"I second that plan!" D'zan's face lights up even more at the thought of him being able to provide the distraction.

Cafe Diem

Last to arrive, Papa orders a large drink and a pair sandwiches as he sits. "Let's add a little hiding in plain sight for our insertion. For instance, people tend to 'not see' a troll in a grounds keeper uniform. Then, throw in the distraction, some door kicking and make some on the fly decisions for the exit. Start with a blending to get out... fall back to jack a car and boogy." He starts a search for campus activities, then noticing the humming, he reaches down and touches the stone.

D'zan flits his way to under the table in the cafe, still feeling the heavy cloak of his glamour keeping other from noticing him but still wanting to keep things as calm as possible. If he behaved long enough they were going to let him loose on the campus to raise a ruckus and sow chaos. He almost giggled out loud at the picture of coeds running and screaming, the terror and panic on their faces.

Shaking himself out of his pleasant imaginings, he begins to hum softly and weave the magic around him into complex patterns. He quickly laced a weave of mana over his own body and tied it to his own self, feeling the magic quicken his heart and lend speed to his limbs. He passed the spell on to a focus, watching it hold the spell steady while he cast again. This time weaving an enchantment to better his aim with the bow he acquired in the Troll Market. Details jumped out at him and he watched as every thing seemed sharper and crisper to his eyes. That weave was placed in the belt and quiver as it sunk into the leather and pulsed in time with his heart. The last weaving was a shell around his body, a thick and sturdy construct that would turn aside blows and bullets alike keeping his flesh untouched and unmarred. H released the final spell into its focus and nodded in satisfaction. His personal magic should keep the glow hidden from most till it was time to act.

He hovered back up to sit at the table's edge, out of the way of arms and people to listen as the plan unfolded.

Cafe Diem

A holoprojection of the campus spreads across the table, readily visible to your table, but protected from view by the booth walls. Events begin to populate across the campus, with small tags hovering over different buildings with names and times. There is a movie screening tonight at the Kline Theater, two poetry readings in the Brighter Tomorrow student center, and a party at the Phi Beta Chi house.

Next week there are several guest speakers, movie screenings, and concerts scheduled across the campus. Near the end of the month is the 69th Annual Revolutionary Ball.

Papa

The stone's warmth pulses in time to the blood in your veins. There is a sense of distance in the presence, as if its attention was focused elsewhere. It's similar to seeing someone in VR rather than asleep.

"It looks like later is better...how about moving around 11PM or 11:15? Give the college kids a chance to eat, drink, and be ripe for inciting a distraction? I think D'zan could probably whip them into a frenzy that would keep campus security away from our target."

"Sounds good. D'zan, how specific was your sense of where the book is? Do we have an office, a building, or a chunk of the campus to comb through?"

"Just a second, let me see if not then I am pretty sure once we're there it will lead me straight to it."

D'zan closes his eyes and reaches into himself looking for that tug that leads to the items. Breathing out he focuses on the book and pushes his awareness out to see what he can find out.

D'zan

Reaching out, you feel the pull of the item--your liegesense guiding you to your prey. At this distance, it is a dull sense of direction. When you traveled the city earlier and narrowed it down to the campus, you noticed that the closer you got the stronger the sense was. You feel confident that as you get closer, you will be able to point to the building, and once inside, the room itself.

Opening his eyes and shaking his head to clear it, D'zan smiles revealing his sharp teeth.

"The closer I get the more definitive the feeling so on campus I can lead you to the building then the room no problem."

Papa smiles. "And if we need a second distraction, a fire alarm or two will suffice."

In another window, he does a few quick searches of pictures from the campus looking for one including a maintenance worker. He then orders a few jumpsuits in the same style for himself, D'zan and Uetz. He also gets a backpack in the same color to hold his weapon. He pulls down maps of the campus as well as street maps of the nearby area in case they need a speedy escape.

Once the meet is over and he has a chance for some downtime, he spends some time looking for an exploit on the college security network.

Argent studies the pictures Papa downloaded, face fluttering through a few variations as he stares into the mirror in the bathroom back at the house, practicing until his disguise came quickly and with a minimum of focus.

