"Never could trust you, I still got your location on, fell out of love, I delete all the nudes out your phone. Can't get a reaction out of me, that's what you want."
27 days ago
You have to live every day as if you've dropped your pants and told the whole world to suck your dick.
Far on the outskirts of St. Portwell, there exists a mansion of a family known as the Pendletons… a family with long and deep roots in magic, one of the many to be blessed by the Ancient known as the Spider. They had aspirations, like many, of taking over St. Portwell’s magical scene, and to that end, they amassed a collection of different magical artifacts. They were making a museum in their mansion, where an artifact is on display at every corner of the mansion!
“Huh?!” He leaned forward as he opened the case. “Where is my Amulet?!”
He shook his head and quickly dialed a number on his cellphone.
“Charlotte!” He shouted. “One of the artifacts is-”
An arrow came out of nowhere and dug itself directly into his forearm. He hissed in pain as he grabbed onto the arrow, then instinctively whipped his head around to see a Caucasian woman with reddish brown hair that held a particular crossbow made out of marble. She had it directly aimed at him.
“Go to hell!” He shouted as he swung his hand and erected a green barrier between himself and the two girls.
“... That’s not going to work,” The girl said, shaking her head, then she turned towards the gal with the arrow and said, “Flora.”
Flora aimed her crossbow at Lucius and fired off another arrow…. The man expected the barrier to stop it, but it had wholly bypassed it and nailed him directly in the shoulder. He hissed in pain as he fell over on his display case.
“Hang up the phone,” Flora said, “Or the next one’s going in between your eyes.”
“Who the fuck are you two?”
“We’re…” The tall black girl said…
The wall behind the girl exploded, bursting into a mess of debris and dust as a horde of undead minions emerged. They shuffled their way through the mess as someone came out by the time the dust cleared…
… It was Emily G. Reed, with her two little sisters and Vashti behind her.
“... The fucking 8th Street Coven!”
Emily shouted.
“You bitches?”
“Yes,” Emily smiled, “Us bitches.”
A tall woman with an afro and plenty of jewelry coughed as she walked up, wearing a black sweater and bright blue jeans. However, floating over her shoulder was a Skeleton in a suit with a cane; he tipped his hat. With a wave of his hand, his undead minions were smashing open all the display cases and taking all the artifacts as Emily and the 8th Street leadership watched.
Lucius grits his teeth as he fights his way to his feet.
“So… Flora here can shoot through your little barrier,” Emily said, putting her hands on her hips and doing a little dance as she swayed them from left to right, “Are you going to be smart and drop the barrier, or she gonna have to turn you into a pin cushion?”
“Like hell...” Lucius said before he closed his eyes in pain. He could feel little bits of blood dripping down from the arrows. “This is my life’s work! I’m not going to let some cult take it from me!”
“And it’s about to be this cult’s life work!” Emily replied; she stopped swaying her hips, then looked at her fingernails as she said, “My little cultists are subduing the rest of your family… we’re going to put a tragic end to your little plans to join the Elite. So drop the barrier, and we can all make this quick.”
“I swear to God if you touch my family…”
Emily snapped her fingers. “Flora put an end to him.”
“Wait, Emily-” Jacqueline said as she reached forward towards Flora, who fired the Aegis Piercer shot that would have ended Lucius…
… A glowing pink barrier was launched and sent Lucius flying.
Emily narrowed her eyes, pointed a finger at them, and said,
“Vashti.”
Vashti glanced over at Jacqueline and produced a bouquet of heavy-duty zip ties and a roll of duct tape from her hoodie.
“Okay, dudes, read the room. Now’s the time to stop being stupid bitches. B-b-but it’s my life's work,” said Vashti, mocking Lucius by shifting her voice up into an annoying, sniveling whine. “You’re rich, idiot. Buy new shit.”
A loud tear ripped through the air as Vashti unwrapped a length of tape to use as a mouth gag and stepped toward the two girls.
“So get on your knees and put your hands behind your back. Who knows? Maybe you’ll earn Daddy a second chance.” Vashti shrugged casually before she took another step forward and bared her teeth in a cruel smile, swinging the duct tape like a Morningstar. “Orrrrrr don’t, and I burn down your entire family tree.”
They looked at each other…
They stuck their hands out and launched a thin, rectangle-shaped barrier out of their hands directly at Vashti.
“Oh, for fu—” Vashti bounced off the barrier as the zip ties and duct tape scattered to the floor.
A skeletal minion was kind enough to act as a cushion and got dusted as her body impacted it. The hit was accompanied by a loud clap of thunder that shook the house as Vashti tumbled through the shower of bone dust and did a handspring, the floor tiles splintering where her palms hit. She landed on her feet and scampered behind a display case, moving to flank the girls as the rest of the 8th Street Coven moved into action.
“Where in the fuck are Greta and the others?!” Emily facepalmed before raising her hands into the air. “God, it’s so hard to find good help around here!” She exploded into an aura of flames and aimed both hands at the two sisters. They quickly put another barrier together that completely blocked her hellfire from getting close.
However, a giant of a man that was easily over seven feet tall walked up to the barrier with a smile on his face. The girls launched the barrier at him, but the man stuck his hands down, dropped his weight, and managed to slow down the advance of the giant obstacles. They dug up the dirt as they pushed him back, and he barked, “This is boring! Make this fun!”
“It’s not supposed to be fun,” A short, Asian woman with long reddish-brown hair scoffed, appearing at the other side of the girls; she was definitely not meant to be keeping out of the way (or subdued; however, Emily had phrased it). She pushed out her hands, sending a blast of sand toward both their eyes - hopefully, they only had one barrier between them… “Let’s get this over with so we can go home.”
The girls shrieked and covered their eyes, the barrier they erected proving that it was impossible to prevent sand from getting everywhere. Temporarily blinded, the girls wouldn’t realize that a veiled figure had emerged on their six until the younger of the two was already in the process of being taken down as Vashti pounced on her back and knocked her out cold by bouncing her skull off of the floor.
The older sister reached her hands out only for Vashti to catch them with her own as she leaped to her feet, Vashti’s nails slowly piercing into the back of the woman’s hands as she began to hyperextend her wrists back. She made the woman buckle with a couple of kicks and forced her down to her knees, dragging her back so that they were closer to her sister. Vashti put her shoe on the unconscious girl’s head and smiled viciously at the restrained one. She leaned in to whisper so that only her captive could hear.
“Sorry about my ungrateful friends. Thank you. This was fun for me,” she hissed before pulling back out. She gave a couple of playful taps to the head of the knocked-out girl with her shoe and then, loud enough for the group to hear, added, “Remember, you’re the ones who made this choice.”
Vashti raised her foot.
“... Vashti, no!”
Jacqueline shouted as she stuck her hand out, then walked over. “We don’t need to kill anybody!”
Emily crossed her arms and scoffed as she said,
“... Jacqueline, these people are going to come after us,” She narrowed her eyes, “They’re trying to join the Elite.”
“I know, I know,” Jacqueline answered, “But we’re responsible for a lot of deaths, and I can’t take it anymore.”
Emily put a hand on her hip.
“Now you’re developing a conscience, after we killed… how many Nazis?”
Jacqueline narrowed her eyes,
”... You know what I’m talking about, Emily,”
“Yeah, let’s just take their artifacts and get out of here!” Miranda supported her sister as she walked over to Lucious, knelt, pulled the two arrows out of him, grabbed him, and transferred the wounds to her. She barely even felt pain as they were regenerated in mere moments.
Emily sighed,
“Fiiiiiiiiiiiine,” Then she spoke to the only conscious Pendleton sister while looking off to the side, “Look, you fuckers are going to forget this ever happened, and if you join the Elite…”
She pointed at her without even looking in her direction,
“We will come back, except we’re not going to steal everything; we’re going to come back and then burn this fucking mansion to the ground with all of you in it. Got it?”
She awkwardly nodded her head, then Emily whipped around and said,
“Nadine, grab ever-”
That was when a door to the side burst open, and tripping over each other were the other members of 8th St who were supposed to be handling everyone else and making sure they don’t get in the way. They fell on each other like a pile, and Emily couldn’t help but facepalm.
The first to get up was a [url=http://]well-built, blonde-haired guy[/url] who created a glowing sword made out of a mysterious energy and raised it in the air. “Emily! They snuck around us!”
“Heeeeeeey, easy there, girl!” George said, chuckling as the monster slashed its claws back and forth, snarling like crazy.
“Ugh,” Emily facepalmed before she said, “Cynthia, heel!l”
Then the monster exploded into a cloud of pink mist, and when it faded, it revealed an African-American girl with a blonde afro. Still waving her arms and legs forward like she was still in her… alternate form. At least briefly before she stopped and craned her head towards Emily.
“Pack leader,” Cynthia said, “Cynthia was told she could eat this time. Why is Cynthia not allowed to eat?”
“We changed plans!” Miranda shouted, “If you want to eat… I’ll give you one of my arms!”
“Cynthia wants variety,” Cynthia said as George put her gently on the ground, “Cynthia accepts these terms, but next time…”
She narrowed her eyes at Miranda,
“... Cynthia will eat.”
At this point, Nadine’s undead thralls had cleared the little museum of artifacts… of its artifacts. They all went back to where 8th St initially broke into the mansion, and standing there was a short, mousy girl with brown hair, holding her cellphone in hand. She nodded, put her hands together (with the cell phone in it), and stretched them outwards… creating a spinning portal back to the 8th St Manor. The undead minions went inside first, followed by Emily and her sisters, then the rest of 8th St, with Brianna being the last.
As fast as they appeared, they vanished.
The 8th St Manor, the very next day. 11:23, AM.
The next day, it was business as usual in the dining hall of the 8th St mansion… it was their usual hangout slash meeting location, and it was a massive wooden table with various wooden chairs pressed against it. At the head of the seat was Emily’s chair… a very particular throne that she took from Kaiser Draeger before they razed his “sanctuary” to the ground. Emily sat in it. And it was way too big for her, as she couldn’t comfortably put her arms on the armrest! She leaned back in the chair, put her fingers together, and observed her minions…. Chattering and talking as usual.
Greta had on massive oven mitts as she mixed various ingredients into mason jars and created her potions… with a smile that looked too excited. Carol was right next to her, complaining about how she was getting her ingredients on her. Nadine was sitting with her arms crossed, watching everyone else like Emily. Phoebe was looking over all the incredible supernatural artifacts they gained last night… Jacqueline and Miranda were quietly sitting beside her, across from each other. Talking about girl things…
“Hey bro!” said Vashti, striking from ambush as she suddenly emerged from behind Emily’schair and leaned against the armrest. “So I’ve been thinking—”
“... Ah, that was a great haul last night, wasn’t it?” Babylon said as she faded into existence.
“—that I’m just absolutely swamped and got just, like, so much to do today!” finished Vashti, visibly cringing at Babylon’s appearance. She vigorously waved her hands as she backed away towards an exit. “Love ya. Call me if a neck needs wrung!Byeeeeeeeee! ”
Babylon placed a hand on Emily’s shoulder and floated beside her. “Perhaps 8th Street will go further than the last cult I worked with!”
Then Babylon leaned back, shrugged, and said,
“If not, it’s not like I’ll end up with another group,”
“... And who are they?”
“Just a little group of nobodies!” Babylon started chuckling, “... That was coincidentally the biggest threat in the All-Verse!”
“... That doesn’t answer my question, Babylon,”
“Oh, just a little cult called The Inner-Circle… led by a supreme mad woman named Sunshine Jones. Their goal was to get to the very source of magic by any means necessary. And boy! Was Sunshine such a monster! I miss her…”
“Elaborate.”
“Sunshine killed so many people in her pursuit to “drink the blood of magic,” and created monsters that could threaten entire universes,” Babylon explained. “However, they were defeated by a man named James Vanburen.”
“... The rich manslut that knocked up every woman that bent over for him?” Emily raised an eyebrow as she gave Babylon the side-eye. “Probably died from all the STDs he probably got?”
“He is more than just the rich manwhore! Well, was, before you know he died,” Babylon chuckled, “Well, long before that, he was an adventurer, a king, a collector, a hero, and various other things… For whatever reason, he dismantled the Inner Circle piece by piece and defeated Sunshine in a climactic battle. However...”
“He didn’t kill Sunshine; he placed her before the multiversal council that was around at the time… The Accordance, they called it, and they stood around in robes and decided that the best thing to do was to throw her in The Pit for her list of sins so long that there was not enough paper in the All-Verse to list them all. However, I heard Sunshine escaped the Pit and killed James. Then I also heard that Sunshine died in the Pit, and her Apparition escaped… and killed James. Then I heard that she gave birth in the Pit and-”
“Babylon, that’s enough,” Emily interrupted. “You said James was a collector… of artifacts?”
“Yes, he had many,”
“Then, we’re going after the Vanbur-”
“No, no, no, no,.” Babylon quickly shut Emily down, then said, “James was a very cunning man. Very dangerous. Many allies. With our current situation, attacking the Vanburens would be…”
Babylon then trailed off,
“... Unwise.”
"Can't we take a fucking break anyway?" Maya walked into the dining hall in time to hear the tail end of Emily and Babylon's conversation… wearing nothing but a towel wrapped around her chest, barely reaching her thighs. It covered everything it had to. Her hair was wrapped up in another. Obviously, she didn't live here, but the showers were much nicer than her apartment's. "Some of us have day jobs outside of theft."
Emily didn’t even look at Maya; she stared dead ahead as she responded.
“... Can’t you fucking go put some God damn clothes on?” She started, “I told you this before; don’t come out here naked. Nobody wants to see your sweaty vagina.” She rolled her eyes.
“... Speak for yourself!” Babylon said.
“Babylon, fuck off,” Emily replied, and her Apparition faded away.
“Your day job is 8th Street, we have much work to do to get ourselves out of our current predicament… and put some fucking clothes on already!”
She rolled her eyes at Emily, dumping a plastic bag she'd been carrying on the table. There was a whole bunch of Tupperware inside filled with misshapen cookies (definitely not practice for a stupid work thing). "I brought food." Then she glared at Greta. "Can you do that somewhere we don't eat?"
Greta lifted her welding mask and said, “You have plenty of room to sit elsewhere, my dear Maya. I have to finish these potions for the next mission.” Before lowering it and getting back to work.
Maya rolled her eyes and flipped Greta off as soon as her mask was lowered.
“... Food?” Cynthia heard and immediately came over with a grin on her face… which didn’t last long as she raised an eyebrow, looking at the bag. Then Maya. Then, back at the bag. Then at Maya. “Where is food? Cynthia heard food.”
While they were all distracted, a person entered their hall with a tray of desserts, sat down, placed their phone on the table, and began playing on it.
"Ohhhhh," Maya looked at Cynthia and then at the bag. Then back at Cynthia. Whoops should've remembered about the group's carnivore. This is what she got for being able to cook and bringing her food experiments to the coven to test (mostly meat dishes, incidentally). Completely deadpan, she said, "I must've forgotten the human meat cookies I'd made at home. If there's any meat around that isn't part of my body, I'll try to recreate them."
Cynthia looked at Emily, pointing at Maya,
“Pack leader, can Cynthia eat?”
“If she doesn’t go put some fucking clothes on,” Emily responded.
Nadine walked over, grabbed a cookie, then looked at it before taking a bite and silently walking back to where she was sitting and not reacting to Cynthia asking to eat Maya (she was curious if there was somebody that Cynthia didn’t want to eat).
"I know I look delectable, but I doubt I'll taste nice," Maya rolled her eyes. But she still walked out of the room to get dressed because the only thing worse than doing what Emily said was getting eaten alive.
Maya returned shortly after, appropriately dressed in a loose, blue-checked dress. She was still rubbing her hair with a towel and looked around to find a victim to talk to. She honed in on Phoebe and the ton of artifacts they'd gathered. "How much shit did we get this time? Was it worth the hassle?"
“You looked better in the towel.”
Phoebe chuckled.
“Heh, I know,” Maya snorted, shrugging. “But some people don’t appreciate it…”
“I think the Elite is going to pay top dollar for these… but there’s something I want to keep…” Phoebe smiled as she answered Maya, cradling a glowing potion. Then she lifted it by one hand, presenting it to Maya.
It was a glowing potion that pulsed with rainbow colors.
“… Wanna go pour this in the water supply?”
Maya took the potion, turning it over to get a good look. “What does it do, turn everyone gay when they drink it?” Probably something worse, but who cared as long as it didn’t affect them? “Let’s do it.”
Phoebe grabbed Maya’s hand (fingers interlocked), and the two skipped out of the dining hall… to the relief of Emily.
However, after they left, there was a groaning from one of the side halls… followed by slow footsteps as Emily’s head darted towards that hall. Stumbling out of the shadows was… a tall, spindly being almost as tall as the hall itself. She walked in, completely nude, one claw over her face as she walked into full view. She groaned as a line of drool came from her mouth, and she placed the other claw on the adjacent wall. She took in deep breaths as she stumbled forward, only to catch herself on one of her freakishly long limbs.
The second 8th Street saw her, they all dropped whatever they were doing and hopped up, staring at the woman.
Emily grits her teeth as she glances at Jacqueline and Miranda, and with a hint of worry, she says, “... Ge-get her back to her room! Hurry up! Before she does something!”
“On it!” The two twins said in unison as they quickly ran over to the creature. Miranda grabbed her hand, and the two coaxed her into the darkness of the halls. Emily sighed.
“... When are you going to help her?” Brianna asked with a raised eyebrow.
Emily was silent for a moment before she answered,
“I’m working on it.”
“Pack leader!” Cynthia shouted at Emily, then pointed at their mysterious guest they had not noticed until now. “We have an intruder.”
All eyes were brought upon the mysterious woman sitting at the end of their little dining table. She was wearing black jogging pants, a pink sports bra, and an armband that previously had her phone in it. Off her side, she had a nice metal tray of cupcakes covered in wax paper and plastic wrap. She continued playing on her phone for a few moments before she raised her head.
“... Oh?”
