Witch Hunt [IC]

[KnightDisciple]

Light still shone from Gabriel's eyes as he suddenly pointed both his hands at the demon. Concentrated sonic waves roared forth, striking at the demon's skin. Ripping and tearing at the unholy hide, attempting to make it easier for Gabriel and his fellows to bring the beast down. As he poured the attack into the creature, his voice picked up, loud and clear, from the very phrase where Nick stopped. It still had all the unusual undercurrents of before, albeit at slightly less volume than a moment ago.

Hear the trumpets, hear the pipers

One hundred million angels singing

Multitudes are marching to the big kettledrum

Voices calling and voices crying

Some are born and some are dying

It's Alpha and Omega's kingdom come!

[GranspearZX]

Shaking himself out of his shock, Marcus suddenly shot forward. For a kid as big as he was, he moved with astounding sureness of himself--and that was before he changed forms. The Beast Rune flared to life as Marcus was replaced once again by Arcturus, and for a second it seemed like he actually sped up a little, teeth bared as he closed the distance between himself and Leraje. Instinct took over where reason blurred; maneuvering to keep out of anyone else's way, the black-furred giant lunged at the demon with a vicious open-pawed claw swipe that might've taken a lesser man's head right off.

[Quinn]

The demon listed to the side, wounds and burns all over it's body from the savage barrage the heroes had inflicted upon it. Then...a voice from above, speaking calmly.

"In measured hundred weight. And penny pound."

As the demon's head slowly turned, a figure in brown descended from above, his coat and scarf billowing behind him as the hammer, almost in slow motion, met it's skull. A warp in the air, crackling with power, seemed to engulf it's head, pure kinetic energy channeling through the hammer into the strike. Push's eyes flashed with satisfaction as the demon vainly tried to fight against the blow, screeching in rage and anguish, before it finally was crushed, disappearing under the sheer weight, dispersed back to the pit from whence it came. The hammer clanged against the ground as it passed through the smoky remains, scarred across the front by the infernal power. Push stood, crossed himself, and slung his hammer over his back, dusting off his hands, saying the last words to the air.

"When the man. Comes around."

[KnightDisciple]

Even as the demon was crying out as it vainly struggled against Push's mighty blow, Gabriel's voice rang clear and true once more.

And be ye now cast out of Earth back to the Dark Places, even as ye were cast from Heaven. Be ye thrown down from this Shadow of Paradise, even as ye were thrown down from Paradise Itself!

After the demon was gone, the hero in white settled to the ground again. Slowly, he walked forward towards the spot where it had been. As he walked, he spoke, and as he spoke, his voice changed back to normal, bit by bit.

They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God’s people, the city he loves. But fire came down from heaven and devoured them. And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

He paused, all the glow gone from his eyes now.

"Amen."

He then continued on, before coming to rest in front of the ruined pulpit, table, statue, and other marks of an old church. He fell to his knees, tears flowing from his eyes, hands held to the side in a pose of supplication, grief flowing in his now quiet voice as he beheld the desecration before him.

"Forgive me, Oh Lord, that I was not swifter. Forgive me that this was allowed to happen. Take my tears and turn them to joy, my weeping to singing, Oh Lord. May Your Might be know, Your praises be sung, and Your justice be done."

He lapsed into silence, a few tears still rolling down his face from his closed eyes.

[Ecalsneerg]

Equinox, still reeling from her huge work of magic, hadn't the reflexes to leap in and strike the demon before the others had obliterated it. Wow... quickest demonic banishment I've seen in a long time. She made her way towards the greasy spot where the demon had once stood. Sheesh.

She tentatively walked over to where Gabriel was praying, putting one hand on his shoulder. "It wasn't your fault. You did all you could. I don't think that demon even knew what hit it." She forced a small smile. "Don't blame yourself for a second."

[GranspearZX]

As the threat passed, Arcturus's aggression waned. The return transformation didn't take long, and he watched Gabriel, clearly the most bothered by the entire ordeal. He had no idea what to say that Equinox hadn't already, so he instead turned his attention to the rest of the church, frowning. This is gonna take one heck of a clean-up. At least that's one crisis averted.

