6055/Where did that dragon come from

Where did that dragon come from
Date of Scene:	27 April 2021
Location:	Midtown Bank
Synopsis:	No description
Cast of Characters:	Wally West, Roland Livingston, Lester Colt, Meggan Puceanu

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Wally West has posed:
Midtown Bank has in fact been robbed before, and bank robberies happen in NYC often enough. But this incident is different.

These are the facts as they are currently understood--

A group of four robbers were being very professional about their business, when it came time for them to open the bank vault. At this time they opened the vault with explosives and all that can be found of them now is the occasional limb. It is assumed that they were destroyed by THE DRAGON that was found inside the vault. The dragon was then dealt with by four heroes. Nothing was reported stolen and only one safe deposit box appears to have been disturbed.

While the leader of the robbers remains at large, the two questions still remain-- Why was that dragon in the vault, and what happened with that safe deposit box?

Roland Livingston has posed:
It's not every day that one gets word of a dragon hanging out in a bank vault. Being the inquisitive sort, not to mention fairly obsessed with the arcane, Roland Livingston has elected to come check out the scene to try to determine what exactly happened. He's wears a very full looking backpack on his back, likely loaded down with investigative equipment

With him are some folks he's assembled to assist on the investigation. Or keep him company. Being the last of his family is kind of lonely, after all.

As he enters the bank he's got his credentials as a consultant ready to badge his way through security, though he's talking with his companions, "Dragons are, not unexpectedly, capable of great amounts of destruction. While I've only ever seen a wyvern in person, a wyvern being similar to a dragon only possessing hind legs and wings instead of two front legs, two back legs and often but not always wings... Where was I going?" He takes a little break before continuing, "Ah yes. I had an ancestor who had to jump into a dragon's mouth while it was open to eat a cow, then drive a spear into its brain. This was after numerous attempts to take it down with bow and arrow and crossbow failed, so just know that if this thing's got friends it'll be an ordeal."

Lester Colt has posed:
     Up in the sky a lone figure zips through the smog and fog of the big apple. He looks down on those low buildings so far beneath the clouds with a grimace. The apple was rotten to the core and the worms had already eaten more than their fill of what had been promised to the good people of NYC.

     He might have only been the size of a bullet but his heart cried out for this place with the fury of a great white shark as he zipped lower that sonic boom echoing out like a bullet crying through the night.

     Landing on the steps he skidded to a stop, it was a scene out of his nightmares the blood had dried but the scene was still white hot with investigators. The six inch soldier pulled his arm into his pocket and snagged out a lighter pulling fourth a tiny cigar. He flicked once, twice, and on the third the amber flame of his silver box met the end of his cuban cancer stick.

     The ground level view was something to see, limbs the size of school busses scattered across in every directions oceans pooled and dried from a robbery gone wrong the just deserts of the worms that were too slow to avoid that early bird.

     A tiny cloud of smoke rose from the end of his cigar as Lester wandered forward leaping the steps of the bank in a single bound. They were too high for him to climb on his own, but the contrail of smoke left behind with each jump signaled his arrival at the steps of the scene of this grizzly carnage.

Meggan Puceanu has posed:
Definitely not every day someone has to deal with a dragon unless their job literally involves spying on Fin Fan Foom or running up Welsh flags. A tip-off for an acquaintance brings in Meggan, who otherwise would be working a shift at the Empire Club bartending, if not in class or bartending for that other joint in Gotham. A girl has to put together enough to survive! NYC is expensive as all get out, anyway. She slips off her apron and needs almost no time to pull her hair back, signalling readiness to go wherever. Investigative equipment? Forget about it. Cool suit? Not really necessary unless a charming t-shirt and jeans bearing the Union Jack on the back pocket matter. Some trainers are all that matters.

