Greet the Guests

Tuesday evening, July 8

Mina arrived to the Elfrith Alley apartment just after dark.

Theo confronted her about the bead.

"Mina," he asked. "Did you put a bead onto our No-eavesdrop ruby?"

Mina just looked at him like he was stupid.

"Yes."

"But why?"

"Well, I was worried that I might need to track you," with a little laugh. "If necessary."

"Why not ask us?"

"I didn't want to worry you," Mina answered matter-of-factly. "Now excuse me."

She then bustled herself down the stairs to the Nexus in the basement.

Another woman arrived at the apartment who introduced herself as Mina's friend Carole. Carole was a witch, and Mina was planning to do some more magic on the Nexus.

Ebony joined Mina and Carole downstairs. Mina offered Ebony a drink. Ebony assented, much to Mina's delight. Mina punctured her own wrist and gave it to Ebony, who sealed her lips on the wound and took a good long suck. That also meant Ebony was allowed to help with the ritual. Ebony just followed Carole's orders; she didn't understand what was going on. But she did know that she and Carole were naked, while Mina wore a shift. The basement door was kept well-locked to stop the helpful intentions of the rest of the party.

While this was going on, the rest of the group searched the entire apartment for more beads. They found a bag of thousands of them in a wardrobe of one of the bedrooms.

Theo put some of the beads in his pocket.

"You're no longer welcome in my safe-house," snapped Reggie sulkily. "You can be tracked now."

Tuesday midnight, July 8

The ritual was complete, and Carole left. Mina and Ebony came upstairs.

The group asked her about her do on Thursday night at her home, the Fleischer Art Memorial.

"We are having an exhibition of the works of the artist Terence Montana, an abstract artist of some repute. My curator, Carmine Roker, organized that. She would have emailed to all our interested parties. I guess your man Lassard is one of them."

"How many members on the email list?"

"I'm not sure. Ten thousand?"

"We're the security detail. Can we look over the security of the exhibition?"

Mina looked at them for a minute.

"Yes. I'll tell Carmine that it's okay."

Captain Lassard

Wednesday morning, July 9

The party duly turned up at Philadelphia airport to welcome the arrival of Captain Albus Lassard and Adjutant Colleen Thomson. The rest of Philly STRIKE FORCE was there too, plus a heap of Police escorts. The mundane police would look after and escort Lassard and Thomson during the day. The party had them for the night.

Jacob had his Gem of the Veil, and surveyed the scene. The STRIKE FORCE members (and the party) all showed up with glowing hearts, as you'd expect of the veil-aware, but Colleen had shimmery green around her. And an oak leaf tiara.

Adjutant Thomson

"She's a fae," Jacob hissed at the group. "A damn sidhe."

Lieutenant Prospero was summoned rapidly and briefed. He didn't know and was as surprised as the party.

Prospero distracted the adjutant and let the party question Lassard.

"Oh yes," Lassard smiled. "She's a fairy. My little she."

"Sidhe?"

"Yes, she is," he quipped. "Anyway, pleased to meet you, brave brave guards."

The party all mumbled introductions.

"Speak up. Speak up. No need to mumble."

They all headed back to STRIKE FORCE HQ.

Wednesday late morning, July 9

Lassard and Thomson had a good long talk to the group. Lassard gave the impression that he was a bit dithery and past-it, and Thomson gave the impression that she had all the brains of the two. But the party couldn't work out if this was an act or not. Sometimes Lassard was sharp as a tack.

Reggie asked him point-blank about the Fleischer Art Memorial.

"You know you goin' to a vampire house?"

"I like Terence Montana," Lassard sniffed. "Good art."

"But the exhibition'll be full of vampires."

"You're my brave security detail. You will protect me."

Wednesday noon, July 9

The party turned up at the Fleischer Art Memorial. They met with the curator Carmine Roker, and she was only too happy to show them the building's security details. For a start, there was a bunch of security guards wandering around with side-arms, and some more guards, out of public view, with SMGs. In one room was Terrestrial Security with CCTV screens all over the walls. In another concealed room was Veil Security which contained a large glowing mushroom, tall as a man, with tiny moving lights all over it. There seemed to be some non-linear non-euclidean transformation that mapped 3D terrestrial space around and inside the building to a spot on the 2D surface of the mushroom. But the party couldn't work it out, though they did manage to spot a group of six glowing pin-pricks that the guard said represented their very selves. There was a collection of large non-moving blobs on another part of the mushroom, one of which was very bright.

"Those are our employers," said Carmine dryly.

Carmine also gave them guest list for "Terence Montana Art Exhibition Opening Night Reception". There were 240 guests expected. The notables were vampire Lord Defacto and party of seven, and witches Siri and Cello.

Wednesday late afternoon, July 9

Prospero got the party the list of notables who were expected at the Mayor's reception tonight. There were 180 guests, and the notables on that list were the vampire Oberon and party of six, vampire Lord Defacto and party of seven, witch Cello plus one, and demon Bryan Philby (the cardio-thoracic surgeon) plus four.