Monsterhearts:Touched

: Now what the hell am I supposed to do with you three? 
: What the hell just happened?!
: 
: Fuck this- 
: Stop! There might be another one out there! Close the door. 
: Another one?
: Yeah... So everyone just... Calm down. Take a seat, and we'll... You know... Talk about the giant dog that attacked us... 
: 
: WILL YOU STOP CALLING IT A FUCKING DOG!?
: Alright! It's not a dog!
: Umm... Well what the hell is it? 
: It's... A thing... 
: A "thing"? What kind of thing?! Explain what the fuck is happening! 
: How about we all just calm down, and we'll talk about it.
: How about you talk Odie! We're listening!
: It's like a zombie. We don't know what the hell they are, alright? They just have something to do with that symbol on that pendant.
: Take the box...
: 
: Yeah? Well what about your... Fucking ice sword or what ever the hell that was?! 
: I... Uhh... You know, have... Certain... Abilities. That are supposed to be a big secret.
: You fucking kidding me with this shit?
: Let's just... Calm down... Alright? Everyone calm the fuck down, take a seat, and I'll explain to the best of my... The best I can. We need to not flip our shit, because we don't have a full grasp of the situation. Alright? So just take a seat on the sofa and take a breather.
: 
: ...I'm not sure I can move.
: 
: Thanks. 
: Alright Odie, get talk'n.
: I have to make a phone call... Real quick. 
: Seriously?
: It's a Zombie...
: ...Hey, Sylvia, it's Odie. ...Veronica there...?
: He tells us to take a seat so he can talk to us, then he makes a fucking phone call...?
: ...So what do you think is happening?
: Well he said the pendant attracts those... Things. Odie can clearly create some kind of ice weapon... I'd say he belongs to some secret society of monster hunters.
: Well I guess the sign does say "paranormal" investigator...
: 
: Veronica? ...It's Odie... I'm down at Murdoc's... Yeah... We had another one of those pendants dropped off and I think one of those... Things attacked to try and get it back...
: If he's a monster hunter he doesn't seem to know much about this monster.
: Maybe it's something new... He said "they" don't know what these things are. ...That means it's not just him. His boss is probably in on it too... And so is whoever he's calling.
: What if he's calling them to come kill us?! Like we found out about his secret and now we have to die!
: I think he'd have done us in already, or at least tried to, the guy clearly has some... Power. He hacked that thing up like it was nothing.
: Well call the Twins in early and get them to watch the museum, this one's fresh and I need you here to... You know, do whatever it is you do with these things. ...No. Definitely don't bring them here... Because the last time they were around one of these sigils one of them almost burned the place down.
: ...This is too fuckin weird...
: So you don't think he'll kill us? 
: No. But that doesn't mean that we might not have to fight out way out of here if he tries something.
: Odie's not very strong, or fast. If he tries to pull anything we could outrun him easy.
: ...And bring a mop, the thing spilled nasty crap everywhere... Yeah... Seeya. 
: Who'd you call? 
: A lady named Veronica, she uhh... Runs that museum. One of these things attacked that place a few times... We're trying to figure out what they are and where they come from... 
: ...And? What's your deal? 
: Yeah, you created a Japanese ice sword...
: Well it's a long story... Umm. 
: We have until twelve noon tomorrow, remember? So talk.
: Well, umm... Gist of it is that... Some cult did a ritual on me, I was possessed by a demon. Then I got unpossessed and spent a long time suffering panic attacks and going in and out of mental institutions for a few months, and I still need to pass a psych evaluation every three months just to go to school. From there some creature, that was similar to that thing. Just... Way fucking creepier, and way fucking stronger, attacked me, and when I finally drummed up enough courage to kill it, I manifested some powers from when I was possessed... Now I work with Murdoc to hunt down monsters.
: So he is a monster hunter...
: You were possessed by a demon? 
: Umm... I guess, technically, it was a "Demon Spawn", not a demon.
: ...So what's the difference?
: Demons are smarter and more powerful, in general. Demon spawn are kinda like... You know. Footmen or something.
: So Demons are real? 
: ...Short answer... Yes. 
: ...Umm. So... What can you do? ...Like... What's your super powers...?
: ...Well. I can conjure ice, and... Change its shape. 
: Why a samurai sword?
: Huh?
: Can't you conjure a big battle axe or something more... Destructive?
: Hey, the Katana is an ancient mystical weapon from the orient. They used it to cut tanks in half with it in World War II. 
: No they didn't. That doesn't even make sense. You can't cut a tank in half with a sword.
