Psychics and Tigers and Bears... Oh My! (IC)

[GranspearZX]

The outburst surprised Marcus. It took him a second to realize that it was her thoughts. If anything, he was more worried about the way Elias recoiled, pulling away from him and landing flat on his behind. "Hey, are you alright?" The blank stare didn't help, and he interposed himself between Elias and the woman so that he'd focus on him instead. The whole situation made him nervous--a mentally adept mercenary, and a bestial test subject. It all seemed way more familiar than the shapeshifting magic-user would have liked.

He had to concentrate, though, both for his sake and Elias's. Never mind the car; he was in control now, and he allowed himself to return to his bear form, confident that the blinding rage wasn't going to force the Beast Rune to escalate things further. He held out a hand to Elias to help him up. "Nothing about who she works for, huh. That's okay... We ought to do something with these two. Drop 'em off at the nearest police station, maybe?"

This was new to him. He was far too used to dealing with threats that the police weren't equipped to deal with--extradimentional dream-eaters, demons... that was easy compared to how awkward this felt. "If nothing else, we should get this guy some help. Who knows what they did to him... Maybe it can be reversed."

[TheAbsurdist]

He kept staring at the woman, looking through Arcturus. "Changed his genetic structure. You didn't hurt her too much, just unconscious." He was reluctant in grabbing Marcus' hand, his own hovering a bit, before finally grasping it and pulling himself up again the strength of the large boy. "She is from New Freedom." He said it with a shiver. Not that he knew her, she was older than him, easily a decade older him. "Whoever purchased her had a good bit of money to bandy out." Looking up at Marcus' face finally. "There will be transponders on them both..." He pulled out his cellphone as he looked back to the tigerman. "I have a name, Horatio, but wading through an unconscious mind is difficult, like walking waistdeep in snow in a blizzard. Worse if they are trained." He moved back to her, and unbuckled the utility belt from her, and pulled it off of her, throwing it onto the hood of the car, and then pulling the pistols out of her shoulder holsters and putting them on the hood of the car.

[GranspearZX]

"Genetic... okay."

Arcturus couldn't help but feel sorry for the guy. It took him years to cope with the Beast Rune fully. He had a lot of support, though; he could only hope the tigerman had the same. What worried him more was the transponders that were supposedly on them; while Elias disarmed the woman, Arcturus searched the other guy. The last thing Arc wanted was for this guy to be tracked. He was a victim, after all.

"I wanna know who she works for. Wonder if I can make her tell." Arcturus straightened up a little bit. In his bear form, he was over eight feet tall and kicked a car over like it weighed nothing. The implications were obvious. He cracked his knuckles and flashed a sharp-toothed grin, looming over the mercenary. "I won't even get mad over the 'furry' comment."

[TheAbsurdist]

There was a beat, and then he drew a long intake of breath. "Horatio. I am... familiar with the name. And the face. I... I recall my mother having worked for him before." The memory wasn't dim, it just wasn't very informative, he hadn't been paying attention, but the face... that was the same. "Smart enough to offer good money and make deposits before he gets them. Enough to make someone willing to trust a guy who isn't giving too much information. And has a lot of tech. Not my field. That is Oleander," said as he gestured to the woman as he stood up, before he folded his arms over his chest and he looked away.

"He is a weapons dealer. I think. He pays people to test these things." Shaking his head slowly, "Not enough to help."

[GranspearZX]

"Weapons dealer... mm. I guess that includes human weapons too." The bear's eyebrows furrowed in thought. "I don't suppose you know how to find this Horatio?"

Normally, this wasn't exactly Arcturus's line of expertise. Despite most people being convinced that he was simply a bruiser in a fursuit, Arcturus was, in fact, a competent magic-user. He often preferred to think rather than fight--mostly because it assured that he was always in control at all times. Nevertheless, there were occasions where kicking a door in and sending a baddie to jail was just plain necessary. This seemed to be one of those times.

