ic Disastrous Delinquency

[Brown Dynamite]

"The Daughter of the Seas retreats from no foe!"  Thaelia exclaimed loudly in response to Sam.  She played along with sneaking into the cemetery.  The dead had already been disturbed and their dealings were not.  But, the idea of a smash and grab was ludicrous to Thaelia.  There wasn't a lack of comprehension.  It was clearly the pragmatic course of action.  But the Atlantean princess refused to be considered a mere thief.  She was a warrior.  And warriors just smashed.

 

"Worry not the floor of wood shall easily be felled."  Puffing out her chest to fully express her confidence.  Extending her hand to reach for Sam's so that they may begin the teleportation.  Despite making clear her reservations with going along with the plan as spoken, she would make no attempt in actually stopping Sam from attempting things her way at first.   

Edited July 6, 2014 by HG Morrison

[Blue Rose]

As Thaelia offers her hand, Sam pulls her own away, her expression souring.

"Choosing not to fight and retreat are two different things, Lia." Her tone is heavier than the princess has ever heard it. "They haven't hurt anything but our wardrobes. They're not mad villains out to destroy the world. They did something stupid. Once we have the eye, what reason is there to fight them, unless it's because you want to hurt them? I'm pretty sure hurting people because you want to isn't a very cape thing to do. I'm not going to take you in with me unless you promise you won't start swinging unless it's absolutely necessary, and you'll cut out when we have the eye."

[Brown Dynamite]

"Sure you jest?  Do you think me some barbarian?  Refusing to retreat does not leave only inflicting harm upon our foes.  First the opportunity to demand their surrender.  Of both the relic and their selves.  Justice should be wrought, incarceration their fate."  Thaelia retorted her face not  budging.

 

"They ransacked a resting place."  That last bit was a bit .  The idea of a pet cemetery was still odd to her.  But, a cemetery's purpose was still clear. And their actions still ever disrespectful.  It was hard for the girl to fully fathom turning a blind eye to their actions simply because it was merely a minor inconvenience.  Viewing the wrongdoings from a black and white perspective.

[Blue Rose]

"Their most heinous crime was against our wardrobes," Sam counters. "But we turn 'em in, the law sees the magic, pegs them for supervillains, they get some obscene amount of time and leave prison branded, no chance of a normal life just 'cuz a bunch of folks on edge about stuff they don't understand are judging them off of fear instead of justice, law, or flat common sense."

Justice is one thing. The justice system is another, and Sam's never been one to trust that sort of thing. "If they were street thugs or something, it would be another story, but they're not, and I'm not turning them over. Let's just smash, grab, and go; then they're not a problem, and it's the best we can really do. Besides, I'm pretty sure the crazy witch will do a better job handling justice than the law."

[Brown Dynamite]

Thaelia's face turned into a pout.  She didn't share Sam's penchant for distrusting the justice system.  Let alone distrust in general.  If their most grievous crime was surely a minor one, then let the system judge as such.  Just allowing the pranksters to run free without consequence would do nothing to curve further such behavior.  And there was no reason to assume they would be misjudged.  Not that Thaelia was one to talk about acting without fear of consequence, her own privilege granting a bit of entitlement there.  She did, however, trust Sam.  Even while wholeheartedly disagreeing with her opinion.

 

They didn't actually know that the pranksters weren't street thugs.  At least as far as Thaelia was concerned.  Unless Sam's senses could distinguish that fact as well.  Which was entirely possible.  But apparently letting them go would be on the agenda.  "I am not without the virtue of mercy.  But know that if they stray not from the path of crime, the Daughter of the Seas shall return to properly put fear of repercussion in these fiends."

[Blue Rose]

Sam holds Thaelia's gaze for a hard moment, then softens and nods. "If they're worse than we've seen, and they have to go down, then I'll help you," she accepts. She's not a fan of the legal system, but sometimes, you need the nuclear option.

She extends her hand once more, ready to jump. "I haven't picked out the signal yet. It'll be a convenience thing, but you'll know it when you see it. If you can, try and call up a bit of Power and hold it there; I think I can pin on that and send word through that." Not that she'd ever tried. She rarely works with other magic-users, except for Cerys and her magic sword, and she'd never needed that trick with her. Still, worth a shot.

And then, a cold blackness envelopes the pair. A moment of absolute nothingness before they reemerge. No sight, no sound, no smell. Just the cold, broken only by the touch of a human hand until the world returns.

[Brown Dynamite]

GM

 

It was more difficult than usual, but Kit seemingly honed in without issue to their destination.  Slipping through the shadows the air made it up to the attic without so much as a peep.  A lavender tinted foul smelling miasma seeped through the cracks off the wooden floor.  It smelled like an odd mixture of formaldehyde and rancid meat.  To Kit there was a sensation of deja vu.  The magical energies swirling about reminiscent as if they had ported to the pet cemetery again.

