18567/New Orleans By Night

New Orleans By Night
Date of Scene:	16 July 2024
Location:	Lafayette Cemetery No. 1
Synopsis:	There is a magical disturbance the alerts SHIELD and WAND. Plus another.
Cast of Characters:	Morrigan MacIntyre, Sam Wilson, Camille Russo

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Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
New Orleans is hot tonight! And there are so many calls going into the cops that they are short on hands. Guys are overworked and underpaid in this city...much like a lot of other cities.

Lafayette Cemetery No. 1 had been called in about numerous times in the last hour. Apparently a small group had been seen busting their way into one of the above ground tombs at the back of the cemetery. Given that a magical signature had been felt, WAND and others in SHIELD had been called in.

Apparently some very brave...or very stupid tourist had went to tell the group to respect the cemetery and they had been drug in and not seen.

That was 25 minutes ago. There were a few SHIELD agents in the area, but they arrive to a tomb that has been busted in...and there is a stairway down into the depths. Secret passages in old cemeteries?

It's obviously a Tuesday.

Sam Wilson has posed:
Sam and Morrigan had been visiting Sarah, and she was thrilled as a carnival ride that they were finally together. "So when you gonna make it offical?" she asked Morrigan as she tapped her ring finger with a catty grin. Fortunately for Morrigan, a phone called pulled her away and she left with their ride. A few minutes later, Sam got the call about the incident at the Cemetary and grabbing his EXO gear, he frowned. "Someone probably trying to pull some hoo-doo shit." he grumbles and kisses Sarah on the cheek. "Back soon. And don't rush Mo. She'll decide she's ready when she's ready."

Twenty-five minutes later, Sam is arriving by air, coming in for a landing at the cemetary, where the local press is also starting to gather to call out questions from behind the gate. One cheeky reporter yells, "Is this an Avengers level threat?"

Sam smirks at the reporter. "I'll let you know when I find out myself, and with that, he notices where the other SHIELD agents are, heading over to them and out of the prying eyes of the media.

Camille Russo has posed:
Camille is eyeing the gravesite cautiously. She'd passed the Baron's Cross on the way in, noted the graves with mounds of stones on or near them. The desecration of these older tombs makes her magic stir, an angry, shifting thing beneath her skin at the idea of someone's final rest being disrupted in such a cold manner. Disrupted spirits, in her education, were also angry, dangerous ones.

The stairway beneath didn't actually surprise her, however. It was rare but not unheard of for there to be some escape routes and hide spots, not always for altruistic reasons. She was careful not to do too much disruption to the site herself, and was gently reforming some of the mounds that had been disrupted already - either by the vandals or by their group's own workings - when she heard Sam's voice. She resettled the last mound she could see, then dusted her hands off to meet Sam in front of the stairs.

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
Morrigan had given Sarah a grin when she asked about making it official-official, "Whenever he wants." she'd told her. Not putting Sam on the spot, oh no!

She'd looked grim when the call came in, but that was something that she was good at.

Backat the cemetery there was the local press that had came out, "That doesn't give us any peace of mind, Falcon!" one of them calls back.

Camille can sense that there is unrest in the local spirits and ghosts. Something that is definitely coming from down the stairs.

From behind them in the doorway of the tomb, "You want me to go first?" the distorted voice asks them. If they turn around they'll see the same Anubis figure from the other night at the refinery.

Sam Wilson has posed:
"Hey, Cam." Sam offers as he approaches. "Figured we'd be the two that showed up in New Orleans." Not N'awlins. Only hacks called it that. "So. Busted up tomb leading to an underground path. Perfect place for a bird, right? I can send Redwing out in front to scan the path ahead." he starts to suggest before a disjointed voice speaks out behind him and he turns to face her. There's a slight smirk, but he says nothing on it.

"If that's what you're wanting to do. I was just recommending sending my drone out front. It has lights and is armed." he suggests to her.

Camille Russo has posed:
"Probably for the best there's a few of us connected with the city here, yeah?" Camille flashes a brief grin. "Two less bodies to anger the--" she trails off as the Anubis figure comes into view, and there's a brief pause where she just doesn't breathe before her heart thumps once and starts a rabbit-fast beat. "--the spirits that're already here." She pulls in a lungful of air, then exhales with a slow nod as she takes the figure in. "That's... probably the best. The drone, you, us. That sounds like a good plan."

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
The Anubis cowl wearing figure gives a stiff bow to them, "Apologies. I tend to arrive just as things are going downhill. An ill omen." they state. "I'll go after the drone." they state.

There is a look to Camille, "The dead are not happy about whatever is going on down there...so I can only guess what we might see once able to." they tell her.