She said in a curious tone and faced Emily down.
“... Am I interrupting something?”
Emily narrowed her eyes as the woman continued.
“I’m just having a seat; I’ve just finished with a long jog and thought I’d stop by for the… atmosphere.”
The mysterious woman stood up and presented the tray of cupcakes. “I’ve brought you all cupcakes.”
All of 8th Street stared at her in shock, and Emily rolled her eyes as she sank back into her chair.
“... I thought you had your fill on bullying us, Agent Liao,”
The woman looked down, twisting her head slightly to the left and the right, then lifted her head to face Emily.
“‘Agent Liao’? Can’t you see I’m not on duty right now? Don’t call me Agent Liao, call me… Meifeng.’”
Emily rolled her eyes again,
“Whatever,” She started, “Can I help you with something? Can’t you see that I’m busy?”
Meifeng put a hand on her hip and scoffed as she said, “... Sitting on your little throne?” She playfully chuckled.
“Fuck this!” Carol shouted as she stood up, facing Emily but pointing at Meifeng, “Are we going to keep letting this asshole bully us! She’s by herself; we can take her!”
Meifeng was silent for a moment.
“... I imagine you can,” She started, raising her hands, “I left my gun in my car. And as you can probably tell, I’m not dressed for concealed carry. So…”
She let her words hang in the air.
“Do your worse, Emily.”
Emily stared Meifeng down before she sighed and sunk back into her chair.
“... Just get to the point, Meifeng.”
Meifeng crossed her arms before she spoke to the 8th Street Coven.
“I want to speak to your leader in private.”
There was a brief silence before Emily waved her hand in the air and said,
“Everyone go.”
“But I am working on my poti-” Greta injected.
“I said go!”
With that, the 8th Street Coven dispersed. Leaving the hall with only Meifeng and Emily, the former walked towards the latter. Not breaking eye contact for a moment until she finally spoke,
“Your follower attacked one of my agents.”
“Which one…?” Emily asked, putting her fingertips together.
“Everleigh Thorn,”
Upon hearing that name, Emily smiled.
“... She’s not one of us anymore,” Emily started, “She left us to go back to those Sycamore sluts. Go bark up that tree.” She rolled her eyes.
Meifeng did not so much as blink.
“Is that so?” Meifeng asked as she got closer to Emily until she was in her face. “Did you forget the deal?”
At this point, Jacqueline and Miranda returned, stopped, and looked around. Then, their gaze landed on the metal tray Meifeng left on the table.
“... Cupcakes!”
“Don’t eat those!” Emily shouted. “They might be poison!”
“Please,” Meifeng rolled her eyes, “Just what about me suggests that, if I planned on killing you all, I wouldn’t just come here and put a gun to your head?”
They were silent.
“Exactly,”
Emily slammed her hands on the handlebars of her throne and stood up. Putting her hands on her hips as she
“You keep coming over here to bully us! Don’t you remember just who got you your position?” Emily glanced at Jacqueline, who had helped herself to one of the cupcakes. Then Emily added, “Remember just who exposed Porter Johnson?”
Emily smiled and sunk back into her chair before she added,
“The PRA is just as responsible for Das Sonnenrad as Kaiser Draeger is…”
Meifeng sighed,
“While I am not responsible for the actions of my predecessor, and he has been taken care of, the PRA needs to take more action to weed out extremism in our ranks.”
“It goes high if Mr. Johnson was a Regional Commander!” Emily shouted, pointing at Meifeng before sinking back in her chair again. “You should be more appreciative, Meifeng…”
Meifeng scoffed as she walked up to Emily and jammed a finger into her chest.
“I am appreciative… I’m not putting a kill order on you and your cult as I should,” Meifeng started, fury in her eyes. “I am turning a blind eye to your antics only because I need that Stygian Snake and eyes in St. Portwell…”
Meifeng took a step back and walked towards the door; as she spoke,
“But if I find out that you’re still associated with Everleigh Thorn or had something to do with that shitshow last night…”
She paused right before she walked out of the door and finished with, “... It will be the end of you and everything you know.”
She closed the door, and Emily sighed in relief.
“... Isn’t Eve spying on Sycamore for us?” Miranda cut the silence with a knife.
“Yes, but Liao doesn't have to know that,” Emily chuckled. “It's good that Eve is causing trouble for them and not us… Oh!”
A lightbulb ignited in her head.
“The PRA is probably going to fuck those sluts up! Grab some popcorn, and grab some cameras! We can not miss this!” Emily said as she got up.
“... Didn't they do the same thing to us?” Miranda raised an eye.
“Shut up about that; that never happened,” Emily said as she walked off to find some chairs, popcorn, and cameras!
She wasn’t going to miss those sluts getting theirs!
And here is the rest of the PRA Agents minus one key individual...
The PRA
Cindy.Keagan
41 | Cindy Gabrielle Keagan | She/Her"Lord knows I've been trying to do the right thing."
Description:
Callsign: Green-Bird.
Senior Agent in the PRA and Meifeng Liao's best friend - she is rarely seen without her best friend and acts as her right-hand woman. Cindy has accompanied Meifeng through all those Paranormal incidents (and she does not want to talk about the Lighthouse Incident). Cindy was a native of Los Angeles and met her best friends Meifeng Liao and Jennifer Caspin in school. However, Cindy's father died of a heart attack, and she chose to live up to his legacy and joined the Army - in which she was a 42A (Human Resources Specialist). Leaving her two best friends behind was hard, but it was her dream.
She remained in the Army for fifteen years and managed to commission and become an officer. When her son, Cameron Keagan, was born in her thirties, Cindy chose to get out of the Army and settle back in LA - but she found herself getting roped into the PRA by her longtime friend Meifeng. She didn't want to work at a supermarket anymore and would kill to have some adventures with Meifeng to make up for the lost time, so she decided to join the PRA. Cindy's military knowledge has translated well to hunting Paranormal-Beings down. Cindy has done her most damn to remain in good shape, but her genetics has caused her to put on some pounds - most of which has gone to her butt, and she has a pear body shape. She keeps her hair straightened and has glasses.
Abstraction: Afflicted - The Glass Curse.
Cindy was originally a One-Eye-Open, but after a chance encounter trying to contain an Apparition known as the Fragile Goddess, Cindy was cursed by the being. The curse caused her to transform whatever she touched (which included people if they did not have an Emotional-Field) into a jade-colored glass, but she learned that she can control the curse. It took her years, but she managed to control what she transformed into the glass, and then she realized she got a diluted version of the Fragile Goddess' Abstraction.
Cindy can cause glass constructs to sprout out of the ground in the environment, which can be whatever she can envision with her mind's eye. She can create walls, glass spears, etc. - even with explosive force to use as a stabbing/slashing/bashing weapon. This has a minor kinetic ability of glass, as Cindy can force anything made of glass to shatter into pieces.
Nakala.Phillips
38 | Nakala Isabelle Phillips | She/Her"I want to know how I can make a difference, how to make people take me seriously."
Description:
Callsign: Arrow.
Senior Agent and Meifeng's third in command. The daughter of a PRA Regional Commander named Michelle Phillips, a rough and tough woman known for being a hardass, passes that down to her daughter. Nakala Phillips was born in Miami, Florida, and her best friend growing up was a half-black, half-Puerto Rican girl named Olivia Clarke. Olivia got Nakala into Archery when she was younger, and she did not think she would be good at it (she's a woman with giant hands!) but turned out to be a natural. She competed in various archery tournaments around the country. Still, after losing a tournament by the tinest of mistakes, Nakala underwent her Kindling-Event, discovering her connection to Red & Purple Lux.
However, she did not have a grand goal and continued with her life, eventually starting a business as a hairstylist and having a daughter, Jolinda (Jojo). One day, she discovered that an Apparition had killed her friend Olivia and desired to protect Jojo from the same fate. She contacted her mother (who had long retired) and asked her to get her into the PRA, who pulled a few strings with some friends to get Nakala into the PRA and reached the rank of Senior Agent. The Director considered Nakala to have potential in the PRA due to her skills, and she was one of the prospects to receive the Champion's Belt.
Nakala is a very strong-willed and determined human being. She takes a lot after her mother and how she was raised, and she was raised to be a strong woman, full of spirit who takes nothing from nobody. Nakala is a caring and loving human who sometimes lets her pride cloud her judgment and focuses on what's in front of her. Nakala is a very tall woman who stands at six-one and is very muscular with a deeper-than-average voice and braids she ties into a bun when on a mission. She carries her compound bow as her primary weapon (and Channeler) but keeps an M4 strapped to her back and a pistol on her hip.
Portal-Arrow: Nakala imbues an arrow with Purple-Lux, creating a portal where ever she shoots her arrow. She can only make a portal between areas that she can see.
Elemental-Arrow: Nakala can fire an arrow made out of a different element (Fire, Electricity, Stone, Ice, etc.,) which will explode into said element on impact.
Arrow-Direction: Nakala can use her Purple-Lux to direct her arrows in mid-air to perform feats like turning corners, ricocheting off objects, etc.
Wall-Walking: Nakala can use her Purple-Lux to defy gravity and walk on walls to get in better positions to hit opponents with arrows.
Momentum-Cancelling: Nakala has devised a spell to negate her momentum (she teleports it to another dimension) with zero ill effects.
Terramancy: Nakala can manipulate a few hundred pounds of stone in a five-meter radius. This Spell lacks fine control and focuses more on raw power.
Maximilian.Cornell
32 | Maximilian Alexander Cornell | He/Him "We'll find a way, I promise."
Description:
Callsign: Praetorian.
Maximilian Cornell was born in Mankato, Minnesota, but when he was young, he was moved to a small town that neighbored the larger city. He was, for lack of a better term, the ultimate Boy Scout, as his parents tried their damnest to ensure they would raise the most moral human being on the planet. Perhaps he's not the most ethical on the planet, but he grew up wanting to help this society, this world that he lives in. Not just that, Maximilian intends to become the best he can be so he can always be in a good spot to help other people. Thus, he thought the best way to do that would be to become a sheriff and keep his small town.
Maximilian was attacked by an apparition one night, but two PRA agents saved him. They offered him a spot in the organization, and his life changed forever as he gladly accepted. Thus, he has been a part of the organization since. However, due to his morality and drive to become the best he can be, Director Alcott chose him to have the Champion's Belt, an artifact that is arguably the most powerful in the setting. Thus, he went from being a nobody to being one of the organization's most well-known and vital Agents who zip around from place to place to solve different high-level Paranormal incidents. After Director Alcott learned about the threat of the Stygian Snake, Maximilian was moved from his mission in Alaska to St. Portwell to be there if it broke free and defeat it if necessary.
With the Apparition Killer missing, Maximilian is the only chance of stopping the Stygian Snake if it breaks free. He's a big boy, standing at six-five with broad shoulders, and is very muscular from years of dedicating himself at the gym as a body-builder. He's incredibly kind, good-natured, and always tries to do the right thing... even if the right thing isn't always the best choice for everyone. He rushes from A to B with little consideration or maneuverability, but he's been learning to slow down.
Abstraction:
Unknown.
The Leadership of St. Portwell's PRA branch and other critical/powerful members.
Samson.Brown
29 | Samson Isiah Brown Jr | He/Him"Look, my father wasn't the best, but he had some wisdom. He told me always to see things through, never give up, and never show weakness."
Description:
Callsign: Phoenix.
A native of Philadelphia, he joined the Army at seventeen, and when he graduated high school, he was whisked away on an adventure where he partied, cleaned, and had lots of sex with strippers. However, he ended up in Iraq during the GWOT, and during a convoy, his Humvee was seemingly hit by an IED. He was on the brink of death, but the crater had a strange, alluring fire, and he crawled towards it. Only to find an entire phoenix inside the crater, and he touched it - becoming bound to the Apparition.
His wounds were instantly healed... which was not good as he was the sole survivor of the incident and hit with many different accusations by his former comrades. He was sent back to the States, where he was approached by PRA Agents who found the whole situation just a little bit weird. They found out about the Phoenix and asked Samson to join, and he accepted; they pulled some strings to get him honorably discharged from the military, and he became one of the best Agents (The Director considered him for the Champion's Belt).
Originally, Samson was stationed in his home city of Philadelphia, but Director Alcott pulled him to St. Portwell to handle the Stygian Snake situation. Samson is an average-height man who cares for himself at the gym at five-ten, so he'd be mission-ready. He's a very calm and reasonable person who is slow to anger, but once he gets there, oh boy.
Abstraction: Adjoined - The Phoenix.
Samson is adjoined to the mighty Phoenix, and he can transform into it at will. It stands at twenty-three feet tall with a wingspan of twice that, and it boasts incredible pyrokinetic abilities. He can spew an inferno of flames and create a wave of fire with a flap of his wings. The Phoenix can fly incredibly fast despite having limited mobility. In addition, the Phoenix boasts incredible strength, capable of up a truck and flying off with it.
Samson's secondary ability is regeneration - which he has in human form. Whenever he's injured, a fire will appear at the wound and quickly heal it, appearing as good as new a few moments later. Finally, Samson possesses the famed power of the Phoenix, self-resurrection. Once killed, Samson explodes into a cloud of fire, ash, and smoke, leaving nobody behind. Days later, all the ash will gather, and he'll be born anew, brought back to a physical state where he died with all his memories intact and his body restored. Thus, Samson is more or less immortal... unless the ashes are wet, it will permanently kill him.
Claudette.Beaulieu
34 | Claudette Beaulieu | She/Her"Magic is a force; I now force the forces."
Description:
Callsign: Ice.
A French-Canadian woman from Montreal who moved to Chicago to complete the University of Chicago's Social Worker Program. She completed the course with flying colors and became a social worker to improve the lives of impoverished youths in the city. However, she met a woman named Meredith Ray, and the two dated, eventually having sex... Afterward, Claudette woke up naked, tied to a bed, with various symbols and pentagrams drawn all about the room. This was when Meredith dropped the bomb on her: she never loved Claudette and was only playing her. Meredith told Claudette about the curse on her that attracted monsters and all sorts of nastiness - all because one of her ancestors was an Adept and had some unfulfilled pacts.
The curse could be passed onto another female through a ritual, so Meredith set up a trap, and Claudette fell for it. Afterward, Meredith left her, and Claudette screamed until someone called the police, and they came to free her. Claudette went home and was attacked by an Apparition, who told her she was marked for sacrifice. This was when Apparitions and Abominable began attacking her wherever she went. She fled across the country, living on the fringes, doing unspeakable things for food and shelter until they came to attack her. The stress caused her to undergo her Kindling-Event, where she finally gained the power to fight back against them.
Eventually, Claudette was approached by PRA Agents Liao and Keagan, who helped Claudette by placing her in a secure facility (that happened to have Maximilian!). Every time the Apparitions and Abominable attacked, they were fought off, and eventually, they managed to find a way to break the curse and gave Claudette a spot on the PRA (and therapy!). Claudette gladly accepted to help people like her and was stationed in St. Portwell, assisting with the magical madness there. Claudette is black and stands at five-six, being very skinny and bony due to her genetics. She speaks with a thick French accent.
Abstraction: Adept - Red & White Lux. Channeler: A kitchen knife Claudette used for protection while on the run.
Cyromancy: Born from her cold-hearted rage at being betrayed and chased around the country, Claudette developed a potent ice spell. It focuses more on creating ice and raw power than shaping or moving it, as Claudette can quickly create massive constructs out of ice and freeze objects at will.
Apparition & Abominable Detection: Developed to predict when she's about to be attacked, Claudette has developed a spell that subconsciously alerts her when an Apparition or Abominable is nearby. She can detect them in a range of around twelve meters and will constantly warn her as long as they are in that range.
Extra-Sensory Denial: Claudette can counter other White-Lux users or anyone with an ability that singles out the Paranormal. As long as she focuses, they cannot gain any information on her or discover her presence.
Sonya.Mayfield
27 | Sonya Summer Mayfield | She/Her "See? I'm a froggy! Just don't ask me to ribbit!"
Description:
Callsign: Merryday.
Sonya is a half-Caucasian, half-Mexican woman who grew up in San Antonio, Texas. Once she was of age, Sonya enlisted in the Army as one of the few Cavalry Scouts. She was in the Army for several years and attended Sniper School, intending to become a Green Beret. However, she was passed over several times due to being a female despite being one of their best shots - however, Sonya remained a chipper demeanor. In the Army, she met her future wife, Maria Costello, and the two got married after a long-distance relationship. However, she was stationed in Fort Polk, Louisana, for a bit, and as it turned out, some members of her unit worshipped a Frog-Apparition named Gulgorath... to which they attempted to sacrifice her. The PRA was hot on the trail of this little cult and barraged before Gulgorath could eat Sonya.
However, Sonya was afflicted in the process, which gave her Amphibian-like features. Sonya was offered a place in the PRA alongside her wife, Maria, as a sniper, and she became famous for her skill. Sonya has taken down several dangerous Paranormal-Beings who didn't even know what hit them. Sonya usually goes from place to place because of her skill as the PRA top sniper, but she was initially in LA before Director Alcott called for all hands on deck and was sent to St. Portwell.
Sonya appears to be an ordinary woman from a distance, but she has animalistic features as a part of her affliction. She has a mouth of needle-like teeth, webbed hands and feet, orbs at the end, and large eyes. She's petite, at five foot even, but otherwise in good shape. Sonya is eccentric, bubbly, overly kind, and compassionate, contrasting her attitude with the rest of her team. She's just another special agent who adds fun to the group.
Abstraction: Afflicted - Amphibian Physiology.
Sonya has the abilities of the strange and wonderful Amphibians that inhabit the land and the water. Sonya has various abilities, not just them, but also some abilities from Reptiles. Sonya, most notably, has a tongue six times the length of her body, allowing her to grab an object (or person) or get around the area. By nature, her body is very flexible, and she has super strong legs that let her jump incredibly high, and she can swim extremely fast. She breathes through her skin (which is coated in a layer of slime), can heal faster, regenerate limbs, camouflage herself, survive being frozen, change genders (she did this accidentally twice!), hear, smell, and see better. Also, she reproduces like a Surinam Toad. You're welcome.
