06 - When Angels Cry

Series - The Unbelievable Mr Brownstone

TUMB 06/1 The Warning Laena sat, listening to the Light Elf consul rant on about the Widow Maker incident, with the AET’s victory over her, killing her. He shook his head. “What do you think would happen if it became public that an Oriceran assassin was rampaging through a city murdering men with impunity and nearly killing police officers? You risked war, even after you were warned.” Leana’s thoughts were, War? We only seek to reclaim what is ours. (The guards at the door shook their heads. “It isn’t like the old days. There are enough open human magic users now that blatant disregard for their laws will end in them figuring it out. What do you think would happen if it became public that an Oriceran assassin was rampaging through a city murdering men with impunity and nearly killing police officers? You risked war, even after you were warned. Earth and Oriceran are now too linked to focus on how we used to do things. If we want a lasting peace, we must be mindful of everyone’s concerns. You can refuse to like that, but it doesn’t change the truth. This is the reality all races must now contend with, even the Drow. Don’t do something like that in my city again.”

Shay and Brownstone arrive at the restaurant (Palazzo Ducale) and are seated. James was upset at the silver display beside his plate, and wondered why people had to make things so complicated. Shay overhears two “ladies” talking about bedding Brownstone, and confronts them on the way out. James asked her what that was all about, and she said, “Just a little friendly girl talk.” “You’re not gonna kill them, are you?” Shay laughed. “I’m the new improved Shay Carson. I don’t have to kill everyone who pisses me off. Just some of them.”

TUMB 06/2 The Brownstone Agency - a review - Trey runs after, catches a Level One Bounty, talks about the Brownstone agency. “Not a franchise, run by James personally. Brownstone’s turning criminals into criminal hunters. He’s a motherfucking badass. He’s the king of badasses. He’s a professional, and he only goes after you if you’ve got a bounty or you’ve threatened someone he cares about. Brownstone’s willing to take on anyone, magical or not. Everyone thinks they can take down the big man, but here’s the truth: if Brownstone’s coming for you, it’s safer just to turn yourself in to the police. Because if you've got the big man’s attention, you’re in for a world of pain.” Trey takes his bounty to Sgt. Mack, and he tells more tales. Went after the Harriken because they killed his dog. Your level-one bounty ain’t enough to get Brownstone out of bed unless you got some serious information for the 5-0. Not just a badass bounty hunter, but the world’s most badass pest-control guy.

TUMB 06/3 All in a Day’s Work Shay goes off on another retrieval, taking her weapons on the plane, both legally(legitimate historical artifact that shouldn’t be tampered with by TSA) and illegally. She warns him ,” Try and not piss off any major criminal organizations while I’m gone, or at least wait until I get back before you take them out.” OK, THAT he can do!

Brownstone stops by Zoe’s place, to pick up healing and energy potions for the staff of the Brownstone Agency. Potions just for ordinary humans. They’re cheaper. I don’t need any special ingredients this time. I’ll just take cash. The two lavender potions are for the girl—your new daughter. She needs beauty. They will help her skin glow. And James went out for BBQ for lunch.

Bill and his daughter, Dina, four years old, were lost, and went down an alley toward their hotel. Evening, and the lights of the town were bright, but it was dark in the alley. Bill heard some footsteps close by, looked and saw a creature in front of them, in a dark cloud. He lifted Dina up tp a building vent, and the creature killed him. A barbed tentacle had impaled him. The creature then cut off his head. The creature needed his life, saying, “ I am Death, and I can kill whatever pathetic person comes for me. Las Vegas is now my territory, and all who oppose me will witness my skill in killing.” The creature talked to Dina, inviting her to play. She didn’t want to, and promised to find someone to make Death go away. Death (Red Eyed, in Dina’s mind) didn’t need her and went away. Dina cried herself to sleep. When the sun had risen, Dina heard a noise, and saw a homeless woman going through the trash. Dina showed her Daddy’s body, and the woman took her to a side street, calling the police, finding her by the body. She vowed, “I’m gonna get someone, Red Eyes. Just you wait. I’m gonna get someone to get you for my dad.

TUMB 06/4 Brownstone, being the OCD person he is, was cleaning house, surveying his side of the bathroom (all in order), and Shay’s side (a chaotic mess). Just then Alison called, just to check in, and he suddenly was aware that Shay and Alison filled a void in his soul he hadn’t even realized was there. His days before had been simpler but shallower, and all the barbeque in Las Vegas wasn’t enough to fill him with the satisfaction he felt now—not that he wouldn’t have minded a bounty or two. Alison called to ask him to be less intimidating when he visited the school next. No boys would. date her because they were so afraid of him. He agreed, and they signed off.

