[center][hider=Witch Hunt Cast][center][img]http://i.imgur.com/M7SP0oU.png[/img][/center] [center] [img]http://i.imgur.com/50eMiVQ.jpg?1[/img][/center][/hider][/center] [center][i][h1]Augury[/h1][/i] [i][h3]Part 3[/h3][/i][/center] [center][b]Location: Smithy’s Grocery Store, Meat Isle – Las Vegas, Nevada Time: Late Evening, Present Day[/b][/center] [hr] Marie chuckled as she watched Benjamin eagerly huff the packages of meat, his eyes widening in hunger and anticipation with each stride past a different succulent cut. It was a little macabre, she admitted to herself, but it was equally amusing seeing a young wolf so enamored with an otherwise mundane sight. The three of them, Ben, Katarina, and Marie, or maybe four counting Holt, engaged in small talk during the brief ride to Smithy’s, Marie taking in the lights of the Vegas strip the entire way, Ben being stoic as ever, and Katarina curiously commenting on every building and billboard they passed, acclimating to the modern world a little more with every observance. Not long after their arrival, the trio was met by the group of siblings, Yeong and Ji striding quickly ahead of two strangers. Marie caught a few glares from Yeong while cautiously greeting the hired help, a pair known as the Dover twins. They were metas, unlike the rest of the group, each of whom possessed some supernatural talent or affliction, and their presence reminded Marie of her time in West Virginia. It had been some months since her last meeting with a metahuman, let alone two. She only hoped that her time on this “team” would fare better than her last. And then it all fell apart. The first body to fall was a woman picking up assorted cheeses just behind Marie, then a janitor putting down a wet floor sign. One by one, every normal denizen of Smithy’s was rendered unconscious by an eerily familiar ethereal mist. [color=90ee90][i]Marie,[/i][/color] Holt spoke from Marie’s shoulder in an incorporeal form, [color=90ee90][i]I know this magic . . .[/i][/color] Before he could finish, the place went dark, emergency lighting quickly buzzing to life in the wake of the blackout. The soft light falling from the ceiling was just enough to illuminate the tops of shelves and cast a pale glow on the laminate floors, but shadows crept up in corners, collecting in pools that shifted unnaturally. [color=ffe4b5][i]The Fey,[/i][/color] Marie thought, looking around, allowing her vision to shift focus that she might see beyond the illusion of darkness. As a witch of great skill, the Sight came naturally to her, but it hadn’t been trained in some time. For now, all she could make out in the dark were pale apparitions of varying sizes, all gathering around a central figure. [color=thistle]”[i]Bonsoir,[/i] ladies and gentlemen.”[/color] The voice rang like falling nails to Holt and Marie. They knew this woman’s identity long before she introduced herself, the touch of her magic carrying a familiar sting to Holt, her presence sending shivers down Marie’s spine. This was she; the vile harpy, the fetid wench, the loathsome bitch that took Joseph from them. Marie burned with seething rage, The Ambassador’s words adding fuel to her fire. She ignored the sorceress’s comments, engaging in a mental debate with Holt while she and her minion spoke. [color=ffe4b5][i]She felt the touch of witches fire the last time we met. Even with her new toys, I doubt she’s a match for us.[/i][/color] [color=90ee90][i]Hold fast, Marie. You are not the first to underestimate the Ambassador. Joseph believed himself invincible when last they fought . . . and it was his end.[/i][/color] [color=ffe4b5][i]He was alone,[/i][/color] Marie’s thoughts were heavy and sharp, cutting at whatever sensitivities Holt possessed, [color=ffe4b5][i]but I’m not. I possess Gwyneth’s power, I have you at my side, along with three wolves, an elder vampire, and two metahumans. What can she . . .[/i][/color] [color=90ee90][i]Hubris.[/i][/color] Holt interrupted. [color=90ee90][i]You hold a portion of Gwyneth’s true power and are accompanied by two strangers whose strengths you do not yet know, a vampire with no knowledge of the modern world, two temperamental young wolves who care not for you, and one fledgling wolf whose transformations are brought on by any amount of strenuous activity. In fact.[/i][/color] Holt pointed a wispy claw at Ben, who had doubled over in pain much like before in the museum. All these sights and smells, the strange appearance of the attending fey, creatures he had likely never seen before, as well as a giant magical construct and the sudden mystically induced sleep of dozens of humans; it was all clearly too much for him to handle so early in his transformations. Marie looked at him, wincing at his screams and contortions. [color=ffe4b5][i]You . . .you’re right.[/i][/color] Marie quietly responded, attention shifting between the Ambassador’s slow approach, Ben’s ongoing transformation, and the female Dover going over some half-assed plan of attack. [color=ffe4b5][i]We’re not ready for this . . . but I can’t let get away with what she’s done. Put some distance between us, surround the Ambassador in flames like before.[/i][/color] Holt nodded, floating down from Marie’s shoulder and charging through the ragtag group towards the Ambassador, ignoring the fey at her aid. But as soon as Holt reached their group, as he felt the flames of Marie’s rage engulf him, ready to envelop the enemy in enchanted fire, he stopped, staring down the Ambassador and her faery familiar, unable to advance. [color=ffe4b5][i]Holt![/i][/color] Marie issued another mental command, but the result was the same. [color=90ee90][i]I-I cannot.[/i][/color] Holt responded in frustration, stuck between the opposing groups, his only choice to retreat. [color=90ee90][i]Something stands in my way . . . I can do nothing against her. I sense no barrier or ward that hinders my path, I can do nothing.[/i][/color] [i]What the hell is going on?[/i] Marie wondered. She lifted her left hand, casting it in the Ambassador’s direction with a small flourish, small sparks falling from her fingertips meant to spout flames that would entrap she and her comrades. But as they neared the faery entourage, they vanished, withered away in the air. It was the same as Holt, Marie’s magic hadn’t failed, it just couldn’t touch the Ambassador. If there were a ward or some other protective magic in place, Marie would know, Holt would see it, they could find some way through it or around it, but this wasn’t the case. What was stopping them? And then she felt it. A familiar pull, a silent song that called to her in a faint voice like her own. A piece of Gwyneth was near. Then she remembered, the smallest fragment of a memory drawn forth, a meeting that she had attended with the Ambassador, yet this was only their second time seeing one another. How had she known where to find Marie? How could she protect herself without detection? Why . . . [color=ffe4b5]”That bastard,”[/color] Marie spoke aloud, moving around the Dover twins, filing in front of a kneeled over Ben. She was acting on a hunch. [color=ffe4b5]”What did you give him?”[/color] Marie questioned the Ambassador, words coated in venom. [color=ffe4b5]”How did you manage it, huh? What could possibly . . . it doesn’t matter. If what I think is true, then you can’t hurt me either, none of you can.”[/color] Marie gestured to the Ambassador, Bach, Mandate, and the fey surrounding them. [color=ffe4b5]”Not if she orders it.”[/color] Marie spoke loudly and slowly enough for the others to hear, hoping that this revelation, if proven true, would halt her compatriots from acting on impulse and engaging in a fruitless battle. As much as Marie wished to end the Ambassador for her past transgressions, other things were at stake.