Chance Encounter

The loud city noises roared on in every direction. Races of all shapes and sizes walk up and down the streets, boisterously enjoying the nightlife. Walking the streets alone was not dangerous, per se. It was just odd. Typically, friends and business parties would come in groups. That or fast friends were made, resulting in larger traveling parties. This was possibly the largest cesspool of social activity in Earth Realm… And Vetis Corsair was tasked with locating one individual, possessed by poltergeist.

A powerful spirit had been running amok in her country as of late. Possessing the hearts of men, regardless of race or origin, then slowly devouring their life force. Put plainly, it was a parasite enjoying multiple successive lives at the expense of the creatures it controlled. In its lifespan the creature had become proficient in its endeavors. To avoid suspicion, it would simply take a host and relocate somewhere far away. People went missing all the time in the world. If the host body was found later to be dead of seemingly natural or violent cause, there was no trail to be investigated. None that would lead any closer to the spirit’s capture, anyway.

That’s why this job was so important. The spirit had slipped up. During its latest possession, it was detected by the host’s family. The daughter detected something was amiss with her father’s behavior. The wife, holding a little spiritual awareness, knew something had intruded on their home. Unfortunately the spirit was crafty as it was stealthy. It disappeared upon raising suspicions. Once in a body, it couldn’t be detected by normal means. This made finding the spirit very difficult…

Vetis had taken it upon herself to search for this spirit. Her only lead was a picture of the ‘missing person’. The family didn’t know she was in search of their missing father figure. It was not guaranteed that he would be found, alive or not. She didn’t want to give false hope. Although, hope seemed to be in supply as she was definitely drawing nearer to the spirit. Days of searching had led her to this place. This incredibly large city of never-ending activity.

Vetis idly moved from bar to bar, casino to casino and lodge to lodge. This was certainly a good place to blend in. The best place to hide a blade of grass was in a meadow. She couldn’t say she enjoyed this atmosphere. She almost stepped in four different puke puddles in the last few hours alone. Also, to most of the drunks she encountered, there appeared to be a non-existent differentiation between saying ‘hello’ and ‘nice tits’. She wasn’t about to give up, though. Not from this and not when she was so close. All she could do was trudge on, hoping the next building would be different. Hoping someone had the relevant information she sought.

With a flat sigh, she opened the door to yet another house of gambling.

Damn, this is harder then finding a needle in a haystack.

Devin had been called to find a spirit. He hated fighting the stronger ones because they were a pain in the ass too. Angelic energy acted like a anththeis to evil aligned beings and spirits so that was a plus. The job he was working on, seeking out this spirit that was hopping to place to place wasn't there for the pay. He wasn't going to get paid that much. The family didn't have much money.

In truth he just wanted to help so he was barely going to charge much.

Probably the reason he didn't make a lot of money--he had something of a bleeding heart. Not that he'd admit it.

At the moment there seemed to be a festival of some kind going on, a party definitely. Seeing various women not wearing as much was always a plus but that wasn't what he was here for. Work first, then would come the other stuff, maybe he'd hit the sights later.

Huh..is that who I think it is?

While faint, Devin picked up a scent he knew well enough and decided to track it down. If it was who he thought it was, maybe they could help. This lead him into a gambling place. Not really his place. He tended to lose all his money on those bastard machines but he also had the urge to try his luck. It was too bad Lady Luck was more like a bitter ex that cut up his clothes so he never had much success when it came to any kind of gambling.

Finally, the scent lead him to the young woman Vetis. He had met her before on a case. He got along with her well enough, but it wasn't long.

Shoving his hands into his pockets, he steppe forward. "Fancy meeting you here. I didn't think this was your scene."

Vetis turned her head, hearing a familiar voice. "Lavouche..." She called monotonously. His supposition was correct. "I... hate this place." Her face showed faint hints of discomfort as she spoke. If she had to spend too much longer in this place she was going to become sick of the city. She was already feeling fatigued just from dealing with the locals. It didn't help that the air was filled with the smell of smoke and alcohol. "I am searching for someone. An evil spirit has taken the body of a man. The sooner he is found, the sooner I may leave..."

