The Ancient Curse

[Lady Jenn]

A sleek, black sports car pulled up on the opposite side of the street from the crime scene, the engine slowly quietening as the car came to a halt. Lehmann stepped out of the car, dressed in a long black suit, with short-cropped dark brown hair and blue eyes. He walked to the boot of the car, taking out a gun which he loaded a clip of ammo into and putting on a pair of fairly unremarkable sunglasses. He walked through the police barrier and up to the door of the house and attempted to open the door without success. He took his mobile phone out and dialled a number.

"Kirk, did you say the police left it open for us?"

"That's what they told us," a voice replied. "Is it still locked?"

"Yeah," Lehmann replied. "I'm gonna see if the neighbours have a key, I'd rather not break the door down."

[Darkleather]

Geoff was in his front room stretching after his run when he saw the unfamiliar sports car pull up opposite.  He wiped his face and tousled his hair with his towel as he grabbed his protein shake and walked towards the window.  As the suited man got out of the car and approached the taped off house opposite, Geoff watched him stop and make a phone call and then change direction to head for one of the adjacent houses.

Geoff wondered who this guy was.  The police had been swarming all over the house for the last couple of days, but this sharply dressed man didn't look like them.  He also didn't have that air of slightly soiled desperation that had been exuded by the press who had followed the police like a flock of scavengers. 

As he watched Mr Thomas spoke to the man and then pointed to Geoffs door.  The man started to walk across the road, so Geoff headed to the door and opened it.

"Good morning.  How can I help you today?"

[Lady Jenn]

"I'm Agent Lehmann of the FBI," Lehmann said, pulling out an FBI ID card and showing it to the man. "The local PD asked us to look into this but it seems some genius forgot to leave a key so I could enter the house and have a look around. I don't suppose you have one? I'd rather not break the door down unless I have to."

Lehmann shifted uneasily on the spot as he awaited an answer, putting the card back where he'd taken it from, next to his other ID, stamped with the word SPAIA. He could only hope the man didn't ask more questions as he was worried what was hiding in the house that his superiors had asked specifically for him to be deployed.

[Darkleather]

"Geoff Walters, Agent. uhh.. Lehmann.  I thought you guys always went around in pairs?"

Geoff waited for an answer and when he didn't get one, he shuffled nervously.

"So, the key for Patrick's place?  Yes, I have it here."

Geoff wandered into his kitchen & took a key off the peg board.

"Here you go.  So..ummm... why's the FBI involved in this?  I thought this was just a burglary gone wrong.  I mean, I've been really careful about locking up ever since then and I sleep with a baseball bat by the bed.  You know, I watch a lot of stuff on TV and the FBI only gets involved when it's a serial killer or something......is it a serial killer?  That would be very cool."

Geoff realised what he had said and blushed "Not for Patrick obviously.  I mean, that's sad - REALLY sad.  But to be involved in a serial killer case would be very cool.  I guess not so much for you, you're probably used to it, water off a duck's back for you I guess.  Well hot damn I'm talking a lot - here's the key."

[Lady Jenn]

"You'd have to ask my boss," Lehmann said with a shrug. "I don't ask why they give me a job, they just point me in a direction and I do my job. No offence but I'm not sure you can help much, I'll be sure to give you a shout if I need a hand though."

He headed back to the car, opening the boot again and taking out four poles, pressing a button on the side of his sunglasses as set off back towards the crime scene.

"Kirk, you sure this tech is gonna work?" Lehmann asked as he stuck the first pole into the ground and pressing a button on the top that anchored it to the ground. "I could do without any nasty surprises when I've got the guy next door keeping an ear to the ground."

"Without knowing what's in there I can't be sure," Kirk replied. "I'll keep an eye on your link to see if anything escapes your attention."

[Darkleather]

Geoff stood in his front room watching Agent Lehmann out the window.  He was fascinated by the metal poles that the agent was putting out  - he had never seen anything like that before.  He grabbed his camera and snapped some pictures of them.  He could see that the agent was talking as he set them up - he assumed that he was on his tactical radio to someone.

He grabbed his laptop and sat down where he could get a good view of what was going on.  Logging on, he signed on to a real crime website he was a member of and posted his pictures under the heading "FBI Using New Tech to Investigate Serial Killer?"  He was soon involved in an argument with a "friend" of his on the site who claimed that the photos were fake.  In frustration, Geoff promised to get a closer shot of them as soon as Agent Lehmann went inside

[Lady Jenn]

When he had placed the final pole the air around the house glimmered for a moment before the light disappeared again. Letting out a sigh of relief he headed towards the door and walked in, keeping his hand on his gun as he did so. The house was still a mess, left mostly untouched by the CSIs who had been through the scene.

"Kirk, what am I looking for?" Lehmann said, leaving the door open so as to ensure he had light without having to turn the light on. "I do-Oh, oh dear," he said as he walked into the sitting room. In the middle of the floor was a large circle, in the centre of which was the image of two snakes locked together. He bent down to take a closer look. "Kirk, tell me this substance isn't what I think it is?"

"I can't be certain without testing directly," Kirk replied. "But yeah, it looks like it's blood."

"Damnit," Lehmann said under his breath, crossing himself. "I think I just figured out why the FBI were so keen for us to get involved then."

[Darkleather]

Geoff jumped up, nearly dropping the laptop as the air around Patrick's house shimmered.  "What the..."  He rubbed his eyes - maybe he was just tired....maybe not.

He waited until Lehmann went inside the house, then quietly opened his front door and ran across the road to the nearest one of the poles.  He took a couple of close up pictures of it and turned to go back home.

...but then it occurred that just inside the house was a crime-scene - maybe a crime involving a serial killer.  Grabbing his camera firmly, he stepped between the poles and headed towards the door

[Lady Jenn]

"Two snakes," Lehmann muttered under his breath. "I've seen this image before, why can't I remember what it means?"

"Keep looking," Kirk replied. "I'll look at our records, if this is anything we've come across before I promise you'll be the first to know."

As Lehmann looked around the room, shining his torchlight into the corners a strange green mist began to emerge from underneath the kitchen door, slowly forming into the shape of a wrinkled old man, but Lehmann showed no sign of having noticed the newcomer.

[Darkleather]

Geoff sneaked up to the house and tried to peer through the window, but the police had been careful to pull the curtains closed.  Although he knew he was tempting the ire of the FBI Agent, he decided to sneak up to the open door and try to get a look inside

[Lady Jenn]

"Well all I know is she's obsessed with Ancient Egypt," Lehmann said, turning around slightly and spotting Geoff, letting out an annoyed grunt. "Which part of 'Leave this to me' were you having trouble understanding exactly?" Suddenly his coat started beeping, causing him to swear under his breath as he turned around and saw the apparition by the door. "Does no-one have any sense of timing here today?"

[Darkleather]

Geoff blushed as he was caught out .

"Sorry, Agent, but it's not every day I get the chance to see a proper crime scene.

While talking, Geoff casually stepped over the threshold so that he could try to peer around for the crime scene.

"Like I said, it might be normal for you, but it's very unusual for me...."

Geoff trailed off as he caught sight of the vaporous greenish figure.

"Umm...what the hell is that?"

[Lady Jenn]

"Are you going to explain it to him or shall I agent?" the old man asked with a coarse laugh

"Bart, what the hell are you doing here?" Lehmann snapped, momentarily forgetting the civilian nearby. "You go quiet for months on end then turn up in the middle of a crime scene."

"Because you SPAIA fools seem ignorant at what's lying in front of you," Bart sighed. "All the women were obsessed with Egypt and they all died after discovering the word Ark'haten, I'm sure you know what that means." With that the man vanished again.

"Ark...oh shit," Lehmann said under his breath, pinching the bridge of his nose. "This day just keeps getting worse with every passing moment."

[Darkleather]

"Was..was that a ghost."

Geoff suddenly remembered the camera in his hand and cursed as he realised he could have got a photo.

