Log:Defacing the Dead

2021/08/16 Sasha Mad Eddie Ziand Loup Garou John Leonid Jordan 

It's not yet dinner time, but there's no smell of cooking in the kitchen from Mads. In fact, the whole school is quiet and empty. Suspiciously so.

As he was hungry, Sasha came down at the normal time for dinner and is surprised that nothing is going on and no one is around. He's not a helicopter guardian, so he doesn't demand to know the Little Wolves whereabouts at all tims, but this is odd.

He goes to the security center at the front desk to see if he can find any of the Little Wolvs in the public areas of the school.

Checking the cameras, there's no sign of them. And considering Jordan is grounded again from going outside, there should at least be some sign of him, and yet there's not. Nor his helicopter guardian, the grumpy Thundercloud.

Sasha frowns at the lack of any Little Wolves, but it's not time to panic yet. He takes a steps, fades into a blue limned outline, the steps out of that same outline less than a moment later beside the Tree in the attic workspace.

As he lays a hand on the Tree to call up it powers to search for Mad, he calls out, "Ziand? Did the Little Wolves say they were all going somewhere today to you?"

Ziand is in the midst of a match in his latest game, Dire Hunger. "What? No. They know better than to interrupt me right now," he answers irately. He has a gaming headset with microphone lying beside his skull as he plays. He speaks into the microphone as the push-to-talk button depresses on its own, "It was not I who laid the bear trap. I suspect the hunter left it there. She has been acting most suspicious, Captain. I'll go search for coal for the ship." The Push-to-talk button deactivates, and Ziand lets out an amused cackle. "Trusting fools."

Sasha blinks as he touches Mad's mind and finds her in the basement. In one of the unused store rooms. He says, "Mad's in the basement," out loud then says, "OK, time to check things out." He considers using Clairsentience but then just decides on the direct approach. Spying on Hunter, well, that didn't turn out so well.

Sasha takes a step, disappears in a outline of blue light, and steps out of an outline down in the basement a few yards from the room. He stops for a moment to orient himself before proceeding.

After Sasha disappears, Ziand comments to himself, "So he -can- learn from the past." And then immediately after, he says, "It was the Chaplain! I saw him summon the blizzard. Kill him!" The grinning skull watches is deception unfold as the crew in Dire Hunger throw the innocent Chaplain overboard despite their pleas.

From the sound of it when Sasha arrives in the basement, there's some sort of interrogation or trial going in amongst the Little Wolves. "You know he's going to ground all of us. So who did it? Was it you, Eddie?" Mad's voice asks.

Eddie says defensively, "-Me-? I mean, I wish! But even I wouldn't do that. I'm betting it was...Xander!"

Xander replies in his usual cold, calculated way, "I wouldn't waste my time on such a childish endeavor."

John points out to try and sound reasonable, "It does fit your style, Eddie."

Sasha overhears the conversation then knocks on the hallway as he calls out, "Who's down here? Is that you Mad?" He makes certain to make plenty of noise as he approaches the door.

There's a few gasps, and a wave of shhhing before they all fall quiet.

Sasha thinks <> He grins slightly at this last, but schools his face back into curioisty when he opens the door to the storeroom and looks around.

His keen ears pick up some chatter, but it's hard to hear who's talking. It's not Mad, though. "How'd he know we were down here?" "Do you think he saw?" There's another shhh as he opens the door, and all the Little Wolves are loosely gathered in a circle. Try as they might to look innocent, many look like deer caught in headlights. Except for Leonid, who isn't here or is invisible at the moment, and Xander, who looks aloof and unafraid as usual. Well, and Jordan, who is smiling faintly with hidden knowledge.

Sasha looks back at the Little Wolves in general then to Mad in specific, his expression curious but calm. "So, um, having a meeting, I see. Anything I should know about? Be worried about? Or just planning a surprise? If it's the last, I can head out and let you all sort it out."