Vetis looked around the noisy casino. It didn't seem like she would be able to find much useful information here. It was possible that her acquaintance had some. He didn't appear to be with a party, nor was he divulging in the numerous activities. She reached into her clothing and produced a picture of the missing man. "If you have seen this man, please tell me."

Devin looked the picture over. It looked like the person he was looking for. "..Damn. It's a small world after all. I was called looking for this guy not too long ago. Sorry, I have no clue where he is, I've been hopping around in circles trying to find anything. People are a bitch to find in big cities."

The angel sighed moving a hand through his hair. "I don't think we'll find anything of interest here. We could linger and ask if anyone else has seen him but I doubt it. I got the private eye thing going for me. So between the two of us, maybe we'll find something."

Vetis sighed. "One can only hope. I've had my fill of this city..." Taking another look around, there weren't any significant persons of interest or workers that would likely know any relevant information. There was, however, an increasingly loud group whooping it up at the craps table. Upon closer inspection, a familiar face came into view. "Oh. Jackpot." Vetis said with a straight face while subtly pointing toward the group.

At the table's end, in the large group's center stood their target of the night. A wide grin was splayed on his face as he rolled the dice down the table, eliciting an uproar response from the crowd amassed around him. He had a scantily dressed woman at both sides cheering on his winning streak. Before, he may have garnished some interest due to him being human, an uncommon race seen in these parts. Now, he stood as a beacon among the crowd. Perhaps luck was on Vetis and Devin's side after all. Had she not run into him, she would have quickly left the building.

"I should not engage him in such a crowded area. This city has its own rules after all." She mumbled to herself before giving Devin a passive glance. "Care to assist?"

"Just our luck huh? Yeah. I'll assist. It's what I came here anyway." Devin didn't know a lot about this city but just enough. He only heard a bit of information of doing research before coming here and that had been enough. "More I'll follow your lead. You're the person when it comes to spirtual stuff."

It wasn't like they were trying to murk the guy; just get whatever it was out of them.

"We'll strike when he leaves for his room. Less chance of harming others." Vetis looked around again. They probably looked a bit strange, standing in the casino doing not much other than talking. "For now, we should blend in..." She made her way over to a slot machine.

Staring at the blinking lights, she had no idea of what to do. She watched the person next to her insert a coin then pull the big lever on the machine's side. Repeatedly they did this, each time the machine spat out more coins; sometimes only a few, sometimes a great amount. Deciding to mimic the player next to her, Vetis procured some change from her concealed purse. Inserting the first coin, she pulled the lever. The three slots spun wildly before stopping one by one.

~LOSE~ || ~LOSE~ || ~LOSE~

Vetis stared at the machine for a moment. She inserted another coin and pulled the lever again. After a short round of spins...

~LOSE~ || ~LOSE~ || ~LOSE~

"..." Vetis' expression hadn't changed, but she was staring a hole through the machine. She glanced at the player next to her. Their winning streak continued. She slid another coin into the slot. With a pull of the lever, the slots spun into a blur.

~LOSE~ || ~LOSE~ || ~LOSE~

Vetis' stare hardened, she remained motionless. This machine must be broken. This machine is broken. Vetis' mouth almost crooked downward into a frown as she turned to find Devin. "This place is terrible and its machines are in disrepair." The timing was convenient, as the missing target began to make his way toward the elevator, leaving most of his party behind. "Ah. When he arrives on his floor, we can either catch him in the hall, or follow to his room..."

"Room sounds like a good bet. Just hope things don't fall through the cracks. Like I said, you lead, I'll follow."

If things went good, as he hoped, they would be able to get this spirit out without too much trouble.

On the other hand if things were sour then it was gonna be a mess.

Vetis nodded. "Come." She approached the elevators, watching the man's elevator number rise. It stopped on '7'. She entered an adjacent elevator and pressed the same button. "Finding his room will be no issue... Entering and initiating confrontation is another matter." The floors dinged away as they approached their destination. "Are you able to attack discreetly? Your gun will make too much noise..."