"What the hell is going on here agent?  What was that?  How do you know...it?  And whats SPAYA?"

[Lady Jenn]

"You'll have to tell him Lehmann," Kirk said over comms. "If the boss kicks up a fuss I'll tell them it was my fault."

"Fine," Lehmann said, pulling out his real ID. "Technically I didn't lie when I said I was FBI, we are an arm of the FBI. Our name means Supernatural and Paranormal Activity Investigation Agency, we get called in when weird things start happening. Bart back there is one of our...contacts with the spirit world, who was talking about this." He moved aside to reveal the image of the snakes behind him. "THIS is why the LAPD wanted us involved."

[Darkleather]

Geoff looked slowly and steadily at Lehmann.

"Sure.. that makes perfect sense....Mulder."

Geoff stepped forward to look at the snakes.  "Guess Patrick made some odd decorating choices."  He looked at the colour of the fluid  "Say..is that blood?"

[Lady Jenn]

"Yeah," Lehmann replied. "I mean, we're not certain but unless your friend likes painting cult symbols on his carpet in red paint I'm gonna go for the blood theory."

"Lehmann, I've found something," Kirk said. "Put the glasses on a flat surface, I'll patch through what I've found." Lehmann took his glasses off and placed them on the table in the centre of the room, pressing a button. A holographic image of the symbol on the floor appeared.

"I'm guessing Ark'haten isn't the Egyptian word for hello?" Lehmann said with a nervous laugh.

"Ark'haten is a fairly obscure Egyptian priest," Kirk replied. "It was said he wrote a book which detailed the key to immortality and other...less pleasant abilities. The book was lost millennia ago, but it was claimed there were three medallions which would lead the way to it. What odds our victims have, or had, these medallions?"

[Darkleather]

Geoff looked on as Lehmann spoke to his glasses.  He jumped as the holographic image appeared but then leaned forward with fascination.

"What did they look like?  Were they the same as that symbol on the floor?"

[Lady Jenn]

"We're not sure," Kirk replied. "The records are sketchy, even in his own time people thought Ark'haten was making this shit up so your guess is as good as mine."

""Easy way to guess," Lehmann said. "I'm gonna take a punt and say she didn't have much in the way of Egyptian jewellery normally, so either the medallion is still here or we can find proof she had it. It might be worth seeing if we can get access to the other two scenes, or at the very least the evidence they took from them."

[Darkleather]

"So we need to search the house for Egyptian jewellery?  Cool - I'll start in the bedroom."

Without waiting, Geoff dashed upstairs and started searching the bedroom.  He loved this - he was actually part of an investigation.  He paused to tweet to his friend, Max

[Lady Jenn]

"You gonna recruit him then?" Kirk asked as Lehmann began searching downstairs.

"Can we worry about sorting this first?" Lehmann said with a sigh. "We've got bigger fish to fry right now." As he walked towards the kitchen a photo caught his eye. Picking it up he walked to the bottom of the stairs. "Geoff, we're looking for a necklace with a golden scarab on a jade background," he called up.

[Darkleather]

Geoff had his head stuck in a wardrobe when Lehmann shouted up to him.  He went back and leant over the stairs

"Did you say scarab?  ...  OK"

He headed back in and carried on searching

[Lady Jenn]

He went into the kitchen, looking almost absent-mindedly around the room until he noticed something strange near the kitchen sink: a large, heavily secured safe.

"Geoff?" he shouted as he knelt down in front of it. "Did you know there was a safe in this house?"

[Darkleather]

Geoff heads back downstairs.

"A safe? No - but I was only in the house a couple of times.  Stuff like a safe never comes up in casual conversation.  Well, maybe it does with the FBI (real or fake) but not for normal people."

[Lady Jenn]

"Well this isn't a standard safe," Lehmann continued, looking at it closely. "Not unless your friend hangs out with people who write in ancient Norse runes for fun."

"Lehmann," Kirk said after a short pause. "You're not gonna be able to force that safe. I'm guessing if the safe is still here, so is the key."

"Geoff," Lehmann shouted. "If you're still in the bedroom see if you can find a key. Look everywhere, unfortunately she's not gonna be able to complain if you look where she wouldn't want you to."

[Darkleather]

"A key? OK?"

Geoff went back into the bedroom and started searching again.  The mess he had left made it quite tricky to see where he had already been, so after a while he started to go over the room again more methodically

[Lady Jenn]

"Lehmann, I'm sending you a picture," Kirk said. "Take it upstairs to Geoff."

"Geoff," he said, walking into the room where the neighbour was. "You seen anything like this before?" He showed his phone, on the screen of which was an image of the dead woman with a strange silver arrow-shaped object in one hand. "Apparentely they're keeping it in the evidence locker, the family claims they've never seen it before."

[Darkleather]

Geoff took a look at the picture

"No, that's weird.  An odd thing to have around the house"

[Lady Jenn]

"You have any luck?" Lehman asked as he studied the picture. "There must be some hint at least."

In one corner of the room was a strange trunk half-hidden under the bed, but Lehmann seemed to have missed it.

[Darkleather]

"No, nothing at all - though the place is in a bit of a mess, so I might have missed it."

Geoff pulled the trunk out from under the bed

"Have you tried in here yet?"

[Lady Jenn]

"I didn't even know it was there," said with a laugh as he opened the trunk.

At first there seemed nothing remarkable in the trunk, but after taking some clothes out, at the bottom of the trunk, there was a book heavily inlaid in gold.

"I'm gonna take a wild guess she wasn't an avid antiques collector?"

[Darkleather]

"As far as I was aware she didn't do anything apart from watch MasterChef, argue about soap operas and moan about the neighbours cat.  Wow that thing must be worth a fortune"

[Lady Jenn]

"Agent, you're going to have a hard time believing this," Kirk said suddenly. "But the cover translates to The Book of the Dead."

"Well your friend is definitely into more than Masterchef," Lehmann said, biting his lip. "I think we need to find this key, whatever happened here is beyond the boundaries of a run of the mill serial killer."

[Darkleather]

"Hold on, wasn't that the book from The Mummy?"

Geoff has a look at the book, to see if there's a recess on the front of it

[Lady Jenn]

"Imagine the book from The Mummy but about a hundred times worse," Lehmann replied. "The reality of the supernatural side of the world is a hell of a lot less glamorous than the films imply they are." Suddenly he had a lightbulb moment. "Geoff, does this house have a basement or an attic by any chance?"

[Darkleather]

"Well if it's got the same floor-plan as mine there should be an attic crawlspace and a small basement."

Geoff went out and opened the door under the stairs

"Yup - there it is"

[Lady Jenn]

"Do you fancy coming down with me?" Lehmann asked with a nervous laugh. "Having found out what this lady has been keeping under her bed I'm not so keen on going into a dark room by myself any longer. Unfortunately my glasses aren't fitted with night vision yet," he said with a wry laugh."

[Darkleather]

"You're scared of the dark?  IS the big bad FBI man scared of the dark?"

Geoff grinned

"Of course I'll head down with you"

[Lady Jenn]

He took a deep breath to stop himself getting angry, realising it wasn't worth it.

"If you knew what I would you wouldn't go round spending time in dark rooms if you had a choice, believe me."

[Darkleather]

"Sure, Mulder - want me to go first?"

Geoff saw that he had touched a nerve and mentally filed that note away - clearly these FBI agents weren't the rough, tough guys that turned up on TV.

[Lady Jenn]

He pulled out his torchlight and headed down two sets of stairs which led into a large room. A quick scan of the room enabled him to find the light switch. When their eyes adjusted to the sudden light Lehmann let out a gasp. In the middle of the room was a table, at the centre of which was the chain of the medallion, minus the medallion, and an object similar to the one found on the woman.

"I think it's time we regroup at HQ and find out what's going on," Lehmann said, walking over and staring at the object. "This is weird even by SPAIA standards, and that's an achievement."