Leon.Vahan
35 | Leon Conrad Vahan | He/Him"Take it slow, take it easy."
Description:
Callsign: All-Seer.
Maximilian's best friend in the PRA, whenever they end up in the same operation, they are usually inseparable. Leon appears to be very... eccentric. He usually seems out of it most of the time, as if he's never paying attention to anything. He's supernaturally calm, and rarely raises his voice, but he loves to mess with people - especially the senior Agents. He always keeps something between his lips, such as a toothpick, cigarette, or straw, and likens himself to an old-school cowboy. Leon is originally from New York, New York, but he spent his summers on a farm in rural Florida, where his family lived.
He eventually got a degree in Criminal Justice and applied to the FBI, finally gaining a spot as a Special Agent. Where he went from place to place... where he eventually trailed a serial killer in New England; however, this serial killer was Paranormal and nearly killed Leon, causing him to undergo a Kindling-Event. Leon (obviously) survived, but with his Abstraction, he managed to track the bastard down and put an end to him. Which attracted the attention of the PRA, who offered him a spot in their organization... or got put out by the FBI for breaking protocol.
Leon had no choice but to accept it and made sure to make the most of it. Leon was previously stationed in the Miami branch of the PRA as their top investigator, but he was pulled to St. Portwell to help with the crisis there. Leon is incredibly tall, at six-ten, but very skinny with little more muscle than lean muscle. Leon likes to keep a sword collection and carries a katana around because it is his Channeler (to the dismay of Meifeng and the others).
Abstraction: Adept - White Lux. Channeler: His Favorite Katana.
All-Seeing-Eye: Leon can create glowing eyes in the environment that he can use to observe locations. He can produce up to twelve eyes in a thirty-meter radius, but these eyes can be attacked and destroyed by Abstractions.
Highlighting: Leon can use his Abstraction to see the auras of people (including Paranormal) through walls up to a fifty-meter radius.
Detective's Hunch: Leon can see the auras of anything that was recently interacted with and on touch; he can gain information on who just touched it (such as their name and can see a Recollection of the moment it was interacted with).
Murderer-Tracking: Once casts this Spell at a murder scene, a glowing-white trail is created, which will track the murderer as long as it's been less than a day since the murder.
Helena.Page
30 | Helena Ava Page | She/Her"Focus on the mission, complete the mission, go home."
Description:
Callsign: Falconer.
A woman from Bakersfield, California, who came from a relatively wealthy family, she had always dreamed of being a pilot flying in the Air Force. So her family pulled a few strings, and she went to school, got an easy bachelor's degree, and got commissioned in the Air Force. She completed Initial Flight Training and Undergraduate Flying Training and was on her way to becoming a decorated pilot in the Air Force. However, during one of her flight training missions, she encountered a mysterious Apparition known as the Flock, a mass of different bird-Apparitions.
These Apparitions formed around her jet and seemingly guided her along... unaware that she had become adjoined to the Flock, she told her chain of command that she had gone crazy! After a mental health assessment, she was determined to have schizophrenia and deemed ineligible for the program. This sent Helena into a deep depression... but she was approached by the PRA, who was tracking the Flock. They told her about the true nature of the Flock and the world of Paranormal, then offered her a spot in the PRA... which Helena accepted, in which she encountered many other agents during the infamous Lighthouse incident. She was in the Miami Branch before Director Alcott called her to St. Portwell due to her skill and the power of her Abstraction.
Helena Page is a very callous and aloof woman who prefers to focus on the mission and keeps the small talk to a minimum. Due to her wealth, she sees herself above most other Agents and only respects Maximilian and Meifeng. However, she constantly gets knocked down a peg by the other Agents. Helena is a five-eight woman with wide hips but is otherwise well-built.
Abstraction: Adjoined - The Flock.
After a chance encounter during a training mission, the Flock choose Helena to be their next host after the death of their previous one. The Flock has the appearance of a mass of hundreds of different birds. Helena can individually control each of them and give them various tasks over a wide radius, and she is one of the most powerful PRA agents due to how difficult she is to fight. She can also see through them, and they can lift her and carry her to achieve a sort of flight.
Fiona.Barret
20 | Fiona Ashley Barrett | She/Her"I'm... not sure if they can fix me. I may have to accept that this is just what I am."
Description:
Callsign: Mantis.
The one of the newest PRA Agents and one of the team's least human-looking members. You see, Fiona grew up in a town in very rural Maryland... then a portal opened up, releasing all sorts of Apparitions, and she found herself fighting for her life as everyone she knew and held dear was killed. She was found by PRA Agents Maximilian Cornell, Leon Vahan, and Helena Page, hiding on a farm, starving, and was extracted... that was when they were ambushed, and Fiona was nearly killed. In a desperate bid to save her, Maximilian released a sealed Apparition and forced it to adjoin to Fiona.
It healed all of her wounds while transforming her into a half-bug, half-girl, but Fiona was taken in by the PRA, who offered her a spot in their organization. Fiona hesitantly accepted and was assigned to St. Portwell... where things picked up once Director Alcott heard about the Stygian Snake. Fiona is new and inexperienced, but she's willing to learn, positive, and wants to do her best. Fiona stands at five-six, and her entire body is covered by a rough, green exoskeleton with purple tips. She has an extra set of eyes and massive antennae on her head. Her human face is visible, but she has freakish compound eyes instead of regular eyes. Fiona requires unique clothing that the PRA makes, but she is usually limited to night operations or is behind a special armor that conceals her Paranormal traits.
Being the youngest Agent, Fiona is usually paired with Trevor, with whom she gets along.
Abstraction: Adjoined - The Mantis.
Fiona adjoined with the Apparition known as the Mantis, Fiona has some permanent changes to her body. She permanently appears like a half-insect, half-human, but this comes with some perks. For starters, her chitin armor brings her durability up enough notches that a punch from a professional boxer will have the same effect as getting hit with a wad of crumbled-up paper. Fiona doesn't have claws, but she is much stronger and faster than an average person and can leap incredible heights.
However, what is most notable is Fiona's vision is incredible and can pick up motion in a wide range from far away. She can also rotate her head 180 degrees and climb walls. Fiona's final ability is that she can grow wings and zip around the area at high speeds - but this is very loud, so she rarely does it.
Trevor.Obott
25 | Trevor Kevin Obott | He/Him"Ladies call me 'Big Trev'."
Description:
Callsign: Silent Flute.
Born in the spooky Magnolia Springs, Alabama, as one of two twins, Trevor grew up not only the only male child (well, his twin transitioned) in his family but also the youngest alongside his twin. He grew up an immature, annoying pissant who was ultimately good-natured but lamented that he looked like a girl. He showed prominence for being a computer prodigy as he made programs (and viruses) at only thirteen years old. He nurtured this hidden talent through high school (in which he never held a girl's hand, rip). Via some form of Christmas Miracle, Trevor got into Yale and graduated from their computer science program. He eventually became a professional hacker for big corporations (basically, he was paid to find vulnerabilities in their databases), but he was not happy with it.
Trevor wanted to do something more with his life, so he took a month off from work after acquiring quite a bit of wealth and returned to Magnolia Springs... However, it was one rainy night, and he was driving with his sister, Scarlet when he mysteriously crashed. He heard some growling as he pulled his sister out of the car wreckage, and they were chased through the woods by some invisible monster or something. Right when they were cornered, they underwent their Kindling-Event, and two mysterious women in raincoats came by and destroyed the Apparition with some pocket change.
They introduced themselves as Meifeng Liao and Cindy Keagan, and Trevor asked what in the fuck just happened to which Meifeng explained it. Trevor asked to join the PRA, and Meifeng couldn't resist the bonus she would get for recruiting him. Thus, Trevor became their computer/hacking specialist who rarely goes out on field operations.... instead, he annoys Meifeng to no end. Due to being one of the younger agents, Meifeng assigns him all the work she doesn't want to do, calling it "Trevor-Duty" (which has become an effective threat to inefficient PRA Agents).
Trevor is distinct from the other PRA Agents; he has a feminine face and dainty features. He usually keeps his hair long, his face well-shaven, and he has full lips. He stands at five-five and is very skinny due to going to the gym often (he works legs and nothing but legs). He can appear feminine until he opens his mouth and sounds like a teenager. He likens himself to a lady's man despite constantly fumbling with every woman who has ever talked to him. He has better luck with guys, though.
He also loves to mention the Lighthouse Incident (which he was a part of) to the chagrin of his team.
Abstraction: Adept - Green Lux. Channeler:
Healing: Trevor has that healing touch, baby. He can heal anyone extremely fast using the Green Lux and acts as the PRA's healer.
Narcotic-Touch: Trevor can coat his hands in a transparent, clear chemical that causes psychedelic hallucinations.
Shape-Shifting: Trevor can transform his body into people he has seen before... but this Spell is limited by what he knows about the person.
Coffee-Shot: Trevor can create a spell that completely removes any tiredness he, or anyone else, has and can allow him to constantly work without having to sleep.
Secret Weapon #1: A super secret and powerful spell Trevor saves for emergencies!
Secret Weapon #2: Another super secret and powerful spell Trevor saves for emergencies!
Akira.Shinjo
28 | Shinjo Akira | She/Her"Yūkōno Toki is a tool, a weapon, and my duty as a Spirit Warden."
Description:
Callsign: Epoch.
An oddity in the PRA, as Akira's technically not a member of the PRA but Japan's very own version of the PRA known as Task Force Ø (Colloquially known as the Spirit Wardens). The Spirit Wardens were previously known as the Yokai Extermination Brigade during WWII (and committed several war crimes) that were abolished after Japan's surrender. This is important to Akira as her father was a member of the Brigade. There was a unique "Foreign Exchange" program between the two nations in which the PRA sent a few members to help the Spirit Wardens and vice versa. The Spirit Wardens sent Akira under explicit orders to help with the Stygian Snake situation, as the Apparition also terrorized Japan in ancient times. She was stated to be one of their best agents and is happy to be a part of the team.
With her stoic demeanor and unwavering dedication to her duty, Akira embodies the essence of a Spirit Warden. Akira Shinjo is a woman of few words, preferring to let her actions speak for her, and is more concerned with completing the mission. However, the one pet peeve that'll get her talking is some idiot commenting on her family heirloom, Yūkōno Toki. An Ōdachi that never leaves her side, and she utterly despises it when people treat her like some stupid anime cosplayer. As Regional Commander Liao found out (the hard way), she will go on a giant triad about the importance of Yūkōno Toki and how it's more than a toy. Despite that, Akira is a fierce protector, always putting her team's and the public's safety first. She conducts herself with unwavering determination, seeking to rid the world of evil spirits and keep the balance between the mundane and Paranormal intact.
Akira sees it as the greatest honor to represent Japan, and Akira is determined to locate the Stygian Snake even if it kills her. Akira is a pureblooded Japanese woman who is reasonably short at five-two but in great shape. Her legs are very well-toned from years of sprinting, leaping, etc. Akira keeps her hair in a bun and dresses professionally.
Abstraction: Agent - Time's Embrace.
Akira descends from a line of Oni-Kariudo (Demon Hunters), and the most potent tool in her family's arsenal is Yūkōno Toki. It was a blade blessed by an Onmyoji and is considered the Spirit Warden's most potent weapon. Whatever Akira strikes with the sword becomes frozen in time for thirty seconds up to thirty minutes, and Akira has no control over how long. This Abstraction bypasses any Emotional-Fields or defenses. It works at one hundred percent, or it doesn't work - and it defies all laws of physics. Whatever is struck by the blade becomes a static and immutable fixture in time - which means that whatever she hits cannot be damaged, moved, etc, until the time elapses. However, Akira can only apply this effect to one thing at a time - if she uses it on another, the previous effect will be lifted. The Blade is connected to her intuitively and will not freeze objects unless she intends to.
The backbone of the St. Portwell PRA branch, various agents from all over the country. Director Alcott assembled because she felt they could handle the Stygian Snake situation and St. Portwell's out-of-control Paranormal scene.
"Now, drive safe, Ladies. Father Wolf's still out there..."
When Leon said that, Britney's eyes shot open... that was a threat if anything else, and Britney's hand on Linqian's bicep went down to her hand as she held onto it (fingers interlocked), and then did the same to Eve. She awkwardly smiled and laughed as she faced Leon and Lynette, then said,
"WellthankyouforhavingusGOODBYE!"
As she darted for the nearest exit... she wasn't sure what the fuck was the layout of this place, but she sure as hell was going to find an exit (or make one). Her second objective was to ensure that she kept her hands on Eve and Linqian... she didn't want to turn her head, and everyone was gone. Eventually, she found the exit and made it to the parking lot. There was that urge to check her car in case one of these sons of bitches sabotaged it... but she turned her head, and the place was completely gone.
That did not cause Britney to relax at all, as she (and the others) got into the car and hauled ass out of there! She didn't put the pedal to the metal, but she was just about ready to do so. She sped off, and the second she was out of the woods, she sighed as the car approached the first red light.
"... Remind me to NEVER trust his ass again."
Then her phone rang with a text message from Lila, of all people... she glanced at her passengers and said,
"... Texting and driving, I know."
After the texting was done (and some psychopath didn't attack her), she turned to her passengers again and said, "I'm going to drop you two off... I have an errand to run."
Then Britney proceeded to drop the two of them off...Afterwards, Britney stopped by her house and grabbed some wine and the ingredients for that tea she talked about, then she was back in her car. She wanted to return to her house and remove all her clothes and relax after that stressful ass day (well, two hours), but duty calls.
She wasn't going to let somebody else get lost in an Apparition.
She got back in her GMC Yukon and hoped that it would survive until the morning! She sped down the streets of St. Portwell towards Everlynn's house and hoped that the PRA wasn't looking for her for questioning... her phone rang, and it appeared on the dashboard as Auri Auclair. She hit answer and then realized that she hadn't updated Auri on anything that went down at the strip club.
"Good evening, Britney," Auri said.
"Hello, Auri, how are you?"
"I'll cut to the chase... you were at the strip club, right?"
Britney awkwardly laughed.
"Yeah, but Auri Auclair wasn't..."
"Do you know what happened to Alizée Altieri?"
".... Uhhhhhhhhhhh, Ehhhhhhhhhhh, Ummmmmmmm..." Britney tugged at her collar as she said, "... She's dead, Auri."
"So, the Void Heart was right,"
"What do you mean? What's going on?"
"The Void Heart called me, blaming me for Alizee's death.... "
"I... I don't know what happened, but apparently, she got into a fight with this group of girls at the strip club. She said that they jumped her. They say that Alizee tried to kidnap one of them. I was trying to de-escalate things, but Alizee flew off the handle and attacked Stormy and one of those girls... Sully tried to jump in the way, but she attacked him."
Britney cringed at the thought. If the Wolfpack hadn't shown up, Britney would have had no choice but to attack Alizee and restrain her.
"Then the Wolfpack showed up, and Leon - you know, Daisy's cousin - grabbed her and dipped... she then came back, and the Wolfpack shot her dead. Right there on the spot!" She got emotional, but Britney took a deep breath. "Wait, the Void Heart called you?"
"Yes... well, Layla Hyacinthus called him, but she put him on the phone; he told me she was dead and it was my fault but never elaborated when I asked. I honestly thought it was lying or that he killed Ms. Altieri. I did not appreciate how he spoke with me, so I told him to put Ms. Hyacinthus back on the phone. However, it's clear he's holding her hostage."
Britney was silent as she processed all of this information. Then, she sighed, then spoke,
"It's time we do what we should have done ten years ago..." She dramatically paused, "... It's time we seal the Void."
"I concur," Auri said, "He seems... erratic. Dangerous."
"He was always erratic and dangerous, and we should have sealed him from the beginning! But Alizee didn't want help, and... you can't help those who don't want help." Britney sighed.
"I'm going to see about speaking with Stormy... I know he doesn't care for you-"
"... You think?" Britney chuckled.
"I know... I'm going to talk to him, then Jack."
"Just keep this on a need-to-know basis, on the low, you know... I don't know, but..." Britney trailed off as she thought about Leon, "... I feel like the ten years have changed some people for the worst."
"I feel the same way," Auri said.
Eventually, Britney made it to Everlynn's house, and she came to a stop.
"Keep me in the loop, and understand that the Void Heart is extremely dangerous..." Britney trailed, "That said, enjoy the rest of your night. I'm going to talk with Everlynn and Lila."
"Will do; stay safe,"
Britney hung up, exited the car, grabbed the tote bag, put her wine and ingredients for her "herbal tea," and walked to the front door. She gave it a few firm knocks, and when the door was opened, she smiled and said,
"Heyyyyyyyyy, how are you all doing?! I'm not sure how long you all want to stay up, but I'm fine with staying up allllllll night long! We can do each other's hair, paint our nails, talk about boys or girls if that floats your boat... I can teach you all to seal and then go fuck off for the night! Whatever you all want to do!"
And she proceeded to have a fun night.
The PRA Vs Judas Bennet.
Interactions: None
The PRA Headquarters.
Initially, the alleyway seemed derelict, with trash and locked doors against either wall. Clancy persisted; the rooftop view from the streets had demonstrated that there had been a way. Judas didn’t strike him as a man who scaled the side of a building with his bare hands.
Rounding a corner, he realized why: a twisted chainlink, rebar, and asphalt staircase had been formed in a backlot space behind this building. What remained of a nearby fence had been pulled away to form the structure's base. Unfortunately for most, the creator had the foresight to cut off the stairwell at the midpoint, leaving an excellent human-sized gap between the malformed chainlink steps and the twists of rebar and asphalt at the top.
No loose ends, right? Clancy shook his head; there was still just enough structure to get him a few meters off the ground. Clutching the axe in one hand, he planted a foot on one step to ensure it wasn’t going to fall apart on contact, then sprung off that onto an adjacent row of dumpsters angled at just the correct position to let him step up to the guttering. He pushed off, vaulted, and clamped his tiny fingers around one of the rungs fixing the pipework to the wall, then began to pull his weight up, alternating between using his feet and his one free hand to push and pull against any handholds he could.
