It's raining in London... again (RP)

It is raining again on Monday. The stoic population of London are 'not surprised', but the weather people are, they are saying this is unusual and should not be happening, that we should be getting rain, maybe, one-day-in-15 this time of year, not every day. [real world forecast]

But that is not the most pressing problem.

- Rhiannon -

You are supposed to teaching a class this morning, early... but not this early.

Circe contacts you before 05:00, she has received word of a demon hit squad arriving on the first train in to Picadilly. She is not telling you what to do, just relaying information and leaving it up to you.

• How does Circe contact you?
• Were you asleep, or up for some reason and why?

What do you do?

- Mark -

The portents indicate a thread inbound to your location from the west. They are unclear, and you might not be the target, but something approaches your neighborhood with ill-intent.

You might be able to hole-up in your Sanctum, but anyone mounting an assault on your place of safety is either very foolish or knows something you don't. And anyway, the fracas outside will draw a whole lot of attention that you don't want.

You could 'hit it off at the pass' —as they say— stop the threat before it even gets to you. Picadilly Circus seems a good point for such a plan.

• How did you find out about this danger? Your own divinations? Someone from your order? Something else?
• How long have you known? Did you have time to prepare? How?

What do you do?

- Benji -

The first train in in the morning is a mixed-bag. Those few who have to ride it are often tired and grumpy, but they also understand the meaning of hard work at early hours.

Anyway, something about a particular group of large 'men' that step onto the platform bothers you. It does not take long for you decide they are not human, though what they actually are is still unclear.

They go into a huddle, and with a little effort you can overhear some words, there is mention of "Leicester Square". You see them checking a map, but they are looking in the wrong part, clearly not locals.

Your friend, Jacob lives by Leicester Square, and something about these guys puts you in mind of him. Maybe he will appreciate the heads-up?

• Are you usually set up and busking from 5am for that first influx? Are you today? Or are you still 'arising' and getting ready?
• Do you try to contact Jacob at this ungodly hour?

What do you do?

- Jacob -

Depending on what Benji does, you may have warning about a possible incoming threat.

For now you have a scheme forming, it should be easy, but are they ever?
Roll Business as Usual and we will pick up from there.

- Rhiannon -

You are almost hit by a bus in Charing Cross Road, it honks at you as though it is your fault the driver did not see you in the rain, and it still comes close enough to completely swamp you with water from a large puddle in the road.

You are just wiping the dirty water —and maybe hair— out of your eyes with one hand when you notice a group of men entering a small alley to the left (east). Something about them causes you to stop.

• How do you know that these guys 'aren't right'? What triggers your 'demon senses'?

- Mark -

A quick way to get to Picadilly Circus is through Cecil Court, as you enter the east side of the alley you see/sense the group you are tracking entering from the west. They have not seen you.

What do you do?

- Jacob -

That definitely looks like a 'demon hit squad' to you. They are just coming off Charing Cross road and into your quiet little alley.

What do you do?

- Benji -

Did you leave the safety of your platform and its many people, to rush to Jacob's aid? He already owes you one for the warning... well, if they are headed for him, that is, else you just woke him for nothing. He did ask for your help, though, and you are friends... right?

What do you do?

"A party?" says Benji brightly, before he realises that Jacob wasn’t speaking literally. "Oh. You mean an ambush." He sighs and begins packing up his violin. "I’ll be there in five minutes."

---

Benji has left his violin inside Jacob’s shop where it is safe and dry and hopefully out of the way of the impending violence. He is hiding in the doorway of one of the neighbouring shops, nervously fidgeting with the short sword that he normally keeps hidden in the lining of his violin case. He waits for the group of thugs to get a bit closer, preparing to jump out and stab one of them as they walk past…

- Jacob -

You worst fear is realised as the four 'men' check their map, confer and turn to look at your shop. They do not look like they are out shopping for books.

They have not looked up and have not seen you at the window... yet.

What do you do?

- Mark -

The 'people' you were tracking stop and look at a bookshop in the quiet alley. You know the place, you realise, and you know the man who runs it, but it looks like they are not after you or yours... just your associates.

What do you do?

- Benji -

The four guys you saw at the station slow and stop, peering at Jacob's place with less-than-friendly expressions. Their backs are turned to you, but there are four of them and, if they have any discipline, one of them will have been tasked with watching their six.

What do you do?

- Rhiannon -

The pre-dawn dark hides your movements as you approach the alley. But I hope your phone is off or on silent when the text message comes in, probably no time to do anything about that now.

You can hang back in Charing Cross Road, they are in range of your bow, but even at this hour there is some traffic so you risk drawing attention to yourself. Or you can sneak into the alley, you can not see the far side, but it appears empty aside from the demons.

They stop, confer, and stare at one of the buildings. With a sinking feeling you recognise the place. It is Jacob's bookstore and home.

What do you do?

- Benji -

You stab your sword into one of the rear demons 'unarmoured' flanks, but there is resistance, its hide is tough and grates on the metal of your weapon, limiting its effectiveness (3 Harm minus 1 Armour). It turns to you in angry surprise and snarls in your face, raising its clawed hand to swing...

---

- Jacob -

The three other demons look up at your call, they 'smile' (though maybe only you recognise the expression as such) and draw short staves from under their rain-jackets. All three point them at you, and you know this will go badly until...

---

- Rhiannon -

You run up on cat-feet —the splash of the rain making more noise than you do— and drive your seax into the closest demon. You know where best to strike for optimal damage, and your weapon penetrates deeply into the demons stony body, the silver allowing it to slip through will little resistance. (1+1+1 Harm AP)

The demon shatters into a hundred pieces of rock, pelting its companions with clattering fragments and causing one to trip and stumble and turn to look at you in anger ... which quickly changes to fear as it recognises just who you are.

It raises its stave to strike you... and stops...

---

- Jacob -

Only one of the two remaining demons manage to fire their weapon at you. Apparently the staves are ranged weapons, and a lance of boiling plasma streaks out, shattering your window and striking you in the chest and chin, making your ears ring, and leaving a scorch-mark on the ceiling. But they underestimated you —maybe you are stronger now than you were when you last dealt with 'the below'— and you shrug off the blow... But you don't think you can take another one quite so easily though.

What do you do? Do you show them defiance?

---

- Benji -

You are in a bad spot. The demon's claws look like they can cleave a person in twain, and your sword is still caught in its hide. You are maybe just thinking that you may need to decide about abandoning the weapon or taking an undefended bow when the demon just ... stops, its jaw going slack and its eyes vacant.

---

- Benji, Jacob, and Rhiannon -

You don't know why the demons just stopped. It could be a trick? Maybe you can finish them before it is over? Maybe you can get away?

What do you do?

---

- Mark -

There is a press of bodies in the alley. Through the rain you see one of the demons fire a weapon at Jacob's building and glass scatters down to the stones.

You channel your energies, and release a measured portion upon the four... no, make that three, demons in the alley, they slow and stagger, and look stunned, but you know this will not hold them long, especially not if they are jolted awake by an attack.

What do you do? What does it look and feel like for you to Channel and cast magic?

- Rhiannon -

The helplessly stunned demon can do nothing to gainsay your assault, and it, too, shatters into hundreds of marble-sized pieces with no opportunity to retaliate.

You have taken out two of the four enemies in the same number of breaths —and looked good doing it— but you still don't know why they stopped just as one saw you nor how long it will be before they are back.

What do you do?

- Benji -

Forcing the blade through the hard 'flesh' takes a lot longer than would be safe if the demon were paying attention, but it only slowly reaches for the wound —as though puzzled by what is happening— before you split it almost in two, and it falls, 'lifeless'. Where one might expect blood and guts, the inside looks more like .... stone? clay? polystyrene? That's just weird!

What do you do?

- Benji -

When the demon sees that it is Rhiannon who is trying to capture it, it looks scared, and starts to thrash against her restraints.