[Darkleather]

Geoff walked up to look at the table

"So where's the medallion?  And what is that weird thing?"

He reached his hand out to grab the silver arrow and get a closer look at it

[Lady Jenn]

"My guess is whoever killed her found the medallion but didn't feel the need to take the necklace."

Lehmann took the silver object from Geoff and gave it a quizzical look.

"It reminds me of something," he said thoughtfully. "But...it can't possibly be that."

[Darkleather]

"Possibly be what?  Say, did your training include a course on Cryptic Utterances?  Because you do it a LOT!"

[Lady Jenn]

"He's being cryptic cos we're all hoping he's wrong," Kirk said through the comms unit. "If he's right, death obsessed Egyptian priests are the least of our problems."

[Darkleather]

"They were a death-obsessed Egyptian priest?  And here was me thinking that the worst they did was cheat badly at Yahtzee."

Geoff paused

"This is WORSE?  so what are we talking about?"

[Lady Jenn]

"Kirk, bring up a close-up view of the object," Lehmann said as a large holographic image appeared in front of them. All along it was strange writing carved into it. "Fuck, this is exactly what I thought."

"What's a Fragment of Yggdrasil doing in the middle of a house hiding the Egyptian book of the Dead?" Kirk asked.

"I don't know," Lehmann replied, panic written across his face. "But it's not going to be anything good."

[Darkleather]

"Yggdrasil?  Isn't that Norse?"

Geoff peered at the writing despite the fact he would have no chance of actually reading it

"Someone getting their mythology mixed up?"

[Lady Jenn]

"I've seen Norse runes before," Lehmann replied. "Reading them is one of the first thing SPAIA teaches you."

He put it back on the table for a moment and scratched his chin thoughtfully.

"We really need to get this stuff back home, like I said, nothing about this being here is good news for us."

[Darkleather]

"That's the first thing?  Damn you guys must have a very long boring training course."

"So, what now?  Do you get out the Proton Blasters and crank up Ray Parker Jr?"

Geoff looked at Lehmann  "Yeah, OK, I bet you get that all the time."

[Lady Jenn]

"Boring?" Lehmann said with a chuckle. "You stopped to ponder why I called it a FRAGMENT of Yggdrasil?"

He headed back upstairs, taking a look around the house before deciding on a course of action.

"Kirk," he said into his comms unit. "Send in a clean-up team, I'll bring Jeff in. Might be worth sending teams to get evidence from the other scenes as well."

[Darkleather]

"um, well it couldn't be the whole thing as Yggdrasil is kind of large."

Geoff followed Lehmann upstairs.

"You're going to 'bring me in'?  Well, I'm too interested to complain - just let me change out of my workout gear first.

Geoff went to nip back to his house and get changed

[Lady Jenn]

"I meant more how we wind up with a piece of the world tree just lying around here."

He went and stood by the car, waiting for Geoff to reappear while trying not to draw attention.

"We can't just hang around here forever," Lehmann said, sighing. "What the hell is he bringing with him?"

[Darkleather]

Geoff nipped inside and while he was getting changed logged on to his laptop to update his friend.  A couple of minutes was all it took to put an update in.  He pulled on jeans, boots a T-shirt & a leather jacket and then packed everything he thought he would need in a small holdall - laptop, camera and chargers for them and his phone.

He then dashed back outside

[Lady Jenn]

"Don't worry, you're not under arrest," Lehmann said as he opened the passenger door for him. "I can't keep you at our HQ any longer than you want."

As he spoke a car similar to his, along with two vans, pulled up outside the house. Both were unmarked so to the untrained eye would not have given any information away.

[Darkleather]

"I get to see the HQ?  Cool"

Geoff got into the car and looked on with interest as the unmarked cars swept up.  He chuckled - if Lehmann thought that the nosy neighbours would fail to notice 3 strange vehicles in the road, he was very much mistaken

"So, what's the plan?  Because, I have to admit, I never expected you to want me to go with you"

[Lady Jenn]

"First we get back to base," he replied. "I advise you make sure your seatbelt is secure because this car has a few...tricks up its sleeve."

He pulled out, waving to a female agent who had just got out of one of the cars before heading down the road. Once they were on a clear stretch of road he pressed a button on the dashboard, the car changing into something more akin to a racecar.

"How's that for a trick?"

[Darkleather]

Geoff clipped his seat belt securely in place.

"That's quite impressive - got your vehicles from the MIBs have you?"

[Lady Jenn]

"No, from our own tech guys," Lehmann replied. "Some of the best mechanics in the US work for us."

He finally pulled over next to a seemingly innocuous looking bridge. He flashed his lights at the bridge than drove towards it, but rather than hitting the wall he passed through it, entering a tunnel inside.

"If you thought Area 51 was secretive you've not seen anything yet."

[Darkleather]

"Clearly not - though I'm starting to wonder whether I'm actually awake or not."

Geoff was starting to seriously wonder whether or not this whole thing was some kind of dream brought on by eating cheese before bed.  Whatever, he decided to go with it

[Lady Jenn]

"I should just warn you this is secret enough even the President is only vaguely aware of our existence," Lehmann said. "So suffice to say if you blurt this to anyone you're in serious trouble."

They finally emerged from the tunnel into a small, grassy area, dominated by a large, two-storey building surrounded by similar cars and a pair of helicopters. People in suits milled around as well as mechanics and scientists.

"Welcome to Project Ghostland," Lehmann said as he brought the car to a stop. "A place so secret even the leader of the free world couldn't tell you where it was."

[Darkleather]

Geoff shuffled uncomfortably and hoped Lehmann wouldn't find out about the last few tweets he sent - he could be in serious trouble here.
He looked around, open-mouthed as they drove in.

"Damn, this place is massive.  How the hell do you guys keep this a secret?"

[Lady Jenn]

"For one thing there's a no-fly zone over this base," Lehmann said, stepping out of the car. "If you're not SPAIA authorised and you try flying over this place you'll be asked to politely leave...and when that doesn't work you'll be removed by force."

He led Geoff towards the entrance to the building, over which was an image of a tree with sprawling roots above it.

"We love Norse mythology so much we have the World Tree over our door," Lehmann said with a chuckle.

[Darkleather]

"You guys do like your Norse stuff."

Geoff raised an eyebrow as he looked at the image of the tree and noted the visage of Ratatoskr peering out from between the leave.

"You know your stuff as well, I see" he muttered

This whole thing was starting to freak him out just a bit - he was waiting for someone to tell him that they were Expecting Someone Taller.  If that happened, he'd just know he was dreaming

[Lady Jenn]

He led him through a maze of corridors till they reached a lab, opening the door to find a room full of tables covered in books, pieces of paper and assorted strange artefacts. The only sign of an occupant was a pair of lab coat adorned legs emerging from under a computer desk.

"Kirk, do you ever clear this room up when we've got company?" Lehmann asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You're welcome to tidy if you want," came a voice as Kirk emerged from under the table, revealing the surprising fact it was a young woman with curly red hair and a pair of nerdy glasses on her face. She let out a giggle at the look Geoff gave her. "Why the hell does everyone always assume I'm a guy?"

[Darkleather]

"Probably just something to do with your name.."

Geoff paused

"..and the fact that Lehmann tells everyone that you're a bloke."

He grinned.....then wondered whether Lehmann actually had a sense of humour.

"So....what's the plan?  Who's the enemy?  How do we take the Egyptian priest down."

Geoff paused again

"Though if it involves scarabs and the Book of the Dead, I'll be hanging back...way back." He shuddered.  "I don't know which is worse - death by scarab or turning up for 2 disappointing sequels"

[Lady Jenn]

"Blame dad for my name," Kirk said as she cleared one of the desks. "Guy was obsessed with Star Trek to the point where when I turned out not to be a boy he thought it'd be HILARIOUS to give me the surname of his favourite character as my given name."

"You figured out what we're dealing with?" Lehmann asked her, deciding to ignore Geoff's comment.