Enjoy it while you can.
Unlike the big man, Clancy had taken the more challenging route. Yet, midway through, he noticed a thin window, no bigger than a mail slot and probably used to light up a storeroom in the building, except a meaty face was positioned in the center - transparent, almost, as though it sat in the reflection rather than behind it - and something heavy was clacking along the rooftop from the other end, like a collection of farm animals skidding on gravel.
Keeping those kids busy, he rationalised.
The boy gave it no further thought, continuing his ascent; one last time, a hand clamped around the top of the gutter, this time no further handholds waiting behind it. He was at the top. Clancy pulled his weight upwards, peering over the top - face-to-face with one of Judas’ pets, rushing at the ledge. Before he could pull back, the creature clamped its jaws around his shoulder and pulled him over the edge, tossing him mid-air like a toy.
A golden light approached on the horizon, swelling in his vision until it was blinding.
Bianca rolled her eyes at Trevor's "singing" and stepped into the arrow-created portal, stepping out the other end and jumping into the PRA vehicle.
"Boy, am I glad to see you all," she chirped as if this wasn't the middle of a paranormal turf war (that she'd been shot during, but it was okay; she was healed). She took the bulletproof vest from Trevor and pulled it on over her jacket. She paused, giving him a questioning look. "Wait, aren't you also off today?"
“Yeah, but I heard that you were in trouble and had to help!”
"Sure, bet you were dragged along 'cause you didn't have anything better to do," Bianca snorted before patting her leg - right above the pronounced blood staining. "Unfortunately for you, I already got fixed up by another healer… anyway, you don't have a gun for me too?”
“... I do,” Fiona said as she handed Bianca a Glock 19M from the back seat. “It’s great to see you’re safe, Agent Manalo!” She said in a bubbly tone.
"Thanks," Bianca nodded to Fiona, gratefully taking the Glock. Much better than being unarmed. "Course I am! It takes more than a bullet and a shadow fist to take me out."
“Well, I hope you are, because we gotta solve that,” Nakala gestured towards the fight between Judas and Samson.
Sonya looked through the scope of her sniper rifle and observed the fight with her own two eyes.
Judas was able to fight evenly with Samson’s phoenix. What in the world?! Samson was one of the most vital PRA Agents, and Judas could fight fist-to-fist with him… However, what was more urgent to Sonya was the kid getting thrashed around by the monster-demon-dog-thing. She winced as she desperately looked for an opening to snipe it with a taser dart so they could get the kid free. Still, with Samson right there, it was impossible to get a clear shot at the bastard…
… Then Samson was sent flying by Judas, and Helena and Sonya were forced to dodge! He landed right next to them, and Sonya said…
"... Oh, hi, Samson,"
Sonya waved at him before she looked down at the scope, and finally got her opening at one of the dogs. She had to be careful, as a subsonic round like this would be heavily influenced by the wind. She held her breath, and at the top of her breath, she pulled the trigger and fired a taser dart… she saw it go from the barrel of her M24 to the neck of the Cur. It convulsed and dropped the kid, and Sonya fist-pumped!
“Nailed i-”
Then the building collapsed underneath her feet, then she screamed…
Clancy writhed in the grasp of one of Judas’ pets. The axe had slipped from his fingers shortly after being tossed, leaving him to wrestle in its jaws with his own unconventionally strong hands. Then-
A crackle was followed by the entire mass of the beast seizing as something made contact with its body. Clancy threw an arm out and pushed hard against the roof of the beast's mouth, hard enough to rend the connective tissues between upper and lower jaws, saliva, and other crimson fluids spattered everywhere. Something gave, and its hold on him dissipated as its legs gave out; his body dropped, rolling onto a puddle of blood and asphalt, only stopping when it hit an AC unit.
He found his footing quickly enough and only then realized after looking back how much damage had been done; the collapsed monster's jaws were bent out of alignment, like a pair of partially opened pliers that had been bent sideways. He wasn't looking much prettier either. His clothes were ruined] at this stage
Tears, punctures, and other signs of extensive damage pockmarked his apparel, with patches of pasty white, unblemished skin intermingled with gouges that led to a cold, black hollow beneath. Teeth.
They were bloody, although none of it was his.
The axe, nearby, remained there waiting for him. Clancy hollered at the leader of the Wolfpack and stood at the far side of the rooftop.
”I'm getting tired of this bullshit, lardass.”
Judas just gave Clancy the side eye.
“... What are you doing up here, kid?” He asked before he looked over Clancy and saw the Phoenix on the other rooftop… with some people on it. Judas snapped his finger, and the building collapsed, giving them no time to plot. Then he turned back to the kid and said, “Go home and play some video games.”
Overhead, great wings swept as flocks of birds scattered from the chaos, although neither seemed to notice.
”Ashley Stone!” Clancy called back, the first time some genuine emotion was in his voice. He knelt, fingers tightening around the ornate handle of what was once Victor Villarian's axe. A gaunt expression was set on his face.
“... And who the hell is that?” Judas raised an eyebrow at Clancy.
”Father Wolf killed her,” the boy answered sharply, beginning his approach, ”And there's only one asshole here calling himself Daddy Wolf..” It prompted Judas to level his shotgun at Clancy’s head.
“Kid,” he started, “If you don’t get off this rooftop and stop distracting me.”
”Won’t work-” Clancy growled, only to be cut off mid-sentence as the man kept his word and squeezed off a shell. He staggered, then tumbled - before he hit the ground, a flock of birds swept over and under him, talons gripping through what remained of his shredded clothes and pulling his body away and towards where the PRA had stationed their armored van.
Jetlag was a bitch.
He got off the plane, checked into his hotel, and dropped off all his bags… A man got out of a taxi cab. He was wearing a grey hoodie, sweat pants, and some white Air Force 1s, with a backpack over his shoulder. Before he pressed on, he looked up at the towering building before him. What building, you ask?
The St. Portwell PRA Office.
I’ll see this place often, I take it? He thought to himself as he walked forward until he walked up the stairs.
“... Maxi!”
The man came to a stop and turned his head to the right to see somebody even taller than himself, wearing a suit and tie with his arms crossed, grinning at Maximilian while leaning against the wall. He pushed himself off the wall as he approached the man and asked a simple question,
“... Don’t you know how to take a break for a second?”
The man cracked a smirk.
“... No, sorry, I don’t, Leon,” He said as he walked up to the man, gave him a nice, firm handshake, and wrapped his other hand around him. He returned and said, “It’s great to see you again, Leon. Know the last time we met was…”
The man visibly cringed.
Leon raised his hands and chuckled, “I know, I know… I’m surprised Director Alcott didn’t bring you here sooner, Maxi....”
There was a dramatic pause as Leon looked at the skyline. He couldn’t see Samson anymore, so maybe that counted for something.
“.. St. Portwell is in chaos,” He chuckled, “We might be the only people who can help it.”
“Can?” The man raised an eyebrow. “We will help it.”
“Heh,” Leon crossed his arms, “You really are Superman.”
“Do you know where Senior Agent Phillips is?” The man started. “I was meaning to have a word or two with her.”
Leon shrugged.
“One of her agents - you probably never met her - got attacked at a strip club, and Agent Phillips grabbed some agents and went there.”
“... And why didn’t you go?”
“Because it’s my day off, and unlike Trevor, I know how to stay out of sight, not to get dragged into a bullshit mission,” Leon chuckled. “Besides, I wanted to be the first person you see… I don’t need magic to tell what you will do next.”
“I’m going to call her to make sure things are okay,” The man said.
“Loooooooooooook…” Leon rolled his eyes from behind his sunglasses. “Just take it easy for a little bit. I know your whole deal is… you know, being a workaholic… but relax for a bit. It’s a Monday night in St. Portwell, I mean, it’s not Hawaii. It’s not Vegas. Not LA. Not Miami. Not even Tokyo…. But it’s a Monday night in St. Portwell, and instead of going to the clubs to talk to girls, you come to work.”
The man ignored him as he scrolled through his near-endless contacts until he found Senior Agent Phillips and hit the call button… after ringing, she answered.
“... Agent Cornell?” Nakala said with a strained voice. “We’re kind of in the middle of something here!”
“Wait, what’s going on?” The man (well, Agent Cornell) asked.
“We’re dealing with a high-level Paranormal. I think his PTA might be three! Agent Brown, Agent Mayfield, and Agent Page are engaging him, but they’re having trouble.”
There was a pause before Agent Cornell responded.
“... Do you need my help?”
“It would be much apprecia- AH FUCK!” Then Nakala dropped the phone and hung up.
Agent Cornell looked up at Leon.
“Vedi Veni Vedi,” Leon said, “That’s all I know.”
“I’ll get suited up…” Agent Cornell trailed as he rushed into the building.
“Heh,” Leon chuckled. “Me too.”
She then followed after him.
The building collapsed under Samson’s feet, and he could hear Agent Mayfield screaming… however, she quickly used her tongue to attach itself to a street light and used her momentum to swing forward. Meanwhile, Agent Page summoned ghostly birds that latched themselves to her, allowing her to levitate in midair. Samson himself just hit the ground with little to no damage to himself as he looked up at Judas… the bastard was distracted by that damn kid! He thought Agent Mayfield gave him the opening to get out, yet he was still jawing to a crime boss.
If Samson was in human form, the world could see him smirk.
The only problem was that Samson didn’t want to rush in until that kid was safe, lest he got killed. Samson turned towards
“Agent Page! Get that kid out of there before he gets killed!”
“On it!” Helena created several birds, sent them at Clancy, and extracted him from Judas’ presence, taking him to the vehicle with Nakala and the others… Samson flew in directly at Judas like a rocket. Judas waved his hand up, creating a wall of concrete and rebar, which Samson collided with, sending debris in all directions again. Samson kept the pressure up by spewing fire at Judas, who raised his hand and created rebar out of the ground. He took steps back as the Curs recoiled in fear.
“You know what?!” Judas shouted, whistling and pointing at the PRA vehicle. “Kill!”
He let the chain loose, and the two remaining Curs went on a rampage… all going for the PRA vehicle. Samson looked over his (bird) shoulder and was about to turn around…
… Only to get whacked with a wall of concrete that sent him skidding across the ground… and then Judas. Made rebar spears stab out of the ground to impale his Phoenix body more and more… however, Samson quickly shifted back into his human form, where there were gaping holes in his body where he was stabbed - they ignited with flames as they quickly regenerated. However, his human form was more diminutive, and he was free from getting impaled by the rebar.
Judas twisted his hand and made the rebar curve inwards, only for Samson to leap up and shift back into his phoenix form, and fired a blast of fire at Judas as he quickly flew upwards - at the apex of his leap, he flipped over. He examined the battlefield and had to choose between fighting Judas and helping the other Agents.
However, Judas was a high-level Paranormal, and Samson was the most obvious target.
So… here we go again.
Samson dove at Judas once more.
The rest of the Wolfpack cut and run… it is evident that Judas stayed behind to ensure they got away.
They’ll get them later.
Nakala observed the battle from the safety of their armored vehicle… it is evident that Judas was too powerful for two supporting units, an inexperienced trainee Agent, and one Senior Agent to handle. So, Nakala remained in view, but she had kept Bianca nearby to boost Samson and, hopefully, two of the strongest PRA Agents and their top sniper could take care of Judas, but Nakala wanted him alive.
Agent Liao would want him alive for questioning.
Nakala threw open the barn doors of their van to let her flock deposit the child into the vehicle's safety. Clancy slumped against a seat, one hand covering his face, and murmured with an almost guttural pitch, ”Don’t have time, turn off-” There wasn’t much time for them to argue or deal with the kid; Judas’ pets had slipped into view, bounding for the vehicle.
Nakala had no choice but to floor it, tires screeching against gravel and asphalt. One of the Curs quickly closed the gap and threw its weight into the side of the van, horns punching almost deep enough to tear through the exterior chassis.
“Shit!” Nakala hissed to herself as she made a sharp right, almost overturning the vehicle. The boy, now upright despite the traumatic injury he’d suffered, fell sideways out the open doors and disappeared under a carpet of shadow that enveloped his form.
“Oooooooh lord!” Trevor shouted, “I don’t want to die a virgin!”
“Same!” Fiona shouted.
"Fuck," Bianca slammed into the left wall of the van, managing to catch herself and sit down before she fell out too. Before turning to look at Trevor with a snort. "Don't spend your days off at work then…"
“Agent Phillips!” She could hear Sonya’s voice in her headset, “We’re coming to help, but you’re too fast!”
“Well, can’t help that, Sonya!” Nakala shouted, “If we slow down, we die! Help Samson, we can handle this!”
“... Are you sure about that?” Agent Page asked.
“... Well, maybe use your birds to do something!” Nakala grits her teeth.
“On it!”
“Everyone else, weapons free!” Nakala shouted at the three in the back.
"Got it!" Bianca had never holstered her gun and aimed it towards the open doors in case the Curs got close enough to shoot while gripping a handle to stop herself from falling out.
One of the Curs approached from the right side, growling as it lowered its head to charge the PRA vehicle. It collided with the side, almost flipping it over.
“Jesus, that thing’s strong as fuck!” Trevor shouted as he held onto a handle to prevent himself from falling out of the chair.
“For fuck’s sake,” Bianca grunted, jerking forward and just barely managing to stay seated. “We’re all going to fall out or get crushed before we can handle these things!”
“I have an idea!” Fiona shouted as she looked at the open door. “Everyone, cover your ears!”
“Just don’t throw us out or anything!” Bianca swiftly holstered her gun and slammed her hands over her ears, hoping that they wouldn’t be hit again while she wasn’t holding onto anything else.
“Or get yourself killed!” Nakala shouted, not taking her hands off the wheel, “Remember, you’re still a trainee!”
“Trust me!” Fiona said as she got out of the chair and climbed towards the open door… out of unique vents in her specially made armor came four praying mantis wings. They began fluttering loudly as she hopped out of the PRA vehicle and flew into the air. She cupped her hands together and then shouted,
“Here, doggy!” She grabbed the attention of two of the Curs as it chased after her as she flew down the street… towards Sonya and Helena, who were in hot pursuit.
That left one of the Curs… however that one began sprinting and collided with the PRA vehicle. It lowered its head until its horns were underneath the speeding military-like vehicle and whipped its head upwards, flipping it over.
As the vehicle was laid on its side, Nakala screamed, and so did Trevor. It let out an unholy screech as the Cur attempted to rush inside to pull out one of the PRA Agents… only to be stopped by its horns preventing it from getting more than its nose inside the vehicle.
“Shit!” Bianca screamed, falling forward and barely managing to avoid slamming her head into the wall. She rolled onto her back and backed away from the Cur’s nose (and thus the rest of it), was a little too close for comfort. She pulled out her gun before unloading nearly half the ammunition, in panic, into its nose. Blowing away chunks of its face as it was forced to recoil.
Trevor laughed and said,
“Nice one!”
However, the Cur quickly flipped the vehicle over again until it was upside down. Nakala’s compound bow fell out of her lap, and she hissed as she reached for it… but the Cur rammed the flipped-over vehicle and sent it spinning!
Bianca protected her head with one hand, trying to hold the gun securely with the other while bashing between the vehicle walls like a ping-pong ball. Being shot was way nicer than this! “Nice one, my ass, I just made it angry!” She just about managed to yell.
When the vehicle stopped spinning, Nakala’s bow landed in arm’s reach of Bianca… The Cur was charging the vehicle again.
“Chuck it my way!”
Bianca twisted around, grabbed the bow, and threw it at Nakala - who caught it. Once the bow was out of her hand, she started boosting Nakala too. “Here!”
Nakala pulled the arrow back, aiming it towards the broken front window, and created an arrow made of green energy…. Then she mused out loud.
“Heh, pulled off stupider shots than this.”
She let it fly a reasonable distance away; she created a portal… and right above their upside-down heads, she created another portal. Nakala quickly unlatched her seatbelt and fell in… ending up on the other side. She fell to the ground but quickly flipped over to face the Cur that roared.
Trevor fell on his stomach, too, and Bianca fell right after him.
“On it!” Bianca gritted her teeth, concentrating solely on boosting Nakala as much as possible.
The Cur charged them head-on.
“... What sort of crazy idea are you cooking up here!?” Trevor shouted as he crawled backward on his ass. He quickly grabbed his pistol and aimed it.
“Just shut up and don’t move!” Nakala shouted as she aimed her bow and arrow at the raging beast.
“... That’s not going to do anything to it!” Trevor shouted.
“Shut! UP!” Nakala shouted as it finally got close....
… a mountainous stone spike ruptured from the ground underneath the Cur, impaling it through the stomach. It was enough to lift the monster off the ground, thrashing around for a few moments… before it went limp.
Nakala sighed in relief.
“Oh, thank god,” Bianca said, rolling onto her back and dropping the boost. She was exhausted. She still had some boosting juice left in her, but not much. “Realllly thought that was going to be the end. I can’t believe getting shot wasn’t the worst thing that happened to me tonight.”
“What about the other tw-” Trevor spoke.
They heard a mighty roar and various barking as Nakala and Trevor turned their heads upwards to see one of the Curs lifted high by glowing blue birds… before getting dropped to the ground. It yelped as it fell towards the earth and landed with a thud. Several gunshots followed them.
“We neutralized the other two doggies!” Sonya shouted over the intercom. “Are you okay?”
“Yes, we neutralized the one pursuing us…” Nakala said.
“Wait,” Nakala looked around, “... Where the fuck did the kid go?!”
