Monday, February 27, 2017

Corrupted Transmission: Cold Case, Part IV

Finally the hunters in my Hunter: the Vigil Chronicle: Corrupted Transmission, locate Ambrose Grant, the subject of the case that started their whole enterprise. But how to you deal with a man who can kill with his mind? Do you trade him to an unethical biotech company, set him free, or kill him?

Cold Case, Part IV

Ashwood Heights, Yesler Terrace, Friday May 20th

One of a Kind Investigations starts its stakeout of Ashwood Heights. they form two teams of two, one group taking night and the other the day.

They manage to get Dr. Ilyes to help them but the doctor is skeptical about finding Ambrose Grant.

"I'll tell you why we're not going to find this person. It's cause he is a fictional character! From a pilot TV show, that was rejected because it made Lost seem sane in comparison!"

Shaw tries to calm him down. "We understand what you are saying Ilyes, but you'll still help us with the stakeout right?"

"Am I getting paid?" he inquires.

"Yes."

"Okay. The check better clear, that's all I'm going to say."

They quickly learn that out of 50 units, 48 are filled. The apartments hold a mixture of the elderly, single occupants, single mothers, and small families. They find a flier for a fortune teller, Madame Mimi, operating out of Apartment 207. She claims to interpret dreams.

"Con artist," remarks Robert Mill.

"I interpret dreams too but I get paid a lot more," Dr. Sorenson comments.

The people in the complex seem very close knit, but there are signs all is not right. People share odd glances and awkward conversations as if there is something being unsaid. They also seem to be sleeping poorly judging by the number of lights on after midnight.

More important for the investigators, there are number of oddly bland people who walk past the complex at all times. The same man with a dog walks past every couple hours, the same woman runs by in a hurry, the same old man feeds the birds night or day. The photographs reveal their inhuman nature. They are Tulpas.

"What's their interest here? Are they protecting it?" Sorenson asks.

"Seems like a pretty regular patrol," Shaw says.

However the people inside seem to be actual human beings, even the manager Gordon Fisher. Gordon is in his early 50s though he dyes his hair and beard blond. He seems to spend almost all of his time at the complex.

They decide to target him next.

Yesler Terrace, Saturday May 21st

They shadow Gordon that day, planning to resume their stakeout the following week to see if there are any changes in people's patterns.

Shaw watches him while he works at the complex. She catches Gordon as he visits the supposedly empty apartment 312. The man inside passes him something but she can't tell what.

Apartment 312 is an end unit, possibly a good place for Ambrose Grant to hide out, unlike the other the empty apartment 120.

Dr. Sorenson follows Gordon as he goes out to the movies. Gordon seems to be a regular at the theater. The staff knows his face and preferences. As he watches Iron Man 2, the doctor mutters, "bad science in this. Technology would just not work like that."

The reports filter in and the investigators assemble the picture of a man with a pretty boring life where his one escape is going to the movies.

Offices of One of a Kind Investigations, Downtown, Sunday May 22nd

That day they dig into Gordon Fisher's records and history. Born in 1958 in Seattle, he seems to be relatively normal. He was hired as caretaker in 1982 and has run Millennial Holdings since 1988. In 1990 after Ambrose Grant's "death", he tried to overturn some of the restrictions on the trust for Millennial Housing, likely to make adjustments on how it could be spent. But strangely he abandoned this project a few months later. Around that time he stopped taking as many vacations out of the city. He hasn't left Seattle since 2000. In terms of family, he was divorced in 1995 and has an estranged son in Oregon. He lives on site in apartment 101. He has no criminal record and his finances are in order.

"He might be letting someone squat and pay him under the table," Shaw speculates, thinking about the mysterious apartment 312.

Shaw lays out their next step, "from what I've seen I don't think Gordon Fisher is directly involved but he might have papers that we haven't been able to access. We should keep an eye on 312 and figure out who is living there."

Ashwood Heights, Yesler Terrace, Tuesday May 24th, 2 A.M.

Dr. Sorenson and Robert Mill wait in the car outside Ashwood Heights. As they wonder how they got stuck with the night watch, their minds both go back to the previous day.

Sorenson recalls Shaw telling him to go with Mill and talk him through his issues.

Mill recalls Shaw telling him , "I want you to be with Sorenson, this is his first stakeout and you know he get a little weird."

Sorensosn drinks his grande Starbucks drink as he listens to Mill's heavy metal music.

Mill interrupts his thoughts. "Oh this is the sweet part here, listen to those vocals."

As he shifts their positions, both men realize that two man have materialized in the back seat of the car.

"Frick who are you?" Mill says. A moment later he realizes that their unlined blank faces mean that they are Tulpas.

A moment later both he and Sorenson are running down the street having abandoned their car. The Tulpas are in hot pursuit.

Mill pulls out his phone and speed-dials Shaw.

"Wha- is it?" she yawns.

Mill speaks hurriedly. "We are being attacked! Help, quick, help."

"I'm on my way," she says.

"Keep moving! We're being chased!" the doctor shouts.

Shaw hears sounds of running over the phone. Mill's voice shouts, "we're being chased! They were in the car with us. Now we're running. Frick, I don't know what street we are on, where are we at?"

Mill yells to the doctor, "You have a gun Sorenson?"

"Yes but I'm not going to go randomly shooting."

"I'll randomly shoot. Give me the gun," he commands.

"No."

"Give me the gun man," Mill pleads.

"No," Sorenson says.

The psychiatrist starts to pull ahead. Mill feeling them on his heels pulls out his pepper spray. The two pass a closed supermarket and spot an open convenience store ahead.

Mill glances back and sees the Tulpas right behind him. He runs for the store.

Sorenson runs a few more blocks before he has lost both Mill and the Tulpas. Worried, he begins to looping back to the car.
As Mill enters the convenience store he dials 911. The Tulpas enter behind him and he runs up to the clerk and shouts, "help there are two men chasing me!"

The man at the counter says, "What?"

The phone returns a busy signal.

Mill turns around as the two Tulpas lung for him. He sprays the lead one in the eyes. It screams and toppled into a rack of snacks as it grabs for its eyes.

The other one grapples Mill. Mill sprays it as well but it has no effect. As he struggles the phone drops from his hand. Robert continues to shout where he is but as it hits the ground the call ends.

The Tulpa wrests the pepper spray from his hands as the other one pours gatorade into its eyes in an attempt to wash away the pepper spray. Mill glances at the clerk. He sees a Sandman feeding on his memories. Then the Tulpas pin him to the ground.
Sorenson gets back to the car. It's empty and the keys are still in the ignition. He starts it and drives down the road, looking for signs of Mill. He spots the Tulpas dragging him out of the conveneince store. He is bound in duct tape and struggling ineffectually.

Sorenson guns the engine and tries to run one of them over but he can't get close enough without hitting Mill.

Sorenson stops the car and fires his gun at the Tulpa, wounding it. It drops Mill on his head. Mill attempts to shout but his mouth is covered in duct tape.

As the Tulpa comes after him, Sorenson drives forward toward it, slamming into it at 20 mph. It tumbles over the car and disappears.

The doctor drives after Mill and the remaining Tulpa who is moving surprisingly fast. He shoots at it wounding it as well. It drops Mill in pain. Then the doctor notices that the one he hit earlier is climbing along the side of the car. He tries to swipe it off the side but instead sideswipes a street light and smashes into a telephone pole. The Tulpa is thrown off the car and into a brick wall. It disintegrates.

Meanwhile Shaw arrives at apartment complex. Her mind is slightly fuzzy from the BSNX-7, but she hears the gunshots. She follows the sounds and comes across the scene as the wounded Tulpa tries to drag off Mill. She shoots it through the heart. It lurches and crumples into a pile of clothes.

She gets out of car and surveys the area. No one else is around. She hurried over to the car and checks Sorenson.

The doctor is groggy and trying to collapse the air bag. Mill's car seems drive-able.

"Are you okay to drive?" Shaw asks.

"Yeah. I'm. Yeah," the shaken psychiatrist says.

"Take it slow and try to drive it back to the office."

"Okay, okay."

Sorenson turns to Mill. "Sorry about your car."

Then she grabs Mill and pulls him into her car.

In transit, Tuesday May 24th, 2:30 A.M.

Shaw calls Dr. Ilyes on the way to the office. "I realize you are probably sleeping but the stakeout went really bad. The boys were attacked. You want to meet up at the office?"

"What were they attacked by?" he asks. "Well okay I will meet you at the office and you can brief me there."

She then turns to Mill. "I'm going to remove your duct tape. This is going to hurt."

"Mmmm!!" he screams as it is removed.

Once freed of the tape, he tells her, "sorry, I botched it. I wasn't paying attention."

"These things happen."

Mill tells her what happened. He complains, "Sorenson wouldn't give me his gun."

"Maybe next time you should take the drugs," she advises.

Offices of One of a Kind Investigations, Downtown, Tuesday May 24th, 3:30 A.M.

Dr. Ilyes comes into the office to find Sorenson beat up and bruised. He checks him for concussions.

"Where did you park the car?" Shaw asks the psychiatrist.

"In the usual spot," he says.

Mill meanwhile voices his worries about the insurance claim.

"So what happened?" Dr. Ilyes asks.

Shaw is also curious. "What did you guys run into?"

Sorenson takes the lead. "We were doing the stakeout, watching the complex and then two Tulpas were in the car with us."

"Tulpas? So we are dealing with Tibetan monks now?" Ilyes asks.

"That's what the Chieron group classifies the doppelgangers as," Shaw explains.

Sorenson continues. "They appeared in the back seat so we ran out of the car."

Mill adds, "they might not have just appeared, we might not have noticed them."

"Guys just appeared in the back seat," Ilyes mutters incredulously.

"That's what it seemed like," Sorenson says. "So I ran off and circled back around the block." He details his rescue attempt and Shaw's arrival.

"You are showing signs of considerable disorganized and nonlinear thinking," Ilyes says.

"What would you have done?" the psychiatrist asks. "These guys were extremely dangerous."

Mill relays the rough details of his encounter at the convenience store. He mentions that the clerk seemed be attacked by a Sandman.

Shaw is concerned for the man's safety. She finds the number for the store. "Let me see if anyone answers."

Ilyes continues the questioning as she steps out. "So there were Sandmen there."

"I didn't see anything," Sorensosn says.

"I want to hear it from you," he says pointing to Mill.
Shaw steps out of the room and calls the store. A man answers.

"Hello."

"Hi, I was just passing by and I heard some kind of disturbance at your store," she lies. "Is everything okay?"

"I've been here all night and nothing's happened."

"Oh I must have been confused. What was your name?"

"Jerry," he says.

"Okay Jerry. You didn't hear anything? Maybe it was another 7-11."

She gets the location of the nearest other store. "Thanks. Glad everything is okay."
She returns to find Mill finishing his description of the events at the store. "I turned around and there was a sandman. I don't know, maybe he was always there. He attacked the store clerk. He might have injured him or hurt him. I don't know." Mill turns to Shaw. "Is he okay?"

"Jerry says he is okay."

"He's okay? He probably doesn't remember anything then?" he asks.

"Nope."

"And we think Jerry is actually a person?" Mill asks.

"I don't know. He seemed he had his speech together. He could have been a Tulpa but that seems a long way to go."

"Yeah, He's probably fine, they just didn't want him to know what was going on. He's probably okay."

Mill finishes his story and Ilyes asks, "Okay so we have Sandmen and we have...Tulpas."

"Did you not see the file?" Shaw asks passing him a folder.

As he reads over the file, Ilyes asks, "What is the source of these things?"

"Ambrose Grant?" Mill says hesitantly.

Shaw nods. "That's the theory we are running on."

"Yes, these may be dream manifestations of his psychic powers," Sorenson adds.

Mill fidgets. "So if we are going to go, we should go now. Pretty quick I guess."

"Are you guys okay for that?" Shaw asks, looking at how bruised and nervous they are.

Sorenson applies some final bandages. "I'm fine."

"I don't mean just physically boys," Shaw says.

"Well I have to file an insurance claim here," Mill says.

"Erin's good with that," Shaw recommends.

Mill thinks about Shaw's question. "Well I'm not up for it, but we've got to do it now right? If we are going to go, we've got to go before they bring in more security. We have to strike right now. We can't wait until tomorrow. We need to go this minute, probably in someone else's car. I think."

Shaw presents an alternative. "Unless we wait until they calm down. If we wait a week."

"What if they move any stuff out of there?"

"Well it's been there for over 20 years. So I really doubt they would move anything."

Sorenson weighs in. "The only thing is they could increase security and make it much much more harder to get in."

"That's why I think we need to give them time to relax," Shaw says. "I mean they know who we are."

"Why aren't they attacking us at home?" Sorenson asks.

"I think there is a range issue. I don't know. Either they are going to come after us in which case we need to prepare ourselves or we let them have their surge and then go in. At this point I don't think we know enough about where to go. Unless we go up to 312."

