IC [Mage the Awakening] After the 2003 Hoax

[Cire]

Bone Dog knew his escape was not certain; the woman he knew as Miss Watson was still after him. He doubted that he could elude her, not shedding so much blood. He had to set a trap, and a clever one. None came to mind, and keeping himself moving started to prove more and more difficult. He needed a distraction. Again calling on Forces, he tried to transform the noise of his own labored breathing into the shrill of a fire alarm. That would create some chaos, if he managed it.

Bone Dog did manage the feat. The sound of a fire alarm filled the hallway. In short order, alarmed guests, in varying states of undress, started to pour out into the corridor. In the ensuing chaos, Bone Dog hoped to slip away. His hopes proved vain as pumped into a guest, an overweight man in his fifties. The impact disrupted Bone Dog's invisibility and the alarm noise. The man gasped in alarm at the badly injured man sprawled before him.

In the sudden silence, the man exclaimed, "Holy cow! What happened to you, old chap?"

Bone Dog replied, "Nothing."

[egreham]

Bone Dog breathed laboriously as the pain chiseled away the composure covering his raw panic. He glanced as his captor clicked the door behind her. Did she believe your story? ‘Fuck no.’ Why did she leave? ‘Probably to find out who I really am.’ What will she do with you? ‘Whatever plans she has for me, like hell I’ll suffer for it for nothing like a useless failure.’ What can you do?

“Escape”

As the word left his mouth, Bone Dog considered the consequences. The Great Hunter will be outraged for certain with his most recent failure. ‘But it’s already doomed now.’ If he could somehow avoid capture and further interrogation, it would at least prove he was still somewhat capable.

Remember from this day henceforth what I do to useless people, quoted the chilling touch of his warm bloodied hand, The Great Hunter.

And useless, he was not.

The seat of his chair cracked and chipped, slowly but surely, until it was no longer attached to its back. Wood snapped and splintered where Bone Dog could see, and soon his handcuffed hands could slip out of the chair back rails. He rose awkwardly as his hands were still restrained, but he bore a victorious, if pained, grin.

‘Not Spirit. Forces.’

Bone Dog looked at his own phone. Feeling no time to retrieve it, he smashed it under his boots and walked over to the exit door. He casted Kinetic Blow (MtA p.166) waited for the door opened very quickly and Bond Dog kicked out and heard a crack as his foot connected.

Hei managed to stifle her scream with clenched teeth, but it did not lessen the impact on her now broken shin. She leapt back with her other and only good leg to avoid Bone Dog’s body charge. Reaching out and grabbing Bone Dog’s collar and neck, Hei slammed his head against the wall. When Hei tried to regain her stance to slam her opponent’s head repeatedly, her grab faltered as sharp pain shot up her bad leg. Bone Dog headbutted Hei on her sternum, earning a sharp crack and bullrushed past her.

Hei’s vision blurred, warning her of her quickly fading consciousness, as she began to burn the essence of mana to heal her chest into place so her lungs could breathe. She saw Bone Dog stumbling through the hallway, struggling to get to the end. Hei raised her hand and pointed two fingers and cocked her thumb. Making sure her target was in her sight, Hei slightly snapped her hand up as if it was in recoil.

“Bang.”

Bone Dog gave a scream as his shoulder began to bleed from a new hole, falling on his knee. As Hei prepared another spell to take out his walking speed, Bone Dog vanished. Hei could see the blood drop trail forming and hear the steps taken down the stairs. She could already hear others stirring up at the commotion and propped herself up. Having no time to lose at her current speed, Hei began to struggle to follow the blood trails while stumbling. And she too, became invisible, leaving no one left behind to be found.

[Cire]

After the cell phone call, the Great Hunter tried to use his command of Space to view Bone Dog and Miss Watson. He found himself unable to do so. He tried again, with no more success. Worried, he tried to see if he could at least ascertain the location of his servant. That too eluded him. The Great Hunter wondered just what was going on. Who could thwart one of his might?

Maybe the time to leave Auckland really had arrived.