Transforming the troll was going to be another matter...

Hours pass by as the team work on different activities. Shortly after dinner, there is a knock on the door and light grey coveralls are dropped off. The coveralls are ill-fitting, pieces with adjustable ties to customize them slightly. They don't have the patches like the picture showed, but were the closest Papa could order on such short notice.

Three hours into probing the campus security node, Papa finds a backdoor into the system. It looks like a glitch in one of the security updates missed a subroutine. It should suffice to gain root access into the node.

Shortly after the eleventh chime rings out from the school bell tower, the team sets foot on the campus. AROs float around the school reminding you that UCLA is a public broadcast zone--all individuals on campus will be subject to search and detention if they are not bearing proper identification. The campus is clean, with obvious efforts by the janitorial staff to improve the campus during the downtime between classes. Pools of light spill across walkways, while most of the building entrances are dark. The library, bioresearch, and comp-sci buildings all glow with lights on every floor. The rest have sporadic lights on, as if forgotten by individual faculty.

D'zan feels the pull into the campus, somewhere past the bioresearch building. Astral space flickers and shines with energy.

As the sun goes down, Uetz hears his summoned spirit speak to him as he prepares at home for the run.

The sun has crossed the horizon, and I am released from my duties, Nahualli.

Thank you, mighty warrior, Uetz replies, and bows to the departing spirit. He settles down and attempts to call a slightly stronger version of his people's guardians. He casts the net, but this time something is very different.

"How dare you disturb me, Nahualli! If you seek to my service, prove your worth! Pit your will against mine!"

Surprised, Uetz does his best to resist the spirit's attack, but he suddenly feels the very fabric of his body tear apart. Blood drizzles from his eyes and gushes from his nose. He collapses to the ground, reeling from the war of wills.

"I guess," he rasps, "I was not worthy."

Brother! shrieks Quauhtli.

I am all right, sister. I just need rest, and then I will tend my wounds. He cleans himself up in the bathroom and then lays down on his bed, setting his PAN to awake him in an hour. When he arises his mind is less cloudy, but the wounds from the struggle still hurt him. He goes to the bathroom and treats himself as best as he can. Fortunately, most of the wounds are superficial---cellular necrosis around surface capillaries. He manages to patch himself up almost as good as new. At least it was not fire this time, he thinks to himself.

Campus

The air shimmers around Uetz as mana courses through his body which bore the cuts and burns of the spirit's wrath at being brought forth. A few seconds later, the shaman has his medkit spread out on the ground around him and he begins to patch himself up. When he's finished, he packs the kit away and again begins to summon forth a spirit, his voice resonates off the concrete buildings with power as he chants in a primal tongue.

No spirit comes forth and Uetz suddenly twists to the side as if struck a blow. A warm wind and the smell of the jungle blows through the campus, as he again reaches into the aether to empower is mind. The medkit comes out again and painkillers and bandages flow freely splinting the bruised but luckily not broken ribs. He chuckles to himself, a conversation happening between him and the ancient gods which fuel his power. The barest hint of power seeps out this time, a subtle and insidious flow into the obsidian charm around his neck. The power fades with a released breath and the spark forms again into a strong flame that resonates once in the charm and fades from view.

Astral

The astral space around the spot you are standing, shows obvious strain from the constant use in such a short time. In the distance, an astral form slowly comes into resolution. It is approaching slowly for a creature only limited by thought.

I cannot---no, I WILL not watch you come to harm any longer, brother! Suddenly, ethereal emerald scales coalesce over Uetz's form with gold feathers bristling from under each scale. The feathers swirl about him, and both scale and feather slowly separate.

"Feathers astral am I, born of heavens. Scales material are you, born of earth. Together, we are the flying serpent. I am Quauhtli, you are Uetzcayotl. Together, we are Quetzalcoatl," says a female voice, eerily similar to Uetz's own. The feathers swirl about and float into the shape of a golden eagle, although at some angles the feathers seem momentarily shimmer with the same jade green color of the quetzal.