He looked at the spot where the beast had been, then he looked at Push; without realizing it, he narrowed his eyes at Agent Stone and averted his gaze elsewhere, stuffing his hands into his pockets, stepping over debris as he headed back outside.

[Quinn]

Push merely stood there, looking at the spot the demon had been occupying when he dropped the hammer, and his shoulders sagged. His arms were burning from the energy he'd forced through them earlier, but he didn't really care. Looking around at the ruined church, he suddenly felt an enormous weight settle on him, one very familiar to him.

Too slow. Was I too slow? Could've done something. Didn't ask about Scratch. Nearly broke floor. Blasted off like an idiot. Deserved that look.

One bright spot did linger, however. Taking a moment, he walked over to a doorway, opening it and peering inside, then walked in. A minute later, he came out, holding a broom and dustpan, and mutely began to sweep what little debris he could, keeping his eyes focused on his work.

[trollthumper]

"All that blood needs a source..." Nick ran back behind the chapel, into the rectory. There, he found the reverend and his secretary, lying face down. He wheeled them over, checking for signs of life. They were both alive, and weren't even bloody. The scent of viscera caught his attention soon after, drawing him to the closet. Inside was a young calf, butchered.

That must've been where the blood came from, he thought. That was just the first course... He heard footsteps charging through the door soon after. Might be best if I got out of these colors...

The cops streamed in a second or two after Push began sweeping, led by Durand. They were frozen when they looked up to the altar. "Holy crap," one of them said.

"Where's Reverend Chalmers?" Durand asked.

"In the office," Eric said. He emerged from the rectory, face cleaned of makeup and clothes back to civilian wear. "He's fine. Unconscious, but fine. So's his assistant. The perp must've been planning for them to die of smoke inhalation."

"The perp?" one of the cops asked. "Who the hell did this?"

"That's just it, officer." The cops turned to find Vigourie waiting in the doorway. "Hell did this. Or at least one of its misguided followers."

[GranspearZX]

Fashionably late. Jerk.

Something was still bothering Marcus. Perhaps it was the lingering aggression from the Beast Rune; it could have very well been his growing list of reasons to dislike Agent Stone. Either way, Vigourie's arrival only served to deepen the scowl etched across the teenager's face, and he made absolutely no attempt at hiding his feelings, looking the so-called expert squarely in the eye.

"Nice of you to show up, Captain Obvious," he muttered, turning around and heading back inside the church--mostly because he didn't want to be anywhere near Vigourie. Still, the air inside the church was downright oppressive; even though Equinox had extinguished the fire, he could still smell the smoke. Among other things. "I hope you're here to help clean this mess."

[KnightDisciple]

Gabriel looked up at Equinox after a crossing himself. There was a wan smile on his face.

"Thank you. You're right. I think the shock of seeing...this. Along with the fight, just kind of overwhelmed me. He wouldn't want me dwelling on such things."

He stood, about to say something else, as Mr. Vigourie strode in and made his highly erroneous proclamation. Equinox is the only one to see Gabriel's expression immediately shift to extreme distaste, and then anger, before he schools it to something even worse: an utterly expressionless face.

Then, suddenly, he's standing about 3 feet in front of Mr. Vigourie, hovering a few inches off the floor, arms crossed in front of his chest. Bits of debris floated back down after being disturbed by his passage.

His impassive face gazed down slightly at the hack-job "expert". When he spoke, his voice was like a thin layer of velvet over sharpened steel; an exterior of politeness, with a strong undercurrent of threat.

"Were you in this room, Mr. Vigourie? When this was done, that is. Were you hiding yourself in here? Or did you just walk in, take no time to gather facts, and make a decision? Like you normally do. Tell me, Mr. Vigourie."

He hovered closer, now only a foot away from the man. Vigourie could feel the subtle shift of air and sound around the man in white as he settled to the ground.

"How many? How many innocent children have been persectued, abandoned, or perhaps even worse, all because your narrow-minded self can't get past a few outward trappings? How many, Mr. Vigourie?"

Before the other man can answer, Gabriel's voice suddenly roars like a lion.

"HOW MANY?"

Not giving him a chance to answer, he continues.