[egreham]

Hei eyed Bone Dog unblinking as she closed phone. Bone Dog’s urge to smirk was countered by the unnerving concentration invested in the stare. Despite the cold water that recently splashed against his face, his heartbeat had already flushed his skin to sweat. Unable to decide whether more words were needed, Bone Dog returned gaze only to confirm the woman he was in mercy of was still staring.

Hoping to salvage some form of composure, Bone Dog chuckled nervously.

“You see? I told yaaaAAAAAAAAH”

Hei grabbed the bottom of his chair and lifted with force matching the enraged complexion on her face. As the chair smacked on its back, Bone Dog felt his middle finger crushed under wood and his weight.

“SON OF A BITCH!” Screaming did not lessen the impact.

Bone Dog squirmed to relieve the pressure upon the unbearable pain, but ended up suffering more as he couldn’t free his arms that were entangled on the chair. After heaving sharp gasps, Bone Dog stopped to instead settle down in the least uncomfortable position. He clenched his teeth as he experimented with the slightest motions, flinching when he only received chastise of pain. Hei turned away from the scene and took exit with tight fists.

Hei closed the door behind her and leaned against the wall. She spotted a couple walking toward her direction, frowning at the reminder of where she was. She looked away before they could notice back and no doubt giving weird eyes at the lone girl. She suddenly felt self-conscious of her brown shirt and lack of the high heels that she tossed aside.

Hei waited until she could hear the closing click of a door and pulled out her, no, her friend’s, phone and snapped it open. She poised her thumb over the numbers of her own phone, which was close to the table where Miss Watson is probably reading her mystery book on. She would probably be irked by the phone Hei “didn’t” find.

Hei grimaced, pushing the numbers and placed the dialing tone next to her ear. She heard six beeps before the phone clicked.

>>>>

A kneeling man closed his eyes with hands clasped together. He whispered thanks for a particular young man who finally had the opportunity to live away from his wandering struggles with the earned acceptance of a society of his kind, and he wished for this man to be able to fare better against the actualized darkness within him. He whispered concerns for a woman who silently struggles with her disdain for the Gifts she was adorned with. He prayed for the struggling souls in this world of darkness, and muttered hope for the tiny flickering flames that illuminates the shadows away. And finally, and always finally, he confessed the sin he knew he will never be forgiven for. It was a long while before he sat up and bowed in closing reverence to his God.

The man picked up a kettle that had been brewing tea on shimmer and sat down on his couch. He poured the steaming tea and carton milk onto a cup on a saucer, mixing them together into a swirl of dulling brown. He slowly breathed the scent and brought it close to his lips.

Before he could take a sip, he heard the ring tone of his phone. The grown unfamiliarity of the noise sent the man on a brief trance before he pulled out and read the caller’s id. He felt slight jubilation at the name and panic as he fumbled what he wanted to say. He did not wait long at all before he snapped it open.

“Thank you. Thank you for taking the case with Hoplite, Miss Watson. I can’t say how glad I am it worked out well. If you need any favor from me, you know I’ll glad to help you for”

“Obadiah, no wonder your ex-girlfriend called you. You babble too much.”

Obadiah paused at the voice of a particularly memorable and reckless woman. He was disappointed by the failings of his expectation, but decided to smile instead for the rare encounter.

“… my my, I certainly did not expect such a big surprise such as yourself.”

“By the way, you should know that I took a shot to my shoulder because of that. And no, I don’t want a super long sorrys and thanks for it.”

“Of course.” Obadiah chuckled. “So, is there a reason you called me with Miss Watson’s phone?”

“I know it’s past your bedtime, but could I ask you for a favor?”

“It is quite late.” Obadiah took a sip out of his cup. “So, what can I do for my fellow Christian?”

The voice groaned. “Don’t call me that. Anyway, I need a healer. A fast one.”

Obadiah quirked his brows. “Did you let your impulsiveness get better of you again? You should stronger consider not retaliating with violence when it’s not necessary. You have the Gift, not to mention martial prowess. Just walk away when you can and not respond to their insulting nature.”

“Geez, it’s great knowing you have so much faith in me that you assume I might be the one in danger and not at fault.” Obadiah bided his time. “But yeah, I broke some guy’s finger.”