"Sister?!?" remarks Uetz, surprised by the display. He answers in Nahuatl, the same language Quauhtli and he speak to each other.

"Yes, brother. I have flown from Tamanoachan, the home of the gods, bearing gifts of wisdom." As she speaks, waves of mana shimmer and wash over Uetz.

"You are my compassion, brother. Just as I am your courage. Alone we are strong, but together we are unstoppable."

"Enough, though, something approaches. I cannot yet tell if it is friend, foe, or fool." Quauhtli's switches her speech to English as she chirps the warning. Her head snaps in the direction of the approaching astral entity, focusing on an otherwise normal point on the material horizon.

"Prepare yourself for the battle, Ikniuh. I shall hope for the best, but I will expect the worst."

As Uetz begins casting, Quauhtli's eyes narrow as her stare pierces the veil between the physical and astral.

"The figure is like you, Ikniuh: a mortal graced with the Astral's favor. It is a powerful presence whose magic surpasses your own, untouched by the taint of the motherless flesh or breathless steel. I cannot yet tell if it means you and your allies harm, but it's aura bears the the color of a wizard's chosen weapons. I can say this: it's mood is sour, if not foul. Be prepared to do battle." The last sentence is directed towards the group, and the Eagle hops to the forefront of the group. She looks over each member, judging their mettle with her unblinking, unrelenting gaze.

"You," she says to D'zan after a moment, "you have the bearing of a warrior, or at least your sympathies have grown dull to pain and suffering. Make ready."

"I am glad to have you stand with us, Hueltiuh," Uetz says to his Twin.

"As am I," replies the Eagle with what almost looks like a grin---if birds had lips or if beaks could smile. "Let us resolve to make our reunion last more than this moment."

As the team approaches campus and the ARO's provide their warnings, they also scream silently in Papa's head: You forgot identification. Despite the oversight, the troll smiled; He was prepared for just such an incident. His stealth load active alongside several other appropriate programs, he penetrates the security node. Once inside, he goes to work scanning the system for staff that resemble the disguised team members who are not elsewhere on campus. Once he locates three, he issues campus identification and updates the schedule to show them on shift. He then slips in a backdoor, edits the logs and logs out.

//Authentication Failure//

He then uploads the identification to his teammates comlinks....

In the Security Node

Papa quickly moves through the security node. The system sculpture is a modified version of the Unified Matrix Standard iconography which Horizon has been pushing, for public usage to simplify computer access. Next to every UCLA logo is the emblazoned sun for Horizon. The security files for ID badges come up and after quickly scanning them to be sure they match, he begins to look for the work schedule.

There's a flash across his vision, //Authentication Failure//. The schedule gets updated to show the workers as "on-campus" just before the connection terminates.

D'zan feels the quickening of his blood at the thought of possible conflict. He feels the enchantments woven into his body and through his senses, keeping him prepared for whatever may unfold. He reached through his connection to Leo and feels the pulse of warmth and unity as they weave a bet over the group of protective mana.

"Well well well what do we have here..."

Papa grimaces. Any spider worth his salt will unravel those logs pretty quickly.... What the hell happened?

<<@Team [Papa] Listen: These IDs have a very short life span. My paranoia is acting up making me want to make some last minute changes. We can move fast or I can trace those student IDs from earlier today and re-spoof us..?>>

He then deploys both his fly spies at a range of 50m circling the team to provide Papa something a a surveillance grid to the team.

As Papa Smurf's message scrawls across Uetz's PAN, he fires off a quick reply.

<<@ Team [Uetz]: Looks like we are going to be moving sooner rather than later. We have something on the astral incoming. Get ready for a fight.>>

Spying the approaching figure and feeling confident in his ability to be undetected and get the drop on this entity, D'zan reaches out through his connection to Leo to draw on his power to augment his own. He feels the resistance at the same time he hears the thought.

We're not killing here, just stun or disrupt?

While phrased as a question he knows the power will only come with his agreement to make this non-lethal.

