The Glitch V: Taste of Fear (Episode 1)

[frigidmagi]

Jeremy took station outside a bookstore, or rather the outdoor cafe in front of a bookstore with a political magazine. There was a picture of a pair of women in dresses, a blond and a redhead both holding hands and waving. Behind them stood a pair of men, one short with a mustache and red overalls and the other taller with brown hair and a green tunic.

The title read:

Is the Mushroom Nation and Hrylulian Alliance Stable?

Under it read a smaller title:

What to Do About OldTown?

He settled down to read with a cup of coffee, keeping Poe naturally in his field of view. He even put his feet up.

[Agent Fisher]

Jack activated the phone, listenign to the voice then quickly snapping his head over to Lizbet.

"Wait Liz-" He cursed, seeing her ghost away. "Damn it! Get back out here now! Don't touch anything!" He called hoping she could hear him and would obey.

[General Havoc]

"I don't see anything about us," said Gregory. "Looks like case notes about some of the murders. I'll see if - "

He heard Liz-Bet's voice as clearly as she could hear his, but before he could reorient his perception, she had already dropped out of phase and passed right through the wall. He heard Jack shout after her to stop, but she plainly was not stopping, and while his Clairvoyance had failed to set off any traps, magical or otherwise, that guarded this place, he had no idea if the same would apply when Liz-Bet physically tried to enter, phased in or not.

He pulled back from the office to a wider view, located the ghosted Liz-Bet, and without a word, dropped a Protection intervention on her. Instantly a soft, glowing forcefield materialized around her in a bubble.

Better safe than sorry.

[LadyTevar]

"Oh, nice..." LizBet said sarcastically, looking around the office. She was intangible for a few minutes more, but she knew she had a time limit. She drifted though the door between outer and inner offices, ghosting over to look around. A glow dropped around her, and she grinned. "Thanks...."

A wall with a map of OldTown, showing the places the Cannibal had hit. The notes on the desk were quickly scanned where they lay, as LizBet would have to drop the Ghost to move them. More on the Cannibal -- obviously Poe was on top of the investigation.

Time was ticking, so LizBet drifted back out of the office, crossed the receptionist area, and phased through the wall to rejoin her Uncles. She had been gone just shy of 5 minutes.

"He's got a map of OldTowne, and he's been tracking where the Cannibal has hit," she reported eagerly, before Uncle Jack could start complaining. "He's got notes about you, Uncle Jack, and about Un... Matt. I think he's been on this case longer than we think."

[Charon]

Matt said nothing as LizBet disappeared through the wall. When she reappeared he had a careful mask of neutrality on that lasted just long enough for her to phase back before he moved.

Matt was fast. Very fast. Not superhuman, but he could push himself towards the edge of human limitations. He was at Liz before she'd even finished a sentence. One hand gripped her by her shirt and lifted her with incredible ease and placed her rather roughly against the wall.

"This. Is not. A game." Matt stared into the girl's eyes, and she could see there was still something beneath the surface. Something very dark, something very terrible. Something that would tear her and everyone here apart in a fraction of a second if it was given the chance.

"You listen to Jack, and you listen to me. And I swear by all creation if you say one word of protest I will treat you like the five year old you want to be and then send you back to your parents with a full guard. And I mean a full guard. Not whatever it is your parents put up purposefully so you can sneak out."

Matt set the girl down and took a few steps back, still very clearly ready for a fight if it came to that, and very very certain he would win it. "You were lucky that he wasn't paranoid enough to have ghost zappers or other traps. Or right now you would be in a hospital, in jail, or dead."

Without anything further Matt moved back to Jack. "We should get going, yeah? We'll be late to the meet."

[Agent Fisher]

Jack was frowning when LizBet reemerged. He stayed silent as Matt talked to her. The frown still on hsi face he nodded at Matt. "Yeah."

He turned and walked back ot the Hog, waiting for the rest before driving down the streets to the restaurant.

[LadyTevar]

"eeep...." was all LizBet got out of the protest she was about to make as Matt grabbed her. Before she knew what was happening, she was against the wall, looking down into Matt's eyes as he glared at her.

