The Glitch V: Taste of Fear (Episode 1)

[SirNitram]

Malkamar sat down, touching the axe leaning against his chair lightly. After the brief touch, he nods. "Of course. I'm not getting any less dead."

[Agent Fisher]

"Daughter of one of the O.P-Dips, anything more I don't know."

The bartender scooped up the coins, giving Jack a nod, before looking at the girl. "Yeah, the Berserker...that's the rumor going round the streets anyway. You looking for a job kid? I know a place whose hiring dancers....."

"Thanks for the help. And no, she's not looking for a job." He said sternly, more towards her than the bartender. Last thing he needed was for Al and Leandra to find out he had dragged their daughter to a bar and she had taken up stripping.

"Come on, kid." He said, walking away from the bar.

[B4UTRUST]

Opening his eyes, Poe looked up at Macfarland and made a general noise of agreement before standing and following the detective.
"So how many of the bodies are still here?"

[Dark Silver]

The Man who identified himself as The Negotiator walked into the sitting room, finding a place in one of the more comfortable chairs, and sat. He crossed his right leg over his left knee at the ankle, and steeped his fingers before his face.

"Gentlemen," he began, his tones cool and even, "As Malkamar and I'm sure you yourself know Mr Acker, I represent a individual of some influence who is in need of your particular...skills. As The Light of Dawn is aware, but what you more than likely do not sir, is that this city is under siege - and at the moment, we stand utterly alone. The Police do not care one bit about what occurs here, and for the most part, neither does the Council. My Employer has therefore, decided to seek out exceptional.....talent..shall we say... in order to hunt down the menace which threatens Old Town and it's people..."

The Negotiator stopped there, waiting to see if either man had questions..he was sure the newly arrived would.


------------------------


MacFarland walked down the hall, "Only the Asari from this morning, and the body from last week. The usual M.O. on these bodies, flesh cut away in some freaky pattern I don't even wanna try to figure out, chunks of flesh that looks like it was just ripped off with teeth, or cut away messily. They were both missing eyes, and a few teeth. Fucked up thing is, according to the Coroner, they were alive until a few hours before we found their bodies, yet no infection to the wounds, some of which are old. The sick son of a bitch didn't even give them anything for the pain...tox-screen came back clean."


-------------------------

[B4UTRUST]

Poe nodded, thinking things over to himself, following MacFarland.
"What were the crime scenes like? Any evidence of the bodies being moved post mortem or indication that the site where the bodies were found wasn't the original kill site? And what are these patterns you're talking about? That hasn't hit the news yet."

[Charon]

Matt sneezed several times in a row, nearly losing a piece of pancake from his fork. "Ugh, hope I'm not coming down with something." He paused, then shook his head. Sometimes he forgot that things like the common cold didn't exist here. Finishing up his plate, Matt licked up the last of the syrup and then put the dish in the sink to wash later. He turned off the TV and headed downstairs.

Among the collection of knick-knacks and useless things were several weapons, though for some of them you would be hard pressed to call them weapons. Picking up what could only be called a battle shovel Matt shoved some of the boxes aside to create a large enough area to work out properly. He didn't get into real fights anymore. Most thugs knew well enough to leave him alone, those that didn't, well, they didn't get a second chance to learn from their mistake. Occasionally he'd spot Liz on one of her expeditions to Old Town and discreetly keep her out of trouble. Occasionally he even left clues that someone was helping her, just to fluster the girl. But those were all small time things, he didn't even need a weapon to deal with those thugs. Still, working out with a weapon helped to ease his mind, helped burn off some of the energy he found he still had.

Spinning the shovel above his head, Matt went into his usual practice routine, which not long after left the cleared area as he darted over and past the stacks of books and trophies and the things one tends to pick up over 15 years.

[Dark Silver]

"I don't even want to know what the patterns are. All I know is they are intricate, looks like we only see half of the pattern on them though. You'll get to see it on the body. The scenes themselves are all clean, spotlessly so. Well, as clean as you can get in a dump like Old Town anyway. All alley ways, found by different people, under different circumstances, and never anyone seeing the bodies left. Their defiantly just dump sites, no way in hell he does the deed there. This bastard is slick."