 

The attic was cramped in its design.  Leaving Thaelia having to crouch forward.  And making it even harder for both  to stay upright in the enclosed space.  Around them there was a scuttling noise.  As if there was a small creature running around the attic.  A small hole on the edge of the left wall giving up the possibility of a squirrel or other small rodent from the outside.  There were spider webs in the thick of the entire space.  Further obscuring one's vision further when coupled with the vapor rising from below.

[Blue Rose]

A shiver runs down Sam's spine as they appear in the attic. Should have expected this. No control of the obscenely powerful artifact means wild magic doing weird stuff. And all this dust... but no point in grumping about cleanliness. "Wait here," she whispers to Thaelia, "And look out for... I don't know, zombie raccoons or something. But don't get loud." There's probably something scurrying about up here by the sound of it, but right now, priority goes to an in-and-out, not to pest control.

So, she sets out on her mission. She veils herself, excluding Thaelia from the enchantment, and makes her way down to scout around for the mark.

[Brown Dynamite]

Thaelia complied with Sam's request without raising a complaint of her own.  Not quite sure what a raccoon was.  She kept her guard up in case it was some sort of ferocious beast.  All the while maintaining a perfectly still air about her.  Which wasn't easy for the very vocal teen.  But they were trying to be sneaky.  Trying to keep quiet even when Sam was fully out of her view.

 

The Atlantean's head scanned around the room every so often.  She wasn't scared. Zombies were already dead.  It gave very little to be afraid of.  At least in Thaelia's odd sense of reasoning.  Someone else might have found that as a reason to compound that fear further.  So there the demigoddess stood.  Fist at the ready to face the mysterious raccoons as silently as she could.

[Brown Dynamite]

GM

 

The inside of the house was dusty and filled with more than its share of spider webs.  All the furniture seemed to have cloth tapered over.  And the wind made loose pieces of wood and floorboard creak loudly.  All in all, it wasn't the sort of place an average teen would spend an afternoon.

 

Which made the two teenagers that Sam caught in her line of sight on the floor below all the more notable.  Looking from the staircase above she was able to make a few sparse details.  They were the burly sort, their greek letters on their shirts made it obvious that they belonged to a local fraternity.  Alpha Epsilon Omega.  The smell couldn't be attributed to a night of binge drinking or the sort.  One was a tall male of asian descent.  The other more stout and short with freckles and red hair.

 

Still they were the most welcoming view of the floor below.  There was a chandelier hanging overhead, and the room seemed to be a study of sorts.  The inside resembled a church.  With pews and seats strung all about.  All filled with what seemed to be stuffed animals.  The altar sitting directly dead center.  Directly in front of the two teens.  There seemed to be what could only be described as a mummified corpse with its hand stretched out directly in front of the teens.  Its hand clutching tightly onto the eye.

 

The fumes and miasma funneling directly out of the corpse's mouth.  A sensation of dark magic thickening in the air with each passing second.  The teens standing there apparently unaware, each with a glazed over look, that could have otherwise been attributed to a night of heavy drinking.

[Blue Rose]

Wow. Those two are out of it. Is the cat in control now?

Funky juju on these guys... whatever they're messing with, they have zero control over it.

Sam slips on her gloves, just to be safe, and goes over to the nearest frat boy, keeping cover from both him and the cat as best she can, despite her veil. Some magic can counter magic, and magic eyes would probably by good at that.

She focuses her sense on the guy as best she can, trying to peg the juju, and with a trained, feather-light touch, tries to get him clean. Or as clean as she can manage. Wouldn't want zombie dudes coming after them after the grab, after all.

[Brown Dynamite]

GM

 

There was no question that Sam was quick with her hands.  But sometimes it just wasn't one's night.  Especially when on that night a malevolent entity locks eyes with you.  Making direct eye contact with the mummified corpse ended with Sam being flooded by a sensation of fear and dread.  Her experience with the worst of the worst when it came to demons allowing her to steel her heart against the intimidating magic.

 

The dazed frat boys on the other hand weren't so lucky.  Both suddenly began screaming loudly, with neither actually taking the time to move away from their position.  Clearly aware enough to feel the sensation of terror creeping its way into their hearts.   But not so cognizant as to figure out the best course of action to escape the despair.

 

The mummy's face began to contort with joy.  Taking delight in their pain and squeezing the eye all the tighter.

[Blue Rose]

Well, crap. This isn't working.

Time for plan B.

"THE JIG'S UP!" Sam hollers, loud enough to be heard all the way up in the attic. "TIME FOR THE SMASHING!"

Some backup would really be handy right about now.