"And now, you come in here, proclaiming to know all the answers, when you did nothing. You know nothing. Do you want to know what happened, Mr. Vigourie?"

He uncrosses his arms and points to the stain on the floor.

"There was a demon there. Not a man, not a woman. Not a metahuman, even. A demon. A fallen angel. A being that was once dedicated to goodness, light, creation, and beauty, now living only for evil, darkness, destruction, and twisted ugliness. Its breath stank of sulfur, Mr. Vigourie. In the short time it was in here, it utterly defiled a church. A place that should be safe from such things, a holy place. Nearly turned into a house of evil. But not by the hands of any mortal. But you know what happened, Mr. Vigourie?"

He crosses his arms again.

"We got rid of the demon. "Killed" is too strong a word for simply banishing the mortal form of a creature sprung from the mind of the Creator; a creature originally made of the same creative energies that brought about...everything. Twisted or no, such beings have power. But its power here is gone now. Because we banished it."

Only now did he reach out and jab one finger into Vigourie's chest.

"Now shut up and stand aside, and let me and my friends finish doing our job here."

With that, he started to walk past the man, before turning with a frown. Something was rolling around in his head...until he suddenly had a realization. His expression stayed impassive, but his demeanor shifted further. He looked to Equinox. His voice easily carried, despite the fact that it should have been too soft for her to hear him.

"Equinox, could you please come with me? I believe I will need your assistance with something. The others can continue to explain things to the sheriff. You should have little trouble finding us when you're done."

He waited, outwardly patient but inwardly chomping at the bit, for Equinox to answer his request.

[Ecalsneerg]

Siobhan chose to ignore Vigourie, reasoning that Gabriel had verbally beat down the man enough. Besides, she hadn't dissipated all the fiery energy and didn't want to lose her cool with him at this moment, when it could lead to some form of incineration.

"Yeah," she nodded to Gabriel upon hearing his request. "No problem." She inclined her head to the sheriff and the other supers present, then followed Gabriel to where he wanted to go.

[KnightDisciple]

Gabriel nods and walks out of the church. He pointedly ignores the police and others surrounding the church, except inasmuch as he notes their locations. Any that try to approach him are given a silent rebuff. He sets a fast pace, his stride falling roughly as a "fast power-walk".

As Equinox keeps up with him, she will suddenly hear his voice in her ear.

"Do not react to my voice; no one else here can hear it. I'll explain that trick later. We're going to the house of one Jolene Simmons. Principal's daughter. Was a friend of the victim's. I was talking to her earlier, but got...interrupted by all of this. She stated she was a Wiccan, which wasn't cause for suspicion at the time. I saw some odd books on her shelf, but didn't recognize them."

There's a brief pause, before his words return, slightly angrier.

"But before it shifted form, that demon looked just like her. I want to know why. Come on, we'll duck around the corner and fly over there. Well. Can you fly? If you can, pleas give one firm nod of your head; if not, one firm shake of your head."

He glances back at the mage, one eyebrow quirked in a not-quite-silent question.

[Quinn]

Quinn stretched his back, looking at the spot the demon had been vaporized, then turned his eyes to the sheriff with a slightly sheepish expression.

"Suppose I owe you an apology for blasting off like that earlier."

He turned his eyes around, watching the other officers enter and stare at the blasphemous actions that had been done here, and feeling a sense of shame, crossed with pride that he'd helped to beat down the beast that had been here. Mixed feelings. Yeah, like that was new for him.

"Lost focus, tunnel vision. I've...been accused of being reckless before, when...bugger. When you got that call, it was a near direct copy of what happened two years ago, when I first met that warlock Scratch, and everything went to hell. A darkened building, laughter, police surrounding it...and I lost my head. Hell, I was lucky that I managed to stop myself in time..."

Push shook his head, looking at her with a frank and apologetic face.

"I'll be glad to fill you in on what happened here, and if you want me to head out and leave this to the others afterwards, I'll do so without argument."

[Ecalsneerg]

Siobhan, making sure they were around the corner, nodded firmly, and spread her arms in a quick, practiced gesture. In an instant, huge white wings of semi-translucent white force erupted from her back, flapping and lifting her clean off the ground by a good couple of feet. She shrugged, and gestured for Gabriel to lead on so she didn't have to linger here too long in such an obvious fashion.