Ilyes speculates. "If these things are Tulpas then it would take considerable mental concentration for these things even to exist. Tulpas come from Tibetan myth, where they are the concentrated will of a dying monk."

Mill and Sorenson defer to Shaw on the final decision. She decides to send a message to Infinity and get his advice. A return message follows shortly: 'Lie low for a week. Maybe you should leave town for a little bit.'

Shaw tells the others, "alright, let's shut down the company for a week."

"Well Sorenson might be stuck here," Mill warns.

"They don't come out during the day," Sorenson says. "I'll just get home before dark. Maybe I'll stay in a hotel."

"I'll stay with my parents," Mill says.

"Yeah I'll stay with my dad," Shaw tells them.

With that they go into hiding.

Hillcrest Mental Health Center, Greenwood, May 26th

As the week passes, the investigators recover and regain their composure. Robert Mill takes the opportunity to buy some new pistols.

At the Hillcrest Center, an upset secretary bursts into Dr. Sorenson's office. She complains to him about the mess he left the file system in. "I don't even know where this file is supposed to go!"

"Which file is it?" he asks. "Maybe I can remember where it goes."

She hands over a dusty discolored file.

"Oh I know exactly where it goes. I'll put it back. I'm sorry I causes some trouble with that. You've got to admit that there is a time period where the file system gets really-"

"Tell me about it," she says as she leaves.

Sorenson looks closely at the file. It is a grant renewal proposal from Dr. Moorcock. The director apparently is expounding on his previous research, hoping for more money. The file talks about unlocking psychic abilities using new drugs mixtures such as dimethyltryptmine (DMT) and a Harmala alkaloid called "telepathine extract."

Sorenson recalls telepathine extract from his time at Verdant Technologies. Moorcock lists his assistant in the report: Dr. Barbara Wintergreen. The same woman who accidentally sent him the letter that inadvertently changes his life. He failed to escape Verdant and their research.

Offices of One of a Kind Investigations, Downtown, May 30th

After a week of relative relaxation, the investigators return to work. Erin lets Shaw know she enjoyed the vacation time. Shaw, herself, is bouncy and eager to get back on the case.

"I hope everybody is prepared," Dr. Ilyes says. "So what is the plan?"

"I think we need to go in and find what is in Unit 213," Shaw says.

"You mean 312," corrects Mill.

"Yeah sorry, vacation."

"You want to talk to the fortune teller first?" he asks.

"Well you two are made, so yeah."

Ashwood Heights, Yesler Terrace, May 30th, 4 P.M.

Shaw walks up to the fortuneteller's door. She adjusts the wire and rubs her eyes. The insomnia from the BSNX-7 was getting to her.

The garishly dressed Madame Mimi lets her in. Silk covers the ceilings and walls and mystic baubles decorate the room. The fortuneteller invites Shaw to sit on a comfy sofa chair in the center of room.

"Oh I thought I'd be sitting next to a crystal ball or something," she says.

"Oh no no no," the woman says fake sounding accent. "Tell me about your dreams."

"That's the thing. I've been having a lot of insomnia recently. I can't even get to sleep. I know it's not quite your area but I was hoping you could help. Do you see anything about me Madame Mimi?"

Mimi begins to advise her. Shaw easily picks up on her cold reading tricks. The fortuneteller suggests that if Shaw slept here that she could get a better insight into her problems.

"Like right now?" she asks.

"I find it is very easy to drift off here," Mimi explains.

"Alright, do you mind if I use the restroom first? I've been having a lot of trouble sleeping but I'll give it a try."

In the restroom Shaw says into wire, "engaging camera." She then adjust her camera to watch anyone standing over her.

After a bit of lying on the sofa, Shaw realizes that Madame Mimi has gone into other room. It sounds like she is sleeping. Shaw tries to sneak up on her but she wake as she tries the door.

"Oh, did you sleep well?" she says getting up.

"I wasn't able to get to sleep," Shaw explains. "What were you doing? I thought you would be using crystals or something."

"I commune with you in your dreams," the fortuneteller explains.

Shaw doesn't try to cover up her freaked out response. "What do you see?"

"Unfortunately since you couldn't sleep, I didn't see anything."

Shaw questions the fortuneteller more closely, learning that she gets impressions of those who sleep nearby. "Do you get impressions of other people, like your neighbors?"

"I try to avoid that," Mimi says.

Shaw tries to get her trust. "I know, I know, but it hard for people who are sensitive. I have a cousin."

Mimi confides that she does see things from her neighbors, both private and disturbing things.

"Disturbing?" Shaw asks.

"I shouldn't really talk about it," Mimi says, cutting off the conversation. Shaw notices however that her eyes went up looking to the third floor. And in the direction opposite apartment 312.

Shaw thanks her and pays her for her time.

Ashwood Heights, Yesler Terrace, May 30th, 5 P.M.

Before going back to the office, Shaw decides to check out what else is on the third floor. She takes the stairs up and walks around the level. It is fairly quiet. She passes only a young woman in the hall. She does notices a young man staring intently at her however. He ducks into his apartment when he sees Shaw. The detective notes that his apartment, 302, is in the right direction for whatever was bothering Madame Mimi.

Offices of One of a Kind Investigations, Downtown, 6 P.M.

Shaw finishes explaining what see saw at Madame Mimi's. "So I don't think the fortuneteller is involved. If she has any real psychic abilities, it's more of the effect of living in the area." As for the disturbing dreams she says, "When I went up there I saw this guy who kind of gave me the creeps looking at this other girl. He was in 302."

The investigators discuss how to approach the apartment complex. They decide to look into the records and see who lives in 302 as well as what is going on in 312. With a little digging they find that the other vacant unit, 120, has only been empty a couple months. 312 however hasn't been rented since 2005. People move out relatively infrequently but not to a suspicious level.

Dr. Ilyes suggests using a dummy repossession claim to find out who is in 312.

Dr. Sorenson suggests, "lets pull a Supernatural and use some fake FBI badges."

"Have you been doing your research on TV?" Shaw admonishes.

"Yes, I've had some really good ideas from that."

As for apartment 302, it belongs to a Jarette Costa. There doesn't seem to be anything special about him.

They decide to check out 312 first. Mill suggest break and entering. Shaw decides that the two of them will go in, pretending to deliver a package. They get a rental car, paid in cash. Shaw bills that and Mill's car repairs to Keystone Pharmaceuticals.

Ashwood Heights, Yesler Terrace, May 31st, 9 A.M.

Shaw and Mill set the box down by the door to 312. Shaw knocks. The two of them can hear someone moving inside.

"I think someone is in a bed getting up," Mill says.

"Alright let's wait and see who they are," Shaw instructs.

The door opens a crack. A man with scraggly beard and wearing boxer shorts asks them what they want.

Shaw smiles and says, "hello. We have a delivery."

"I don't have a delivery. You must have the wrong place."

"Oh I'm sorry. What was your name sir?" Shaw flips through clipboard while Mill stealthily takes a picture.

"John."

"Mr...," Shaw prompts him.

"Uh, Smith," he says.

"Mr. Smith, you are right this is not for you. This is 312 right?"

"Yeah."

Shaw looks at Mill. "You know what this says avenue and the sign said street."

"Frick we're going to be late," Mill complains.

Shaw turns to 'John Smith'. "I'm really sorry for disturbing you, sir."

As they walk away Shaw realizes where she saw 'John' before. He is wanted for a convenience store robbery.

Robert tries to show her the clear picture he got but Shaw stays in character. On way out they determine that there one other place Ambrose Grant could be. As a delivery man enters the storage basement, they realize he may be underground.

Offices of One of a Kind Investigations, Downtown, 12 P.M.

Shaw suggests tipping off the cops to the crook hiding there. They could use that as a distraction while they go into the basement.

"So we think this basement is where it is at then?" Mill asks.

"Probably," she says.

"What about apartment 302?"

"He could be just a creepy guy causing weird dreams. I mean maybe he's a serial killer but then perhaps the cops will catch him when they find the other guy."

Mill is still worried. "Won't there be too much action going on? Do we want to be doing something illegal while the cops are there?"

"No it should be fine."

The investigators decide that they should all go in together.

But Dr. Ilyes objects. "While the cops are conducting a raid?"

"Yes," Shaw tries to explain. "I know all of their procedures. It's a raid upstairs and we'll be underground."

"And if a fight breaks out and there's gunfire, the cops won't notice that?" he points out.

"Yes they will but I'd rather have the cops come and arrest us rather than have what is down there get us."

"We're not going to twist your arm," Robert adds. "It's very understandable not wanting to go down there."

Shaw points out that this eventuality is covered in his consulting liability waiver. "If you don't come along you will of course deny all knowledge of what we are up to."

"Of course. I'll just happened to be taking a jog in the area, in case something can and does go wrong when the police notice you attempting a burglary."

"It's not a burglary," Sorenson says. "We'd have to steal something for it to be a burglary."

"I'll be there to bail you out," Dr. Ilyes says.

They quickly prepare to go in. Shaw sends a message to Infinity: "We are going in within the hour. Using the police as a distraction. If you can add to the distraction that would be good."

She also injects herself with some more BSNX-7. Mill grabs his doll. Shaw sets up a wire so Ilyes can listen in in case things go badly.

Ashwood Heights, Yesler Terrace, May 31st, 1 P.M.

As the cops head into the complex, Sorenson leads them in a final pep talk. "Okay team we can do this. We've prepared, we've studied, we're ready for this."

As everyone else is absorbed with the police raid, they slip into the basement. It seems to be just an underused storage area. A few boxes sit along one wall and there seems to be no one about.

Shaw however makes out a wavery image over one wall. Mill thinks where he would put the trigger to a secret door. He pushes a brick and the wall shifts open. Dr. Sorenson however still can't see it.

"It's like those dreams I've been having," Robert says. "I've seen this before."

"I don't see why people would be coming down here," Sorenson says oblivious. "There's no reason-"

Shaw stops him. "Shh. It's right here."

As she pulls him through she adds, "Maybe you should take those drugs."

"Or get a doll," Mill comments.
Past the illusionary wall, they find a dark hallway, lit by a single flickering florescent light.

"We're going down, it's dark," Sorenson says over the wire.

They pass banks of old computer equipment. Shaw snaps a picture of the hall and sends it to Ilyes. As she does she realizes there are several blurry silhouettes in the picture.

Ilyes texts back, "I think there may be some sort of invisible-"

Shaw doesn't catch the rest as she puts the phone away and draws her gun. "Got one coming in. There's a figure there."

Soon Mill can also see the figures of three nurses coming down the hall. The investigators get their lights out. Shaw thinks for moment and puts the gun away. She readies herself for hand to hand combat.

Sorenson decides to inject himself with BSNX-7. The nurses become visible to him. They are eerily identical and armed with scalpels.

As they come in range, Shaw grabs the arm of one and pulls scalpel from her hand, tossing it to the ground. The nurse grapples her instead.

Mill runs interference, keeping the others from getting at Sorenson. The nurses lung at him but he is too quick and leaves one prone on the ground.

Sorenson swings his heavy flashlight at the nurse grappling Shaw but fails to strike with any force. Shaw throws the doppelganger into another nurse. One falls but the other one swings at Mill ineffectually.

The doctor takes another swing. He dents his flashlight on the cold stone wall. As the nurse gets back up, Shaw goes punches her in the kidneys. She cries out in pain.

The battle becomes a flurry of stabs and swings. Sorenson swings his flashlight club again but misses his target. Instead he shears off the end of the flashlight and spills the batteries everywhere.

"I thought this could be used as a weapon," he exclaims.

Shaw disarms another nurse. She retaliates by scratching at Shaw's face.

Mill continues to provide interference as Sorenson pulls his pocket knife. Shaw swings wildly at a doppelganger and is hit instead by the nurse. There is a crunching noise.

Elsewhere Ilyes hears the audio feed cut out. Worried he gets out his medical bag and rushes over to the complex. He soon makes it to the basement where he can hear a muffled combat going on.

In the dim light Sorenson grabs a scalpel from the floor. Shaw attacks the doppelganger again. This time she feels her fists sink into the thing's flesh. The doppelganger screams and starts dissolving.

Sorenson and Shaw gang up on another. The doctor shouts, "come and get some more of that!" as Shaw pummels the Tulpa into the wall of electronics. A spark of electricity back lights the nurse and she explodes into a cloud of ash.

Then the final nurse gets lucky and stabs Mill.

In the storage area Ilyes tries to find secret door. "They should have mentioned how to find this secret door," he mutters.

Sorenson slices the nurses neck open just before Shaw swings at her. Shaw stumbles and collides with Sorenson. They go down in a tumble. Mill jumps in front of them and wards off the doppelganger's attack.

Sorenson gets back up and finishes the nurse with a final slice of the scalpel. He her head falls off and she fades away into nothing.

Ilyes takes a close look at the masonry. As he rubs his hand across the wall, it goes right through. Disbelievingly he walks through the wall. He quickly catches up with his allies.