MacFarland stopped in front of a large metal door marked 'Examination Locker 12'

"And the only reason the patterns on the bodies haven't hit the news, is because someone in the Council is leaning on them. Hard. Not sure who though. Got word in that the Plumbers are throwing up a Press Conference later today. Something about putting Heroes," that word MacFarland said with a derisive snort, as if it left a bad taste in his mouth, "back on the street, seeing as the Police aren't doing anything."

MacFarland opened the door to the exam room. The interior of the room was spartan, is spacious, in the dead center was a metal table, nearly 3' tall. On the table was the blue-skinned corpse of the Asari Maiden. She was there for Poe's inspection, on a table not far from it, was a copy of the Coroner's report, as if placed in wait for MacFarland and Poe.

"You got half a hour...copy of the report is yours. Should include everything you need. "

MacFarland waited outside the door, letting Poe to himself.

----------------------------

Raynor and Gregory was outside the bar by the time Jack and Liz-Bet stepped out the bar. Raynor, never being one - no matter the lot he had to drink - to let go attention to his surroundings, noticed them leave, and who it was.

Jack the Alchemist was well known to Raynor, truth be told most of that first "batch" of Ascended were well known to everyone, and Raynor had crossed paths with Jack not a few times in the past 15 years. Usually it was on amicable terms to.

He noticed, this time though, that Jack was wearing his clothes from the old days. He noticed the glint of metal on Jack's hand, and the brown duster he wore.

"Jack the Alchemist...back in the saddle" Raynor said loud enough for the man to hear it over the traffic in the street, "Never would have guessed I'd see you sporting your old gear."

Raynor guided Greggory with him, towards Jack and Liz-bet, though Raynor took no notice of the girl, and merely went to talk to Jack himself, "What brings you out of retirement?"


The two would only get to speak for a few moments, before they were approached. The man was dressed in mostly in black , a purple silk button down beneath a black trenchcoat. His hands were gloved, but he wore no hat, only a pair of black tinted sunglasses.

He stopped not three feet from the group of Ascended and the former Marshall, and spread his hands in a gesture of welcome, "Greetings to you, Ascended. I am The Guide," he announced himself, his voice crisp and precise, through beneath thin lips the faint gleam of sharp daggerlike teeth were visible, "I am here to invite you Three on behalf of a Mutual Friend."

A envelope appeared in The Guide's hand, and he extended it towards Jack, "It is..Ascended only, I am afraid. Mr Raynor will have to remain behind, I am afraid. Also, the invitation is to be extended to another, of whom I believe Miss Elizabeth has had the pleasure of making his acquaintance only recently. Do seek him out before going to this address. Rest assured, no harm will come to you."

[frigidmagi]

"Gentlemen," he began, his tones cool and even, "As Malkamar and I'm sure you yourself know Mr Acker, I represent a individual of some influence who is in need of your particular...skills. As The Light of Dawn is aware, but what you more than likely do not sir, is that this city is under siege - and at the moment, we stand utterly alone. The Police do not care one bit about what occurs here, and for the most part, neither does the Council. My Employer has therefore, decided to seek out exceptional.....talent..shall we say... in order to hunt down the menace which threatens Old Town and it's people..."

The Negotiator stopped there, waiting to see if either man had questions..he was sure the newly arrived would.

"Alright, I have several questions... Actually alot of questions. Where is this town? What is this town? Explain the nature of this siege and what skills of mine are you looking for exactly? I was a fairly decent cop back in the day, I'll admit that but I can't be the only guy around if you're looking for a detective. Lastly but perhaps most important... How does this involve me finding my wife?" Jeremy said. This place was damn weird and if he was gonna find Mary, he needed to know where he was operating.

[SirNitram]

"Newcomer.." Malkamar nodded simply. "Welcome to the last that remains of... Shall we say a universe forged of mankind's computerized games. I'm told you used to be able to far enough out to find Pong, quietly ticking over." The Death Knight leaned against a wall. "Big damn war, ancient evil, most of everything is annihilated. This was the new capital for a while, as chunks of remaining worlds drifted together into this planet. But things moved up. Now it's.. Well, slums." A shrug. "As for siege.. I suspect he means a number of criminals.. Let's focus on the 'Old Capital gone downhill' and 'Lots of criminals' thing, though."

[Agent Fisher]

Jack paused, turning at the sound of his name, tensing at first just in case. he relaxed as he spotted the grizzled Marshall. He grinned.

"Marshall Jim Raynor, scourge of the Terran Dominion and Zerg Swarm. How you been, you old scoundrel?" He asked. "As for out of retirement..." He trailed off, looking at LizBet.

