Chapter Ten

KIDA can’t help but cringe a little as MASON glowers down at her, maintaining a crushing grip on her wrist. “YOU DARE TO COME BACK HERE!” She meets his gaze with a determination only a Storm Lord could muster in this kind of situation. DANI freezes in place, her eyes locked on the scene before her. For once, she finds herself at a loss for words. Fortunately, KIDA doesn’t have the same problem.

“We came back to show you we are not afraid and prove to you we are not in league with LEIDECKER. We don’t trust him.”

“Is that so?" MASON growls, grabbing KIDA by the hair and dragging her across the room. “We’ll see about that!” DANI spurs herself into action as MASON shoves KIDA roughly into a heavy steel cage. It is very reminiscent of the cages where prisoners were put on display as a warning back in darker, more primitive times. Acting on a hunch, DANI moves quickly over to the pipe organ and grabs the sketchbook. As she does do, she can see MASON freeze as he slams the door of the cage. “PUT…THAT…DOWN!!” The dark knight turns toward her slowly. She can hear his claws scraping against the bars of KIDA’s cage as he does so, and a strange glow envelops them as they grow longer and undoubtedly sharper. As he turns to face her, the rage on his face is palpable. DANI sets the sketchbook down and meets his gaze with a look KIDA has never seen before.

Then she says softly, “She’s beautiful… I had a daughter… once.” There is an odd look of nostalgia mixed with incredible sadness…and suppressed rage on DANI’s face. KIDA can see MASON soften, ever so slightly, but it quickly goes away.

“Get in a cage,” he says sternly and motions behind him. “You two will be my…guests for a while.” DANI walks calmly across the room and locks herself in the cage next to KIDA. They may be caged, but MASON has extended his hospitality. In the supernatural world, that was a promise they would not be harmed.

Back on Treasure Island, LALEH is the last one to be presented with her trial. She too, has decided to petition the Bone Shadows. She is told there is something wrong in the district of Haight-Ashbury. LALEH is to investigate and determine the source of the problem. Like KILLIAN, she chooses to undergo her trial alone. She departs Treasure Island and heads toward Haight-Ashbury. Left to their own devices, DOM, JASON and KILLIAN gather together while they wait for their friends to return from their trials. DOM wishes to discuss what territory they should claim when all this is over. He has his eye on a property similar to his family’s estate, which has its own land and sits on a hilltop overlooking Golden Gate Park. He thinks Golden Gate Park would be an appropriate territory for their pack. KILLIAN and JASON agree. Most immediate problem… it is currently claimed by a powerful Fae known as JACK IN THE GREEN. The pack would either have to form an alliance with the Fae, or drive him out. DOM feels like an alliance might be the way to go, but makes sure JASON and KILLIAN know he is not afraid to get his hands dirty if the negotiations go south. As the pack’s Elodoth, JASON is chosen to lead the negotiation when the time comes. That decided, the three depart Treasure Island in the morning and start making preparations to acquire the hilltop property. If they pool their resources together, they have enough funds to purchase it outright.

Haight-Ashbury is known for its bohemian culture, home to many “starving artists” that populate its streets, filling the air with music, laughter, intoxicating smells, and beautiful artwork of many genres. It is also home to many independent businesses that offer wares you can’t find anywhere else in San Francisco. It has a vibrant energy that never seems to sleep, however there is always an undercurrent of depression too, for with true artists come eccentricities and unending drama. Many are discovered, but more are truly starving.

At least that is what LALEH had always been told about Haight-Ashbury. As she walks through its streets now, a very different scene plays out before her eyes. The artists line the streets as usual, but seem very... apathetic. That is a word that has never been used to describe any aspect of Haight-Ashbury. It is like someone or something is sucking the life energy out of the district. It seems to intensify the closer she gets to a small park that is centrally located in the district. The central feature of the park is a bronze statue of Jerry Lee Lewis playing a guitar. A wreath of fire encircles his feet and the words ''Great Balls of Fire ''are sculpted within the flames. ''As LALEH approaches the statue, she senses it is a locus – not a very powerful one, but a locus all the same. It might have been more powerful at one point, but seems somehow corrupted now. In her training, LALEH had learned that locuses are areas where Essence'' pools and becames more potent. Mages access locuses for magical energy. Werewolves feed off Essence and use it to power many of their Gifts. They can also use a locus as a magical gateway that allows them to cross into the Shadow from the material world. Perhaps crossing into the Shadow would give LALEH more insight into what was causing Haight-Ashbury’s aura to change so drastically. Experiencing the Shadow’s reflection of a place often reveals hidden truths. LALEH walks around the statue until she finds a spot where it conveniently shelters her from the prying eyes of the few people populating the park right now. Then she steps across with extraordinary effort. It feels as if she is passing through thick molasses. For some reason, the Gauntlet is incredibly thick here. The Gauntlet is the veil that separates the Shadow from the real world. It is a force of balance between the spirit and the physical realms and areas where it is too thin or too thick often have problems.