"Right," she murmurs. That English accent has enough Welsh, Gaelic, and Manx of all things to make it a blurry muddle. "I always thought they might be on the nicer side, long as they aren't quite like Smaug. That is, don't go messing with their treasure. Not my intention. Though a dragon in a bank, you figure it might be after treasure or just comfy set up in a good, secure place?" The words lilt with a gracious ease. She nods to the description about the wyvern. "Beats a wyrm or a grumpy serpent, that's for certain. Pity how it all might turn out." Since it's easy to just float along after the investigator, a few inches off the ground at most, she has a fine time getting her bearings.

Wally West has posed:
Wally does not arrive so much as appear. His line of super-speed-resistant clothing now includes a grey trench coat, to pair with what looks at a glance to be typical business wear. Closer examination would reveal the chalky texture of it that results from its ablative nature. Wally used to work at a police station, so he feels like he has a handle on this whole investigation thing. It was half way accross the country, but still.

Wally had made a few deliveries to the Livingston residence before, so when he was invited to a bank robbery investigation, it was not entirely unexpected. He had been sceptical at first (The robbery was no longer in progress after all), but then Roland mentioned a dragon being involved, Wally had to be there.

Now that he is here, it is time to rendezvous with the rest of the group. Wally has of course brought the doughnuts. "So how does somebody fit a big creature like a dragon into the vault through the tiny doors in this building?" Wally has copies of the files, and he compares the before pictures with the scorched scene around him. The file mentions that the fire was cold and he can see hints of ice even after all of the time that has passed. The question about the box is of course much more complicated, but he figures some of the more mystically inclined members of their group can ilucidate what might have happened there.

The box it self has the lock melted out. bits of iron and brass looking like candle wax out of the front. It is also empty. The vault has some claw marks on the floor, but aside from a few burns on the inside of the vault door, it is untouched. The remains of the bodies of the two robbers who opened the vault are right next to it, as well as their animal costumes that they used as disguises. The manager who had been led back there is laying in noticably fewer pieces a few meters away. The back space where the vault is has another exit, but it doesn't open without the fire alarm sounding, and apparently the fire alarm didn't go off.

Roland Livingston has posed:
"From what I understand there are, or rather were, as many different species of dragon as there are major cultures," Roland explains as he surveys the dead beast, looking rather impressed at the size of it. "This one appears to be a European type, the lack of wings making me think it's a cave dweller originally, which might explain why it was so drawn to the bank vault."

His backpack gets placed down somewhere there's no mess on the floor so that the scholar of the arcane can maneuver more freely, "What a beauty!" The corpses on the ground don't seem to bother him as much as intrigue him, "Don't see anyone who looks like they might have teleported it into the vault, do you? Unless it was in the safety deposit box that was tampered with, either in a shrunken state that reversed upon opening the box or possibly with a portal rigged to transport the thing..." Back to studying the dragon, "Was its heart ripped out? Clever way to kill a beast like this." More scanning and he picks up on the frost, "Ice dragon? Exceedingly rare. How fascinating!"

Wandering towards Wally Livingston grabs a donut and says, "Thank you." A decent size chomp is taken. "It's terrible that it killed someone other than the robbers, but what a sight it must have been. Would you be able to take a quick spin around the area and try to detect any out of place scents? I'm looking for the possibility of spell components. I think the manager's office might be a good place to start the search, he may have summoned the dragon to protect the contents of the vault."

Lester Colt has posed:
     Colt takes the time to take off his Jetpack lowering it down to the ground before returning to his full height. A six foot six inch tall man with a durag covering the top of his head and goggles hiding his eyes. He's armed to the teeth as he smokes that cigar which grew with him looking over the surroundings with a long pause "I might be able to get a better look at the fine details inside of the safety deposit box, search for residue which may have been left behind."

     He's got the local accent his mirrored goggles locked firm on the dead beast in the center of the bank with a great deal of interest as he takes a long drag from his cigar. "Agent Dollman, SHIELD."