I'll just weave an enchantment to render he or she unconscious but I'm going to give it a little more kick than usual since it's another Awakened being.

With his promise the well of power opens to him and flows through him. He reaches out for the threads of ambient mana and weaves it into a single focused stream which he releases towards the entity attempting to connect to several vital points in its aura and disrupt it. He feels his body pulse and burn from the flows of magic - he is drawing past his ability to safely channel. As he releases the enchantment he mutters under his breath.

"A simple spell for you, a gift from me. To sleep's black embrace I cosign thee."

On campus

A visible bending of the air around the pixie streaks across the grounds toward the approaching astral form. D'zan can feel the effort of his will peeled back as it strikes against the other's mind. With the added strength of Leo though, the form stood no chance.

A scream echoes across the astral as the form dissipates.

D'zan looks over the astral and begins to erase the echoes of his spell from the ambient mana, quickly unbinding it to make it harder to read later. With an unfocused stare he speaks.

'We should go somewhere else soon and get this party started. Who is going where and let's get going."

Uetz shrugs and looks at Quauhtli before answering.

"I think we are sticking with the plan. I take it you should still be able to hit the frat houses and sorority row before we are in a position to make our move, right?"

As for you, Hueltiuh, what will you do?

"You got it. Let me go stir up the apes and then I will meet you all at the building to help narrow the search for the book." D'zan gives a jaunty wave before he and Leo fly off - their speed magically enchanted as the streak away towards the fraternities. The campus passes below them in a blur of color and light, shapes and sound till they arrive at the location.

The sound of a party carries on the night air and the thrill of being able to breathe deeply fills him as he looks around - finding a place out of direct sight he settles himself and reaches inside. He feels the pulse of magic waiting here and begins to shape it. Weaving a complicated circle of mana and intent - he draws deep in his own nature - the dark impulses, the lust and the hunger that simmers in his blood. He weaves in the lust and hunger of the party goers into the work as the gate completes and calls out to a spirit of similar disposition. He feels the call ring out and through the metaplanes. He hears the wild laughter and smells the heavy scent of wine fill his lungs. A Maenad steps through, her hair wild and her eyes with no sanity left to them. Her robes stained with blood and wine, her flesh firm and inviting. The raw hunger of her sex rides on her skin like a heat wave.

"Handmaiden of Dionysus, sister to my heart - I call thee and bind thee! Your will is mine by my Art!"

The spirit screams in defiance and it echoes through the astral - the rage and the depth of its madness laid bare in it's voice. It sways and dances around the pixie, the struggle to keep it here and bound evident in his features.

"I task you this night to move through this place and whisper your wisdom to all who seek your Lord - let your madness spread like wine over them and lead them to your Lord's side. Touch all you can but those under my protection. I offer you this feast and bid you drink your fill of their passions and life. Go!"

The spirit laughs hysterically as it dances it's way towards the nearest group of people at the party. He breathes a sigh of relief and feels the tension flow from him as he hides the signs of the summoning from the astral space. Leo stands nearby, his face openly fearful as the spirit is released to it's task. He speaks his voice low and soft.

"We should try to get back to the others soon."

Monday -- July 18, 2072
D'zan

The spirit casts one glance back at you as it moves into the party, driven by its nature. "The Bacchae are not called lightly, Houndsman's Servant. Take care to keep your feet in flesh, lest they wander to the spirit realm with the rest of you. We have not tasted the Hunt in recent ages and long for it."

Team

In D'zan's absence, you quickly move across campus in the direction he had last pointed. The campus is eerily silent. There are no security guards, late night students, or janitors to be seen either on the grounds in silhouetted in windows. A trash can being knocked over by a raccoon sounds thunderous.

You reach the shadow of the bioresearch building. Depending on how accurately the pixie had pointed, it could be one of a couple different buildings.

Argent
The building next to you looms high into the sky. You can remember the bars, researchers caging you like the rest of the animals. Your lungs burn from constant exposure to chemicals, the drugs forcing your mind to accept new stimuli. This was the first place you felt the burning press of silver in your flesh as scalpels cut open your body to watch organs heal from each new wound.