Judas looked up at Samson as he charged him head-on; Judas willed several hands made out of concrete into existence. They all went for Samson to grab Samson, but Samson dodged them, soaring left and right. He opened his mouth and spewed a fireball at Judas; Judas prepped to block it like before… he thought it would hit him head-on, but it went to the side and exploded on contact with the ground. It burned Judas’ arm, and he loudly yelped and then hissed as he recoiled, dropping his shotgun in the process. Then Samson did a flip mid-air and dive-kicked Judas, letting out an eagle-like screech as he collided with Judas’ concrete barrier, forcing Judas to dive out of the way. He hit the ground with a skid, flipped over, and swung his hand in the process, sending a wave of concrete that hit Samson head-on and launched him backward.
Samson dropped his weight, and his talons carved apart the rooftop as he spewed fire like an oversized flamethrower. He forced Judas to throw up more concrete and rebar walls to block as he hopped to his feet. However, Samson lept over it with his wings stretched outwards and dove Judas again, forcing him to haul ass to dodge. The sheer impact launched Samson through the rooftop into the building… and Judas raised his fist in the air and brought it down. With that motion, the building caved in on Samson. Then Judas raised his fist into the air, creating massive pillars around Samson and bringing them down on the Phoenix.
Samson screeched, stretching his wings outwards, sending fire in all directions - making Judas raise his already burned hand and step back. Samson came out spinning - but Judas didn’t let up as he tore chunks of the rooftop and launched them at Samson in a ball that hit him head-on and slammed him into one of the adjacent buildings.
Judas summoned rebar out of the ground without letting up for a second and quickly impaled Samson with as much as possible. Until his phoenix form was mainly impaled by the rebar and rendered unable to move… he shattered, and Samson reverted to his human form. He had a gaping hole in his chest, one that was oozing blood until fire came out as his abstraction attempted to heal him.
Judas summoned one final tendril of rebar, wrapped it around Samson’s neck, and kept squeezing until Samson’s head entirely came off. Samson let out his death cry as he faded away into ash.
“Hmph,” Judas said as he turned around…
… He heard a helicopter approaching.
The plan went successfully… Fiona had lured two of the Curs away with her loud-ass flying. The issue was that, while she was above them, they were still way faster than she could fly. One of them lept up with its jaws open, and Fiona flew to the side to dodge… only for them to keep lunging at her. Damn, those things were insatiable. However, one lunged and got a Taser dart right in the neck. It went limp and hit the ground with a thud before it recovered.
“Nailed it!”
Fiona turned her head towards Sonya and knelt on the roof, aiming her sniper rifle at the street. Helena had knelt at her side, “We got you, Agent Barrett!” She shouted at Fiona, then loudly whistled. “Here, boy!”
The other Cur turned its head towards the rooftop and, from the street, managed to jump and land on it with enough force to dislocate some bricks. The two agents dipped backward as Sonya aimed her sniper at the Cur and fired a taser dart, which stunned it. However, Helena summoned the Flock, and they quickly swarmed the Cur. They approached the Cur, surrounding it from all directions as they dove the beast randomly; it snapped at a bird but couldn’t quite get there. One of the birds ripped one of its eyeballs out as the birds attacked its genitals all the while.
Helena cocked her glock, walked up to the Cur, and her Flock made an opening as she pressed the pistol against its head and magdumped it. It reduced The Cur’s head to nothing more than a red mush. It dropped dead, which left the other Cur… which was still chasing after Fiona.
“Agent Barrett! Come here!” Helena shouted, and Fiona diverted course. The Cur lunged after Fiona…. Sonya shot the Cur with a taser dart, and while it was stunned, Helena’s flock floated towards it, and they latched their talons into its skin. They floated up into the sky with the beast as it thrashed around… high enough for the fall to be as fatal as possible.
Then they let go… and it fell, hitting the ground with a thud and leaving cracks in the street. Before Helena floated over to the downed street, reloaded, then emptied her clip into its head. She sighed as she shouted up at Sonya and Fiona,
“Kill confirmed!”
Then Sonya chatted with Nakala for a moment before she shouted back,
“The other one is dead, too!”
“... Why are we taking a helicopter? I can fly there!”
Maximilian asked as he stood at the helicopter's open door, looking at the streets of St. Portwell from above. They approached the Veni Vedi Veni club, where all hell had broken loose, and Leon just chuckled,
“Easy there, Maxi,” Leon stated, “Somebody will notice you flying around.”
“Maximilian, are you there?” He heard Agent Phillips's voice on his earpiece.
“Here,”
“Agent Brown is currently battling Judas, but Sonya claims he’s losing,” Nakala started, “Hopefully, you can get there fast enough to support Agent Brown,”
“Don’t worry, Agent Brown is strong,” Maximilian narrowed his eyes as he saw Samson fight Judas in the distance. Then he smiled as he said, “I’d hate to fight him.”
“The area is evacuated - but, look, we need Judas Bennet alive so we can grill him on how in the world the Wolfpack got abstraction, so please-”
“... Hold back, I know the drill,” Maximilian rolled his eyes.
“Yes,” Nakala answered, “I know Agent Liao is going to throw a fit tomorrow morning, but maybe if we deliver Judas-fucking-Bennet on a silver platter, we can get her to chill… maybe.”
“... Maybe?” Maximilian chuckled… until his smile flattened as he saw Judas execute Samson, and he was tempted to jump out. Afterward, Judas stared up at the helicopter and snapped his fingers. A rebar spear came out of the ground, stabbed the tail rotor, and sent the aircraft spiraling; then Maximilian did the unthinkable.
He jumped out.
While he did jump out, he floated in midair, quickly flew under the spiraling copter, and caught it. He turned with it, and it eventually came to a graceful landing, and he gently placed it on the ground. Then Maximilian looked over his shoulder up at Judas, and Judas looked down at him.
“... You know, I didn’t like that,” Maximilian said.
“I don’t give a fuck what you like!” Judas shouted, then gestured for Maximilian to come closer, “Come up here and fight me, pussy!”
He didn’t flinch…
“If that’s what you want…”
Maximilian shrugged.
“... THEN HERE I COME!”
He flew forward with his fists outstretched. Judas threw up a circular barrier of concrete… which did as much as diddly squad as Maximilian just punched through it like it was nothing and continued flying towards Judas… whose eyes shot open in shock; he made a circle appear in the floor underneath him, so he dropped and dodged Maximilian. Who cracked a cocky grin as he followed Judas by flying through the concrete.
He then decked Judas… not with the same concrete pounding force as before, but enough to send him stumbling backward. Judas wiped the blood from his face, then coated his arm in spiky, sharp concrete and used it as a mace as he wildly swung it at Maximilian. It shattered against his body as Maximilian swung again and punched Judas… who stumbled backward again but made the ground underneath him collapse.
He rode a concrete block through the streets of St. Portwell as he turned around to see Maximilian floating in the air. Judas grits his teeth as he raises both hands into the air, and massive chunks of St. Portwell come out of the ground. Buildings, streets, etc, all floating in the air… then he shot them at Maximilian; they all came at him in all directions and collided simultaneously. Trapping him in a concrete ball, Judas willed it to grind him into nothing…
… A golden beam pierced outwards to the right, then traveled horizontally and cleaved the orb of concrete in half. Then Maximilian burst out, flying directly at Judas, who had to launch himself upwards with a pillar of concrete and rebar, then attempted to drop it on Maximilian while he fell to the ground. Maximilian flew upwards and caught it, then dropped it on the ground as he flew as Judas.
“Fuck!” Judas shouted as he created more concrete from the ground to catch him and floated away from Maximilian… who was in hot pursuit. As Judas flew towards the ground himself, he could tell that Maximilian was faster than him. He awkwardly glanced at the street as he said,
“Fuck this, I’m out of here!” Judas lept from the floating platform he had created for himself… only for Maximilian to fire a golden beam of energy from his hand that hit Judas directly in the back and sent him rolling. He couldn’t pick himself up… he couldn’t feel his fucking legs! They were limp, and as much as he commanded them to move, they wouldn’t. Judas dragged himself away as Maximilian floated towards him with his arms crossed.
“... I didn’t want to do that,” Maximilian shook his head.
“... What the fuck? Who… who the hell are you? Why isn’t anything working on you?!” Judas asked as he fell on his ass… his ordinarily gruff voice shifted a bit; it ended up being more feminine.
Maximilian tilted his head.
“I’m Maximilian Cornell,” He jammed a thumb into his chest, then said, “And I win.”
Judas gritted his teeth, but Maximilian raised his hand at him and said,
“Surrender, Judas,” He started, “It’s over; we have a lot of questions to ask you,”
He looked at all the chaos that was around him, then shook his head,
“Primarily; how could a two-bit crimelord like yourself get an Abstraction this powerful?”
“FUCK YOU!”
Judas swung his hands out at Maximilian and sent everything he had at Maximilian… which was enough to launch the midair PRA agent away, and then Judas began sinking into the ground slowly…
Something clamped around his face from behind, arresting his descent and almost wholly obscuring his vision. A humanoid shape formed of what could only be described as a third-dimensional representation of a black, smoky shadow, no smaller than five feet, with sharp, angular features, emerged from a nearby hollow in the ruins. The shadow was cold, almost freezing to the touch, and its ‘head’ was a near-featureless black oval, with a vague representation of a toothy maw bored into the center.
It warned the observing PRA, dragging a flailing Judas back toward a nearby alleyway like a ragdoll.
”Only want him. Stay out.”
“What the hell?!” Maximilian shouted as he flew towards the alleyway… only to find a dead end.
The voice was a growl, an inhuman resonance mingled with the child’s pitch; two voices merged as one. ” Ashley Stone. Father Wolf. Dollhouse. Want answers.”
Judas was thrown against a nearby wall, and long black fingers dug into his wrist, tight enough to crunch bone and tissue like cardboard. Accentuating its point, the shadow’s other hand interlocked its fingers around Judas’ other bicep and strained it back as far as a regular human’s bones and connective tissues could take, threatening to pull him apart like a wishbone
”Talk, or suffer like the others.”
The shadowy ‘head’ partially receded, revealing the face of a boy that was halfway to ruin, one half-pockmarked where the buckshot had stripped away part of his scalp, an eye, and the right-hand segment of his jaw. Where hair and skin were missing, a hollow black emptiness sat beneath, staring back at Judas - the only blood was the spatter on the untouched half of the boy’s face.
“I… I don’t fucking know who the fuck Ashley is! You’re after the wrong one, freak!” Judas shouted in response.
”Someone is killing people who were with her ‘coven’. Killed her. You-” Clancy pulled back a little harder, close to dislocating his shoulder.
“... WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT!?” Judas screamed. “I don’t know this bitch! I don’t know anything about a Coven! Only those retards in 8th Street and those bitches that fuck around in the woods call themselves a Coven!”
Change tack.”Dollhouse. Know you talk to them. Were they in on it?”
“Look, I’m not saying a damn thing about Dollhouse,” Judas started, “Don’t you know who they are? Or what they do to rats!?”
”What I'lldo-” Clancy interjected. This time, he pulled hard enough to dislocate the arm from the shoulder. Judas shrieked, clenching his teeth with his eyes closed.
“Do your worst, you bastard!” Judas pushed out the words.
”-take you apart. Then finish your club of assholes.”
“I’d like to see you try! Wolfpack, don’t surrender for anyone!”
”Skinner said the same. I changed his mind.”
Judas narrowed his eyes, fighting through the pain. “I’m not SkinnEAARGH-” Clancy didn't wait for him to finish, black digits twisting until the wrist was reduced to a strip of meat, tendon, and loose bone fragments.
”She was family. Took that from me. I'll take everything that matters and break the rest. Dollhouse, what did they do? Where are they?!” The shadow-child pressed the man further into the brickwork.
“I’m not telling…” Judas trailed off, “... You know what? Fuck them! Leave us alone and I’ll tell you everything They gave us these damn… ‘abstractions’, or whatever the fuck they’re called so we can work for them. Be their muscle. They don’t like getting their hands dirty. If you want those fuckers, they’re at the-”
A gust of wind came by… in the blink of an eye, there was a massive gaping hole in Judas’ chest that was oozing blood and viscera. There was a brief moment in which the man's expression contorted in recognition of what was happening before his head drooped as everything slipped away.
… and off to the side was Shayton, with his hands behind his back. He turned over his shoulder at Clancy and then said,
“Hmph,” Shayton began, “... And you’re just a kid, right?”
”Just a kid.” Clancy echoed, the child's pitch overlapping the inhuman resonance.
For a moment, he remained frozen, comprehending the situation. No. No. No! His shadowy digits relinquished their hold over the now-lifeless corpse that had been Judas Bennet, dropping it to the ground like a slab of meat.
”I needed him,” he bristled, the boy's face disappearing behind an oval, toothy maw, guttural pitch taking precedent, ”Do you know what you've taken from me?”
“No,” Shayton softly said, “But I’m certain you can come and tell me another time. I have to go. I need to report some things to my bosses…”
Shayton narrowed his eyes at Clancy.
“... I would suggest you keep your head down. Whoever- whatever you are. These days, everyone is a target. They don’t know it yet.”
Shayton disappeared in another burst of speed before the shadow-child could lash out, leaving the alleyway behind.
As the PRA spread out into the area, searching for their missing suspect, they caught a glimpse of the shadow creature scaling the brickwork of the alley and disappearing into the night, leaving behind the ruined corpse of their wanted man.
Maximilian had taken up to the sky… he knew that finding Judas was easier said than done in this urban jungle. He tapped his earpiece, noticing Helena’s flock covering the area. They would have better luck than him in finding Judas…
“Maximilian!” Helena shouted over his earpiece, “Come here!”
The birds took the shape of an arrow that pointed downwards, and Maximilian flew over that way. Then floated downwards… only to find Helena knelt next to Judas’ dead body. She nodded her head at Maximilian before she said,
“Judas is dead,” Helena said.
“Wait!?” Nakala shouted over the comms. “Who killed him?!”
“Got a glimpse of an Apparition fleeing; my birds couldn’t keep track of it.”
“Fuck my life!” Nakala shouted, “Apologies… alright, get ready because we have to clean this mess up…” She trailed.
“... Agent Liao is not going to be happy about this.”
The PRA.
Interactions: None.
The PRA Headquarters.
It was going to be a looooooong day.
Fortunately, a cup of coffee helped with that.
A pear-shaped African-American woman,, walked through the door with a cup of coffee and a clipboard in the other. She sipped her coffee as she walked through the frantic halls of the PRA office; she had one destination. Her office. She walked up to the door, and on the side in brass, it said
CINDY G. KEAGAN.
SENIOR AGENT.
She quickly put her key in, opened the door, and closed it behind her - not turning on the light because she didn't want anyone to bother her. She placed her clipboard on her desk, sat in her computer chair, logged in, and checked her email. She got together the morning brief... and noticed the door opened, standing in the doorframe as Agent Phillips crossed her arms. Cindy leaned forward, putting her fingertips together as she said,
"Good morning, Agent Phillips," she started. "I heard you had a real fun night last night without me."
"Hmph," Nakala shrugged. "Didn't have a choice in that one."
Nakala then got off the wall, slapped a hand on her hip, walked over to Cindy's desk, and said, "I take it Meifeng has already started her warpath." She rolled her eyes.
"She's already having a word with the leader of the 8th Street Coven,"
"I thought if... if we could get her Judas, we could get her to chill,"
Cindy laughed.
"You thought you could calm her down?" She said, barely holding back laughter. "I mean, I'm not trying to talk down to you-"
"Sounds like you're trying to talk down to me," Nakala rolled her eyes.
"I've known Agent Liao - Meifeng - since grade school, and lemme tell you something," She started. "Twenty years, a marriage, two kids, becoming a bigshot government agent later, and she's still the same Meifeng I met in middle school." She chuckled.
Nakala smiled, then it turned into a frown as she slapped her hand on her hip.
"I'm hoping Meifeng doesn't one-eighty on 8th Street after all that bullshit we let them slide on..." Then, she rolled her eyes.
"I told her we should have taken care of them from the jump," Cindy said as she typed away at her computer. "She wanted eyes in St. Portwell... and didn't think they were "that big of a deal."" She finger quoted.
"Hopefully, with Maximilian, we can just go there and flatten them and be back for lunch break..." Cindy kept typing. "But, let me finish this email. I'll see you at the morning brief."
Nakala nodded her head as she went to head to the meeting room.A short while later, Cindy walked into the PRA's meeting room. It was a large room that had a beautiful view of the city on the side opposite of her. Every PRA Agent was there... except for Meifeng. She smiled as she chipperly said,
"Good morning, everybody!"
She walked up to the table, set her cup of coffee down, and smiled.
“We have a new Agent here at the St. Portwell office. Would you stand up, Agent Cornell?” Cindy asked, and he obliged as he stood up.
“Good morning, everyone,” Maximilian said, “I’m certain you all heard a lot about me… a lot of familiar faces in here, heh.”
“It is great to meet you, Maximilian Cornell. I’ve heard much about you,” Akira softly said.
Cindy added, “She’s one of our guests from the PRA’s little foreign exchange program.”
Maximilian smiled as he loudly clapped his hands together and spoke,
“It is great to meet you three and to everyone else… I’m glad to see you all are doing well, especially after… you know,”
Various agents awkwardly chuckled. Samson pulled at his collar as he looked to his side.
“... The Lighthouse Incident?” Trevor said with a cocky smile on his face.
“Trevor, no!” Samson said,
“Shut up! I still have nightmares about that!” Sonya grabbed onto her head.
“Trevor , I swear to God, stop talking about that!” Nakala pointed at him.
“Shut up, you’re just asking for a beating!” Bianca leaned over and made out to smack Trevor on the back of the head but ended it with barely more than a tap.
“Bring it up again; I’m shoving my katana up your ass,” Leon said with a roll of his eyes.
Trevor kept grinning.
“... Don’t threaten me with a good time!”
“... Lighthouse Incident?” Akira said, raising an eyebrow.
“Trust me, Shinjo,” Samson said as he leaned back in his chair with his hands behind his head. “You don’t want to know. I still remember flying around just torching forests…” He shook his head.
“Okay, let’s move on,” Cindy said, putting her hands up. “Regional Commander Liao is currently out and will be back later, but I heard you all had a very… busy night.”