The Little Wolves look at each other expectantly. When nobody fesses up, they look to Mad. "Yes. A surprise," Mad latches onto that quickly and folds her arms over her chest.

Sasha nods and starts to turn back to the door. He says as he reaches for the handle, "Of course, sometimes a surprise /isn't/ a good thing. But, I'll be checking the backup power supply for the next 15 minutes. The salamander seems a bit peaky to me. So, might want to make certain you all are done by then." He then opens the door and steps out, leaving the door open behind him.

Leonid suddenly becomes visible and says in a panic in Russian, "Wait!" The guilt trip worked.

Sasha turns and looks at Leonid. He says in English, his tone calm and supportive, "Yes, Leonid?"

"Leonid!" hisses Eddie.

Leonid says in his improved English. "No! It is better he not find out by surprise."

Sasha looks at the Little Wolves then murmurs, "Find out what by surprise?" his tone still calm and mildly curious.

The others seem hesitant to answer, but Leonid cracks under pressure. "Someone...someone drew a...a...what is word? An 'usy i borodka' on Hunter," Leonid says, having to use the Russian word for mustache and goatee.

Sasha blinks, goes still for a long moment, then raises a hand to cover his eyes. After another moment, he finally speaks in a voice choked with some emotion. "A mustache and goatee?"

"Da," Leonid confirms. Eddie looks livid. Mad is hard to read. Maggie withers a little visibly.

"I discovered it," Tomas admits. "When I was dusting in the chapel." A chore some of the Little Wolves find squeamish considering Hunter's body lies in repose there.

Sasha nods slightly, his eyes still covered. "Ah, I see," he says in that same choked voice. He then lowers his hand and then asks, his eyes a little wet. "And is it a good mustache and goatee? Nicely filled in. He chin is a little weak from some angles." Then a laugh bubbles up out of his throat.

Tomas purses his looks and looks to his twin Karla in some confusion as Sasha laughs. Maybe he's lost it. He looks back to Sasha. "It's...fancy. An old timey mustache and filled in. It was done with sharpie. John fortified up and tried to clean it before it could be found out."

John looks haunted by the memory of the attempt. "I'm not going back in there."

Sasha continues to softly laugh as he sahkes his head, tears running down his face. "Oh dear, does that mean he now looks like he's fallen into a pool of ink face first?" he gets out as he obviously tries to control his laugther.

The apparent youth, looking not much older than Mad, continues to chortle softly as the Little Wolves speak.

"N...no. I couldn't get it off," John admits, now also disturbed by Sasha's laugther.

Eddie dares to ask, "So...nobody's in trouble?"

Sasha takes a deep breath. "No, I would say someone is in trouble, but," he holds up a hand, "I don't believe in group responsibility. While it would;ve been, hmm, better if you'd all come directly to me about this, I can understand why you didn't."

He takes another deep breath, holds it for a moment, then after he lets it out, continues, "So, here's what we're going to do. First, I would like whoever did this to admit it, but, I won't insist. In this particular case, there will be no punishment but, there will be a Talk." He looks at the Little Wolves then continues. "Second, I'll take care of cleaning the chapel from now on. And, I'll move Hunter to the side and make the case opaque. I forget I'm not as bothered by, well, seemingly dead bodies. I apologize for that to you all. And third, Mad could you throw together something for dinner or shall you all eat out? Your decision, Mad."

Even after the offer of no punishment, all the Little Wolves look about waiting for a confession to come out, while Mad watches them passively. But there's only silence. Finally Mad says, "We'll eat out. It's getting late already."

Sasha waves a hand at Mad as he fans out plenty of bills for dinner. "Sounds like a good idea, Mad. I'll have the changes made by the time you all get back."

"C'mon," Mad says to the Little Wolves as she starts to walk to Sasha, plucking the cash from him. She doesn't have her usual fire as she tells them to go, not eager to force a confession out of any of them. The other Little Wolves begin to move to follow her.