As the group makes their way across the ominously empty campus, Quauhtli flies above the group and keeps a watchful eye on the astral.

Scowling, Argent surveys the building, bile rushing to the back of his throat at the well of memories...the experiments, the needles, the blood...the eviscerated bodies of other shifters pinned open for study and cataloguing.

No reason not to do some damage while we're here... The thought rises in his mind, and there's no hesitation, no resistance to the concept at all.

Racing across campus with the team, the unnatural quiet is no lost on the team's singular mundane. Tension is high after the visible *whatever* attacked the pixie. Replaying the footage as they move, he grimaces. Worthless for PITO. Even real, it looks fake..

He re-poofs each come in turn to the student IDs used earlier, attaching the access IDs he just created to nodes along the way: A dusk-dawn light, an information kiosk and the automated bicycle lock rack.

As they reach the building, he reaches internally to access the extra-worldly information to see if it is intuitive to their situation or location. He also tunes up his analyze program to keep watch over the TeamNet and scan each individual node for vulnerabilities, attacks or compromise.

Papa

Others are here. The thought resonates through your mind from that separate consciousness. You see a vision of a three men, a Norseman with a shimmering dragon of chrome and glass wrapped around his chest, a rugged ork with special forces tattoos on his arm, and an Aztlaner wearing the claws of a large hunting cat as a necklace. They knock twice on the table and kick back a shot of a dark, viscous liquid.

Team

Within a few minutes, D'zan returns. The pull of the object draws you away from the bioresearch building. Music pours out of an open window from the Kinsey Pavillion building ahead of you.

Team

A troll rises up from within the Inverted Fountain, leveling a huge machine gun at you. "That's close enough, comrade." His thick Russian accent booms from deep in his chest. A red light from the tip of the barrel suggests a laser sight. The dot is focused on Argent's chest. Everyone but Uetz notices the tell-tale signs that something is off. The figure appears to be some kind of holographic projection, a technological phantasm.

Papa
The area is dark, but you see a warm beam--a laser made to be visible in the thermographic spectrum. It is coming from the open window of the Kinsey building and appears to be the real source of the laser pointed at your teammate. The shooter is drawn back from the window a distance and can't be seen.

Quahtli
Within the astral the feeling of a presence builds up all around the ally spirit. At first there is nothing, then from the edges of her vision a fold in the air around a group. A spirit or other being is concealing the team as they approach. They appear to be armed heavily in the machines of men and taste of death.

Argent
A raccoon darts between buildings. Your mind at first refuses to see it, and you realize that you are only seeing the aura of the raccoon. There is no physical form tied with it that you can see. The astral space around the creature glows with layered magicks. It appears to be wearing a backpack and a small bandoleer.

Four more raccoons come darting between the buildings a second later. The larger group doesn't appear to be wearing backpacks, though they are masked under some form of concealment, making it harder to see details.

D'zan
The pull is nearly tangible now, you can hear the blood beating in your ears and the drums driving you to the hunt. On the edge of your vision, a small group of raccoons scampers between buildings. Turning to look straight at them, you lose them in shadows, though they reappear in your peripheral sight. The animals are protected by a veil, like that which you produce to hide yourself.

Leo
The spirit shudders slightly as the feelings of bloodlust and the hunt overtake D'zan for a brief second. His nature made him the foil to his partner, but something had changed recently, darkening the pixie's aura. Setting the personal dilemma aside until a later time, Leo feels the pressing of another will against his mind, attempting to cloud his insight. To the right, a group of men--orks mostly with rifles and the canisters that cause the air to burn--draw closer under a veil. On the left, a group of raccoons also hide under a lesser veil, though they don't seem to be doing anything other than following another. The lead raccoon is cloaked under fey glamour--true invisibility, not the veils used by the others.

The vision of trio still burning in his mind's eye when the defecation hits the ventilation, Papa mentally chastises his self for not being better prepared for an ambush. The time for thinking past, he moves into action putting himself between the shooter and Argent. As he moves, he pushes the shape shifter towards cover trying to get them both clear and issues a command to his second fly-spy to get a visual on the shooter. Simultaneously, he cries out, "Real shooter: Kinsey building" and uses his scan program to locate all active/passive nodes in the area.

