4482/What Remains

What Remains
Date of Scene:	24 December 2020
Location:	Ruins of the Haunted House
Synopsis:	No description
Cast of Characters:	Kurt Wagner, Amanda Sefton

---

Kurt Wagner has posed:
In a perfect world they would have the opportunity to revisit the site of the misadventure with the 'haunted' house almost immediately. It's usually best to tackle these sorts of things when everything is still fresh, before anything has had the chance to go missing or get picked over. But that's not always a luxury that they have. Particularly given the circumstances around the house's destruction. Walking out of the house as it collapsed did not exactly endear Kurt to the neighbors. Couple that with several days of investigation by the authorities and then more time sealed off as the city made sure that the remains were safe enough to leave until they could be dealt with added more time.

But opportunity has finally presented itself. No more police lingering near the scene, no more inspectors picking over the ruins to try and figure out what did happen. Just a fence surrounding the area to keep people back, complete with warning signs.

Kurt has always been one to take chances however so the warning signs are ignored. Dark has set over the city and very light flurries fall, seeming to mute even the orange glow of street lights nearby. There is that customary *Bamf* sound, the inky cloud of mist that accompanies it not even noticable in the dark and then two figures stand there, just inside the barrier of that chain-link fence, the remains of the house poking out from that sinkhole that seemed to swallow it up.

Blending in to the dark of the night, the fuzzy bue elf turns towards Amanda with that familiar grin. "You can't say that We never go anywhere interesting," he quips lightly.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Amanda laughs lightly at the elf's words, a shadowcloak spell wrapped around her to make her less visible against the evening's glittler of snow. She doesn't have Kurt's natural camouflage, after all. "Oh, we inevitably go somewhere interesting," she replies. "If only because we inevitably end up making it interesting." Which is basically another way of saying they attract trouble.

She steps a little ways on to the site and looks around at the ruin and desolation. "I don't know how much magic we'll find lingering, now that half the city has tromped through it." Having said that, she purses her lips. "That, and the city has been leaching dark magic, lately."

Kurt Wagner has posed:
It's not the kind of talent that most people would particularly want. On the whole being magents for trouble seems like a negative sort of thing. And maybe for most people that would be true. But they don't exactly live conventional sorts of lives. They make trouble work for them pretty darn well all things considered.

"You make a fair point," he freely admits as the flurries swirl about them, turning towards the ruins and looking over them. Parts of the roof and walls along with other, key structural pieces just up out of the earth, filling that sinkhole.Other scattered debris -- perhaps crushed remains of furniture or other bits are barely distinguishable here or there. as well.

"Mmmmm, I figured that might be the case," Kurt admits with a small shrug of his shoulders. "It felt likely that the house collapsing in on itself was a way to get rid of any evidence, but it didn't seem to hurt to at least check," he says before glancing back her way with arched brow. "More dark magics?" he asks with interest.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
"I may be able to cast a reconstruction spell," Amanda muses after a moment, head canting some at Kurt's words. "It would be an illusion, but it should capture and retrieve the last moments of the house's existence. Perhaps we'll see something?" Like rewinding a security camera, perhaps. She crosses to the edge of the sink hole and looks down into it. A small murmur and a gesture casts no the reconstruction spell, but a spell to detect what dregs of magic may be left... just in case.

Consider it a wise precaution.

She glances back at Kurt's final question. "Mm," she says dryly. "Tribeca is drowning in it, though I've come across it as far afield as Central Park." In other words, right near her apartment. "It's getting progressively worse, and has been since Hallowe'en. I've been out hunting almost every night this month."

Kurt Wagner has posed:
Hey, this is exactly the sort of reason that he wanted her help in the first place. The fuzzy-blue elf nods his agreement, little white flakes beginning to fleck that indigo fur as he moves towards the edge of the sinkhole, standing next to her, watching with interest. "It can't hurt to try," he agrees without hesitation. Well... probably not. Magic sometimes seems like a tricksy thing.

With her spell the ghostly outlines of the house begin to rise up out of that sinkhole, glowing a pale white. As the illusionary structure rises up out of the pit the front door flies open and they can see beyond, into the seemingly abandonned building. Those ancient grecian ruins burn brightly, seemingly covering every available surface and they can watch as the house literally begins to melt, the ceiling above pouring down as if it had suddenly been turned to sand. And as it does, those wall to wall runes begin to shimmer, some of them flashing brightly before disappearing altogether.

