A book of Shadows

Hans made his way up to the J.P.C Departmartment in Downtown. He had just gotten out of his initation? Orientation? What did you call this exactly? Basically he just got done getting his credentials from DOMA and being brought up to speed on the situation thus far. He still wasn't an "official" member of DOMA, he was here as a specialist but was still expected to be on call if they needed him for other matters.It was then that he learned more about what was going on since the Giant Skeleton attack, which was the actual reason he was here walking up to the police department. Walking inside, he was immediately met with the wary and steely gaze of the front desk clerk who questioned why he was here.

After what may have come off as an uncomfortable conversation on the clerk's side, Hans headed back to look for someone to assist him. "They don't like you much," a faint, smokey voice intoned in his mind.

"I got that impression too," Hans agreed as he stood in the main office of the department, looking around at the various officers either running about delivering paperwork, escorting the odd criminal, or writing up paperwork. Every so often though Hans would catch someone looking his way, whom looked away as soon as Hans looked their way. Yes, clearly they didn't like him being here- or more accurately, DOMA. Eventually one of the older looking officers finally approached him with a cup of coffee in hand.

"Alright, I'll bite. What brings DOMA here today?" He asked taking a sip of his coffee.

"Hansel Alexander Morte, I'm here to investigate the attack on Midtown involving the giant skeleton," Hans introduced himself simply, his hand on reflex about to extend but he got the distinct impression he wasn't going to get one. The officer seemed to notice this on some level and sighed, offering his first.

"Detective Barlowe. So what interest does DOMA have in a closed case? I thought their concerns were putting a leash on The Titans,"Barlowe questioning him after they shook.

Closed case? That was probably true on some level, it wasn't around any more right? "To make a long story short sir, this is my speciality and I am behooved to investigate any and all supernatural happenings," Hans replied simply, not going to correct him on his affiliation with DOMA. He noted the skeptical arch of an eyebrow.

"Welll- if I may be frank for a moment; it's refreshing that some of you know how to be respectful," Barlowe said thoughtfully, gesturing for Hans to follow him. "There's both a lot and not very much to say about the incident. Pretty self explainatory- it just sort of appeared one evening and started on a rampage in Midtown. Then the titans and an assortment of other locals joined up to put it down again," Barlowe told him on the way to a back room.

"Are you are of Gashadokuro detective?" Hans asked him curiously.

"Is the translation 'giant skeleton'?" Barlowe deadpanned in response, settinghis cup down somewhere as he started to fish out some folders.

"Technically speaking. I'm more familiar with European folklore than I am Japanese- but from what I do know it is very unlike how they normally operate. They don't typically appear in the middle of a bustling city for no reason," Hans started to explain. "Spirits in general stay lingering through some kind of unfinished business, or some powerful desire that keeps them here. In the case of Gashadokuro, the spirit is formed either through the starvation of many or from a battle with the bodies unburied," Hans continued.

"So what yer telling me is that it was here for a very specific reason? I see. I didn't personally handle the case so I wouldn't know one way or the other," Barlowe replied as he set a folder down on a table before Hans. Inside it contained the specifics of the incident, testimonies and eye witness reports. Some more of the gritter and disturbing details like casualities and injuries but also something else that caught his eye. Ghosts and Oni? "Gonna assume that ghosts and demons don't usually travel in packs either," Barlowe guessed, offering Hans a cup of coffee. Hans accepted the offer.

"Correct. These demons based on Gashadokuro are Oni, very bloodthirsty and warlike creatures that seldom get along unless a stronger spirit lords over them. Jump also doesn't strike me as a breeding ground for these... I want to say Banshees but only because I don't have the name memorized," Hans nodded, continuing to go through the details. Nothing in here seemed to explain exactly why they were here and together in this way.

"Vengeance," Hans' spirit tenant rasped, making him pause in thought.

"Would a spirit be motivated enough to go half across the world to exact it? Would you have done so?" Hans questioned him, feeling the spirit mull it over for a moment or two before feeling a rise of anger boiling to the surface. "Sorry I asked," Hans thought, dropping the subject as Barlowe handed him his coffee.

"So- these things were from Japan right? And they just came all this way for... what?" Barlowe asked not picking up on what Hans had been thinking but just reaching that question on his own.

"A common reason for spirits to not pass over can be due to never getting closure, or not being able to get revenge on someone they feel responsible for their demise," Hans replied. Barlowe seemed to be mulling something over for a moment, as if trying to connect dots that weren't there before. "I don't think a local managed to anger him enough to come over here. Considering that Gashadokuro also brought other spirits with them, it's more likely that the target of their vengeance left Japan and came to here," Hans clarified.