She takes up a defensive posture, ready to dodge whatever comes her way while waiting those few precious seconds for Thaelia to come bursting through the ceiling. Unfortunately, she has no idea if the frat boys are about to rush her, or whether they're too busy wetting themselves, nor if zombie cat is about to start shooting her with eye lasers. Though honestly, eye lasers are probably a best case scenario from this thing.

[Brown Dynamite]

GM

 

The cowering frat boys actively crawled towards the being that had frightened them.  Their bodies actively shivering as they moved.  Each of the boys grabbed onto the arm not clutching the eye.  The foul festering smell of death growing more fierce as they opened their mouth.  An illicit groan escaping each of their lips.

 

They somehow looked worse for the wear than when Sam tried to steal whatever trinkets were keeping them subject to the demon's will.  The color fading away from their flesh.  Leaving them almost as pale as the corpse in front of them.  At least as the corpse looked moments ago.  The mummy for its part was beginning to show more signs of life after its fear magic was used.  Clutching just as tightly to the eye as before.

[Brown Dynamite]

As soon as Thaelia heard the call from Sam, she raised her fist and smashed through the floorboards.  Gleefully falling straight down into the fray.  The loud crashing noise of her body smashing through a set of pews below.  Wood splintered all about leaving the immediate area below her in ruins.  Immediately raising a confused brow at just exactly what was going on in front of her.  

 

The scene didn't exactly look set up for Sam's smash and grab plan.  "Friend, the Glamazon wishes not to doubt thy valiant plan.  But, gods, what in the name of Zeus has happened?"  From beginning to end Thaelia had forgone the remain silent part of the plan, which she expected came with the loud alternative.

[Brown Dynamite]

GM

 

The mummy open its lips the sound of flesh tearing following son after.  It opened its mouth, sticking its tongue out soon after.  There wasn't any saliva inside the cavity.  Instead the tongue flopped around completely dry.  Pieces of the muscle began to crack and blister.  Its eyes glowing yellow.  

 

The creature leaned in towards the faces of the frat boys.  It looked for a moment as if the mummy was about to kiss one of the frat boys.  Instead it stopped a few centimeters away from the boys' lips.  Releasing a plume of smoke from its mouth.  A large bilious stream flowing out, and into their eagerly waiting mouths.

 

The bodies of the boys convulsed where they stood.  Eyes glowing yellow, yet somehow their expression remained somewhat dazed.  With their pale form, each would give a hungering look towards the girls.  Clearly preparing to carry out some sort of order.

[Blue Rose]

Now there's a welcome exploding ceiling for once. Good. Now this should go better.

First, to explain the situation to Thaelia. "Evil kitty!" she shouts, pointing at the mummy cat. "Smash evil kitty!"

There we go. That should bring her dear friend up to speed enough to participate in the festivities. Maybe it's a bit brusque, but hey, not exactly time for poetry here.

She raises her hands into the air, calling forth her bluish, ghostly fox fire. Hellfire, really. Anathema. The opposite of all that is. Including the soul. Particularly painful to evil spirits. Though this isn't a nice, tight little ball. No, it's a cloud of little motes, and as she flings them forward, they fan out like shot, spreading wide. While not potent enough to do any real damage, they're certainly enough to cause a lot of pain. To distract, to surprise, to frighten. To give Thaelia an opening to punch something really, really hard.

[Brown Dynamite]

GM

 

One of the Frat Boy's sauntered over to Glamazon.  Screeching out in a hellish voiced.  Purple/bluish flames of hellfire coupled with the foul stench of whiskey spewed forth.  But Thaelia rolled out of the way.  The flames instead burning the ground.  The frat boy's glossed over look in his eyes showed not a single ounce of concern upon missing.  As if he were a zombie possessed.

 

At the same time the other frat boy moved in concert.  With the same sort of disconnected efficiency he reached out to punch Sam right in the face.  It wasn't a punch from a martial artist of any sort.  It was schoolyard brawling and nothing more.  The problem as Sam found out, likely distracted by summoning her own Hellfire, the strength of his blow was mightier than his build could suggest.  Likely an effect of whatever trance they were in.

 

Her head flew back, but Sam remained upright.  Having diverted most of the damage by rolling with the blow at the moment of impact.

[Brown Dynamite]

Sam's explanation was short, succinct, and perfect as far as Thaelia was concerned.  "Then the Daughter of the Seas shall present a most generous gift to the feline most malignant."  Thaelia dove forward having avoided the stream of hellfire with her earlier movement.  Seeking to capitalize on the distraction provided by Kit.

 

She wasn't called the Glamazon merely for her choice in armored toga fashion.  No, the Atlantean was a warrior through and through.  Cupping both fists together she moved in with reckless abandon jumping through the explosive cloud of motes.  Hammering both her fists into the face of the mummified demon.  

 

There was a screech a hiss and an odd tremor.  But the mummy's face began to crack.  The eye glowed in response signifying some magic would be afoot.  But, the creature was clearly out of it.