"This. Is not. A Game."

Lizbet listened wide-eyed, unable to look away from the (monster, it's a monster!) person giving her a well-deserved dressing down. Surprise had kept her from reacting, fear now kept her mouth shut and her powers inactive as she *listened* to every word and *knew* that like Uncle Jack or any of her other aunts and uncles, MATT would could, and would, do worse than simple send her back home. MATT was not joking. MATT was not someone LizBet could cajole, con, or otherwise get around.

MATT was serious.

Lizbet slumped against the wall as MATT let her down and spoke to Uncle Jack. As Jack and MATT turned to go, Lizbet fell quietly in behind them. For once, the little princess had nothing to say.

[SirNitram]

Malkamar was sitting across from from Jeremy, paging through a paperback and occasionally sniggering. That the cover was a romance-novels intepretation of an Orc and a human woman was amusing as hell to him, whatever it was about.

[Charon]

Matt looked to Gregory. "Get back to the hog. Let's go."

Matt got back in the warthog, sitting shotgun to Jack. He said nothing as he waited for the two children to get back in the car.

[General Havoc]

So fast, so instantly had Matt moved, that even from his inviolable perch within the transphasic ether of creation (or some damn thing), Gregory had flinched. His Protection intervention didn't tend to last long, but it was still running when Matt grabbed Liz-Bet, and he mentally prepared his other weapon, Confusion, before he even knew what he was doing.

Fortunately, it didn't come down to that. After direct and harsh words, Matt released Liz-Bet and turned back to the warthog, telling Gregory to snap out of it and follow. As always, he directed the comment to Gregory's lifeless body, but that was to be expected.

As Gregory released his control, his body seemed to shimmer just for a second, and then, moments later, as he slowly opened his eyes and blinked, his navy blue greatcoat, military hat, and Prussian field marshal's uniform seamlessly shifted into something else altogether. As he took his bearings, he found himself wearing a dark, Versace suit, sized-downwards to fit his small frame, hand-tailored and expensively made, complete with a charcoal blazer, a dark red tie, dress shoes polished to a mirror shine, and a silk handkerchief neatly folded in the breast pocket. Yet this bizarre and seemingly purposeless transformation elicited no comment from him, and after only a puzzled glance, he grabbed the nearby railing, pulled himself to his feet, and limped over to the waiting vehicle before climbing in.

He said nothing concerning what had just happened, in any sense. All he did was offer a suggestion.

"I think this guy's for real," he said, though he did not illustrate what it was that made him think this. "But just in case, when we meet him, I'd like to be... overwatching." It was the best term he had for his "abilities". "If anything goes wrong, I can do more than just watch from there. I can... intervene, sort of."

[Agent Fisher]

Jack shrugged, driving, taking a turn and heading down one of the main roads.

Twenty five minutes later, he slowed and pulled into a spot alongside the road, turning off the car. "Alright, there it is." He said, looking over. "So, Greg, you stick around here, do your overwatch thing." he said and then looked to LizBet, a stern expression on his face. "And you, guard Gregory, when it's safe, we'll give you a call and then you two come on in." He said.

[General Havoc]

To any observers, Gregory was already fast asleep in the backseat, his eyes closed, his head leaning gently against the car window. Nevertheless, he heard every word that the Alchemist said, and had time to be grateful that his mind and body were separated, such that Liz-Bet wouldn't get to see him blush at the suggestion that she guard him.

Extending his view over the area they were to meet, he looked for anyone that seemed particular, scanning for a few moments before he found what he was looking for. A single man, alone, standing around as though waiting for someone, dressed approximately like how Gregory imagined a private investigator would dress, and more importantly, the same man as the photographs in the office.

"I think I see him," said Gregory, his voice beaming straight into the others' heads. He scanned quickly around the area, but could not find anyone else that looked like they were involved in this. That didn't mean there wasn't anyone else of course, but still.

"He looks like he's alone."

[LadyTevar]

"But..." LizBet started to protest, then she was interrupted by Gregory's announcement.