Obadiah sighed. “And why did you break his finger.”

“Ok first, he’s been eyeing my ass entire time I was with him. Also, he thought I was Missy Watson and was probably doing a lot of stalking and researching about her without permission. If you were me, wouldn’t you at least be a bit pissed?”

“Even if I was, Miss Hei, I would settle the situation with civility. Discourage him of his vile demeanor with at least a warning. And wait a minute; he believes you’re Miss Watson?”

“I had good disguise, moving on. He’s trying to tell me about how Dawn’s a Seer. It’s like he found out a particular someone was on the investigation team and was trying to get close to her with such bullcrap. An obsessive idiot like that would have a lot of pictures in his computer or something so I tried to make him tell me where he lived so I could bust his crib.” Obadiah frowned. “Also, did I mention that he had no evidence whatsoever? I mean, that’s complete”

“Hei, did you break his finger to get information?”

“…noooooooooo?”

“Please don’t tell me you’re asking me to cover up a torture, Hei.”

“I am not asking you to cover up a torture. I’m asking you to heal him so it’s like his finger was never broken.” Obadiah did not grace an answer. “The truth is simply a lie that everyone believes in.”

“Do not use wisdom in vain, Hei, especially to twist their intended meaning.” He sighed. “Do you at least
know who you’re unethically interrogating?”

“Never seen his face before, but he says he lives in a cellar of burned town tavern somewhere around Ponsonby.”

Obadiah was raised to not spontaneously spit out his tea when shocked. However, he noticed in his concentration to enforce his upbringing, the tea was dribbling from the side of his mouth. He quickly wiped it away and breathed very deeply.

“Hei. For the love of sanity, please don’t tell me you’re torturing Jericho Lordreaper.”

“Jericho? No way! Man, I didn’t know he actually sleeps with beer. I would never do that to Jericho. He’s chill. Kinda of pity he’s a bit crazy over the whole Seer spy deal.”

Silence.

“Wait a goddamn minute.”

“Hei, if I see more than a broken finger, I will NOT help you.”

“… Fine. Just know that I’m in a place called Midnight Mistress Motel. And you better not tell Watson.” *click

Obadiah slumped on his couch, staring down at the tea stains of his shirt and his sleeves. He gave a tributary sigh to the long night he would have to face

[Cire]

The Great Hunter replied, "It is not for me to say what is worth your time, Miss Watson. I made certain assumptions. I thought you could be a powerful ally in my personal crusade. I have no real proof to offer about Dawn, but no matter. I will attend to her myself, during my next visit to New Zealand. I thank you for your time, and I regret if I or my associate have wasted your time."

The Great Hunter wondered how his latest ploy worked. Sometimes one had to pretend to be willing to walk away without a backward glance. Would Miss Watson call his bluff?

[egreham]

Hei pursed her lip while barely containing her glare. She retracted the phone from Bone Dog's ear placed it upon hers. She breathed deeply, not uttering a word.

'If he actually has a guy backing him up ... fuck.'

Hei sighed and spoke into the phone. "You sir better have something to prove because it's just goddamn insulting when someone sends one of their dime blokes to drop a message that's starting to sound more and more like a joke. Make it worth. My. Time."

[Cire]

"I understand," replied Bone Dog. When his phone was positioned so that he could, he called the Great Hunter. He said, "Miss Watson wants before that Dawn is a Seer before she does anything."

"Let me talk to her," ordered the Great Hunter.

Dutifully, Bone Dog nodded to the woman he knew as Miss Watson.

[egreham]

Hei began to chuckle, then laugh in front of her captive without breaking eye contact. When she stopped, she held her grin, except with a snarl.

"You came to me. Without proof. Man, you've done goofed up. What, did you think I would chase ducks for you based on your words? Sorry honey, you gotta buy me dinner first." Hei gave a content sigh. "But you know what? I'm going to give you a one chance. I'm going to get your phone, and you're going call your master. You're going to say that I want a convincing proof, and you are going to beg him for one. If I don't like his answer, you're going to tell him to shove his accusation up his ass. If I don't hear Mr. Great Wanker on the other line, I'm going to break your entire hand. UNDERSTAND?"