"Hey what are you doing here?" Shaw asks him.

"The line went out. You guys got into a fight and it went out. I came to help."

Shaw rubs her shoulder. "Yeah one of the nurses punched out the wire."

"Nurses?"

"Did you see anyone coming?" Mill asks.

"No. I could barely hear any noises. You were just in a fight?"

"Yes," Sorenson replies. "Just moments ago."

"I could barely hear anything," the doctor explains.

"You may need to arm yourself," Sorenson advises.

"I'm armed," Ilyes says gesturing to his kit. "I've got scalpels, resuscitation pads, and a syringe full of tranquilizers."

Ilyes helps make sure they are okay physically, then they press on. Mill offers Sorenson his flashlight, but the psychiatrist declines. As he kicks the broken flashlight as they leave. "I thought these things could take a beating."

Under Ashwood Heights, Yesler Terrace, May 31st, 1:10 P.M.

They pass through several more rooms of darkened computer equipment. Then they find a doorway. Inside they glimpse an old hospital bed surrounded by medical equipment.

"Stop!" they hear behind them.

They turn and Shaw says, "Dr. Warden."

The man is dressed in a white coat and hospital gear. "Stop there!" he repeats.

Shaw snaps a picture of him. As expected it is blurry. Mill moves to the front of the group to protect the others.

"I can't let you go in there," Warden says.

"You've been taking care of him for a long time," Shaw replies.

"He needs his rest."

"He needs his rest for 20 years?" Dr. Sorenson jokes.

"Now go," Warden command. Most of the investigators don't react but Dr. Ilyes suddenly feels like he should leave the area. He remembers the pep talk and fights off the creature's influence.

"You know we can't do that Warden," Mill says. "His wife wants him to have eternal rest. She knows what's best for him. Not you."

Sorenson adds, "his dreams are dangerous."

"You're not even a real person Warden," Shaw hurls at him.

"I'm real enough."

"Well you are in real trouble," Sorenson says.

Warden smiles. "I think you have that the wrong way."

Suddenly the psychiatrist is lifted into air and thrown into a wall.

As he crumples to the ground, Ilyes pulls out the revival paddles from his bag. He runs forward and tries to tag Warden with them. The doppelganger dodges to the side.

Then Sorenson launches himself at the Tulpa. As the two grapple Shaw rushes over to help bear him to the ground. Warden struggles, trying to wrench Sorenson's arm.

Mill meanwhile moves into the other room. He finds a withered old man who can only be Ambrose Grant. He leans over him. Suddenly he finds his mind under assault. He feels distant, shoved aside in his own body.

"Clear," Ilyes says as he hits Warden with the paddles. The doppelganger is stunned by the charge. Sorenson and Shaw take a hit as well. the psychiatrist tumbles to the floor unconscious.

Shaw however pins the creature. Warden seems to be losing strength. His flesh begins to sag and one of his eyes turns red.

Then Mill walks back into the room and draw his guns. He takes careful aim at his friends.

As Shaw pounds Warden into the floor, she shouts to Ilyes, "I got him, help Sorenson!"

Ilyes quickly revives the fallen investigator with smelling salts.

"Did we win?" the psychiatrist groggily says.

In the doorway, Mill snaps back into control of his body. He throws the guns away from him. "It's Ambrose, get him!"

As he runs back into the room, Shaw feels Warden's head crack like an overripe melon.

Mill returns to the psychic's body. Sudden he can feel the man's mind burning into his own. He maintains his focus and keeps the paralyzed man out of his head. Just then Ilyes rushes in and injects Warden with a tranquilizer. Ambrose slips into an induced coma.

Shaw picks herself off the floor where Warden's body is rapidly decomposing.

Under Ashwood Heights, Yesler Terrace, May 31st, 1:15 P.M.

Dr. Ilyes looks over his patient for a few minutes and tells Shaw that he can move Ambrose Grant. They will need a large vehicle however. "I could get a medical service to move him."

Shaw mulls having Keystone Pharmaceuticals pick him up but decides but decides to contact Infinity first.

Dr. Sorenson sits down. "I don't feel so good."

Robert Mill ask, "you okay man?"

Shaw walks away and calls her company line. "Infinity? If you want in on Ambrose you'd better talk to me now."

After a moment she has an incoming call. She answers and Infinity says, "I'm not actually listening in on your phone calls."

"Really," she says insincerely. "I have Ambrose. I have clients who want to take him soon. He is not that cooperative so I don't know how you want to question him. I'm also curious what you are going to pay."

"I can arrange a meeting. I can also arrange a vehicle if need be."

Shaw gets down to business. "Where would be the meeting location and how long would you need with Ambrose? How will you guarantee the safety of my people."

There is a slight hesitation. "Keep Ambrose for now. I want to talk to you about what you see down there."

Shaw turns to Ilyes. "How long can you keep him under doctor?"

He thinks for a moment and says, "in his current condition, we can safely keep unconscious for 48 hours. After that I would need a hospital to safely maintain the coma."

"Start prepping him for transport. We'll be leaving in a few hours."

As Ilyes takes care of Ambrose and Sorenson, Shaw asks Infinity to get them a van that evening. They arrange to meet at Frank's old office. Infinity says he will be there at midnight as he is outside the city.

Shaw tells Infinity, "Send me a ping on my cell when the van arrives."

As Mill and Shaw discuss what to do about Ambrose, Ilyes tries to use the existing equipment to determine what makes Ambrose different. He finds some strange brainwave activity, even in his sedated state.

Shaw tells Mill, "I hope to have some better ideas about options after talking to Infinity. But if you want to talk to VI you could see if he has any ideas."

"I'd also like to talk to Doretta again," Mill adds.

"Not a bad idea," she says. Then she directs him to document the area first.

Shaw takes pictures of the old computer equipment as Sorenson and Iyes help Mill sift through the computer system. Using an antiquated terminal they sort through the strange encrypted files. Each file corresponds to an apartment in the complex stored on huge rolls of magnetic tape. There are thousand pages of information here, all written in a homebrew computer language. They decide to grab the tapes. They determine that the files are not supposed to accessed via the terminal but instead by the electronic linkages that were on Ambrose's head.

As they search they also come across some old worn journals. The books are written in Cyrillic and German, which no one knows. They put them aside for now.

Shaw asks Ilyes how they might sneak Ambrose out.

"I have a crash cart," he explains. "I think we should just wheel him out on the gurney and I can tell people my patient is suffering from a diabetic coma."

Ashwood Heights, Yesler Terrace, May 31st, 8 P.M.

The team wheels Ambrose out of the apartment complex. A small U-haul truck is pulled up in front. Shaw goes around to the driver's seat.

V.I. is waiting there. "Hey I'm told you needed a truck."

"Yeah. Hey, Mill wants to talk to you." As Mill takes him aside, she gets into the driver's seat. The doctors load up Ambrose in the back.

Mill takes the journals and tapes to his car. As he is packing them in, V.I. probes him, "I didn't get a lot of details. I just heard you needed a truck and were transporting a person."

"Yes," he says. "Shaw's going to handle that end. I need your advice on some tapes here from a fairly old computer."

"Wow," the young says at the massive magnetic reels.

"I'm not really sure how to access them," Mill explains.

"I don't know either. I'd have to ask around. I'm not really skilled with old computers."

"Okay. We also have these journals. These are German and the others are Cyrillic, so it must be in Russian."

"I know a little German," V.I. admits.

"Do you know anyone who can translate them?" the detective asks.

"I know some people. It shouldn't be hard." He looks over the books. "These are pretty old."

As they close up the truck V.I. asks, "who's the guy?"

"He's a guy in the case we've been working on. I'm not interested in him. I'm more interested in these items here. They could tell us a lot about the Tulpas and other things. They could unlock a lot of mysteries."

The monster hunter mulls that. "I would have thought Infinity would be interested in this. In this computer stuff."

"Seems reasonable. I think we want to take a look at them first."

Shaw drives the U-Haul to the meeting spot and set Ambrose up in the old office.

The old office of One of a Kind Investigations, Downtown, June 1st, 12:08 A.M.

A black muscle car pulls up in front of the office. Inside Shaw, Mill, and Ilyes get ready.

A woman steps out of the car. She is thin with brown skin and long curly hair sticking out in all directions. As she enters she asks, "So what did you find?"

Shaw surmises this is Infinity. "We've got him unconscious. He was very dangerous even in his paralyzed state."

Shaw shows her the video and pictures of the facility under the apartment complex.

"Interesting," Infinity says.

"Does it make any sense to you?" she asks.

"Not yet. I need to have a look at the machine itself."

"We are under contract to recover him," Shaw explains. "I'm sure they would like to look at the machinery too. There is no reason you couldn't as well but I would like to know a little more about this first. I'm dubious about giving him to Keystone."

The strange woman bluntly says, "no one would probably ever see him again."

"Well no one saw him for 20 years, he still did a whole lot of nasty stuff."

Infinity coldly says, "my guess is given the trouble they had last time, they will remove his brain and section it."

"So we'd be committing murder," Shaw grimly says.

"That would probably be the best option for him."

"What do you mean?"

Infinity continues, "alternatively they don't kill him and just experiment on him. Figure out what makes him special."

"What does make him special?" Shaw asks, curious.

Ilyes interjects, "he does have abnormally high brain activity even in his present state. His brain is way more active, hyperactive even. It doesn't match the pattern of a schizophrenic but then again I'd have to run some MRIs in order get a better idea."

"He possesses some sort of enhanced levels of psychic ability," Infinity explains.

"Inherent or learned?" Mill inquires.

"I'd expect a measure of both."

"What connection does he have with the house next door?" Shaw asks.

Infinity pauses for a moment. "I'm speculating, but I guess his abilities prevented him from being completely affected by it and somehow it either spurred or caused further development of his psychic abilities."

"Why is he doing this stuff?" Mills asks.

Infinity shrugs.

"What do you think we aught to do?" he asks.

"That's for you to decide," she tells them.

"We can't just let him go of course. Handing him to Keystone seems a little dicey. We could kill him but we're not going to do that. It's not clear what other options we have."

Shaw stops Mill's ramble. "You don't seem to be interested in Ambrose. What is your interest in all of this?"

"I want to discover what he found out," she explains. "But as you said he is dangerous. So I can't find it out from him."

Ilyes offers to wake up Ambrose but Mill cautions that the psychic can control minds.

"What languages do you speak?" Shaw asks.

Infinity seems surprised. "I can translate most languages. Why do you ask?"

Shaw explains, "Keystone didn't specify what they wanted done with the machinery and records we found. While I'm sure they would pay for them, we'd like to know what is in them too. You have the skills to access them. Perhaps we could work together on those? My suggestion is that you go over to the facility and take a look at the machinery itself before that scene becomes inviolable. We can meet again tomorrow night to look over the records. Of course we would like some compensation as I believe I mentioned."

Infinity pulls out a new smartphone and types into it. Her face becomes blank as if she was concentrating very hard. After a moment she says, "I've added what I think should be an adequate payment to your accounts."

After Infinity leaves, discussion turns to what to do next. No one entirely trusts the mysterious woman. Shaw suggests talking to Doretta first. Then there is the question of what to do with Ambrose.

"I'm less adverse to taking him off the machines and letting nature take its course," Mill says.

Dr. Ilyes however is much less happy with that solution. They decide to watch the old man for now.

Mill asks, "are we are not going to give Infinity the tapes and journals?"

Shaw explains they will lend her them to decipher them. To Mill's continued mistrust, she says, "I think as long as we cover ourselves, we can take one girl. Even if she is a world class hacker."

"I don't trust Infinity and her intentions with this stuff," Mill replies.

Shaw suggests making copies of the journals and bringing only one tape to the meeting.

June 1st

Shaw tries to sleep but between insomnia and bad dreams, she is exhausted. She trades off with Ilyes for guard duty around 3 A.M. She does note that Infinity deposited roughly what they are charging Keystone.

The teams visits Doretta Teesdale's house several times but she fails to appear. There are no cold spots or other anomalies.

"Maybe she's a manifestation of Ambrose," Shaw comments.

"Oh my gosh it was his subconscious trying to put him out of his misery because he didn't want to be controlled like this," Dr. Sorenson says.

Mill contacts V.I. and asks him to see what the Tulpa activity is like.

A few hours later he tells him, "we haven't seen as many of the doppelgangers."

"Any or as many?" Mill asks.

"I think we've had a couple sightings. But yeah most of them are gone."

"I guess there are doppelgangers that are not Grant's," he concludes.

The old office of One of a Kind Investigations, Downtown, June 2nd, 12:02 A.M.

Infinity enters Frank's office again, this time to meet with all of the investigators.

"I looked over the machinery," she says. "You took the magnetic recordings."

"Yeah we have one of them here," Shaw explains. "Will you be able to read them?"

"I think they have what I am looking for."

"What's that?" the detective asks.

Infinity hesitates. "I'm looking for a key."

"A key? Like to some sort of program?"

