2336/Uncle Spindley Goes to the Fair

Uncle Spindley Goes to the Fair
Date of Scene:	04 July 2020
Location:	Coney Island
Synopsis:	A sunny Saturday afternoon in July at Coney Island takes a bit of a crazy turn when an extradimensional interloper decides human terror makes a great snack. Fortunately, Bolo and Daytripper are there to shut down the buffet.
Cast of Characters:	Jovian Anderson, Amanda Sefton

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Jovian Anderson has posed:
The Amusement Park is there for amusement. And everyone is having a good time. Nothing wrong with that. The problem is, that not everyone views amusement the same way. Take for example, Targ, the being from Dimension Qua. Never heard of it? Most people have not. It is at the far end of the magic spectrum and its inhabitants usually find Earth exceptionally boring. However, in this case, Iata, on his way on a long journey seeks solace and shelter. When his spell tells him that there is a place to resolve the endless boredom in the grey travel realm he is using, he immediately is delighted.

Sadly, there is a fundamental disconnect of what he assumes is the amusement part of the park....because he assumes the humans are part of the attraction. A golden portal opens, and a tall spindly blue armed spider comes out. It waves to everyone, which appears to be wailing its arms about in a menacing fashion, but as if that weren't enough, a white sheen erupts and several images in the park come to life and begin to terrorize the inhabitants. A large blue 'Icey Pop' bear, roars and begins to try to eat anything that moves. A large 'wooden' cowboy pops out of a cartoon illustration and begins to shoot realistic bullets.

Jovian is here after a guy who has skipped bail. He is in costume, but its a carnvial and weirdness is more or less expected here. When this nonsense goes on, he frowns and takes out a bolo, twirling it and trapping two of the bears legs. It doesnt look trapped for long and the sheen is lingering on other illustrations.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
She'd never tell you it was 'homesickness', only that she's always liked going to carnivals. Thus, Amanda Sefton has spent the last two hours happily wandering the boardwalks and watching the carnies shill the normies in their usual fashion. She knows which game are rigged and which actually have a fair chance... which is to say all and none. But that's always been the game, hasn't it?

She's in the middle of paying for a slushie when the golden portal shimmers into existance and the Icey Pop bear above her head lets out a menacing roar.

So much for the slushie.

Backpedalling quickly, she literally bends over backwards to avoid the swipe of a massive white paw, flipping back over to her feet and spinning up a shield of eldritch energy with an arcane gesture. "Down, boy!" she snaps, even as a bolo entraps the bear's legs, bringing it crashing to the earth in front of her. A blink. "Good boy."

She glances about, notes the man focussed on the bear -- and his costume -- and decides maybe he's there to help.

Brilliant.

A bullet wings by, embedding itself in a piece of wooden siding. People not already screaming and running on account of the bear certainly do so on account of the cowboy. Amanda backpedals again, shield tight around her, until she has a bit of free space to find her feet. Then, there's a flash of green and her shorts and tee give way to red and blue leather. Because, seriously, if there's magic involved, she wants armour between her and it.

Jovian Anderson has posed:
Jovian Anderson is no hero, but he isnt going to let people die from....randomness. He starts to wonder if the costume makes weird things happen and reconsiders it. There are many law enforcement agencies or mercinary orgs that dont care if he has powers. This is...insanity.

And indeed it is because suddenly six penguins come out of the same truck and begin ....waddling...menacingly after people. OK maybe the penguins are not the problem since a painted dragon on one of the rides starts to roar and slowly come to life.

He throws a bolo at the cow bow, and the thing gets stuck in the trigger of his gun which he...rather ineffectively tries to unjam. Animated illustrations are not that bright apparently. The spider absorbs the terror with amusement, relief from the bordom obvious (to him) on its features.

Jovian Anderson has posed:
Jovian Anderson says, "I'm Bolo, pleased to meet you...." he suspects she might be a magic type and asks, "do you have any idea what this is....or how to stop it?

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Glancing toward the man with the bolo, Daytripper smiles wryly at his introduction. "Daytripper," she says in return. "Yeah. Last I checked, cartoon signage doesn't usually behave like this." A whisper of power and the sorceress rises up on an eldritch wind above the chaos of the crowd. She points toward the glow of the golden portal and the spindley figure that has emerged from it. "My guess? There's our culprit." The solution? She cants her head. "Ever tried to banish a monster from the Outer Planes? Should be... fun." Interpret 'fun' how you will.

Jovian Anderson has posed:
Jovian Anderson blinks and for a moment he thought she meant it doesnt behave like this 'magically' and asked how it does behave but then gets it. He looks at the spider and shudders. "Seriously? I almost wish it was just the animated cartoons..." an animated crab comes to life and suddenly leaps on his face. He bats it away and ties it up with a bolo. "I can't say that I have banished a monster to the outer planes.