You try to help, but it is desperate and swings a backhand at your head in the moment before it is held. Its fist hits like a automobile!

The whole fight is over in no time —three 'dead' and one captured— but the noise of the shattering glass and the howl of the stave has drawn some attention. You don't hear sirens, but the curtain in a window across the alley from Jabob's bookshop twitches and you feel someone watching you.

You all saw Jacob take a vicious lance of energy to the chest and face and then vanish from his upstairs window.

What do you do?

- Rhiannon -

You drag the thrashing demon inside, your cold iron chain prevents it from fighting back. The clumsy, hard-hitting brute appeared to be nothing more than hired-muscle...

Until it is inside, and passed the exterior wards. In the moment before the door can be closed and the room sealed —while everyone is exchanging pleasantries with their guard, apparently, down, the demon closes its eyes for a moment, as though steeling itself for something unpleasant, then, when they open again, they have changed color, the eyes quickly scan around the shop, taking note of every detail. You get the idea that it is seeing more than you do.

Then, with a grimace, it literally tears off one of its hands and reaches out with remaining one —your now slack, chain, dangling in your face— and grasps your head. It does not 'hurt', as such, but you feel it probing your mind —like lichen penetrating a rock— searching for your secrets, for your fears.

Then, with a silent scream of pain, it rips open the fabric of reality. A circle, decorated with thousands of smouldering runes, and extending from floor to ceiling, scythes up around it and it vanishes. The vacuum left by its departure sucks books and other items off the shelves and scatters them all around.

You have to step back with alacrity or risk being dragged with it to a hell-dimension.

What do you do?

- Jacob -

You have allowed this enemy into your Establishment, it now appears that that may have been (part of) its plan.

• What do you least want it to see in your storefront (you already said the 'raven' was safely kept elsewhere, so don't worry about that one)?

What —if anything— do you do to maintain this secret?

- Rhiannon -

You focus on what the demon was hoping to get from coming here, and you feel... satisfaction. They went down way too easy for them to have been a real threat to Jacob and his protections. It got what it wanted: Information.

You try to get an impression of who's pulling its strings, who sent it here. It resists your efforts, but, in the last moments before it is ripped away, you see a face. It does not look like a demon, though that can be deceptive, they seldom do up here, but, even in the demon's mind, it looks human.

Benji has found a quiet corner of Jacob’s shop to sit and recover his senses a bit while the others try to figure out what brought the demons here in the first place. He’s soaked from the rain, but not cold – he doesn’t get cold—and he takes care not to drip rainwater on Jacob’s books.

- Rhiannon -

You do recognise the face. They go by the name Chaudry, they are a wizard, but not anyone very important. You don't know what order they belong to (if you even know there are different 'orders', wizard politics is complicated) and have not heard a lot about them. But you have a place to start if you want to follow up.

• How do you know their face?

What do you do? Do you tell the others?

Benji takes a tentative sip from the bag of blood Jacob gave him, torn between disgust and acute hunger. It’s not very pleasant and it doesn’t do anything for his headache, but it does help him focus a little better. He tries to recall if he has ever met this Chaudry person that everyone’s talking about.

- Benji -

You recall the name, Chaudry is a wizard —or call themself one— but you don't know much more detail.

• Where do you know the name from? Do you recall? What rumours have you heard about them?

---

- Mark -

Do you let Jacob have the stave you picked up as per his request before the fireworks?

---

Does anyone have any thoughts on the cross that seemed to interest the demon?

By now the dark grey sky is starting to become a light grey sky, and you hear the sounds of pedestrian feet on the puddled cobbles outside. Through the window you see a 'crocodile' of small figure snaking its way up the alley.

What do you do?

- Rhiannon -

It is early for it, but the alley is filled with children in school uniform and wellington boots. The teacher is trying to keep them away from the broken glass, but the orderly line has broken down a bit and the kids are busy picking up and playing with the stony bits of demon left on the ground.

What do you do?

Benji remembers Rhiannon telling him about Chaudry and the hell hound fighting circuit she shut down. He also recalls a rumour, told to him by a friend who works at the station, about a huge, mangy dog seen stalking the tracks at night. He hadn’t connected the two stories before now but now he wonders if one of Chaudry’s hell hounds might have gotten loose before Rhiannon shut down the operation.

He gulps down the rest of the blood bag and slings his violin case over his shoulder as he notices the sky is beginning to lighten outside. "I better go. The sun will be up soon and my audience will be wondering where I’ve gone! See you all later?"

- Benji -

The demons got off the first train from Green Park direction, the rumours about the demon dog were also on the Piccadilly line in that direction, possibly between Green Park and Piccadilly.

If the demons were aiming for Jacob's place, why did they get off at Piccadilly Circus station and walk for 10 minutes instead of waiting for Leicester Square? Leicester Square is only two blocks from Jacob's?

Maybe there is a connection?

What do you do?

Rather than return to the station right away, Benji takes a detour down by the Thames, hoping to find a friend of his — Lizabeth Greenback. She is an amateur historian and mudlark who occasionally asks for his help identifying the treasures she’s found washed up on the muddy shores of the river. Sometimes Benji helps her search for washed up trinkets and sometimes, if she’s in a particularly agreeable mood, she lets Benji feed on her. She usually likes to begin mudlarking as soon as the tide begins to go out in the morning so as to find all the best stuff before anyone else can get to it so, even though it’s early, Benji thinks there’s a chance he might find her.

- Benji -

Even though this looks like the perfect time to be combing the shores of the Thames, there is no sign of Lizabeth in her any of her usual haunts.

If you ask around, one of the bums who sleeps under a bridge tells you he thinks she was arrested, his hand held out for a donation for the information.

What do you do?

- Jacob -

Once your door is open so Benji and Rhiannon can exit, you spot a tattered figure lurking in the shadows across the alley. He gives you a nod of acknowledgement indicating he would like a word.

Everyone knows Slippery Jim, a small-time mover in the Beggars' Guild, (Faction: Mortalis). (They adopted the new name a few decades ago, after Pratchett made it whimsical and popular. They do not like their —more official— name, as it suggests there are thieves amongst their ranks, so don't use it if you know it.)

Slippery Jim is a broker and carrier of street-level information, and oft-times messenger between the Circles.

What do you do?

Benji shakes the outstretched hand, cheerfully oblivious. "Arrested? What for?"

- Benji -

"Aw, I don't know, man." The bum says, crestfallen that no silver greased his palm. "Blue lights and a commotion down by the water, then they put her in a van and took her away. I did not want to get involved."

To illustrate the point about not wanting to be involved he starts to wander off, out of the shelter of his bridge and into the rain.

What do you do?

"Okay, well, thank you for your help!" says Benji, waving to the homeless man as he wanders off into the rain. The closest police station is probably Charing Cross so he decides to go and see if he can find Lizabeth there.

- Benji -

"'Lizabeth Greenback'? ... Yes." The white-haired, old, duty sergeant confirms after checking her list. "You her barrister?" She asks, they are not going to just give information to random people.

What do you do?

- Jacob -

Jim's slanted, Chinese eyes, squint at you suspiciously when you offer tea. He looks around the destruction and shakes his head.

"Very kind. Very kind." He intones. "But I have things to do, you know." He knows you well enough to not bother with the fake Chinese accent he uses with tourists. "Just here to deliver a message:

"'Millicent Fawcett seeks the return of the Fiction book by Mary Wollstonecraft. Specifically the one annotated by Byron that she was reading before it was stolen.'" He chants as though memorised. "That's it."

He looks around again at the broken window and the Jacob-shaped shadow-outline on your ceiling, then leans in close. "You had a bit of bother?" He asks, conspiratorially. Slippery Jim is always looking for an angle, you may be able to tempt him in for tea with the suggestion of information he could sell elsewhere.

What do you do?