"Or a code?" Sorenson asks.

"Yes," Infinity replies.

"I'm sorry could you be more vague?" Shaw says.

Dr. Iyles interrupts, "I kind of get it. This computer in the basement is an absolute prodigy of early computer design."

Infinity disregard what he says and replies, "I'm looking for a key from this machine that would work in the machine you found under Hillcrest. Is that clearer?"

"What does the machine do under Hillcrest?" Sorenson asks. "We don't want you to do anything that would hurt anyone."

"It won't hurt anyone, what I'm trying to do," she says. "And I won't be using that terminal."

Ilyes signals that he understands what she is saying to Shaw.

"So what do these journals say?" Shaw asks directing her to the books on the table. "Is that not what you are looking for?"

Infinity begins to pour over the journals. As she does she spaces out again.

The group whispers among themselves. Shaw and Mill in particular act strangely moody. Sorenson notices that behind Infinity's high collar, on the back of her neck is something strange, perhaps a tattoo. Mill clearly makes out a dataport.

"Hey Shaw can I talk to you for a minute?" Mill whispers.

They go off and chat quietly about what he saw.

Meanwhile the doctors continue to question Infinity.

"Where did you acquire all of this knowledge of technology?" Sorenson asks.

"Former life," she says calmly. She picks up another journal.

"So those Russian and German journals, are they military technical journals?" Ilyes asks.

She puts down a book and picks up another. "The German ones are."

"West or East German?" he asks.

"Nazi," she says coldly. She looks at the last journal.

"Nazi?"

"I've seen some movies about those things," Sorenson says nervously. "Not very palatable."

Ilyes speculates. "OSS was working with Nazi researchers but they didn't really invest in computer science."

"No, this is brain research," Infinity explains, putting the book down.

"And the Russian journals?"

"The same with some computer work as well."

In the other room, Mill says, "I don't know if you noticed but she's a cyborg or something. She has a digital thing in the back of her head."

Shaw seems to believe him but isn't quite willing to turn on her. After short back and forth, they return to the main room.

"So you've translated them?" Shaw asks.

"Yes. They are research journals on brain activity, psychic research, and computer technology." Infinity relays some specific information from the journals.

"Research into the mind could be helpful to me," Sorenson says.

"These don't have what I'm looking for. You can keep them."

"Thanks," he says. "I'm a specialist in cognitive matters so I might be able to glean something from them. The translation will be hard though."

Ilyes warns the other doctor about the disturbing details likely included the journals.

Shaw reluctantly tells Infinity her doubts. "I'm having a lot of trouble...you've helped us out and you haven't done anything distrustful but we don't know what is on those disks. We know Ambrose's powers are very strong. I don't feel comfortable handing them over to you."

Infinity says calmly,"I can compensate you if that would make you feel better."

"It's not really that I can give you back the money but-"

Infinity cuts her off. "Perhaps we should talk about this at a later point."

"What you mean?"

"Hold onto them. Keep them safe. We'll talk in a few months."

"Alright," Shaw says reluctantly. "Okay."

"That sounds good," Mill agrees.

The old office of One of a Kind Investigations, Downtown, June 2nd, 12:12 A.M.

After Infinity leaves, Robert Mill says, "all I know I don't trust this Infinity person. Not at all. Even though she hasn't done anything other than spying on us at this point."

Shaw tells them, "one last person I'd like to talk to before dealing with Ambrose is Frank."

Ilyes adds, "as for this key, I think she is referring to is an encryption key. That is to say the operating system of Ambrose's computer is the same as the Hillcrest computer."

Shaw shakes her head. "The thing in the basement of the Hillcrest center is nothing like what we saw at the apartments."

"The cubes?" Mill says.

"Yes, the cubes," Shaw confirms.

Sorenson adds, "they are very dangerous."

They fill Ilyes in on their findings under the Hillcrest Center.

"The fact of the matter is that we are dealing with something that is the intersection of Nazi research, Soviet psychic research, and the CIA's MKULTRA project," Ilyes explains. "It's pretty safe to assume that there are some extremely valuable encryption protocols."

"It has to be alien technology," Sorenson says.

"Does it? Really?" Mill asks.

"How is Frank doing doctor?" Shaw asks, changing the direction of the conversation. Dr. Sorenson says he is doing well. They arrange to meet him early the next day.

Hillcrest Mental Health Center, Greenwood, June 2nd, 9 A.M.

As they sit in Sorenson's offce, the psychiatrist leans over and says, "Well we found Ambrose, Frank."

The old man says, "Oh right I was looking for him."

"Yes we found him in a coma," the Sorenson explains. "He is on life support."

"Oh," Frank says worried.

Dr. Sorenson continues, "and it seems as if he's able to affect others with his mind even in his paralyzed state. We have him heavily sedated."

"Good idea."

"We are trying to decide where to go next. If we pull the plug on him or turn him over to the Cheiron group. I'm sure they would pay more for him alive rather than dead but he might be dangerous either way."

"They-they are interested in that stuff," Frank states.

Sorenson asks his advice.

Frank mulls it over. "That's a hard question."

"I know. He may have been responsible by everyone affected by the Sandmen. He might be responsible for what happened to you."

Frank says, "then I suppose you have to pull the plug if he is that dangerous."

When the doctor mentions that they don't know what Keystone would do with him, Frank adds, "that would probably be worse."

Sorenson sighs. "I expect they don't have moral concerns about what to do to him. It might be an act of mercy to kill him."

"Then you should pull the plug," Frank tells him.

The old office of One of a Kind Investigations, Downtown, June 2nd, 10:30 A.M.

The investigators get into an argument about whether to kill Ambrose Grant. Dr. Sorenson suggests just turning off the machines.

"This goes against all of my medical ethics," Dr. Ilyes objects. "This is a helpless human being who is in our care. Without advice from a family member, legal guardian or attorney we are going to kill him."

"He is legally dead," Sorenson points out.

"He's biologically alive! I can tell you that! I've been taking care of him and I am going to have no part in killing a helpless individual who is at my mercy."

"You've worked in hospitals," Sorenson says, trying to win him over. "Families pull the plug all the time."

"Yes," he admits. "But they have lawyers, living wills, and families. He has nothing. The hubris that you can assume that you end the life of a human being."

"When I lived in California I voted for the death penalty," Sorenson quips.

"You are playing god!" Ilyes shouts.

"No I'm not," he says more seriously. "This man is dangerous to society. Society is more important than this one man in a coma. He is too dangerous to be allowed to live. His wife, whether she was a figment of Ambrose's imagination or a ghost, she wanted us to end his suffering. That is the closest we can get to his next of kin to find what they want."

"Spirits!?" Ilyes says disbelievingly.

"This is what you do for a living now," Sorenson says.

"No it is not! The first thing I pledged when I went to Bainard Medical School was to do no harm! This is not a sand person! This is not a groetnich! This is a human being!"

As Sorenson tries to explain how dangerous Ambrose is, Mill speaks up. "Let's wake the guy up. Let's wake the guy up and talk to him."

"No, step away from him," Shaw warns.

The argument continues. They try to figure out how they could contain him. Slowly Ilyes begins to win over Mill to his point of view but the discussion seems to go nowhere.

The idea of giving him to Keystone is brought up but Sorenson objects, "so they can do unethical experiements on him?"

"You just admitted we can't handle him," Ilyes retorts. "I am not going to be a part to a murder. I'm not denying that he didn't commit crimes. I'm not denying he's not dangerous."

Ilyes relays the story of the tulpa to them. In the story the tulpa is the concentrated will of a murdered monk, an idea of vengeance given form. "What's going to happen if he is killed?"

As the discussion continues, Shaw steps aside and sends a text message to Keystone.

A short time later a truck and a luxury car pull up front of Frank's office. Lisa Peterson walks into the office flanked by medical personnel.

"Good work," the well groomed woman says.

"You'll need to keep him fully sedated," Shaw warns.

Lisa looks at the doctor with her and nods. As the others look on helplessly, they wheel Ambrose away. Mill follows them in his rental car. They take him to their headquarters in Lake District. There is nothing he can do about it.

A very large check is deposited in the company accounts.

Friday, February 24, 2017

Corrupted Transmission: Cold Case, Part III

Another week of my hiatus and the detectives grow close to core of the mystery behind the Cold Case, the third story in my Hunter: the Vigil Chronicle: Corrupted Transmission. They escape Derro, talk to a ghost, but can they find the lost psychic?

Cold Case, Part III

Under the Hillcrest Mental Health Center, May 13th 8 PM

Trevor shoots the impossible black cube. The bullet flattens against its surface. As a ripple of light floats across the cube, Trevor begins to vanish as if he rotates out of reality.

Shaw turns to create a path of escape through the gang of children blocking the tunnel. She tries to manhandle the kids out of the way. Robert pulls his pistol and shoots one of them. As it screams in pain, its fellows rush forward and grab Shaw, pulling her down.

Others, towards the back, stare into Robert's eyes. He feels paralyzing fear. He realizes they are inside his mind and he freezes up.

Shaw frees herself and backs away. Suddenly her body is wracked with pain as the children use their powers on her. They run around her as she is stunned and a pair of them begin to drag Robert down the tunnel.

At that point Trevor reappears. Still freaking out he tries to flee but trips right into the children. However as they try to grab him, he again vanishes from reality.

Shaw meanwhile regains her composure to find the kids trying to pin her. She puts her gun to one of their heads and fires. The child melts into black goo. She fires again wounding the one Robert shot earlier. Their numbers diminishing she is able to beat her way free.

Trevor reappears again and scrambles back up the tunnel to the subbasement. The children chase after him but only weakly grab at his feet as he pulls his way up into the abandoned patient cell. Running into the operating room, he finds himself alone. With no one chasing him he is able to regain his composure.

He returns to the tunnel to find Shaw fighting off the last of the children. He shoots the most wounded one and it dissolves into black goo. The surviving children flee. However as the investigators catch their breath they realize Robert is gone.
Trevor leads the way down the tunnels searching for telltale drag marks of Robert's location. A trail of black blood from a wounded child goes down a side passage. They follow the main trail until it hits a fork. Faced with the choice of falling behind or losing him entirely, they carefully study the location. Ten minutes later, they take the left fork.

"How did they find the strength to carry him so quickly?" the doctor mutters. "They must have met up with some of their allies."

Elsewhere in the tunnels, Robert awakens alone in the dark. The earth floor is cool and damp. He searches around him. His gun, his pepper spray, even his shoes have been stolen. He thinks back to what happened. He remembers being carried through the dark, their thoughts in his head, and having strange rods pressed to his skin and the terrible pain they inflicted. He checks his body. He is unhurt.

Groping around, he finds a path downward out of the room as well as narrower passage upward. He hears noises approaching from below and hastily crawls up.

Meanwhile the others hear something ahead of them and race to meet it. The path slopes upward through an earthen chamber.

Robert climbs up out of a hole in a stone tiled floor. There is a foul smell in the air but he can see the dim outline of a door. He pulls himself up scattering some tiles and something like sticks. He pushes a stone door open and wanders out into a graveyard. It's dark but he can see street lights in the distance.

Trevor and Shaw climb up after him. They find themselves in a crypt. Shaw calls out to Robert.

"Where did the children go?" Sorenson wonders aloud.

"What?" Mill asks as he approaches.

Sorenson repeats the question and adds, "How did you get away?"

"I don't know. I don't know what happened."

"Are you hurt?" Shaw asks.

"No. Are you guys okay?"

"I shot one and it turned into black goo," she replies grimacing.

Robert thinks back. "That's what you said happened in the Hillcrest center once."

"I didn't see it that time," she explains.

"Well, when I saw Community kill one, that's what I saw," Dr. Sorenson adds.

Robert looks around. "Where are we? What time is it?"

Shaw looks up toward the hill where the Hillcrest Center looms. "Looks like the graveyard that surrounds the sanitarium."

"That makes sense."

Dr. Sorenson shifts uneasily. "Why did they dump you? I would assume they would have -"

"Killed me?" Robert interjects. "I don't know."

Shaw looks back at the crypt. It belongs to someone with the improbable name of Terrance Smiley.

Sorenson follows her gaze. "Well we have a back door if we need to return."

"I don't really want to go back there," Robert admits.

"I wonder what their purpose is?" the doctor asks. "I thought they were somewhat neutral."

"So you guys are alright then?" Robert asks.

"Except for my pride," the doctor says.

Shaw explains, "Sorenson came back and we were able to fight them off. Then we followed your trail here."

"Thanks for coming after me," Robert says.

"We've seen some crazy things. I wouldn't want to leave anyone to their control," Sorenson says.

They begin to discuss if anything down there was connected to Ambrose. Then Robert realizes something. "Frick, we need to get back to the hospital and gather up our stuff."

"It's not far," the doctor says.

Robert looks down at his dirty state of undress. "I can't go back given I'm missing some clothes."

"I can take care of things," Sorenson says.

Shaw takes charge. "Let's go back to the front and Sorenson and I will make sure the way in is closed."

