12354/Urban Legends: A Dead Man's Hollow

Urban Legends: A Dead Man's Hollow
Date of Scene:	14 August 2022
Location:	Dead Man's Hollow Recreational Trail, Bristol Township, Gotham City
Synopsis:	=When investigating the sudden frosting of Dead Man's Hollow hiking trail in Bristol, Gotham, a rag-tag group of magicians, mutants, and an assassin find that there's something darker and more sinister behind the riverbend.
Cast of Characters:	Phoebe Beacon, Freddy Freeman, Megan Gwynn, Michael Hannigan, Thomas Blake, Sandra Wu-San

---

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    BRISTOL TOWNSHIP -- When you think of Supernatural Chicannery, the wooded estates of Bristol Township aren't exactly the types of places you would think to check, but this bend in the river abutting them, long since turned into a hiking trail, has had the rumors of ghostly apparitions of people from different time periods. Known since Gotham's Dutch origins as a place where the drowned's bodies would end up washed along the riverside, Dead Man's Hollow has always had a reputation for being haunted.

    The particular area has an Adirondak shelter set up for scouts to camp at, though at the moment it's covered with graffitti like JAYSON WUZ HEER and BATMAN IS A VAMPIRE, WAKE UP SHEEPLE.

    Ordinarily, the area would be full of birdsong, breeze whispering through the trees and the greenery of late summer -- but the greener has faded, turned black and limp. Berries fallen to the ground unripened. The area is substantially colder than the entrance, and it was here that Balm stood.

    She had her arms crossed, the sweatshirt hood drawn up, her domino glowing blue beneath her hoodie as she looked out over the riverbend. She didn't like what she was seeing as she peered into the aether.

    It's a good mile-and-a-quarter hike to the spot where she stands from the parking lot. Good luck.

Freddy Freeman has posed:
Having heard through 'channels' that some metaphysical misbehavior was going on, and having gotten knocked out early from the Magic: The Gathering tournament he was playing in, Freddy decided to come check things out. After a quick Shazam!, Pantheon headed to Gotham! And afterwards, Freddy can swing by the Wayne Estate to see if his favorite grumpy kid was around.

Pantheon comes to a landing, having spotted Phoebe from the air. He gives her a nod and a goofy grin. "Hey, nice to see you again. Thanks for the, um, help the other day. Couldn't have done it without you." The costumed hero looks around the area curiously. "So what's going on exactly?"

Megan Gwynn has posed:
Megan Gwynn is dressed in her X-uniform, welll..Some kinda uniform anyway. It looks a bit edgier, black mini dress with those yellow boots and gauntlets and yellow belt marking her as an Xman. She had received the message of course and is only too eager to respond, porting in through the usual flash of pink light, though it looks more blood red these days for some reason, bringing with her Catman and Mike. "So.." she smiles, cracking her knuckles, "Y'all ready for some fun?"something seems off about her, maybe it's the darkness in her eyes, the murky grey red tipped wings or that she has more black streaks in her mostly pink hair..

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Considering the sizable hike to get to where they're supposed to meet. Dream travel seemed like it would be kind of hit and miss in terms of effectiveness. So, in that case. Hitch a ride with someone who doesn't have to deal with that bull.

And so Mike appears alongside Pixie and Catman. What he wears couldn't really be termed as a uniform per say. They look like stuff one would typically wear when they're planning to go out on a jog or tackle a ninja obstacle course, or...oh say climb a climbing wall.

Gym Clothes.

They might be darkly colored but he's wearing Gym Clothes.

The musician frowns as he looks to the red tint of the portal, arching an eyebrow at the fairy, and then looking to Thomas. He's going to have to ask some questions once they're done with business here.

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake exits the flas or red light and immediately feels the hair on his neck rise. This is wrong for this time of year. Sometimes magic is subtle, in this case it is a Mack truck and his senses relate the damage to him. Okay. Obviously with this whole aura of decay there aren't going to be a lot of animals here. That makes it easier to tack anything out of the ordinary. He drops down to his knee and examines the ground, casting about for tracks.

Sandra Wu-San has posed:
Given enough time -- enough of a taste for digging into the unknown and unseen -- one develops a sense for the patterns at play. Everything in this universe, natural or otherwise, has its patterns, its rhythms, no matter how esoteric. When you think of Supernatural Chicanery, the wooded estates of Bristol Township aren't exactly the types of places you would think to check--

And that's why a single overheard whisper between local enforcers blissfully unaware of the inevitable was all it took to draw a curious eye: strange things have a way of surfacing when and where they're least expected.