[TheAbsurdist]

"Last time..." His voice drifted away for a moment as he worked to recall. "No, I don't. She doesn't know either. She has a location, a place in Port Regal, where she meets him. But it's just that. We can try it, but I don't expect anything." Taking the woman's gadget belt off the car, seeing no reason to leave it. "Up to you if we go after... I wasn't the one getting hit. She has fear of him, and I know he made my mother uncomfortable." Saying it simply as he looked up at him. "Either way we wait for the cops, then?"

[GranspearZX]

"Well we can't exactly let him keep experimenting on people." Arcturus nodded, scratching at his muzzle. He wasn't entirely sure what to expect, but even without directly saying so, Elias made Horatio sound pretty dangerous. The last time he went after someone that formidable by himself, it didn't exactly end well. "We'll wait for the cops for now, but... I wanna check this meeting place out. We don't necessarily have to do anything once we get there..."

The idea of tailing him and shutting down his operation was an acceptable alternative; after all, there was nothing preventing some other psycho from picking up the pieces if Horatio went to jail.

[TheAbsurdist]

Slowly he nodded at Arcturus' words. "Agreed. How are we gonna get there?" As he adjusted the contents of her tool kit. The training from his mother was kicking in, not letting him just leave the things there, even if he wasn't proficient in their use. It was a resource that could be used later, taking it would encumber. The equation was simple. Elegant. Unable to fly himself, this posed a small problem. Of course, they could go back to normal and hoof it there. As Elias didn't always pack his costume, and had been working on making ones that blended well into his current environment.

[GranspearZX]

"I guess it depends on how long we've got."

Arcturus couldn't fly either, but that didn't necessarily mean that it was something beyond his means. His better options would take time, and his quickest would leave him considerably tired out afterward. He didn't want to take that risk. "I could get us back to school pretty quickly if... ah... well, I'd have to carry you. You're good with heights, right?"

[TheAbsurdist]

"Not particularly. If you drop me the answer might be different tomorrow. And I promise to never speak of this." He said it as he looked up at the ursineform teen next to him. He folded his arms across his chest for a moment, and then looked around. "Let's go. I don't expect us to find anything. But it is worth a shot. Worst case scenario we might get some clues." He didn't really say the worst case scenario, seemed to him that saying those kinds of things out loud invited them. And thus far what he knew of Horatio, the man, was that he worked through intermediaries, and indirectly. Making it harder to pin an actual crime on him.

[GranspearZX]

"Heh. Don't worry, I won't drop you." As the police finally pulled into the area, he waited until everything was sorted out and the two were securely in custody. He deftly avoided questions about what happened to the car, deciding it was probably best not to complicate matters. Arcturus turned around and crouched, thumbing at his back. "Just put your arms around my neck. And don't let go."

With a brief running start, the big bear mystic moved like Errant's added weight meant nothing. He kept it relatively slow and tame though; Arc had never actually taken on passengers, and the last thing he wanted was to give Errant some kind of complex.

[TheAbsurdist]

"I am not worried." He moved, well scrambled really, up onto the massive Arcturus. His arms sort of around his neck then, fingers dug into the fur, his eyes closed, as he hung onto Arcturus. "Will take more than this to really scare me." Managing to say it without a hint of an ego, something he had apparently mastered to make proclamations that to others would be boasts, but he said them so matter of factly as to have seemingly no attachment to them at all. Either way Elias did cling to the ursine mystic, doing his best to just accept what was happening, and not ponder too much on what was happening.

[GranspearZX]

Arcturus had only had to carry a few people before. It wasn't difficult, and in his bear form, he was certainly capable of carrying more than one person. Running and jumping, though, would certainly take some effort and concentration; as such, he didn't really have a lot to say. Up close, Elias could see the Beast Rune up close. It was a slightly discolored patch of gray in his furry back, but every now and again, it would glow red.