As the guide appeared, his arm tensed, his mind picturing the necessary transmutation circle to impale the newcomer with spikes, while also doing a few other nasty things to him. The Guide. He had heard the name before, spoken in connection with another. And if the rumors were true, he was one to be wary of. He looked down at the envelope, not touching it. He had seen alot of abilities in his time. He knew for a fact the Magic Users had spells that would turn that envelope into a teleporter, dragging him wherever it was set for, willing or not.

"Why does the Mutual Friend wish to meet us? I'm sure that while I may not be beneath his notice, the young ones are?" He asked, ready to strike at any moment.

[LadyTevar]

The Berserker. Jim Raynor. The Guide.

Lizbet did the only smart thing she could do and kept her mouth shut. Even she knew that this was something big, a Real Quest, not the little fetch-quests she'd done before. The quip about the 'one she had met before' just made the feeling stronger -- she'd thought the chance meeting in the alley would lead to something more. She was Right!

Still, when Uncle Jack hesitated, Lizbet couldn't help herself. "We'll do it." she declared, reaching out and taking the envelope out of the Guide's hands before Jack could say anymore.

[B4UTRUST]

"There's a shock. Someone on the council getting off their padded seats and doing something," Poe stated flatly, not exactly excited or enthusiastic about the prospect.

The ramifications were already circling his head. If those idiots in office really wanted to make a huge media circus of this whole affair, this was going to get ugly real quick. There was one thing he had learned many times over. Public humiliation of the people in power never did anyone any good. It got them pissed off and made them look stupid and impotent. It was like cornering a wild animal. Its only response was then to come out in force. Which meant that the whole investigation to date was going to get tossed and royally fucked up to boot. And then the shields would swarm Old Town and a whole lot of innocent people were going to get caught up in this mess. Rule number one: Don't fuck with the cops. The Plumbers would only catch a little bit of it. They were too high placed to really get at. But that didn't mean the cops wouldn't go after them at all. Just meant they had to wear gloves doing it.

Poe didn't like it, not one bit. In the end the only thing that was going to happen was that CCPD was going to make its presence felt, Old Town be damned. And any of these so-called heroes, armatures who might have something up their sleeve in a fight were just going to get in the way when it came down to an actual investigation. And if CCPD thought that the heroes were going to steal their limelight and screw their image even more? There were lots of charges that can get someone arrested and held for days if not longer. Back in the Real World there had been charges that could make a man disappear for the rest of his life.

Heroes looking to shine and make a name for themselves on one side. Pissed off cops with a hard-on to fuck someone's day up on the other. And a few people in the middle who could possibly do some good in this whole mess. This wasn't going to end pretty for anyone...

Poe followed McFarland into the examination room. The corpse was on the slab. When McFarland left Poe walked over to the table with the body. He picked up the report and flipped through it before stuffing it in a pocket on the inside of his trench coat.

Poe stared at it for several minutes, forcing himself to see what was in front of him. He didn't want to. Because there are things that people just really shouldn't see. Someone missing their skin and chunks of their body was one of them. He'd seen some screwed up things in his life, but this was in the top five.

He carefully examined the body, making mental notes of some of the traumas. Sections of the body looked like they had been bitten off by an animal. The eyes were gone. Some of the teeth. There were signs of severe physical abuse all across the corpse. And the coroner said no pain killers had been administered. Poor woman. Not a pretty way to go. He pulled out his cell phone and began to take pictures. The coroner's report already would have them but Poe wanted some of his own that he took. He moved the body a bit to get better angles and found the pattern that McFarland had described. He reached down, tracing his fingers over the design. He had not a damned clue what the hell the symbol meant. But he took more pictures of it anyway.

When he was done taking pictures he double checked the body, looking at tips of fingers and toes and all in between to see if there were any signs of needle marks or anything that would have indicated the use of drugs. The coroner had said nothing was present in the toxicology report but that didn't mean there hadn't been fast acting drugs administered that were out of the system before death.