Standing a few feet from the entrance, Lady Shiva peers into the dark and frigid unknown with her hands tucked in her duster's pockets and breathes it in, slowly. Pantheon streaks overhead and she exhales just as carefully, eyes flicking upwards--

It takes a few minutes -- it takes a careful ear for movement and murmurs -- but eventually, inevitably:

"Ah, alas," Lady Shiva exhales, silently melting out of the foliage to join Phoebe's gathering.

"You're alive."

She glances between them briskly, double checking; just in case.

"What do you know?" she wonders, once satisfied.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe looks to Pantheon, and she gives a smile with a sign of 'thank you' to the hero with a bow of her head, giving a smile to the taller hero. After all, he helped protect her 'little brother', and that was something already worthy of exception. Pixie, especially, gets a curious look as she arrives. There is something off about the fairy X-Man that sets Balm even more on edge, and she looks to both Thomas and Michael as she bites her bottom lip and breathes out, poiting to Pixie, pointing to herself, and then miming 'talking' with a hand as she straightens up enough to just about jump out of her skin when Lady Shiva arrives.

    Sher heart jumps to her throat, recognizing the woman and suddenly thinking 'oh god, she's going to kill me'.

    Luckily, that doesn't seem to be the case today.

    Phoebe kicks a little pile of leaves over, and leans down to pick up something there, bringing her left hand to her temple as she casts a spell in silence.

    Her voice hisses in a whisper, an open broadcast spell.

    <There is something very wrong here.> she states, and she draws up a toad, very near torpor from the sudden cold. <A hard frost passed through just this area last night. It's caused so much trouble for this glade, but can you feel it? That tingling against the iron in the end of your nose?> she questions, and she turns back to the river.

    <This is a place where the dead would wash ashore after they had fallent hrough ice upstream. This Dead Man's Hollow was the place they would check for the bloated bodies of the drowned. Drowning's a terrible way to go.> she remarks, and she pulls a green-handled dagger from her side, and with a sudden movement, she stabs the toad -- and through her hand as well!

    Blood drips down, and one by one they come into vision.

    Bodies upon bodies, ghostly blue, from different time periods. A man wearing colonial-era garb and cloth shoes. A woman from the 1920's, her short curls warped and wrapped with river weeds. A teenager from the 1950's with his greased hair slicked forward with water, leather coat soggy and sneakers heavy with water.

    Sixteen in all, slowly coming to a stand.

    So cold... so very cold. Have you seen my body? Have you seen my body?

Freddy Freeman has posed:
One the 1-10 invulnerability scale, Pantheon rates somewhere a little south of Superman. But as his breath feathers out into the cold air and he Phoebe does some freaky-ass spellcasting, Pantheon almost looks more like Freddy Freeman than a god-power-infused being. He swallows heavily and actually stand *behind* Phoebe as he peers around nervously.

"Wha-what is that? Are those like, you know, ghosts? Is this a joke, like are we being punked?" He snorts out a breath. "Yeah," he says with a not-very-amused laugh. "Yer just messing with us!"

A teenager in a man's body and a quorum of gods in a teenager's body are just two of the dichotomies people who spend any time around Freddy/Pantheon have to deal with. One of Pantheon's hands lands on Phoebe's shoulder. He's a bit nervous right now, and he has no idea that she shuns physical contact.

"Hi, Nick," Pantheon says to Michael. He doesn't recognize anyone else.

Megan Gwynn has posed:
Pixie blinks at Catman and nods, "Right, no animals about..Does that mean there's some sorta big bad out there? Cuz I'm ready to rip off some heads!" she slaps her hands together, perhaps a little over enthusiastic at the idea. "Do you smell anything, Catman?"

She doesn't know Lady Shiva personally, nor Pantheon although she's heard of them. They're both given a wicked smile and nod before spying Phoebe, nodding and waving to her. "Heya..Soo.."

She shivers at the mention of iron, and cold, clenching her fists, "Brr, Soo not ready for Winter!" And then Balm is doing weird things, stabbing her hand! She gasps, taking a step towards her, but..But then suddenly ghostly bodies are rising from the ground. "The heck?" out comes the soul dagger, now blood red instead of bright pink.

"Tch, make your move chumps! I'm sooo ready for a fight!" there are just..Soo many of them, but where to strike first?" she backs up, closing the gap between herself and the others, nodding to the ghosts. "What do you want?"

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike looks over to Phoebe and gives a lift of the hand in greeting. He looks to the mimed gesture and then to pixie. He responds back from behind Pixie's line of sight a non vocal response. ( No idea what's up with her yet ) He's aware something's up, he's got suspicions, but he's going to need more detail.