Pinche puta pendejo buey...and here I thought we were being CAREFUL this time...

Uetz instinctively puts his hands up, which seems the only reasonable reaction to having a massive gun shoved mostly near his face. He looks at his companions, spots the oozing pixie blood from D'zan and wonders if he ran into trouble as well, and then notices that the others are not focusing on the troll.

Hueltiuh, what is going on? he asks his sister through their shared link. He feels Quauhtli sigh in disappointment.

Ikniuh, the troll is a technological lie. There are other hunters out here, armed with the weapons of your world and seeking your blood. One of my kin is shielding them from your sight, but I can see them. Know that I shall strike when the time is right, but I beg you to take cover before the battle begins. I almost lost you once, and I would not see you come to harm once more.

"Goddamn it, are we competing with a whole 'nother team and half the damn'd Awakened forest here?"

Team

Shouts of alarm come from various team members as the gravity of the situation hits home. There's sound of a twig snapping in the distance, a suppressed rifle firing. Without a muzzle flash, the only guess is a hidden shooter in the Kinsey building.

In front of you, the image of the troll in the Inverted Fountain vanishes. A split second later, the troll rises up from the space again. The machine gun levels at the team again and his thick Russian voice booms, "That's close enough, comrade."

Blood splatters is a rose bloom from Papa Smurf's shoulder as he throws himself in the path of the bullet aimed for Argent's chest. Cold iron tears through the front of the armor and rips flesh. The large troll holds his feet under the overwhelming kinetic force.

Drops glint like obsidian against the paving stones in the shadows of campus.

The heat and the lust singing in his veins, D'zan reaches out for the mana around him and begins to draw in deeply into his body. He feels the pain and magic dance along his limbs as he pulls deeper than is safe for his level of mastery. The flows are tied into an intricate knot, every line singing with tension waiting to be released at his command. His voice sounds raw and hungry as he chants in a sing-song fashion.

"Behind veil and magic I seek, to leave my enemies confused and weak!"

He flinches inside at the less than inspired rhyme but it will do to help him channel the magic needed. He hurls the ball of mana and waits to see what unfolds. Reaching his thoughts out to Leo trying to only share thoughts and keep more of the rising need to hunt and seek from him.

Deal with the meat sack with the gun and I'll deal with the furry set.

He feels the ripple of assent from his companion along with an uneasy undercurrent - clear sign that he is aware of the hold the Hunt has over him now. He feels the uncomfortable wash of regret but burns it out with resentment and angry. He is what he is - no apologies and no excuses.

Team

Mana visibly tears the air as it soars like an arrow from a bow to the right. Within the astral, the effects are clear as the magic tears apart the minds and bodies of the small creatures. Four raccoon corpses become obvious as whatever power concealed them does not carry on through their passing.

The lead raccoon, seems to be made of slightly sterner stuff and the spark of life is not immediately snuffed out. It lets out a weird hissing scream before falling to the ground unconscious.

A bright red light begins flashing from the lead animal's backpack. What appears to be a handgun with a loudspeaker and micro fans tears through the velcro. "ALERT. ALERT. MEDICAL RESPONSE TEAM EN ROUTE. FURTHER HOSTILE ACTION WILL BE MET WITH DEADLY FORCE. ALERT. ALERT."

"What the fuck?!"

D'zan looks to the rest of the team with a clear look of confusion at what's going on.

Leo flies up and calls out to the hidden shooter as he approaches. As he speaks he gestures with his hand.

"See the lives you could have had and see the lives you have ruined pursuing this fate. Leave before it leads to your death."

Leo

Reaching the edge of the window, the aura of the gunman is missing, just a long rifle on a tripod is in the room. The strength of prophecy and regret washes over the rifle without effect.

