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Modern/Delta Green - The Beginning of the End (COMPLETED)
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<blockquote data-quote="talien" data-source="post: 4786659" data-attributes="member: 3285"><p><strong>Wild Hunt: Part 7 – All That Glitters</strong></p><p></p><p>“I think the FRACTAL GODS virus may have weakened the boundaries between Tindalos and our world,” explained Archive over the back seat to Jim-Bean, who was driving the agents’ standard-issue Honda Civic. “That’s why your powers summoned the Hound.”</p><p></p><p>“So this is all related to Centurion Computer Systems?” asked Jim-Bean. “It’s too much of a coincidence that these freaky dogs show up repeatedly.” Jim-Bean rubbed the bloodless wound that the hound’s tongue had left in his shoulder. “Is this ever going to heal properly?"</p><p></p><p>“Not without the assistance of some magical poultices, no,” said Archive. “In the mean time, I don’t recommend using any powers if you can help it. These Hounds travel in packs, and I don’t think we could take on more than one.”</p><p></p><p>“What did your forensics study find?” asked Hammer. </p><p></p><p>“In all cases, death came quickly, within a minute, by strangulation. The killer's grip is inhumanly strong, literally bone crushing- the humerus of the first victim was gripped and pulverized; the second had her scapulas squeezed to small fragments. The vertebrae of the neck were also crushed. Analysis of the tissue found under the victims' fingernails-the tissue is crumbly and almost crystalline. By optical microscopy, the tissue is not made of animal cells, but crystal dust. Under electron microscopy, the crystals can be seen as tiny triangular objects, which seem to shift and vibrate. They appear to vanish over time. The same crystalline substance is found in the claw wounds of the victims as was found under the fingernails. The edges of the tissue seem totally intact, as if the neighboring cells simply winked out of existence, or disintegrated. This phenomenon applies to all edges of the hole.”</p><p></p><p>“That’s the same kind of holes the Hounds made in all of us,” said Hammer, looking around at each of them. Jim-Bean reflexively scratched at the bandage where the Hound had pierced him. “So it seems the murderer and the Hounds are related.”</p><p></p><p>“Great,” said Jim-Bean. “Are the Hounds smart? Can they talk?”</p><p></p><p>“Not that I know of,” said Archive. “But as PROJECT RELISH discovered, they’re intelligent. So it’s possible.”</p><p></p><p>Hammer pulled the car over at the southeast comer of the Avenue of the Americas and West Houston Street. A storefront read: EUROPEAN TREASURES.</p><p></p><p>“What are we doing here?” asked Archive. </p><p></p><p>“There were two jewelry store robberies over the past two days. The police think it’s related.”</p><p></p><p>Detectives Rice and Curtis met them at the store entrance. Rice recognized them with a nod of his head. “Agents.”</p><p></p><p>“What have we got?” asked Hammer.</p><p></p><p>“Both the Royal Fine Gems and the European Treasures jewelry stores were robbed within a span of two days,” explained Rice. “At close to midnight, each store was robbed of numerous diamonds.”</p><p></p><p>“Anything on the security feed?” asked Hammer.</p><p></p><p>Detective Curtis shook his head. “The security videotapes show nobody in the store during the time of the robbery. Motion detectors went on and off over and over again, indicating the presence of something, then nothing. When we arrived, nothing could be found. The doors, windows, and other entrances were locked securely.”</p><p></p><p>“How much time elapsed between when the alarm was sounded and you arrived?” asked Jim-Bean. </p><p></p><p>“Approximately four minutes each time,” said Rice. “In that time. diamonds worth over five million dollars in total were taken from both stores. That’s not the weird part.”</p><p></p><p>“It gets weirder?” asked Archive.</p><p></p><p>“Incredibly, the thief stole only internally flawless diamonds, E color, round cut stones, of a variety of karat sizes,” said Curtis. “These were taken from the safes and display cases. In the European Treasures store, the thief must have been in haste; three large diamonds of the type usually taken remained in a display case clearly visible in the middle of the store.”</p><p></p><p>They walked into the store as Rice continued. “There was a horrible charnel smell present at both scenes. One police officer swore he noted a small patch of mist fading away in the shadows.” </p><p></p><p>“What about the safe door?” asked Hammer.</p><p></p><p>Curtis frowned. “You’d better see for yourself.”</p><p></p><p>The door of the safe lay warped and torn on the floor. A huge bite mark had rent it open. </p><p></p><p>“There’s a hole just like this at the other jewelry store,” said Rice.</p><p></p><p>Hammer took some pictures with his cistron and ran calculations via Blacknet. “One and a half meters. Jagged tooth-like marks. They appear to be from different lengths and diameters of teeth, as if the jaw contained teeth that either kept shifting or kept changing their lengths.”