He watches with interest at the sudden destruction, so very unnatural and clearly the providence of magic. Intent as he is, a frown still crosses his face, hiw brow furrowing slightly. "Well, that sounds like it's pretty concerning. You haven't been running yourself too ragged, I hope?" he asks with some concern.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
"Trying not to," Amanda says with a smile. "I haven't been entirely without help. A couple of Roma, actually. That Avenger -- they call her the Scarlet Witch, I think. Her name is Wanda. She and her brother Pietro." A beat. "And, actually, the last time I went out, I had a pair of hellhounds lent to me by my friend Lucifer, too." That was an experience. Hellhounds are the very definition of dangerous and unpredicatable.

She watches the building reform and then collapse, reaching out a hand to adjust the speed of the rewind and playback. Her eyes scan the runes, seeking meaning in them, trying to understand the magic that fueled them and what their purpose was. She suspects there were warring purposes at play -- some to contain the darkness, some to release it.

"What was it you said the entities said to you? Something about your father?"

Kurt Wagner has posed:
Kurt listens with interest as she provides a few of the details. "Well I'm glad that you're not tackling this on your own at the very least. A couple of Avengers would have to be pretty good backup," he admits. Not enough to entirely reassure him of course but he has a right to be a little protective. "I suppose hellhounds qualify as pretty decent help too, though I might be a little more dubious about them," he admits with a tight smile. But he has met Lcifer at least and the man did seem helpful if nothing else. "You know you can always call on me too. I'm just a few bamfs away," he promises.

As Amanda plays back the scene of the house's last moments again and again, a few things become clear. Clearly the final spell was indeed intended to not only leave the house itself in ruins but also wipe away any magical traces that could lead one back to the original caster. The web of spells had also clearly beeen in place for decades. And spell itself appears to be ancient. Several millenia ancient. The runes also have some distinctly non-human elements to them. It looks to be the sort of enchantments that would have pre-dated the sorcerers of ancient Greece, perhaps magic that might have formed the basis of their own.

"Mmmm, I suppose after a fashion. Whatever that thing was, it called me its brother. Though whether it was being literal, or meant in some sort of spiritual sense, or something else altogether I have no idea," the fuzzy blue elf conceeds.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Amanda chuckles. "Yes, the rule with the hellhounds is basically stay out of their way. I had no control over them. But they were instructed to hunt what I was hunting. So... it was enough." She's learned a whole lot more about Lucifer since they last met him together. But what she's learned isn't something she thinks wise to share with her more religious foster brother.

"I'd never say no to your help, Kurt," she says. "You know that. Next time I go, I'll call you. Frankly, I can use all the help I can get."

She narrows her eyes as she recognizes some of the runes, but not others. That said, thanks to that whole Zodiac mess, she's had ample opportunity to learn all about ancient Greek sorcery and its antecedents. But that doesn't mean she's fluent.

"Whomever cast these spells went to a lot of trouble to hide their identity," she tells Kurt now. "Some of these sigils are far older than anything I've seen before. Zalmoxis used some of these to bind Set, I think. But it's such a tapestry, I can't be sure..."

Her ears rise and fall briefly. She regards her foster brother with a pensive expression. "I suppose we could try asking Luci about this. He'd probably find this a fascinating puzzle. I don't know that I care if the thing you spoke with was being literal or figurative. If it's related to any of the oldest these signs... it's probably bad news."

She reaches out to squeeze his shoulder. "Which means there's absolutely no familial resemblance." Her blue eyes sparkle as she says that -- partly to tease, partly to encourage. But in no way to belittle. She's concerned about what they're facing here.

Kurt Wagner has posed:
All in all, Kurt is pretty opened minded despite his religious beliefs. He hardly batted an eye at the idea of meeting with someone named Lucifer Morningstar, especially when it meant getting her some key help. But sometimes it doesn't hurt to withhold certain realities. It's just easier for everyone involved.

"Mmmmm, that sounds troublesome. Whatever entity was in the house certainly implied that it was only a guest. I presume the host would be whomever was responsible for all of that. And it implied that it was still out there. Along with whatever that giant snake thing is too," he muses quietly, giving a small shake of his head. Again, he's not an expert in the supernatural -- though he is certainly getting a bit of a crash course -- but none of it sounds good.

