ic Golgotha Tenement Blues IC

[KnightDisciple]

Judex stopped at the mention of the guns, and frowned.

 

"Do what you must, Ser Owl, but have a care for the carpet if it's messy."

 

After "checking" the community room, Judex followed Doctor Thorne into the office by way of the small connecting room (one clearly designed to allow the pastor/priest to done liturgical garments or the like). It was a small box of a room.

 

The office, on the other hand, was more...eclectic. Several pieces of furniture were decades old and standing strong, but a few were much newer. Most of the bookcases were old, but one, holding several DVD lesson cases and other almost-book-shaped items, was newer and lighter in color, and over in one corner. The desk was a large, heavy affair that could probably shield one from bullets. About half the shelves had books, the rest had a few random bits and bobs, others had photos in frames. The walls held several certificates, or photos of the pastor standing in London, Greece, and Israel. 

 

Judex considered the girl at the window for a few moments, a soft, friendly-ish-esque smile on his face.

 

"It is alright, child. If you desire shelter we can get you somewhere safe. We have but a few questions we seek answers for,  and perhaps you can tell us on the way? Where would you like to go for shelter?"

[Tiffany Korta]

Liam Conner

Rosa used the apparent changing room in a more literal sense, slipping in an instance into Liam, normally only a few would notice the change between the two but with everything going on they didn't want to risk freaking the woman out any more. Liam could feel Rosa's reluctant, there was a mystery here to solve and she wanted to do more but they both knew that he was much better at this people thing.

 

"There's a diner across the road we can go get something to eat if you want?" his voice was soft and soothing, trying hard to smooth whatever had spooked her.

"We should probably go by a different door though!" he mused to himself, best not to do anything to make things works.

[Amelia]

Once Judex and Thorne had ushered the girl out the office, the man in white crept inside, with the gang leader hanging limply his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. He dropped the thug onto the ground with less regard than he would have given to an actual sack of potatoes. The couple of drops he'd licked up in the main room had inflamed his thirst. He lifted the thug up into the air, turned him to face away, then pulled him close, one hand clasped over his mouth in case he woke up, the other wrapped around his torso, pressing their bodies together. He sunk his eager fangs into the man's neck, and started sucking the blood out. He did not breathe, but he sighed. He growled. His whole body quivered.

 

The first bite of a perfectly cooked steak after a whole day without food. The first sip of water after running a marathon. A hot shower after hiking through the snow.

 

As the blood hit his tongue, he closed his eyes and let the psychic resonance bound up in the blood wash over his mind. He felt his own mind sink into the thug's, like a body sinking beneath the surface of a lake. He saw the yearbook pictures of the girl and her brother. He heard the name of the drug dealing middle-man who hired the junkie gangsters to murder children. He smelled the gasoline they would use to burn their corpses, their home, their neighbors...

 

Drink more. A child-murderer. Evil. There's so much more. An aspiring child-murderer. Evil and pathetic. Drink it all. No one would miss him. More blood more blood MORE BLO-

 

He jerked the thug's neck away from his face, dropped the man back onto the ground, and roared up at the sky. Then he smashed his fist through the nearest piece of furniture.

 

[angrydurf]

The young woman seemed startled at first by the large mens approach and she looked from one to the other with a glint of suspicion in her eyes.  She looked on the edge of bolting but knew there was no easy way out as well.  She clearly felt cornered in the small cluttered room.  "Uh Home?"  she tried to toughen up and sound sarcastic but the night had gone poorly enough she was clearly on the verge of losing it. "I'm not some runaway, I have family."  she puffed up a bit fronting and lying more than a little as she challenged, "My dads a hitter for the Scarpias, and he'll be expecting me."  It was not entirely a lie her father might have been in one of the families, but he certainly didn't know where she was or even that she existed.  "I can up get there on my own."  she shifted uncertainly.