She then turned towards Bianca.
“I’ll ensure you are compensated for last night, Agent Manalo,” “What about me?” Trevor asked.
“... Depends on how much you keep your mouth shut, Agent Obott,” Cindy answered.
"You didn't get shot," Bianca pointed out.
“But I almost got humped by a murder-doggo!” Trevor answered.
“... And here I was thinking you were tired of seeing the HR guy,” Samson rolled his eyes.
"That 'murder-doggo' was not interested in you," Bianca snorted before turning to Cindy, a voice filled with (probably false) hope. "Will I get another day off too?"
“Tomorrow,” Cindy said, “Agent Liao wants all Agents here.”
“Is that why I got called from my day off?” Leon said with a raised eyebrow.
“Yes…” Cindy said, “After we reviewed the after-action reports from… all the involved Agents, we may be taking action against either the 8th Street Coven or… the Sycamore Tree Coven.”
“... The what Coven?” Samson asked with a raised eyebrow.
Bianca almost spat out her coffee. "It wasn't so bad that we'd have to go after them, surely? The Sycamore Tree coven doesn't even really exist anymore." She then glanced at Samson. "It's a coven from 10 years ago that disbanded and is kindaaaa back. Barely."
“You didn’t hear about what happened to Agent Mahendra just two hours after he went to their reunion, right?” Leon asked with a raised eyebrow and crossed arms.
"Oh shit," Bianca smacked her forehead. She had yet to put two and two together with that one. "Just find it hard to believe it was them… they're way too dysfunctional."
“Look, this stays in this room,” Cindy shook her head as she rubbed her temple with her free hand. “That was a stupid idea off rip, but Agent Liao thought she could trust him. Thought that they wouldn’t sniff him out. And look what happened?”
“Liao’s on the warpath,” Samson added with another roll of his eyes.
“Exactly,” Cindy said before she turned back to Bianca, “And not just that; the woman that attacked you, Everleigh Thorn, was a member of that Coven, correct?”
"She was," Bianca said reluctantly - reluctant to admit she'd ever been part of the same group as Everleigh, that was. "Hairpin trigger that one… her and a few others wouldn't like an agent being around, I suppose." “Well, I worked with Agent Liao plenty of times,” Samson chuckled. “She does not like it when people hurt her agents.”
“Isn’t she a part of the 8th Street Coven?” Helena asked with a raised eyebrow.
“She probably doesn’t even know what she’s a part of,” Samson shrugged.
“It’s probably why Agent Liao is talking to 8th Street’s leadership,” Cindy said with a roll of her eyes, and the room went silent.
“... By herself?” Fiona asked, tilting her head.
“Yuuuup,” Cindy flatly said.
“Oh, right,” Samson started, “You’re new… Agent Liao doesn’t play; she made sure that 8th Street understands who’s in charge.”
"8th Street's got nothing on Agent Liao," Bianca shrugged. She would've loved to see Emily getting her ass handed to her by Meifeng.
“Wasn’t the Sycamore Tree Coven the ones that defeated the Stygian Snake…?” Akira Shinjo asked, her expression not changing slightly. “... As children?” Akira added.
"Uh," Bianca awkwardly rubbed the back of her neck. Just hearing about it still sent a shiver down her spine. She tried not to make that too obvious. "They were, yeah. Ten years ago."
“... Then why did the Director call her best agents here to find the damned thing if a bunch of children took care of it?!” Sonya said before laughing. “I can handle a little murder-noodle by myself.”
“That is curious,” Akira said.
"Because it destroyed half the city," Bianca replied bluntly. "And half of those children died… I really wouldn't underestimate it."
“The Spirit Wardens want it contained-” Akira said before she was cut off.
“... Isn’t it already contained?” Trevor asked.
“Being sealed in a tree somewhere is not contained, Obott,” Akira said.
“And it’s why I was sent here,” Maximilian said.
“Have we made any progress on locating the Stygian Snake?” Helena asked Cindy. “Regarding progress,“ Cindy stated, “We have made no progress.”
“Typical,” Helena answered.
“Regardless,” Cindy said, “At this very moment, we have some of the PRA’s most powerful and skilled agents in this office. Everything will work out in the end. I promise.” She nodded and had the utmost faith in everyone here.
Even Trevor (just a little less than everyone else).
"Heh, yeah, we'll be faster checking every Sycamore tree," Bianca said.
“That’s why I’m here, heh,” Helena chuckled.
“Alright, everyone, don’t go too far. You can go grab breakfast or something, but once Agent Liao gets back, we’ll probably find out what we’ll be doing today,” Cindy said, raising her fist. “Meeting dismissed. We are…”
Everyone raised their fist in the air as they shouted.
“... THE TIP OF THE SPEAR!”
“... JUST THE TIP!”
“... TREVOR!” Cindy shouted at Trevor.
Interactions: None.
The Phoenix-Prescott Household.
It doesn't get easier.
Therapy helped her out, but there was that underlying guilt and that inability to get across just how bad things got. Telling a diluted version of events was not the therapy that Adora Phoenix-Prescott needed, nor was it what she wanted. Between working her Remote Job, Adora rarely left the household she had inherited but still shared with her mother... occasionally, her mother left and went out with friends or on dates, leaving the house empty. It was one of those nights. While the members of the old Coven had assembled, Adora had spent it at her residence, as she was not ready to do so. She wanted to go, but just thinking about it was... not ideal.
So the gal just did the usual coping mechanisms her therapist had set forth. Mainly, painting was a hobby that would shock even her closest friends and family. On the lanai of her house, she had a lovely little stool as she painted a beach from memory (She's basic, yes). She had the peaceful, gentle sounds of the St. Portwell forest that surrounded her house to accompany her and soothe her mind a little bit easier.
Though there was that feeling that she should face the problem head-on instead of dodging around it... which wasn't accessible at all, she admitted. While afterward, she would beat herself up, when the moment came, it was... terrifying. Adora heard a knock outside her field of view, turned her head towards it, and saw a complete spider web that had formed in the corner of the lanai...
... She could feel a flip-flop sensation in her chest as her breath accelerated. Her hands started shivering so intensely that she dropped the paintbrush that was in her hand.
They keep appearing.
A fully formed spiderweb would appear in her house, gym, or grocery store. No matter how hard Adora would clean it up, it would appear again later. She quickly ran to the other side of the lanai where her trusty broom was resting and whacked it down. She sighed in relief as she traced her fingertip alongside the back of her hand, the sleeve of her shirt, and then her upper arm.... and then she sat down and went back to finishing this fucking painting...
There was another knock.
Adora whipped her head.
The web was back.
Adora just dropped the paintbrush and went inside for the night.It was the following day... Adora was lying in her bed wearing nothing but a T-shirt... the sunrise violently assaulted Adora as she was at just the right angle for the sun to bypass the blinds and hit her directly in the eyes. One eye shot open, and another one was squinted as the girl lay in the bed. In agonizing pain...
She managed to motivate herself to get out of this predicament she was in... by moving slightly to the side so the sun wouldn't annihilate her eyeballs. But she knew it was time to get ready; she wouldn't pass on another Coven meeting nor let Sloane spend one more day with her Grandfather's rings. There was something that she had to do first, something that she had meant to do for a long time but just was unable to bring herself to do. It wouldn't be easy, but Adora fought herself out of bed. Her heart started racing just thinking about it, and she had to pause to calm herself down by breathing deeply and focusing on the wool blankets her grandmother had made. She gently rubbed her hands against them as she walked across the hall to the bathroom, threw her shirt on the ground, and got in the shower.
After a long hot shower, Adora poked her head out to see if her mother (or grandmother) was out and about, and it was dead silence. However, Grandma was very quiet for a sixty-two-year-old woman, and something got the drop on Adora. Not today, though; she lept from the bathroom back to her room, hopefully before she had another awkward encounter with her "roommates." Adora quickly threw on some grey sweatpants, white tennis shoes, and a red hoodie... before she swiftly vanished.
Lair of the Old Coven.
A red Nissan Altima stopped at a gate... a metal fence surrounded a particular sight: a razed mansion. Adora got out of her car and slowly approached the gates... her heart started fluttering again as she forced herself to breathe slower to calm herself down. There was a lock and chain on the ground, long and rusted... Adora pushed the metal gates open as she approached the mansion. She sighed as she slowly forced herself to move forward, as this wasn't just any place.
It was the lair of the Old Coven.
She wondered what the hell happened to the place... it was an abandoned mansion for sale that the Coven had just "moved into" after scaring everyone off. After a while, rumors formed that there was a coven of witches and that the place was cursed. She wondered when the place was burnt down, but she desperately hoped that her objective was still there. She grabbed onto her bicep with her free hand and sauntered her way around the destroyed mansion as walking through a burnt-down building was... unwise. Once she made it around the corner, her eyes lit up as she saw it.
It wasn't the tree that the Stygian Snake was sealed in... it was something more poignant to Adora and the others that lost people. Strangely enough, it was surrounded by beautiful flowers that looked well-maintained. She had meant to do it for a long time but couldn't do it... triggering or not, she needed to do this for her soul. She walked over to it; at some point, she dragged her feet out of sheer force of will...
Carved into the side were the names of the members of the Old Coven who were lost fighting the Stygian Snake, written in code... Adora traced her hands across the mural, examining each name until her fingers traced the one name that was most essential to her.
LT GGA - F. Green Tiger Beetle of the Cherry.
It was enough to trigger her as she lost all control of herself; her heart started racing, and her breath just absolutely accelerated. She tried to focus on something, anything, to keep her grounded as she felt weak in the legs and grabbed. However, she couldn't hold on as she had just given out...
Ten years ago... after the defeat of the Stygian Snake.
Adora was brought back to that day... the same day they finally defeated the Stygian Snake, and they erased their memories of the damned thing's location. Adora saw the Coven formed behind their old lair, with Ashley, Auri, and Daisy standing in front of a tree with a drape on top of it... Adora looked down and saw that she was transparent, like a ghost. She turned and saw herself on the edge of the group, not looking happy. The night had fallen, and candles illuminated the three leaders... and the eclipse had already passed. Auri and Daisy nodded at Ashley as she stepped forward and made another speech.
"Just hours ago, we faced the stuff of nightmares, the Stygian Snake. But guess what? We didn't cower in fear. We didn't give up. We didn't run. We didn't let it stop us. No, sir! We stood tall, united, and we took the snake down!"
"Whoooooooooo!" Auri cheered as everyone clapped.
"We fought through the shadows, faced our fears, and did it! It wasn't just about magic anymore but the bond we shared as a Coven. We're not just a group anymore; we're a family. But, my friends, our journey doesn't end there. No, it's time for something extraordinary. I've gathered you all here today to reminisce about our battles and honor those we lost along the way..."
She paused dramatically as Auri commanded her butterflies to lift the drape they had over the tree and revealed it... the mural with the names inscribed in code.
"... I present all the culmination of our victory, the symbol of our strength and resilience! Our official mural! of everyone we lost fighting the Stygian Snake!"
Ashley took a step forward and pointed backward, shouting,
"This is proof they were there here. Proof they fought and gave their lives for the good of the city. They loved something - the city, their families and friends, whatever that may be - so much that they were willing to die to defeat the Stygian Snake. So, let's celebrate our victory and never forget all the friends we've lost to get here!"
Everyone began cheering.
The Recollection ended.
Interactions: None.
Lair of the Old Coven.
The light ray hit her eyes again as she fully opened one eye and squinted the other. It felt like she was back at home again... she was comfortable under the flowers that she was probably crushing with her body. However, someone was standing over her... someone familiar. Adora tried to force her eyes open only to feel excruciating pain. She clutched her eyes and yelped as she sat up.
"Easy there!"
She heard a familiar voice as her eyes adjusted to the light. She looked and saw Britney. It was years since she had even seen her. She was wearing a white sundress, with a white sunhat and... black combat boots. She bent forward and offered her a hand, which Adora took; she was helped to her feet, but Adora couldn't make eye contact with Britney as she had just turned away. She sighed but felt Britney hug her from behind, and Adora could barely contain her yelp.
"Adora! It has been years!"
Adora sighed.
"... Yeah, it has been,"
Britney released her and stepped away.
"It's great to see that you are doing well,"
She thinks I'm "Doing well,"... so I must be doing something right. Adora mused in her head as she continued to face away from Britney. "You too, Brit..."
"You know, you shouldn't wander around here by yourself," Britney started, "You realize how dangerous St. Portwell has gotten... and you're standing on my flowers, so... would you kindly?" She then chuckled afterward.
Adora quickly hopped into the grass.
"Oh, I'm sorry!" Then she looked up at the burned mansion. "What happened here? Was it destroyed in an attack?"
"I was gone by the time it happened, but either... well, you weren't there, but the Coven got a little... chaotic after you left. Either someone screwed up and burned it down by accident, Daisy threw a temper tantrum on the way out and burned it down, or when the Old Coven finally dissolved, they burned it down."
"A lotta memories here..."
"Hopefully good ones?"
She grabbed her arm and turned to the side,
"... I wouldn't go that far,"
"Then why did you come here? I thought..., nevermind,"
"I finally worked up the strength to come here; I've been trying to do it for years now," Adora smiled, "I'm... proud of myself."
Adora only heard Britney walk up, put a hand on her shoulder, and say,
"You should be... will you attend Auri's next meeting?"
There was a silence.
"... Will Sloane be there?"
"You can ask her."
"I'm not in contact with her, and I'm not on speaking terms with her..."
There was another awkward silence.
"... Then why do you want to know if she will be there or not?"
"I need to get something from her," Adora said as she put her hands in her pockets.
"... She has the Trinity-Rings, doesn't she?" Britney asked, and Adora slowly nodded. "Well... just ask her for it. I mean, Sloane's a piece of work, but she's not that bad."
"I will," Adora started, "Can I get some alone time...? I'll be at the meeting, just... I need some time to work up the courage to go there."
Britney put a hand on her shoulder again.
"Take all the time you need... I'm here for you, friend," Britney started, "You got my number, right? Everyone does."
Adora slowly nodded her head.
"Well, I'll be off. Take care, see you at the meeting, Adora!"
Adora could hear Britney stepping away... and then she sighed again. Now that she said that she was going to go...
... She just had to go.
Auri Auclair.
Interactions: The entire Coven.
Tranquil Haven Park.
Auri ground her teeth... and then took a nice sip of the tea she had prepared for herself.
After the fiasco that took place at her Flower Shop, the "New Coven" (as Auri was going to refer to themselves) made it abundantly clear that they can't behave like adults and should have zero respect for Auri's business that she worked hard to get off the ground. Thus, Auri decided that the New Coven would assemble somewhere open, in the public... so she chose the Tranquil Haven Park. It was a relatively cool day, not super cold, but it was windy today, so it felt colder than it was. It was a simple park, and she set up at the nearest gazebo and made sure to bring snacks.
It wasn't long until everyone trickled in, and Auri coughed.
There was that urge to flip her shit because she heard about everything that had happened... the Coven fighting the Wolfpack, Drake decking Sloane, and Alizee's death. However, Auri had to keep her cool and try to at least fake some motivation. She knew no one liked each other or wanted to be here, but she would make the best of it!
"Hello, everybody! You are all looking wonderful today!"
Auri's eyes glanced at Sloane for a moment before she reached into a red and blue cooler at her feet and raised a bottle of water.
"Does anyone need water? I have plenty to spare!" Auri started. "We have much to talk about... I have some new leads, but I would love to get us to our lair so you all don't trash my darn Flower Shop again before something crazy happens and settle some business!"
She sighed as she was forcing the chipper attitude at this point. She decided to stop faking it and went with her more neutral and lowly tone as she said,
"I have something to tell you all, however..." Auri started, sighing again, "... Yesterday, Eksa Thresh, Simone Le Lay, and Finn Reid were found murdered. All of them stabbed to death..."
She sighed.
Hopefully, this would get the Coven to get their act together.
She wished that she had just ignored Leon, swerved to the left, and found some random field to bury Alizee in (because God forbid they take her to a hospital or funeral home, that would end so poorly). The Temple was a cult, plain and simple - and unlike Sycamore, they didn't seem like they had good intentions. Though Lynette was a very sexy cult leader, she had that sinister allure... Britney had to keep her head on a swivel and not get roped into a cult because she got horny. She swallowed as Linqian eloquently answered her questions...
"She came, then left soon as Kali said he was a fed. It was a whole thing. Eve here nearly shot him."
Britney tilted her head as she contorted her face into one of confusion.
"Kali is what?" She started, before turning to Eve, "And Eve did WHAT?!"
Now, Britney had just wished she had just given it another day and heard about all of this second hand.
"I assume she went to Veni Vedi because Auri said she found a lead there. What led to all the fighting is beyond me. I assumed we'd all go there, get some strippers, and ask around for some info. I was even ready to buy everyone's drinks, but nooo by the time I turned up it was a shitshow. Knowing Alizée, she went in there, causing a scene. Kinda her fault she died."
"Linqian!" Britney scolded her on the final sentence, even though she couldn't find why she would be wrong. As Britney can tell, Alizée went off without telling anybody and got into a whole situation. Granted, Alizée was a grown-ass woman, and Britney and Sycamore shouldn't have to babysit her. Still, they also had to remember that she was adjoined to a dangerous Apparition that was clearly influencing her mind. If Britney had just sealed the damn thing into a coin and thrown it into The Pit, this wouldn't have happened. Hopefully, now that she's dead, the Void Heart will remain in the Void where he belongs.
"You. You owe me a new car. You fucking destroyed mine when you were playing golden furry while trying to run away with her… which sure worked out well! You know she wasn't the only one who got shot… we just weren't fucking stupid enough to walk up to someone with a gun as if they wouldn't shoot us! No wonder she was insane enough to if shes part of this cult... I lost my car and got shot, for what? I just walked into the parking lot! I can't afford a new fucking car… some of us don't have a cult to take care of our dead bodies and have their brother's. Fucking. Ashes. Sitting in their cupboard."