Meggan Puceanu has posed:
Are those doughnuts? Wally earns himself a great big, sunny smile, even if Meggan isn't trying to mooch one of the sweets. Just the thought is enough. That, and an admiring look for that trenchcoat's excellent construction leave her more than a little chuffed. Not every day she gets the pleasure or rare experience of witnessing a dragon attack up close. Apparently the fact this could be dangerous or less than ideal is completely lost on her in that blithe mood. With her hands lightly in her back pockets, she flits across the ground and naturally leaves no prints on the floor. Any disturbance that might be had won't be from her, the possibility of soot or grime awaiting investigation by the actual talented detective sorts free for the taking. "Some places are larger on the inside than on the outside. Speaking of dragons, there should be no relative terms, are there?" Her eyes widen, leaf-green, sweeping a look up to the ceiling and across the walls, then the vault itself. "It might have entered when it was small or came enclosed in something, like its egg. With the right trigger, it may have hatched or grown. Though how did they not notice it to this point, I've not the foggiest." The girl spreads her fingers out lightly, teasing at the feelings of ice and fire, or the other elements besides. The hidden graces of being an elemental don't look like much at the moment. "Imagine putting some precious gemstone in here and having it turn into that. I've heard of dragons that can appear like crystals or gems, but they weren't terribly big." Her thumbs a languid line as her guesses mingle with Roland's. Let him get his fancy equipment out. Could work.

"Pleasure to make your acquaintances," she adds for Wally and Colt, beaming. "I'm Meggan."

Wally West has posed:
Wally had not initially noticed Lester, on account of his small size, but upon hearing his voice he looks down. Wally used to be the sort of person who knew about all the old heroes, so he recognizes him. "Mr. Colt?" Wally asks uneasily. Then Dollman grows to full size and he is sure. "Hey, I know about you. I read about some of the stuff you did."

The discussion of the dragon is a little outside his realm of expertese. "huh" Wally carefully steps around any debris as he gets to the entry of the vault. "If the dragon was holed up here because of the treasure, where is the treasure?"

As for the box-- Interestingly the socket is untouched. The tumbler is the only bit that melted. The inside of the box looks clean. Close inspection might yield some evidence that something roughly rectangular and about the footprint of a sheet of paper had once been inside it.

The vault door itself is covered in evidence of transmutation magic as is the area around it and the box. There is also some evidence of a summoning, all though there is a hint of some kind of twist on the spell that spreads its influence over time. The manager's office contains little evidence of magic, save an incense candle and a general sense about the center of his desk that something powerful had been there for a while sometime in the past. The ice bears the signiture of being created by a dragon.

Roland Livingston has posed:
As the tiny fellow turns into a tall one, Roland stares for a moment before nodding at the figure, "Agent Dollman. I'm Roland Livingston, special consultant for the local constabulary." His chin lifts, "If you would be so kind as to check things from a different angle it would be appreciated." He heads over to his backpack, unzipping it to start pulling his gear out. There's a variety of normal looking things, then there's a pendulum, some candles, some incense and a holder, and some very heavy gloves. He places some incense in the holder and lights it, blowing it out after letting it burn for a moment. Then he holds the pendulum and starts walking around with the objects at the ready, heading into the vault. "We'll see..." Then he pauses and blows gently on the incense smoke. "Lots of magic was used in here." The incense smoke sticks to certain surfaces for some time, allowing the mundane folks to get a glimpse of the strange. Switching both items to his offhand Livingston pulls out his cell phone and starts taking video of everything, occasionally showing the spinning pendulum to his camera should it pick up speed or anything. "Anyone picking up anything more specific?"

Lester Colt has posed:
     "Trust me, it's a pleasure to meet each of you, Only wish it was under better circumstances." He shakes his head taking one of the doughnuts and snagging a quick bite. His cigar gets tucked right behind his ear up against the durag sending up a light cloud of smoke into the air as he narrows his eyes behind those mirrored lenses of his goggles.

