ELIPHAS! OPEN THE SECOND PORTAL!
Maybe this is what was meant to be. Maybe you saved me that night for this very reason. Maybe I have some purpose to fulfill in this new dimension. Okay. I am ready.
Fabulously optimistic for someone who's begged to be skinned alive just a moment ago.
You two should wait aboveground. I will help him transfer across the void.
Off to his new life. Assuming you can call it life. You think we did the right thing?
He has a chance out there. More than he would here.
A chance is better than nothing? Maybe. But to live through eternity without seeing another human being... I couldn't take it. I know that much.
Zordon's not human anymore.
His soul is still human. His mind is still human. Although I'm not him, so what do I know? I know what I am. I'm not entirely normal, but I know that I'm human. I know that I'm ME. If I lose that, then I lose everything.
Bandana emerges from the sewer.
Yes, he has gone through the void.
So he can't ever come back?
No. Nor should he. He posed a danger to this city, the entire world. At the very least, he is out of harm's way. He did retrieve the ritual knife for me before he left.
Well, that's something. I'll study it back at the lab.
Lol, "lab".
I know the routine. I shall call ahead and have pizza delivered.
It's like you read my mind.
Awww, how friendly.
There's another fadeout.
And Codexia wakes up back at the ranch.
Pff, I expected at least a trinket of the case to appear in the room, but there's nothing new.
Mandana is grinding her swordsmanship.
Good, you are awake. I was hoping to talk to you.
Uh-oh.
There is nothing to worry about, I assure you. You have completed your first field mission, you must have... thoughts. I am curious as to what they are, what are you feeling at the moment?
Nope, I'm completely thoughtless
I'm eager to get back out there.
That is refreshing to hear. For some of us, the Unavowed is a calling. For others, a duty. But for you... I have seen you in action. I have seen you react under pressure. You were clearly meant for this life.
All I ever wanted was to be a cop.
You misunderstand me. Your old life - your time as a police officer - prepared you for this. It gave you discipline, authority. The Unavowed has become... lax... in the recent decades. Perhaps you can help us with that.
Hoho, time to arrange a coup.
Don't pretend you understand me. You barely know me.
I presume too much. I apologize. At any rate, I detect no falsehood within you. You spoke the truth to me. Thank you.
Can you really detect falsehoods?
Yes, lies and falsehoods make Jinns... uncomfortable. We cannot abide this sensation. Of course, the ability to detect a lie is often useful in the field, so I have... accepted it.
I grew up on Mars, and I am 120 years old.
I did mention that a lie makes a Jinn very uncomfortable? Think of fingernails on a chalkboard, but inside your brain. Jinns cannot abide to SPEAK a lie, let alone listen to one.
[Intelligence] So you can't SPEAK a lie either?
Indeed. No Jinn could. It gives us physical pain. Of course, this means that Jinns resort to mind tricks and verbal trickery.
Mind tricks and verbal trickery? You're saying I shouldn't trust you?
You can trust me to tell the truth. I have no desire to trick you or anyone else. My purpose is to serve the Unavowed. Nothing more, nothing less.
But if tricking me served the Unavowed...?
shots fired
*Sigh* This is why nobody trusts the Jinn. One always looks for hidden meaning. Mind games and wordplay are... silly. I find them tiresome. So I have focused my efforts elsewhere.
I hope you will grow to trust me, and that is the truth.
No mind games, huh? I like that.
DON'T TRUST THE SKULL
It is not for your benefit, but I appreciate the sentiment.
Let us datamine while we're here.
Where'd you learn to use a sword?
Like with most things, I learnt it at my mother's knee. Well, not literally, she was usually cutting off OTHER peoples' knees, but the metaphor holds.
Your mother used a sword too?
Yes, but I prefer not to dwell. Ask me questions if you must, but not that.
Suspicious.
Any thoughts on that last mission?
I believe we made the right choice with Jordon. When he disappeared across the void, he seemed... content? Less conflicted. More determined. I am sure he will make a life for himself there.
I'll leave you to it.
Thank you.
Might as well check up on Eli.
ohai there
I was just reading some old texts with Fire Sight.
Right. Fire Sight. Of course.
Sarcasm received and understood. Sorry. It's a fire magic trick, lets me read any book that was consumed by a flame. It's a bit of a strain on the eyes, but beggars can't be choosers.
That's p. cool.
Time to use it to learn ancient wisdom.
Can I try reading it?
Er, I wouldn't recommend it. Not unless you want your eyes to melt. Just as well, this book isn't telling me anything. It's an old Sumerian text about death magic. Really long. Really boring. But I used to read books about S-corp tax code for fun, back when I was an accountant. I can handle boring. Ah, well. See you at the meeting?
One quick question...
Fire away.
You mentioned something about being an accountant?
That's right, back in my mundane days, before my powers kicked in. I worked at the firm Wiesel, Meltzer and Sherman.
"Meltzer" is another name returning from Blackwell.
There used to be a "Beckett" somewhere in the middle of that, but, well, you know.
You were really an accountant?
Yep, I was damn good at it too.
forgive me if i dont write down most of this dialogue, but it mostly says the same thing all the time
Lining up numbers in my head, making them dance and do what I want. My boss used to say it was like magic. Turns out the old man was being literal. Who knew?
Being an accountant is like doing magic?
Yeah. Throwing a fireball or preparing your tax return. Tomayto, tomahto. It's all just numbers.
Could I ask you about some of the pictures on your walls?
Sure, I guess.
Seems the wizard would rather talk numbers. Whodathunk.
lotsa
What are you and Mandana doing in that photo by the door?
We were feeding the birds. What, you expected something else? There's nothing special about it, just an ordinary day.