The penguins leap into a pool and play around but the dragon roars and breathes fire at random. They seem drawn to the largest crowd of people maximizing terror.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Daytripper glances over to the Dragon. That's going to be a problem. "Okay," she says quickly to Bolo, gesturing arcanely as she speaks. A sheen of sweat starts to gather on her brow -- though that likely has as much to do with the heavy costume in the summer heat as it does the concentration she is beginning to focus. Metal and concrete gather themselves up from the stands, benches, and rides, starting to form walls and shelters between the crowds and the Dragon's assault. "We need to push Tall-Blue-and-Ugly back through the portal and get it closed. I think I can close it, but not while I'm trying to keep these bloody signs at bay."

Jovian Anderson has posed:
Jovian Anderson considers and gets an idea. Most of these carts are mobile. He gets in one, searches for the keys and starts it up driving the thing into the dragon. He pushes the petal to the metal and shouts in triumph at the thing. As he does so, it breaths fire on to the thing but keeps the fire away from him.

"That's odd....do you notice how the signs are scaring people but not hurting them?

Amanda Sefton has posed:
That the golemic signs aren't directly causing harm isn't something Daytripper had particularly noticed -- mainly because people can still be hurt by the actions of the stampeding crowd itself. Trampling is a distinct danger here. Worse, if gun-happy security or beach cops start trying to do something.

But hearing Bolo's words gives her pause. Her ears rise slightly, indicating her attention. "Which... probably means Uncle Spindley gets his jollies from fear, not pain." Or, rather, fear more than pain. "Good to know." A tight smile touches her lips. "Fear often makes itself look a whole lot bigger than it is."

She sets the walls and shelters she's been building in place. They'll hold their shape without her help, now... though she'll have a job setting them to right later. Nevertheless, she soars forward now, buoyed on her eldritch wind, clearing the way between her and Uncle Spindley with a gentle illusion of greenish energy that deflects the crowd away from the interdimensional interloper. "Hey! Spindley! Don't you know it's impolite to interrupt someone else's party?"

Jovian Anderson has posed:
Jovian Anderson says, "That makes sense, I hadnt thought of that. So we need to get his food away form here. Ie get the people away and that might help." He drives the truck into a giant bowl of spagetti and honks the horn shouting on the loud speaker, "run away you fools!" Some people do.

The spider 'frowns' and moves towards her, trying to explain itself in polite horrific clicking."

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Daytripper can, in fact, understand some of what the monster says. She's not had experience with his specific dimension, mind, but there's a dialectal similarity to the tongue spoken by an odd, interdimensional spell trader her mother used to truck with when Daytripper was a teen. She's never learned to speak the language, however.

"Right," she says, a crisp English tone colouring her mostly neutral accent. "Here's the thing, Spindley. These folks?" She guestures to the fleeing humans. "Not food. Denizens. Catch my drift? You're quickly wearing out your welcome."

And she's now assessing his portal with an expert eye. Damn... He has come a long way from nowhere, hasn't he?

Jovian Anderson has posed:
Iata balks, 'Wait what? But it said 'amusement park' what else could it have possibly meant?" He scratches his head in puzzlement by looming menacingly. Its non verbal communication.

People begin to run as Bolo literally drives at them while more and more signs come to life. The signs dont hurt anyone but they seem to be getting more and more desperate to frighten people.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Uncle Spindley doesn't seem to catch her drift at all. Daytripper's eyes narrow. She lands before him -- some ten or twenty feet away, mind -- and sweeps her hands in another arcane dance. Eldtritch wind swirls around her, blowing her hair and the hem of her coat dramatically. Debris swirls up around her.

"Last chance, Spindley," she tells him. "Back away from the buffet. You can't afford the price of admission." More accurately, she can't afford the price of his admission. But she doesn't say that.

Jovian Anderson has posed:
The amount of people begin to disappate and it sighs. "Oh this is annoying." It considers combat, since it is quite proficient but it has a long journey and slowly begins to move back to the portal but isnt giving up or deactivating the signs.

Bolo drives around like a madman, honking and 'trying to run people over'.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
"Right, then," Daytripper says again. "Guess I'm the bouncer." She thrusts her hands forward. The wind about her surges toward the monster. She focusses it into a narrow column, concentrating its force against the centre of Spindley's mass. That portal is still open and she intends to toss him back through it. "Lunch is over."