"You mean OTHER than the Egyptian book of the dead and a fragment of the shattered tree of the world?" Kirk asked, raising an eyebrow. "You don't ask much do you?" She searched through a pile of papers and pulled out an archive covered in strange writing. "You'll be pleased to know Ark'haten himself isn't a threat. Unless the guy perfected immortality and never told anyone about it the guy's been dead at least four and a half thousand years at this point."

"So what are we looking at?"

"That's where the necklace comes in," Kirk replied. "I assume you two know about the Pyramids of Giza? What would you say if I told you there was a fourth pyramid on that site?"

[Darkleather]

"Could have been worse - could have been lumbered with Spock."

Geoff peered with interest at the documents and tried to think of a way he could get some photos - the guys online would love this stuff.  He perked up at the mention of the pyramids

"Quite likely actually.  There are several other pyramids in Egypt - the step pyramid at Saqqara, The Red Pyramid at Dhaffur and the Bent Pyramid...."

He trailed off as he saw them staring at him

"So, I've been there and I look stuff up."  He shrugged "So sue me"

[Lady Jenn]

"Well this pyramid most people don't know about," Kirk said, reaching under the table and pressing a button. "Computer give us a wireframe diagram of the site of the Great Pyramids."

"Well that looks pretty standard," Lehmann said as the image of the pyramids appeared as a hologram hovering above the table.

"Yeah, well watch this," Kirk said, moving the map below ground, where suddenly an immense fourth pyramid structure was visible. "Meet the pyramid of the Moon, you wouldn't know it because even SPAIA know about it by accident."

"How the hell is THAT hidden?" Lehmann asked.

"The only access routes we know of are inside the largest Gizan pyramid and a secret entrance near the Sphinx no-one has located," Kirk replied. "That necklace we're looking for? That's the symbol of the pyramid. Either of you want to bet that's a coincidence?"

[Darkleather]

Geoff leant forward in fascination as he stared at the hologram

"Bloody hell, that's massive.  But why did they build it underground?"

[Lady Jenn]

"I'm guessing Ark'haten had something to do with this?" Lehmann asked. "SPAIA have never been big on the whole coincidence thing."

"We're not sure whether it was built for him or if he was simply involved in commissioning it," Kirk replied. "But yeah, we have a good reason to think he had a part in it. The story goes that those necklaces unlock something within the pyramid. There is however...well, relatively speaking it's good news. I looked into the other crime scenes, but there's no record of the necklaces being at either scene. So either our killer is picking the wrong targets or the necklaces were moved before he got there."

[Darkleather]

"Presumably, even if he gets the necklaces he still has to get to the pyramid.  That's one of the most highly excavated and researched archaeological areas on the planet so it must be very well hidden."

Geoff met their gaze as they stared at him again

"So I read.  Sue me.  Just don't make me sit through the Son et Lumiere again"

[Lady Jenn]

"I'm guessing we're monitoring the place?" Lehmann asked.

"As much as we can," Kirk replied. "But the place is a tourist hotspot, we can't have a load of US federal agents walking around there without local security getting a bit touchy. I might have a lead anyway though, what do you two guys say to paying a visit to Las Vegas?"

[Darkleather]

"Las Vegas? Seriously?"

Geoff stared at Kirk

"I mean, yes they have their own little pyramid, but apart from that what can the tackiest city on the planet have to offer the investigation?"

[Lady Jenn]

"This," Kirk said, bringing up eBay on her tabletop computer, showing an image of a book similar to the one they had seen in the house, but this one covered in Norse runes. "I'm not sure what this book is but whoever the seller is might be able to...'assist' our enquiries. No-one's bidding on it so not like we need to worry about it being sold before you guys get there."

[Darkleather]

"We're going to Vegas to buy a book?  Can't you guys just impound it & whisk it away to your secret storehouse under the Pentagon?"

[Lady Jenn]

"Because we can't be sure WHAT it is," Kirk replied. "I'd rather we find out what we're dealing with before we start deciding what library to hide it in."

"Why?" Lehmann asked Geoff. "Would you rather I left you here with Kirk and the other guys while I go deal with this my self?"

[Darkleather]

"Hey, no, I'm more than happy for a trip to Vegas."!

[Lady Jenn]

"You'd better take him to the armoury," Kirk said with a smirk. "I don't think you're gonna be wanting to babysit him if something goes wrong."

"It depends," Lehmann said, turning to Geoff. "Do you know how to use a gun safely?"

[Darkleather]

"A gun?  Well I've done some time on the range and I know which end to point - but I'm not an expert of any kind"

[Lady Jenn]

"Well come with me," Lehmann said. "Our guns are a bit different to your standard fare...or at least the ammo is anyway."

He led the way to a large double-door, inside which were walls lined with everything from small pistols to machine guns, plus other stranger weapons.

"Take your pick," Lehmann said. "I'll get us some ammo for these guns."

[Darkleather]

Geoff scratched his head as he looked at the array of weapons in front of him.  He'd never been keen on guns, so didn't really know what to do for.

In the end, he picked a handgun which looked nasty enough to scare the nervous while not being so massive it would break his wrist

"I assume the fact that I don't have a license won't be a problem?"

[Lady Jenn]

"I won't tell if you won't," Lehmann said with a laugh as he returned with a suitcase, opening to reveal a whole series of differently coloured clips.

"Pretty much everything we could need in here," he said, picking up one clip which was glowing green. "Never asked what this is exactly, except it's good with zombies."

[Darkleather]

"...and that has been needed has it?"  said Geoff with surprise.  Geoff was actually starting to wonder whether this was all some kind of massive hoax and was furtively looking around for Derren Brown.

"So which do we need to take?  Because there's ...umm... quite a few to choose from"

[Lady Jenn]

"All of them," he said, replacing the ammo and closing the case. "Better to be over-prepared on this job than under-prepared."

He walked over to one wall and took down a sheath, pulling out an unusually glowing sword before sheathing it again.

"No offence, but I'm gonna look after this one."

[Darkleather]

"No problems, Luke, you can keep the lightsaber."

Geoff looked through the ammunition for some kind of indication as to what each one was good for before grabbing several clips and loading his gun

[Lady Jenn]

"It's not a lightsaber," Lehmann said with a laugh. "It may amaze you to hear this but not everything can be stopped by shooting it."

He picked up the suitcase, heading towards the door, trying to think if he had forgotten anything.

"You got any more questions before we head out? Cos I don't suggest bombarding me with questions once we get there."

[Darkleather]

Geoff stuffed the gun in one pocket and the ammunition in another one.

"Well, I guess, what's the plan?"

He looked down at his jacket, pocket bulging blatantly with the gun & ammunition

"And...something like a holster?"

[Lady Jenn]

"Here's a holster," Lehmann said, throwing a holster to him from one wall of the armoury. "As for the plan preferably we deal with this peacefully. There are too many potential problems caused if we start an unnecessary firefight in the middle of Vegas."

[Darkleather]

Geoff slipped the holster on under his jacket and fiddled with it until it felt comfortable.

As Lehmann spoke he nodded

"No arguments from me there"

[Lady Jenn]

"One other thing to bear in mind," Lehmann said. "A problem stemming from this idiot deciding to post it on eBay for other people to see it. The kind of people likely to find that book...'interesting' aren't gonna bother politely bidding for the book. They're more likely to come pick it up in person. By force if necessary."

[Darkleather]

"He posted it on ebay?  I guess there's no accounting for stupidity."

Geoff looked at Lehmann

"Look, I'm not objecting to going along - this is like the best thing that ever happened to me.  But if you're expecting trouble, are you sure the best person to have along is an untrained civilian?"

[Lady Jenn]

"You're there to help in the event it's simple," Lehmann replied. "Or if all else fails to help our dealer get out of the building while I deal with our rivals."

He did one last scan of the room to check he hadn't missed something.

"I think we're ready to go," he said finally. "Let's hope we don't have any more unwanted surprises waiting for us."