 

As liam offered the diner she winced slightly at the reminder of hte obviously now missed meeting she'd been on her way to.  "Uh thanks but I'm not hungry, and Mom's gonna be cooking up a big dinner."  another lie this one more desperate and more easily disproved by the resounding growl from her stomach.  Slumping she gave up and nodded, "Uh, sure yea the diner."  she agreed finally stuffing hands defensively in pockets aiming to walk past them both holding her breath ready to bolt if either tried to grab her.  She craned her neck to see what was causing hte sounds behind them by Judex's imposing form blocked her sight so she solemnly followed Liam to the diner.  Sliding into a booth opposite the men she stared sullenly at them, "I have money you don't have to buy me anything." trying to avoid any hint of indebtedness.

[Amelia]

The man in white didn't need to breathe, but he forced several deep breaths in and out of what was left of his shriveled lungs, a ritual effort to calm himself down. Then he poked his own tongue with one of his fangs, lifted the gang leader's neck to his mouth, and transferred the blood with a quick lick to the puncture marks he'd left in the man's neck. His blood sealed them shut, removing any traces of his feeding.

 

Mister Strix wasn't about to follow Judex or Thorne or anyone else into a diner. Even if his costume wouldn't attract too much attention from the other diners, his presence would probably terrify the girl, and no one would appreciate watching their food turn into mold on their plate. They'll need a few minutes to help her catch her breath before she sees me again. But she will see me again. She needs to answer some questions.

 

While awaiting the return of the girl and the other paranormals, Mister Strix drifted between the other gangsters in the main room, biting necks and wrists to take brief gulps of their blood. Spread it out. The more of them I drink from, the less I need to drink from any one of them...the less chance I'll get carried away and wake up with a dead body in my arms...again.

[Tiffany Korta]

Liam Conner

This is good, as we have no money either! Liam chose to ignore the voice in his head and instead tried to put the woman at ease.

 

"That's fine we just want to make sure that everything okay." he gave his most reassuring smile "Let's get going I for one am starving!"

 

He gently as possible steered the assembled group across the street and to the Diner, whilst Liam didn't know what this vampire could do Rosa was obviously worried at what punishment he could be capable of. He just hoped her hunch about him being a good guy was on the level, or they'd have another problem to deal with once this was all over. Rosa was many things but her academic curiosity sometimes overcame her common sense, so it was good thing really that he was here.

[KnightDisciple]

"We do not judge the child for the father. And in a city this dark, few there are not touched by darkness indeed. The important part is that you are safe, little lamb."

 

Judex was glad that his transformation left his wallet intact, though he'd have to be cautious about flashing the driver's license. Thankfully, you didn't need ID for coffee. He ambled in after the girl and the pugilist, sliding in next to Liam. Which left them a bit crowded, but it gave the girl an easy escape route.

 

"I am called Judex, child. May I ask your name?"

[angrydurf]

As they stepped into the diner the girl peered around for a moment as if looking for someone or something before sliding into the booth opposite the two men.  She clearly remained suspicious but the more public locale seemed to settle her at least in part.  "Your hobo friend usually has one of those end time signs down at union station huh?"  she asked Liam with a vague smirk, "I mean I get it livin here certainly isn't the kinda thing to get you looking on the bright side and all."  She looked down at the menu and ordered a short stack when the waitress came by.  Clearly add, "Separate checks."  as she clutched her backpack tighter too her side.  

 

Finally she relented and opened up a small amount at least.  They'd taken out the hired guns that had been after her so clearly they managed at least enemy of my enemy status.  "Sam."  she taciturnly revealed and looked up at Liam uncertainly, "And nothins OK in this town."  she growled eyes dropping to the table again, "Listen, I appreciate you all stepping in."  sam assured them taciturnly, "But I'm not some mob princess for you to get richly rewarded over."  She was clearly putting on a front of maturity and wherewithal out of line with her age and experience.  "I was gonna meet a guy her to help but those punk ass bitches scared him off I guess, I need to get home and get outta town."

