Chapter Two

## the World Beneath...

Agent LALEH VALAME, the only member of the team not called in the previous night, reads through the team's debriefing in wonder when she receives new intel the rest of the team needs. After trying unsuccessfully to reach them on their phone, she tracks their vehicle's GPS signal and sets out for DANI's apartment.

Arriving there she spies a young man paying an untoward amount of interest in the team's vehicle. She accidentally spooks him by getting too close and so decides to resume her course up to DANI's apartment. Approaching the third floor, LALEH senses someone shadowing her. She sets an ambush and surprises him with a poorly aimed shot from her gun. The young man runs and LALEH decides not to pursue.

## Inside DANI's Apartment

The rest of the team is stunned after KIDA's sudden disappearance. LALEH relays the info that the FBI has intercepted communications that imply the BNG is moving something big that night. Being a practicing medium, LALEH volunteers to attempt to part the curtain of shadow that KIDA passed through in an effort to find the team's lost member. The attempt is more difficult than she expected—more draining—but she somehow opens a "doorway" into the beyond. Unfortunately, though she feels ebb and flow of energy between the two realms, there is nothing to be found. As she reports the disappointing news to the team, a cobweb crawls up her arm. Inside the amalgam are a pair of curious eyes and a dark face. LALEH and the rest of the team leave the apartment at once. On his way out, DOM lobs a grenade intended to destroy the cobweb creature.

## In the Shadow

Shortly before LALEH's entry into DANI's apartment, a warped reflection of that same apartment—one in which all the angles are wrong, the walls slowly shifting against each other—is occupied by both KIDA and DANI. DANI herself is still badly injured from being crushed by a SUV. The complete right side of her body is twisted and misshapen, the bruising across her difficult to view. DANI chastises KIDA for meddling in things beyond her ken. As DANI continues, a *spirit of despair* in the form of a small cobweb—no more powerful than a mote—slinks forward and steals the last point of Essence from the locus between the Shadow and DANI's apartment, effectively shutting the locus down. KIDA reaches out to inspect the spirit, unaware of its nature, and the creature responds violently, attacking KIDA. It wails in a language almost familiar to the agent, something just outside her grasp, and is suddenly joined by a half-dozen of similar spirits. DANI realizes in her condition she cannot stave them all off while protecting KIDA and so she demands they both run.

Being on the "receiving end" of this hunt is disconcerting for DANI, and in the end her and KIDA lose the contest. They are trapped in an alleyway of this twisted reflection of San Francisco as the *despair spirits* besiege them. All looks lost when several howls echo down the alleyway and suddenly werewolves—five in all—jump in amongst the spirits, dispatching them easily. DANI explains to KIDA that they are the HARBRINGERS OF DAY. DANI greets them respectfully. Their alpha, DAMIEN KINGSLEY, greets DANI in kind, but is immediately upset by the presence of a human in the Shadow: a human in a place she does not belong. This human has obviously seen too much. Ordering his pack to restrain DANI, he approaches KIDA and apologizes for what he must do. Pulling a silver long dagger from his belt, DAMIEN is about to plunge it into KIDA's chest when one of his packmates, MAEVE OAKDALE stops him, uttering two words: *uratha* and *nuzusul*. They converse with DANI briefly and DAMIEN decides to leave KIDA in DANI's care with a warning: *she's still human.*

## Aftermath

The team hears from DANI shortly and asks them to meet her at a nearby alley where she and KIDA had stepped through to the mundane world. The passage somehow relieves KIDA of her clothing, but her mind is still numb from everything she's experienced recently and she hardly notices her condition. DANI admits to being a werewolf, but is tight-lipped otherwise. DOM wonders how they can trust her going forward and voices the question. DANI admits then when her rage takes over she is a threat to everyone around her, but other than than those rare instances they have to trust that she is there with them for a reason. Though vague about the details, she insists that her god brought her to the team. After discussing their options, the agents decide to let the issue of DANI rest for the moment and instead follow up on LALEH's intel regarding the BNG moving something big that evening. The team stakes out the BNG garage complex. KILLIAN ends up falling asleep briefly as he had not gotten nearly enough rest earlier, and is mugged by a squatter. DANI drives the drifter away and KILLIAN sheepishly refocuses.

At nearly 2 am they watch as a dozen Chinese civilians are loaded into the back of a box van. The vehicle departs the complex for the east side of the city.

## Alcatraz

The team shadow the box van to one of the city's piers where they watch as the civilians are loaded onto a ferry. Commandeering a small watercraft, the team follows the ferry across the bay to Alcatraz. They land opposite where the ferry does and stealth onto the island to discover what this plot development means.

They watch as the BNG, consisting of six armed thugs, call out in their own language. A lamp is lit which, to both KIDA and LALEH take to be ceremonial in purpose. At close to 4 am a thick fog descends onto the island a *presence* hovers over the BNG representatives. They seem to offer the dozen Chinese Immigrants as a sacrifice for the thing in the fog, if only it will give them what they believe he stole by way of fog and skinless hound the previous night. The presence denies any involvement and refuses the deal. Things get heated when the BNG threaten the formless entity before them. Suddenly an enormous arm ending in a wicked claw solidifies out of the fog and crushes the lead BNG representative's head. The rest of the BNG take offense and brandish their AK-47s.

The team decides to intervene at this point with the goal of rescuing the Chinese immigrants. A firefight ensues ending very badly for the BNG and not much better for the team: both NEMO and KILLIAN have taken severe wounds. DOM, who remained unscathed in a self-made sniper's nest, is confronted by the presence on Alcatraz. A claw snatches the senior agent up by the throat and a disfigured and entirely repulsive face emerges. Sharp teeth snap in DOM's face as the entity says, "Tell LEIDECKER that I did not break the peace..."

The team and the Chinese immigrants are picked up by an SFPD helicopter. DANI makes herself scarce and NEMO, KIDA, and KILLIAN are hospitalized. LEIDECKER debriefs DOM, verbally reprimanding the senior agent for his actions with the grenade in DANI's apartment earlier. The director, however, is impressed with the teams actions on Alcatraz, specifically with the rescue of the immigrants. DOM tells LEIDECKER of the entity the BNG was attempting to negotiate with and insists LEIDECKER tell him what's going on. After some thought, LEIDECKER asks DOM where his loyalties lie. LEIDECKER agrees to share what he knows with the senior agent only if DOM is willing to accept more responsibility as a Special Agent. Though he is tempted to view this as a sort of bribe, DOM accepts the promotion and LEIDECKER admits to the new Special Agent that he knew of the entity on Alcatraz and that, yes, it is a vampire. It is the only vampire in San Francisco that LEIDECKER knows of.

 The Story Continues...

Current Developments - Chapter One - Chapter Three

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