When Phoebe casts to do her semi-public broadcast system, Mike listens quietly. The spell she casts appears to draw out some ghosts. "So, thinking, unfinished business? Resolve that and they go their merry way?"

Pale eyes look over to Pantheon, blinking. He's only seen him as Freddy so it takes him a moment. But then again, Freddy talks about Shazamming does help with connecting the dots. He gives a slight smile. "Hey man."

When Pixie starts to speak, Mike looks over to her. Frowning. What in th-

Yeah, something's up with her. DEFINITELY should talk afterwards.

Sandra Wu-San has posed:
After a peculiar, faintly amused look for Pixie and her eagerness to fight spirits, Lady Shiva sets her attention on the woman with weeds tangled in her curls and approaches-- slowly.

Intentionally.

Hands unpocketing so the spirit can see her empty palms.

"What is it that brought you to the river to begin with?" she wonders, soft and slow.

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake casts about in the strange dead glade. He straightens when Shiva appears and then gives her a nod and returns to looking about. It's Shiva. If she meant to challenge someone she would have. He assumes she's just doing whatever she wants as usual. He sniffs the air. Then the dead show up. This is something new. the last spirit he dealt with was the Gentleman Ghost who was a bit of a tool. These are just sad and hurting, pitiable things. He looks at Pixie, avoids the temptation to give her a knee in the behind. She is not herself. Maybe later.

"Balm summoned them, killer. Let them tell us what they have to say." He snags an arm around her waist, looking troubled.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe, who still has a knife in her hand, through a toad, through her other hand, stiffens when Pantheon hides behind her, and she just opens her eyes wide, stiffening, and tightens her hand on the handle of her dagger before she breathes out.

    <No tricks, Pantheon. Those are the spirits of the dead. Something's agitating them. They fell into the river and -- Pixie! /Pixie no/!> Phoebe, who is somewhat rooted to the spot while she's casting, hisses out in pain.

    Balm didn't summon the dead, they were already there.

    The woman with the weeds tangled in her hair looks to Lady Shiva, and she looks frightened.

    I can't find it. I can't find it. I can't go without it. You know that, right? I can't go. There's no one there. she answers back, her voice echoing, garbled, as if under a deep well.

    The man with the colonial garb looks to Pixie, and speaks Dutch at her brandishing of a knife, and he draws a flintlock, pointing it at Pixie.

    The Greaser looks to Michael and Thomas, and then deciding he didn't want any of what Dutch was packing turns and tries to go back into the river!

    The other spirits, some more distinct than others, begin to close ranks around the Living.

    It gets Colder.

Freddy Freeman has posed:
"Oh shoot," Pantheon murmurs as the spirits begins to move and interact. Oddly, Freddy Freeman swears like a sailor and Pantheon almost never swears. "Is that a gun??"

Pantheon does not know Pixie nor what she is capable of. She might be the biggest badass on the planet for all he knows. But what Pantheon *does* know is that a gun is being pointed and he also knows, from first-hand experience, that guns don't hurt him. (Ghostly guns? He doesn't take any time to consider that angle.)

There is a brisk flash of movement and air currents billowing everywhere as Pantheon moves almost faster than the eye can follow to stand between the gun-wielding ghost and Pixie. He swallows heavily as NOW it occurs to him that he's never been shot by a ghostly gun before. Oh well, what's done is done.

Megan Gwynn has posed:
Pixie blinks slowly as the colonial summons a ghostly gun. She just grins, ignoring everyone else around her, focused slowly on the flintlock. "Ooh, is that supposed to scare me? My soul dagger can cut right through any magic you throw my way!" the cold? That doesn't seem to bother her, or at least, she's not letting it get to her..

Her shadow on the ground seems so very strange for just a split second or two..Like..It's not her shadow..And she doesn't seem as scared as she should, as if running on. adrenaline, tightening her grip on her dagger..

And then suddenly Pantheon is in front of her and she blinks, "Huh? What are you doing?" now she just seems annoyed. But that's okay, there are Soo many more ghosts to pick as targets. She smiles wickedly at the next nearest one, hooking her finger at it. "Soo, what are you waiting for?"