[Tiffany Korta]

 

Liam Conner

With a smile Liam Brandished his business card, a stylistic black rose with the name of there detective agency and a cell number below. It had cost them quite a bit but it had been more or less worth it.

 

"That was me you were meant to meet, and trust me I don't scare off that easily! Even with this honestly really bad coffee." he smiled as he brandished the mug for emphasis

 

"We're here to help if you still need the assistance, which from those thugs back at the church I think you do?"

[Amelia]

The conversation in the diner across the street gave Mister Strix ample time to do his work.

 

As he took a drink from each of the gangsters, he also rifled through their pockets. He threw any weapons he found into a pile with the ones he'd already collected from outside. If he found any money, he threw that in a second pile. Finally, if he found any identification, then he made sure to match it to the person whose blood he was consuming.

 

I have you. I have your name. Your scent. Your taste. When you do this again, I'll know you. I'll remember.

 

Once each thug had been thoroughly searched and his belly was full, Mister Strix closed his eyes and clenched every muscle in his body. With a moment of concentration, he literally burned off excess blood, feeling a slight warmth inside his dead organs as it evaporated into steam and then quickly dissipated. His muscles bulged slightly, imbued for a few minutes with the strength of The Devil himself. Then he turned to the pile of weapons and used his newfound strength to methodically destroy them. He emptied clips from guns and thumbed individual rounds free from clips. He twisted and crushed every gun. He pinched every lead slug and its casing into flat discs between his fingers. He bent and blunted every blade, even if it was merely a foldable pocketknife.

 

These things will never be used again. They won't be sold, or traded, or "lost." They won't hurt anyone anymore. You're the last people who will bleed for them.

 

[angrydurf]

The girls looked at the card then to Liam uncertainly before nodding slowly.  Letting out a sigh she relented in the hadbitten act though still peevishly squinted at the waitress as her pancakes were delivered as if suspicious they might tell the people after her something relevant.  From the earbuds and avoidance of eye contact it seemed clear hte waitress wanted to know as little as possible about what was happening at her only table at the moment.

 

Sam offered a brief explanation of her predicament around mouthfuls of syrup drenched pancakes.  "They're just hired junkie trash."  she was quick to point out though she held no illusions about what would have awaited her ad they found her.  "They're after my brother an me on account what he saw."  she frowned deeply at that, "My brothers smart, but like,"  she shook her head, "He loves the tug boats and goes down to watch 'em"  eyes downcast she barely whispered the next, "He saw a guy we know with this lady from the housing commission, she went missing."  she looked up at Liam pointedly, "Now he's hired out so we go missing."  

 

She looked nervously as another customer came in and crammed hte last bites in to her mouth before tossing a small wad of bills on the table to pay, "We should talk on the way."  she suggested and headed out of the dinner.  Across the street she turned to look at Liam and Judex, "I tried to tell the cops, they said something about credibility and then those guys were waiting for my brother at the bus stop."  she growled finally, "Some mara thought they were dealing and ran em off or they'd a got him."  Clearly she suspected the police had told the perpetrator about the witness.

[KnightDisciple]

Judex had ordered bacon and a biscuit, and had eaten quietly while the girl told her story, nodding thoughtfully every so often. He gave her a sympathetic look of understanding when she spoke of her brother. When she stood, he pulled a few bills out himself and laid them on the table, letting Liam and the girl take the lead a bit. 

 

When she spoke about the sequence of events, he gave a sound almost like a bear's grunt.

 

"Wolves in sheepdog's clothing. Few and far between are the faithful, fewer still are the ones with the courage to act the part of sheepdogs. Thank the Almighty he was unhurt that day. Still, I suspect we have merely driven off minions."

 

He looks toward Liam.

 

"We sheepdogs should reunite with the feathered one and seek the wolf that started all of this." 