Sasha suspects Xander as he was so adamant it wasn't him. But, he knows Xander has very conflicted feelings about Hunter, so could be a motive.

But, there is also Jordan, who is manipulating Sasha to get the Little Wolves out of having to deal with Hunter's dead presensce. Seems like something he might do.

And then there the off chance it was Mad, given the same reasons as Jordan. But, that seems less likely.

In any case, Sasha hopes that someone will fess up eventually, but, in this one case, he's not going to push it.

Leonid is the last to leave, but he does go to give Sasha a hug before he heads out. "Jordan, wait for me!"

Sasha returns Leonid's hug. He uses his magicks to watch the Little Wolves leave. And then, and only then, does he let himself cry. He quietly weeps as he makes his way up to the chapel and uses his Words to restore Hunter's appearance. He quietly weeps when he uses his magicks to shift Hunter's crystal clear coffin and makes the glass opaque. And he quietly weeps as he says, "I will always miss you," as he closes the chapel door before he goes to his room not far down the hallway.

It's quite a glorious mustache and goatee. The mustache even curls like a villain's. Hmm. Too much imagination and cultural reference for Xander. Too well drawn for Jordan's handwriting/drawing. And also, Jordan is short. Though he could have done it if he was sitting on Xander's shoulders. So Xander may still have been an accomplice! But the drawing is too steady for that.

Those few Words of power lift the sharpie markings and cause them to evaporate, leaving Hunter still looking like he's asleep. The spell of repose that keeps his body preserved pristinely leaves him as Sasha remembers him. Mostly. The suit reminds him more of his job as Will Wagner, security expert rather than the vigilante and teenager he remembered.

The last spell causes the glass to slowly glaze over like it's overtaken by frost, creeping up from the bottom and gradually sealing Hunter away until he's no longer in sight.

As Sasha heads toward his room, he can hear Ziand distantly yelling at his video game, "Hah HAH! It was I all along! And now you'll all die in these frozen wastes, knaves!" He's taking the roleplay aspect of this game too far.

It's quite a glorious mustache and goatee. The mustache even curls like a villain's. Hmm. Too much imagination and cultural reference for Xander. Too well drawn for Jordan's handwriting/drawing. And also, Jordan is short. Though he could have done it if he was sitting on Xander's shoulders. So Xander may still have been an accomplice! But the drawing is too steady for that.

Those few Words of power lift the sharpie markings and cause them to evaporate, leaving Hunter still looking like he's asleep. The spell of repose that keeps his body preserved pristinely leaves him as Sasha remembers him. Mostly. The armored suit is different from what he wore as Enforcer or Arkady, but similar and black. The assassin in him almost always went for black. If not for his placement in the glass case, he could be taking a nap before a long night of crime fighting.

The last spell causes the glass to slowly glaze over like it's overtaken by frost, creeping up from the bottom and gradually sealing Hunter away until he's no longer in sight.

As Sasha heads toward his room, he can hear Ziand distantly yelling at his video game, "Hah HAH! It was I all along! And now you'll all die in these frozen wastes, knaves!" He's taking the roleplay aspect of this game too far.

Sasha heads up the stairs to the workroom after a moment. Once he get up there, he watches Ziand on his game for a minute, then murmurs, "I'm glad you're enjoy9ing yourself, old friend. So, did you put the mustasche and goatee on Hunter's body? It was very, hmm, stylized." His tone is not angry, not sad, just curious, but his eyes are red from the tears.

Ziand finishes his game and jaw-walks to rotate around to face Sasha. "A mustache and goatee on Hunter? This I must see!" he says animatedly, shifting his way to the edge of the table, despite the red rims of Sasha's eyes.

Sasha murmurs, "I've removed them and moved his coffin to the side of the chapel and made it opaque, Ziand." He idly raises a hand, in gesture both of them know is unneeded, and creates an image of what Hunter looked like. "The Little Wolves were certain I'd ground them all. I send them to get dinner instead while I, hmm, fixed the mess."