</p><p></p><p>Jim-Bean turned to Archive. “Can your Hounds do that?” he asked apprehensively.</p><p></p><p>Archive swallowed. “I hope not.”</p><p></p><p>“What about the video tapes?” asked Hammer.</p><p></p><p>Curtis handed them a jump drive. “It was halfway recorded at the time of the four-minute robberies. We didn’t find anything but maybe you guys will have more luck.”</p><p></p><p>Hammer plugged it into his cistron, then fed the feed to Jim-Bean’s. </p><p></p><p>On screen, jagged holes suddenly appear in the safe's door. Some movement could be seen in the darkness inside the safes. A moment later, police came into the scene, guns drawn, searching about. </p><p></p><p>Hammer tapped a few keys. The images enhanced. </p><p></p><p>Within the safe, diamonds could be seen being shifted about by some invisible force. Some of them floated up and vanished, as if pocketed in an invisible pouch. </p><p></p><p>Hammer applied some light-distortion enhancement. It showed the floors of each room beginning to fill with a fine mist from off-camera. A strange distortion could be seen moving from that source towards the safes. It looked like triangular fragments of heat distortion that shifted and reshaped in geometrical patterns. The distortion moved towards the safe, and as it hovered over it, the tear appeared over the doors. After the diamonds were scooped up into the distortion, it moved away off camera.</p><p></p><p>“There,” said Jim-Bean, pausing the video. “See how it keeps its distance from the large display case in the center of the room?”</p><p></p><p>Rice led them over to the display case. The gems were displayed in the middle of the shop, suspended on special holders within a spherical display case of one-inch thick bulletproof clear plastic- polymer. The case rested on a platform and was partially sunk into it. The case itself was one meter in diameter.</p><p></p><p>Rice read from his notepad. “According to the owner, the gems in this case are twenty karat, perfect cut, E color, and internally flawless. They are called the Stars of Shiva.”</p><p></p><p>Archive nodded. “The Stars of Shiva were a gift from the god Shiva, the Destroyer, to a high priest in the 11th century. Each stone had amazing protective powers, and together they could be used to banish all forms of evil demons from the earth, especially rakshasas.”</p><p></p><p>“Rakshasas?” asked Hammer.</p><p></p><p>“A rakshasa is an Indian spirit who can take on the form of the person you trust the most, so he can sneak up and eat you.”</p><p></p><p>“So that’s what we’re dealing with!” asked Jim-Bean.</p><p></p><p>Hammer shook his head. “Keep that up and you’re no better than Magnus. We don’t have a clear identification of this thing just yet.”</p><p></p><p>Their cistrons beeped. “Looks like we’re about to,” said Jim-Bean. “The killer’s been spotted off of Wooster Street.”</p><p></p><p>The agents ran out of the store.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="talien, post: 4786659, member: 3285"] [b]Wild Hunt: Part 7 – All That Glitters[/b] “I think the FRACTAL GODS virus may have weakened the boundaries between Tindalos and our world,” explained Archive over the back seat to Jim-Bean, who was driving the agents’ standard-issue Honda Civic. “That’s why your powers summoned the Hound.” “So this is all related to Centurion Computer Systems?” asked Jim-Bean. “It’s too much of a coincidence that these freaky dogs show up repeatedly.” Jim-Bean rubbed the bloodless wound that the hound’s tongue had left in his shoulder. “Is this ever going to heal properly?" “Not without the assistance of some magical poultices, no,” said Archive. “In the mean time, I don’t recommend using any powers if you can help it. These Hounds travel in packs, and I don’t think we could take on more than one.” “What did your forensics study find?” asked Hammer. “In all cases, death came quickly, within a minute, by strangulation. The killer's grip is inhumanly strong, literally bone crushing- the humerus of the first victim was gripped and pulverized; the second had her scapulas squeezed to small fragments. The vertebrae of the neck were also crushed. Analysis of the tissue found under the victims' fingernails-the tissue is crumbly and almost crystalline. By optical microscopy, the tissue is not made of animal cells, but crystal dust. Under electron microscopy, the crystals can be seen as tiny triangular objects, which seem to shift and vibrate. They appear to vanish over time. The same crystalline substance is found in the claw wounds of the victims as was found under the fingernails. The edges of the tissue seem totally intact, as if the neighboring cells simply winked out of existence, or disintegrated. This phenomenon applies to all edges of the hole.” “That’s the same kind of holes the Hounds made in all of us,” said Hammer, looking around at each of them. Jim-Bean reflexively scratched at the bandage where the Hound had pierced him. “So it seems the murderer and the Hounds are related.” “Great,” said Jim-Bean. “Are the Hounds smart? Can they talk?” “Not that I know of,” said Archive. “But as PROJECT RELISH discovered, they’re