Once on the other side, things become a lot clearer. The area around the statue is an arid wasteland that stretches out to cover a large portion of Haight-Ashbury. LALEH can still see the prominent features of the park, but they are all covered in cobwebs. The cobwebs seem to be prevalent for miles around. There are a lot of spirits around, but many are moving very slowly and some are not moving at all. It is as if they have become sedentary and are allowing themselves to waste away. LALEH feels as if she is standing at ground zero of a nuclear fallout. She can already feel the effects taking hold as her emotions and interests slowly begins to drain away. If she stays here too long, she will become another victim of the Shoal, unable to muster the willpower to leave. Shoal are areas where the fabric of the Shadow has been injured so terribly that it disrupts its connection to the material world’s resonance, forming a wasteland of nihilistic emptiness. The cobwebs betray the presence of the Azlu, the spider hosts. An Azlu’s purpose is to weave its webs to thicken the Gauntlet to the point where the Shadow’s connection to the material world is completely severed. If successful, the consequences were dire. So, this was what was causing the problems in Haight-Ashbury. It all made sense now. This would need to be dealt with, but not while she was by herself. This was a job for a werewolf pack. Though her discovery was troublesome, LALEH has accomplished her mission, which gives her a sense of pride. She steps back across and prepares to head back to Treasure Island with the news.

DANI and KIDA spend several hours in MASON’s lair, during which he offers them stale bread and water on two separate occasions. It is obvious he no longer remembers what’s it’s like to have human needs. He has subsisted on blood for too many centuries now. Oddly enough, he does seem to enjoy the companionship of the two Uratha, though they are fairly sure he would never admit it. KIDA uses the opportunity to see how much knowledge she can gain from the ancient vampire. They do learn that Ange is actually French for Angel, after MASON finally gets tired of their constant mispronunciation of the little girl’s name. Though he won’t reveal her location, they do find out she is not part of MASON’s past, but his present. The dark knight seems to care very deeply for the little girl, like a father even though he is not related to her. They are never able to truly glean why. As time passes, both DANI and KIDA start to feel a sort of connection to MASON. They can’t really explain why, but they understand him on a primitive level at least. They start to lose track of time and enjoy talking with him.

NEMO paces impatiently around the edges of the pool. It has been five hours since KIDA and DANI went into the lair and she is starting to get hungry. Finally, she has had enough, and decides to go in after them. She dives down to the bottom of the pool and makes her way through the underwater tunnel.

KIDA and DANI are engaged in another conversation with MASON when the dark knight suddenly stiffens and stands, his face contorting with rage again. They are momentarily baffled until they sense NEMO’s presence. She must have finally decided to check on them. MASON spins and charges. His claws are glowing again. His intent is obvious – he is going to kill himself a werewolf. “Liars…LIARS!!” he growls. DANI shifts into her battle form and throws herself at the cage door. NEMO realizes she has been discovered and throws her hands up as the dark knight quickly closes the distance between them. She knows she is no match for him. DANI’s cage shatters as KIDA stands and barks out in a loud voice that echoes throughout the cavern.

“LET US GO!” Her voice has a mystical level of command behind it that DANI and NEMO have never experienced before. MASON halts his attack abruptly, spinning on his heel and walking back toward KIDA’s cage. As he rips the cage door off its hinges he points to the pool.

“Get out, all of you.” DANI shifts back down to her human form and moves toward the pool. KIDA and NEMO follow, deciding this is not the time to kick a gift horse in the mouth. They leave the lair without a word and head back toward the mainland. Unbeknownst to her, KIDA has just earned her deed name, THROAT OF COMMAND. She feels she needs one final piece of the puzzle to complete her mission. Obviously, MASON’s weakness was ANGEL. For whatever reason, the dark knight would protect that little girl with his life. But where was she? It doesn’t take long for KIDA to find out using FBI resources. The little girl is in San Francisco, at the children’s hospital they recently visited. She is in a coma and has been for some time. The hospital has her listed as a Jane Doe. Apparently, they have been unsuccessful in locating her family. 

DOM, JASON, and KILLIAN succeed in acquiring the hilltop property. The home has six bedrooms and four and a half baths. They make it back to Treasure Island as LALEH, DANI, KIDA and NEMO return from their missions. With KIDA and DANI’s corroboration, NEMO passes her trial. KIDA reveals her discovery and is accepted into the ''Storm Lords''. LALEH shares her information about the Shoal and the Azlu with the Night Sisters and is welcomed into the ''Bone Shadow'' tribe. Now, all five of the newly changed Uratha have completed their trials. It is time for them to form a pack. The moot concludes with a celebration, and DANI, DOM, JASON, KIDA, KILLIAN, LALEH and NEMO retire to their new home to discuss their plans for approaching JACK IN THE GREEN. A pack should have a territory.

They also discuss what they want their pack to stand for, and decide maintaining balance and perspective in the supernatural community within the city would be a laudable goal considering the mages have already established a War Council after the recent attack on the FBI building. They all decide to “retire” from the FBI except for LALEH. It is determined that keeping LALEH as the eyes and ears inside the FBI would be beneficial to the pack. It would also keep someone close to LEIDECKER. Indeed, LALEH is offered the same promotion DOM was and asked to serve as LEIDECKER’s personal bodyguard during the upcoming War Council. LALEH accepts and is gifted with an amulet that serves the same purpose as DOM’s ring. At the same time, the ring itself dissipates.

The Story Continues…

Current Developments - Chapter Nine - Chapter 11