Calgary, Alberta - Canada

[SiphonTalvesh]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

"Alright, be back in just a few moments."


Henry headed out the door, and hadn't been gone for very long when there was a faint groan from Melissa.


After a moment, she sat up, staring at the place around her.

"What the ... where the hell am I?"


She frantically sat up, groaning lightly as she did, looking around until she spotted Alec.

"Alec? What's ... what's going on? Please tell me we're not hostages?"




As the ghoul moved, he could hear a small commotion from in front of him. It seemed his quarry and the human had met, and from the sounds of it, this wasn't a pleasant convo.

As he moved around the corner, he saw the back of a Cabal soldier. Before he could say or do anything, the soldier fired once with his rifle, and at the same time there was a screech in the air as some form of energy weapon hit the soldier. Instead of stunning him though, he literally screamed as his body vaporized, leaving not even his gun left.


However, as he peeked around the corner, he could see the soldier had not missed his mark either. On the ground lay a male humanoid, who was bleeding badly. Clearly he wasn't human given the fact his blood was orange in color. From the ragged gasping, and the slight whistle every time he did, the ghoul could guess the soldier had hit him in whatever passed for his lung. He couldn't be sure for this guy, but for a human, it was a mortal wound.




After a long moment of darkness, Abby appeared in a large room, where Clara and Ashley had been joined by a third woman. This one had ... snakes for hair. She smiled warmly at Abby before speaking.

"Welcome to Calgary. My name is Miranda, can I get you anything?"


John for his part, had stepped back now and was already moving out one door. Clearly whatever trip he'd been talking about was happening quickly, and he didn't have much time.

 

[Bartnum]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

((From now on, Abby speaks in Blue.))

"Oh, hey. No, we're not. We are however, in Canada and surrounded by magical people."


Abby looks herself over to make sure she isn't turning to stone when the snake-woman appears.

"Uh, hi. I'm Abby. No thanks, I'm alright. So... this is the place, then."

 

[cross_grave]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

'So it was a Cabal soldier after all...' Przemek noted as he watched the man disappear in a powerful discharge. He really wondered what kind of hand-held device could generate enough power to vaporize a human body. The ghoul knew how hard it was to burn the damn thing using conventional methods. This barely left any trace of the victim remaining. However, it seemed that the mysterious abnormal - he had to be some kind of abnormal - was out of luck as well. From the looks and sound of things, he was most likely a goner, altough... Perhaps his kind could survive lung shots if they recieved medical help. First, however, the ghoul had to check whether he could be approached without provoking retaliation. Przemek left his cover, slowly approaching the wounded man, trying to look as calm and unthreatening as possible, though his nigh-perpetual frown and slight tension - hey, he needed to be ready to dodge, just in case - could have ruined the effect a bit.

 

[SiphonTalvesh]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

((Finally time to myself))


As the ghoul approached, the man semi sat up, weapon pointed at him, however he did not fire. Instead he seemed to observe the ghoul for a moment, and then suddenly a voice ... no wait, his lips weren't moving, yet he could still hear him.

"Don't come any closer. Who are you and what do you want??"


It might take the ghoul a moment to realize, although he was likely dying, the abnormal still could communicate, although it seemed he was doing so with a limited form of telepathic projection, which might lead him to wonder how it compared with Sally.




Miranda tilted her head slightly, then realized Abby was referring to the Sanctuary as 'the place'.

"Yes. If you have any questions that I can answer, feel free to ask them. However, one moment. Clara, Ashley? You should go and speak with Helen now, things need to move quickly if we're going to have a chance to stop the Lazarus outbreak."

Ashley and Clara both nodded before Clara turned to Abby.

"We'll be back as soon as we can, alright? May take a little while though."




Melissa stared blankly at Alec before she replied.

"Wait ... you mean that soldier guy wasn't lying when he was telling me there were people with ... inhuman abilities? Are we ... safe?"

She was very definitely scared, but for the moment she wasn't panicking yet. However, that might change if Henry walked in with stuff she didn't recognize soon.

 

[cross_grave]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

Przemek stopped, suprised. He did not expect the man to be able to move that much. Perhaps his species was sturdier than he thought. Then again, the ghoul had to remember that certain abnormals - like himself - were absurdly durable. Still, this was not the time to go off at a tangent. "I don't want to harm you." Well, as far as a ghoul might wish to avoid harming someone - which boiled down to 'No reason to kill, why bother?' or something along those lines. "I was just trying to find out what's going on here. The guy who shot you was one of my enemies, so I'm not with those bastards." A hint of anger appeared in the ghoul's voice at the mention of Cabal, but it disappeared just as quickly. 'Come on, be nice now, no need to go postal...' "I'm... Well..." Przemek paused for a bit. He wasn't sure how to say who or what he was. "You could say I work for an organization that's trying to save creatures that aren't exactly, well, normal, and provide a place to live for those that are in danger." His expression got a little grim. "I'm one of those creatures they've helped. I realize you might have no reason to trust me, but I can help you."