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake retains his arm around her waist, barely noticed by the crazed fairy. The flicker of the shadow is not lost on him as he yanks her back. He needs... a demonstration must be made, something to snap her out of this. Something shocking. Catman can be shocking. He has no magic really. Pantheon (?) makes his fighting skills irrelevant. So with a swift motion he mirrors Balm slamming his hand down on the soul dagger. He goes rigid a moment and then drops at Pixie's feet.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
It seems that Thomas is doing an ok job of pulling back the pissed-ie from her stated desire to fight. But as the flintlock gets produced. Mike steps forward and in front of Pixie, holding up his hands in a halting gesture, "Woah woah woah!" He responds, glaring to the Dutch man. Before the blur of blue blocks his vision causing him instead to be glaring to the back of a costume. He detangles himself from the cape and steps back to where he was. "So are you guys looking for your bodies? Is that it?"

And then Thomas drops. His attention shifts over to Pixie. Eyes narrow as he steps away from her. Scanning the ground for a stick.

Sandra Wu-San has posed:
"I see no reason to prolong the suffering of your fellows save those they present," Lady Shiva softly says, crouching to put herself on the specter's level.

<What happened to the bodies?> she wonders of Phoebe-- or anyone else who might happen to have levels in Knowledge: Bristol Township, cupping her hand beneath the dead woman's chin-- almost as if she can feel it, her fingers move so precisely.

"And what if we were to promise to find it?" she then asks aloud.

Her eyes flick up, darting between the encroaching spirits before settling on one.

"Them?" she amends.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    The water at the riverbank begins to receed. It shows a tricycle that's been discarded. Beer cans and glass bottles, sharpened bits of rusted metal, a boot sticking out of the mud. A few lazy catfish flop about on the river rock and mud before trying to get back to the water.

    A skull, partially eaten away, grins delieriously at Pantheon, half buried in the mud before the colonial man fires his pistol. The 'bang' is both loud and subdued, more like a 'thud' than the rapport of a firearm, echoing in water.

    No bullet strikes Pantheon. It melts from ice to a small splash of cold water against his chest.


    And then the river closes in, rising up with sudden ness, crashing aruond the living and dead, trying to pull Pixie and Pantheon, Stunned Catman and Act-man, Assassin and Balm to the water, where pairs of eyes wait in the murk, glowing dimly.

    <I don't know yet! I can't communicate with them -- I have no voice. I don't want to drown -- I don't want to drown -->

    Don't want to drown, don't want to drown, and yet my loves you're drawing down, to the darkness and to the murk where the River Nightmares wait and lurk, struggle not my loves and do not fear -- soon all will be still and quiet here~ sing-songs a voice, sweet as honey and light as a feather, though ice begins to form on the top of the water to lock everyone down as the river tries to drag everyone into its cold embrace!

Freddy Freeman has posed:
Pantheon is soooooooooooooooo out of his element right now! Guns that aren't guns. Spellcasters. Rockers getting tangled in his cape. Mystic heroes. And then there's him. Strong, wise, fast, potent, bold...and utterly useless in a situation like this. He can't even use his lighting powers because there's water everywhere and he's afraid of shocking or even electrocuting the living here.

BUT...he knows he can go into that water without drowning. Hell, he has battled in the vacuum of space before. So rather than fight the pull, he turns himself into it and drives himself into the water. Attacking ghosts is probably pointless.

He thinks to himself . o O ( Oh Solomon, informed and wise! Guide my hands and guide my eyes! ) Then it hits him. The bones. Pushing himself with supernatural strength through water and mud, Pantheon starts to gather up as many bones as he can find.

Megan Gwynn has posed:
Pixie is about to charge into the frey so to speak, when Catman goes and does something foolish, foolish enough to snap her out of it. "No!" she shrieks, leaning down to pull him protectively closer to her, and her wings turn a lighter shade of pink and pale grey, slapping him on the face, trying to revive him. "Why'd you do that..? Mike, help me!"

And then suddenly they're being pulled into the water, down towards those creepy eyes. Her soul dagger flickers back to a deep shade of pink, using it as a beacon of light, narrowing her eyes as she focuses on the dark entity she senses beneath the waves and she begins swimming towards it rather than escaping, using her wings to propel her faster through the water.

If this thing is supernatural, she can stab it, deal a good deal of damage..Maybe stop this thing..And once she's close enough she makes a swinging strike at the things eyes..

Thomas Blake has posed:
Pain. He has known pain before. He felt the soul dagger before. Dropping was a feint, an act largely. He did it to get the woman he was beginning to cherish back -not this trashy belligerent parody. The cold water revives him. He's sucked down. His claws snap out and he swims initially at the eyes, to slash. Raging, feeling his lungs gasp he struggles. First the thing causing this trouble dies, then the one doing this to Pixie. He is going to live for that alone. he launches himself at those eyes, hoping someone with brains and power will handle the rest of this mess.