The elevator arrived at the seventh floor and the doors slid open. The hall was empty, the target had already entered his room.

Devin in response shrugged slightly. "I can use my fist and energy. I don't need to rely on my guns; they're more just extra. I'm more worried about the after effects. It's gonna look back with us rushing in, beating something and then coming out. Even guessing no one comes, its risky but not like we have a hell of a lot of options."

Man, this was a pain.

Vetis took in his answer silently. So long as they could avoid a noisy conflict, they might be able to keep this matter low key. She took a few steps out of the elevator. She felt something. She couldn't describe it just yet, but kept moving. After a few more paces, she came to a slow stop. The lighting of the hall was strange. She felt like her vision was being blocked, yet she could see plainly. Or so she thought.

"An illusion..." She observed. As if in response, a large mass of fire came barreling down the hall toward them. Vetis threw up a barrier to shield herself and Devin from the oncoming wave. After an eerie moment of silence, she was about to drop the barrier when another blast came forth. "I will shield our advance! Locate the target and strike!" Vetis began charging forward, holding her barrier as she ran. She couldn't attack while she held it, nor could she accurately ascertain the attacker's position.

It's Never easy. But nothing worth doing is isn't it?

"I'm on it!"

Devin quickly moved forward as Vetis held the line, searching for signs of his target and tuning in on his senses. The bastard had to be around here somewhere and he was going to find him.

Vetis sprinted forth as the barrage continued to crash into her barrier. A sudden pause in fire grabbed her attention as an invisible entity slipped between herself and Devin. A powerful force sent her tumbling down the hall. The same force drove Devin in the opposite direction, back toward the elevator. It felt like someone had struck them with a stone wall. It was invisible by its own illusion and somewhere between the two. It still gave off a faint energy signal, and it was definitely the origin of the attacks. Two fiery blasts ripped down the hall in either direction. Vetis shielded her self from the blast, but was too far from Devin to aid him. It was gaining the advantage.

Readying a water seal, she called to Devin. "Stand aside!" Uttering an incantation and slamming her hand onto the floating seal, a watery geyser erupted from the small paper and flooded the hall in Devin's direction. The current swept up the invisible target and slammed him into the wall at the hall's end. The water froze instantly after, nearly trapping the unseen target. He broke free almost immediately, but was slowed by the chilling cold.

Devin was rattled a bit but not for long as he caught his balance after the initial hit from the invisible attacker. It gave the angel enough time to channel a energy barrier around himself, it shuddered on impact but held. Mainly because he hadn't put a lot of energy into it; just a last second ditch reaction.

Complying with his partners request, Devin moved aside and let Vetis work her magic with those seals of hers. He really needed to learn some new tricks. The area exploded into a flood before freezing, giving him a chance to go on the offensive.

Not wasting time, he charge forward, charging forward a low powered beam at the target--partly to stun it and partly to keep it off balance. It wouldn't do too much damage; nothing a night sleep wouldn't fix. Since the target was still in the body, it severely limited his options. He was resorted to non lethal attacks or anything that would leave a lasting mark. Not until Vetis expelled it, he'd have to run as a distraction.

The attack punched into the target, knocking him back a bit. Vetis dashed down the hall preparing two seals, one to expel the spirit and the other to capture it. "Purify this mind, body and soul. Expel!" She closed in quickly and slammed the light seal into the host. A burst of light erupted from the tag as an incorporeal being was pushed from the body. The hallway's lighting went back to normal, the man's body became visible. The man went limp and slumped to the floor. He was still breathing. Before Vetis could apply the second seal, the spirit darted above her and flew quickly down the hall.

"Hurry. It's escaping." Vetis called to Devin. She moved the man off to the side, ensuring he wouldn't be injured should another seal be used. After doing so, she'd give chase.

Son of a bitch.

Devin heeded the words without a second thought, taking off into a sprint. He needed to get close to the thing before he could engage it. Otherwise any stray blast could hurt someone else and he wasn't close to 'melee' with it. The damned thing probably wasn't tangible to normally hits anyway; that's where the angelic energy came in.