By the time they'd reached Port Regal, Arcturus's speed was significantly reduced. He stopped, breathing heavily, more from the distance than the weight he was carrying. "...not doin' that again..."

[TheAbsurdist]

Which was fine by Elias. Silence wasn't something that overly bothered, when they landed, and he slid off of his back and stepped away from him. "1187 Stephens." Glancing to him, and resting his hands on his hips, as he looked around trying to get his bearings. "Not that I know this place that well."

He moved from him then, and stopping a moment, as he looked around, frowning a little bit.

[GranspearZX]

"...eh?" Arcturus straightened up a little. Still in bear form, he looked around. "I don't get out this way much, so we're gonna have to ask for directions."

His form changed almost instantly, magic keeping his clothes intact. Marcus still seemed a little fatigued from the trip but he was rapidly improving as he picked a direction. He headed for the first person he saw--it was better that he not be in bear form, as most people focused on the teeth and the claws rather than his words. Including himself.

"Excuse me... can you tell us where Stephens Street is?"

[TheAbsurdist]

The first person Arturus saw was a middle aged man, who looked at him in a bit of a confusion. "Eh? Oh, um... like five blocks that way, were kinda parallel to it." He waved an arm to the south. The guy looked at him for a moment longer and then shrugged and moved away.

"That is useful." Elias whistled softly, in response to Arc changing form so quickly. And with the directions, he moved with him, waiting, if somewhat anxiously for Arc, before he moved with him, heading down the street and going towards Stephens, it was clear he was reining himself in, if somewhat admirably.

[GranspearZX]

"It's not always all roses, but... yeah. It comes in handy."

 

Marcus started walking, his pace a bit slower than usual. Despite being in bear form before, his legs ached from the travel across the city. It wasn't something he normally did after all, least of all with a passenger in tow. His entire lower body felt heavy, and he wouldn't have minded sitting down for a while. On top of that, he was still hungry, which only made the Beast Rune that much more agitated.

 

He slowed to a near halt when they finally got to Stephens Street, glancing around for a few seconds before looking back at Elias. "So what's this guy look like?"

[TheAbsurdist]

Elias had a little bit more spring in his step, but he wasn't dressed up in a costume, though his hood was pulled down his face tightly, and after a few moments, he fished something out of his pocket and offered it up to Marcus.  A protein bar.  "Here.  I am still good for a little bit longer.  You're bigger."  The only thing really visible on his face was his mouth, and he had demonstrated his ability to navigate without sight, so he was able to do this easily.  Somewhat.

 

"Horatio is approximately six feet tall, and about one hundred and eighty, I would guess.  Blonde hair, generally slicked back, he would likely be in his fourties.  I think.  He has a face that is hard to place.  Has brown eyes, so he might be bleaching his hair.  I didn't notice if it was prior, and I saw him once.  Five years ago.  Also, he likes peppermint candies.  And dresses in a discrete fashion."

[GranspearZX]

"...thanks."

 

The thanks was more for the protein bar than anything else; Marcus wasn't starving but food had definitely been on his mind. "You sure you're okay?"

 

As they walked, he broke half of the protein bar off to eat it. The description wasn't as helpful as he would've liked, but he was it did give him a general enough image to look out for. A vague location and a vague description... Marcus had done fine with less. "Well, he cant have changed that much in five years..."

 

He wasn't sure how suspicious two teenagers peering around corners looked, but Marcus tried to keep as inconspicuous as possible as he moved, keeping in mind that distance was actually a good thing in this case--he wasn't sure if Elias would be recognized, after all...

[TheAbsurdist]

"He looks like a criminal mastermind when you know that he is.  Trust me."  The way he said those last two words brooked no doubt, whatsoever, as to what he said.  Turning a little bit, he looked to Marcus briefly.  "I am fine, I am just paying attention to everything I can...  My mother had me do starvation drills, and I have a few more protein bars if needed.  She believed in preparedness."