"I should certainly hope not," says Benji, frowning. "I’m just a worried friend. Is there any way I could speak to her? When will she be released, do you know? It’s just that she has a pet tortoise and someone will have to look after him if you’re going to keep her awhile."

- Rhiannon -

"Come now, kids. Give the lady back her fossils. No, this is not part of the expedition. Give them back, please." The harried teacher says, she tries to give you an apologetic smile, but there is definitely an undertone of 'why did you leave all this sh.. mess on the street'.

"School archaeology outing." She says, turning to explain to you. "Treasure hunt, clues, reward, that sort of thing." Which might explain why they are out quite so early.

A dozen kids shuffle forward and hand you rocks with varying levels of 'sorry miss'. You can't be sure you got them all before the teacher is moving them along. "Stay away from the broken glass. Billy, where's your buddy, take their hand. Everyone here? Good." She makes a show of checking a map before pointing and declaring dramatically: "That way!"

What do you do?

- Mark -

It sounds like you woke Jenna up, which is to be expected, this time of the morning. But she agrees to meet you.

• Where do you meet? Is the 'well-know place' your Sanctum, or do you go somewhere else first?
• Is she waiting for you, or do you arrive first?
• Does Jenna know about the curse?
• Describe Jenna, and describe your interaction with her, and the tone and nature of your relationship (working or otherwise).

- Benji -

The sergeant does not look at all surprised that you are not a lawyer. While your clothes are archaic enough, they are shabby and worn, and the obvious bruise forming on your face makes you look less-than-reputable.

"I can't let you in." She says without a hint of 'sorry' in her sentence. "And I don't know how long she will be with us." She did not check her records. "You can wait." She says, indicating some hard, uncomfortable-looking chairs by the door. "But maybe you should go take care of that tortoise."

What do you do?

- Benji -

The sergeant blinks at you patiently, her expression clearly says 'duh, if you don't know the prisoner well enough to have access you should not be here'. What she says is: "You are welcome to wait."

Policing has changed a lot in your time in the city... heck, policing has changed a lot in the past 18 months, the MET is under constant review. But they are not going to let 'a stranger off the street' in to see a detainee without a good reason. You get the impression that, while she is still being frostily polite, the sergeant is becoming impatient and, as a street-worker, you don't want to get on the wrong side of the cops (even if your licenses are up to date:).

There are probably ways to get more information, or even to get into the jail to see Lizabeth, but you are not her lawyer, so you can't go through official channels. You could also wait, it is unlikely to be more than 24 hours (so the possibly-imaginary tortoise should be fine:) but could be up to 96 hours, though you didn't get the impression from the description of the arrest that is was that serious.

So far as you know, Lizabeth was not (usually) doing anything illegal, so it is a worry that she would have been arrested at all, something more may well be at play.

• Has Lizabeth ever been arrested before?

What do you do?

- Jacob -

Jim looks annoyed at your repeatedly calling him 'James', but he does not say anything, he is used to being demeaned and is willing to take it for the sake of a score.

"Millicent asked me, of course." He says, gesturing south. You might know that there is a statue of Millicent Fawcett in Parliament Square, a few block that way, and that Slippery Jim often hangs out around that area for the tourists.

"No tea! Thank you! My job here is done." He says more firmly, and you suspect he may think you are also mocking his Asian heritage with a 'tea joke'. Something has got him touchy today.

What do you do?

Benji frowns. This whole situation is very concerning. Lizabeth’s never gotten herself in any trouble like this before. Besides, he wasn’t lying about the tortoise and now he’s got himself all worried about Hermes too.

"Okay, I’ll wait," he decides. He takes a seat in one of the uncomfortable chairs by the door and waits, hugging his violin case to his chest and humming quietly to himself to distract himself from the pain in his head and the perpetual itch to bite someone. While he waits, he watches the sergeant closely, looking for any sort of opportunity to weasel more information out of her.

- Benji -

You wait for what feels like hours. The matronly desk sergeant's shift ends and she is replaced by a large bruiser of a man who pointedly ignores you sitting there. A few minutes later the first desk sergeant comes out from the back, handbag under her arm and umbrella in the other hand, and walks past you, deliberately not looking in your direction or acknowledging you in any way... But, as she passes, a slip of paper falls from her bag and flutters to the floor between your feet.

The replacement sergeant is finally paying attention, watching both of you, but, so far as you can tell, he did not see the paper.

What do you do?

- Jacob -

"OK. Sorry man, I know you didn't mean anything by it." Slippery Jim accedes. "It's been a rough few days at work. Politics, you know."

He nods and comes inside, saying: "Breakfast would be great. Something hot? This rain has us all miserable, ya?"

He looks around the interior of you shop, with the books scattered around the floor. His eyebrows raised. "You must tell me what happened here?" he says conspiratorially.

What do you do? How do you steer the conversation in the direction of your questions?

Benji waits for a moment when the new sergeant is distracted by something on his computer screen before bending down to pick up the slip of paper off the floor.

- Benji -

You think you avoided being noticed as you scoop the note from the floor. It says "We need to talk. Outside. 5 Minutes." It does not say it, but it is clear this should be done secretly.

What do you do?

- Rhiannon -

Who is there for you to talk to? Name and describe them.

"Did they 'turn into stone'? Or where they 'stone demons'?" Is the first question. "It makes a difference, you know."

They moved around close enough to the way a real body would to fool most people (but not Benji or yourself). Your blade went through them pretty easy, but Benji's blade seemed to grate on their 'flesh' which seemed hard to him. (Did you talk to Benji about his experience? It did not seem like it.)

• Does this hunter assume that you learned your lesson with Eligos and that they don't need to question you about disposal of evidence? We can assume that they know about that case, even if they were not around then.

What do you do?

Benji stuffs the note into his pocket and glances between the new sergeant and the door. He could try to leave without the sergeant noticing but, even if he managed that, mysteriously vanishing moments after the other sergeant left seems a lot more suspicious than just leaving like he normally would. He picks up his violin case and his umbrella and approaches the desk. "Good morning! My name is Benji. My friend Lizabeth Greenback has been arrested – I’m not sure why. I’ve been waiting here all morning for her to be released, but it seems like that might take longer than I thought it would and I’m getting awfully bored. Could you please tell Lizabeth to give me a call when she gets out? Thanks!"

With that, he heads outside to find out what the first sergeant wants to talk about.

- Benji -

The sergeant is waiting for you, the breeze tugging at her umbrella. She looks around nervously as you approach, but relaxes a little when she sees you are not followed.

She motions subtly for you to follow her and leads you around the corner, to a small, dark, Thai food place —somewhat circumspect, but still very near the police station. The owners nod in greeting to her and indicate that they are bringing her 'the usual' without her needing to say anything. She goes to a table near the back and asks you if you want something.

Once you are alone she leans in close and whispers: "I know you, don't I? You are 'Ben'?" She seems to be dredging back in her memory, do you correct her about the name?

"You helped Miriam, a friend of mine, a few years ago. She was struggling with addiction and you helped her get clean." Do you remember this incident from a years ago? Was it you or does she have you mistaken for someone else?

"Something is going on. Something ... weird? ..." she hesitates over the last work, watching your reaction as though hoping you will deny it and end the meeting. (Presumably you don't?)

"We all know Ms Greenback, we see her while out on patrol, and she is always polite and helpful. She has never been in any trouble with us." She looks around hesitantly and the food arrives at the same time. The restaurant is otherwise empty, and she tucks into her food once she is satisfied no one is listening.

"We were ordered not to talk to anyone, which was strange. But I assumed she would be released quickly. I thought it was a misunderstanding." She explains. "But they have brought in serious lawyers against her and her public defender looks scared enough to fold.

"They say she stole 'something', but aren't quite saying what. National Secrets act, type stuff, maybe. She is refusing to talk —which is her right, but is not helping her case."

She looks at you, unsure what to do next. "She is a sweet girl. And this is just not right. I don't know what is going on, but it is... not normal."

What do you do?