Jovian Anderson has posed:
The monster begins to channel some of its powerful magic, weaving an astonishing web. It is anchoring itself to the ground and will be very hard to remove...until Bolo drives into it at 60 miles per hour as it shrieks with rage.

He shouts, slamming onto the breaks trying to keep from driving in, "Close the portal!

Amanda Sefton has posed:
As the cart careens into Spindley, destroying his concentration and evaporating his magic, Daytripper flings her hands forward again, loosing a powerful bolt of arcane energy that changes the wind's pressure from gale to concussive. Pure magic batters Spindley's torso as he's flung through the golden ripple in the fabric of reality. When his body is on the other side, she claps her hands together, drawing the energies closed and chants in an ancient tongue. Glowing arcane symbols dance in the air, settling around the edges of the rift and beginning to knit it back together.

Jovian Anderson has posed:
Jovian Anderson sighs with relief as the truck is cut by the portal with part of it missing. He takes a moment to just...calm down and kicks open the door. People are still running away but the signs instantly vanish and no visible damage except what Bolo himself did is apparent. He smiles, "That was great

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Daytripper maintains her concentration until the portal has been well and truly sealed. The signs return to normal, the monster disappears, and, at Bolo's enthusing, she takes a moment to assess the damage. "I don't know about great," she says dryly, "but it's certainly effective." And, sometimes, that's all that matters.

She purses her lips faintly for a moment. "I suppose I should clean up my mess." All those walls and shelters need to be returned to their original state, else Coney Island will be unusable for weeks. She does, however, offer Bolo her hand. "Thanks for the help."

Jovian Anderson has posed:
Jovian Anderson takes her hand, "Oh you're welcome." He puts his hand behind his head, "I am just glad I COULD help. I mean frankly I dont have magic or powers, and my bolos....increasingly seem like a bad idea. I need another...gimmick or something. I doubt I can do magic though." He shrugs, "And a better costume but one step at a time. My bounty is likely long gone. I dont suppose you have a location spell?"

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Daytripper smiles genially as she shrugs. "Spontaneous magic's a bit of a talent," she tells Bolo, "but never underestimate the power of a meticulously prepared ritual. Anyone with the right understanding and focus has a chance at them."

She considers his request. "Do you have something belonging to your bounty?" she asks. "Or at least a decent likeness? I can try scrying, though I'd not promise much." Seems a fair trade for his help with Uncle Spindley.

Jovian Anderson has posed:
Jovian Anderson nods, "That I do." He shows his phone with a guy with a goatee and a few well done tats, black hair and blue eyes. "Name's Cid. And if it works it works. As for rituals...." he shudders, "Trust me. My luck lately would bring things like that....but I might look into it, at the least to know more about this kind of stuff

Amanda Sefton has posed:
"Careful where you look," Daytripper advises. "There's a lot of tripe out there when it comes to magical instruction. I don't recommend random experimenting."

She looks at the image on the phone and wrinkles her nose. "I can try," she says, with a bit of a shrug. "Though, for future reference, if you want a more reliable scry, get your hands on something that belonged to the bloke or a bit of DNA. Sympathetic ties are stronger and easier to track. May I?" She opens her hand, asking to hold the phone.

Jovian Anderson has posed:
Jovian Anderson blinks, "I will definitely keep that in mind. I used to do DNA scanning alot back in the...." he realizes he is giving away a lot and says, "back in the day. If you can find him great, even a clue though he is likely still close." He smiles and shrugs, "I can always use the help...." he hands her the phone.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Daytripper takes the phone and holds it loosely on one palm. She makes an arcane gesture or two. A ghostly image of the man rises like a pale hologram over the screen. It flickers a little, almost like a candle flame. Slowly, the figure rotates until it's turned to face roughly in the direction of the park's exit.

"Well," the sorceress says after a moment. "I can tell you he went thataway." She points in the same direction the figure faces. It continues to flicker, getting a little less substantial each time it does. "And he's probabably half a mile or so away. Beyond that?" She gives an apologetic shrug and hands the phone back. "Your guess is likely better than mine."

Jovian Anderson has posed:
Jovian Anderson sighs. He is exactly the right amount of distance that running after him is pointless, but it does provide clues. He nods, in no hurry, "I will track him. I think I have an idea where he is going since his girlfriend lives in that direction." He smiles and shrugs. "I appreciate the help though." He takes out a card, "you have a number in case I want to take you up on that offer of DNA searches again?

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Daytripper considers that and then nods, taking his card. "Just a moment." She doesn't actually carry calling cards with her.