 

A frown on his face as he moved, a little bit more casually, though still checking his 6 a lot.

[GranspearZX]

"Starvation drills? ..wow." Marcus stopped and stared at Elias for a moment. His troubles, at least, were largely internal. He couldn't even say he had a bad relationship with his parents; all in all, he was well adjusted apart from the magic-borne voice in his head subtly influencing his actions, and even then he couldn't say how much of it was the Beast Rune. Still, Elias's paranoia and the revelation of his unusual relationship with his mother didn't make him trust Elias any less.

 

"Can't say my mom was anything like that. She just... disappeared. Shortly before my dad was arrested by AEGIS agents." On my birthday, no less. He was still understandably bitter. He wasn't much for authority, but his father wanted him to do the right thing and use the Beast Rune for good things--especially since Marcus could control its urges when Richard had lost that battle with it.

 

With Elias watching their backs, Marcus kept his eyes mostly forward, moving slowly so he wouldn't miss anything or anyone important.

[TheAbsurdist]

Elias stared back at Marcus before responding, his expression showing mild surprise.  "Among other things.  People do strange things out of concern for another.  Or concern for oneself masked as concern for another, these things bleed together more than you want to think."  They moved towards their destination, Elias still kept checking his six, on reflex it seemed.  

 

"There would have been no point for her to have stayed.  She would have been arrested as well, and your current situation would be largely the same.  Then you would have still been angry with her, and she would be in jail.  Sometimes what choices we have available to us are really just shades of mitigating problems.  I am not excusing her actions."  A frown on his face as he reached out and put a hand on Marcus' shoulder.  "We're here."  Nodding towards the building to their right, the squat brick threestory loomed over them with a portentous scowl.

[GranspearZX]

"....mmm." Marcus merely grunted at the comments Elias made. He didn't find fault with anything he said, really, but he wasn't sure how to immediately respond. He was quickly starting to realize that Elias had a better grip on reality than most people he'd ever met, social shortcomings notwithstanding. Then again, who didn't have those?

 

And where exactly is.... here?

 

Marcus looked up at the building. It was hardly inviting, and he didn't exactly see him or Elias sneaking inside. That really wasn't the point of their trip, and he REALLY hoped that wouldn't be necessary. Instead, he looked across the street to find a decent vantage point from which to view the building's front, should their quarry decide to show his face.

 

"Gonna guess that direct confrontation is an outright bad idea," he mused, mostly to himself.

[TheAbsurdist]

Elias remained paused, his head canted to the side like a dog would when it was confronted with something confusing.  Then he pulled out the keyring he had pocketed off of the unconscious mercenary earlier.  Never seeming to acknowledge that what he said about Marcus' mother was profound or anything other than common knowledge.  The blessing of being of telepathic and empathic was the assumption that other people had the same read, like when a person with sight would nod along to keep a conversation with a blind person going, even though it was a visual and therefor useless cue.  Plus, he seemed so dispassionate about it, that there was not a hint of judgement.  It was merely, to him, an assessment, one that could be adapted and modified as was needed later.

 

"Never ideal, but we must use what we have."  And he went to the front door, going through the keys, and trying them, until he had the right one.  And then he shouldered open the door, gently.

[GranspearZX]

That's easy for you to say...

 

Marcus's brow furrowed a little bit as Elias fumbled with the keys. He wasn't the most stealthy person in the world--moreso now than he was in his bear form at least--but he still favored a direct approach to most things. He also recognized the many problems said approach often caused, and he still wasn't entirely sure what he was getting himself into. He'd already decided that now wasn't the time for hesitation or indecision.

 

Following Elias inside, he gently pushed the door closed behind him. For once, he found himself wishing he'd advanced enough in his training to use his ursine senses outside of his bear form, and he sincerely doubted he'd catch a whiff of anything magical anywhere in the area. Marcus didn't dare say anything either, certain someone would hear him and all hell would break loose.