     "Time to Bolt Colt." Quick as a flash Dollman zips down in size leaving a trail of cigar smoke that goes down down down to the end of his cuban as he shrinks right back down to six inches tall. He leans down picking back up his tiny jetpack with a clatter against his laser rifle and his SHIELD issue stungun.

     In an instant he's already zipping about the room like a fly. "It looks like there was a sheet of paper left inside of the lockbox weather it was taken or destroyed when Puff the Magic dragon here decided to make his stage debut is up for interpretation."

Meggan Puceanu has posed:
While mostly stationary within the vault, the blonde English woman might be mistaken for contributing little but general appreciation. For the architecture or the damage done. She must have a cast iron stomach to not really think much about staring long and hard at the bodies in their dismembered states on the floor though. The first few minutes are largely an anticlimactic demonstration of suspense. Floating, punny!

Faint silver trails pour through her loose, wavy hair. They aren't just white streaks, but far more like watching starlight glance off the sea. When the incense coils up from Roland's efforts, her passage disrupts the rising smoke. Eddies whip and turn. "Plenty happened in here, though it wasn't all at once. Seems to me that someone harboured a relic or the like for a time. Which makes sense, given a bank and all that. They might not have had any idea of what the treasure was until it became too late?"

She traipses away from the box for the doors, holding there for a short time. Enough to get a sense of what note she follows, like the elusive heart note in a perfume buried beneath stronger oils, or the minor key in a melody played by the woodwinds when the strings might swell over them. "All rightly yellow and brown this way to me. I wonder if someone tried to reshape the door to make it easier to go past or not. Give me a moment, I might determine more. They've all a similar stain on them. Sticky fingerprints, except magical ones." Her head tilts, the muzzy unfocused weight of her gaze peering into things that simply aren't visible for anyone with mundane eyes at the start, anyway. Bringing an afterimage into power isn't easy, and she reaches out to give a little tug on the energy signatures visible to her to see if they might intensify their visibility in the presence of the incense. It might hurt, more than likely doing nothing. "Here, they were calling something. The backsplash reaches out behind me, into the room, but I'm not sure if that indicates that it was hung to activate at a given time or it leaked out as the problem went on. Seeing into the past... I suppose I could ask what they saw down here? Unfortunately, my witnesses don't tend to think in average terms. They might know what happened from their perspective, though. It's an option, if you like."

Just who she might ask isn't probably clear. On the other hand, it's a bank vault. Marble, stone, and metal all might be inclined to chat to Meg, maybe. She points to a spot and nods to Roland. "The summoning influence seems to melt away about there. The box, though, that makes me wonder what specifically melted out the lock and anything else. Targeted awfully fine, which isn't easy to do. You figure perhaps the paper was a spell, a scroll?"

Wally West has posed:
Wally knows (atleast he thinks he does) what that means. -- stop stargazing and get back to work. So he goes over to the debris of the vault. He hopes to figure out something about how the vault door was broken. His examination mostly just yields the fact that the steel must have been broken very quickly, because it isn't obvious which direction it broke. (well duh, it was blown up, we knew that.)

There is one thing though. He doesn't know much about magic, but he knows a little bit about materials, enough to know that you normally don't get a hair stuck in the middle of a block of steel. He looks very carefully to be sure. "Somebody who could go through walls was here and they have extremely greasy hair."

Wally tries to think about what kind of papers people would steal. "Maybe it was a deed? I could see somebody robbing a bank over that." The fact that the inside of the box was clean is still puzzling. How do you melt a lock and not burn a piece of paper? He munches on a doughnut, trying his best not to get crumbs on everything.

Roland Livingston has posed:
Following Megan's finger, Roland moves to see what she's indicating, carrying his investigative devices with him. He blows some smoke over the spot she pointed to and lets it settle. "Could have been a book in the box, actually." He pauses to look at the rest of the vault interior, "Take your time, Meggan. We'll figure this out soon enough. I'm going to take a walk around the rest of the bank and try to see if I can dig up anything else." Leading with his pendulum and incense he heads off to check the rest of the building, noting something odd about the back door. "Has this been tampered with? Anyone try to escape through it when the dragon attacked?"