"Worth a try, if it's not imposing too much. I don't need you selling your soul to help a guy out," he teases back gently, flashing that grin. "But yes, I'm open to just about anything. I'm tracking down another lead or two as well," he notes. "And don't worry about me," he hastens to assure her, nudging up against her side. "I'm not about to get too worked up abut what some freaky looking demon thing says in the middle of some enchanted house," he promises her, a dry note to his words.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Amanda smiles at that. As much of a rogue as Kurt is, his heart is golden, and his head is screwed on right. She's never really worried about whether or not he can handle what's thrown at him. She's only ever worried that his hide will still be intact after he sends it packing.

She rises up off the ground, letting eldritch winds lift her and bear her further into the illusion. She wants a closer look at the snake thing and at some of the runes. "We could bring Luci here," she suggests to him. "It would probably be wise for him to see this." Her lips purse faintly. "I mean, I *could* try to record this and play it back for him using a spell, but... I might miss something that's here in situ. Something he might see that I can't."

She glances back at him. "Have you encountered anything else like this since then? Any freaky demonic things following you around? Manifestations like voices, visions, or ghostly apparitions?" She doubts it. He'd likely have mentioned it before now, if he had. But it's worth the ask.

Kurt Wagner has posed:
"You're the expert of this sort of thing. If you think it is worth bringing him in to have a peek. It looks like it won't be hard to get at, at least until they start carting out all the junk left behind," he says with a nod. Clearing a few things up would be nice -- though for Kurt that primarily means finding out whether there is some monster or its sorcerous overlord still preying on the people of the city. Anything else comes second.

Taking flight, moving through the illusion does indeed give Amanda to that room on the second story where they discovered the entity. The room is relatively small, blackout curtains covering the windows and the remains of a child's bed sitting in one corner. But the most notable object is that sizable brownish tube that, upon closer inspection, is clearly a very large snakeskin. It coils about half the room though it somehow seems incomplete, as if breaking off about two thirds of the way through.

"I have not. And believe me, I've been keeping my eyes open for the weird and unexplained lately. It's been all quiet since that night in the house. I'm still not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing," he conceeds quietly.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Amanda drifts along that snakeskin, looking at the scale pattern. Maybe she can use that to identify it later. Or maybe Luci can. "I don't like the idea that there's something more lose in the city," she agrees. "That the thing's escaped into the aether." A beat. "Or the sewers. Especially not with the mess in Tribeca."

She glances over at Kurt, her eyes glowing with her power. "There's some sort of dark nexus there. If whatever this was senses it, it wouldn't be a surprise to find it drawn to it."

She glides along the length of that skin. "Where's the rest of this?" she asks him, now, gesturing to the illusion of the skin. "Given the diameter, I'd expect it to be half again as long as this..."

Kurt Wagner has posed:
You would think the city could catch a break, that it could avoid being subjected to multiple supernatural threats at the same time. But here they are. Demons and sorcerers and giant snakes, oh my. Or perhaps it all ties together somehow. Like some great big bubble of evil that has expanded through the city. Then again, perhaps not. Signs are that this sorcerer and perhaps it's giant snake pet have been about the city for decades, not weeks.

"Might be worth roaming through that area too. If your monsters were already there, maybe mine were drawn there," he muses before shrugging once more. It's a notion at least and it's not like they have a ton of other leads right at the moment.

Unable to fly, the best Kurt can do is *bamf* over to perch on a section of fence providing the best view of the upper level and that unpleasant room, nodding slowly. "I see what you mean. That's all that was in the room when we were there, but it seems to be missing it's top half? If the snake molted, where's the rest of it?"

Amanda Sefton has posed:
They say Christmas is a magical time of year. But, even Amanda would agree this might not be the type of magic they had in mind. "Some skins make good spell components," she notes. "Is it possible the other entity might have taken it?" She considers trying a deeper rewind, but her magic only extends so far and this site is old and dry, now. She's already seen how quickly the magic was drained from the place. The collapse was very effective.

"Where else did you go in here?" she asks now. "I'd like to see what might be left there. Or where else energies might have hidden." She vaguely recalls that there was something toward the rear of the house on the lower level, and maybe something within the parlour. But she doesn't trust her memory of it, given she spent three days immediately thereafter trying to pull her mother's ass out of the hellfire again.

Kurt Wagner has posed:
"This is it," Kurt says, continuing to perch on that fence in a crouch, agiley balanced there as he peers up at her. "We entered the hall" -- which she was there for -- "and then went up the stairs. There was a light coming from the door to that room so we made immediately for it. That's when we encountered the demon thing and everything got really weird," he says. Because it all had been a perfectly normal evening up until that point, right? "I remember that you saw a figure of the boy scampering towards the kitchen, but we decided to go upstairs first. I mean, when we went into that room the demon thingy looked like a young boy before it transformed. I suppose there could have been more then one in the house though," he says, again shrugging his shoulders. They are dealing with so many unknowns here afterall.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Amanda snirks softly in frustration. "Or it pulled a Casper and went up through the ceiling into this room to meet you," she says. "Right."

