[] Bone of the Father, part 2
Realign 14.12
It turns out it is not just Kurt who will be surprised by the new addition to the household. Samantha appears in the living room wearing workout clothes and covered in sweat only to find herself staring at an equally surprised Olivia. The two Guardian Beasts spend some time sniffing each other out, but after a few minutes Olivia loses the wide-eyed expression you are already thinking might be her normal reaction to something surprising or startling.
Perfect Storm chirps at you, interrupting your observations of Guardian Beasts in their natural environment. "Message from Jujak, Mistress."
What? Why would Paul be texting you? He obviously has Lacey's number, so it should not be because he has another victim who needs to be healed after a run in with the gangs. A moment's thought tells you exactly why an unpowered 'cape' might be calling a powerful mage for help, and you immediately open a screen.
It is not what you fear. Paul did not run into a villain who is currently hunting him through the city. In fact, it sounds like it is exactly the opposite. 'Might have found a drug den,' his message reads. 'Meet up to check it out?'
"Why didn't he just go look at it himself, then?" you mutter. "Sam! Get some normal clothes on. We've got work to do."
A few minutes later, you teleport yourself and Samantha to a rooftop at the intersection Paul gave as where to meet. You find yourself looking around for a moment before you remember that unlike most of the capes you deal with, he has no easy way to get up here. Instead you glance down and drop into the alley next to this building. "You just lounge around here?" you ask with a meaningful look at the dumpster upon which he sits.
"Not most of the time." Jujak hops off the lid of the dumpster and brushes off his butt and the back of his legs. "Thanks for coming, by the way. I wasn't really looking forward to going in there by myself."
"I take it you've seen some capes going in and out?"
"Not really?" He drops his head in thought before shaking his head. "No. A bunch of skinheads for sure, but I haven't seen any obvious capes."
That seems a little strange, and you tilt you head as you look harder at him. "Okay… So why do you need me? If you thought we were going to fight a couple of capes, I can understand, but with this?"
He pauses for a moment before giving you an answer. "Honestly? Because this isn't what I do. It's like I said last time. I'm not the guy who goes in guns blazing. I wasn't like that even before the Privateers split. Busting up meth labs or whatever is a lot different from protecting people from being attacked. Besides," he adds after another second to think, "if there are a bunch of gangers in there, they won't be scared off like they are in the streets. And if there is a cape here? Uh-uh. Then it's definitely not my scene."
You give him a long unimpressed look before sighing. "Whatever. Where is this place you want me to check out for you, anyway?"
The address turns out to be just a short distance away, and the three of you trudge down the street. With nothing else to do and a longer trip than this would be on your own, you have plenty of time to think. That thinking leads you to the oddity of Samantha's previous outfit, and you give her a sideways look. «Why did you look like you just came back from the gym, anyway? I know you don't go there.»
«No, I don't.»
Uh-huh. «In fact, you've been gone most of the last week.» Samantha gives you a nod but says nothing. If she will not follow up on the hint, you suppose you will just have to ask outright. «What are you up to?»
Her ears twitch, and her tail moves in what looks suspiciously like a wag. «I've been helping somebody get up to speed.»
«Up to speed on what?»
Finally she looks over at you and gives you a sly smile. "You'll see soon enough."
More telepathic pestering gets you nothing more in the way of information, and you drop the line of inquiry entirely when Jujak stops and points to a rundown building in a small group of apartments. "That's where I've seen them going."
"Looks like we should quit talking. We've got work to do, don't we?" teases Samantha.
You shoot her a glare before returning your gaze to the building. "You coming in at all, Jujak, or is this as far as you go?"
"I don't mind taking a look if the coast is clear," he tells you with a shrug.
You shake your head and float the rest of the way to the front door. A single Flare Shooter punches a hole through the lock, and you push the door open only to hear the beeping of an alarm system. Another bullet melts it to slag. "I guess they know we're here now."
The reason for the alarm is obvious from the darkness inside the building. Nobody's home. Perfect Storm adjusts your vision to let you see through the gloom, and you whistle when you see all the laboratory equipment and stacked blocks of drugs. This used to be a little house, but the walls have all been knocked out to make more room for the illicit operation. "Well, you were right. This is definitely a drug lab of some flavor. Now the question is what do we do with all this stuff?"
"Burn it?"