- Jacob -

"Huh? I told you. Millicent asked me to find someone who knows about books, the magic kind, you know. And I thought about you." He explains. "Stone bitch talks to me sometimes, all the statues do." Jim looks uncomfortable about this fact.

"I asked about the book, if it had to be the very one that was stolen from her. She does not always answer straight, or straight away —they don't really live in our time, you know. She scoffed at me, 'so long as it has Byron's notes', she says, says she was reading those." He shrugs, watching you make breakfast and seemingly more interested in you than in the food.

"Your turn. What happened here?"

What do you do?

- Jacob -

"Mainly they talk to each other." Jim concedes. "I overheard enough that some of them started trusting me. Not much value in it." He sounds disappointed. "But they do see everything that happens... if you can get them to care enough to notice or to share details from the right timeframe. I haven't worked out yet how to... you know, 'profit', but Millicent owes me a Debt for coming to you, maybe a big one if you can deliver."

He listens to your tale, taking in all the details. "'Chaudry'? You say?" He muses, speculatively nodding until you get the 'wizard' part. "Oh, I don't have truck with wizards, they are tricky and quick to anger. That's Pratchett, that is." He says, badly quoting Tolkien.

"And associating with demons?! Who would do such a thing?!" He pantomimes shock and horror at the idea.

• Does he officially know you are a demon? It sure looks like he is implying... :)

Jim does not owe you any Debts, but, as you say, he does know people and could help... if it were in his best interests.

What do you do?

Benji shakes his head at the offer of food. "Benji," he corrects her, with a small shrug that indicates she was close enough.

He does know Miriam. He still has her over for afternoon tea sometimes, in fact. She used to be a vampire hunter, but things got a bit much for her a few years back and Benji was quick to encourage her to retire. She’s been doing a lot better since then, in his opinion, and has had more time to focus on herself and kick a few bad habits. He cocks his head at the sergeant. "I’m afraid I don’t recall your name."

He frowns as the sergeant explains the situation. It sounds like Lizabeth is in more trouble than he thought. "Who’s ‘they’?"

- Mark -

"Interesting." Jena says, stroking the stave and even putting it to her ear and giving it a sniff. "Stone? What does it do?"

She is all curiousity until you bring up the topic of the Sanctum, the mere mention of the place makes her shudder. "Uh, I would prefer not to." She says, reaching for her hot chocolate and frowning in surprise that is not no longer 'hot'. She let's out a resigned sigh and sets it aside.

"No." She says, more forcefully. "I really don't want to go back there."

What has her so scared? What do you do?

- Rhiannon -

Charles scratches the stone with his fingernail, which seems like a bad idea, especially since it leaves a deposit under the nail. "Hmm..." He says, wheeling over to a bench with scientific equipment on it and scrapping off some more onto a glass slide, then putting it under a microscope.

"Come over here." He says. "Take a look at this. Does that seem to be moving to you?"

• Is there any sign of movement in the sample? Even the slightest?

What do you do?

- Benji -

"I don't think we actually met. But I had to take Miriam to you a time or two when she was... hurt or in need. I wasn't supposed to come in or see who she was going to, but, you know, 'police curiosity', so I spied." She gives you a shy smile.

"I'm Kenedi." She answers your question. You can see from her uniform name badge that this is her surname, and she does not share her first name with you, either because she does want to or because she is so accustomed to be just being called 'Kenedi' or 'Sergeant Kenedi'.

"'They'?" She says impatiently. "You know, the higher-ups, my bosses bosses." She shrugs, which draws your attention to her neck, the food smell and very idea of 'eating' not helping with your Hunger. "My boss was not happy to deliver the order, I know that much."

What do you do?

- Jacob -

"Hey, everybody would prefer at least four good meals a day. And many of the wizards I have seen have evidently had them."

When you mention 'the item' again, Slippery Jim tries to look casual, his face to his plate. "What item specifically?" He asks, sounding like all he wants is to be helpful.

He ignores the suggestion of his getting involved. He already stated he wanted nothing to do with wizards, and now you have added murderous demons to the pot, he wants none of that brew. 'Where's the profit', as he would say. You would need to heavily sweeten the pot if you want to get anything out of Slippery Jim.

What do you do?

- Mark -

"Both times." Jena says in a small voice, maybe too soft for you hear over the rain on the tarpaulin above. She looks at you, her lip quivering and her eyes filled with unshed tears. The promise that you will be there strengthens her resolve, but not enough. "I'm sorry." She says, looking very dejected. "I can't! I can't go back there."

She hands back the stave and stands suddenly, knocking over her hot chocolate, the sound of the cup smashing on the stone floor make her jump and then giggle slightly hysterically.

She glances at her silent phone, and apologises again. "I have to get to the museum." She explains, even though earlier she said she would still have been asleep if you had not called.

What do you do?

- Mark -

Jena looks hurt that you would call her on her fib. "Jenny is not feeling well." She says. "And there is a big, week-long, school function that she was working on. A treasure hunt."

She turns and walks away, her back very straight.

What do you do?

- Jacob -

Slippery Jim nods, his downcast eyes all over the shop looking at 'items'. It is unclear if he believes you, but he does not push overtly.

"I am not a delivery boy!" He says indignantly. "I am a messenger boy." He adds more quietly. "My part is done... so long as you agree to find the stone bitch's book? Else I need to find someone who will. I do people, I would not even know where to start looking for a 'magic book'."

Slippery Jim has been particularly prickly about any perceived mockery today, this suggests he is thinking about Status. The internal politics of the Beggars' Guild is murky, at best, no one from outside knows who runs the Faction —you doubt most of the Beggars even know for sure, but Slippery Jim is not a big-wig, it seems he is looking to move up... again.

What do you do?

Benji’s fingertips tap a complicated rhythm on the tabletop, trying to drown out the appetizing double thump of Kenedi’s heartbeat. "…Right, but more specifically? Do you know who the orders are coming from?"

- Rhiannon -

"Egads!" Charles exclaims when he eventually stops postulating and looks up from his equipment and sees the larger chunks move. He was fixated on small movements under the microscope, but this is bad.

"This is bad." He says. "Does it look to you like they are trying to reform? Looks that way to me." He confirms his hypothesis with a measuring tape from his belt and shakes his head in worry.

"You sure you got all the pieces?" He asks ominously. You definitely can't be sure, there may be bits left in the gutter, but worse, those kids may not have given them all back.

What do you do?

- Benji -

"Specifically? No, we never do." Kenedi sighs. "It always could be from 5 or 6." You know she means MI-5 or MI-6, 'spies' and such, "Or merely 'part of an ongoing investigation'. They don't tell us so that we can't speculate." She shrugs.

"I don't know why anyone would be interested in Lizabeth, though. She is not involved with anything serious? Do you know what she was doing?"

• Do you know anything about what Lizabeth was up to? What do you do?

"I was thinking that she might have found something she wasn’t supposed to in the mud," Benji suggests. "There’s also…" he trails off, gingerly touching the side of his face where the bruise is flowering across his temple. There’s also the possibility that whatever she’s involved in has something to do with this Chaudry and his demons. He’s sure he isn’t her only less-than-human friend. Perhaps she got tangled up with someone dangerous? "Well, anyway, thank you for sharing this with me. I don’t suppose you know how long it will be before she’s released?"

- Jacob -

"Hell no!" Slippery Jim exclaims. "That is the opposite of what I want, your telling everyone that I went against a wizard!"

Slippery Jim looks sheepish. "Hey, I like you, man. But Millicent already owes me, the rest is up to you." He considers for a moment. "I will keep my eyes and hears open, and if I hear anything about this 'Chaudry', I will tell you, but I want my name kept out of this. You've got to promise me that."

Given how little is known about the internal politics of the Beggars' Guild, you are not overly surprised that Slippery Jim wants to remain clandestine about his dealings. They rely a lot on being overlooked and ignored and thought of as unimportant. Their ambitions are subtle and hard to understand.