"That... makes more sense than I'd like it to," Barlowe commented with a frown. Hans wouldn't know but he was leaning towards SOMEONE in Three Oni, as they were the only known orientals off the top of his head.

"So one of the titans were responsible for finally subduing it? This... Raven? Hans asked curiously.

"Yep. The others kept it busy while she and some school girl channeled- I don't know, some kind of magic spell I guess and trapped it somehow," Barlowe replied with a shrug.

A school girl? Hans went through some of the eye witness testimonies in greater detail and blinked. Black glowing constructs? This would've sounded totally absurd if he didn't work in a field that many skeptics dismissed. "What can you tell me about some of the lesser known people? I know enough about the titans," Hans asked curiously.

"Well the man of fire mentioned there? He runs a bar in Midtown, Sol's Bar and Grill. It was already pretty popular because of him. After he helped people seak shelter in his bar and he went toe to toe with the bone head, he's like a celebrity now. Don't know much about the school girl, think I've seen her working at that cafe by Sol's though. The big green girl also don't know anything about. And the human hedgehog is also a mystery. The titans were the only ones to reall stick around," Barlowe replied thoughtfully for a moment. Hans felt a slight headache as the spirit seemed to... react to something Barlowe had said. Maybe he'd ask about it later.

So he had two good leads to follow up on in the form of Raven, and this... fire guy. Hans' hand started to shake when he thought about Sol. He steadied his hand and mentally apologised, he had completely forgotten. "Real quick if you don't mind my curiosity- I noticed you have a lantern on yer hip there. Yer the first I've seen to have one so I'm assuming that it isn't standard DOMA equipment. Care to explain?" Barlowe pointed in the general direction of the lantern Hans carried with him.

"It exudes a pale blue light after I open it, which causes those who see it to experience fear; growing in severity the closer to it they are. This also extends to spirits, which may try to conceal their pressence, or atleast make it harder to to find where they're hiding. It scares them out into the open," Hans replied honestly. Barlowe gave him a hard look as if he was seeing if Hans was being serious. "How common is paranormal activity in Jump City?" Hans changed the subject.

"Dunno. Jump's not like some other cities so you come to expect strange things. A giant skeleton tops the cake for me at things I didn't think were possible," Barlowe replied lighting a cigarette and taking a drag off it. Wasn't too important, he was just trying to figure out the extent of the supernatural happenings. "On that matter- how much do you know about magic?" Barlowe asked seriously.

"I know alittle," Hans replied flatly as the detective seemed to be mulling something over.

"If yer finished here, I think I could use yer speciality for a case I've been working on," Barlowe said putting out his cigarette. Hans had enough to work with for now, he was curious to see what the detective wanted his help with. "I had one of the titans helping me abit before this DOMA occupation started, so the case has kind of run into a dead end. We can't really make heads or tails of it but I'm getting desperate. So I hope you'll have something for me after you see what I've got so far," Barlowe continued walking over to his desk, unlocking one of the cabinets and pulling out some folders. Heading back to the back room, he'd set them down on the table and excuse himself for a moment to grab some stuff.

Hans was left with what Barlowe had been working on involving an oriental gang by the name of "Three Oni." Giant Japanese skeletal spirit, banshee-like spirits, and Oni warriors? This couldn't be a coincidence. One of the more notable pieces of information started with the bodies of Three Oni members being found in one of the slum apartments. A kanji for Oni being found nearby emblazoned into the floor. By this time Barlowe returned with a box that he set down and pulled out... paper dolls? He also pulled out a folded up set of clothes. "Right, to make a long story shorter, it all started with a series of mysterious break ins across Uptown homes and retailers. Someone would break in, take whatever they could and vanished without a trace. What little footage we managed to get, revealed that the suspects are... ninjas bassicaly. Only they just seem to appear out of thin air, and then leave without a trace," Barlowe started to explain while Hans looked closely at the paper dolls adorned with all kinds of markings. He recognized some of these, actually.

"Now I didn't want to make assumptions- but for awhile there have been a great deal of oriental folks coming into town. Didn't exactly wear identifying colors or anything but they all seemed to have the same brand. But back to the ninjas, we tried setting a trap in hopes of catching some of them. Once they took the bait we jumped on them. But they just... collapsed, which we can only conclude was because of the lights on our firearms," Barlowe continued with a shrug. "So the boy wonder was lending us a hand with that fancy equipment they got over there. The clothing on our end can't make up it's mind what it's made of. On their end, their equipment just didn't know what to make of it. What about you?" Barlowe questioned.