You can find little wrong with Samantha's suggestion, with one glaring exception. "We don't know much about the Wolfheads," you remind her. That is the gang you assume is running this lab considering how deep into their territory it is. "We think it's an Empire offshoot, but we don't know for sure. We don't know what capes they have on call. If we set fire to it now, by the time they get here they'll know there's no point in hanging around.
"Instead of doing that, it might be for the best if we stick around for a bit. I want to know just who we're dealing with."
"And if more capes show up?" she asks.
You shrug. "Then we set it all on fire on our way out."
"Sounds like you have a plan, then." Jujak gives you a little salute. "And on that note, I'm headed off. Cape fights are your arena, not mine. Good luck, and give 'em hell."
«How long are we going to wait here?» Samantha asks a few minutes later. The two of you are hidden within the drug lab, albeit on opposite sides of the building in order to give you total coverage over all the potential entrances. Exposed rafters make for excellent perches so you can stay out of sight, hidden as much as possible by the fact that you still have not turned on the lights. «Because I'm bored and sore, and I don't want to be here all night if nobody shows.»
If nobody was going to check on this place, they would not have installed an alarm system. Someone will come in. Still, Samantha has a point in that you do not know how long that will take. «Ten minutes,» you finally reply. That is a reasonable compromise. «If we don't see anybody in ten minutes, we'll light it up and get out of here—»
The door slowly creaks open.
You send the Guardian Beast a burst of smug amusement and watch as a single figure walks in. You know instantly that he is a cape from the simple fact that he seems to be carved from wood. A frown forms when you let your eyes sweep over him again. The villain has a bit of a pudgy appearance to him, and for some reason he looks vaguely familiar.
"H-Hello?" the cape calls out in a trembling voice. "Is anyone— I-I mean, you shouldn't be here. Leave, and I won't chase you."
«Get his attention,» you order Samantha. «Nothing about this sits right with me. If he's this scared, why in the world would he be by himself like this? Something's off.»
«Or maybe the Wolfheads don't have so many capes they can afford to turn one away, no matter how scared he is.» She could be right, you admit. While you think her words over, she calls out, "No, I don't think I will. This is my place now."
The wooden cape jumps startled at her reply, and he looks around at the dark room. His hand reaches for the wall, and at first you think he is going for the light switch. That would be the obvious reaction. What he does instead is feel around until his fingers find a bundle of exposed wires. A shimmer starts at his fingers and spreads up his arm, and in its wake wood is replaced by metal. Once his entire body has changed material, he takes another step into the room.
Does being made of steel instead of wood make that much of a difference that he has more confidence? Against your fire, both will give way sooner than later.
Now that he is deeper inside, he stands up straighter and taller. You want to slap yourself a moment later. He does not look taller because he of how he is standing. He looks taller because he is actually growing. Ten feet, then fifteen feet, until the top of his head brushes the rafters upon which you crouch.
Under other circumstances, you might think it nothing special that he has gotten bigger. Philadelphia already has a cape who gets stronger the taller he is in Jotunn, the leader of Winter Hill. Knowing what you do, that the Wolfheads have ties to the Empire, it takes on a different significance. There was not one but two capes who had a similar power:
Fenja and Menja, Kaiser's bodyguards and allegedly his main squeezes.
The cape takes a deep breath and lets it out. "I'm being nice right now. I have half a dozen people waiting outside. Other capes. You can leave now, or we'll all come after you."
That is obviously a lie, and Samantha must feel the same way. "I'll make you a counteroffer," she says in response. Her voice suddenly turns cold. "Run away, little boy. Before you get hurt."
"B-Big claim for someone hiding in the dark!"
He could not have given you a more perfect opportunity. Dropping from the rafter, you swing your staff and ignite the glowing scythe of Flare Blade.
"Shit!"
You raise your blade, but the cape is not attacking. He turns around and runs out the doorway, but as he has forgotten to shrink back down to normal size, what happens is that the top half of his body rips through the wall above the door.
"I didn't think I was that scary," you say after a second. Especially not to a cape whom you have never fought before.
"It was an impressively terrifying entrance," Samantha says, floating down into sight. "The scythe suddenly appearing out of the dark and lighting up only one side of you added a certain horror movie flair."
That is… a thing, you suppose. You drift over to the opening the cape made in the wall and peer out. Just as you halfway suspected, he is long gone. "Now there really isn't a point to staying here," you tell your friend with a sigh. "Storm, call the cops. They can take care of the cleanup. Let's just go home."
This wasn't really a fight, so no new spell. Better luck next time!
I also added Jujak's character sheet, such as it is, to the Allies tab.