Sorenson adds. "And we'll chalk that one up to experience and evaluate what we learned a different time."

They return to the hospital. While Robert takes a nap in the car, the others clean up the closet entrance, stacking up bricks and boxes to obscure the way into the subbasement.

Returning to the car, Sorenson suggests Robert might want to be checked out mentally and physically.

Robert adds, "Shaw I assume I do need to report to the police that I lost my gun? Probably not a good thing to lose a pistol."

"Yeah, you should report it stolen," she says.

"Good idea, let's report it stolen."

Then they head home.

Friday, May 14th

Robert Mill takes Friday off. That morning he wakes up again and again from terrible nightmares. He sees a giant child playing with black blocks. It offers him one.

Dr. Sorenson doesn't feel much better. He is nauseous and suffering a fever. He also takes off from work.

Shaw is left alone in the office to take care of the paperwork. She dutifully bills Keystone Pharmaceuticals for their night's labor, claiming their investigation was a follow up on one of the last known places Ambrose Grant was seen.

Around 10 AM Shaw calls Mill. He quickly answers, "Hello? What's going on?"

"Hey, how are you doing?"

He says tiredly, "I just got up for your call."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you would be up already. I just wanted to make sure you were okay. Do you need a ride to the hospital or anything?"

"That would be good." he says. "I haven't been sleeping too well. I feel a little off."

"Alright. Have you made an appointment yet?" she asks.

"No."

"Okay, I'll have Mavis schedule you. I'll text you when I come by."

"Thank you."

Later at the hospital, the doctor tells them Mill is physically fine, just fatigued. He is prescribed some sleep medication.

Dr. Sorenson diagnoses himself at home. He is clearly ill with some mundane bug, probably contracted during their trip to the sewers. He spends the day drinking plenty of fluids and watching G-rated movies with no children in them. Elsewhere Vito continues his recovery.

Shaw researches how to deal with ghosts. She tells Mill, "I definitely don't have my ouija board anymore."

Robert tells her how to contact VI to get some information from him. Reluctantly she goes through with it, spray painting an eye in a nearby alley. A few hours later Mill's phone rings. Mavis routes it to Shaw's phone.

"Got your message," VI says.

"Hi this is Shaw, Mill is recovering from one of our excursions," she replies.

Surprised he asks, "is he okay?"

"Yeah, I think he'll be fine. The doctor says there is no lasting damage. I was hoping you might be able to give me some pointers on contacting the dead."

"I can help with that," he admits.

"Am I going to need a ouija board?" she asks, seriously.

"Well, what are we talking about there? Poltergeists? An apparition?"

After some back and forth, they set up a meeting that evening to discuss the details.

"Great I'll bring up what I have on the contactee," Shaw says. After hanging up she calls the neighborhood watch to report the graffiti.

The Jade Garden, International District, Seattle, 6 PM

VI meets Shaw at the Chinese restaurant that evening. She shakes his hand. "I thought we could get dinner at the same time if that works for you?"

"Sure," he replies.

As they wait for their food, Shaw gives him a file on Doretta Teesdale. He reads over it and then asks, "Okay. So we don't actually know what she is like?"

"Not really." She goes over the reported sightings and asks, "Have you actually seen ghosts?"

Almost gleeful, VI pulls out his handy-cam. On the small video monitor, he shows her a strange green smudge floating in the air of some old house.

"Wait, wait here's the moment," he says. The apparition suddenly manifests as a mass of teeth and claws. The video ends. "I had to get out of there after that."

"That looked more like an animal than a person," she comments.

"Yeah. But it's a ghost."

"Is that a ghost of a person? Is that what happens to them?" she asks, curious.

"Some of them. I guess," he shrugs.

"I'm hoping Doretta is not as animalistic as that. Are there any special ways of talking to them? Or do they mostly choose to talk to you?"

VI shares the rumors he's heard of people with the ability to command ghosts. Unfortunately that's all they are, rumors.

"So is any particular time of day is best?" Shaw asks.

"Nights are best. The fewer people the better," he advises. He adds, "I've got some cameras that should pick them up."

"You mean I wouldn't be able to see that with my own eyes?"

"Only the last bit," he tells her. He fills her in on special filters, Kirlian cameras, and various energy meters. Shaw takes careful notes.

Shaw mentions their recent activities under the Hillcrest Center.

"What was down there?" he asks.

She tells him about the children.

"I've heard about them," he says. "They are some weird underground cult. I heard they eat people."

"Eat?" she says disbelievingly.

"That's what I heard."

Shaw explains the children didn't physically hurt them. "Even Mill and they had him for an hour."

"Is he really okay?" he asks skeptically.

"I don't know. But they certainly didn't eat him."

She tells him what they seemed capable of. As they wrap up, VI offers to help with the ghosts but Shaw declines his offer.

Saturday May 15th

Shaw gets floor plans for Doretta Teesdale's house. She calls Robert Mill and Dr. Sorenson.

The doctor is still recovering. "I think I'll be better tomorrow. I think I must have picked up something from the sewers."

Robert meanwhile is still sleeping poorly.

Shaw decided to contact the bank that owns the property. She convinces them to show her the place and allow her to investigate it. The detective claims she is representing prospective buyers who want to look into this haunted claim before buying. They arrange for someone to meet her Sunday afternoon at the house with the keys.

She also requests the cameras and energy meters from Keystone Pharmaceuticals. Lisa Peterson approves the requisition.

Rainier Valley, Seattle, Sunday May 16th 3PM

Shaw doses herself with BSNX-7 before going down to the house. A man from the bank is there to show her around. The property is a nicely maintained Victorian. It is partially furnished with no signs of its dark past.

A few hours later Robert Mill and Dr. Trevor Sorenson arrive. They head into the house with their new equipment.

"If we are lucky the ghost will contact us and we won't need all of this stuff," the doctor says.

"You call that lucky?" Robert says.

The open the blinds to let in more of the fading light.

"How did you wrangle this?" Sorenson asks.

Shaw explains she claimed to have buyers who wanted to have a closer look.

Robert perks up. "How much is it?"

Shaw tells him the price.

"Pretty good price."

Shaw pulls the camera and meters from the boxes. Robert trains the camera on her and sees an aura about her. She also tentatively hands Robert one of Frank's guns.

Robert decides not to take a meter. He seems withdrawn.

"Are you not feeling well?" Shaw asks.

"I'm just not sleeping well. I think whatever they did to me, it has caused me to be a little skittish."

"Maybe you should talk to the doctor?" she says.

He looks at Sorenson. "That doctor?"

"Yeah. He's under contract."

He mulls the idea. "Okay. It might not be the worst thing to do."
Shaw lays out the plan. They will sweep house with the cameras and meters first. Then they will set up to watch the house for the evening. She hands Sorenson one of the meters. "This is a fancy thermometer."

The doctor looks the device over. It seems to register something called psychokinetic energy as well as electric fields and temperature. He waves it around, picking up some spikes in activity.

Robert starts using the camera. "Is this thing recording?"

Shaw tells him, "just keeps your eyes open."

They soon detect a cold spot at the base of stairs. Shaw asks, "are you guys seeing anything here?"

Sorenson replies, "I'm getting some readings but I don't know how to interpret them."

Robert goes upstairs. He pats the doll hanging from his side. As he sweeps over a hallway, he sees an old woman for a moment in the video screen. He whispers downstairs, "Guys, guys! I saw something here!"

They come up but he doesn't see her up again. He rewinds the tape. There is a pretty woman with long dark hair streaked with gray.

"That looks like her," Shaw says.

"It matches the autopsy reports descriptions," Sorenson seconds.

After some more searching they decide to wait until dark. They set the cameras to focus on the stairs. Robert stays upstairs where he saw her while the others stay at the top and bottom of the stairs.

Sorenson waits at the bottom of the stairs, occasionally wandering a bit to make sure nothing is occurring elsewhere. While in the kitchen he spots a teapot on the stove. It looks like it was just placed there.

He shouts upstairs, "did someone leave a pot of tea on the stove?"

"No," Shaw and Robert's voices reply.

Shaw comes down to check on Sorenson. While Robert asks, "What kind of tea?"

Sorenson picks up the teapot. Its warm and full of water. "Someone put the kettle on to boil."

Shaw shouts, "any readings?"

Dr. Sorenson turns around to take a reading. There is a woman standing in front of him. Nervously he shouts back, "there's a woman down here."

The woman quietly asks him, "would you like some tea?"

Sorenson cautiously says, "we would love to have some tea and talk awhile. Thank you for communicating with us."

The woman tells him, "just sit in the living room. I'll bring be by in a moment with tea."

He nervously shouts upstairs, "she's serving tea in the parlor."

They gather in the parlor. Shaw sets her camera on fireplace mantel to record everything. Robert keeps looking through the camera. He catches her on video. She is translucent with a weak flickering aura.

Sorenson makes an effort to be polite to "Doretta". The teapot whistles and they can here her assembling tea.

"What kind of tea is it Mrs. Teesdale?" Robert asks.

She comes out with a platter with a selection of teas. She looks almost like her pictures, just a little older than when she died.

"Nice to have visitors," Doretta says.

"We're friends of Frank's," Shaw explains.

"How is he?" she asks setting down the platter.

"He's doing better," Shaw explains.

Dr. Sorenson adds, "we're trying to pick up the investigation where Frank left off."

"That's so nice of you," Doretta says. "Ambrose really does need your help."

"Yes, and it would help Frank a lot to help him in his troubles," he replies.

Shaw asks, "can you tell us what you know about Ambrose?"

As Shaw pulls out her pad, Doretta pours some tea. "Oh I really do hope you can find my husband. He is in such pain. The accident, it has left him trapped."

"Trapped how?"

The older woman says, "inside his body. He can't move, can't speak. He's in so much pain."

Dr. Sorenson says, "like a coma but he's completely coherent inside. If he could only connect with his physical body."

Doretta nods in agreement. "Yes. He needs your help to move on."

"Do you have any conception of where he might be?" Robert asks.

She looks down. "No, unfortunately. I just know he needs my help."

"What do you mean by move on?" he presses.

"There is nothing that can be done for him. He is still in pain while he is alive." She hesitates. "I know it's sounds horrible but he needs to be allowed to die."

"What's stopping him?" Shaw asks.

"He wants to die but he can't do it on his own," Doretta explains. "Some part of him won't let him do that."

Robert asks if Ambrose had any enemies. "Ambrose had many enemies but I don't think any of them are involved. I think he is just trapped in a prison of his own making."

Dr. Sorenson asks if there might be paperwork about where he is. She says, "whatever they are doing to him, it is not legal."

Robert asks about if Ambrose really had psychic powers. She explains, "Yes. He could read minds, lift objects, and change what people think."

"He sounds like a very special man," Sorenson says softly.

"He is," she says smiling.

Shaw asks Doretta if she is sure Ambrose can effect the world while paralyzed. She press for evidence.

Doretta looks into her tea. "He pushed me."

"Why would he do that?" Shaw asks. "You obviously care about him."

"I do, it's just...I think he blames me for what happened to him."

"Why would he jump to such a terrible conclusion?" Dr. Sorenson asks.

"We were drinking and we had an argument. I-I pushed him. I didn't mean to hurt him but he fell. He fell into the water. I tried to save him but he was gone."

"Why would he push you after so long?" Shaw asks.

Doretta speculates, "maybe he that was when he realized I was in the city."

"How do you feel?" Robert asks.

"Heavy." She sighs. "I just need you to take care of this one last task to help Ambrose."

They review her time with Ambrose, the arguments and the estrangement, looking for missing clues.

"Did you hope to reconcile with him, before the accident?" Sorenson asks.

"Yes."

Robert backs away from the conversation and scans the area for anything else happening. Shaw reviews her notes and Dr. Sorenson continues the questioning. Doretta doesn't seem to be lying or holding anything back.

Doretta's House, Rainier Valley, 9 PM

Robert Mill notices three figures outside. They appear to be men in dark suits.

"Shaw," he says beckons her to the window. He turns the camera on them. They are blurry with weird spiky auras.

As Shaw joins him at the window, Dr. Sorenson asks, "do you know of any projects or research he was doing that could have led to this?"

"He had some sort of project," Doretta says. "I don't know what it was about."

"Do you know where he might have kept notes or records, any sort of documentation about what he was doing?"

"I don't know."

Dr. Sorenson glances at the others. They are looking out the window. The men outside have blank face, just sunglasses, a nose and line for a mouth. No lips or eyebrows, no lines on their smooth faces.

Shaw gives a signal for them to back up and grabs her camera from the mantle. "Miss Teesdale?"

"Yes?" the woman says.

"There are three creatures approaching. Are they known to you?"

"No."

"Does your house have any defenses."

"No."

Sorenson tells Doretta, "We may have to leave abruptly but do you know of any location that Ambrose may have hidden any of his research? A secret office he might have had?"