 

[SiphonTalvesh]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

The man regarded him for a moment, before he replied.


"I believe you speak the truth, however there is nothing you can do to help me. This wound will kill me very soon, and your medical technology cannot save me, nor will I survive to reach my own people. We ... we know of your network, I believe you call it the Sanctuary? Someday ... you will meet my people, but that day where you discover what we have ... that day is not today. I regret that I must turn you away, however ... if you have been watching as I suspect you have been, then you know humans are not ready to behold our advanced nature. The items I carry ... I cannot allow them to fall into the hands of humans or any surface dwellers ... I am sorry, but I must ask that you ..."


He stopped, a pained expression crossing his face, and for a moment the ghoul could actually feel the pain the man was in. Somehow he had to be projecting it, although he was trying not to. After a long moment, which was followed by a raspy cough, the telepath continued.

"I must ask that you help me ensure that no one comes across these. They must be destroyed ... along with my body. Despite my death should these ... enemies of yours come across my body ... I fear they may be able to learn too much from it, things which could upset the nature of your half of the world. Will you ... help me in this way?"


He sagged back, exhaustion taking it's toll, and the ghoul likely would be able to tell the man had mere minutes more to live. He had not been lying when he had said he wouldn't make it much longer.

 

[cross_grave]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

Przemek paused, considering the man's words. On one hand, his tech could be extremely useful to the Sanctuary, and would probably help him explain what he had seen here. On the other hand, there was no way of telling whether humans were ready to safely handle that kind of tech. Personally, the ghoul had some doubts - sure, humans adapted to new things quickly when they had to, but more often than not they did it by testing every possibility, regardless of risks. Besides, who knew how the others of the man's kind would react to this? It seemed they knew about the Sanctuary and weren't hostile, so there was no reason to do something that might ruin that. A lot of things could go wrong if the ghoul tried to take something. After a short moment of deliberation, Przemek nodded. "Very well. Can't let Cabal get their hands on that, and other humans probably won't handle it well... What must I do?"

 

[Bartnum]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

"He told you that? Well then no, he wasn't lying."

Alec holds up his hand and makes it glow once again.

"Sorry you got caught up in this. It's me they're after. This is a facility of some kind dedicated to us, uh... 'abnormals' was the term they used. We should be safe here, though we're not completely out of danger. They'll probably target me again, and you... well, apparently they've poisoned you. We've got the antidote though, so you should be fine. One of the guys here has just gone to get it."



"Alright, I guess I'll see you later then."

"Well... I guess the obvious question is, what happens now? I got here okay, but what do I do now that I am?"

 

[SiphonTalvesh]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

The man was silent for several long moments, and just when the ghoul might begin to think he'd up and died on him, he 'spoke' once more.


"The device near my side is a weapon. As strange and barbaric as it may sound ... You'll need to use it and shoot me. That will vaporize me as it did this ... Cabal soldier was earlier. All of the technology I have on me minus that will be destroyed. The weapon itself has two small notches in the side that can be triggered by speaking the words 'Crevak Nebrhen.' That will initiate an overload charge that will destroy the device. However, you must be certain you are no more than a hundred meters from the device when the countdown ends, or you may be caught in it's destructive path. If you do this, it will ensure no one can salvage anything from me. I ... thank you for your cooperation. Goodbye ..."


The pained expression suddenly left his face, and he sagged over to one side, a relaxed expression becoming frozen on his face. It wouldn't take a pulse check to confirm or know that the man had breathed his last, and used the last of his energy to communicate with the ghoul. He was dead. And of course, that was when his phone rang. A Quick check would show the caller was rather unexpected. It was Ashley calling him.




Melissa stared blankly at him before coughing once.

"Poisoned? Lovely. Wait though ... why would they be after you?"

She paused, a sudden look of panic on her face.

"OH god ... they were going to kill me regardless of what I did ... Alec ... I'm sorry, I shouldn't have called you ..."




Miranda thought for a moment before replying.