[Charon]

Matt gave the girl a look when she started to protest, then looked to Jack. "Looks decent then, let's drop these two off and go have our meeting?"

[Agent Fisher]

Jack nodded and looked at the two. "Like I said, stay here." He said and climbed out of the 'Hog.

A short walk later, a bit of alchemy to turn the guantlet into a simple metal bracelet, and Jack turned the corner, heading towards the restaurant. He spotted the man sitting on the bench, his eyes narrowing.

[Charon]

Matt set the battle shovel down inside the 'hog and left his bag of goodies there as well. Following after Jack, Matt's mood didn't seem to change in the least as he spotted the supposed contact. He scanned the perimeter, but if he noticed Malkamar and Jeremy he didn't make a show of it. Overall the rather tall man in light hi-tech armor seemed entirely non-plussed about the whole thing.

[B4UTRUST]

James spied Jack and Matt as they started walking towards him. He looked behind them to see if anyone else was in tow, but found none. Interesting. James always loved it when the people who were sent to find him hid things from him. Always started off these meetings on the right footing. He waited till they got closer to him before stepping out to meet them.
"Jack Martin, Matthew Heimler," James said, making eye contact. "I'm James Poe. We spoke on the phone. Where are the others, Mr. Martin?"

[Agent Fisher]

Jack nodded to him. "Nice to meet you. And She's waiting with the car. I wanted to make sure it was safe before bringing her over. After all, what sort of uncle would I be if I let her waltz right into a potentially dangerous situation?"

[Charon]

Matt stopped and frowned when Poe said his name before he introduced himself. For now though, he stayed quiet.

[B4UTRUST]

A small smile crossed James' face.
"Please have Miss Thogschylde come out, then. Please," James asked as nicely as he could in the situation.
"Call me overly paranoid, but I prefer it when the people who call me out of the blue to discuss such high profile cases don't try to hide potential... threats. Not to say that Miss Thogschylde is a threat, as such, however reputations and histories preceding as it were."

[Charon]

Matt chuckled. "For a man so concerned about about a girl that I'm not sure has even thrown a fist in anger, you seem pretty relaxed Mr. Poe. Now why would that be? You don't have any surprises for us do you?"

[B4UTRUST]

"I'm just trying to keep this whole affair amiable, Mr. Hiemler. I'd rather this not turn ugly and everyone stay calm, cool and collected. If you prefer I could yell, scream and curse. I don't think it would help matters, though."

[Charon]

"Please, call me Matt. And the only person who seems particularly worried about this turning ugly is you. Though I guess I can't blame you. Since you know my name I assume you know who I was. Either way, if you want us to show all our cards, you're going to have to at least do the same." Matt leaned his back against the wall, crossing his arms. "After all, we're all here for a common purpose, aren't we?"

[B4UTRUST]

"That would depend on what that common purpose is, Mr. Hiemler. From my way of seeing things based on what I've come to learn, having you show up with Mr. Martin here makes a few things fall in place that puzzled me before. So when you say a common purpose, I have my ideas of what that common purpose could be and then I have my ideas of why of all people you two show up wanting to meet with me out of the blue just as it starts becoming more widespread in Old Town that I'm looking into the Cannibal murders. The coincidence I see based on the facts I have is one that I would be hard pressed, Mr. Hiemler, to believe is purely coincidence. To paraphrase a popular medical metaphor, I'm hearing hoof beats but I'm not finding a zebra.

"So please, tell me, what it is that you believe to be our common purpose."

[Charon]

"Hearing hoof beats but... never heard that one before." Matt smiled. "Two things. One, I was minding my own business happily being dead when I got roped into this bullshit by the Shadow Don. Two, if the Berserker was behind this, there wouldn't be anything left of Old Town. Methodical was never his thing. Nor was working with anyone. If you've done half the research I think your paranoid ass has, you know that." Matt pushed himself off of the wall he'd been leaning against, though notably he kept some distance from Poe.

"We're here for the same reason you are, to find the Cannibal and stop him."