What do you do?

- Benji -

"That's a valid point." Kenedi agrees. "I wonder what it could be that has 'them' so stirred up." She does not miss your touching your bruised face —cop's eyes, and all— but does not press the matter.

"I can't guess when she will be released." She apologizes. "You didn't get this from me." She says, writing a note in her pad and slipping it to you under the table. "Maybe her lawyer be willing to talk?"

You now have the lawyer's number. What do you do?

- Mark -

The stave seems to be a basic blasting rod, a one-trick-pony, even if it is a rather effective trick if 'blasting' is what one is after.

This would have been so much easier with Jena's help. Absent that help it will take many more hours to work up some sort of specific nullification for the staves, and even then it will be unreliable and you may have to set up your field right before needing it.

The circle seems to inhibit the stave's ability to draw in power, so, with what you have, you are pretty sure you can stop them from recharging and being used too many times in a row. But you don't know how many charges they start with, though it can't be many, else they would fall appart.

With some additional hours of work you should be able to improve the frequency response of the circle to prevent them from firing at all. This will also require test-firing the stave more times, which could damage your property and it is not quiet, and you don't want the neighbors to call the cops to your Sanctum, so that is tricky.

What do you do?

Benji pockets the lawyer’s number and flashes Kenedi a fanged smile as he stands up to leave. "Thanks! That should certainly come in handy. If you notice anything else ‘weird’ and you need someone to talk to about it… well, you know where I live, right?"

- Benji -

Kenedi looks a little startled by the flash of fangs, but she covers it well enough. It seems she is 'in the know', but not very knowledgeable, so she possibly does not understand the implications of 'coming to you', but people need to be careful when they decide to play in the supernatural world.

"If I hear anything that will help I will try to let you know." She sounds nervous about being caught, but she did not go to herculean efforts to avoid being noticed, she brought you to a place just around the corner from the cop-shop, somewhere she obviously frequents often enough for them to know her standing order. She might well get into trouble and need your help.

When you ask if she knows your place she almost tries to deny it, but then remembers that she already admitted to following and seeing where Lizabeth went. She merely nods.

What do you do?

- Jacob -

"I can't make any promises." Slippery Jim says as he wipes his face. "But I will call you if I have anything for you. Thank you for the hospitality." He says, and you get the impression he literally means just that, 'the hospitality' rather than 'the meal'. Beggars probably get food all the time, but most people don't invite them into their homes.

Slippery Jim makes his way out into the rain.

What do you do?

Benji opens his umbrella as he steps out into the rain. He decides he’ll call Lizabeth’s lawyer later. Right now, he really needs to do something about his head... He’s in pain and he knows that feeding would make him feel a lot better, but he did just eat at Jacob’s so he doesn’t actually need to feed again so soon. Perhaps he should just go to a doctor instead… While he weighs up his options, he texts Rhiannon back:

Hey Rhiannon!
The demons got off the train at my station (coming from the Green Park direction) so, if you’re trying to find that Chaudry fellow, that’s where I would start. I’ve also heard possible rumours of hellhounds wandering around the tracks in that same direction, though, if you want to take a look around the tunnels, I would recommend waiting until after the last train tonight so you don’t get flattened by a train…
On an unrelated note, do you have a doctor you usually go to when you’re hurt? One who won’t be surprised by my teeth, so to speak?
Yours,
Benji

- Jacob -

None of your copies of Frankenstein have annotations by Byron, and you don't recall coming across mention of such a book in your extensive research in the past. Something is amiss.

Millicent Fawcett was a great crusader for early women's rights, you think. Wasn't Rhiannon into that sort of thing when that whole deal with her demon lover —who shall not be named— happened? Maybe she will be able to help you understand the woman better?

What do you do?

- Rhiannon -

"I don't know." Bev replies, though there is a touch of humor in her tone. "Sounds dangerous, and the last time you sent one of your 'friends' to me there was trouble. Maybe you should come along, keep me safe? Then make sure there are no problems afterwards, for a few hours?"

What do you do?

- Mark -

- Later in the day. -

"The hunt is finally over, for today." Jen replies. "It went a lot longer than we expected, and the kids were tired and cranky by the time we sent them all home."

She listens to your request, and is relieved when you ask her to name a place. "I am still at the museum. I could probably get us into one of the preparation rooms, they should be safe."

What do you do?

Benji frowns at Rhiannon’s text, perplexed. Be what to my what?

He takes shelter from the rain in the alley next to the Thai restaurant while he waits for Rhiannon to get back to him about her doctor, enjoying the roar of the rain and all the daytime hustle and bustle that he doesn’t usually get to be a part of.

- Mark -

"I'm sorry. I don't any places like that." Jena says with distaste in her voice. "Some of the work rooms are set up to handle pretty rough stuff. A bigger concern would be curious people wandering in and seeing what you are doing." She concedes.

What do you do?

- Rhiannon -

Green Park Station is big and busy, if there is a Place of Power here, you can not find it with the constant throng of people passing through it, though that has a power of it own.

Benji lets you know his location. Maybe he will be more able to sus out an underground station, he is more familiar with the places.

The Millicent Fawcett you know of is dead, and had been for a while. If Jacob in interested in historical details you may be able to help, but there are more pressing things going on right now.

What do you do?

Benji bundles into the passenger seat of Rhiannon’s car. "Sorry for troubling you with this! I really owe you one."

He furrows his brow at her suggestion about the muggers, conflicted. There is a part of him that is very excited about the idea, but he doesn’t usually like to think about that part.

"If you think that would be best," he says, hesitantly, hoping that Rhiannon will make the decision for him. If Rhiannon thinks it’s a good idea then it can’t be so bad.

- Rhiannon -

An assistant who you have met, but don't know very well, answers Charles phone. "Mr Whittier is in the loo." He says, sounding very prim and proper, as always. "And you know how long that can take. I offered to bring him his phone, but he swore at me and threatened me with death... or warned me that 'it would be the death of me to enter for a while'. I will give him your message."

If you ask him more about the sample, he will confirm: "There is a rock on the workbench, it fits your description. I don't know what you mean by 'doing anything', it looks like a rock, it is just sitting there. I will keep an eye on it." He would agree without much conviction.

What do you do?

- Jacob -

Parliament Square is fairly full of people, considering the weather. Most are spending more time complaining about said weather than 'touristing', but they are still looking at the sights (mostly the ones that don't require them to look up) and asking silly questions of anyone who will listen.

There are a whole bunch of statues in the square, and you may not have noticed before, but, thinking as you now are, they appear to be arranged in interesting patterns —the tilt of a shoulder or cock of an eyebrow seemingly directed at other statues, or pointedly ignoring another (a literal cold-shoulder)— and there seems to be a sense of 'life' (though not as we know it) to them that you had not noticed before. People talk of artworks 'having a life of their own' and you might suspect something like that at play here.

It is not hard to find the statue of Millicent Fawcett, standing sternly (is she holding washing? surely that is not a pillow-case?) on the edge of the green.

What do you do?

"No, not a taboo," says Benji, carefully. He knows many vampires who could not care less about whether their prey is ‘innocent’ or willing or not (after all, does a human eating a steak worry about the cow’s innocence?), but he thinks it’s probably best not to mention that to Rhiannon. "It just appeals to an instinct I usually try not to indulge."

- Rhiannon -

"Yes, miss. I have holy water ready, miss." Jordan (for that is assistant's name, you now remember) agrees.

"I was wondering miss." He barrels on, as though desperate to get the words out before he loses his nerve. "What are you doing on Friday night? There is a rather good play in the West End. And I have tickets." Briefly it sounds like he is offering you tickets, but then that hope is dashed by the words: "We could go for dinner first."

At the same time Jordan is saying this, you hear Bev's voice on the door-phone and she buzzes you in.

What do you do?