Britney listened to the rant and visibly cringed, especially at Linqian's revelation towards the end. Britney sighed as she grabbed Linqian by her upper arm and pulled her away from Leon. She sighed before she spoke,
"Look, Linqian, relax," She started, "I'll help you fix your car, it's the least I can do for Jinhai, and... you know what, we'll talk about the other thing later."
She tried to buff things over before Leon got mad, and Britney couldn't help but get a little bit fearful as he began his spiel. She wanted to tell him to calm down, too, but she knew that was not going to help... then Lynette spoke.
"Steel yourself. Your fury and defense are both unnecessary in the case... For all that brave little Coven did, each of your old companions are welcome here in our House and are counted among our extended family. As any family, she hurts with us and we shall not turn her away... Young Lady, I encourage you to place your name and information in the Book of Registry, that we may deliver unto you the recompense that you deserve. Medical expenses and transportation necessities will be provided for without question. The same can be extended to any of the Sycamore Tree Coven's many disparate members. Though, we do... Well... Sonnenrad's Remnants are not exactly the first people we'd like ourselves associated with, perhaps it's a necessary evil. Now, please... Register and be recognized as one of the most charming and graceful."
The last thing that Britney wanted anyone here to do was sign their name in a creepy book. She grabbed onto Linqian a bit tighter as the urge to cut and run was so strong right now. She raised a finger to her mouth and began chewing her nails - she hadn't gotten her nails done in a while! As she looked at Lynette and flatly said,
"I'm good; I have my own resources, thank you,"
That was a sign to get the hell out of here before shit got too deep, but there was one pressing question on Britney's mind. One only Leon could answer, so she turned and asked him,
"You were there when we got there, just what happened?"
"I'd been there since the place opened doing the exact same thing everyone else wanted to do. Saw some titty, day drank, sitting there waiting for Judas to hopefully show up. But he didn't. Eventually this red headed lady shows up. Burly chick, I figured she was a day bouncer or something, but I kinda..."
He paused momentarily, reaching for a cell phone that wasn't there. It was probably smashed machine parts in the strip club parking lot.
"-Fuck, I don't know, I thought I recognized her from the internet. Either way, its status quo for hours, but then Alizee shows up. Doesn't see me, so I watched the whole thing. She was at the bar, standing and talking for a minute or two, and then bam! Her and the red head are into it. That's when I tried to step in, and some of the others showed up to help their friend. I was trying to talk Alizee down, and then you all showed up. That's it..."
Britney put a hand on her hip.
"... You were there since it opened? You like titties that much?"
She laughed... trying to play off the fact that she thought that there was something that Leon was leaving out. She knew it, but she knew it was not the best idea to keep pressing the subject when all that would happen was splinter the group. She shouldn't have asked in the first place and just went there to trigger a Recollection and see it with her own two eyes.
Or third eye. Or mind.
Whatever.
Maybe finding out who those girls are would help; maybe she would ask Sully. She turned towards the other two and then to Lynette and raised a finger, asking.
26 | Gretchen Melissa Faust | She/Her"To change things, you have to push past boundaries."
Description:
A member of the Old Coven that wasn't under that sycamore tree but was another pivotal member as Greta was a healer and support in the fight against the Stygian Snake. Greta is a native of St. Portwell who was unfortunately named after her late grandmother, whom she "inherited" the artifact known as the Alchemist Ring. However, her Grandmother wanted the ring to be buried with her so it'd be lost to time as the Alchemist Ring was a chaotic instrument, and she wanted to finally bring an end to it. Her grandmother trusted Greta to follow through with her wishes, but curiosity got the better of the girl, and when her grandmother finally passed, she discretely slipped the ring off of her.
Greta used the alchemist ring and experimented her little ass off, learning about all the beautiful things the ring could do. She created a healing potion and various other potions and wanted to use this artifact to change the world! However, she needed test subjects, and being a natural introvert, finding people to experiment on was hard. So, the young Greta went out at night and slipped homeless people her unique concoctions. This was when the Stygian Snake had long begun its rampage through St. Portwell, and one night, the Stygian Snake attacked and nearly killed her.
The Sycamore Tree Coven, naturally, saved her, and she was roped into the Coven - which she only joined to test out her special potions. She provided potions that healed and enhanced abstractions, and turned people into monsters when needed. When the Stygian Snake was defeated she was the one that made that special potion that removed everyone's memories whenever they so much as took a sip. However, Greta had a natural drive to go out and experiment with her abstraction! She had infinite test subjects to experiment on in the Old Coven and kept her head down while everyone was bickering about this and that. She had her little special lab in the old Coven's lair where she had hundreds of potions she made to save the world!
Various monsters began to pop up around St. Portwell, and the fearless second-in-command of the Coven, Daisy Hunter, got suspicious of Greta. Daisy knew that Greta could create potions that created monsters, and she was very reclusive... which led to Greta returning one day to a destroyed lab and Daisy accusing her of creating these monstrosities! Greta defended herself and eventually cleared her name with the help of Britney, Emily, Auri, and the others. However, the damage was already done; Greta's perception of the old Coven had already been long marred, and Greta left the Coven with a bitter taste in her mouth.
This led Emily to personally reach out to Greta and invite her to a better Coven, the 8th Street Coven. Greta didn't like Emily initially, but she and Emily bonded over their mutual hatred of the Old Coven's leadership. Greta Faust became a longtime member of the 8th Street Coven and had a renewed lab in the 8th Street Manor. She supports Emily's goal of taking over St. Portwell only because the city is in absolute chaos, and they're the only chance of bringing some order. Greta is a small and pudgy woman who stands at four-ten and has a noticeable gut; she dresses and appears punk with bright red hair.
Abstraction: Agent - The Alchemist Ring.
A ring that Greta has taken from her grandmother against her wishes. It is an incredibly powerful and dangerous artifact with many different applications and uses, as Greta can create any number of potions by mixing different ingredients that she believes will create her potion. With this abstraction, Greta is a very flexible and essential member of the 8th Street Coven. Below are the potions that Greta has devised so far:
Healing-Potion:Aloe vera gel, Honey, Chamomile Flowers, and Lavender Oil. A simple glowing green potion that'll cause whoever drinks it to heal their wounds. The more they drink, the more they'll get healed from their injuries.
Monster-Potion:Bat Guano, Mandrake Root, Belladonna. A glowing orange potion will cause the consumer to transform into a monster that reflects some aspect of them. This transformation is usually painful and lasts for a few hours - and it causes the recipient's wounds to heal temporarily.
Explosive-Potion:Baking Soda, Citric Acid Powder, Aluminum Foil Shreds, Iodine Tincture. Greta's primary combat Potion is a glowing red serum kept in a glass jar that'll go off like a pipe bomb if it shatters. It's incredibly dangerous and once knocked down a brick wall, and laid waste to a squad of Das Sonnenrad footsoldiers.
Fire-Breathing-Potion:Red Dragon Chili Peppers, Dragonfruit Juice, Cinnamon Whiskey, Ghost Pepper Extract. A dull-red glowing potion that allows whoever drinks it to breathe fire at will. It is independent of abstractions, so one can breathe fire and use their regular abstraction.
Invisibility-Potion:Juniper Berries, Slippery Elm Bark, Camouflage Green Tea, Clove Oil. A failure of a potion that Emily demands Greta to make. As the name implies, it allows whoever drinks it to turn invisible... and it doesn't work on their clothes and renders them blind. So not only does Greta have to get naked to use it, but she's also blind until it wears off.
Abstraction-Enhacement-Potion:Ginseng, Ashwagandha, Blue Lotus Flower, Cinnamon Bar. A glowing blue potion that boosts the abstractions of others the more they drink (and she is unaware of the upper limits, if any). For obvious reasons, it does not work on Greta.
George.Nelson
26 | George Nicholas Nelson | He/Him"You can't put this rush into words!"
Description:
A member of the Old Coven... he was famous in St. Portwell High as one of its biggest bullies, who used his incredible size to intimidate others. He was famous in the wrestling ring as George the Juggernaut! However, one day, after beating some nerds at the old arcade, George was attacked by the Stygian Snake's minions, who nearly killed him. Until he was saved by the old Coven and discovered that he suddenly had an Abstraction, he was roped into the Coven by Britney Williams, primarily comprised of the people he bullies! Working with the people he intimidated was difficult, but he felt a rush like no other when fighting the Stygian Snake and its minions! This abstraction he had made him cocky and even bolder in his bullying and bullying members of the old Coven during the campaign against the Stygian Snake.
This all culminated in the final battle, where he rushed in, took a fatal blow, and was left for dead by the members he had scorned! If it wasn't for the kindness and compassion of Jade West, he wouldn't have made it. He was mad, and instead of reflecting on himself, he blamed the Coven. He eventually became one of their enemies, a persistent nail in their side that acted as dumb muscle for various factions. He was defeated time and time again, and this made him no different as he loved the rush he got from these magical fights! The collapse of the old Coven didn't stir George at all... as he fell into the hands of Emily G. Reed.
Emily told him the truth: that Britney forcibly adjoined him to his Apparition under hopes that he would die fighting the Stygian Snake. This made George feel no way or the other, except that Britney wanted him to die before her little secret got out. Emily knew that George liked to fight, just for the thrill of it all, and invited him to a Coven where he would get all the fights he wanted... and he gladly accepted, becoming 8th Street's enforcer and strongman. George is notable for being freakishly tall at seven-five (like they made News articles about the guy!) and very well-built due to his abstraction.
Abstraction: Adjoined - The Strongman.
The Apparition born from the ideations of what strength can do, and human power! The Strongman was one of the few useful Apparitions in Britney's possession... to put it simply, it's a simple abstraction (Shocker!): George is strong. Like, really, really, strong. He can perform ridiculous feats of super strength, such as throwing trucks, punching through concrete, and tanking bullets like it was nothing. It's unknown where the upper limits of this Abstraction land. Still, they come with a subtle telekinetic aspect that allows George to defy the laws of physics with some of his feats, such as pulling a chunk out of the ground, throwing it at someone, and throwing a car without falling apart when he swings it. George is also durable to boot, but only to physical attacks - you can still burn, electrocute, and whatnot.
Carol.Doyle
Chronologically: 24. Biologically: 14. | Carol Heaven Doyle | She/Her."I'll turn you into a fucking baby if you do that ever again!"
Description:
The spicy member of the Old Coven and current member of the 8th Street Coven.
Carol was a native of LA but moved to St. Portwell when she was young because her parents thought it would be a better environment for her (and they have family there!). There wasn't anything of note about Carol's past; she was just a regular ass girl. However, the Stygian Snake's rampage was where it all began, and her entire house was knocked over by the Stygian Snake, which killed her entire family. She was barely alive... and she saw Britney Williams. Suddenly, she was brought back to life, and... she looked down and saw a fucking hourglass fused to her stomach. She was confused about all of this, but Britney brought her back to her cult, and they explained everything - about how magic was real, and now she had magic too (which Britney was oddly knowledgeable about). She was still confused but honestly went along to stop the Stygian Snake and avenge her family!
The Stygian Snake tore her in half during the final battle.
However, at this point, Carol began returning to the same spot where it all started: her destroyed house. She checked the hourglass in her stomach, and it would gradually drop sand from the second the day started, ending at midnight, where it would teleport her back to the exact spot where her old house where her family was killed. It would also revert her to her exact appearance, preventing her from aging alone while triggering her to see her old house. Carol went to Britney, who explained that the hourglass resets Carol back in time to the moment she received it, with its ability to restore anyone or anything she touches merely being a sub ability.
Then, it came out that Britney did this to her and others without their permission. Naturally, Carol was pissed off about this, and this naturally drew her to the likes of Emily and Vashti. When those two left, Carol was right behind them, given that the Old Coven had more interest in arguing and fighting each other than getting this damn thing out of her. Thus, Carol was one of the founding members of the 8th Street Coven and wholly supports Emily's dream of magical supremacy only so she can stop assholes with God-complexes like Britney. However, her goal is to get rid of the hourglass and gain a new abstraction, which Emily claims she's working on (she's not). When she was fourteen years old, Carol appeared to be herself, a small girl at four-eleven with very short blonde hair. Despite her aggressive and firey attitude, she doesn't look intimidating or assuming.
Abstraction: Agent - The Hourglass.
The Hourglass is a valuable and potent artifact that Britney forcibly fused to Carol to force her into the fight with the Stygian Snake. Carol admits it is a powerful artifact, but she wants nothing to do with it. Its most notable ability is to gradually revert anything she touches in time (reverting it to a previous state), and the longer she touches it, the further back in time it goes. This can reach a point where she can do things such as reverting materials to their raw form and turning people back into fetuses (and yes, she has done this before). She can exert more energy to make this process faster, and this abstraction can work on the Paranormal, but Emotional-Fields make it work four times as hard. If someone consents, she can pierce through their emotional field; using it offensively on the Paranormal is impractical. With this abstraction, she can easily repair damage and heal wounds - even resurrect the dead.
However, this isn't the true ability of this abstraction and is merely a sub-ability. The primary aspect of the Hourglass is, essentially, immortality. Upon her first death, it created a fixed point (a checkpoint) in time that she automatically returns to once the clock strikes midnight. Once midnight hits, she will be teleported to where Britney gave her the hourglass - her parent's house that the Stygian Snake destroyed - and reverting her physically back to that point. So, any alterations made to her body will be restored, any aging, any wounds, and it will even bring her back from the dead.
While it is a powerful abstraction, Carol wants to be normal!
The more Jack talked, the more Drake wanted to clock him. However, the moment that Jack let go, Drake simply walked away and left that Jackass to listen to the sound of his voice. He didn't say a word or offer a glance to any of the other members of the Coven, not Lilla or Everlynn; he just got up and walked out without a word to any of them. However, Jack was fucking with his charger, and Drake whipped his head around back inside, ready to really give him a reason to rant and rave.
However, they were gone, and Drake sighed as he hopped into his car and made sure to speed off before the police came and started asking questions. He made it to the highway quickly and went for his destination.
Auri put her clothes back on. After she finished, she realized how it was just somewhat poor leadership to get her rocks off while the rest of the Coven was off... doing whatever. She was sure that nobody even went to the strip club, and she had to handle things independently. It was a shame that was the more useful member of the Coven, but it was dead clear to her that many of the Covenites still had growing to do.
And they were not trying to.
Justin pulled his pants up and asked,
"Need help cleaning up the Flower Shop?"
Auri scoffed and waved Justin away.
"You can head home if you like, but I have-"
Then she got a text message from... Layla?
She passed on the meeting; she wondered what would be so urgent, as she called Layla... Justin looked on with a raised eyebrow.
Thanks to Britney and James, the Biker that was attacking Sully was driven off... she was hoping that it would have killed him (or rendered him impotent for the rest of his life), but getting him off Sully was top priority. Now, Britney was going to grab Linqian and the others and-
She heard the two extra bullets pop.
They were louder than anything else as Britney whipped her head around to see the unthinkable happen. Alizee was shot dead by the Wolfpack; Britney gasped, her mouth agape as she saw Alizee dead on the ground; the healing field was a second too late as Alizee was dead. Britney dropped to her knees as tears ran down her eyes as one of her only friends in the Old Coven was just cut down by a bunch of bikers. She couldn't even feel satisfaction as Cyril was dragged off into the Void by the Void Heart. Britney pounded the ground until her hand went red as she was brought back to the old Coven, where she watched many of her friends get killed by the Stygian Snake and its thralls.
Britney just never got used to it.
"ALIZÉE!"
Britney cried out as this peaceful strip club visit went so south. She thought that she was just going to see some hoes shake ass! Now her friend was dead. And she felt like it was her fault because she didn't help - she should have sealed The Void Heart while she could! She shouldn't have been so stupid to assume that Alizee had a leash on the Void Heart. More Wolfpack had arrived, including what had to be their leader, but Britney had little to no desire to fight the Wolfpack like the others. However, their leader immediately dove for Eve after getting picked out; Eve was able to defend herself and escape.
”...C’mon, Sully’s on the move, let’s go… unless you’re sticking around to get killed.”
Linqian brought her back to reality as Britney shot her head around to see Sully going towards that other group of girls (and that one hunky guy). Followed by a mighty wind, they disappeared, leaving behind disturbed dust, debris, and leaves. So, Sully was (hopefully) safe, leaving the matter of Britney and the rest of them saving themselves...
They got their opening when a freaking phoenix flew from the other side of the parking lot and went directly at Judas, attempting to kick him, only to get countered by a wall of concrete. That was the distraction they needed as Britney whipped her head towards her car... thankfully, it was safe and only took a few strays. She quickly jetted over there, opened the door, and pushed it to start. Eve and Linqian got in... she wasn't sure where Stormy was, nor did she particularly care.
If he wanted to play the hero, then that was his prerogative.
Britney reversed and prepared to speed the fuck out of there and leave with her life. However, there was one last thing she had to take care of... she saw Leon; she stopped her car, stuck her hand out to the rear door on the opposite side of her, and summoned a vine to open the back door. Then shouted at Leon.
"GET IN!"
Feeling a great deal of shock at the forces in motion in his favor, Leon quickly shifted Alizee's body in his arm to yank the SUV door open. As it swung, his body twisted backward, and with both legs, he launched himself into her back seat, keeping the sleeping dead unharmed by the motion. Still in his lap, Leon flicked his foot beneath the door handle and pulled his leg back to slam it shut.
"Go, now! Just get us to the Temple, Brit. Head toward Liendale and the woody side of town!"
Then Britney put peddle to the metal and sped down the street as the Phoenix fought with Judas, bobbing and weaving through the shields. She noticed some militaristic tan truck, but the only thing on her mind was getting the hell out of there.
Off to this... temple.
The Temple.
There was a quiet regality in the old steeple that the Richoux clan had first purchased almost 30 years ago. Dating back to the settlers who first made this region of America their home, the building had been restored over time using artisanal techniques to preserve its beauty in a way accepted by the State Historical Society.