[Darkleather]

"O..K" Geoff slowly drawled

As Lehmann went to leave the room, Geoff walked up behind him and whispered "You sure?  I mean this seriously seems like your organisation is sending you into a risky situation somewhat bare-arsed!"

[Lady Jenn]

"I'm not as ill-equipped as you think," he said, jumping into the car and putting the sheath on the back seat, starting the car. He brought up a computer screen and put in the destination, the car pulling away once he'd pulled away.

"I wonder how much money the average car company would pay for this tech?" Lehmann asked with a laugh.

[Darkleather]

Geoff settled back into the passenger seat.

"Probably quite a bit I would imagine - though I would imagine the government would pay a lot more for it"

Geoff pondered for a moment

"Still, it's a good way to avoid drink driving"

[Lady Jenn]

"I'm not say this tech won't make it to the outside world eventually," Lehmann said with a smile. "But SPAIA has first dibs on anything not specifically designed for our job."

He reached into the glove compartment and pulled out a necklace with a locket around and placed it over his neck.

"Suddenly thought all things considered I might wind up needing this."

[Darkleather]

"Sounds like you have some good minds at work for you then...and probably some serious sponsors."

He watched as Lehmann put the necklace on and raised an eyebrow as Lehmann didn't seem the type for personal jewellery

"Why?  what does it do?"

[Lady Jenn]

"I don't know who pays for our tech," Lehmann said. "And thankfully keeping track of them is WAY above my pay grade."

"As for the necklace, each of these has one of the Yggdrasil fragments we've found in them. Can't completely protect you from harm but turns out to be quite useful when you're facing a magic user."

[Darkleather]

"Oh well fair enough then.  Should we come across a magic user, you can definitely deal with them."

Geoff looked at Lehmann and to his surprise the man seemed to be serious

[Lady Jenn]

"I know this is weird but you spend long enough in this job and nothing surprises you," Lehmann said with a chuckle.

They finally found themselves on an empty section of road as the car started to speed up.

"Do you want to know how I ended up in this job?"

[Darkleather]

"Sure - it'll help pass the time"

[Lady Jenn]

"I've always been a bit...different," Lehmann said. "I swore I could see ghosts and fairies as a kid, to the point where my mum nearly got me sectioned. Then in my last year at uni I stumbled across a drink-addled teenager trying to perform some weird Satanic ritual, some kind of impulse made me now how to stop it before SPAIA could reach the scene to respond. Impressed them enough they offered to let me finish my studies at the site so I could train while I was studying."

[Darkleather]

"So you've only been doing this sort of thing for a year?  I would have thought you would need tons of training"

[Lady Jenn]

"I appreciate you thinking I'm a kid," Lehmann said with a laugh. "I've been out of uni for more than a year. But yeah, my training was shorter than some. Adepts, people with supernatural skills of their own like me, usually don't need to be fully briefed about how large SPAIA's task, unlike people recruited either from other agencies or impressing talent scouts."

[Darkleather]

"I never thought you were a kid - just assumed that you were experienced as you were out working on your own.

So, basically, what you're saying is that SPAIA grabs anyone they think suitable -- or is in the right place at the right time!"

[Lady Jenn]

"Most they pick up cos they get good school scores or the Feds flag them up," Lehmann replied. "Even Adepts rarely get found out how I did, I was just lucky...or you could say unlucky...enough to be on the scene when someone decided to screw with stuff they shouldn't be screwing around with."

[Darkleather]

"Sounds a bit hit and miss really.  Still, let's hope it works."

Geoff settled back in the passenger seat and made himself comfortable for the journey

[Lady Jenn]

As they finally pulled up to the Vegas hotel that housed their target a strange panel on the dashboard began to glow intermittently.

"Well, something's detecting our magic trigger," Lehmann said, getting out. "So either we're in the right place or we're already too late."

[Darkleather]

Geoff looked at the indicator with curiosity

"and let me guess - there's no way to tell which?"

[Lady Jenn]

"Well you're welcome to go in first to scout the place out," he said with a laugh as he loaded his gun, before holstering it out of view. "The guy gave his location as Room 428 in this hotel, let's see if we can get to that room without drawing unwanted attention to ourselves shall we?"

[Darkleather]

"Ok - sounds like a plan."

Geoff got out of the car and grabbed his laptop bag.  He looked around with subdued excitement - he'd never been to Las Vegas before, but the mission he was on didn't allow him to completely enjoy it

[Lady Jenn]

It only took a flash of his FBI badge to get the girl at reception to allow them through, finding their way to one of the upper floors. But as they stepped out of the lift Lehmann put a hand up to tell Geoff to stop. He reached into one packet, took out a handful of dust and threw it into the air. What it produced was what looked like shimmering glass in the air.

"Oh boy," Lehmann said with a wry laugh. "Now I didn't see THIS coming. Our mystery seller is a magic user."

[Darkleather]

"Woah Glitterdust - very cool."

Geoff chokes down the inner geek temporarily

"So, does that mean we have to do anything special?"

[Lady Jenn]

"We're gonna have to talk to him," Lehmann replied. "The pretty effect is a Sarian wall, very ancient magic which can only be passed by either very specific people or with the caster's permission. Otherwise you'd walk along this hallway and be ignorant that the seller was even here."

"I've not met many humans who know magic this well," came a woman's voice as a young woman stepped out from a door just beyond the barrier. She was dressed in a long red dress, with short silver hair and a pair of ice blue eyes. "I'm not what you were expecting am I?"

"I've been in this job long enough to stop expecting anything," Lehmann said, bowing. "I will admit I didn't expect this level of protection though."

[Darkleather]

As Geoff watched the woman and Lehmann talk, he very much felt like the third wheel.  Instead of trying to take part in the conversation, he slipped on a pair of reflective shades which he hoped would cover up the confusion in his eyes.  He then stood in the TV approved secret service stance with his hands crossed in front of him at waist level and hoped he looked tough

[Lady Jenn]

"Sarian walls are deep magic," Lehmann said, looking quizzically at her. "There are maybe two books in the entire SPAIA library which mention them, nevermind give any hint as to how to create one. How would you...unless..." Realization crossed Lehmann's face as the woman let out a laugh.

"I'm only showing this because I assume your friend here is trustworthy if SPAIA cleared you to bring him," she said, waving a hand. The wall parted in front of her, allowing them to approach, while at the same time a pair of almost crystalline butterfly wings became suddenly visible behind her back. "I have long since learnt it is best to hide my true identity if I am to remain safe within this world. My name is Mariza, it is a pleasure to meet you," she curtseyed, flashing a sweet smile at Geoff as she did so.

"If I'd realized what was going on I'd have warned you Geoff," Lehmann said with a laugh. "As you've probably guessed by now, our seller is one of the fae...or fairies...whatever term you want to use for them."

[Darkleather]

Geoff raised an eyebrow and tried to resist the temptation to blurt out a series of questions

He limited himself to

"Summer or Winter?"

and then mentally went through what he had with him to see if he had any cold iron on him

[Lady Jenn]

"One warning around my kind my friend," Mariza said, leading them towards the door to her room as she sealed the spell behind them again. "I can read your thoughts so you should be very careful. And no, cold iron is an old wives tale you have nothing to fear if you carry any, you wouldn't have got this far if you did."

"But why the deception?" Lehmann asked. "I mean...I understand hiding your own nature, but why go to such lengths to sell that book?"

"I had no intention of selling that book," Mariza said, leading them into a well-furnished and surprisingly tidy room. "I could not contact SPAIA directly so I left a trail of crumbs for you to follow. Any stupid enough to try and buy the book will find a fake seller with a book which couldn't even teach the reader how to make rabbits appear from hats."

[Darkleather]

"You can read my thoughts...oh"

Geoff desperately tried not to think about how she looked in that dress...and then realised the more he tried, the worse it would be.  Instead he concentrated on the conversation.

"Why didn't you just contact SPAIA directly?"