"Oh," Ziand says in a holly, disappointed tone. The skull perks up as much as a rune-covered skull can and lets out a ghostly chuckle at the image. "So that is why they were all hiding." There's a pregnant pause. "So. Have you reconsidered me teaching you the spells to help you bring him back? Or are you still 'respecting his wishes'?"

Sasha murmurs, "Until his soul if freed from the Gentleman's clutches, any spells are useless, Ziand. But, yes, I will learn them. Write out the formulae and rites." Sasha looks at the enruned skull. "I should respect his wishes fully. But, I will ask him when his soul is free. And, what he wishes then will be. Even if its not the choice I desire."

"Hmm. Different spells for dealing with the Gentleman, then," Ziand sniffs in derision, despite not needing to breathe or having nasal passages in need of clearing.

"Gentleman!" announces a voice like Hunter's, but with exuberance. At the doorway is a figure who is standing confidently, but then has to put a hand out to brace against the wall to avoid the guardian spells knocking him down. "Hah, same old tricks. This place never liked me."

Sasha looks over at the new voice, his gaze neither friendly or welcoming, "And who are you? And how did you get in here?" His tone, however, is still just mildly curious as his emotions are a bit worn out right now.

Stepping out of the shadows is...Hunter! Dressed in white. And with slightly pointed ears. Definitely not Sasha's Hunter, but the werewolf version that helped with dealing with Amelia Half-Demon in another dimension. "This place isn't too different from ours. Less party favors, though."

The apparent youth look at the alt-Hunter for a long moment then says, "Did your partner happen to come here already? Perhaps with a sharpie and a desire to piss me off? For some reason?" Sasha's tone is rather irritated.

"What? No. Wait, was he here??" The alt-Hunter suddenly looks very eager and takes a step, hardly wavering under the guardian spell due to his skill and training. And perhaps because he's a werewolf makes him even more sturdier. He's different from John Fenris, in that his lupine abilities are from a curse. Or surviving werewolf attack.

Sasha shakes his head and then goes over to a table and takes out a silver knife. He tosses it underhand to the alt-Hunter. "Give me a drop of blood. I'll put under the defense's notice. I imagine your Sasha, or Aleksandr, or whatever he's called, has something similar from your words."

Alt Hunter, as known as Loup Garou, or LG, reaches to catch the knife, then hisses and lets go as the silver sears his palm. The knife clatters to the floor as LG grasps his wrist with his good hand and grits his teeth, fangs becoming apparent. He looks a little more feral as some of the Beast comes out. With a soft growl, he takes a deep breath and reverts to normal. "Some warning next time? And yes, moy kotik has something similar. It just requires different fluid."

"Since the concepts I worked from require either blood or birdspit, I'm guessing he went with the more euphemistic of the two," murmurs as his eye drop for an instant to LG's groin then back to his face. "Mine uses blood. Can you be cut with a non-silver knife?"

As he speaks, he summons his messenger bag, then reaches into it and pulls out a Young Pioneer knife. He tosses that to LG.

"Birdspit? Hah, no, it doesn't require that. Not that I couldn't...oh. Hahahah! Well, that was one of his options. He went with tears of laugther." Loup Garou flexes his hand a bit, but it's not healing. There's a burn mark along his palm where he caught it. "I can be cut with non-silver. Enough to get you some blood before it heals." He reaches into the pocket of his long coat and pulls out some gauze bandages, wrapping it around his injured hand. Without looking after fastening the bandage, his hand comes up to catch the new knife. No burning this time. And he caught it the way Hunter often would, not needing to look directly at it to tell it was coming. "Alright, here you go," he says as he walks over, but then the guardian spell makes him stumble and drop to his knees. "This enchantment is such a pain. Here! Just take some!" he says, rolling up his sleeve and then offering up his wrist as he slashes it open. Plenty of blood to use now.