Sam Wilson has posed:
"Alright, I'll bring up the rear in case I need to shield." Sam offers as the three get the order sorted out and he snorts slight. "I might be one of the few people that can bring up the front and the rear!" he says with some amusement. But with that out of the way, he deploys Redwing and sends it down into the tunnel, lights flickering on.

A moment later, Sam gestures, "After you." he offers to the pair before he moves to descend himself, his wings folding behind his back and creating a shield.

Camille Russo has posed:
Camille can feel the agitation in her teeth, and only her years of military training keep it from seeping out into her own mannerisms. "Yeah, I can feel it. Not just the unease from just some fools running wild and knockin the wrong things over, either. 'Bout half-tempted to say whatever's done mighta actually pissed off Maman and the Baron." There was ink burning a figurative hole in her pocket, a bottle she only ever pulled out when she went into a situation knowing that there might be restless dead.

She follows behind the Anubis-figure on near silent feet, hand not over her gun, but her knife. Tense. The light from Redwing is incredibly useful, at least. They're not going in completely blind.

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
"Such the gentleman." Anubis gives a nod to Sam. Was that amusement? Possibly. "If anything lunges out I'll take the hit. Don't want the drone taking it or either of you." the voice states as they head down. "And I can imagine that Maman and Baron probably won't be happy about this." Anubis states with a sigh in the words.

There seems to be two turns that they go down in the stairs before Redwing starts to pick up the presence of light and...people. "Apparently they started the party without us."

And sure enough whatever was happening involved only a handful of people that were surrounding someone dressed for a tour in New Orleans. They've got sunburn and sunscreen smeared across their nose. But currently the man is in tears as he is hoisted up onto a table in the middle of a rather cold room.

One of the figures that surrounds it brings out a rather large dagger and aims to stab the man with it...

"Oh fuck no..." Anubis states in a whisper as they dip past Redwing and take off running. Welp, it's always the one person who dives in head first!

Sam Wilson has posed:
As they traverse the tunnel, Sam frowns as Redwing starts to pick up the sounds of a fight. "Is someone really throwing a party in a tomb. Oh wait, I'm home." he says dryly. He was about to manuveur the drone into position when there's the destruction of the door and Sam calls out, "I got him!" Just for Anubis to take off. "Crap!" he says as they take off. "Remind me not to give them a Juinor Field Agent badge." he mutters to Camille.

And with that, he's sending Redwing ahead to prepare for anyone else coming out of the room that was just opened, as he turns on the loudspeaker on the drone. "You're outnumbered and probably outgunned. Come on out peaceful like and we'll talk this out."

Camille Russo has posed:
Camille's laugh at Sam's joke freezes as she takes in the tableau, lips firming into a tight line and eyes hot with rage. After that, she's not much behind Anubis, aiming for one of the chanting cultists with her knife and the power built-up from the restless disquiet and cold, creeping anger of the interrupted spirits. She tackles the robed, mostly shapeless form out of the circle and flat onto their back, uncaring of the bounce their head takes against the hard stone. "For Maman and the Baron, a payment to soothe the spirits your ritual have disturbed from slumber." Her knife flashes across their neck without hesitation.

Fools. Idiots. Playing power games they have no hope of understanding, angering the spirits and the gods that guard the afterlife. A damn fiction book or two could've taught them better. Then again, if they understood the price these sort of rituals tended to have, just reading the damn thing probably would've warned them off. Not that she knows what ritual it is, just that whatever involves desecrating a tomb and a live-looking sacrifice? Nuh-uh, she's got low training but she ain't stupid.

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
Nothing like having the Avatar of a God rushing you in a room where you are trying to raise something they shouldn't. And having SHIELD and Avengers behind them was not good either!

"Oh this was not the thing I signed up for!" comes the shout from a female in one of the robes. There's four of them. Should be easy to corral.

One robed figure goes to run, only to get tackled by one of their friends, "There's no leaving once you sign on!" the shout echoes through the chamber. It's filled with power that probably makes Camille and Sam's hair on the back of their necks stand on end.

Camille easily spears the cultist out of the circle and cracks their head on the old stone down here. That with the blood from the neck rolls down in rivulets onto the floor. The odd thing is that the blood seems to...go the opposite way that it should. Like something is drawing the blood in a certain direction.

But nothing weird happens other than that for the moment.

Anubis goes over to untie the dumb ass tourist, "Go. Now." they state.

Sam Wilson has posed:
"Hey guys..." Sam starts to say, "We're doing great. Should be a cakewalk. But I got an uneasy feeling." he murumurs, trying to get Redwing to track the robed figures. In the meantime, he switches it to tazers as it moves in, looking to connect with one of the robed figures and shock them.

In the meantine, Sam glances to make sure Anubis is okay, as he keeps an eye on his six and starts to move forward, pulling a pair of his feathers to use as batons. He's not gonna kill anyone if he can help it. Just bludgeon them.