Team

"Burn mortals. The Age of Ruin is upon us." One of the men in the group shouts out, as a whoompf from an underbarrel launcher fires a grenade into the midst of your group. It bursts in air, coating you in red dust. The dust hovers in the air, a thick mist blocking your vision.

The small fly-spy zooms up into the air near Leo, projecting footage of the rifle down to the TeamNet.

Papa
A list of active and passive nodes within your signal range quickly begins populating. It blurs past you, as thousands of nodes respond to the ping.

Quauhtli watches in horror as the violence unfolds below. Upon seeing a strange red mist fall upon her twin, she burns with a white-hot fury that she crafts into the Tlahuizcalpantecuhtli's darts. She takes aim at the gunman who shot the grenade, and begins to burn with the fire of the Morning Star.

"My heart is filled with the desire for your slaughter, may the gods curse you in life and death!" she shrieks in Nahuatl as she hurls the fatal dart towards her target.

Team

A white hot lance of energy, like a flash of lightning strikes down from Quahtli. The Ork laughs as the strike bounces from his flesh. It grounds into the earth, rippling the manasphere.

Quahtli
The legends said, the harbingers of ruin could not be touched by the will of Man. It was believed that they were dark reflections of men from the twisted mirror that the Trickster used upon his brother.

Argent glances back at Papa, and a tide of anger rises through his features. It wasn't enough that the big troll was always the first to toss himself in harm's way, now he'd specifically taken a bullet for the shifter without hesitation. They were a motley crew, perhaps, but they were his crew, dammit.

As D'zan calls out, "A machine shot Papa!", the fox-at-heart turns to leap towards the clustered group of gunmen, using the long, loping steps to substitute for the traditional swaying half-dance that was the core of Capoeira.

"Leo, check on Papa! D'zan, melt the machine in the window. Uetz, figure out who's bouncing the spells!" Papa, see if you can get a visual of the area, and let us know how long till 'official' company arrives.

There's a muffled whisper as two of the orks drop to one knee. Through the smoke, you see them raising their rifles to their shoulders and lay down suppressive fire around the path Argent was running. A third ork stands between them and draws a bead on Argent's center mass. His rifle coughs a thick staccato of bullets, then another.

Team

Argent dips to one side, twisting with a loping turn using all the grace that the practice of capoeira has given him. The combat hardened shooter keeps flawless track of the shifter's agile form as he weaves across the space. Hard bursts impact squarely along the face's center mass with enough force to drive a troll to his knees.

A feral roar, like a large jungle cat, reverberates from the chest of the final Ork. Dropping the rifle along his sling, the figure draws two long knives. He lowers himself into a practiced fighting crouch. The knife in his right hand reflects silver in the moonlight. Opposite,held in a defensive posture, the left knife is cold and grey, not reflecting the light.

Holographic troll snipers, dangerous raccoons, and now roving bands of gun-toting orcs on a university campus? None of this makes sense, Uetz thinks to himself, hands still in the air. When Argent breaks towards the pack and draws the orcs' attention, he sees his chance to do something and takes it.

Might as well let the tough guys do their tough guy thing. Maybe I can figure out who or what is attacking us. If that first troll was a lie, maybe the rest of these bastards are as well.

Eschewing his normal centering ritual to have just a bit of spare time if need be, he quickly casts a spell calling upon Quetzalcoatl's aspect of the Vision Serpent to seek out those who mean him and his allies harm. Fortunately, he has better luck with this spell than calling forth a Tlacelel. When the final magical layers of the spell settle in place, he looks for closest safe haven from bullets and other technological nasties and heads for cover.

Uetz

The mana stretches out around you, expanding your senses as you concentrate. An enemy is near.

D'zan watches as the orcs being to fire towards the team. He feels the lecture coming on when he ignores Argent's last orders and begins to draw the mana around himself once more. He pulls as hard as he did last time and feels the burning along his limbs from the strain - one time he is going to kill himself doing this. He creates the small sphere and launches it at the orcs, taking care to avoid his team in the throw.

"A handful of tuskers I do see, with this spell less there shall be!"

He feels Leo assent to his request to help Papa and flies his way to his side.