[Lady Jenn]

"SPAIA don't exactly have a phone number you can call in an emergency unless you're an agent," Lehmann replied.

"Besides, as I said before I do not reveal my true nature unless I have to," Mariza continued. "If the average human had even the faintest concept of the number of fae who walk among them the reaction might be...problematic to say the least."

[Darkleather]

"so, all this was done to lure SPAIA here.

How very spider and web-like"

[Lady Jenn]

"You have no idea what my kind have been through," Mariza snapped before Lehmann could say anything. "Or what bringing this book here cost me." She turned around to face them, letting go of another enchantment to reveal a nasty wound across her stomach. She sagged slightly, Lehmann managing to keep her upright. "I should be using my magic to allow my body to heal, instead I have gone to all this effort to ensure this book stayed out of the hands of greedy humans with no concept of what this book is."

"He didn't mean it," Lehmann said, shooting Geoff a fierce glare. "Stay here, I have medical kits in my car." As he turned to leave he threw Geoff his gun. "Anything happens to her this is on you, understood?" He then exited the room with all available speed.

[Darkleather]

Geoff nearly fumbled the gun, but caught it and stood there with it held in what he hoped was a nonchalant fashion

"On me?  What...are you serious?"

As Lehmann headed out of the room, Geoff turned back to the woman with a nervous grin

"So...err....what did that to you?"

[Lady Jenn]

"It is not just humans who chase this book," Mariza said, lying back on the sofa of the room with a groan. "One of the...darker creatures of the world found my before I could make it here safely, it took all the skill I had to escape him but before my teleportation spell had finished it caught me with one of its claws, if he had done it even a moment earlier god only knows where I would have ended up."

She opened her eyes and watched him for a moment, a smile playing across her lips.

"Has he told you the story of the Battle of the World Tree?"

[Darkleather]

Geoff rolled his eyes forgetting he was wearing reflective shades

"Of course not.  He's barely told me anything"

[Lady Jenn]

"Before it happened the world of the mystical and the human realm were separated," Mariza replied. "There would be the occasional meetings but they were largely unseen. But then, at some point a millennia and a half ago, a human stumbled across an ancient book, written by a Persian who had conversed with the fae, and believed the fabled World Tree held the key to giving humanity true power. He raised an army of all the darkest creatures of the world and three them against the world tree. The forces of light, together with the few humans who knew the truth, stood against the army but when it became clear the Tree would fall the fae leader, my own grandmother, made the choice to destroy the World Tree."

"Which is why there are artefacts called Fragments of the World Tree," Lehmann said as he re-entered the room. "The amount of power held within that tree made it impossible to destroy the tree outright."

[Darkleather]

"So how was all this done without anyone noticing?  I mean, I know that things were fairly primitive in..."

..Geoff did some quick mental calcuations

"..the 500s, but surely someone would have noticed?"

[Lady Jenn]

"My kind were given a choice,"  Mariza said, wincing as Lehmann applied medicine to her wound. "They either protected the mortal world from the truth of what happened at the World Tree and gave up their right to hidden places within the world. Or they continued their hidden place within the world but exposed humanity to the full horror of what existed out there waiting for their moments of weakness."

[Darkleather]

"So, basically since then the fae have been protecting the mortals from the knowledge of what happened?

But why? Surely the truth cannot be that bad.  And if you told us, we could help"

[Lady Jenn]

"Because humanity isn't ready," Mariza replied. "My kind had long suspected it before the World Tree died, that battle merely confirmed our suspicion."

"SPAIA wasn't founded because someone in government wanted a new set of agents to boss around," Lehmann said as he finished the dressing. "There was what SPAIA now class as an Omega-1 level event back in the 1950s, to put it into lay terms a man who believed he had found a way to resurrect his dead lover, but came within moments of summoning a demon in the middle of downtown Manhattan."

"I am not saying humans are incapable of controlling and understanding the supernatural world," Mariza said. "But my kind have had millennia to learn how to use our powers, do you honestly believe if your kind discovered the truth that it would be used for purely innocent reasons?"

[Darkleather]

"Well of course not - but surely at least we would be prepared and able to defend ourselves.

And....can you say that all of your kind are just as innocent?  I suspect if they were, SPAIA wouldn't be needed."

[Lady Jenn]

"You've gotta admit he has a point," Lehmann said with a grin. "I've run into members of your race who had...less than honourable intentions."

"You truly believe your kind is ready?" she asked, locking Geoff's gaze to hers with a stern gaze. "Do you want to know the dark secrets my kin have hidden from your species for all these millennia? I can show you easily, but once you have seen it you may not be able to unsee it."

[Darkleather]

Geoff returned her gaze with a wry smile

"Honestly? I have no idea.  What I know is this - unless you give people a chance you will never know.  Treating people like children to protect them might be the most expedient way of dealing with something - but you can justify doing that forever"

[Lady Jenn]

"This is not treating humans like children," Mariza said, clenching her fist and gripping Lehmann's wrist tightly enough, without realizing it, that Lehmann let out a yelp. "We gave humans a chance once before, the World Tree fell because we trusted your ancestors with the secrets of the Hidden Realms and they saw it as something to boast of. Even SPAIA themselves have barely seen the tip of the iceberg of the darkness that surrounds your world."

"Mariza, calm down," Lehmann said, turning her head to face him. "Geoff meant no insult, go and calm down and we can talk more after." He turned to face Geoff. "I thought she looked familiar and then the necklace she is wearing made me realise who she was. Her family were the guardians of the world tree, her grandfather died when a French knight who was supposed to be aiding him betrayed him in an effort to help the forces of darkness win. Her family have an extra distrust of humans, do not give her a reason to believe she should turn on us as well."

[Darkleather]

"oops.  OK guess I went too far there.  And, to be honest, I believe that the public doesn't need to know everything.  But keeping something this big a secret.. wow that's risky"

[Lady Jenn]

"I wish I could tell everyone," Mariza said as she re-entered the room, noticeably calmer. "I am sorry I snapped, it is not your fault what happened, I just experience human emotions so rarely I have never really had to handle them.  I came here because I need your help, but you must be prepared for the fact things will get...well, the word weird would not even begin to cover it."

[Darkleather]

"I'm sorry as well - this is a lot to learn all of a sudden."

Geoff desperately tried to choke down a smart-mouthed comment about the irony of her needing help from the people that she was hiding information from and instead studied the room they were stood in

[Lady Jenn]

"What help could you possibly need?" Lehmann asked, giving her a puzzled look. "You told me they don't have the book, how much danger could they possibly pose?"

"That is difficult to explain," she replied. "At least, difficult here. What do you say to a visit to the legendary troll market of New York?"

[Darkleather]

"The what?  are you winding me up now?"

[Lady Jenn]

"You don't know me very well if you think I'm winding you up," Mariza replied with a laugh.

"It's real," Lehmann said. "Or at least I'm guessing so, I'd heard talk of it but never been there myself."

[Darkleather]

Geoff shook his head slowly

"The New York Troll Market?  Will I be able to pick up my wand and owl there?"

[Lady Jenn]

"I don't need to ask if he's SPAIA do I?" Mariza asked Lehmann, raising an eyebrow. "I should be flattered he thinks your story books represent what magic is really like."

"If I go down to make sure the car is alright can I rely on you two to behave yourselves?" Lehmann asked, looking between them with a grin on his face.

[Darkleather]

Geoff rolled his eyes and thought to himself how ironic it was that she could read his mind and still not understand sarcasm

"Probably not.  Maybe I should go down with you.  After all, I wouldn't want to offend her with my lack of understanding of magic"

Without waiting for a response, Geoff left the room and headed for the lift

[Lady Jenn]

"I was trying to set you up," Geoff said with a laugh. "You hang around fairies long enough you realise they're really bad at hiding their emotions, I think she's either embarrassed or hoping you're better at reading her signals than she is yours."