Something bothered him though, about this. The attacks, the beatings, the sheer savagery of them wasn't something he expected given the other evidence. It didn't make any sense. You've got a brutal, barbaric, almost animalistic serial killer who takes the time to carve significant symbols into a body prior to death and then dumps the body in a clean scene and doesn't leave evidence? Or do we have a smart, methodical killer who at the end of his kill cycle has a break and freaks out on the body. The patterns were too dissimilar, too disjointed. There was more here than what he was seeing, he was sure of it. The eyes, the teeth, the symbols carved in flesh. It all had to mean something that nobody had figured out yet. Poe shook his head, trying to clear it. He took a couple of more pictures before realizing his time was almost up. Making sure he got everything he needed he headed for the door before McFarland came in to drag him out.

[General Havoc]

He had really not meant to be here this long. Just one quick chat with a living legend of the Zerg wars, and then back to the Megatropolis. That was what he'd promised Ramza and the others he'd do.

And yet...

Raynor recognized someone, a man in a duster and hat who looked armed and dangerous, though frankly anyone Raynor was likely to know would probably fit that description, and walked over to say hello, guiding Gregory along with him. The Marshal took no notice of the girl that was with the so-called Alchemist, but Gregory certainly did.

Indeed, he noticed little else.

Raynor was busy catching up with his old friend, and Gregory, who was not normally terribly shy, had intended to say hello, but would up saying no such thing, having suddenly lost his tongue, standing stupidly there in the street in his dark blue field marshall's uniform. Accordingly he didn't notice the man named the Guide approaching until he was already there, making a... request... for his presence.

Instantly warning bells rang in Gregory's head. Strategy games had been his forte, but he was sure that he had seen this in an RPG somewhere before and it never ended well. Random strangers asking for his presence at some unknown location was not the sort of thing he was liable to -

"We'll do it," declared the girl, grabbing the envelope enthusiastically. It happened so fast that Gregory's head spun. The man had said that the invitation was for the three of them, with Raynor excluded as a non-ascended, yet he was sure she wasn't speaking on his behalf. She didn't look like she'd even noticed he was there yet.

He retained just enough presence of mind to glance over at the Marshall, who gave no sign, and though his better judgment was screaming that this was a terrible idea, he accordingly responded without even really thinking about it.

"All right," he said, "where're we going?"

[Dark Silver]

The Guide smiled, displaying the row of small, dagger like teeth, "You will, of course, find two addresses within. Once you have the fourth member of your part, might I suggest heading to the first. Again, rest assured no direct harm shall come to you for this. Rest assured, all will be made clear in time."

With that, the Guide turned on a heel, and walked off, his form blurring then dispersing in a black mist.

Raynor looked at the kid, then back to Jack, then grunted. "We both know who they supposedly work for. I sure as in hell ain't interested in crossing him - even if he's not real. If you need me, hit me up on the old ComChan. Otherwise....good luck Jack."


--------------------------

"Yes Mr Ackers," the Negotiator said, "I'm sure you have many questions, all of them very valid. Malkamar has given you the gist...allow me to further illuminate you."

The Negotiator's hands rested on the arm of the chair, and the room in which the three stood faded out, turning into a empty void. Suddenly, the room filled with imagery, armies going against each other, one filled with inky black abominations of form and function, and the other easily identifiable by their lack of uniformity, hundreds, if not thousands of differing races.

The two armies clashed into battle against each other, the images swirled around the three, moving about, soldiers rushed forth, wavering into formlessness if they touched one of the three, only to reform once clear.

Space zoomed by, focusing on a single planet, then further into a stone and metal keep situated in the mountains. The scene zoomed in further focusing on a group of six people - if they could be called that. A blue skinned half giant, and a handful of humans, rushing through the halls of the keep.

"What you see here, is history that has passed. The history of this universe - recent history, as it would happen. You are not on Earth anymore, Mr Ackers. You have joined a very small fraternity - of which Malkamar is also a member - called the Ascended, humans which have managed to cross the Barrier between Worlds and enter this one. These were the first, humans pulled through a series of portals, into what they thought was their Video Game."

The scenes that flowed remained focused around the group, but blurred, showing each as they obtained the Ascended form they later become known as Albert the Invoker, Matt the Berserker, Jack the Alchemist, Leah the Many Handed, Rory the Assassin and so on.

"They were this realms Heroes - able to do what no native of the universe was capable of....stand up to a being of awesome power known as the Glitch, and kill it."

The scene shifted, to a island surrounded by darkness. The massive, unearthly form the Glitch had finally assumed blotting out the few points of light left in the sky. The final, horrific confrontation which saw the Glitch itself die as the Ascended ripped it's form apart with their own powers.