Pixie! Mike! They can't do their thing with their mouths full of water. He reverses and rises to claw at the ice and make a hole. He pauses a second to grab a rang from his belt and hack with it, anchoring himself with the claws on his other hand.

Where the hell is Pixie? Did she slap me? Where's Mike? Shiva? Shiva is probably fine.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Act-man?

ACT-MAN?

Well the quest for a stick is thwarted momentarily as the river suddenly rises. With Mike out as Mike and not Phantasmed, the coldeness of the water does present as a bit of a shock.

Perhaps he could respond back, but with the oncoming ice and the water pulling them in, now isn't the time to compose.

The features to his face shift as he starts to phantasm. Sacrificing his sense of touch, he avoids the dumbness brought about by the chill as well. Refocusing, He starts to loan out his abilities to shove those he can topside of the ice.

No hole necessary.

Sandra Wu-San has posed:
As the water rises around her, the Assassin takes a deep, bracing breath and locks her eyes upon the panicking Balm.

<Be as the reed,> echoes through both women's consciousnesses.

Moments later, Shiva - propelled by one part spectral forces, one part vigorous kicking and shimmying - tries to seize Phoebe by the collar so she can then reorient for a lung-searing push towards the ice and the open air beyond it.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Reeds bend and break and play happy melodies when broken when the wind pushes through them.

    THe water, on the other hand, is not as kind. It grasps and tries to hold all down, the glowing orbs turning out to be the eyes of massive fish, catfish with their long whiskers and their dull, dead eyes, fat bellies and their gaping, wide mouths as they start swimming for those the river has taken. The spirits, too, tumble around the living here, trying to grasp to Pixie's glowing wings as if to drag her down. Pantheon would find one of the catfish coming right for him, his cape acting as a lure for their attentions.

    Phantasm would find the greaser boy trying to grab onto his legs, the spirit unusually heavy, trying to drag him down, and Balm's magical communication is cut off -- she's not struggling when Shiva pulls her body limp and hand still peirced through from the knife -- the toad, on the other hand, appears to be EXTREMELY CONCERNED with what's going on and is flailing its warms and legs, unbothered by the fact that it's pierced through with a knife.

Freddy Freeman has posed:
Frustrated by his complete inability to affect anything here, and not wanting these relative strangers to end up hurt worse because of his efforts, Pantheon suddenly lunges up with super strength out of the water. He hovers for a moment in the air and shouts, "I'm going to get help!" Then like a lightning bolt, he flies off at super speed.

Megan Gwynn has posed:
Pixie narrows her eyes, trying to conserve air as she charges for the glowy eyed fish demon thingie..But then something - or somethings pull her back and she instinctively draws in water, gurgling as they hold her back by her wings! What nerve!

Dark eyes narrow, twisting around to strike at the ghosts with her dagger, trying to cut herself free. But she's already starting to run out of air now...!

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake takes a big gulp of air from the huge hole Pantheon left in the river. He immediately dives back in the water. He has very good night vision and Pixie's pink glow stands out in the murky water. Ah there she is... being killed by those frigging ghosts. He grabs for an ankle, trying to pull her free, cursing. He's clawing with his other hand at huge fish eyes.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Finding the greaser trying to grab on to his legs, he brings a leg back and shoves it forward, kicking the greaser in the face. Putting some distance between them he catches a glimpse of Pixie's predicament. Form starting to encase in shadow, Mike's form becomes shrouded in darkness and a horrific watery growl is released as the clawed creature slashes at the spirits trying to hold the fairy down.

Sandra Wu-San has posed:
Through the hole in the ice, Lady Shiva hurls Balm, trusting the younger woman to listen-- to be limp, to fall and roll easily towards a slippery stop upon frozen 'ground'.

Several moments later, the assassin skids in after Phoebe; after sliding to a graceful stop, she drops into sitting cross-legged, peering at the younger woman. Reaching for her shoulder, jostling her into action if she must--

Locking eyes with the frog for just a beat and touching her index finger soothingly to her lips. It'll be alright, impaled little thing; your pain is for a higher purpose.

"The strong one has left to find help," she states.

"The aggressive one appears to be drowning-- or worse, perhaps. Your safety interested me more."

There isn't so much as a shrug to brush off just-- letting a brash young woman's suicidal impulses wash over her.

"The others are still in the water," she finshes, leaning towards the sorceress. "Are you still drowning," she then wonders, softly and with an arching brow, "or are you ready to speak the language of the damned?"

"Have you drawn near enough...?"