The spirit was taken by surprise, lunging backward as Devin darted to its front. It began to retreat, only to meet Vetis rushing forth with a spell tag in hand. Her hands were covered in a black aura of soul energy as she smashed the tag into the spirit. A bright light shone forth, filling the hall with a burst of energy. At the flare's epicenter, the spirit slowly eroded away as it passed from this world. The light in the hall returned to normal as the tag burned away, completely used up. Vetis dusted herself off. "Mission accomplished..."

Just then, she heard the elevator approaching their floor. The carriage was fairly noisy. It seemed security was on their way. Vetis looked up and down the hall way. Large scorch marks. Soaked carpets. Damaged light fixtures. Wall covered in ice. "Ah..." Fighting in a public, closed-in area like this was indubitably illegal. Not only that, but they were chasing an obscure criminal and had very little proof. There was no way this could be explained away with a simple 'Sorry officer, we were just ghost killing. Won't happen again.' So much collateral damage...

Like hell she was going to pay for it! As if she even had the money. "We should leave. Grab the host." She told Devin as she pulled a small pin from her hair. She picked the lock to an empty room and slipped inside, leaving it open for Devin. She darted across the room and opened the window before deftly slipping through. Vetis gracefully dropped seven stories before exerting a burst of Soul Energy, landing gently.

Devin did as he was told, picking up the host as if weighed two pounds. To any of them looking they were far stronger then they looked; but that came with the territory with belonging to most angelic and demonic races. Unlike Vetis however, he didn't have energy to slow his fall so he was left with his wings to 'glide' and slow his decent along with his charge.

It wasn't long before he was right behind the demoness. "You know where the people who hired you are at; so I'll follow."

"I have a contact nearby..." Vetis said, leading the way. Lucky for them, carrying an unconscious person seemed a part of everyday life here. There were even a few other persons they saw requiring to be carried. Vetis was thankful to have run into Devin, however. A female carrying a passed out male would be too weird. By her standard, anyway.

She led them into a hotel at the street's end. She made her way to the contact's room and knocked on the door. After a few moments, a young woman wearing similar garb to Vetis' opened the door. "That was fast." She was about to inquire as to where the host was when she noticed Devin. "Looks like you had help. Good. Come on in." The woman let the two enter and closed the door behind them. She walked toward the bed and retrieved a few spell seals from her clothing. "Okay. So. I can get you back to the shrine and we can take care of the spirit there. We can drop him off after everything's said and done."

"It is dispatched." Vetis said flatly.

"Oh. Oh, okay. Well, then, I can send you all to his city, or I can just send him back and you can come to the shrine. Ugh, that was confusing." She held up two tags and eyed the two. "I've got two transport tags. What do you wanna do?"

Devin thought about it. Besides business here he really had nothing else to do at the moment so why not spend time with a friend? Better to hang around Vetis then back at the Last Maiden waiting for a phone call. Besides, the people back there could take care of things while he was away. The good thing about his work was that he was hardly alone.

"Going by what you just said? I'd say drop the man off, then head to the shrine." Devin said. "That's just me. Your call Vetis."

Vetis nodded in agreement with Devin's choice. The younger shrine maiden sighed. "I knew you were gonna say that. Making portals is such a pain..." She quietly complained to herself as she drew the first tag. She began focusing energy through the paper. It glowed with greater and greater intensity until the a hole tore through the tag and opened wide. On the portal's opposite end, a city street could be seen. "Okay... All set." She turned to the two. "Is he coming too?" She said, glancing at Devin.

"..." Vetis nodded, possibly saying something that was far too inaudible to hear. "He is Devin." Vetis said suddenly.

"Okay. Devin, I'm Vanessa. And you get to carry the guy home. *Whew! And I don't have to.*" She said the last part under her breath before stepping through the portal.

Vetis subtly beckoned Devin to follow as she, too, walked through the portal. It would soon close up after his entrance.

((Vetis is out for now. I'll make a continuation under Earth Realm soon.))