intelligent. So it’s possible.” Hammer pulled the car over at the southeast comer of the Avenue of the Americas and West Houston Street. A storefront read: EUROPEAN TREASURES. “What are we doing here?” asked Archive. “There were two jewelry store robberies over the past two days. The police think it’s related.” Detectives Rice and Curtis met them at the store entrance. Rice recognized them with a nod of his head. “Agents.” “What have we got?” asked Hammer. “Both the Royal Fine Gems and the European Treasures jewelry stores were robbed within a span of two days,” explained Rice. “At close to midnight, each store was robbed of numerous diamonds.” “Anything on the security feed?” asked Hammer. Detective Curtis shook his head. “The security videotapes show nobody in the store during the time of the robbery. Motion detectors went on and off over and over again, indicating the presence of something, then nothing. When we arrived, nothing could be found. The doors, windows, and other entrances were locked securely.” “How much time elapsed between when the alarm was sounded and you arrived?” asked Jim-Bean. “Approximately four minutes each time,” said Rice. “In that time. diamonds worth over five million dollars in total were taken from both stores. That’s not the weird part.” “It gets weirder?” asked Archive. “Incredibly, the thief stole only internally flawless diamonds, E color, round cut stones, of a variety of karat sizes,” said Curtis. “These were taken from the safes and display cases. In the European Treasures store, the thief must have been in haste; three large diamonds of the type usually taken remained in a display case clearly visible in the middle of the store.” They walked into the store as Rice continued. “There was a horrible charnel smell present at both scenes. One police officer swore he noted a small patch of mist fading away in the shadows.” “What about the safe door?” asked Hammer. Curtis frowned. “You’d better see for yourself.” The door of the safe lay warped and torn on the floor. A huge bite mark had rent it open. “There’s a hole just like this at the other jewelry store,” said Rice. Hammer took some pictures with his cistron and ran calculations via Blacknet. “One and a half meters. Jagged tooth-like marks. They appear to be from different lengths and diameters of teeth, as if the jaw contained teeth that either kept shifting or kept changing their lengths.” Jim-Bean turned to Archive. “Can your Hounds do that?” he asked apprehensively. Archive swallowed. “I hope not.” “What about the video tapes?” asked Hammer. Curtis handed them a jump drive. “It was halfway recorded at the time of the four-minute robberies. We didn’t find anything but maybe you guys will have more luck.” Hammer plugged it into his cistron, then fed the feed to Jim-Bean’s. On screen, jagged holes suddenly appear in the safe's door. Some movement could be seen in the darkness inside the safes. A moment later, police came into the scene, guns drawn, searching about. Hammer tapped a few keys. The images enhanced. Within the safe, diamonds could be seen being shifted about by some invisible force. Some of them floated up and vanished, as if pocketed in an invisible pouch. Hammer applied some light-distortion enhancement. It showed the floors of each room beginning to fill with a fine mist from off-camera. A strange distortion could be seen moving from that source towards the safes. It looked like triangular fragments of heat distortion that shifted and reshaped in geometrical patterns. The distortion moved towards the safe, and as it hovered over it, the tear appeared over the doors. After the diamonds were scooped up into the distortion, it moved away off camera. “There,” said Jim-Bean, pausing the video. “See how it keeps its distance from the large display case in the center of the room?” Rice led them over to the display case. The gems were displayed in the middle of the shop, suspended on special holders within a spherical display case of one-inch thick bulletproof clear plastic- polymer. The case rested on a platform and was partially sunk into it. The case itself was one meter in diameter. Rice read from his notepad. “According to the owner, the gems in this case are twenty karat, perfect cut, E color, and internally flawless. They are called the Stars of Shiva.” Archive nodded. “The Stars of Shiva were a gift from the god Shiva, the Destroyer, to a high priest in the 11th century. Each stone had amazing protective powers, and together they could be used to banish all forms of evil demons from the earth, especially rakshasas.” “Rakshasas?” asked Hammer. “A rakshasa is an Indian spirit who can take on the form of the person you trust the most, so he can sneak up and eat you.” “So that’s what we’re dealing with!” asked Jim-Bean. Hammer shook his head. “Keep that up and you’re no better than Magnus. We don’t have a clear identification of this thing just yet.” Their cistrons beeped. “Looks like we’re about to,” said Jim-Bean. “The killer’s been spotted off of Wooster Street.” The agents ran out of the store. [/QUOTE]
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