Hans started going over the "fabric" in his hands, noting that even for him it was cool to the touch. But it also made him tingle all over, he recognized this sensastion. "I can't really explain it- but something about this material feels familiar, even though I've never encountered something like it before. And these markings on the dolls? From what I recognize, I'm led to believe that they are what give these clothes movement," Hans said still unable to put his finger on why this felt familiar.

"I could've told ya that without knowing anything about those chicken scratches," Barlowe quipped sharply, his demeanor was alittle different now. Hans noticed it suddenly and it actually caught him off guard for a moment.

"Well, I don't recognize all of these markings. The ones I do recognize seem to indicate that someone puts part of themselves into this doll, using it as a power source. From what you've told me about how they seem to fall apart to lights, I don't want to say it's a soul. But this is definitely some form of Necromancy," Hans clarified as the spirit within seemed to growl.

"These garments reek of demonic taint!" his spirit intoned. Hans took the clothes in his hands again for a moment as if trying to find something to connect what his spirit said to them. While Hans could see spirits and the like, there were still some things he wasn't able to discern through flesh and blood. That and he didn't have any experience with demons. Three Oni... Oni...

"Real quick- what of this Biker mentioned in your reports? Is there anything else not here?" Hans asked changing the subject for a moment. This Biker if what he was starting to think, fit the description of a revenant.

"Nothing else to say. Not sure how DOMA operates but we can't just go busting down doors without cause. I've had boots on the look out, people who saw him spread the word, we've rounded yp some possible suspects but none of them checked out. This guy just can't be found. I'm willing to bet that he'd come out again if we busted some Three Oni skulls. After what he did, no one's volunteered for the job though," Barlowe replied simply.

Hans was quiet in thought for a moment, trying to piece things together. Was Gashadokuro related to this? It seemed plausible with this oriental gang, there was a possibility that they could've garnered it's wrath. Or someone in it, maybe the gang leader could have. He wouldn't know until he followed up on his other leads. If what his spirit said was true, then this was much more serious than he thought. It was one thing for a rogue spirit to come seaking revenge on someone. It was an entirely different matter if there was a demon in town and was controlling spirits to do their bidding, which these ninja and possibly this mysterious Biker. "It's too soon for me to say exactly what we're dealing with here. Based on these findings and my knowledge of their nature, these ninjas I can confirm are not human. They're not exactly... spirits but these dolls seem to indicate that they need spiritual energy to function. Since neither of us know what they look like under these clothes, it's safer to assume that they're some kind of golem- basically like a robot but not mechanical. This Biker... is not a metahuman, incase that was what your original thought was. I think it would be safer to assume that it is some kind of revenant, or vengeful spirit bent on revenge. He could also be a demon himself. I don't have anything to back that up, it's just a feeling," Hans finally gave his theory on the matter.

Barlowe was quiet as he mulled it over, Hans could tell that he may have been taking it with a grain of salt and was skeptical on some of it. "If someone had suggested this to me before Bonezilla showed up, I would've dismissed them with a laugh. I'm even willing to believe the ninjas are what you say, I can't say there's any known metahumans that do what they do- in such great numbers. I just hope that what you're saying about The Biker isn't true. Because we don't need the devil and god almighty using Jump as their choice of battlefield," Barlowe finally said with a deadpan chuckle. He was still very serious about it though. Hans didn't think it was quite that severe but a demon being in Jump City was still bad. "What're you going to do now?" Barlowe asked curiously.

"Well I ended up with more than I was expecting with just Gashadokuro. Your city may have bigger problems than we're aware of. I'll probably follow up by questioning some of the people that were present when Gashadokuro, atleast the ones I can find. Like you I can't just bust doors down, so I won't be able to offer more assistance with this Three Oni gang until it's appropriate. I will keep my eyes and ears open for anything though. What about you?" Hans replied before questioning Barlowe on what he'd do with this knowledge.

"No clue, this is outside my wheel house. And that's rich coming from an officer of Jump City. Now that I have a better idea of what to worry about, I might do alittle research and see what I can find. Hopefully something will turn up before DOMA does something... stupid, no offense. They've made a bad first impression and so far haven't done anything but wave their guns around," Barlowe replied lighting another cigarette up.

So that explained the general disdain Hans was getting. They exchanged numbers to keep in touch and parted ways. "Keepers of the law are not all what they seem... the department reeks of lies and deceit," his spirit intoned. Hans dismissed it as "none of their business for now." That was probably due to the criminals being charged there but Hans wouldn't be surprised if there was a crooked cop or two. It looked like he'd have more to do here than he originally thought, and it sounded like he might need to request some more appropriate equipment if he was to be dealing with demons...

Thank you!