"Unfortunately, the Glitch itself had managed to cause irreparable harm to this Universe, by doing what no one thought possible - infecting the one polarizing link between this world and the human one - the Source Code which birthed each of the worlds. Many worlds were lost, and this one formed in their place - bits and pieces of the wreckage coming together to form this world of Transverse."

The scene shifted, this time a birds eye view of Old Town is shown, only this time, the city is brilliant, vital and very much alive - people flood the street. It is Old Town in it's Heyday, when it alone was called the Crystal City,"Where we stand now...is referred to as Old Town, it used to be very important to this world, but it has waned the last few years to the dreary shell you see it as now. Though some, are attempting to keep it alive." The scene progresses, slowly the city begins to dim, near the center, where the glorious Crystal Palace reaches into the sky, the first signs of the Megatropolis comes into existence - firstly a few office buildings of futuristic design then more and more. None of Old Town is destroyed, instead, it merely gets pushed back, further and further away from the seemingly life giving Aura of the Crystal Palace - displaced, by the futuristic cityscape, no longer ringing the Palace or the Megatropolis, but shoved off to it's east, as if the Crystal Palace itself simply moved.

The city can be seen dying out, people leaving it in droves, shops closing, people becoming more feral - the city is obviously dying, but it changes again.

"But the city is not dead yet, of course. And if we are successful, it will not."

The imagery disappeared, and once more they were back in the hotel suite, the blue glow of the triangle on the Negotiator's hand fading somewhat.

"Of course, this is a huge amount to take in so soon, but I am afraid I must ask that you trust in what I saw, That you are not being deceived. It is not your skills as a Detective that we desire you for...though that is indeed helpful considering the nature of what you must undertake. No, Old Town is a place in need of Heroes, Mr Ackers. People willing to stand up and do the correct thing, and willing to save this city while those in power would let it die off. The various nations of this world have their own Heroes, the Megatropolis has the Police Department...Old Town has nothing. My employer is attempting to recruit those who may best fill the desperate need this place has, if it is to remain alive. You are here, Mr Ackers, because it crosses over the same goal you have now. You're wife arrived in Transverse some time before you did. My employer sought to bring you over, because he knew you somehow would be important in the end game."

"What's more important is...that if you wish to find and save your wife, your best interest is to assist my employer in this endeavour, otherwise there there will be nothing left to save..."

"Rest assured, I am not threatening you, it is merely a statement of fact. For you see, the nature of the seige Old Town is under, is one you have a intimate history with. Fear is the weapon used to hold this town hostage, and it is being wielded by a creature called the Cannibal....."


------------------------

MacFarland opened the door as Poe finished up his inspection, "Got everything you need?"

The Detective walked over to Poe, "I asked around while you were busy giving this the lookie-lu...seems one of the Coroner's into occult stuff... Says the symbols carved in the corpse isn't magic, but some form of sciency stuff. Don't look like no science I know of. Said it reminded him of...shit...wha's the word he used? Starts with a "A"... Used in some lil Podunk country out West called Amertis, or something of the like.

[Agent Fisher]

"We'll do it." she declared, reaching out and taking the envelope out of the Guide's hands before Jack could say anymore.

"All right," he said, "where're we going?"

"You will, of course, find two addresses within. Once you have the fourth member of your part, might I suggest heading to the first. Again, rest assured no direct harm shall come to you for this. Rest assured, all will be made clear in time."

With that, the Guide turned on a heel, and walked off, his form blurring then dispersing in a black mist.

Raynor looked at the kid, then back to Jack, then grunted. "We both know who they supposedly work for. I sure as in hell ain't interested in crossing him - even if he's not real. If you need me, hit me up on the old ComChan. Otherwise....good luck Jack."

Jack sighed. "For crying out loud." He looked at LizBet and the young man. "Lizbet, what did I say about not talking?" He said then shook his head. "You don't have any idea who that was, do you? Do you realize you never accept a quest until you know who you're working for? I leanred that the hard way, so did your Mom and Dad." He reached up, rubbing his face with his left hand, the right hanging at his side. "Since I know there's going to be no stopping you now, will you at least let me be in charge for now, please?"

"Fine. Alright, Raynor, thanks for the help." He replied sarcasticly. This day kept getting better and better. He looked at the young man. "And just who are you, what can you do, and are you able to take care of yourself?"