- Jacob -

From behind, you can see that a section of the "courage" placard the statue holds is less weathered than the rest, almost like it is used to having books, or something, resting there to shield it from the elements, it is currently empty.

You feel fairly confident that this is the one... if you can trust Slippery Jim's tale. Confident enough to try talking to the statue and hope no one notices.

The statue, unsurprisingly, stares unwaveringly over your head and does not respond. But a small voice chirps up from your elbow. "She ain't gonna talk to you, bruv." Says a previously unnoticed street urchin of indeterminate gender and age. "She don't know you. You might be a trick, you know how they are." The urchin does not quite hold out a hand for a hand-out, but it is implied. (Maybe you should check your pockets, see that you still have any valuables you may have been carrying when you got here.)

What do you do?

- Jacob -

The urchin nods sagely, pleased that you know 'how they are'. They goggle at the 20 and become a lot more... well it might be termed 'polite'.

"Yeah, bruv. She knows me." They assure you confidently. "I will tell her." They turn to the statue and speak loudly.

"Hoy, Millie," they call, trying to sound familiar —possibly for your benefit— then they flinch and their posture changes as does their tone. "Sorry, Mrs Fawcett, ma'am. The guv'nor says... I know but he said ... OK. Jeeze."

They turn back to you before completing you message. "She says: "Who's 'James'? An' 'are you from the liberry?'" Then they flinch again. "Sorry, 'Lie Bra Ree'."

The statue did not move or make any indication that it was conversing with the urchin, but you if they are faking it they are an excellent actor and you should think about sponsoring them to RADA (Royal Academy of Dramatic Art) as a patron of the arts.

What do you do?

- Rhiannon and Benji -

Jordan deflates, and mutters something noncommittal, but, by then, Bev is opening her door.

Bev has changed her hair, instead of tight rows she is sporting an impressive puffball afro that must be a nightmare in the hospital scrubs and caps. She tries to be subtle, but it is clear she as hurriedly put some effort into cleaning up the place and even more effort into cleaning herself up. She looks good.

She also looks nervous, not sure whether to talk to Rhiannon or Benji as she invites you both into her flat.

What do you do?

While Rhiannon is finishing up her phone call, Benji takes it upon himself to introduce himself to Beverly. "You must be Beverly! I’m Benji," he says, sticking his hand out for a handshake. "Thank you for agreeing to take a look at me. I really appreciate it. Rhiannon might have told you already, but I got punched in the head." He gestures vaguely to the bruised side of his face and the dried blood caked in his hair.

- Benji -

"Hello Benji." Bev says, her eyebrow raising slightly at your clothes. "Any friend of Rhiannon's is... a potential patent of mine." She tries to joke, maybe to relieve her nerves.

Bev looks at your face dubiously, and starts to clean it up properly so she can see what is going on. "Punched?" She asks. "That as some punch, that looks bad. But, then, maybe demons punch hard?

"Are these the same demons that are messing up the weather?" She asks, out of the blue. "Are you guys," presumably she means Rhiannon's groups and assumes you work with them, "doing something about that?"

• Is this the first you have heard about 'demons' being responsible for the weather?

What do you do?

- Rhiannon -

It is hard to tell if Bev's face flushes with blood at your compliment, she is definitely pleased. She almost responds a few times, changing her mind each time, and appears relieved when you change the subject.

"I don't know about 'corruption'." Bev speculates. "But the weather is definitely affecting people's ... moods? And we have had some strange incidents that look like 'rage' —you know, 'road-rage' or other forms of spontaneous violence— in A&E. Just random, all over the place, occurrences that the administration has not noticed as a pattern, but made me think of you."

When you ask if she has heard anything else, she shrugs. "It is just what everyone is saying. Those who don't blame the government, or global warming, or the French."

She has Benji's wound superficially clean now, and asks you to hold the light. "Stone, you say?" She asks. "There does appear to be bits of stone in the wound, they are really in there. I will need to debride the wound to remove them and the dead flesh where they have... cut off circulation? Absorbed the moisture? You should have had this looked at sooner. And you really should get a scan to check for internal damage." She says to Benji.

Bev does not have anesthetic at he home, and debridement will hurt.

What do you do?

Benji is happy to sit quietly while Beverly and Rhiannon catch up (he doesn’t really know all that much about demons anyway and he thinks the weather’s been great). He only pipes up when Beverly admonishes him for not going to a doctor sooner.

"It only happened this morning," he protests. He doesn’t really know what ‘debridement’ entails but it doesn’t sound fun. He grimaces. "Do whatever you have to. This is probably the only medical care I’m going to get. Doctor’s appointments can be a bit awkward when you’re undead and all."

- Benji -

"No. I suppose not." Bev says sadly when you mention the lack of adequate medical care for those outside normal channels. "Someone should do something about that. It is not fair."

"Well you still should have come in sooner..." She starts to nag, as even hours can make a difference. Then she hesitates and looks again. "Really? This morning?" She compares the wound to other parts of your flesh, and is especially interested in any other, unrelated, scrapes or injuries and wants to see in side your mouth, maybe she is comparing what 'undead' flesh normally looks like so she can know what to expect. She does not look happy with what she found.

"This looks like it has been festering for days." She tells you both. "Maybe the demon-stone is... poisonous." You suspect she may have change to the word 'poisonous' from a worse, more scary word, for your benefit. "We need to get them out.

"Can you help me hold him down." Bev asks Rhiannon as she removes scalpels, forceps and sterile packaged 'sponges' that have 'Monofilament debridement pads' written on them.

• Benji: How do you react to pain? How hard is it for Rhiannon to 'hold you down'? Do you have enough self-control to 'take it' or do you need to roll to Keep Your Cool to avoid lashing out in pain?

What do you do?

Benji’s eyes widen as Beverly brings out the scalpels. He’s beginning to wonder if maybe he should have taken Rhiannon up on her mugger idea…

He takes a deep breath and grits his teeth, trying to prepare himself for pain… but all pretence of humanity vanishes the moment Beverly’s scalpel makes the first incision.

He hisses and snarls and bares his fangs as he tries to wriggle free of Rhiannon’s grip on him, desperately trying to get away from Beverly’s scalpel. For Rhiannon, it’s a bit like trying to hold onto a feral cat. It takes every scrap of self-control left in his body not to bite anyone…

- Jacob -

"'The slippery one?' She says." The urchin says, then pretty much confirms that you have the right place by stating facts that you have withheld from the conversation so far: "'Mary'? 'A fiction'? She says 'Winston probably took it' that's just like him."

What do you do?

- Jacob -

"Er... When they go silent like that it means they think we've asked a question they think is obvious. They don't think like us." The urchin 'explains' —if you consider an explanation to skip over the fact the someone you can't hear 'fell silent'.

"Churchill is over here." They start to lead you across the squelching grass where there are fewer people, but which will definitely mess up your shoes. "He is a prankster, inee?."

What do you do?

- Mark -

The museum is strange after hours, empty and booming. Some of the areas are still open to the public, but they are also mostly empty, probably due to the weather outside making people less inclined to go out. There are two boys looking at an exhibit down the other side of a long, empty passage, you can hear them talking: "No, look. This one's clothes are different to last time, see that stain? And he's bigger than the last guy." And the reply: "It's another 'con-piracy theory'. I don't see why they would move them around. Its not like they have shelves of them downstairs, or like they build them specially for the display, no matter what you say, Billy." It sounds like an argument they have had before.

There is a little reserved tension in Jena's posture and attitude, probably left over from the intimated accusation earlier. She did actually go to the museum, and there was actually a tour that she appears to have helped with, she does not say anything about it, but it is possible she insisted on the museum just to make her point to you?

What do you do?

- Jacob -


The statue of Winston Churchill towers high above you —its feet above the height of your head— looking imperious and not at all like a 'prankster' or someone who would steal another's book on a whim.

"Um..." The urchin says in a quite voice now that you have arrived. "I don talk to this one. 'e scares me a bit. Lookit 'im."