[Tiffany Korta]

 

Liam Conner

It was a sad tale that happened too often in the city, and one that often had a very mundane origin. But just because it was something mundane didn't mean it was worth doing something about. A little voice inside his head, literally, in this case, told him it wasn't worth it but he ignored that. Downing the last of the second helping of the terrible coffee he made his way out of the place.

 

"We should probably get Sam to somewhere safe, I know someone who might help us out. She's a pain in the ass but I trust her, plus she still owes me a favour. Unless you think the sanctuary of the church is something that will apply in this case?"

 

As he spoke he made his way back to the said place, hoping they wouldn't find anything they'd need to sort out first.

[Amelia]

The trio returned to the church to find the unconscious thugs still draped over the pews like wet sheets on a backyard clothesline, though they'd been moved around in the intervening minutes. The man in white was still there too, standing with his back against a side wall. With him there, it still felt colder inside the church than it did out in the rainy night. There were a few new spots of blood here and there, and the thugs looked noticeably paler than when the trio had left for the diner, but there were no fresh wounds beyond the existing bruises from the earlier brawl.

 

When they entered, he pointed at one of the two used garbage bags he'd scavenged and emptied from the back alley. "Money. Your friend the preacher can put it to better use than they would." Then he pointed to the other. "Weapons." His deep voice still echoed with an unnatural resonance from a fanged mouth still far too large for its face. "Destroyed beyond repair, but you should still find somewhere else to throw them away. If someone found them in the preacher's trash, he might face questions he doesn't have answers for."

 

His black eyes turned to stare straight at the girl. "They," he pointed at the sleeping gangsters, "were hired to kill you, and your little brother, to keep you quiet. They were going to burn down your entire apartment building, just to cover it up. They got the job from their Hardwick Park drug dealer, but he's just a middle-man. They were supposed to meet up at a warehouse near the Rook Island Terminal after, to get paid. But they don't know who they're really working for. They don't care. They just want their next fix."

 

I can relate.

 

"But you already knew all that." He turned to the others. "Did she fill in the gaps?"

[angrydurf]

Sam stared at Judex as they crossed hte street, "I hope you broke your end is nigh sign on one those junkies heads." the girm mused with a shake of her head cus he was like a cartoon crazy person to the young teen before she followed them into the church.

 

Looking up in vague horror and mingled fascination at the tableau inside the church Sam paused in the doorway behind Liam and Judex staring at the unconscious thugs.  "are they?"  she murmured somewhere between terrified and excited as she nudged one with a foot and jumped back when he twitched.  Aiming a sharp but ultimately probably ineffective kick to the mans ribs she growled, "A-hole."

 

Noticing everyone's attention shift to her after the creepy guy in whites revelations she frowned deeply, "I mean I don't know for sure."  she huffed as she looked from Liam to Judex, "But the girl they took out was from our building trying to stop some developer from kicking everyone out."  she shrugged not entirely clear on the details but had seen the fliers and heard the spiel on her way to school a few times, "Wanted to move us off the rent control list and revitalize the neighborhood or some bull."  

[KnightDisciple]

Judex shook his head at Liam's question.

 

"The sanctuary is one of the spirit, not the body. These wolves could have huffed and puffed and blew the doors down easily enough, and this place holds no secret vaults."

 

He nodded at Strix's words; that he didn't dance was testament to his self-control. Or his detachment in this form.

 

"Perhaps the water will claim the rest of those implements of suffering. The lucre can rest in his office under the desk for a bit, we can secure this place enough to prevent immediate looting."

 

He laughed at Sam's ongoing teasing. 

 

"I don't need signs to teach lessons to the wolves, child. But the sentiment is appreciated."

 

His face went dark as further explanation was given.

 

"Darkness loves misery and hates hope. Of course that's the root motivation."

 

He glanced at the others.

 

"I think a lesson in manners is in order."

[Tiffany Korta]

 

Liam Conner

As Sam continued to explain Liam checked his contacts on their cell, whilst they changed clothes somehow technology stayed between them, looking for someone he trusted enough to keep her safe.