: Haven't you ever watched the history channel? There's documented footage of that happening.
: 
: So now what? You're some demon wizard or something? And we're just supposed to deal?
: I'm not a wizard, or a demon, and you don't have to deal... But I'd like it if you didn't tell anyone. 
: Like anyone would even believe us... 
: Yeah, what am I gonna do, run home and tell my parents that I was attacked by some horror movie monster? Knowing them I'd get stuffed full of Ritalin and they'd send me to a shrink. 
: ...So what do we do? 
: Well the biggest change is that all of you are... You know. "Touched" now. 
: Touched? By what? What does that mean?
: Normal people don't see things like this... ...They'll see it out of the corner of their eye and just think it's a big dog. Or some homeless guy sitting in the dark.
: Huh? I'm pretty sure I'd notice a giant three-headed dead guy crawling around.
: That's the thing, you wouldn't.
: I agree with Liam. That's obviously not a dog.
: Alright, I'm not good at explaining things. Veronica should be here soon, she can explain it better than I can, alright? 
: So is there really another one of those things out there? 
: Don't know... Could be. We don't know anything about these things. Best to play it safe. The only thing we do know is that the sigil on that amulet has something to do with them.
: Sigil? What's a Sigil. 
: A sigil is an icon, or design, that carries some kind of power. Like magic. Things bearing that sigil seem to carry some power over life and death. They... Reanimate these things. When their power runs out, or is disrupted, the item they're on breaks.
: So these "zombies" are here to take their power then? 
: We don't know. We've found pendants like that inside of one of them, another was held by some... Warlock or something, another on a Necromancer.
: A Necro-what? 
: Jeez, you are the worst kind of not-nerd Chris. A necromancer, someone that brings things back from the dead. Haven't you played an RPG?
: No, they're boring. These aren't exactly common terms right? I'm not alone here.
: I don't know what the hell any of this means. All I know is that it's weird and I don't like it. 
: I knew what a Necromancer is... 
: Well I know what a Warlock is, it's like a male Witch. ...Right?
: Yeah I think, to be honest I don't know if there's a difference... 
: Alright, so now what?
: Huh? What do you mean? 
: What do we do? Wait until your friend from the museum gets here? 
: ...Uhh... Yes? 
: 
: I knew I should've tried to leave with Karen.
: 
: It appears to be another amalgamation of several bodies... Four or five, it's hard to be certain as I cannot tell where one begins and another ends... All of them show signs of having drowned. Each set of lungs has liquid in it.
: 
: So anything at all? 
: Patience... This one is especially ghastly... 
: So you two run a museum? 
: The one in Temecula. 
: Odie said you guys could explain... Whatever the fuck this is that's happening.
: Well ask a question and I will answer it to the best of my ability. You don't see something like... Well that thing, every day... 
: He said something about being "Touched", what's that mean exactly? 
: Alright, have you ever noticed, when you hear a word for the very first time in your life, you will hear that word again within twenty-four hours? 
: Umm... ...Yeah... Yeah, I have.
: The truth of matter is that you have heard that word before, you just didn't pay it any thought. Your brain didn't register it. The human mind labors to remain in a certain state. Human nature is to recognize and enforce patterns, even against logic or rationality. You heard the word before, but it had little impact. No meaning, so it's tossed out, the information is useless and the word is replaced with something else. You hear the word again, but this time you care, the word has affected you in some way, directly, and your brain remembers that. Then it looks for patterns. "Where else can I use this word?" "Who else is using it?". You brain accepts the word as something important, part of a larger vocabulary of speech. It starts to actively look for that word. You follow me so far? 
: 
: Yeah, I think I do. 
: Being "Touched" is the same way. There have been many times in your life where you've seen things that you don't understand. Something dark skittering down the side of the road out of the corner of your eye? It's a dog. A strange voice calls out to you from a distance? It's the wind. The house creaks at night for no apparent reason? The house is settling from the day... etc. Strange things happen every day, your brain just doesn't care. They're not important to you. That is... Until something like this happens. Then your brain opens up. It suddenly needs this information to survive. It's important to your well-being. From this point forwards you'll start to see things, a lot of things, differently. Your brain is going to actively try to make sense of things it didn't care about before. The thing skittering on the side of the road isn't some animal, it's a hellhound. The voice that calls out to you from a distance isn't the wind, it's from the translucent form of a weeping woman down the street. The house doesn't creak because it's settling, it's creaking because of the long sick-thing you saw crawl up into your attic. This night will change your whole life, and it's unlikely that you'll ever be the same again.