"Well it's tough to say honestly. As you might have guessed there's a lot going on right now, a lot of our people have had to go out in the field. Dr. Magnus is having to head with John and Clara to Tibet it seems to meet with Tesla, hoping they can find a cure for the Lazarus Virus. Our 'Butler' so to speak is on his way back from London now, and yet a third problem has three others in Bermuda trying to figure out what happened down there. Helen doesn't like sending folks that have just come here out, though at this point there isn't much. Perhaps a tour of the facility? And if your up to it, perhaps we could ... I believe the proper term is get to know each other better and talk about ourselves?"

She seemed uncertain if this was the proper way to refer to what she meant, and appeared to be looking towards Abby to confirm that she was.




It didn't take long for Helen to bring her daughter and Clara up to speed and give Ashley the information she needed. After Ashley had gone out, Helen returned to the room she had left Dante and Watson in.


Walking in, she regarded Dante for a long moment, before deciding to speak.

"So Dante, I don't suppose you feel like taking a trip to Tibet with us do you? We may need a fighter, we may not, but I'd rather be prepared for anything."

 

[Caulder]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

Dante seems to smile at the thought of a fight. "Well, I haven't been to Tibet yet. I guess I could make the time in my schedule." he says, chuckling as he crosses his arms and folds his hands under his shoulders. "Plus I feel like I owe you one after all I've done for those Cabal guys."

 

[cross_grave]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

The ghoul listened carefully, nodding as he internalized the instructions. The words sounded a little weird, but it was entirely possible those people had their own language... Though if that was the case, why were they using a clearly understandable language earlier when talking among themselves? Or maybe it was merely some kind of code, a short phrase or name unique to their culture? Clearing his head, the ghoul watched in solemn silence as the man let out his last breath. Watching someone die was not easy, even if a part of him was less than sensitive to such things. Przemek felt a sense of sadness, as well as anger towards the Cabal - he didn't have as much experience with them as some of the other abnormals at the Sanctuary, but learned to hate them just after a few encounters. Reining himself in, he stood for a moment in silence, offering something akin to a silent prayer.

And of course, that's when someone had to ruin the mood. Przemek glared at the offending communication device that startled him, muttering curses as he raised it to his ear, answering the call. A call from Ashley was unexpected, and certainly not unwelcome under most circumstances, but she better have a damn good reason for doing so. "Yo. What do you want, Ashe?" Perhaps not the most creative nickname, but right now the ghoul was VERY annoyed and didn't bother hiding it. He often made this apparent by calling people using various nicknames when he was trying to remain somewhat polite or just insulting them when he was either very mad, didn't like the person or just wanted them to f*** off and leave him alone. This was clearly the former. Reaching down to pick up the strange weapon, he scanned the area with his eyes, checking if there was someone else nearby.

 

[SiphonTalvesh]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

While his senses told him he was alone, Ashley's voice filled his ear.

"Ashe? Lord don't let Chris hear you call me that. You alright though? I hate to interrupt, mom said you were on a mission now but ... I need your help. According to intel we've got, there's a small facility near by the Sanctuary that's supposed to be an outpost of the Cabal. We have reason to think they may be messing around with Lazarus right here under our noses. Mom wants a two person team to go in there while they're preoccupied with other things. I uh ... I was hoping maybe I could convince you to be my backup here? If I have to I'll go in alone but I'd rather have someone that I know for sure knows how to fight watching my back."


Chuckling slightly, Helen nodded to him.

"Get your things together then, and we'll depart as soon as John has familiarized himself with the lay of our intended destination. Helps to not teleport into a solid wall or rock. James, Clara, standby."

 

[Caulder]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

Dante laughs at the prospect of being fused with a rock. "Well, everything I need for traveling is right here with me." he says, his hands shifting and falling to his sides as he look Helen directly in the eyes. "Just tell me when we leave."

 

[cross_grave]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

Przemek snorted. Perhaps he could try provoking Chris later with that name? God knows this probably wasn't smart, but it could be fun. He sobered up quickly, though. The news were bad. Very bad. "So, those assholes are playing on our turf now? Well I'm game." It seemed his building anger would finally find an outlet. "I need only a few minutes to finish things on my end, so count me in. When are we supposed to leave? And what do you reckon I should bring?" He still had Henry's weapon with him, even if he was about to destroy the strange, alien gun along with the body of it's owner.

 

[Bartnum]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

"If you hadn't called me, you'd be dead and they'd have either tried someone else or gone straight to me. I wouldn't have been able to fight them off without using my ability, which probably would have burned down the entire building in the process. Because you called me, we're both alive and safe. Given the circumstances, I'd say calling me led to the best possible outcome."