 

"Well do what we can to help, but we're going to have to get you somewhere safe. If serious money's involved they'll eventually send people more talented than there." he knew she'd might want to help, but they needed to at least try and dissuade her.

 

"And this is my case so I'm not expecting you both to jump to help out..." he looked at the other two "...Not that I wouldn't mind the help!"

[Amelia]

The man in white glared into Thorne's eyes. "These filth don't get to murder children in my city. I'm seeing this through to the end."

 

He turned back to the girl. "But I don't have any safe places where you could hide out. If they do, I'll help you get there. Otherwise, you'll have to come with us."

 

Then he addressed Thorne and Judex. "Once she's safe, I'm stopping by that flop-house in Hardwick Park. I'm going to squeeze the middle-man to see what leaks out. And then I'm going to that warehouse, to inform the occupants that they are no longer welcome in my city."

[angrydurf]

Sam stared at them each in turn as they committed to help.  She clearly was desperate enough not to look the gift horse of three, exceptional, good samaritans in the mouth, as oversized or full of confusing idioms as that mouth might be.  However at the sugestion they hide her away somewhere safe she put her foot down, "Oh hell no."  she exclaimed shaking her head furiously, "I'm not going to be babysat in some safehouse without my brother!"  She looked pleadingly to Liam on the verge of tears, "He doesn't even really know what he saw and he's way too trusting."  she whimpered uncertainty knowing going back to her home was doubtless riskier than hiding out wherever they might stash her.  "We have to go get him!"

 

She clearly had decided the ruggedly handsome PI was the one to make hte emotional appeal to, "I have money."  she quickly added knowing they might be considering the costs as well.  More desperate than worried about them robbing her she dumped a small stack of tightly rolled bills from her backpack.  This wasn't cleaning out an ATM or piggy bank.  The girl had clearly raided some addicts rainy day fund.

[KnightDisciple]

Judex looked between the girl and the other two. 

 

"She is right, we cannot leave her brother adrift. We should retrieve him, then put them both somewhere safe. Only then can we hunt those who attempted this heinous act. I wish to bring righteous vengeance, but not at the cost of the life of an innocent."

 

He gave a smile that wasn't really friendly, then cracked his knuckles.

 

"Protect the innocent, then punish the guilty."

[Amelia]

The man in white turned to the girl. "Keep your money. You need it more than any of us. And I am not for sale."

 

Then he turned back to Judex. "You're right. We stopped these killers, but there could always be more. Alright, we'll extract her brother first. Then the dealer in the Park. Then the warehouse."

 

Finally, he began rousing the unconscious thugs. "I don't see any way of securing the lowlifes. Not physically, anyway..." He pulled one up to his feet by the man's neck, and slapped his face until he stirred. Then he held the man's jaw in a vise-like grip and forced the man to look him in the eye. "Stand still and do what I tell you. Frankie's just a middle-man, and when he finds out you messed up this job, he's going to tell the scary people who hired him, and they're going to kill you, just like you were going to kill those kids. The only way you'll stay alive is in prison. When I tell you to go, leave this place and turn yourself in to the nearest cop you can find. Confess to every crime you ever committed. Everyone you ever hurt, every dollar you ever stole. Answer every question they ask you, and when you go to court, plead "Guilty" to everything they charge you with."

 

He left the man standing, and then he repeated the process with the other eight.

 

[Tiffany Korta]

 

Liam Conner

Being a detective was never a well-paying job, especially when you specialised as they did, and morals meant you were pickier than some. No one would say anything if they'd took the money, in a city like Bedlam is was really almost expected. The two of them, however, had some morals that meant they could take the whole bundle however much it would really help with the bills. Taking the roll of notes he counted out a reasonable amount, there standard daily rate, making sure that she could see exactly how much he was taking.