Wally gets his attention, "Going through walls isn't unheard of. There's at least one spell I can think of offhand that would allow that."

Lester Colt has posed:
     The shrunken man zips into the back of the safety deposit box and looks closely for a few moments walking around the interior. He paces back and furth before finally looking at a perfectly normal portion of the wall of the box and snapping his finger. "I think you might just be right, do you see that marking on the back wall of the deposit box?" He points at the blank metal wall of the box. "There's a slight scuff mark where leather has scraped against the box, it looks like whatever was in here was leather bound and whoever placed it inside didn't do the best job placing it inside."

     He pulls out a small kit from his person and begins looking over the seemingly unmarked wall. It just looks like plain metal to the naked eye. "As I thought." He mutters to himself his voice still booming in spite of his diminutive stature as if he were a full sized man. "Leather." He looks back over his shoulder. "Looks like you're right on the book front, and that explains why the paper didn't burn right away either, well that or magic."

Meggan Puceanu has posed:
"A hair on the wall?" Meggan asks. She turns away from the exciting invisible world currently filling up her existence, dragged off from tasting the residue of magical ice left in the air. Not quite tasting in the normal sense, but certainly absorbing her fill of the vague magical echoes painted over reality. "Oh, not sporting at all to do that. Walking through walls often takes a spell, but it's not the only way. Care for me to take a peek on the other side? I might be able to work the locks and see if they could open? I mean, that might also be the worst idea since cherry lime coke, but it could be done."

She nods smartly when Lester and Roland indicate a book might be inside. "That all makes sense. Limited fire, and if it went /out/ like it did elsewhere, could've limited who got burnt. That solves one question, though for the other side."

She sizes up the door, then reaches for a faint filament of air and nudges that unseen current as a probe against the sides. "Come on, these things usually have less than a hermetic seal. I'd prefer not to mess about with the ventilation. So we're missing a book inside, and whatever was leaving that heavy magical print on the desk. You figure that might have been whatever was in the box, or some other fancy bob?" Another line of possibility even as she keeps tapping around the edge for any indication of the smallest of breaches. It needn't be big.

Wally West has posed:
Wally hears everybody's questions, and looks through the files. "Nobody went out that door during or after the robbery, and there is no evidence in the security cameras of anyone who wasn't supposed to be there leaving through that door in the four hours before either."

"A book? I suppose one could have been there. Maybe it was an ancient bible or something. Somebody might try to steal that too." All the evidence he has in his files indicates that what ever was in that box didn't leave the building during the crime. "Maybe the owner got worried and took it out before the robbery?" That would explain why melting the lock didn't burn it. You can't burn what isn't there.

"I don't know about any spells, but if somebody could walk through walls or teleport, they could have stolen it without tripping any alarms." As he knows something about those two, that is his working theory. A supervillain phased in, staying in the walls the whole time, stole the book, ran off, and then dropped off a sleeping dragon in the vault before the robbers showed up. Perfect. It even explains why the vault was closed during business hours.

Roland Livingston has posed:
"I think that solves it, or close to it," Roland says when he hears everyone's thoughts. "Probably a spell book. I'd love to get my hands on it if I could, even ancient bibles can hold secrets, too." He hovers near the fire exit, "I think something with magical residue passed through here. Maybe disarmed the alarm temporarily, or walked through it the same way he went through the vault door." There's a shrug, "The dragon was definitely summoned whole into the vault. Either when whoever stole the book was in there, or they set up a trap to go off when the vault was tampered with."

Lester Colt has posed:
     "I had a feeling when I arrived this might end up being more of a job for wand." Dollman snaps back to his regular size wearing now a full sized jetpack on his back. He hovers in place for a few moments before settling down onto the ground. "I'll make sure to call it in and get a few WAND agents down here to see if they can't render a bit more magical assistance than I can provide, all of my magic comes in a test tube."