"Yeah, okay. A tour sounds good."

 

[SiphonTalvesh]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

Ashley's reply came swiftly, it could definitely be said she didn't waste much time ever.

"As soon as you can meet me at the old power yard on Furlong Avenue, that should be ... a mile and a half from where John met you earlier. What you've got now should be sufficient, I'm hopeful we won't have need to fight but one never knows."

The ghoul might notice she had said 'John' and not 'Dad', even though he knew John was her father thanks to the previous words he'd have heard them exchange months ago.



Melissa looked at him for a long moment before sighing.

"Well, I suppose that's true. Still ... being used as a lure to pull someone else in ... it kinda freaks me out. Ugh, I think I need a nap ..."

With that, she passed back out, seeming to be fine if not just asleep.


Just a few minutes later Henry came back in with a large vial and needle for what he needed, pausing as he saw that Alec had shifted some.

"Hey dude, everything alright?"



Miranda smiled back at Abby as she led her through the place.

"There's so much here, it's hard to always figure out where to start. I've been here a couple of years myself but some of these folks ... well, Helen's been doing this for over a hundred years now. Oh, I suppose I ought to show you the 'shoe' first."



Helen opened her mouth to reply, but it was John who actually spoke as he entered the room.

"How about now?"

 

[Caulder]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

Dante claps his hands together and begins rubbing them "Now is perfect." he says, grinning as he begins to think of what kinds of demon might be waiting for him in Tibet.

 

[cross_grave]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

"Oh, I do hope we have to. I really do." Przemek couldn't help it. He was really in the mood to crack a few skulls. He more or less knew how to reach the place Ashley spoke of, so that part wouldn't be an issue. He noticed that she used John's name rather than "dad", but disregarded that for the most part. "Alright, I'll get there as soon as possible. Go straight to the rendezvous point once you're ready. We can talk later, I gotta wrap things up on my end first. See ya." Having said his part and finished the conversation, the ghoul hung up and returned to his grim task. First, he took the weapon left in his care by the dead man and examined it carefully, trying to get a good look and figure out how to operate it. Once he got the idea, he intended to destroy the body with a carefully aimed shot, then activate the self-destruction sequence and run like hell. Thankfully, with his speed and parkour skills (he saw fit to learn the basics at least, considering his abilities were well-suited for that kind of stuff) he should be able to clear the area fast enough.

 

[Bartnum]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

"Yeah, I think so. She woke up for a bit, seemed relatively okay."



"Over a hun- You know, on any other day that might have surprised me."

"The... shoe? You know what, I won't ask. I'll just wait and see it, whatever it is."

 

[SiphonTalvesh]

Re: Calgary, Alberta - Canada

It wouldn't take long for Przemek to find the right spot on the device the deceased man had mentioned. Even less time for him to figure out the best route of escape and where to toss it when he had to run like hell. All it would take would be to press, speak the right words, and then it would be a foot race. As he set about his task, part of him might wonder just how big this explosion was going to be, or if it would even be an explosion.



Henry blinked, then nodded.

"Ah, well good then that she was awake and alert, that bodes well. Kinda strange though since usually that kind of poison once your out, you stay out. That however, will be fixed in a moment, then we probably want to let her have some rest."[/green]



Miranda smiled at Abby.

"It does seem interesting that someone could be that old. Trust me though, there's a reason for that, a reason why all of us exist really. As for the shoe ..."

She trailed off as they entered an old style freight elevator, staying silent until they had reached their destination, opening the doors.


As Abby looked out over the initial lookout, she could see numerous 'rooms', each with an abnormal in them. One was a giant serpentine creature that instantly darted back into the bushes of it's room. Almost anything the mind could come up with was here in this area, and then she saw something that shouldn't even exist.

In the largest section of the place, in a wide open space, but contained, was something that looked a whole lot like a Pteranodon.

"This is where we keep those who pose a significant danger to others. The snake you saw actually eats people, abnormal or human alike. Some are less dangerous than others, but all of them here have shown aggressive behavior in several cases, and they are powerful enough to kill without much effort. We keep them separate from us and the other occupants here for everyone's safety. Needless to say, usually this place is off limits for most people. You can view, but you can't actually enter the areas proper.



With a sadistic grin almost, John nodded, then stepped forward, placing a hand on both Watson and Helen's shoulders, and then the three vanished. A moment later he appeared, placed a hand on Clara and Dante's shoulders, and they too vanished. For Dante, one second he was in the Sanctuary, and then, for the briefest of moments ... nothing.


((Tibet is going up))