Dammit, it's always the kids in these close-minded areas who get sucked into stuff like this. I'm probably going to have to talk to her...

[KnightDisciple]

Gabriel gave a chuckle as the Wiccan mage sprouted white feathered wings.

"Ironic, that. Anyways, go as fast as you can, and I'll pace myself to that."

With that, he took off into the air, rising fairly rapidly, but not so much she couldn't keep up. Once she'd set her own pace, Gabriel easily matched her, taking a slight lead.

It wasn't long before they were touching down just a bit down the street from the Simmons house. Gabriel stopped for a moment to close his eyes, take a deep breath, and try to calm himself. He then looked to Siobhan, his expression hard to read. It was a mix of anger, frustration, disappointment (but not at her), and even a bit of pleading.

"You know more about these things. I will listen to your lead in there when it comes to sorting out what's what, mystically speaking. I'll get us in, and I'll try to get Jolene to tell the truth. But you're here to help me sort that out. And to make sure I don't do or say something stupid, since I'm still kind of angry. You're here to counterbalance possible prejudices I might be carrying, whether I want them there or not. Let's go."

With that, he strode up the sidewalk and to the front door, giving it a few firm knocks.

"Mr. and Mrs. Simmons? It's Gabriel again. I need to ask your daughter just a couple more things; the emergency I had to leave for has been handled."

[trollthumper]

Vigourie flinched under Gabriel's invective. "Obviously, you doubt," he said. "But I know --"

"Vigourie," Durand said, "what you know could fill a thimble. These people --" She pointed at the heroes. " -- have told me more than you could ever hope to. So if you want to help out, then for God's sake, sit on your hands and tell us something relevant."

Vigourie paused. "Understood, Sheriff." He went off into the church to consult with the other officers. Durand sighed. "Dear God," she said. She then looked around the church. "Probably not the best thing to say at this time."

"Think you can keep him under control?" Eric asked.

"Wouldn't be the first time I've dealt with someone who tells me how to do my job," Durand said. "What's the plan of action?"

Eric noticed Gabriel going off to talk with Equinox. "Perhaps it would be best if you were here," he said.

"The hell I'm staying behind while you -- "

"Vigourie may try to get your officers on his side. It's best someone's here to shoot down his crap. Consider this bit an... 'independent investigation.'"

Durand crossed her arms. "Get back here first thing, all right?"

"Yeah," he said, "I will." He headed over to catch when Gabriel was saying. Once he found out where he was headed, however, he turned back. "On second thought," he said, "maybe an expert opinion will help here."

----

Meanwhile, at Jolene's house...

Jolene came downstairs to see Gabriel, and was caught off-guard when she saw Siobahn. "Is she one of your friends?"

[Ecalsneerg]

Siobhan smiled at the girl. "Yeah, I'm a friend, Gabriel asked me if I could help him with a couple of things, because I-" She paused for a second. Will this be rude? I think he'll understand... "I know quite a bit more about them than he does."

She tried to keep her tone comforting, knowing that the girl probably felt quite a bit vulnerable. "Would it be OK if we came in to talk to you for a little while? I know Gabriel's spoken to you already, and we're sorry about all this..." She left her sentence trailing off deliberately.

[KnightDisciple]

Gabriel nodded at Siobhan's words.

"Really I just want to finish up our earlier talk. Siobhan's got more experience than I do with certain concerns you may possess. She may be able to clarify any questions you have, as well as helping me get a better picture of things."

He gives the girl an easygoing smile.

"We just need a few more minutes, okay?"

[trollthumper]

"Oh, sure," Jolene said. "What is it you need?"

----

Meanwhile, back at the church...

Vigourie had finished discussing matters with the officers. "I am on my way out," he said, giving Eric the stink eye.

"Where to?" Eric asked. "Another coffee run?"

"I have some research to do," Vigourie said. "I have read of a similar case in Norway. I believe there may be some common motivations here. If you'll excuse me." Vigourie stormed past Eric, heading out into the town at large.