She thinks quickly. "He spent a lot of time in Yesler Terrace. I don't know what he was doing down there. I never really asked."

The investigators quickly psyche themselves up to deal with the Tulpas. Shaw explains she wants to talk their way out, hopefully pumping them for information.

They head for the front door. As they leave Sorenson tells Doretta, "Thank you for the tea. We'll keep you updated."

They exit out the front and Shaw locks up behind them. The three figures are on the front lawn in front of them.

"Oh hey. Hi. How's it going?" the doctor says to the mannequin like figures. "I don't suppose you've come to take a look at the place?"

They look blankly at him.

"Hello?" Shaw says.

One of them steps forward.

The doctor says, "we can talk about this right? You have some interest here."

They begin to walk forward.

Shaw shouts, "Stop!"

As they continue their advance, Mill quickly draws his gun and shoots one of them. It moves with superhuman speed but the bullet goes through its heart. It screams and its skin flakes away like old paint. In seconds it is reduced to nothing more than a pile of clothing.

"That's not what we discussed!" Shaw shouts.

"That plan failed." Robert replies bluntly.

The other two "men" close with Robert. They scuffle with him and one clips his shoulder with a wild swing.

Shaw grapples with one of them while Sorenson tackles the other, knocking it off balance. It swings wildly at him, grazing his back.

Shaw meanwhile ducks under a headbutt. She tries to pin the man but he is too strong for her.

Sorenson pulls his pocket knife and tries to keep their attention on him. "Come on bring it on!"

Robert takes his time. He moves away form the combat, aims and shoots the one on Sorenson in the shoulder. It begins to act strangely, tottering away with its features melting like hot wax. It begins to become shorter and shorted until it completely disintegrates.

"Help me pin this guy!" Shaw shouts just as the last one breaks free of her hold.

Robert wings him with a bullet. He seems hurt but doesn't bleed. Shaw tries to wrestle him again with Sorenson's help but he slips away.

Then he becomes invisible.

"We need to take him alive," Shaw says, still able to see him. "Get your cameras out. He's still right there."

She jumps at him but slips and smashes her face into the concrete. By the time she recovers he is gone.

They search the scene quickly. There are no signs of how they got here and no residue on the clothes.

"Let's get out of here before the cops come," Sorenson says. He turns to Robert. "I thought that the plan was we weren't going to go in guns blazing?"

"I was scared."

"How about you hand me that gun," Shaw demands.

Offices of One of a Kind Investigations, Downtown, 10 PM

Back at the office, the investigators discuss their next step.

Shaw starts with, "We didn't learn much new there. We can have Ilyes analyze the clothes, but there doesn't seem anything left of them."

"It's possible that the matter that composes their bodies returns to whatever dimension they came from," Dr. Sorenson speculates.

"Dimension?" Shaw says incredulously.

Sorenson babbles something about astral projections and dimensions of the mind.

"What does that mean? Astral Projection," Robert asks.

Sorenson describes it as sending one's mind to other locations. "I'm not saying I believe in astral projection but they match up with that. They may have returned to their bodies when disrupted."

"They weren't very sturdy that's for sure," Robert comments. "That does lend some credence to that idea."

They go over the Tulpas and their invisibility effect. It seems to be purely mental.

Shaw points out, "whoever is trying to stop us is watching that house. It could be Ambrose himself."

"I just had a crazy thought," Dr. Sorenson says. He explains his idea that the creatures may be aspects of Ambrose's mind trying to stop them from finding him. The others admit they had the same conclusion.

"Doretta could conceivably be a thought form of Ambrose," Shaw adds.

"Part of his subconscious trying to defeat himself," he muses.

They review the facts and theorize that Ambrose might be behind all of this, even the missing person case of Kenneth Thomas.

Planning for their next step they outline a few possibilities. Frank might know something. They could also return to the House or investigating next door at Ashwood Heights. They might also shadow Dr. Warden.

Shaw advocates caution. She advises them to do a bit more research first.

Turning to Robert, she says, "you know, on the police force, whenever you discharge your weapon you have to write a report. You've been a little bit gun happy. I'm not saying it hasn't been unproductive but it's starting to worry me a little bit honestly."

"I agree that I'm becoming the new Vito," Robert reluctantly agrees. "You have my gun anyway so it's less of a problem."

They decide to work some more on the case on Monday.

Offices of One of a Kind Investigations, Downtown, Monday May 16th

Shaw and Mill research Ashwood Heights. It is managed by a company called Millenial Housing. The finances for the place are pretty bad. It doesn't seem built to turn a profit, charging very low rents for what, on paper, should be a nice place to live. It was supported by a trust but that is almost empty.

The complex itself is three stories high with fifty units. The entrance process requires a strange and complex approval process, including a questionnaire about the applicant's history. They notice that the construction work involved several invoices for material used in medical and computer equipment.

That evening as they fill in Sorenson, he speculates, "there is some hidden place there. Maybe that is where he ended up. His body might be in that place. The apartment complex could be a front to hide him."

They also identify the apartment manager, Gordon Fisher, as a person of extreme interest. He oversees everything at the complex, including Millenial Housing. He lives at the complex himself.

Shaw also asks Keystone Pharmaceuticals if they can look into what reports they have of Tulpa sightings before the 90s. Lisa Peterson promises to have a report later in the week.

Hillcrest Mental Health Center, Greenwood, Tuesday May 17th, 3 PM

Robert Mill goes to his meeting with Dr. Sorenson to counsel him on his recent violent tendencies.

"Tell me about your feelings," Sorensosn begins.

"Before all of this began happening, I guess I was peaceful. I was always cautioning us not to rush into things. I've been slipping more and more where my first thought is violence. Maybe I'm being paranoid, maybe I'm not. It's wrong that I'm shooting first. But these things are bad they are trying to hurt us. I'm just not sure if that's me anymore or what."

Sorenson tries to get him started on deep breathing exercises but Robert objects. "How is deep breathing going to help me with my problems? My problems are that I think people are trying to kill me."

Sorenson tells him he has other options than shooting in a conflict. He also advises him to get a tazer instead of a gun.

Offices of One of a Kind Investigations, Downtown, Thursday May 19th, 5 PM

The Keystone report arrives. There are some sightings dating back to 1970s, but activity went way up in the 90s.

As Shaw is looking over this, her phone rings. "Hello?"

A distorted voice replies, "you are looking into what is happening with Millennial Housing. I can save you some time."

"Alright," she says turning on the recorder.

"This may be hard for you to understand," the caller cautions.

"I'll try to wrap my mind around it," She says sarcastically.

"Ambrose was continuing the work that Moorcock started at Hillcrest. He developed a device to tap into people's minds. A computer for sifting through their thoughts. He found things there."

"In the subconscious?" Shaw asks.

"Yes. Things like...well you've seen some of the fruits of that labor."

"Tulpas?"

"Yes."

"Are the machines still there?" She asks.

"Yes," says the voice of who could only be Infinity.

"At the house or the apartment?"

"Somewhere in the apartment complex," Infinity explains.

"Why haven't you acted on this information?" Shaw asks suspiciously.

"It might take a bit of time and investigation. I'm not the best with dealing with people," Infinity admits.

"Why?"

Infinity hesitates. "Let's just say if you can find out what he found there, I'll let you know."

"Alright. Do you know if there is any further danger there than we encountered before?"

"I'm not really sure. It's possible though it will attract Dr. Warden."

"Is there a way to neutralize him?" Shaw asks.

"I think the vials of BSNX-7 you have should protect you. It should limit his effects on you."

"That's good to know. Are you still monitoring all my calls?"

"No," Infinity answers though Shaw doesn't believe him.

After the call. she calls in Robert Mill and let's him know. They plan to investigate Mr. Fisher and stakeout the apartment.

Monday, February 20, 2017

Corrupted Transmission: Cold Case, Part II

The investigators dig deeper (literally) into the mystery of Cold Case, the third story in my Hunter: the Vigil Chronicle: Corrupted Transmission. What will they find under the the earth? Can they save Vito? Will they get paid?

Cold Case, Part II

Offices of One of a Kind Investigations, Downtown, Wednesday, May 12th 9 AM

Robert Mill walks into the office. He goes into the bullpen and sets his stuff down before noting Vito isn't in yet.

Mavis pops in. "Do you know where Vito is?"

"Um, no," he says. "I'm not sure what's up with him. I'm sure it's just fine though. He's probably working for the military again."

"O-kay," the secretary says, unsure how to take that.

Robert meanwhile gets to work, writing up his report on the cheating husband case.

Shaw enters the office, still flush from her morning workout. She heads for her office.

Mavis catches up with her. "There was a call earlier today from a Mrs. Peterson, she was interested in hiring us."

"Great," she says. "Who is she?"

Mavis hands over the contact information. It is Lisa Peterson, from Keystone Pharmaceuticals. "Uh...thanks."

Mavis continues, "Oh, Vito hasn't come in today. Is he on some case? I didn't see anything on the schedule."

"No," Shaw says distracted. "He doesn't have any reason to be on fieldwork right now."

"I'll give him a call then."

Shaw sets the contact info on her desk and pokes her head into the bullpen. "Hey I'm about to contact Keystone Pharma for a job. You might want to upgrade our office security."

With Robert mulling over that, she picks up the phone and calls the executive.

Mrs. Peterson's gentle voice comes over the line. "Hello."

"Miss Peterson, this is Lillian Shaw. I was told you might have a need for some private security work."

"It's more a missing person case," the executive explains.

"I see." Shaw mulls this over.

"I think this might be mutually beneficial to us. It involves a celebrity that went missing some time ago. Perhaps you've heard of him: Ambrose Grant."

Shaw feigns ignorance. "That's the magician who disappeared, like really?"

"Yes," she replies seriously. "We'd like to hire you to find him for us."

"What makes you think he's still alive? Or are we looking for his remains?"

"We have reason to believe he's still alive. I'd rather not talk about why over the phone. Could we meet someplace?"

"Are you implying my office is not secure?" Shaw says indignantly.

"There are many interested parties," Lisa intimates.

"Well we could meet at that cafe we met at last time," Shaw suggests.

"Certainly. I'll make there is a reservation there. For this afternoon perhaps?"

"Sure."

Lisa tells her when to meet. "Thank you I look forward to seeing you."

After hanging up, Shaw draws up a standard contract for this kind of work though she increases their rates by fifty percent. They will pay for that stolen computer.

As she heads out to her meeting, she asks Mavis, "Did you ever hear from Vito?"

"No," she says worried. "I called his house there was no answer. I left a message. I tried his house number and cell."

Shaw looks into the bullpen but all of her other detectives are out working. She thinks to herself, 'I hope he didn't go after Dr. Warden alone.'

Capitol Hill, 10 AM

Shaw find Lisa Peterson seated at a discrete booth.

"I'm glad you could make it," Lisa says as Shaw sits. "I think we may have gotten off on the wrong foot last time. I hope that our dealings here can be a bit more trusting."

"A rare commodity," Shaw says.

"Yes." Lisa pulls a file folder out of her briefcase. She slides the file over. "Take this as a peace offering. It should help in the investigation."

As Shaw opens it, Lisa adds, "before you look over that, please know this should remain confidential."

She nods and looks over the file. Written for the Chieron Group, it details a potential asset: Ambrose Grant. The comprehensive report covers everything about his life, including details on his CIA activities. These seem to have been reconstructed from stolen government papers and extensive independent investigation. Most of the research appears to have been completed in the mid 80s.

The tale they tell is strange but fits with what they already know. Ambrose was a spy and an assassin for the CIA, using his psychic powers at their direction while stationed in Eastern Europe. After leaving the CIA, he became a flamboyant magician. Chieron had their eyes on him, hoping to learn more about his abilities. Shaw notes that the wording is very similar to that used in the report by Frank's friend, Rajiv.

The company had Ambrose under close surveillance. When Ambrose had his accident, the Chieron Group snatched him from Harborview Medical Center. Under the Pleseus Guild they moved him to the Hillcrest Mental Health Center. Ambrose's condition was stable but he was totally and permanently paralyzed. His brain waves indicated he was conscious. However three weeks into their study, mysterious men, possibly acting under his orders, broke into the Hillcrest center and removed him. A pursuit was launched but nothing was found.

Shaw finds no clues from where the second transfer form originated from the report. The Chieron Group seems ignorant of it. She looks up at Mrs. Peterson. "So why the sudden interest in this man? This was over 20 years ago."

"Well it had come to our attention that others were looking for Ambrose," she says. "First there was his ex-wife and more recently a friend of yours. Neither came to a good end. There must be something to find."

Shaw turns back to the report. The final part deals with the Ambrose's theft or escape. There are pictures of six blurry intruders in dark suits. The report confirms they were not working for the government. The blurry effect seems to be either supernatural or technological in origin. There was no sign of approach but they escaped on foot.

"I assume the intruders don't match anything in your records," Shaw states.

"There have been a number of theories put forward as to the type of the beings involved." Peterson slides over a second folder. "This our best theory."