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    The catfish miss Pantheon as he makes his escape,, and whirls around, now coming for Phantasm as he claws and rends the spirits about them. Pixie's freed from the ghosts trying to drag her down by her wings. Pixie's breath begins to run out as she slashes at th ghosts trying to drag her down, slashing at what's around her with her soul knife.

    Catman rips and tears, clawing at the dead eyes of the catfish as it tries to sweep his legs into its wide, gaping mouth, its whiskers splaying out.

    The cat coming after Phantasm opens its mouth wide, intent on engulfing the man in one gulp.

    Above, on the ice, Balm coughs up river water, turning on her side, her body curling up, she gasps out, water draining from the wounds hidden behind her black silk choker, and she opens her eyes, the domino mask sparking a moment before she pulls the knife out of her hand, and slips the croaking toad into her pocket.

    Her hand is still bleeding, and she goes to trace a circle on her palm.

    

    She psirits are ripped to pieces, bits and pieces of them floating along in the river as the remaining two channel cats sweep back and forth below Mike, Tom and Megan, each easily fifteen feet in length.

    Above the ice, Shiva would see one of the spirits -- the woman with the weeds in her hair. She's moving in a jerky motion, solid, no longer blue but gray and black, ichor dripping from her eyes.

    The woman then screams and leaps to attack Shiva with sharpened claws instead of fingernails!

    Looks like she found one of the bodies!

Megan Gwynn has posed:
Pixie kicks free of the ghosts that hold her hostage, with help from phantasm. She is definitely running out air but determined not to run away from the fight. For now she swims towards the water hole at the surface, drawing in a few shivery breaths! really wishing she had worn her standard Xmen uniform which is at least warmer and covers more than this.

"Geez, what a paiiin.." she mutters, tightening her grip on the soul dagger, and then she draws a deep breath and dives back in, waving her soul dagger at any who dare to get close to her,speeding through the water with the aid of her wings, flying under water almost as fast as she does in the air..

As the catfish comes for Phantasm, she narrows her eyes, slashing and hacking at it with her glowing dagger, trying to slash it to ribbons. Thank goodness for those extra knife lessons she took with Catman, her technique is far more polished than it once was, but these creatures are big. Good thing her dagger can bypass physical armour!

Michael Hannigan has posed:
With Pixie free to swim for air, the abyss under the hood that once housed Mike's face looks back to the catfish with glowing red eyes. A yellow glow of jagged teeth appear as the figure seemingly smiles, underwater, unaffected by the cold.

Quietly the figure cuts through the water, claws lifting to slash at the creature. With Pixie joining in, it should be interesting to see how long the creature should last.

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake surfaces further down the river. He takes another huge breath and looks around. No Pixie, No Mike. Balm and Lady Shiva... doing stuff. He takes another breath and dives back in hackling at devil fish. Heh... monster catfish. Ironic. Stab.

Sandra Wu-San has posed:
The drowned, hungry ghost is an empty shell of a woman-- a mockery devoid of anything truly resembling life. The jerky gait is a great advantage indeed for Lady Shiva, lending otherwise erratic and difficult to instinctively, reflexively understand movements an awkward weight which leaves the assassin with just enough time to nudge Phoebe a couple feet out of the slashing line with her foot before jerking away, allowing a decrepit claw to rake within an inch of her belly.

"Your body cannot be returned to you if I am forced to destroy it!" she warns, hoping to be heard by the woman's spirit rather than the ravenous husk before her. And indeed, her hands fold behind her back even as the undead woman lurches, twitches, then lunges after her again, prompting a brisk, spinning evasion that leaves her skidding behind the walking corpse.

"Thus far, I've sought to treat with you in good faith--" she reminds, loud and clear as she tries to lunge inwards and seize a handful of the dead woman's hair.

"-- and I care not whether that continues or doesn't," she concludes while seeking to plant her foot into the dead woman's spine, driving her to the ground for subdual with what hopefully works out to be minimal violence.

"Am I heard," she adds, glancing towards Balm, "or shall I try a new language?"

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Pixie goes for air, errupting through the water and into the icy air. The catfish that had come for Michael feels its mouth clawed, cut, ripped to ribbons as its blood murkens the water and draws others, the scent of fresh food in the river. The first fish is ripped, and falls, slowly through the water as Michael and Thomas seek to protect Pixie and each other from the frozen fishsticks, pre-sticking.

    The woman with the curly hair gives a grint as Shiva shifts around her. No, the body won't be returned to her spirit. It's forever lost, long ago consumed by the channel cats.