"Well, glad he's out of here," Durand said. "One of the boys just came up to me, saying we may want to look into The Den."

"The what?"

"It's a comics shop out in Leavensboro. They sell Dungeons and Dragons." She sighed. "This is gonna be a problem, isn't it."

"Longer he spends in town, the more the whispers spread. You said he was signed on?"

"The aldermen insisted."

"Maybe if there was a way to find him in breach of contract..."

[GranspearZX]

"The only thing they'd be guilty of at that comics shop is being criminally nerdy." As if he was one to talk. Being something of a gamer himself, Marcus smiled, clearly joking. "But... maybe there is a way I can find out what he's up to. Gonna need a little privacy for this one." He headed towards the broom closet and glanced at Agent Stone. "...try not to do anything drastic."

In he went, and he shut the door behind him, propping his book up on the wall after crouching. The broom closet had more than enough room for Marcus--it would have been uncomfortable in his bear form. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled a dark blue stick of chalk out of it. He started drawing on the tops of his boots; it was a deceptively simple if unusual design of a four-pointed star with a single circle in the center. The process didn't take long at all, and he glanced back at Eric, giving him a slight nod of his head. "Corpus umbra." The Shadow Rune on his boots flared to life, a faint violet light spilling from underneath the broom closet's door. Marcus's form flickered for a moment and then he started to turn transparent, until his entire form was simply gone, along with his book. The broom closet door swung open all on its own--and Marcus wasn't in it. A few moments later, the main door leading outside did the same.

[KnightDisciple]

Having stepped inside, Gabriel glanced around for Jolene's family, keeping his voice low.

"Earlier, when you were explaining exactly what William had helped you with, you mentioned "the others". You never did explain what you meant by that. Could you elaborate, please?"

He looked at her expectantly, but still not giving a hint at the frustration slowly building up inside.

'Does she know something about the demon? If she does...no. She's young, and possibly just a bit stupid because of that. I shouldn't let my temper get away from me.'

[trollthumper]

"Like I said, there's a... well, a really small coven out here. Three's a traditional number from what I understand, and to be honest, I don't think I'd get more than three without going to Pittsburgh." Jolene gave a weak smile. "There have been a few people online, too, but that's about it."

----

Meanwhile...

Marcus padded silently after Vigourie. It wasn't exactly the most interesting of trips -- down the street to the local coffee shop, where he ordered a medium regular and a scone. Over to the library, where he ended up checking for whatever strange tomes may lurk in the nonfiction section. But along the way, Marcus could've sworn that Vigourie kept looking over his shoulder, as if trying to find someone who might be following him.

[Ecalsneerg]

"Like I said, there's a... well, a really small coven out here. Three's a traditional number from what I understand, and to be honest, I don't think I'd get more than three without going to Pittsburgh." Jolene gave a weak smile. "There have been a few people online, too, but that's about it."

"Hmmm," pondered Equinox. This doesn't look like anything more than a normal case of young kid doesn't much understand the religion. "Out of interest, what sort of things does your coven do? Do you just get together and hang out, or do you... you know, different kinds of rites?"

If they don't know what they're doing, it's entirely possible they confused some book on demon binding with one related to real witchcraft. Which is currently my assumption.

[GranspearZX]

Marcus had to be especially careful; this sort of thing was so much easier in video games. Getting in and out of doors was tricky, but he managed. It didn't take long for him to catch on how best to keep himself hidden, and he kept a fair enough distance while out in the open that Vigourie wouldn't immediately catch on to him. Still... Vigourie kept looking around as if he were being followed.

It hadn't occurred to him that Vigourie might have powers of his own. That would, indeed, make him a colossal hypocrite--not surprising given the guy's winning personality. There was a chance, too, that someone besides him was following as well. Deciding it best to keep his distance, Marcus continued to tail him, keeping his eyes and ears open.

[KnightDisciple]

Gabriel was silent for several long moments as Siobhan spoke, still trying to keep himself in check. Thankfully, the full measure of his anger was rapidly fading.

"Who else is in this group? What are the names of the other two people? And how involved was William?"

After a moment's thought, he added another question.

"And do you know of any other...practitioners...in the area that might ascribe to other philosophical frameworks?"