The folder contains several files. It begins with a more recent investigation of Millenial Housing, a rental company that was founded in the 1970s by Ambrose Grant. The people living the apartment complex owned by the company report experiencing a strange forgetfulness. In the course of their investigation they discovered the House and the Sandmen, referred to as Memnovores here. The company tried to study them but it was too dangerous as agents would vanish, be replaced by doppelgangers, or go insane. So they hired the Ave Rats Cell.

The second file discusses the two supernatural creatures related to the house and the apartment complex next door. The material on the Sandmen, or Memnovores, is pretty familiar from Dr. Ilyes's reports. It seems they subsist on memories. If they drain enough memories they can turn another person into one of them. Though they exist elsewhere they are much more common and organized in Seattle.

As for the doppelgangers, Chieron calls them Tulpas or Thought Projection Forms after the Tibetan myth. The Tulpas are almost as much of a mystery to Cheiron as to the investigators. They lack a proper biology and utterly disintegrate when killed. They photograph poorly and appear in mirrors as blurs. This is suspected to be an effect of negative L-field dissonance by the corporate scientists. Exposure to sensitives, such as psychics, causes erratic changes. Beings of this sort turn up now and again in the world but never in such numbers and never with a larger agenda.

Shaw slides her contract over to Peterson. She signs it. "There will be a sizable bonus if you bring Ambrose back to us."

As Shaw leaves she gets a text from Robert: 'Suspect was not cheating on his wife. The suspicious activity was he was planning a party for her. Very sweet. Case closed, heading back to office now.'

Offices of One of a Kind Investigations, Downtown, Noon

Robert Mill gets back to the office. Those two hours of stakeout didn't turn out like normal. Maybe the world isn't so bad.

Turning his computer screen back on, he sees two new files on his computer desktop: Warden.jpeg and address.txt. The jpeg shows a hospital hallway, probably Harborview, with a blurry image of a doctor in the center. Oddly the rest of the picture is clear even the nurse at the edge. The txt file has an address in Central District for Dr. Adam Warden.

Thinking of Infinity, Robert mutters, "always the needless mystery with this guy."

He forwards the files to the others: 'Possible location on Dr. Warden. Advise if we want to pursue.'

He gets a text back from Shaw: 'Where did you get this information?'

'Our good friend' he sends back.
Somewhere in the darkness, Vito's phone lies on a dank floor. It buzzes then dies.

Bainbridge Island, Washington, 4PM

Shaw walks up to Vito's house. The sun is shining and the sky is clear for a change. She rings the bell but there is no answer. Checking around back she sees his boat is gone. She heads over to his mailbox. Yesterday's mail is gone. So he came home last night then left.

She smells a barbecue going on next door. She approaches the man cooking and says, "hey."

"Hey," he says in reply.

"Nice day," she says.

"Yeah."

"Don't get too many of these." The man laughs as she continues. "You may have seen me around. I work with Vito."

"Oh right, right," he says. "That guy."

"I was actually wonder if you'd seen him. He didn't come into work today.'

"Nah," the man says keeping his attention on the grill. "I haven't seen him all day."

"His boat was gone in the morning?" she asks.

"Yeah, I think so." The man scratches his head.

"Is there any local busy body around here who might have seen something?" she inquires.

He scowls. "Ah, yeah there's Winny. She lives a few houses down."

"Thanks. If you hear anything here." She hands him her card. "Hopefully it's just that his cell phone died. Still it is a little strange, he's pretty good about calling in."
Shaw heads down the street where an old woman is tending flowers.

"Hey," she says. "Oh that's great I can never get things to grow like that."

The woman warms to Shaw and unloads on the difficulties of weeding, dealing with neighborhood dogs, and the general irresponsibility of those around here.

"I hear you," Shaw says. "Actually I work with someone who lives a couple houses down, Vito, you know him?"

"Yes," Winifred says sourly.

"I came by looking for him," Shaw explains. "He didn't come into work today. So I wanted to make sure he wasn't sick or something."

"I don't think he's sick," the old woman says. "He went out last night. Late."

Shaw feigns sympathy. "Late? Oh man, he keeps all hours doesn't he?"

"Yeah, I was trying to sleep and I hear his boat start up around 11," Winny complains.

"And he hasn't come back yet?"

"No."

Shaw sounds worried. "Did he seem okay? There weren't other people with him or anything?"

"No I don't think so."

"Okay, maybe he forgot to charge his cell phone."

"Some people." Winny begins complaining about negligent workers.

Shaw listens for a while and then tells her, "enjoy the rest of the day."

Downtown, 5 PM

Shaw returns to the city. She talks to her police contacts. With a little work she is able to track down Vito's last known location. He was by the entrance to the sewer, specifically where Terrance Smith had vanished. A security camera showed him in a raincoat wearing a miner's helmet and a mysterious bulge under his coat (likely a shotgun to her trained eye).

Shaw texts Robert Mill and Dr. Sorenson: 'Have a new client with deep pockets, meet at house boat at 7'

She then heads home to sweep for bugs.

Shaw's houseboat, Lake Union, 7 PM

Robert and Dr. Sorenson arrive at the same time.

As they walk in Robert sighs, "more after hours work."

"Well we can bill this," Shaw says, smiling.

"Oh? Sweet."

"In fact I'm really hoping to run up some overtime. Though you might not be happy, doctor, with our current employer. You might want to know that they are basically running the Hillcrest Center anyway."

"Whose is this?" Sorenson says confused.

"Keystone," Shaw tells him. She fills them in on her meeting and hands them the files.

After looking them over, Robert asks, "do we have any indication that Ambrose is a bad guy?"

"He was an assassin for the CIA according to their records," Shaw says. "Then again they are their records."

"I agree that's bad," he admits.

They go over Frank's files again, focusing on his reasons for going on the case. What did Doretta know?

"I had a conspiracy thought about that," Sorenson says. "Maybe it wasn't her that was trying to find him. Maybe it was one of these doppelgangers trying to find him."

Shaw counters with, "well she died after he was hired and her remains didn't disappear."

Robert posits that Ambrose may still be paralyzed and psychically controlling these doppelgangers.

"I don't believe their abilities are totally hocus pocus magic," Sorenson says. "They work under some unknown scientific principles that we just haven't uncovered yet."

Conversation turns to Dr. Warden. As they examine the picture, Shaw says, "if he is one of these doppelgangers, then he has been there for at least 3 years." She wants them to determine if he replaced a real person or is completely fabricated.

After that Shaw brings up something that is troubling her. "By the way, I think Vito went into the sewers last night and he hasn't come back."

"Oh god he went by himself?" Trevor exclaims.

"Pretty sure," She says. She shows them the still from the security camera. "And his phone is not working."

"Reception is pretty crappy underground," Trevor mutters.

"We should go into the sewers to rescue him then," Robert advises.

"Do we know where he went down there?" Sorenson asks.

"Yes," Shaw says.

"Let's hold on this Warden thing and look for Vito," Robert opinions. "Presumably he's dead or dying if he hasn't come back. Or he's captured."

"Or he's lost," Sorenson says.

Shaw pulls a map of the tunnels beneath downtown. Erin's earlier research was about to pay off. A brief discuss erupts over how dirty the storm drains will be.

Shaw tells them, "I'll understand if you guys want to swing by your house and pick up some disposable clothes."

"But it's not going to smell as horrible though right?" Robert worries. "It is more just water down there as opposed to sewage."

Shaw replies, "right except there is a monster down there killing people."

"You don't want to wear your good clothes," Dr. Sorenson comments.

"I'm with you on that," Robert quips. "Plus I don't have any good clothes."

Dr. Sorenson voices his worry that Vito was their best combatant. He advises, "we need to stick together."

Robert suggests bringing the grenades, but Shaw vetoes that idea. To allay worries, she points out that only animals and people on their own have gone missing.

They arm themselves with guns, maps, and flashlights. Dr. Sorenson brings a comprehensive first aid kit as well as a pocket knife. Robert Mill readies his pepper spray while Shaw secretly injects herself with some of the last of the BNSX-7.

Downtown, 10 PM

As they head for the sewer entrance, Shaw recognizes the prostitute on the corner. She approaches the woman and asks, "by the way if you don't hear from me tomorrow, could you let the cops know?"

With the knowledge at least someone might come after them, the investigators descend into the sewers. The rusty rungs under the grate stick out of damp concrete. Robert is down first, splashing into ankle high water. His tennis shoes fill instantly. Sorenson's galoshes handle the moist environment better. Shaw is down last, wearing thigh high leather boots.

Robert curses and shines his light around the damp tunnel. He spots a raincoat downstream of them.

As Mill picks it up, Sorenson asks, "why would he have left his coat?"

They check the coat but its empty. They speculate he might have just left it behind.

Moving on, they walk down tunnel until they find the ladder mentioned in Frank Brooks's file. The grime on the lower rungs has been knocked off, indicating someone used it recently. They climb up, swinging over part way into a gap in the wall. The tunnels here are drier, consisting of old sealed off basements. They can pick up some recent foot traffic.

They find the site of Frank's cannibal family. The area is still blackened from the fire two decades ago. A few bones litter the ground and a rock has been shifted away from the wall. Shaw looks closer. The rocks was moved very recently and there is an old crib inside, untouched by the fire.

Sorenson meanwhile focuses on the old bones. They are human, though the skulls are missing. At least four individuals. One was only a child. The bones show signs of malnutrition but the also signs of extreme musculature. They must have been stumpy body builders.

"I think this is a crib over here," Shaw says.

"A crib?" Robert asks.

Shaw holds up a chew toy from the crib. A squeaky noise is emitted when she squeezes it.

Robert relays the details of the footprints on the ground. There are three sets: two with shoes and one barefoot. All the prints head further down the tunnel. One of the prints could be Vito's. Those are very recent.

Sorenson seems worried but Shaw reassures him, "It is good if he's walking."

"Do we want to call out?" the doctor suggests.

"No."

They turn their lights down the tunnel. It slopes down and a thin layer of water covers the floor. They trudge down to an four way intersection.

Shining his light down the tunnels, Robert spots something down the left hand branch, a helmet with a built in flashlight.

As he points it out, Sorenson says, "he wouldn't have left that behind. Unless..."

Robert cuts him off. "I guess we go left."

"Let's mark this tunnel so we know how to get back." The doctor scratches an arrow on the wall.

"Good," Shaw says. "You two go first I'll guard our rear."

Sorenson pulls his pistol and holds it out crossed with his flashlight as they move forward. Shaw stops him and adjusts his grip to something more reasonable.

The tunnel up ahead is rough but drier. As they move through a zigzagging portion, something comes out of the shadows behind them.

Robert hears it moving and whirls around. He quickly back peddles into a wall as he fires his gun. The creature screeches in pain as the bullet blows through its shoulder. The other investigators are deafened by the noise in the tight space. In the flash of the gunshot, they see a pale deformed person with large cataracted eyes.

Shaw turns her gun on it. She shouts, "stand down!"

Sorenson freaking out, shoots it. The bullet penetrates its legs. Red blood splatters the wall behind it. It scurries away in agony, slipping into a 2 foot high tunnel that was cloaked in shadow.

"We've got to find its lair," Sorenson says, breathing heavily. "If somehow it got the jump on Vito and dragged him back to its lair, it might consume him."

"WHAT?" Robert says, still deafened. After a moment he adds, "I need to wear ear plugs."

Shaw meanwhile keeps her gun trained on the hole it fled down. The others look for signs of where Vito went. They find drag marks of Vito's body continuing down the tunnel.

"It probably has more pop-up holes," Shaw says. "Keep a look out."

Sorenson scratches an "X" over the hole and they continue on.

The tunnel descends a bit. Sewage drips from cracks in the ceiling. Robert covers his face to cover the stench. Soon afterwards they find the tunnel is crossed by a torrent of water. They spot Vito's trail on the far side and leap across. The tunnels slopes up gentler, becoming drier until it reaches a series of steps going down.

"Hold up," Shaw says, spotting another bolt hole low to the ground. She shines her flash light into the small tunnel. Drops of fresh blood cover the floor but there are no other signs of the monster. Sorenson scratches an "O" above the tunnel.

As they descend the steps, Robert halts them, "hold up." He points out the dusty fishing line across the path. The line is tied to a wooden brace. looking up they see it's holding up much of the ceiling. "Frick look at that. Good grief."

"Good eyes," Shaw says.

Robert disarms the trap and they press on. They pass through a break in a brick wall and find themselves in a warehouse basement. The air is foul down here as if something died. Shing the light around, they see stacks of crates and piles of bones. Most of the remains are from animals but not all. None of the human skulls are present.

They follow the trail of fresh blood. In the center of the room, they find a clearing. Four human skulls stand balanced on sticks, looming over a pile of a half dozen skulls. One in the pile is still covered in blood.

Dr. Sorenson takes a look at it. It's probably male and looks like the flesh was gnawed off. "That looks like our author's skull."