    <It was a trap. They weren't expecting sensitives!>

    Phoebe sits up, using her fingers to keep the wound from closing as she bleeds from the circle around it. <Pixie. I *need* your voice. I can't dispell them alone.>

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Hearing the request for a Pixie on the group chat, the shrouded figure pauses in his fight to look over towards Thomas. The water distorts the sound but what bits of expression from the combination of the glowing eyes and teeth indicates a demand. The extended claws gesturing to Pixie and then topside seems to be the remainder of it.

And with that, Phantasm goes back to fighting whatever else still thinks it is a good idea to attack those in the water.

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake emerges a moment later spitting dirty water, Pixie under his arm doing likewise. He gives a worried look at her wings and hair. He sheathes his knife and sets the fairy down gently, shaking water out of his hair. He half drags her and himself towards Balm and Shiva. "Let's get this over with. I can use a drink."

Sandra Wu-San has posed:
<'They'?>

Shiva's fingers clench. Her eyes narrow on the back of the decaying woman's head.

<And who might 'they' be?>

Not only is there no response from the woman -- the spirits -- there's every indication that all of this has been designed to kill. Shiva gives Balm a briefly lingering look, then steps off of the dead woman's back. She hauls the corpse high into the air with nothing more than the vice grip in her hair--

<These spirits didn't wake themselves...>

-- and DRIVES the dead woman face first into the ice with enough force to turn her skull into fragments.

<... did they?>

Megan Gwynn has posed:
Pixie has headed back underwater, stabbing mercilessly at the first catfish. She's about to turn on the other two as her dagger flashes red again, caught up in a peculiar and very uncharacteristic blood lust, when Phoebe's magic voice reaches her and she blinks, choking up more water than she intended, momentarily stunned by more ghosts.

Fortunately Mike covers her retreat and Thomas grabs her and pulls her topside before she can gather her wits about herself and or protest. "Right, of course, a banishment spell!" of course she has performed such spells with the aid of to,es, never from the top of her head as they tend to be so very specific. And it doesn't help that for all the reading she has done, Megan still hasn't found someone willing to tutor her in ritual spells or other.

"Just tell me what to say, what to do!" she nods to Phoebe.

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake keeps his eye out for more dead walkers. Hey, maybe the fish will evolve and start walking out of the water? Maybe a meteor will hit. You never know where you stand with magic. He doesn't anyway. Getting annoyed at that. That and his girlfriend being Jekyll and Hyde. Oh and Mike turns into that thing.

He has knives.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    <A banishment Spell.> Phoebe replies weakly. She's wavering. She can't answer Shiva's accusing question at the moment, she's trying hard to focus.

    She offers her not-bleeding hand to Pixie.

    <Per sanguinem exilium es. Aspirando exilium. Per aquam relegaris. Igne abigis. Non iam hic dominium tenetis. Redde vias quas venisti--> she repeats, lending Pixie the words. She holds the other woman's hand tightly.

    Thomas doesn't have to keep an eye out for long, it's not a meteor or a walking fish, but the ghostly hands of the greaser again as they reach up, and he tries to pull Thomas through the ice!

    The fish swirling beneath both rise up through the water, thir dead, bulbous eyes and wide, dumb mouths, whiskers drawing out as they consume the bits and pieces of their fallen friend, and then go to turn on themselves.

    CRUNCH goes the face into the ice of the dead woman.

    The corps breaks apart, and the screams fade, bit by bit, echoing over the river -- but they should be able to see the shore from here. They were only maybe forty feet into the wide river, but it looks to be ice as far as the eye can see!

Megan Gwynn has posed:
Pixie blinks and nods, taking Phoebe's hand, "Of course, why didn't I think of it sooner?" but she hasn't exactly even herself lately either, rushing into things without thinking, and with an insatiable bloodlust to boot.

She wastes no more time, taking her hand, dispelling the dagger so it doesn't interfere with the spell. Seems she's learning a new spell every day with Phoebe's help, which is more than she can say with the many other unhelpful mages out there..

She raises her voice, clearing it of water as she repeats the recitation, having enough knowledge of Latin and the spellbooks she has studied to understand the words and their meaning. "Per sanguinem exilium es. Aspirando exilium. Per aquam relegaris. Igne abigis. Non iam hic dominium tenetis. Redde vias quas venisti!"

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake pulls a small first aid kit from a pocket and gestures for Phoebe to give him her hand. The one with the frog attached. After getting the kit out he pulls his jacket off, which being leather is somewhat dry. He offers that as well to Balm. He'll offer the flask in his pocket in a minute.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
As the fish start to turn on themselves, Phantasm glides away in the water. It appears that the lost of taste is a two fold matter. He can't taste things, but he apparently doesn't taste that appealing for the fish either. Win win!