[LadyTevar]

"That was The Guide," Lizbet answered her uncle promptly. "And the one we're supposed to find is the man who thought I needed saved from you, and then cast a Protect spell on us before he walked away. I saw where he went, btw..." she added, falling into LEET for the last word

Only then did she notice the runt in the blue military coat. "Oh... hi."

[General Havoc]

Tongue tied as he'd never been in his life, Gregory only belatedly realized that they were talking to him.

"Er... hi..." he said, hoping against hope that he wasn't blushing bright red (fat chance). The man that she had apparently been with this whole time looked rather put out of sorts, and so Gregory coughed and did his best to answer.

"I'm er... I'm Gregory," he said, and instantly cursed himself for how stupid it sounded. He tried again "Commander. Commander Gregory Colwell." A little better. He glanced back and forth between the two of them, who appeared to know one another, and hoping that they didn't notice his leg brace (as though that were likely), he tried to draw himself up and sound professional.

"I'm an Ascended Commander," he said, hoping that the man would simply take that to mean something impressive. "Who are... you?"

[rhoenix]

The old man wearily opened his eyes, limbs trembling slightly from fatigue and age as he began to awaken. Stretching carefully so as to not kick over the trash pile, the old man patiently worked to stoke the fire in the oil can back up to a real fire. These nights were unforgiving, and the heat and light did much to warm old bones, and warn away those that might find refuge in darkness.

Upon seeing a figure turn and enter the alleyway, the old man quietly withdrew back into the trash pile. He didn't have much else but his life, but even that drew thieves in such a place.

His eyes widened as the fire in the oil can without warning suddenly erupted into a roaring fire, but he smiled slightly as he heard the stranger's words. "I know you're there, Thomas. Come on out."

There weren't many voices that even came close to inspiring a smile from the old man, as life had conspired to take away much that he held dear. Now, he was left only with his memories, and even those were beginning to fade. Nonetheless, he crawled out of the pile from long practice, and unconsciously dusted off his meager clothes as he stood upright to face the man he knew was Seth. "Whaddya think you're doin', giving an old man a heart attack? Kids these days have no damn respect, I tell ya," he said with a grin.

Handing the old man a take-out box from a nearby restaurant, Seth leaned against the wall, but looked at the old man with a tired smile. "Yeah? Maybe if old men didn't ramble so much, we'd listen more," he replied with a chuckle.

Looking at the younger man, who was rapidly falling asleep, Thomas looked back at the meal he'd been given - an excellent steak, some mashed potatoes, and some salad - his favorite. Ever since Seth had found and saved the man almost a year ago nearly getting beaten to death by some of the younger punks of the city looking to prove their manhood by terrorizing the locals, the two had slowly become friends over time, looking out for one another, and helping one another when they could.

Thomas smiled as he began to slowly enjoy his meal, the ravenous hunger of not eating yet being kept at bay by his slow, methodical way of eating, and enjoying every bite. It was the least he could do to now watch over the weary younger man, as he'd obviously had an eventful day.

After all, both called this particular alleyway home.

[frigidmagi]

"Of course, this is a huge amount to take in so soon, but I am afraid I must ask that you trust in what I saw, That you are not being deceived. It is not your skills as a Detective that we desire you for...though that is indeed helpful considering the nature of what you must undertake. No, Old Town is a place in need of Heroes, Mr Ackers. People willing to stand up and do the correct thing, and willing to save this city while those in power would let it die off. The various nations of this world have their own Heroes, the Megatropolis has the Police Department...Old Town has nothing. My employer is attempting to recruit those who may best fill the desperate need this place has, if it is to remain alive. You are here, Mr Ackers, because it crosses over the same goal you have now. You're wife arrived in Transverse some time before you did. My employer sought to bring you over, because he knew you somehow would be important in the end game."

"What's more important is...that if you wish to find and save your wife, your best interest is to assist my employer in this endeavour, otherwise there there will be nothing left to save..."

"Rest assured, I am not threatening you, it is merely a statement of fact. For you see, the nature of the seige Old Town is under, is one you have a intimate history with. Fear is the weapon used to hold this town hostage, and it is being wielded by a creature called the Cannibal....."

Hero... I'm not a hero. Heroes are larger then life characters who can see the right thing to do no matter what. Heroes... Matter. I don't. I'm just a guy looking for his wife. I'm a desperate man.

...
...

Perseus was desperate to though wasn't he? Jason was desperate.