Sasha steps over and touches the blood as it pools. A blood red crystal shapes itsrlf out of the blood under his touch. As he takes it and heads towards the Tree, he asks, "Why are you hear, Loup Garou. And /how/ did you get here if not with the Fool?"

Loup Garou tries to get up to his feet. He's wobbly, but he makes it. His wrist is already starting to seal up. "He's playing another of his tricks. We were at the Inn Between Worlds, enjoying a fun time in the downstairs area, but then he tied me up and left me there. I waited patiently like a good boy. Sometimes he does that as a joke. When he didn't come back, I had to break myself out and use the mirror to get back, and it left me in a world I'm not familiar with." He sniffs a bit in Sasha's direction. "So...you know us? What's this about a sharpie?" Aside from the shared looks, it's obvious Loup Garou isn't like Hunter. He's got the assassins skills alright, but he's much more light hearted and smiles a bunch. He almost boarders on ditzy.

Sasha stops beside the Tree. "You have never met me then, Loup Garou?"

He doesn't put the blood gem on the Tree yet, waiting for an answer.

"I don't know. How'd we met?" Loup Garou asks before wobbling and dropping down on one knee again, catching himself with his good hand.

This Hunter is definitely a cursed werewolf. And it seems there's some sort of mental spell upon him that has altered his mind. Not memories. More like personality.

Sasha looks at Loup Garou and then says, "Your personality has been altered by magick, Loup Garou. Are you aware of that? Do you wish me to break the curse?"

"Oh, that?" Loup Garou chuckles, sound a little crazy as the Guardian spell and his laugther cause him to end up prone on the ground. "The Fool did it to me. Said I needed to ligthen up, so he broke my mind with a spell," he smiles, not sounding bothered about it. Of course, why would he? The lupine curse isn't a spell.

Sasha murmurs, "Before he changed your mind, did you love him, Loup Garou? Or did that come after the change."

Sasha is really hating most of his alts. <> he thinks.

Loup Garou manages to start drawing himself back up to his feet. "That came some time after." He straigthens himself with a wobble. "It's not like him to just leave me stranded." He pauses and reconsiders that. "It's not like him to leave me stranded in another -dimension or realm-. But he does love his games of hide and seek every now and again. If you haven't seen him, I have some other leads to check."

Sasha looks at the alt-Hunter for a moment. "Does your Fool have a sense of humor that would extend to drawing a mustache and goatee on a dead alt. On my Hunter?" Sasha bares his teeth in what is not a smile. "If so, I'd be happy to accompany you."

Loup Garou blinks a few times at the statement, then chuckles, then looks apologetic, then chuckles some more, then looks sad. "I'm sorry. He's drawn stuff like that on me in my sleep while trying not to wake me. It's not as easy as you'd think. But...awww, I'm sorry. You have a Hunter, too? And he's dead?" He thinks for a moment, then looks surprised. "Oh, but my Fool wouldn't have killed him to do it, even to win at the game!"

Sasha looks at his hands for a moment then he transforms into Harlequin. "Do you wish me to send you to another Earth to search for the Fool? Or will you search for him on this one?"

Loup Garou thinks on it a bit. "Well...I hate to give up, but it's a big world. Eventually he'll get tired of hiding and come home, right?"

"Are you certain he's on this Earth, Loup Garou? If so, I can try to help you find him," Harlequin murmurs.

"I'm...not exactly sure. I did trace his scent to the mirror leaving the Inn, but I didn't smell anything on the other side. Could be a tricky new spell for the game," Loup Garou smiles. "Or...maybe he's not on this earth at all."

Harlequin nods. "And you came here because you thought he might visit me? I suppose that could make sense." He then says, "Take me to the mirror you came though. I'll see if I can determine if he came to this Earth. And if not, I'll send you home so you can wait for him. Sound like a plan?"