There is nowhere for Churchill keep a book, unless those pockets are a lot more flexible than they look. There are also a lot more people around this statue than near Millicent's.

"What's this all about, then?" The urchin asks, maybe hoping the statue will hear and reply to your words —as Millicent's appeared to, cutting the kid off before they could repeat what you said— and save them the need to address the former PM directly.

What do you do?

- Mark -

Jena laughs a little, or at least cracks a smile, at your familiar joke. She barely glances at the kids and their discussion before shrugging. "Kids." She says. "I think they were part of the school tour? Troublemakers, for sure, but not for us where we are going."

She indicates the stairs —you know that she has resolved to not use lifts or escalators where possible (do you know/suspect why?). "We are going far down."

What do you do?

- Mark -

Jena glances distractedly down the corridor. "That's ... the Egypt section. Mummies I think," You know she uses phrases like 'I think' when she knows full well exactly where is there, it makes people less 'wigged-out' about her eidetic memory. "Though there are some statues around the corner. They got here around lunchtime, their activity involved the cafeteria, it was a fiasco. But most of them seemed to enjoy it well enough."

What do you do?

- Mark -

The boys look immediately guilty, and prepared to bolt. They are probably not supposed to be alone, or in the part of the museum that you thought was closed already, but running would prove they are guilty.

"Nuffin, mister." The first says, making 'mister' sound like a rude word. "Jus looking, init."

They are, indeed (don't doubt Jena's memory:) looking at a display of Egyptian Mummies.

What do you do?

- Mark -

"Who's lyin'?" The first kid bristles at your unfounded accusation and moves away from your hand, eyeing it suspiciously. "Was jus sayin' this mummy is bigger than the one that was 'ere last month. What of it? Gotta go, my mum's waiting" He says, though this last part probably is a lie.

What do you do?

- Mark -

"This display has always been here." Jena says, not really paying attention and looking pensive about the whole subject of lying.

"Always been here, init." Says the kids.

What do you do?

- Mark -

The boys give you a defiant look when you tell them to go home, but do make a show of walking off towards the main museum.

Jena and yourself head the opposite way, back towards the stairs. The door to the stairs makes a horrid screeching sound as Jena pushes though, but she pays it no mind, leading you down many flights of stairs —you are now well below the level of Thames— before pushing out into a sub-sub-basement. There is another squealing of the door up above as you exit.

Down here it is all ancient industrial structures —heavy, old, damp stone and iron— and Jena leads you to a room with a few metal tables in the center and kilns and fire-bricks in the corners.

"We should be safe in here." She says while hanging a simple 'Do Not Disturb' sign on the outer door. "Where's the rod?"

What do you do?

Rhiannon struggles, but manages to hold Benji down enough that his self-control wins the day and no one is hurt. Bev can finish what she needs to do.

"It was pretty scary there, for a while." Bev says with a grin at Rhiannon. "Good thing I had my super-woman protector here."

Bev seems more interested in Benji than afraid, it could have turned out very different under different circumstance. She is full of questions if you will allow them —medical school was an excuse to exercise her inquisitive mind— and she is particularly curious to know how long it will take Benji to heal the rest of the way, and wants to chart the progress.

"What is this stone?" She asks, poking at the bits of demon-fist she took from Benji's flesh, but being very careful not to touch it with her skin. "Look how it is turning the bloody water black."

What do you do?

- Jacob -

"He says he 'did not take Millie's book'. That that 'jest', er, 'lacks subtlety'?" The urchin says, looking nervous about the sterner tone they are getting from the PM.

Even if your sidekick does not know what you are talking about, it seems Churchill is well aware of the case of the missing book.

What do you do?

- Jacob -

"Says he 'exists only to serve'." Your translator says with doubt in their voice —probably due to the imperious cast of the face of the statue. "Says you 'are clearly a scholar and a gentleman', but he 'does not know where the book is, doubts any of them'..." ...by this he probably means the statues of Parliament Square... "...'took it. They have no way of hiding it, so the joke would fall flat in the three days since.'"

You knew it would not be as easy as just asking the people around her, else the task would not be worthy of bringing to you. If Churchill is to be believed he does not know what happened, and, in his opinion, neither do the statues around the square, though that last part is second-hand information (third-hand if you consider your translator).

What do you do?

- Mark -

Jena beams at your praise, and, even though this is dangerous work, she looks at ease and comforted by the enveloping power of your spell. An almost-permanent tension that she carries in her back relaxes and she looks like she feels safe for the first time today.

"It is storing up all that power." She observes out loud, as though talking to a recording device, but you know she is just articulating what she sees, partially as an aid to her memory but mainly so that you can correct her interpretations —it is not much good remembering facts that are not true, after all.

"What are you hoping for?" She enquires. "It is starting to show cracks. There, see? Are you trying to push it to... or past, the breaking point?"

• What are you trying to do exactly?

And, what do you do?

Benji answers Bev’s questions as best he can, though he is still reeling from the pain and a bit twitchy, flinching whenever anyone gets anywhere near his head. He explains to Bev that, being undead, vampires’ bodies cannot heal on their own and that vampires must feed on the living to heal their wounds instead. He mentions that the healing process can be significantly slowed if the wound is made by a silver weapon. He suspects this is somehow related to the fact that mirrors made with silver won’t show a vampire’s reflection.

"Of course!" he answers Rhiannon’s question. "Although I’m not certain how much use I was in our last encounter with these demons… Are you sure I won’t just get in your way?"

- Rhiannon -

Bev abruptly stops poking at the demon bits when you mention their inclination to reform. She pushes the dish away with a concerned expression on her face. "What do we do with these, then? Flush them? Or is that a bad idea? We don't want them reforming in the sewers? Oh, now I am not going to be able use the toilet ever again, this is worse than the pet alligators!"

She is interested in the hell-hounds and the rest of the investigation. You get the strong impression that if you were to say you needed her help, she would join you for the next part.

At your last question Bev becomes shy and turns away. "I worry about you too." She says, and then in a much quieter voice, pitched so you can easily pretend you did not hear it: "I miss you."

Then, at a normal volume, and as though trying to skip over the admission, she continues: "I am not so much worried that you will get hurt. I know how tough you are. I am more worried that you ... will get hard, that you cut yourself off from people, and you need people to ... to keep you human. Are you taking care of yourself?"

What do you say?

- Benji -

Bev is intrigued by the 'silver mirror' aspect, but disappointed to find that all her mirrors are aluminium-backed and don't exhibit that same phenomenon. "That probably also accounts for not showing up in photographs? They were made with silver too. What about digital photos? There is no silver there, is there?" She is all ready to test if you show up in her phone's camera if you let her.

She tries to make it sound casual, but there is a certain frisson of interest as she asks: "What is it like? 'Feeding'? And," she hesitates ever so slightly before finishing the thought, wrapping her arms around herself, covering her chest with her hands grasping her shoulders near her neck: "... being fed upon?" She is asking Benji, but also suggesting that Rhiannon might have tried it —she is not sure how close you two are— and would really want a first-hand account from the source, as it were.

What do you say?

- Mark -

"Hmm... Hold it there, please." Jena says (meaning the power-level you are pumping in) while she studies the stone rod carefully. She attaches wires to either end, plugging them into a meter from one of the shelves. The needle swings around frantically, and she moves the attachment points closer together and notes that the voltage diminishes as she does so.

"It seems to have some silicon in it? Like a semiconductor? And these shiny flakes may be mica?" She says. "But feel all that power?" She holds her hand over the stave to illustrate her point. "There is only a few volts, so it is not about that sort of power."

Jena pokes at a few of the flakes that have fallen off while it vibrated with energy. "It does not seem very strong." You recall that two of the three staves that were dropped shattered on the ground, and this one was protected by the body of the demon. "You could probably break it. But I would not want to be holding it, or even be near someone holding it when it breaks. It will probably go phloowey."