"Alright. Long as your boss understands what he's getting. I was a cop but I was an honest cop. I never looked the other way and I won't now. If your boss can deal with that... Tell me about this... Cannibal."

[B4UTRUST]

Poe glanced over at McFarland and shook his head.
"What I need? No. What I've got is more questions. But that's how it always goes."

Stepping outside into the hall and following McFarland out he listened.
"Sounds like a morbid SOB, honestly. Working with stiffs and studying the occult. Y'know there are horror movies that start like that."
"Yeah, but there are porno flicks that start like that too."
"You got some strange tastes, man."
"You ever fuck my wife? It's like fucking the dead anyway. Just lies there.."
"Man, I don't need to know about your sex life. Stay on topic."
"Heh, alright."
"So this science thing Dr. Strangelove was talking about. What was it? Said it began with an 'A'? Astronomy? Astrology?"

McFarland shook his head, trying to think of the word.
"No, no those aren't it."
"Astrophysics? Archeology?"
"Heh, no I don't think it was that Indiana Jones shit... Hell, what was it? A...Al.... Al-something. Sorry, I can't think of the word. I'd ask him again but he split for lunch."
"That's fine. It gives me something to look for. Some science begins with al and some place called Ametis use to use it. Gives me a start. Thanks. And tell the good doc I said thanks too. I'm going to head back to the office and see if I can't start putting some sense together on this mess."
"Yeah, just keep me in the loop, alright?"
"Yeah, I know the deal. Thanks."

The two exited out into the lobby again and made their way through the crowd towards the front door.
"Oh, and Poe..."
"Yeah?"
"Be careful."
"It's my middle name."
"I thought it was Marshall..."
"Yeah yeah..."
"And last week it was Danger."
"Shut up."
"And the week before that it was Adventure."
"You keeping a log or something of this?"
"And that broad at the bar about a month ago? You told her it wa-"
"Yeah, I get it. Ass."
"Heh. Just be careful."
"You know it."

[LadyTevar]

"I'm er... I'm Gregory," he said, and instantly cursed himself for how stupid it sounded. He tried again "Commander. Commander Gregory Colwell."

"I'm an Ascended Commander," he said, hoping that the man would simply take that to mean something impressive. "Who are... you?"

LizBet cocked her head to one side, surprised. "*You're* Commander Gregory?" she asked, clearly doubtful as she looked him up and down, and he could feel her gaze when it hit on his leg brace. "I thought you'd be .... taller."

Some cliches have to be stated.

[Agent Fisher]

Jack narrowed his eyes. "Commander Colwell? I assume you're down here to talk to Raynor. Feel like tagging along on an adventure? Course, you have to deal with her." He sighed and rolled his eyes at LizBet's cliched comment.

"Are you going to use every cliche and trope in the book while we do this?" He asked the reached over, snatching the envelope from her hand, opening it up, narrowing his eyes. He used his omni-tool to record the two addresses. With a smirk to LizBet, there was a blue glow and then paper and envelope disintegrated, the tiny scraps falling to the ground.

[General Havoc]

Gregory tried to remain nonchalant, as though he knew how, and managed to suppress a wince as he saw the girl pause for a second on his brace. They seemed to be willing to have him come along, which was something, but he folded his arms, trying to look professional.

"I can do more than tag along," he said, trying to sound confident, and pointedly not answering the girl's question about how tall he was. He frowned as the man incinerated the paper that indicated where they were supposed to go.

"Where did it say we were supposed to go?" he asked. "And... who are you guys?"

[LadyTevar]

"UNCLE JACK!" Lizbet protested. "I'd not read that yet!" Gregory joined in the complaint, and again asked for their names, LizBet turned her gaze on him again. "Oh, sorry. I'm Elizabeth Thogschylde. This is my Uncle Jack... called the Alchemist." the admission was airy and carefree, as Lizbet leaned closer. "I prefer Lizbet."

She did it just to see Gregory's reaction; both to the name and to the visions he knew leaning over would give him.

[Agent Fisher]

Jack looked over at her, face serious. "You wanna be part of a quest group, you're gonna learn the rules. Rule one. You obey the group leader. That's me. So, you're gonna follow me, cause I know where we're going and you don't, so it does you no good to go running off."

He looked at Gregory then at LizBet. "Well, step one. We gotta find the guy from earlier. You said you saw which way he went, right Elizabeth?"