While the ghostly hands of the greaser may WANT to pull the medically minded Thomas through the ice. The recently disengaged Phantasm comes from behind, pulling the greaser further down into the water. There's a violent sloshing of water coming out of the ice hole as the Phantasm guards the only icy exit.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    The spell works -- with Pixie's help. It can be draining, expelling such a huge magical entity away -- but there is a dull roar like the sound of an oncoming train, mechanical sounding, racking, ticking, the displacement of air, the echoing over endless ice --

    And then like they never left the hollow, they're back. Poor Mike is dropped from three feet onto the floor of the adirondak shelter. Pixie and Balm are sitting on the floor. Thomas would find himself standing in front of a small fire ring, among some crushed beer cans.

    And there is a loud POP noise. The river is back to normal. The area warms up quickly, and from her soaked pocket, the toad Phoebe had stabbed crawls, looks disgruntled, and hops away into the forest floor to continue its happy little toad life.

    Phoebe waves off the first aid kit, holding her left hand up. The wound is closing already, not even leaving a scar.

    She does, however, tilt backwards and flops across the BATMAN IS A VAMPIRE graffitti.

    <<Welp. That sucked.>>

Megan Gwynn has posed:
Pixie gasps, sinking to her knees, still shivering a bit when things go back to normal. "Phew, you don't say.." along wuth the exhaustion, her wings flick to pale pink, looking more like her old (or rather young? normal? ) self, glancing at Phoebe with a smile, "Thanks for teaching me another spell, and you said you didn't have it in you." she glances around, perhaps more warily at Mike's shadow self, and then curiously towards Lady Shiva, "Everyone alright? Can we go someplace warm, maybe for hot cocoa and cookies?"hey all that spell casting made her hungry. And cold.

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake replaces the first aid kit and drapes his jacket around Pixie. Better than nothing. Even wet it will trap body heat and warm her up. He wipes his face and tries to help her up, pleased to see more pink in her, knowing this wasn't over yet. "Proud of you," he says. He looks almost respectable as he looks at Pixie.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
As the Shadowman is deprived of it's latest opponent there's the slightest bit of disappointment marked in the few elements that comprise his face. The three foot drop ends up becoming sufficient time to correct the posture. The feet combined with the knuckles of one hand come in contact with the ground allowing for the remaining clawed hand to simply be held at the hip. The head turns, surveying the surroundings before the glow of the jagged teeth vanish, face becoming no more than the glowing red points of the eyes. A few moments go by before the form shifts again, leaving Mike crouched there. Soaked, miserable, and tired looking. He leans back, falling on his ass.

"Seconded."

Man, he could really go for a nap right about now.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe looks up at the roof of the shelter, and then closes her eyes.

    <I need to go get a hot shower. Carrying a toad in my pocket was weird enough.> she mutters, and then points at Pixie.

    <YOU. Need to get a fucking handle on your blood lust. I can taste it.>

Megan Gwynn has posed:
Pixie shivers, drawing the jacket more tightly around her shoulders, smiling faintly at Thomas in thanks. Now that things have calmed down, she peers at Phoebe with a frown. "I'm fine..Fine! I dunno what you're talking about, but I could do with a rest and hot shower. Shall I port us all to happy harbour or what?"

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike falls onto his back. Eyes opening and closing slowly as he tries to focus upon the ceiling. Phoebe's lecture directed to Pixie is most definitely noted.

"Seconded...Pix, we need to talk."

Despite the stated need, it will end up having to come up later as Mike is falling as-

He pinches his arm. Eyes widening, Mike bolts upright. "...After we get back."

Thomas Blake has posed:
Thomas Blake starts rubbing Megan's back. He's already warming up. 'That'd be great. Will you b all right, Balm? Do you need help to get home? I won't tell Batman if you don't. Mike, you want a ride? Good. I got the house fixed up a little, I have guest rooms with power now and a washer dryer. But yeah we got to talk about this Cinnamon business."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    <I got myself. I can get myself. I'll be in The Usual Place, Pixie.> Phoebe states with exhaustion, and then with a wave of her hand, she portals out. Downwards. And then is gone, leaving the smell of black pepper and roses in her wake.

Megan Gwynn has posed:
Pixie blinks a bit at that. "She is Soo weird. But I'm learning more from her than I've ever learned from anyone about magic." she smiles and nods. "I'm worried about her though, but for now, we should head home..Sihalnovarumchinoth!" she exclaims, porting them out in a hit link portal..