Surrounding it, half a dozen other buildings of more modern construction filled the small cul de sac with lights from windows and open doors. Young people gathered outside in small groups, smoking, drinking, and laughing as they spent the night in celebration: It had been a Ceremony Day, and many followers had spent nearly sixteen hours locked in the main steeple performing prayer and ritual under Matron's guidance.
However, as the vehicle approached their little dead end of the world at high speed, there became a certain defensiveness. The youth enjoying their freedom formed a large clot in the road to prevent Britney from proceeding.
As the vehicle slowed, Leon could see what was happening. He rolled his window down as they approached the car, sticking his head out. Some immediately backed off, prompting the others to do the same and allowing Britney to continue toward that main steeple building.
It was a slow drive for the last hundred feet, the vehicle pulling into the Temple's driveway to park among the two dozen other vehicles gathered in the parking lot.
“Just pull up to the front, Brit. Someone will valet the truck for you…”
Leon's voice didn't sound like it used to; there used to be joy there. Regardless, the vehicle swung its side up to the front curb of the steeple, and someone watching the door descended the steps to begin the greeting process. He opened the back door, letting Leon slowly slide from the back seat as Britney handed her keys to walk beside him.
When the two stood alongside one another, that vaguely familiar face was already staring at them from the entrance. Leon bowed his head in reverence toward the tall, robed woman. Her raven hair and piercing green eyes stuck out from beneath a hood that gently peeled back. As she removed it, her arms widened as if awaiting an embrace.
“And what is this, Leon?”
The simple question cut through the night air like a bullet. Leon didn't let it stop him from starting his somber climb up the steps toward her, breath ragged. His head turned to Britney.
“Come on, Brit.”
“The Britney Williams? It has been some time indeed.” the woman spoke to her now, stepping to the side of the door as Leon made it to the top.
“Yeah, me,” Britney said, “Trying to get an autograph?”
The two of them exchanged words with one another in French, and like a light switch, the woman went from calm and matriarchal to an absolute crying and wailing mess as her hands moved to cup the face of the corpse.
She wept momentarily until she began snapping orders out to those gathered around. Within moments, the corpse was being ushered into the building and down a set of stone stairs while the elder woman clung to Leon in mourning. Those who had previously blocked them now coalesced into a massive huddle, almost trapping Britney in the mass of flesh as they responded to their matron's cries like loyal animals.
They managed to file into the building in suits, the rows and rows of pews filling up as people began to gather around Lynette Richoux and her crying pain. Orange and white banners depicting a sun rising over the crest of a forest-covered hill hung from the high rafters, electric light beaming down like the place was a gallery.
Leon stuck with his mother mostly, and when some of her adjutants began to shuffle her down a set of stairs behind the pulpit, Leon finally got some clothes in the form of a robe someone brought him. He slung it around himself and made his way back to Britney.
“Fuck of a reunion, Sycamore… What the fuck happened at that God damned meeting that compelled her to go to Veni Vidi? Brit, what the fuck did I miss?”
Britney shrugged as she looked up at Leon,
“I don’t know... I showed up late, and all I was told was that we were heading to a strip club, and I was like, 'Sure, let’s help some poor girl get through college!'”
Then she awkwardly laughed as if trying to add levity to the situation. Then it hit her, and she asked the other group members.
“Was she even at the meeting? I did not see her there, and mumbled something about a-" Britney finger quoted. "-'personal investigation' before she... you know.”
She cringed at the thought. While Alizee was her friend, Britney knew that she was a problem. A problem that she should have been the one to solve.
Two shots went off, and Ruby craned over to the street. She knew it couldn't have been anyone she cared about, but curiosity still drew her attention to the street. Naturally, that bitch that started all of this was cut down by the Wolfpack... Hmph.
Serves her right.
Kashmira stopped singing as she looked on in shock herself, and thus, the healing aura was dropped. Ruby would tell her to drop the aura anyway, as it did more harm than good - they had completely negated all the damage they did to Valjean, taking him from his death throes back to total health. Whatever, they still had the full ability to kill him, as long as Wolfman...
... Didn't ignore them all to go and recover Alizee's body.
"Good grief!" Ruby said to herself as she aimed her staff at Valjean, and a dull-yellow beam of energy came out and launched him off his feet. He crashed, hitting the ground, and thanks to Stormy's aura, he might not get back up...
"WOLFPACK!"
"... Oh, for fuck's sake." Ruby hissed as she craned towards the roof to see Judas Bennet himself standing there with the Curs. Now, Ruby had total faith in their chances of wiping out the Wolfpack... as long as Judas wasn't here. Judas damn near defeated the entirety of Greenwood by himself - and he has his wannabe biker crew (albeit the ones that hauled ass) this time. So, Ruby didn't have high faith in their odds... she didn't know what the other crew wanted to do, but it was dead straightforward that they wanted no part of this - well, except for Shield-Guy and the 8th St Goon.
"... Ain't it funny," Jessica chimed in from Ruby's side, "We were supposed to get the drop on him, but he ended up getting the drop on us."
"That bitch ruined our entire plan," Ruby hissed. "She deserved a lot worse than a fucking gunshot."
"Do not speak ill of the dead, Ruby," Pearl chided her. "She is dead; it is over."
"Amelia," Ruby said, "Get ready to teleport us out of here. We'll have to regroup and devise a whole new ass plan." She rolled her eyes.
Amelia nodded as she subtly prepared the wind spell.... thankfully, the phoenix that made his explosive entrance had decided to engage Judas. Keeping all the attention off of them just long enough for Greenwood to make their exit. Ruby raised her staff in the air and shouted.
"Everyone, bunch up!"
That was when the Greenwood Coven bunched up under the cover of Stormy's shields - even Sully jumped in - then Amelia activated her spell... and a barrage of violent winds infused with leaves hit them. Then, when it reached its peak, they vanished.
Bianca got behind the shield and gave Samson a bit of a boost... he was tempted to joke that he didn't need it, but Momma always told him to be appreciative. Bianca would probably be safe as long as Samson remained the biggest problem for the Wolfpack, and he hoped Agent Phillips would be here with the others. However, Stormy had some parting words for the two PRA Agents...
"That woman who they shot, she was better than the Wolfpack made her out to be. Do me a favor and don't let them get away after what they've done."
Samson chuckled. He had no clue who the girl who just died was, but if they didn't stop the Wolfpack, a lot more people were likely to die.
"Don't worry, I got this-"
Then she looked up at the rooftop and saw a God damn kid in the jaws of one of the Curs. He was getting thrashed around like he was some type of chew toy... Samson's eyes shot open before he just acted on complete impulse. He hopped into the air, transformed into his phoenix form, and flew directly at Judas, rushing him head-on with a valiant screech. Samson flipped mid-air and attempted to kick Judas... only for Judas to throw his hand up and create a circular wall of concrete, rebar, wire, and windows, and Samson kicked the barrier, sending bits and pieces of debris skyward.
Judas let go of the Curs and launched his hand forward, creating several enormous hands made out of concrete that stretched toward Samson. He ducked and dove opened his mouth and spewed an inferno out of his mouth, and Judas simply swiped his hand and created another barrier made out of concrete. Samson then dove in, spinning so fast that he just appeared as a drill, broke through the barrier as if it were nothing, and continued pushing. Judas detached the piece of roof that he was on and flew backward as he created tendrils made out of concrete that hit Samson directly and launched him.
He did a flip midair and kept flying towards Judas, not letting him get so much of a second of respite by barraging him with fireballs out of his mouth. Forcing Judas to continue backpedaling, putting up defensive barriers. However, he lifted them all, sent them at Samson, and hit him several times, leaving cracks in his phoenix form. Samson was forced to land on one of the other rooftops and came to a skidding stop as the wounds Judas left regenerated...
"... Oh, hi, Samson,"
Samson turned to see Agent Mayfield and Agent Page on the rooftop directly beside him, with the former giving him an awkward wave.
It was funny that Dean didn't leave while Judas was here despite making it clear that he wanted to cut and run. Even he wasn't going to piss off Poppa Wolf! Élodie wasn't going to run, not from some kids, nor would she just let them run. She noticed Greenwood vanishing and another group of bitches getting in an SUV and trying to speed off.
Well, trying was the keyword.
Élodie grinned as she knew the shields wouldn't block an attack from above, so Elodie raised her M79 Grenade launcher and grinned as she prepared to send those bitches to Go-
A taser dart hit Élodie in the neck, and she convulsed, dropped the grenade launcher, and fell over.
"Élodie!"
Valjean said in his monstrous voice... he felt the vibrations in the ground; many of them were approaching. He looked up at the rooftop and saw a sniper and another bitch... then a whole-ass army truck approaching.
Then it all hit him!
"... FUCK IT'S THE FEDS!"
Valjean saw Judas fighting Samson, but as it stood, it was very unwise to stay in this engagement. Not with Cyril and Victor dead, Maggy and Shayton MIA, and the PRA coming down on them at the same time. Élodie would have been fine dying in an insane hurrah, but not Valjean; he still cared for his sister and fellow Wolfpack! He managed to climb out of the ice and jog over to Élodie, knelt, scooped her up... and got hit with a taser dart from the sniper, which couldn't pierce his shell. He turned towards Dean and said,
"Dean, I'm getting out of here with Élodie! Figure out what the fuck you're going to do quick"
With his claws, he grabbed his and Élodie's motorcycles. That was when he started running down the street... unfortunately, he wasn't that fast in Scorpion form, but he was functionally impervious to any taser darts or bullets. He wasn't sure what Dean was going to do, nor did he give a damn long as he stayed out of Valjean's way. Judas and the Curs were probably going to be the center of attention.
The GPS said they were two minutes away; Nakala could hear the chaos in the distance and wanted to put peddle to the metal because it sounded crazy. However, Nakala did the opposite, bringing the vehicle to a skidding stop and looking in the back.
"Sonya, Helena, get into position on the rooftop! Snipe anyone that's in the engagement!"
"Aye, aye!" Sonya said as she hopped out of the PRA truck and into the air, attaching to the wall, and scaling it as if it was nothing with her M24 strapped to her back. Helena stepped out, stuck her hands out, and summoned glowing blue ethereal birds that lifted her to the rooftops.
Then Nakala put peddle to the metal and sped down the empty streets of St. Portwell in this militaristic vehicle with the FBI Logo on the side. However, on the way there, a white GMC Yukon hauled ass in the opposite direction, and Nakala put her finger on her earpiece and shouted,
"Helena, tail them with some birds!"
"On it,"
Then that was when Nakala finally made it to the scene... she had to swerve suddenly to the right to avoid running over one of Stormy's shields and trashing another vehicle.
"I think I see Agent Manalo!" Fiona quickly detected Bianca with her superior senses and pointed; thus, Nakala stopped the vehicle. She hopped out, grabbed her compound bow, and aimed it at where Fiona was pointing, loaded an arrow glowing. with a green aura... she launched it. It exploded into a portal that created a pathway directly over to the PRA vehicle. Then she shouted,
"AGENT MANALO, GET IN!"
"... I got a nice body armor for youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!"
Trevor shouted in a sing-song as he poked his head out the window, holding a bulletproof vest (that ironically said FBI) with his thumb and index finger.
[center][b]"You're a fine warrior. Call me sentimental..."[/b][/center][table][row][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/139ceac154751673f3ae0a9fe3c9db14/tumblr_n5ns5eDSUE1spjmjdo1_400.gifv[/img][/cell][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/8de527f156d1dcdab59303529f9a2963/tumblr_n5ns5eDSUE1spjmjdo2_400.gifv[/img][/cell][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/fdd81701556b497cef877cce8608411e/tumblr_n5ns5eDSUE1spjmjdo3_r1_400.gifv[/img][/cell][/row][row][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/f4c53df62090bdfc77fc8d4af49bd3bb/tumblr_mp19k0oeBn1spjmjdo1_400.gifv[/img][/cell][cell][center][img]https://i.imgur.com/tiUPmOX.png[/img][/center][/cell][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/973255b1496b1e15ea88881ee0842923/tumblr_n5ns5eDSUE1spjmjdo4_r2_400.gifv[/img][/cell][/row][row][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/92b4cd3f3f69445efc0b66dbf4040d4e/tumblr_mp19k0oeBn1spjmjdo3_400.gifv[/img][/cell][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/076f8a0494600005276b223a9c34f4df/tumblr_mp19k0oeBn1spjmjdo4_400.gifv[/img][/cell][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/91ef2adb4acfaae1ed6e5882900137f2/tumblr_mp19k0oeBn1spjmjdo2_r1_400.gifv[/img][/cell][/row]
[/table][center][b][url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5oBfsNh4c_E]"...but I wish we'd met under different circumstances."[/url][/b][/center][hr][hr][center][img]https://i.imgur.com/RKmK4q0.png[/img]
[img]https://i.imgur.com/N7tTd5u.png[/img]
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JpOgr4s3GrE[/youtube]
[img]https://i.imgur.com/hFWozfG.png[/img][hr][hr][img]https://i.imgur.com/1efdG4h.png[/img][/center][indent][indent][indent][indent][indent][indent][indent][indent]Currently updating...[/indent][/indent][/indent][/indent][indent][/indent][/indent][/indent][/indent][/indent][table][row][/row][row][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/f12910313dd47ea9cead1c314f8ab833/tumblr_ntbm31BkSa1sznb4xo3_250.gifv[/img][/cell][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/fe472fa332e424f66ed2837f2eaf23c9/tumblr_ntbm31BkSa1sznb4xo4_250.gifv[/img][/cell]
[cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/fb00b50c1dbf289d9140c30a7a332011/tumblr_ntbm31BkSa1sznb4xo8_250.gifv[/img][/cell][/row]
[row][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/ec26b8c0fcc1da9903b62bf0022ce62c/tumblr_ntbm31BkSa1sznb4xo5_250.gifv[/img][/cell][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/468eaf4ed38d54774f2d3fd269296f74/tumblr_ntbm31BkSa1sznb4xo6_250.gifv[/img][/cell][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/23bf4bb5ad09c631a81860f2f822ccce/tumblr_ntbm31BkSa1sznb4xo7_250.gifv[/img][/cell][/row][center][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/30d05b58ba9137c6662a93a96bfa527a/tumblr_ntbm31BkSa1sznb4xo2_400.gifv[/img][hr][/center]
[center][b]"I'm a dominant..."[/b][/center][/table][center][hr][b][url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v31J3arX5Kg]"... This is my job."[/url][/b]
[img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/e91570ee96f9a973747062884eeea1ce/tumblr_ntbm31BkSa1sznb4xo1_400.gifv[/img][hr][/center][table][center][img]https://i.imgur.com/XFCLhxV.png[/img][/center][row][/row][row][cell][center][b][color=forestgreen]REALLY PUNCHY GUYS[/color][/b]
[sup]_______________________________[/sup]
[b][@redbaron1234]
[@Kamen Evie]
[@KaiserElectric]
[@Drag]
[@KremeSupreme]
[@Megsychan]
[@Oddsbod][/b][/center][/cell][cell][center][b][color=forestgreen]THE DISAPPOINTMENT CLUB[/color][/b]
[sup]_______________________________[/sup]
[b][@Spoopy Scary]
[@Junkmail]
[@Maxx]
[@Luminous Beings]
[@Dragonbud][/b][/center][/cell][cell][center][b][color=forestgreen]OTHER SCRUBS[/color][/b]
[sup]_______________________________[/sup]
[b][@Zombiedude101]
[@Lord Wraith]
[@FernStone]
[@Atrophy]
[@Moth]
[@Skai]
[@silvermist1116][/b][/center][/cell][/row][/table][table][center][img]https://i.imgur.com/GXlptHc.png[/img][/center][row][/row][row][cell][center][b][color=forestgreen]SETTINGS[/color][/b]
[sup]_______________________________[/sup]
[b][url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/topics/183613-the-tyrant-shell-universe]The Tyrant Shell Universe[/url][/b] - Mechapunk (Mecha and Cyberpunk mixed together).
[b][url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/topics/183624-the-black-fall-universe]The Black Fall Universe[/url][/b] - Modern-Superhuman tale.[/center][/cell][cell][center][b][color=forestgreen]LINKS[/color][/b]
[sup]_______________________________[/sup]
[b][url=https://discord.gg/4FznNGS]The Collective[/url][/b] - My Discord Server.
[b][url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/topics/183740-the-ghost-lounge-a-1x1-thread-thats-destined-to-go-places-bad-places]The Ghost Lounge[/url][/b] - My 1x1 Thread.
[b][url=https://www.roleplayerguild.com/topics/183358-the-ghost-archives]The Ghost Archives[/url][/b] - Character storage.[/center][/cell][/row][/table][table][row][/row][row][cell][img]https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/928186361494425545/93DB229F54AD7363FF943FAF9627A2056CE6A354/[/img][/cell][cell][center][img]https://i.imgur.com/wmKBNmF.png[/img][/center][/cell][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/aab171d51ab0877e8cb44ef26725c12f/tumblr_mmijotYZ851spjmjdo1_r1_400.gifv[/img][/cell][/row][row][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/a8b92dee73766c54e1c588067f7b05e9/tumblr_mmijotYZ851spjmjdo2_r1_400.gifv[/img][/cell][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/c6db94e7f43a0116556b31237e9394cb/tumblr_oetl2fk7YA1r9ibuko1_400.gifv[/img][/cell][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/d85b9d9f883fcf1e71cad4d1b5c574e2/tumblr_oetl2fk7YA1r9ibuko2_400.gifv[/img][/cell][/row][row][cell][/cell][cell][img]https://64.media.tumblr.com/827528918c7f7bf2672681b30b851654/tumblr_otjspp0ccf1u0vn73o1_400.gifv[/img][/cell][cell][img][/img][/cell][/row][/table][center][b][url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnvqcSKho5w]"Oh, I'm afraid we have no allies. No allies nor enemies. I love EVERYONE!"[/url][/b][/center][hr]
Member
Estylwen
Sky Blue
NoriWasHere
Antlers
FernStone
swordmasc
GamerXZ
Chronic
ColdAtlas
Atrophy