 

"This is the standard daily rate, in advance, that's all we need..." he peeled off another note

 

"... and this is a healthy donation for the damage we caused to the church." he put the note in the donation box before handing the rest of the notes back to the girl

 

"When this is over do something with that which will help you and your brother, I'd suggest tickets out of Bedlam!"

 

He looked at the others, a confident smile on his face after all this was what he did!

 

"Let's go do this!"

[angrydurf]

Sam had clearly expected the hobo to take some of the money but seemed unbothered by the partial refusal.  Creepy monsters probably didn't need money anyway, and Liam graciously had taken only his normal fee.  She looked down at the remaining funds and shrugged slinging the bag back over her shoulder as Strix slapped some sense into the thugs one by one.  One managed a shaky "F$*K you!"  as he followed his brethren in a fearful retreat but all seemed to for the moment at least be following the vampires instructions.

 

The journey from the church to the dilapidated apartment block Sam called home was brief and blessedly uneventful, outside the building the usual array of unfortunates milled aimlessly though it was unlikely the group would pass entirely unnoticed through hte main entrance at least.  There were probably some watchers on the building though how to tell them from the usual trash without revealing too much was less clear.  Hopefully they could get in and extract the boy before reinforcements of some kind arrived to make the effort more difficult.  Sam seemed unconcerned though perhaps was unaware of hte inherent danger of returning to a known location such as this when marked as she and her brother were. 

 

The one benefit they had was this close to Mara territory and Wolverton any move in force would likely be seen as aggression by one of hte bigger fish in the area so whoever was behind this had to move with some care.  Then again if they could be gone quickly enough the locals would probably ignore it if it didn't become habit.  "elevators broken"  Sam warned as they approached, "We'll have to take the stairs."  The winding stairwell of the tenement block was suspiciously devoid of residents and hte halls seemed almost too quiet as they reached Sams apartment and she unlocked the door to let them in with a whispered breath of relief when it was clear her mother was passed out on the couch and not awake to raise the alarm about the strangers in the apartment.  Crossing the filthy living room ignoring her technical guardian she gently knocked on a door festooned with harbor schedules and printouts of local tugs.  "Hey, it's Sam."  she warned as she opened the door and leaned in, "Get your stuff we gotta go."  she urged quietly to what must have been her brother.

[Amelia]

The man in white addressed the rest of the group as the exited the church. "Lead the way. I'll let you know if I see anyone following." With that, he turned and leaped into the air, over the roof of the neighboring building to disappear on the other side.

 

Once out of sight, before he hit the ground, Mister Strix relaxed every muscle in his body, going completely limp for a moment, before his body dissolved into a cloud of mist. He flew up into the air and back around, settling on a cruising altitude a couple stories above and slightly behind the group. He kept his gaze moving, trying to spot potential ambushes from all sides.

 

When they reached the apartment complex Sam called "home," the human-sized cloud soared up to the top of the building and circled around it once, checking the roof and the adjacent buildings. Then it descended to the floor of the apartment Mister Strix had seen in the hired killer's blood. Beside the window, the cloud condensed back into a man in white, whose hands and feet clung to the outer wall like an insect. He leaned an ear toward the window and listened.

[KnightDisciple]

Judex had merely shrugged, smiled, and waved off the cash when offered. Between the money Strix had pulled from the gangers and the bit that Liam had put in the collection box, he'd be able to clean and repair the church, and probably get all the lights fixed, at least. He already had enough to get most of the square meals he needed, so no worries about his salary. He'd lapsed into silence for the trip to the apartment complex, content to just observe.

 

'This girl is far too mature for her age. She's probably had to be a caretaker...'

 

When they entered her living space and he observed the person who should have been a parent to her, he couldn't stop a curl of disgust from manifesting on his lips. This was...he wasn't even sure he had sufficient words to communicate his feelings. 

 

'Lord have mercy on these children. And I suppose on this woman, if You have any to spare.'

 

He felt on-edge, but couldn't pin down why....