Camille Russo has posed:
Her eyes follow the flow of the blood. Tracking. She can tell that it isn't moving right, is being guided, but she doesn't know enough - not for this sort of ritual. Camille knows what she can do with blood, but she also reckons she's barely cracked the surface of what can really be done, if you've got the stomach and power for the parts with the unwilling sacrifices, and she doesn't, not unless it's blood spilled in battle turned into protections.

This isn't a laughing matter, but Sam's comment startles a crack of laughter out of her as she moves again, knife in the sheath and hands faintly glowing, body aiming at the two cultists fighting one another. The power in that voice made her hindbrain shiver, so clearly the best option is to make it stop.

Without blood this time, because she doesn't want to give more material to whatever-the-heck is going on with it.

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
The ground rumbles below them. Something that is ominous on its own. The blood keeps slowly casting a line that seeps into the cracks of the floor and down into the earth beneath it.

It's a half power that pops up on the senses of Camille and whoever else can do magic here. A tickle as something breaches the shadow and earth to form haphazardly in the room.

And the form has an alligator head. Most are pretty sure that's an alligator. It sets its sights on the tourist, given the man is bleeding. Anubis manages to distract the alligator headed...demon? They aren't sure, but they manage to shove the tourist forward and take the hit that was aimed for them, which sends them crashing into the wall with a very big thud.

"It's not fully formed! Push it back!" Anubis chokes out as they try to right themself. Which means Camille and Sam have to fight the have formed monstrosity.

Sam Wilson has posed:
As the ground rumbles, Sam frowns. "This is not what I had in mind..." he grumbles as he moves foward, his footfalls quickly carrying him next to Camille. "What gave we got..." he starts to say, as he notices the Gatordemon that's half-formed, and he frowns as he switches from his feathers to his machine pistols.

"Don't you know this is Louisiana, not Florida. Shoulda gone with a tiger." And with that, he lifts his pistols, "Light 'em up!" he calls out as he opens fire.

Camille Russo has posed:
Camille swears in a mixture of French and English. It is heartfelt, absolutely insulting to the intelligence of the cultists and their family lines, and it's followed up by a punch to the side of the head of the cultist that is slowly working on strangling their former friend. Cult member? Whatever.

Them out, she wrangles the arms of the now-repentant woman behind her back and slaps zip ties over crossed wrists. "You are a dumbass," she says bluntly, "and you're damn lucky you decided to nope out before that thing got summoned, but you still kidnapped a damn tourist and caused a ruckus, so I hope you're ready to do a whole lotta repentin before your day comes child, because Baron and Maman? They're pissed." The end of her words are hissed out behind gritted teeth, and she turns her back on the two, pulling her dagger and flinging it at the head of the gator.

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
Florida Man is weeping somewhere as they aren't here to get the drop on anyone! The cultists are /terrified/ of the thing that comes up from the ground...and Camille! She smacks people!

They don't have to fight long before the thing is down. The bullets and the knife thrown into it's eye cause it to slump downwards as the thing stops moving.

It seems really anit-climatic,but given rituals interrupted...it could have been a lot worse.

Anubis limps their way over to the body and uses the power of the suit to punch through the form to grab the heart from it. It gets deposited into a bag and that'll go to Mister Jacquel later. Then there is a wheeze, "Even half powered that thing hits like a train." the distorted voice coughs.

"You want help wrangling these dumbasses?" they offer to stick around to help.

Sam Wilson has posed:
"I'll help you wrangle." Sam says, but as he prepares to assist with the round up, but first, as he comes over to Anubis, and his words are for them only.

"When we get back to the hotel, we're having a talk about you copying my wounds." he says dryly. "I'm sure we'll figure out a compromise." A smirk at the mask, and he heads off to gather the one he tasered and to go after the other ones.

Camille Russo has posed:
"I think we're good," Camille says, yanking her dagger out of the eyeball of the part-alligator... thing. She frowns, then turns to wipe it off on the robes of the dead cultist before sticking it back in her sheath. Who knows what kind of havoc letting that sink in would do to her mojo? Best not. "You sound like you need some medical attention more than we need the wrangling." The passed-out cultist's hands also get a zip-tie treatment before she's hefting their dead weight over her shoulder with a light 'Oof' and gesturing for the other one to stand up. "Upstairs, chariots for you and your friends are waiting." Those chariots will take them to a WAND interrogation, likely, and she'll read the reports once they're available.

Morrigan MacIntyre has posed:
Anubis gives a look to Sam and there is a bark of a laugh at whatever the man has said, "Fair." the voice states. "And yes...I will get the tourist out to who he needs to talk to and then depart. I appreciate the assistance in this." they states with a bow of their head to both Sam and Camille. Then they wipe the ichor off of the gauntlet and head up to where the tourist was hiding and lead them up the stairs just as quietly as they had arrived.