[Cire]

Bone Dog almost smiled. This question he could answer. "The Great Hunter is what his name suggests: a great hunter. His prey are the Seers of the Throne. Long ago, he lost his entire cabal to to the Seers. He vowed revenge, and his been hunting them in all the years since. A few years ago, he recruited me to join in his never ending battle."

The reality was the opposite. When the Great Hunter had joined the Seers of the Throne, he destroyed his cabal. The best lies had an element of the truth. Bone Dog continued with his story. "Tonight is the first night that I have ever failed him. As to proof about Dawn, I have none. Take another finger if you must, but your hurting me or even killing me will make my words any less true. You should be doing this to her, not me."

Despite everything, the thought of the woman he thought to be Miss Watson torturing the lovely Dawn aroused him.

[egreham]

Still sticking with accusing someone being a Seer in front of a member of the investigation?

Hei had to give it to him. Despite being the biggest pussy she ever had to deal with, he had some iron balls. Iron balls too heavy to stay attached, but nonetheless they were iron balls.

It wasn't the dirt she knew he had, but it'll do. If he was wrong, that it would bite him and whoever shared the investigator list on their goddamn asses. Dawn would no doubt be fueled with thrice-fold vengeance if someone were to quote his poor choice of words attached with a name.

If he was right ... well he didn't follow protocol and she could deny the whole thing. He most certainly reported it for something else than out of the goodness of his heart. But then she would have to call Miss Watson to clean up the mess. As much as Hei hated to admit, she was nowhere good at being subtle. But she really doubted that this creep wasn't bluffing.

"Alright then, can you prove it? You can say goodbye to another one of your fingers if you say you don't have evidence on you." Hei paused for a bit. This master of his is probably something he made up, but let him fumble a bit. "And tell me more about the Great Hunter."

[Cire]

"The Great Hunter, I mean know you're dangerous," replied Bone Dog. "Really dangerous. I wanted you to kill Dawn for being a Seer of the Throne. Her evil has to end! It must!"

Bone Dog then started to cry. However, inside, he started to feel a bit of hope that he might be able to carry out his mission after all. He really was rather good. No wonder the Great Hunter valued him so much!

[egreham]

Hei narrowed her eyes at Bone Dog's face. It wasn't to scrutinize because hell, the places he's dishing out are probably all bullshit. The fact that she couldn't spare time to investigate places while leaving him alone frustrated her.

Fine. Let's ask a question she already knew the answer to.

Hei released Bone Dog's head and traced her hands on his thighs. After giving a smirk at his face, she slammed her knuckles into the leg muscles, earning a suppressed scream.

"What did you do to know about," Hei quickly caught herself, "me? And why are you interested?"

[Cire]

Pain motivated Bone Dog to lie. Luckily, he knew the location of another sanctum. It belonged to Jericho Lordreaper, a mighty Silver Ladder Mastigos who hated Seers, the Great Hunter had him spy on a lot last year. All too often while spying on him, Bone Dog had been sure that the Mastigos would catch him. Happily, he had always avoided detection. "Fine. You win. My sanctum is the cellar of burned town tavern not far from Ponsonby."

Bone Dog then gave more precise directions, hopping that with all his might that he could sell his lie.

[egreham]

A master? Wherever he was going with this, Hei decided to play along, let him talk himself into a pit.

"And why should I be interested in this possible master of yours instead of your hideout?"

[Cire]

Bone Dog had always believed that he would, if required, die for the Great Hunter. In fact, there were times in the past where he had longed for the chance to prove to himself that he was right about his loyalty. Now that the chance had arrived, he could almost have laughed at his folly in ever desiring such a thing. Now he knew he had been wrong. His loyalty to the Great Hunter meant far less to him than did ending his agony. Enough pain could prod almost any concession.

"I have no base," replied Bone Dog, pain coloring his voice. "However, my master does. I can tell you where to find him." With that, Bone Dog disclosed the location of the Great Hunter's sanctum, cunningly hidden near the Cathedral of Saint Patrick and Saint Joseph. "However, if I were you, I would ever consider bearding the lion in his own den, so to speak. He is mighty and terrible."