulie's plans meant that Salem would know too, that her being seen in an operation would be just the sort of diversion necessary. It was just the kind of honesty she enjoyed best--the one where Paulie could be trusted to lie to everyone.

---

---

Last night had been... something. Salem kept replaying Tiberius's death over and over in her head as she greeted the very few people that walked through the door of the reasturaunt. Though he hadn't been apart of the Guild, and they had close to zero history, she still felt something. Her heart went out to Aloysius. She knew what it was like to lose someone you were close to; someone who you had worked beside for years. Speaking of losing members of your ranks... No one had heard from Liz since last night. Salem pushed the thought aside and went to place the first order of the day in the kitchen. "I need a ten ounce steak, medium rare. Loaded baked potato on the side!"

Feeling a tap on her shoulder, she would turn to be face to face with the newest waitress at the restaurant: A high school girl named Zora. "Miss Salem? There's a guy outside asking for you..." Salem looked at her, her face expressionless, though she was feeling pure confusion at the moment.

"What does he look like?"

"About six foot tall, ma'am. Messy blonde hair. Kinda cute, too, of you ask me."

Salem thought for a moment. She knew no one with this description. The young woman looked to Husker, as if asking for permission to step outside. He gave her a curt nod as he slid a shot of whiskey across the bar. "Zora, darling, do me a favor and look over my customers for a few, would youu? Though she had asked a question, her tone was that of demand. Zora didn't seem to mind however. She beamed with pride, apparently happy with her new task. Salem took a deep breath as she walked across the reasturaunt, her hair flowing behind her.

As she pushed open the glass door, she spotted the man waiting for her. It was easy to tell it was he who was waiting on her, as he was staring at her as she came out if the building. Rowans facial expression was unreadable. Salem recognized the stranger immediately from last night's events. He was one of Rebeccas accomplices - the one that tried to bind her with flower roots. Salem now felt herself ready to fight at a moments notice for what felt like the hundredth time in the last twenty-four hours. "Can I help with something," she asked, her voice cold and hostile.

"Buenos dias, sis," Rowan said, his tone neutral in return.

Salem scoffed. "Sis?"

Rowan nodded, pursing his lips in mock thought. "You do know who I am, right?" He waved his hand as if he was swatting a fly. "Who am I kidding? Last time you seen me was years and years ago." Salem just stood there looking at him. "Oh wow. You really have no idea who I am," he said, chuckling as he reached into his pants pocket to remove an old Polaroid. He handed it to Salem, who took it reluctantly.

Looking at the photo, Salem would see a young smiling woman holding two small babies in her arms, a young dark haired man smiling down at the three of them. The photo had been taken in front of a hospital building. It took her a moment, but Salem recognized these people. They were her parents, and that was the hospital she was born at. She looked up at Rowan, her facial expression nothing but serious now. "How did you get this?"

"Why, I'm the other kid."

"Estúpido," Salem spat. "My parents only had one child."

Rowan laughed once more, shaking his head. "You're wrong. Your parents had twins. They named the little girl Salem. That would be you, of course. Then they named the little boy Rowan. That would be me. Their next step was to give the little boy away and chose to keep the girl, because time has shown that the females in the family tend to be more powerful. They chose power over blood... They chose you... over me. They could have kept us both, but they didn't. So they damned me to the life of being in the shadows, never being able to live up to my potential. But don't worry, I don't blame you. I just wanted to warn you that Rebecca wants you dead. Possibly Aloysius to, but mainly you."

Salem stood there, taking in the new information. She studied his face. The shape of his nose, the color of his eyes... He was the spitting image of her father when he was younger, only with blonde hair. "Why should I believe you?"

"I think you already do," He said, starting to walk away. "Adios, sis."

Salem would have went after him, if it hadn't had been for her phone going off. She unlocked the screen to see a message from a contact that she hadn't seen pop up in a long, long time. The message would be from 'kid'. It simply stated that they needed to meet somewhere private tonight. She responded quickly. Old gym at ten. She walked back into the reasturaunt as if nothing ever happened, refilling a mans drink.