[Blue Rose]

Good.  Thaelia's going for the...

 

Hm?

 

WHAM!

 

A fist greets Sam square on the chin, sending her flying, but she rolls with it, getting back on her feet.  Well.  That was... abnormal.  But this guy isn't responsible for what he does while brainwashed by a psychic undead demon kitty, so cutting loose the hellfire isn't exactly kosher.  Instead, she gets light on her feet while digging into the boy's mind, boring right past the haze to try and just turn his more aggressive instincts... off.  Hard to be violent when you just had all motivation cut off.

 

The important question is, how long before Thaelia forgets the mark and gets caught up in the scrap?  Best to get rid of the temptation fast.

[Brown Dynamite]

GM

 

The sheer amount of terror flooding the boy's mind seemed to act as a buffer.  Even with the Demon currently reeling in pain the residual effect of its emotional manipulation remained.  Dampening Kit's attempt at calming him.  Not that the glazed over look in his eyes showed much concern with the state of affairs.

 

Like a well oiled machined they moved to guard the master whose thrall they served under.  The thinner of the two youths would spray out flames towards the Glamazon.  In the aim of directing her directly towards his ally as the other youth charged forward.  Unfortunately, having to avoid frying his friend, and the Atlantean's eagerness to oblige made his help a nonfactor in the assault.  Rearing back the bulkier boy tried flailing his arm forward to punch Thaelia in the face.

 

The punch was powerful, as Kit was no doubt familiar.  But the complete lack of form allowed for Thaelia to casually smack the top the boy's wrist downwards.  Creating a small hole in the ground where his fist struck.

[Brown Dynamite]

Thaelia stepped back.  She really wasn't aiming to hurt the boys if she could help it.  An while she would have preferred to showcase what it meant when your father was the Earth Shaker.  Stomping down on the ground in such an enclosed area also meant Sam would have had to.  So she squared her body planting both feet firmly on the ground.  "Let the Daughter of the Seas demonstrate how one throws their strength around."

 

Clapping both hands together she she would form a shockwave.  Directed squarely on her foes in front of her with the aim of trying to get to the "evil kitty" while inflicting the least amount of harm.  The boys were both knocked backwards.  Crashing headfirst into one another.  The thinner boy was slower to rise back up than his partner.  Clearly more thrown by the attack than he.

 

Unfortunately, the Fear Demon was less affected by the assault.  Despite the damage it had taken thus far.  It was still made of fearsome stuff.  Completely ignoring Thaelia's hand made shockwave.

[Blue Rose]

Waves of fear wash over Sam as the fight continues.  This unnatural... thing!  It's so... it's so...

 

So... what?

 

It's a barely moving dead cat with a bit of and a couple frat boys.  She survived worse when she was just a kid.  This fear... it's artificial.  Some sort of fear spirit?  Or demon?  Then... maybe that's how it's controlling the boys?

 

"Please, stop," Sam says, discarding her fighting stance, trying to look and sound nonthreatening.  "Why are you angry?  No one's trying to hurt you."  These people are obviously out of touch with reality.  Her words may not even be getting through to them, but her tone should.  And hopefully, there are limits to how far weird juju can distort her manner and tone into something threatening or terrifying.

 

Of course, it's always best to stack the deck, and Sam reaches into their heads to start calming things, not directly fighting the foul magic but going for a bit of an edge.

[Brown Dynamite]

GM

 

 The creature weakened as the girls resisted the temptation to cave to the fear.  Sam through the frightful experiences of her past.  Glamazon through her indomitable will.  Neither buckled under the fear lingering in the air.  Instead, the demonic feline shriveled up.  Kit could sense an outflux of a large magical force evaporating for a lack of a better term.  The large magical presence from the eye continue to outshine the fear demon.  But now it was more notable.

 

The boys looked dazed when the the girl with the nimble hands spoke to them.  Sam's words cut through the fog of confusion.  Perhaps it was because of the demon's weakening.  But regardless of the reason, in that moment both of the jocks snapped back to attention.  Their skin flush with life even if just the faintest bit.

 

"Wha?"  The larger boy coughed out.  "Whoa...this doesn't look like the frat house.  How much did we drink?"

[Blue Rose]

Sam slips between the boys while their backs are turned to the demon cat, and she places a steadying hand on their shoulders, escorting them out. "I didn't catch the details, but I think you started at too much, then the tequila happened. We should get you some air. Then see about getting you a ride."

She throws Thaelia a glance, wondering if this is a good idea. But this thing seems to feed on fear. The girls beat its power, so if she can get the boys out, the creature should be rendered impotent and easily smashed the old fashioned way. If she just leaves them be, though? They might turn back into food.

So, she gives her friend a nod, having faith she can handle what has to happen next while she gets the civilians safe.