When they exited the hotel they found Mariza was already waiting for them by the car.

"There's more than one way out of this hotel you know," Mariza said, sighing. "Or were you just hoping to make a getaway while I wasn't watching?"

[Darkleather]

"Set me up?  With HER?  Wow did you read that one wrong."

Geoff fumed quietly as the lift headed downstairs and when they stepped outside the building he rolled his eyes as he saw the waiting fae.

"Dear Lord, no, why on earth would we want to do that?  After all we were having such fun."

[Lady Jenn]

"If you two don't make up I'm going to find the deepest vault in SPAIA headquarters and lock you in there until you stop bickering," Lehmann said, trying to keep a straight face. "You're making me feel like I'm dealing with a bunch of little kids."

"I'm sorry," Mariza said sheepishly, avoiding looking at Geoff. "Would offering you a shortcut make for a more effective apology?"

"Considering there's no way we can travel to New York quickly shortcuts would be more than welcome."

[Darkleather]

"Sorry, I forgot my supply of Flue....."

Geoff cut himself off and mimed locking his lips shut

He smiled in what he hoped what was a winning way at Mariza,

Remembering an old film he started imagining a wall in his mind

[Lady Jenn]

"Take my hand," Mariza said to Geoff, blushing slightly. "I mean, that's the only way the spell will work."

""I've set the car to return to base," Lehmann said as he took Mariza's other hand. "Let's just hope no-one's paying enough attention to wonder how we suddenly disappeared."

[Darkleather]

Geoff took Mariza's hand

"I don't think anyone will notice - this is Vegas.  They'll just think it's a show."

Geoff grinned mischievously, closed his eyes and started muttering "There's no place like home! There's no place like home!"

[Lady Jenn]

"Very funny," Mariza said, unable to stifle a giggle at Geoff's comment. The world around them seemed to warp for a moment and when it returned to normal they found themselves in a massive underground cavern, tunnels leading off from it between shops and small market stalls. Walking through it were everything from fairies to trolls, elves to creatures unlike anything in human myth.

"Okay, whoever hides this under New York deserves an award," Lehmann said as he looked around.

"Let me do the talking," Mariza said as she picked a way through the crowd. "No offence Geoff but not every creature here will appreciate your...sense of humour."

[Darkleather]

"Wow... Tunnels and Trolls ^TM"

Geoff blurted it out without even thinking and then stopped to realise that might not be doing much to alleviate his geek credentials.

He followed Mariza, trying not to stare at everything as he walked along.  His followers were not going to believe his next blog!!

[Lady Jenn]

They finally stopped outside a shop whose outside was covered in strange, dust-covered trinkets, but the sign on the door read closed. Mariza walked up and knocked on the door.

"I'm looking for the creature known as Arcturus," she said loudly, getting no reply from within. "I forgot this old sod was a vain old soul," she muttered under her breath. "Oh Arcturus the Brave, we come to seek your guidance and considerable wisdom." Finally the door opened, revealing a tall elf, an eyepatch over one eye, who cast a dismissive look at Lehmann and Geoff. "I know, humans aren't supposed to enter the market, I would not bring them here if this was not desperate."

"I'll look the other way," the elf said. "As long as the men pay me a toll."

"It's fine," Lehmann said, handing over the Yggdrasil Shard he carried. "Geoff, don't worry, he'll give back whatever you offer, he just needs insurance we're not here to harm him."

[Darkleather]

Geoff continued to stare around the market like a tourist and so missed part of what Mariza said.  He gawped openly at the elf and started to pat his pockets as Lehmann asked for something to use as a toll.  seeing that Lehmann had given across the Shard, he was clearly confident of getting it back so with a nervous shudder he handed across his tablet

[Lady Jenn]

"Get in," the elf grunted, opening the door and stepping aside to allow them to enter. As he closed the door behind them they took in their surroundings. The room was filled from top to bottom with scrolls, maps and books, some of which looked newly printed, others covered in mounds of dust. "You better have a good reason for bringing them here princess."

"Prince-what's he talking about?" Lehmann said, giving Mariza a strange look.

"I'll get to explaining that," Mariza replied. "Arcturus, we need to see everything you know about the Book of Akhaten and the Scrolls of the Dead."

"You don't ask much of me do you?" the elf asked, raising an eyebrow. "Fine, wait here, I'll be as quick as I can."

[Darkleather]

Geoff stood nonchalantly scoping out the room, then started to look around , his curiosity overwhelming his caution.  He started carefully unrolling one of the scrolls to see what was inside it

[Lady Jenn]

On the scroll was a drawing of a female fairy who looked like an older, even more slender version of Mariza, her face half-hidden from the observer. On the top of her head was a small, ornate crown.

"You sure you want to-" Mariza paused when she saw the scroll he had unravelled, before quickly rolling it up and putting it under more paper. "That wasn't intended for your viewing," she said, appearing distant. Part of her wanted him to ask what it meant, but the other part didn't want him to pry into something so personal.

[Darkleather]

"Ok - sorry - just looking."

Geoff carried on wandering around, picking up things and peering at them and furtively taking some snaps with his phone

[Lady Jenn]

"Before you start taking pictures bear in mind half this market can give you curses that make death look pleasant," Arcturus said as he re-entered the room, carrying two books and a large number of scrolls. "You need to get better taste in humans Princess."

"Arcturus, they don't know about that side of me," Mariza said, hastily trying to avoid part of his comment. "Now if you don't mind I'd like you to let us study these scrolls in peace."

"And I thought humans were weird," Arcturus muttered under his breath. "Take as long as you want, just give me a shout when you're done." With that he ducked through the doorway to the back of the shop.

"If you want to be of use Geoff help me with these," Mariza said. "There's more material here than any one of us can study alone."

[Darkleather]

Geoff sheepishly put the camera away

"Sorry - but, you know, modern life."

He paused

"Guess you wouldn't."

He watched the elf go and turned to Mariza  "Yeah no problems.  When we're in the Bazaar of the Bizarre who wants to do anything other than research?!"

[Lady Jenn]

"This is the one place you're relatively safe," Mariza said. "Arcturus gets most of this stuff...what he can't get from other market-dwellers anyway...from humans so he's relatively cordial towards you. If the creatures who run this place realised you were here you'd be in serious trouble."

"What are we looking for?" Lehmann asked as he grimaced looking at the pile of scrolls.

"What would you guys say if I told you the Book of the Dead wasn't an original work?" Mariza asked. "Let's just say the Egyptian who wrote it...'borrowed' from far older texts."

[Darkleather]

"Older then Egyptian?  How has anything that old managed to survive?"

[Lady Jenn]

"Because there are ways to write knowledge humans have either long forgotten or didn't know to begin with," Mariza said, letting out a slight laugh as she found the scroll she had been looking for. On it was an image of a giant jade dragon set on the front cover of a book, around which was written a mixture of Latin, Chinese and a third language even Lehmann was struggling to identify. "The Book of the Reapers, together with Ak'haten and a third book said to be within the Pyramid of the Moon it is said that it is capable of opening a portal direct to the underworld."

[Darkleather]

"So, I'm guessing that's written in some bizarre language?

What's our next move?"

[Lady Jenn]

"It is written in the language of the High Elves," Arcturus said, re-entering the room. "I've lived longer than I care to mention and I could barely string together three sentences in that tongue."

"The only advantage is it means there are few people our enemy can turn to for help," Mariza continued. "One of the few who does know is a little...difficult to get to."

"I didn't realize you'd fallen out of favour with your brother so badly Mariza," Arcturus said, raising an eyebrow. "You'll have to explain what's going on to them at some point, preferably before someone else gets a chance to twist it to fit their own purpose."

[Darkleather]

"Surely they know this as well.

So, do they need this information or do they just need to make sure we don't have it?  Because if the latter is true, your brother is in some danger"

[Lady Jenn]

"It's not that simple," Mariza said, more angry at Arcturus than Geoff. "I'm not taking humans to my brother when I don't know whether he'd even let ME speak to him."