Instead, she slides a hand into a hidden pocket on the coat and pulls out a small piece of quartz. It's not big and not expensive by any means -- just the sort of thing you can get any craft shop for a few dollars a bag. Enclosing it in her palm for a moment, she closes her eyes and concentrates. When she opens her hand again, it glows briefly with a soft green light that fills the white stone with a similar green. As the glow fades, the stone's new colour remains. "If you need me, hold this stone in your hand and call my name -- Daytripper. I'll hear you and give you a call."

Jovian Anderson has posed:
Jovian Anderson blinks in surprise. He has an actual magical artifact. "Thats....amazing." He looks a bit confused and smiles, "I am grateful but....why not just use a cell phone? Is it like...a side effect of magic?" He takes the crystal and seems utterly fascinated by it.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Daytripper shrugs. "Partly," she replies. A bit of amusement dances in her eyes. "But you're a bounty hunter. You should know: Phone numbers can give a lot away. I prefer not to mix magic with the mundane, if I can avoid it." Which basically means that, even though she doesn't wear a mask, she's not interested in giving out her real name or business.

Jovian Anderson has posed:
Jovian Anderson nods, "That makes sense." He hadnt meant to ask her out but oddly the idea of not having the number is...disappointing. But having someone who can DNA trace goons is exciting. "I am guarded about my past as well," he points to the motorcycle helmet with the silvered face plate, "So I can't blame you. I was just curious if you messed up electronics or anything.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Daytripper shakes her head. "No. Some do, true. But my magic is remarkably city friendly." Not so much country friendly, however.

By this point, people are starting to assess the damage done. Daytripper gives Bolo another smile. "Speaking of... give me a moment."

She takes a good look around at what her earlier magic has wrought and closes her eyes. A few arcane gestures and some whispered ancient words later and the walls and shelters she created begin unfolding themselves. There are few startled cries from the people still milling about, but the concrete and steel unfolds itself gently, sailing through the air to return to its original place and state.

Before too long, the amusement park has been set to right, with no sign of the earlier crisis save the truncated wreck of the cart where the portal once stood.

Opening her eyes, Daytripper looks around. "That's better." She flashes a light grin. "I do hate leaving a mess behind. It's so unprofessional."

Jovian Anderson has posed:
Jovian Anderson laughs at that. "Well, as one perfectionist to another, I can't blame you," He bows and twirls his hand 17th century french style. Then he stands and nods, "Seriously. I've done cleanup duty before. You are helping a lot of folks with a thankless task. I have to ask....is Daytripper a drug reference?" He has heard the term before but is curious.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Daytripper laughs at that. "No. No," she says. "I'm rather good at teleportation and transportation spells, you see..." She shrugs. "And it sounded a jolly sight more dramatic than my given name when I was confronting outworlders back in Britain." A beat. She laughs. "Well, that, and once declared, the team used it, so it stuck."

Jovian Anderson has posed:
Jovian Anderson says, "AH!" He nods, "That would be handy. The UK?" He finally places the accent, "OH right. So did they actually have you take them on side jaunts to Paris or was it more of a tactical thing that they amused themselves on?" He is quietly relieved its not about drugs even if he isnt opposed to them. "Outworlders? Like our spider friend?"

Amanda Sefton has posed:
"Yes," Daytripper says. A beat. She grins. "To all of it." She perhaps puts his mind at ease. "I've never much been given to recreational pharmaceuticals." Which doesn't mean she hasn't occasionally used magical pharmaceuticals for non-recreational purposes. "The mystic path I follow is trippy enough without adding mind altering substances to it."

Jovian Anderson has posed:
Jovian Anderson says, "What path is that? Hermetic?" He read that in a single article once, so he knows about that and shamanism. Edjumacted is Jovian. "That would likely have made you popular with the team. I know back with my....team....anyone who could do that would have free drinks for life. And recretational pharmacueticals are not bad...I've just seen enough...bad dealers."

Amanda Sefton has posed:
"Wait till you mix magic with them," Daytripper says gravely. "The dealers get worse, then."

She lets that dark topic go, however, giving a soft chuckle. "Not hermetic, no. I've never much liked being a hermit. Too much navel gazing." She flashes a grin, but then shakes her head. "The path I follow isn't well known," she says. "I doubt you'll have heard of it." It's not the type to be spoken of in regular occult journals, after all. And probably just as well.

Jovian Anderson has posed:
Jovian Anderson smiles, "OK, now you definitely have my curiousity. At some point I will wnat to know more. As it is I clearly need a bit of an education in this department. As it is, I should chase Cid down. I'll ping you later." He salutes and speeds off.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Daytripper returns the salute with a casual one of her own and watches him go. Then, she moves off towards a bit of shade and lets a flash of green bring her shorts and tee back. Because, damn... padded leather is hot in the summer sun.

Now... what about that slushie?