Shaw recovers the skull. They look around for the cannibal. As Sorenson looks up, Robert spots it hiding under a mass of blankets and bedding. He turns his pistol on it and fires.

It screams and leaps to its feet. As it hisses at them, Robert fires again. The bullet splatters its brain across the back wall. It falls forward and dies.

"Is that the only one?" Dr. Sorenson asks.

"I think so," Shaw says. "Keep your wits about you in any case."

Robert looks down at the corpse. In the light it's just a blind deformed human. "I think I might throw up actually. I think I will."

After Robert regains his composure, they search around and find Vito's unconscious form. Sorenson breaks out the medical kit. His vitals are weak but steady. He removes the crude rope restraints and patches him up as best he can.

"This could be pretty good publicity for us," Shaw speculates. "Just saying."

Sorenson looks up from his work. "How are we going to get him out of here? He needs medical attention."

They decided to rig up a carrying device with the rain coat. Shaw takes pictures of the scene. Then they drag Vito out as well as Terrance's remains.

Once above ground they get Vito to the hospital. Shaw lets her hooker friend know that she is alright.

After the doctors tell them Vito will be okay, Sorenson says to the others, "hopefully he will learn his lesson not to go off on his own. It's arrogant, stupid."

"It really is," Shaw agrees.

Shaw takes care of filing a report with the police. They turn over the skull and map out where the cannibal's lair is. Shaw also gives them an edited version of Frank's file (minus the part with the murdering cannibals).

As they head home for the night, Shaw tells Robert and Sorenson, "write up your notes for the Ambrose investigation in the morning so we can bill those hours."

That night before sleep, Dr. Sorenson takes three showers.

Seattle, May 13th and 14th

The company shadows Dr. Warden for a day. Shaw brings Dr. Ilyes in to help while Vito recovers. Warden maintains a fairly boring routine. He leaves the house at 7:30 AM each morning, stops at Starbucks on his way to work, and then works at the hospital until late at night. Then he goes home and sleeps. Dr. Sorenson's medical contacts reveal the doctor spends a lot of time in the less used parts of the hospital.

Their research on the doctor turns up very little. After pouring over files, websites, and other documents, they discover he doesn't seem to exist. He has no college record, no birth certificate, and no organization connections. The hospital records have him listed as Adam Warden. He's worked there since 1990 as a general practioner. He definitely has medical knowledge though and works on patients everyday.

With some work they put together a sketch of his appearance. He has a family resemblance to Ambrose. His neighbors have never seen him at local parties. His finances are boring. He is 15 years into a 30 year mortgage on his house and has no outside investments.

As Sorenson begins his latest government conspiracy theory, Robert goes over their data.

Robert ask, "what I want to know is, is Grant an evil fiend controlling all of this or is he a pawn of some sort, having things happen to him?"

"It could be that he was just born with this ability that led to his recruitment," Sorenson speculates.

"Our current employers just want to find him," Shaw says. She argues Warden is connected to Grant somehow. He is clearly one of these Tulpas. He was also the last person to see Frank. He even shares Ambrose Grant's original first name. "Warden is our best live link but I don't want to move in on him until Vito recovers."

Sorenson nods. "I agree we don't want to leap into anything with him yet."

"Our research is that he is a boring doppelganger," Robert says. "He doesn't do anything."

Shaw considers that. "But it must be important if he's held that position for so long."

"And the coma patients were talking about him."

"If that's what they were talking about," Sorenson opinions.

They discuss their next step. They still haven't tried contacting Doretta, his ex-wife. She might be dead, but Frank's file suggests she is a ghost. Sorenson suggests now might be the time. Robert warns it could be a trick and that she was really a doppelganger. Robert suggests dealing with tunnels beneath Hillcrest Center first.

Sorenson suggest Frank might know something. In the end they decide to talk to Frank. Then Shaw weighs in for dealing with the tunnels. "Our employers might not want us to tear down that wall. So I want to do it and then bill them for it. You talk to Frank and we'll meet up with you after hours."

Hillcrest Mental Health Center, Greenwood, May 13th, 4 PM

Frank sits down in Dr. Sorenson's office. He seems relatively at ease.

"Frank, you seem to be doing a lot better."

"Yes, I think so," he says cautiously.

"Well we have been looking into some of your old case work, hoping we would find some clues that would understand your condition a bit more. We came across a case you did: Doretta Teesdale. She originally contacted you in 1992 to investigate her ex-husband's disappearance. She didn't think he was dead. But what concerns me is that she died later that year. We are pretty sure of that. But then she contacted you in 2008 and you reopened the case. Do you remember meeting with her? Or do you think she was a ghost?"

"I don't really remember," Frank says after struggling to remember. He offers,"I remember her."

Sorenson continues to probe. "Well the language was vague but your notes say you went to contact her and help her move on. It seems to insinuate she is a ghost."

"I agree. I guess she might be. If she died and I talked to her after that."

"Does any of this jogs your memory? It seems to be connected to the Sandmen."

"She told me something," Frank says. "She had a reason, recently. I don't remember why but she said she knew something about Grant. I can't remember what."

Dr. Sorenson asks if he met her at her house. After a moment he says, "Yes. It was a nice old Victorian home."

"Was that the first time in 1992?"

"I'm not sure."

Dr. Sorenson asks the old detective about the Tulpas and other specifics but he doesn't know or remember any of it. When he asks about the hidden tunnels under Hillcrest, he advises, "you should bring some guns."

However when he mentions Harborview, it sparks something. "Harborview, Harborview. there was something...the was something there."

"Something? Like a creature? Or a place or object?" Sorenson asks.

"Creature or person?" He tries to remember. "Someone or something is there."

"We believe a tulpa is there. We think Dr. Warden is one of these creatures and using the hospital as his base of operations."

"Did he do this to me?" Frank asks.

"I don't know. It's possible." The doctor mentions Frank's records of his earlier memory lapses back in the 90s.

"You should be careful then."

"I will."

As their session wraps up, Sorenson asks, "my last question is about Keystone. Did they have you do any work for them?"

"No." The patient mulls it over. "Keystone. There was a friend who worked for Keystone."

"Do you know their name?"

"No," Franks sighs.

"Man or woman?"

"Man. He had dark skin."

"He was a personal friend or was he a business friend?"

Frank struggles to remember context. "I guess we were personal friends."

Sorenson continues to pick at Frank's mind for details. "When you say dark skin do you mean African American?"

"No." Frank struggles for a moment. "Indian."

Sorenson's mind flashes to the mention of Rajiv. "And you trusted him?"

"Yes."

"Was his name Rajiv? Was that his name?"

Frank seems relieved. "Yeah that's his name. Yes. I remember. Rajiv Ramadaas."

Hillcrest Mental Health Center, Greenwood, May 13th, 6 PM

As Robert and Shaw arrive, Dr. Sorenson fills them in on his meeting with Frank as well as his friend Rajiv Ramadass.

"So Rajiv works for Keystone and provided information Frank," Robert says. "So were they really friends or did Rajiv provide bad information?"

"Frank seemed to trust him," the doctor says.

They discuss who they can really trust. Robert ends with, "Infinity has been helpful and all but I've read books. Often the big reveal at the end is that person who was helping you ends up being the villain all along. I know that this isn't a book but I don't know who trust right now."

Shaw says, "at this point I wouldn't be surprised if Ambrose is in the basement of Harborview somehow pulling the strings from his hospital bed."

Robert points out that the report said that psychics could effect Tulpas.

They shelve that discussion for now. Before heading downstairs they check the video recording of the last week. No one enters but they can all hear creepy scratching noises from the wall.

Downstairs

The hallways are quiet as Shaw and Robert lug the saw downstairs while dressed in work overalls. Sorenson accompanies them as a "supervisor". Only Robert's whistling disturbs the quiet.

The closet is unoccupied as usual. They move one of the dusty shelves out of the way, shifting the boxes of files and jars of organs and goo. They knock on the plastered-over brick. A hollow sound comes from one section.

As Sorenson watches the hallway, Robert gets out the saw and begins to cut through the wall. Twenty minutes later, the lower blocks tumble free and a hole is opened in the wall.

"Good job," Shaw says.

Robert comments, "something was weird about these bricks. They came out much easier." As they clear out the debris they find the bricks have been half torn apart with claws.

Dr. Sorenson shines a flashlight into the hole. They see old concrete stairs going down.

Robert swigs a bottle of water. "That was hard work."

Shaw moves some file boxes near the hole so they can hide the evidence afterwards. Consulting Erin's map, these stairs should go to subbasement.

Sorenson warns them, "be prepared there could be something dangerous down there. Something was trying to claw it way out."

As they go down the stairs, they find a thin layer of dust on the ground. there are no footprints or other signs of whatever made that noise.

"Anyone have doses of that drug left?" Robert asks.

"I have one dose but it's back at my houseboat," Shaw admits.

"I have some in my kit," Dr. Sorenson reassures them.

"Good," Robert says. "I don't want to take it but it's good we have it."

The stairs open out onto a hallway. In the darkness, they can make out lights hanging from the ten foot high ceiling, old incandescents with disks surrounding them to focus the light down. The ground is still dusty and undistrubed. As they decide which way to go, Shaw finds a light switch.

She pulls the switch. One by one they click on, except one down the left side which pops loudly. In the stark lighting they can see the discolored hallway stretching away in each direction.

"There's electricity still in this wing," Sorenson says surprised.

Cautiously they listen. After a period of silence, they hear distant giggling from left corridor.

They put their flash lights away and head left. They come across a pair of doors to either side. A dusty label on each says "Supplies."

Robert says, "we should check these doors just in case."

The doctor nods. "Plus they might be clues to what we are up against."

The first contains boxes of equipment, including some early electroshock treatment gear. The other is full of decaying clothes, mostly hospital gowns and straight jackets.

Sorenson speculates, "so this is where they treated the really deranged patients with the barbaric treatments from back then."

They continue down the hall. It turns right and passes an unlabeled door. Poking their heads inside they see rows of jars on shelves, each with a preserved organs. Some of the labels have peeled off and lie mixed up on the floor.

"It disturbs me that there are so many organs in jars. This isn't normal," Sorenson says.

The corridor turns right a final time and opens into a large chamber. Six steel tables with straps occupy the center of the room with ten doors with small windows lining the walls. Another corridor exits the room opposite.

Quietly they explore the chamber. Boxes of surgical tools and ice picks lie neatly stacked by the wall. Nothing has been used in a century but it all looks ready to be used at a moments notice.

Robert focuses on the doors. Each leads to a small patient cell.

Shaw looks down the other hallway. It appears to leading back the way they came. Disturbingly she can hear child-like giggling down the corridor they just left.

Then Robert finds one cell which has a man sized hole in the floor.

Shaw instructs him, "check the others first."

"I wonder if this is where Community thought it could go," Sorenson contemplates.

After finishing his inspection, he looks at the hole. Shining his light down, he can see it descend at an angle for fifteen feet. It looks easy to climb, though he'd hate to do it quickly.

Shaw suggests making a rope out of straight jackets. Robert says, "Let's do that in case I get stuck down there."

As they lower Robert down, they hear more giggling back the way they came. Dr. Sorenson turns to Shaw. "Should we be worried?"

She considers. "They could be bricking us in but you saw the children upstairs so it's not like we let them out." She makes sure they don't sneak up on them in case.

Down in the tunnel, Robert find he has enough room to stand hunched over. He calls up, "there's room to stand down here. Can you guys hear me? The tunnel splits."

Sorenson calls down, "yes, but I don't think you should go any further on your own."

Robert shines his light down each branch of the tunnels. On the right he sees something that doesn't reflect his light. It's perhaps fifty feet down. The tunnel is cramped but maneuverable.

They pull him back up and talk. They decide to sweep the other hallway before they all go down. They quickly check the other hall, hearing the giggling from every so often. But there is no trace of the source. Shaw shines her light back up the stairs and sees the hole is still there.

They all return to the earthen tunnel. They descend. walls are made of compact dirt and rocks. Taking the right tunnel, they soon spot the object. It is a large black cube, a yard to a side, sticking out of the ground. It looks very similar to Community's drawing.

The investigators have an unsettling feeling looking at the cube. It doesn't reflect any of their light. Another cube is a short distance away poking out of a wall. A third seems be hovering in mid air.

"That's a nice trick," Sorenson says.

Taking a closer look at the cube, the doctor decides to see what it's made of. He pulls out his pocket knife and scratches the surface. No damage is done to the cube, but it deforms like the surface of a LCD screen. A circle of light expands out from where the knife touched the cube, sending rings about the cube. Strange symbols are illuminated as it passes.

Shaw instinctively moves away.

The knife in Trevor's hand becomes icy cold. He drops it and it shatters on the hard ground. Suddenly they are all wracked by horrible pain.

After a moment they stop screaming. But Sorenson freaks out. Faced with the impossibility of this object, he pulls out his gun and pulls the trigger.

As Shaw begins to move in response, she sees a small group of giggling children filling the tunnel behind them.