She lets out a sigh. "It's never safe to make assumptions with magic," she says. "But we're not going to be able to figure anything out without some working theory to test." She spins a slow circle, looking again at the runes that linger and beginning to look through the process of the melting as well. "So, let's say, for argument's sake, that we're only dealing with two entities here -- the boy and the mother." She knows those were just their initial disguises. "Who became... the demon and the snake? Or were they the same thing?" She shakes her head slightly. "Regardless... captive and captor, perhaps? Both of them evil -- or hostile, at any rate. If that's the case, is it possible one is still hunting the other?" Is there an ally in this situation they're missing?

Kurt Wagner has posed:
It is a conundrum to be sure and they are exceedingly short on reliable information which only complicates matters to no end. But it will hardly be the first time that they have dealt with that sort of annoyance. "An interesting idea. Entirely possible," Kurt agrees without hesitation. But also without any certainty alas. "There were a bunch of family photos on the wall, going up the stairs. They were all dressed as if they were from the nineteen thirties or forties. They all looked rather dour, honestly, as if all the joy had been sucked out of them. The shape of the boy the demon thing was wearing in that room was one of them," he says slowly, as if trying to picture it all once again. "It kind of implied the boy had been some sort of sacrifice..."

Amanda Sefton has posed:
Child sacrifice is *not* something that sits well with Amanda. Her eyes flash as she looks to her childhood friend. "So, a possession, maybe." Probably. "I think a trip to the city records office is in order. Let's see if we can trace the property ownership records. Get an idea of who the boy may have been, who his parents may have been. Perhaps that will shed some light." Find out how it began in this era, at least. She suspects it goes back far earlier than that, just because of the runes she's seen.

"The demon thing and the snake were separate, then? The sacrifice may have been necessary to keep the greater threat contained." Her lip curls with disgust, however. "But that doesn't make it okay."

At all.

She inhales a steadying breath. "So, we have two potential leads to follow up on," she tells him. "Research into the mundane history of the house -- ownership, perhaps even police records... murders don't usually go unremarked. And research into these runes -- which means another call to Luci." She really should go ahead and put him on speed dial.

She drifts over to join Kurt on the fence, although she doesn't do much more than hover beside him. "I don't think there's a lot more we can do here."

Kurt Wagner has posed:
It is a safe bet that it doesn't sit too well with Kurt either, which is perhaps why he keeps revisiting this particular incident despite the fact that there has ben no troubling signs since. It's that lingering possibility that evil is still out there, plotting, perhaps even actively harming innocents. And that's not something Kurt is ever likely to be ablt to let go of.

"Tough to say for sure. Never saw the snake thing, just that skin in the room. I mean, the demon-thingy did show it could change shapes when it morphed from the boy to... whatever it was. I suppose it could be both," he admits. "But it definitely did imply that it was just a guest. That the house was the layer of the sorcerer. Sorveress actually. It definitely referred to whoever was responsible for all those runes as 'her' and 'she'," he adds thoughtfully. It's not much, but it does suggest that there are at least two entitites here to be aware of.

"That sounds like a plan to me. There's still that supernatural investigation society as well that I might look up. It's another avenue at least," the fuzzy blue elf says with a small shrug. At least they have a few options on the table, right? Indeed, Kurt is quick enough to smile once more. "But I agree. I think this place has told us all it can, at least for now. So I think we've earned a trip out of the cold. And perhaps a pair of mugs with hot chocolate in them, Ja?" he says, some of that impish good humor creeping back into his voice.

Amanda Sefton has posed:
An evil sorceress... Yeah, that just sounds like a barrel of monkeys to Amanda. She's often found practitioners of her own gender to be far more troublesome than males. If only because they think in tighter, crazier circles, much of the time. And one who is potentially willing to sacrifice children.

Doesn't matter the gender. That's bad news.

"I'll put feelers out in the magical community," she says. "I know a cop who might be able to help, too." And, of course, she'll talk to Lucifer.

That's about all she can do for now. She reaches out a hand to dispell the illusion that stands above the sinkhole. It drains away and she gives Kurt a smile. "Hot chocolate sounds grand," she agrees. She offers him her hand, a twinkle in her eye. "Bamf on, good sir. Let's get out of here."