It looks like if you directed all the magical energy from inside your circle into the stave that it might overload and explode. You could also try channeling the energy out of the circle, leaving the area devoid and the staves impotent.

Channelling the energy out might take time, unless you can test each 'frequency' (they used to call them 'flavours' before, but the trends change) and find what magics are most efficacious and rob it of. This will be tiring, but safe.

Testing the stave to destruction will be easy, but you will need to balance getting it just right to avoid blowing yourselves up, and you will only get one attempt.

What do you do?

Benji smiles for the camera. His smile would be sort of goofy and endearing were it not for his fangs, excited to get his picture taken. "Oh, yes! I’ve been learning to use the telephone camera too! See?" He shows Bev his camera roll, which is full of very blurry, poorly-composed photographs, mostly of pigeons and the moon and whatever else has captured his attention throughout the day (or night). There are a few unflattering selfies of himself and Rhiannon hanging out at his apartment, in which Rhiannon is clearly stoned.

He struggles to describe the Hunger and the sensation of feeding. "I guess it’s a bit like scratching an itch that never goes away. Very satisfying in the moment, but the itch comes back as soon as you stop."

He’s not offended that Rhiannon doesn’t think he’s much use in a fight. He’s a musician, after all, not a demon slayer. He is, however, a little insulted that she thinks he doesn’t know how to keep himself fed. "I do! I have lots of friends!" he insists, indignantly. "It’s just that most of them work during the day and my friend Lizabeth, who I thought might be available this morning, went and got herself arrested."

- Benji and Rhiannon -

"So, 'vampire spit' does not magically heal the bites, like in that TV show? I forget what it was called." Bev ask, obviously agreeing that constant neck wounds would be a bit of a messy giveaway. "That would be convenient. But there are lots of... less visible major veins and arteries.

"Do you need to 'bite' or can you use a phlebotomy needle and tube as a... a straw?" She asks Benji, holding up just such a device from a kit for taking blood samples which she just happened to have with her.

"I suppose you would need to spread it around." Bev agrees. "The body can refill the volume in a day or so, but the red blood cells take anywhere from a month to two months to fully regrow, which is why we say 'wait 12 weeks' between donations, and that is when we only take the regulation one bag."

She is sad that no one spoke about what it feels like, but she does not press the issue at this time.

What do you do?

- Jacob -

"I work here." The urchin says. "So I am here most days. It is a good place for tourists. Three days ago? It was raining. If that helps. I don't recall anything special happening, though, but if there was an uproar the statues would have noticed and they would have been talking about it. They love to gossip, and sometimes we can overhear them and learn things that are useful. All they do is watch people and gossip, they are better than the cameras," they note, waving a hand at all the security cameras covering every inch of London, including the square, "and, maybe, easier to get information out of, if you can get them to care enough to talk.

"Sometimes they ask us," you assume they mean the Beggars' Guild, "for help when they need a little something-something. They can't move, you see, so they need us to fetch things, like 'books' I suppose, or wipe the pigeon crap off their noses, but they don't often talk to me, only Smuts, over there, trusts me so far."

If the statues really do watch everything so closely, then whoever stole the book three days ago must have found an approach that was hidden from their view. Maybe they were not quite so careful about the security cameras?

What do you do?

- Mark -

Jena is, likewise, pleased by the work and the result, and upset that she could not do more. She feels that she let you down by refusing to help you in the Sanctum, and that this was, at best, a second-rate effort down here.

She gives a noncommittal response to your talk about cleansing the Sanctum, indicating that, for sure, she wants to help, but, you realise after she has left, not actually promising to talk about her experience.

"Maybe," says Benji, of the needle and tube. "Jacob— a friend of ours—supplies me with blood bags sometimes, but they don’t seem to help much with the healing situation. And they taste gross anyway."

He tilts his head at Bev, picking up on her curiosity. "Do you want to try it? To see what it feels like?" He glances quickly at Rhiannon to see if she seems okay with that idea.

- Jacob -

The promise of another 10 or even 20 quid definitely gets the urchin's attention. "I will ask Smutsie. See what he has to say." They say, skipping off to the statue of Jan Smuts, and waiting for a moment to chat.

Your search definitely suggests there are cameras or all types around. The Surveyor's overlooks the statue of Millicent from behind, which might be a good angle —and you may have heard dubious rumors that they are associated with Mark's people— while the government offices have a side-on view of the statue. On the far side of the square are the general assortment of gift shops pharmacies and taverns, one might associate with a tourist location, as well as the subway entrance, and the underground have cameras everywhere.

Your urchin returns, looking hopeful. Smuts narrowed down the time he thinks the book went missing, but none of the others were willing to talk.

What do you do?

- Benji and Rhiannon -

"They probably taste gross because of the chemicals in the bags, to keep the blood 'good' for longer —just like our food. Else it clots and congeals into something unusable... for its intended purpose." Bev says confidently. "Or does the 'bite' make it work?" She wonders, academically, about the 'healing' aspect.

You can see her mind working on questions about 'taste' but she is distracted from asking them by the sudden offer of 'trying'.

"I ... don't know." She says, hesitantly at the prospect. She may be particularly confused by Rhiannon being around for it and, possibly foolishly, feels like it may be like 'cheating'. "I mean, if you were desperate, and really needed me," being 'needed' is always a big turn-on, "then maybe I could... Of course, if there was no other choice." You get the impression it would not take a lot push her over the edge.

Bev is partially reassured by Rhiannon words, especially her vouching for Benji as a 'decent guy', but she changes the subject. "Was that the one? I am glad he does not sparkle, and not getting the reference is... quaint."

She puts the needle and tube away, clearly still thinking about their use compared to a bite.

What do you do?

"Okay! Perhaps another time then?" says Benji, slightly puzzled by her response. In any case, he suspects that Rhiannon is probably anxious to get going and find the rest of those demons before they can hurt anyone else.

- Rhiannon -

"Coffee would be great." Bev says immediately, not leaving it till the vague 'later this week' but definitely not shutting down that option as well. "I will hold you to this one." She says 'jokingly' but you can hear the remembered-hurt in her voice.

• Do you ensure that Benji and Bev have contact details for each other, or do you engineer it so they need to go through you for their follow up 'next time'?

What do you two do next?

@Jacob: Sure! Although I am supposed to be helping Rhiannon track down these demons as well. Perhaps we could all go together? It might be useful to find out where the demons got on the train…

- Jacob -

You remember Nigel Crane from before, but have not heard from him a few years. It is strange that he suddenly went quiet and broke off contact, you two used to have dealings fairly often. It is even more strange that he would break off contact when your ledger was in the red, he used to be fussily fastidious about collecting on his Debts.

• What do you Owe Nigel a Debt for? What did he do for you? (This answer should not explain why he stopped contacting you.)

You did not know that was he part of a Faction called The Surveyors. You heard about them, through, the grapevine but they avoid demons so far as you know.

What do you do?

Faction: The Surveyors

Rhiannon can fill you in on what she knows. Her information might be first-hand or second-hand from another member of The Society of the Morrigan or her college contacts.

---

---

The Surveyors are simultaneously a very new Faction and a very old Faction. There is mention of them in the city dating back to Londinium in 58 AD and possibly earlier, but nothing in the last century... until about two years ago when they suddenly popped back onto the radar started making a name for themselves again.

It is unclear what their plans are, but they hoover up information and are reluctant to share any, unless it benefits them. Many of the books Jacob has sought have been snatched by one of their operatives before he could lay his hands on them.

- Some hours pass... -

You gather at Piccadilly Station, after the evening rush, but before the station closes and the staff leave for the night.

Stefano, the station manage, always complains around this time of day. His lumbago is acting up and he wants to go home, but has to supervise the shutdown of the station and 'putting the trains to bed'. Maybe he will appreciate the distraction of a visit to while away the time between the rush and the close.

What do you do?