"Okay, hold up," Lehmann said, holding his hands up. "Stop acting like me and Geoff weren't here, what are you talking about?"

"You don't know who your new friend is do you?" Arcturus asked with a chuckle. "This is no mere fairy you are in the presence of, she is a child of the Shadowglade, or to be more specific...she is Princess Mariza, next in line to the throne."

[Darkleather]

Geoff was glad that Lehmann was as out of his depth as he was feeling

"Royalty? wow"

He leant close to Lehmann and whispered "Guess that explains a lot about the attitude"

[Lady Jenn]

"I can hear you," she shouted, storming out of the shop and slamming the door behind her.

"She'll come back," Arcturus said, stopping Lehmann from following her. "She needs a chance to calm down. That picture you looked at, that is...that WAS her mother, the former queen of the Shadowglade. When her mother died Mariza was intended to take her place but...her brother went against the rules. He had the army behind him so she couldn't fight him, she was exiled from her home and forced to live in your world. So," Arcturus said, approaching Geoff at his full height, towering over him, "next time you think of insulting her maybe you should think before you open your mouth."

[Darkleather]

Geoff raised an eyebrow as Mariza stormed out of the building, but in all honesty was hardly surprised.

As Arcturus squared up to him, Geoff refused to back down and stared straight back at him.

"Frankly, she's been patronising about me and my entire species ever since I met her.  And, by the way, just because you're bigger than me doesn't make me frightened of you."

He held Arcturus' gaze for a few seconds and then looked away

"Look, I'm sorry and I'll apologise to her.  This has been kind of an odd day for me"

[Lady Jenn]

"Your kind's naivety about magic cost her her grandfather," Arcturus said with a sigh. "Now she finds herself lost in a world she barely understands and a home she cannot safely return to, I doubt she intends offence to you, fairies usually do not interact with your kind until they are least three times as old as she is."

"Go find her," Lehmann said to Geoff. "I can't imagine she's gone far, I'll stay and see if Arcturus can tell us anymore."

Lehmann had guessed right, Mariza wasn't far from the shop, her face stained with tears and her wings attempting to cover her face. In her distress her illusion had slipped, revealing she appeared barely older than a human girl just out of college.

[Darkleather]

Geoff stared at Lehmann

"ME?  You want ME to go get her?  Look, I don't know how much training you have on reading emotions, but the two of us really aren't...umm..sympathetic towards each other."

As Lehmann carried on staring at him he shrugged in disbelief

"FINE!  fine!  I'll try and find her.  But don't blame me if the princess chooses not to come back."

He stepped outside and almost immediately saw her

"Hey, look I'm sorry.  I'm just nervous and excited and, well, it's a lot to take in"

[Lady Jenn]

"It's pretty strange for me too," Mariza said with a laugh. "The downside to being future royalty is that people are even stricter about allowing you to interact with others than they are with most of my kin." She stood up, wiping the tear stains from her face. "I shouldn't have reacted the way I should, frankly I thought if I knew who I really was you'd treat me differently. I happen to find you...attractive, I'm not used to being in this kind of situation."

[Darkleather]

"umm, well, thanks.  That's flattering."

Geoff stood there nervously

"So, shall we rejoin the others?"

He decided not to say anything else about this matter at the moment

[Lady Jenn]

"We could or..." she looked around, scanning the crowd for a moment and glad to see no-one else had noticed them. "Our friends are going to kill me for doing this, but do you want to see the market's greatest secret? It won't harm you, but it's so precious people are usually wary of approaching it for fear of damaging it by mistake."

[Darkleather]

Geoff was torn - he was interested to see the bazaar's greatest secret, but after Mariza's admission he really didn't want to encourage her

"Well, actually, maybe we should get back to work"

He stepped back towards the shop and opened the door

[Lady Jenn]

She stepped back into the shop, finding Arcturus and Lehmann bent over a scroll they hadn't seen before, trying to disguise her disappointment at his response.

"We think we have a lead, at least one for where to begin looking," Lehmann said. "You're not gonna believe this though, apparentely there's a clue under the Washington Monument."

[Darkleather]

"The Washington Monument?  You would have thought they would have chosen something that was, at least OLD."

[Lady Jenn]

"It was put there before the Monument went up," Arcturus said. "There's a chamber underneath it."

"The problem is getting to it," Lehmann replied. "There is a direct route into the chamber but...it's not as simple as walking up to the door and opening it."

[Darkleather]

"Well, God forbid anything would be straightforward"

"Come on then, how do we get in?"

[Lady Jenn]

"There's a hidden tunnel accessible from the Oval Office," Lehmann replied. "But considering the President doesn't even know SPAIA exists we can hardly politely ask his security detail to get us in."

[Darkleather]

Geoff held his breath for a moment and stared at them.

"Are you seriously suggesting this?  There MUST be another way.  Why can't we access the tunnel partway along?  Why can't we enlist the help of the Mole People?  Why don't we get Dr Abner Perry to use his amazing drill to let us dig our way into it?"

Geoff paused

"Because, frankly, ALL of those options are more sensible than us trying to get into the Oval Office!"

[Lady Jenn]

"Because the tunnel is surrounded by High Elven magic," Arcturus replied. "You could drop a nuclear bomb on top of the thing and achieve nothing."

"I have a way in," Mariza said suddenly. "It will require you two to be very good at lying for some of it though."

[Darkleather]

"Lying?  Is that all?  I think we can manage that"

[Lady Jenn]

"I can make us look like other people," Mariza said. "All I need to do is see a picture. But you'll have to maintain your cover because the spell requires a hell of a lot of concentration to maintain."

[Darkleather]

"You can?  Ok - let's do that then."

Geoff thought for a moment

"I'd like to be Nathan Fillion please - Firefly era of course"

[Lady Jenn]

"I know she said she can make us look like anyone we want," Lehmann said, raising an eyebrow. "But can we at least stick to people who would actually BE at the White House. Within reason anyway."

[Darkleather]

Geoff stared at Lehmann

"Holy crap, this whole lack of a sense of humour thing is spreading."

"Ok, you can make us look like someone else.  But what do we do from there?"

[Lady Jenn]

"In theory I can get us through the entrance into the tunnel," Mariza replied. "But it's gonna take time which means I'm gonna need you guys to keep anyone from asking any potentially awkward questions."

[Darkleather]

"While I'm clearly the new kid on the block here, this plan seems a bit...thin"

[Lady Jenn]

"I'd teleport us into that tunnel directly if I could," Mariza said. "But that place was designed to stop any magical infiltration, so this is the only way I know of."

"Are you suggesting you know another way we can get to the tunnel without arousing suspicion Geoff?" Lehmann asked.

[Darkleather]

Geoff looked at Lehmann

"Yes, because you happen to have walked into an undercover agent for UNCLE."

He paused

"Of course NOT!  I'm just saying that maybe we need a better plan than looking different and wandering up to one of the most secure buildings in the country"

[Lady Jenn]

"Fairy magic is powerful," Mariza said. "Bear in mind I've lived in a Las Vegas hotel for three years without my cover slipping once before you two turned up."

"Besides, there's a SPAIA safehouse I can pick up fake IDs from," Lehann said. "We may be operating outside of the White House's knowledge but that doesn't mean we can't get some...'assistance' from other agencies."

[Darkleather]

Geoff sighed

"Seriously, I'm not sure why you guys include me in these conversations -- or even why I've been invited along.  You both clearly have resources at your command and a pretty good idea what you're going to do.  I'm just the comedy side-kick wandering along for the ride.

Just do what you want - I guess you will anyway"

[Lady Jenn]

"Well I enjoy your company," Mariza said, turning around to hide the look of hurt on her face at his statement. "I can't account for why he wants you here."

"Fine, you can go in as Nathan Fillion," Lehmann said, making a sound half way between a sigh and a chuckle. "But if your cover gets blown don't expect me to be able to help you."