The byrds are not what they seem
If the picture is nothing special, why are you smiling?
I... am?
Huh, yeah, guess I am. That picture was taken in... '77? '78? Around five years after my powers kicked in, anyway. I'd buried myself down here. Studying old books. Experimenting with spells. Trying to come to terms with everything. Then Mandana dragged me out to the park. We fed the birds. It was... nice. Normal. Ordinary. I felt human. And I can never forget that. Not ever.
I'm curious about that wedding picture.
Well, I can't deny that's me. Almost 70 years ago that was taken. Could we... not talk about this yet?
The house. The mailbox says "Beckett".
You know what they say. If it's yours, put your name on it. But yeah, that's my house. Well, fifty years ago it was my house. Had to leave it behind when my powers kicked in. And the worst part? I was only five installments away from paying off the mortgage.
Those two little girls, are they yours?
Yeah, but I kinda don't want to talk about them now if that's okay.
That picture of you at the desk.
Yep, that's me, hard at work. I can even remember the account I was working on. This dress manufacturer in midtown. Booming business. Lots of numbers. Tons of paperwork. I loved every minute of it.
Any thoughts on our last mission?
I don't know. I just keep thinking about Jordon, wondering if he's okay. I'm going to live a long time, but even when I'm dust in the wind, he'll still be out there. I only hope he's... still himself.
I'll leave you to it.
Right! See you around.
This means one last NPC to datamine before we can move on.
Ruh-roh. Am I interrupting something?
Undefended against what? Ours is the only domain under attack!
Your charter is quite clear. Recruitment is your responsibility.
You accuse me of negligence? Just how many agents are currently in YOUR employ?
That is precisely the point. We have no agents to spare. I am sorry, Kalash.
So am I, Aralax. New York is getting overwhelmed. When that happens, they will come for YOU.
T-H-E-M.
Also, ofc Kwanzania is the centre of the universe, as always.
Then we must be ready when it comes. Aralax out.
May Jahannam swallow you whole!
He notices Codexia at the door.
Ah... you heard that, did you?
What was it? Fingernails on chalkboard?
Nope. I didn't hear anything.
A word of advice. Never tell a falsehood to a Jinn. We can recognize the truth, and that... was not. Regardless, you didn't hear anything you did not already know. It is no secret that threats have been escalating. I had hoped to appeal for aid and fill up our ranks. Alas, we are on our own. I respect Lady Aralax, but I should have known better. Never ask a dragon for anything. You will always regret it.
Deal with a dragon, huh.
Let's hit the road.
What is that crystal? Some kind of magic phone?
A magic phone...? I suppose that is one way of describing it. There are shards of this crystal in every branch of the Unavowed. It allows us to... communicate. Whatever good that does.
Back in my days we called that a palantir.
Did I hear that right? You were speaking to a dragon?
A dragon at the head of the Dublin branch of the Unavowed, yes.
Begorrah!
She is... old. Stuck in her ways. I suppose the same could be said of most of us.
Call the meeting.
Yes, duty calls.
Huh. This is my surprised face.
Why do you bother those cowards, father?
Show some respect, they are correct. Stubborn, but correct.
We don't need help. We're doing just fine on our own.
Are we? I am not so sure about that. Every branch is responsible for its own defence and recruitment. In this respect... I have been negligent.
Guess this answer's Lightbane's question from before.
So have ALL the branches, father. A sudden rise in threats would have caught any city unprepared.
And we're that city. Lucky us.
I shall appeal again, rest assured.
Can't wait to get some russki exchange guy.
In the meantime, let us go over last night's events.
I almost got crushed by a giant ice block.
"giant"
You seem fine to me. As for the others... Daughter, I trust you have recuperated from your ordeal with the fire elemental?
I have. There do not appear to be any other... ill effects.
So you aren't entirely positive?
I took all the necessary precautions, but one is never entirely positive.
As long as you aren't hiv-positive.
Then I will have to accept that. However, I am DEEPLY CONCERNED that this mundane was able to acquire such a powerful spell in the first place.
Stop whining, Crispy.
My demon started a cult. It put Zordon in charge.
Yes, but WHY? Why would a demon do such a thing?
Why do demons do anything?
To create havoc, obviously. Why else?
No, this was too focused, too targeted. We are not dealing with a mindless spirit, bent on chaos and destruction. This demon had a plan. A purpose. We need to learn what it was.
And how do we do that?
Funny you should say that.
Ah, I know that look. You did as I asked, Mage Beckett?
Yes, I did, sir, and it worked. Well, working. It's not quite done yet.
What are you referring to?
Oh, the ritual knife. I did a thaumaturgic scan on it.
Thauma-what?
It's, uhm, a magic thing. Checking objects for imbued magical energy. And I hit the paydirt. The knife was imbued with a very specific energy signature. Your demon's energy to be precise. It's connected to you and you alone. That's why you were the only one who could use it properly. Which means... we can track it.
Great, let's go get it!
Er, yeah, about that. The demon's out of your body now. Its energy signature has changed. I can only track where it's been when it was in your body.
So where did the demon take me?
It was... busy, I'll say that much. It was all over the map. I'm trying to narrow it down to areas of the greatest activity, but it's slow going. So far, the scan's got you pegged in two places. The Bronx, around Gun Hill Station. And Staten Island, by the ferry terminal.
Staten Island? I hope I don't run into anyone from the station.
The veil is still in place. You need not worry about that.
Very well. Check both areas for void activity, and any sign of the demon. We'll show those idiots on the council what New York is made of! Meeting adjourned.
Yeah, I've seen your magic tricks before, Kalash.
Still not impressed.
The chosen one must choose again!
Is our next step going to be
DA BRONX or
STATEN ISLAND?