Brownstone goes to see Father McCartney. For once his heart felt lighter. He’d gone a good week without killing anyone. See, I’m already becoming a better man. A better human, even. After confession, Father tells him there is a new benefactor for the orphanage, anonymous, as he is. Brownstone denies knowledge of it, and when he gets to the truck, he texts Shay and thanks her for transferring the donation.

Trey was unhappy in the Black Sun Bar. Neutral ground was unnatural. In the end, a man had to pick a side. That was just the way the world worked. But it didn’t matter what he felt. The Black Sun was one of the most useful places to pick up info in LA. Trey wonders if Tyler will choose the right side in the end.

TUMB 06/5 Dina, sitting in Child Protective Services office, looks at TV, sees a program about Brownstone, and vowed she’d bring him to Las Vegas somehow to kill Red Eyes no matter what it took.

Maria Hall is being racked over the carpet for the $24 million she spent in taking down the Widow Maker, the witch who had done all of the horrible thing to people, all Brownstone’s fault. And she needs to stop her vendetta against Brownstone! As she and the Chief of police are talking, a call came in from the Mayor, informing him that “The Oriceran consulate, on behalf of several local Oriceran leaders, has just contacted the mayor. They are concerned that the use of heavy magic toward the police in the most recent incident will reflect negatively on Oricerans, and they’re willing to cover the costs involved in controlling the incident and throw in a little extra for the AET budget. They stressed to the mayor that they are concerned with out-of-control magic. According to them, they understand how bad these situations can get and want to do what they can to help smooth things out locally and help promote the authorities keeping irresponsible magic users in check.” Hall was happy about that. At least Brownstone wouldn’t get the credit for it!.

Hannah and her Father are walking down an alley, when a creature comes forth, and kills him, just like it did to Bill, before. The figure told her to “Go ahead and run, little angel. Run now. It’s better that they know. Better that they hear it from you. You can go ahead and tell everyone that I am the one who makes angels cry.” The mocking laughter of the killer followed her.

TUMB 06/6 Simplicity James missed Shay and Alison. Loneliness ! ! He’d always been on the outside of society, but he’d never felt the painful void accompanying true loneliness. Thought he’d go th Las Vegas, to jess Rae’s, for some BBQ! He had lots of thoughts on the way- his mind drifted to the growing labyrinth of complicated relationships now defining his life. He had a girlfriend. Well, a lover. Hell, he wasn’t even sure what he should call her. He had a daughter. For that matter, he had friends like Mack and Trey and a pile of employees .Simple was gone. No, not just gone. Simple was dead!

Keep It Simple, Stupid. James had lived his life by that philosophy, but without sacrificing every connection he now had it was no longer possible. Even if he’d left behind the woman and girl who had a claim on his heart, his reputation (Scourge of the Harriken) followed him everywhere. . I might not be able to keep it simple, but I can at least keep it from getting more complicated.

Trey is interviewed by Nina Edgars, a reporter who was trying to give the impression that Brownstone was a killer. Trey wouldn’t go for that, and whitewashed all of his actions. Nina stalked off, angry.

Brownstone in Las Vegas, for lunch. Is recognized from picture on the wall, and wanted to know if he did bounty hunting between BBQ competitions. James hadn’t realized he had more than one reputation!

Charlyce watches interview with Trey, recognizes him as her nephew, whom she hasn’t contacted for years, and that he might be able to get her to Brownstone, to help her little angel.

TUMB 06/7 Trey picks up his phone, again! Since the interview had played it felt like every random woman he’d ever dated or man he’d talked to for five minutes in his entire life had called him. Everyone wanted a piece of Trey Garfield now, or at least a loan from him. It was Aunt Charlyce, from Las Vegas. She talked about her past, then said she needed to talk to Brownstone, as “Something evil’s walking in Las Vegas,” she whispered. “Not natural. Not even Oriceran. I read on the internet about how Mr. Brownstone has stopped not just evil men, but evil monsters. That’s what I need—a man blessed by God to help fight the evil. You can read about it in the news, about the little girl who lost her father. How his head was cut off and his body cut up. It’s evil. A demon, I tell you. We got that hole in the worlds now. The Oricerans can come through it, but who’s to say that Satan’s minions can’t, too? It’s a dark time, which is why we need men like Mr. Brownstone and men like you.” Trey phones Brownstone to tell him he’ll be un Vegas for a couple of days. James tells him to go to Jesse Rae’s for BBQ!

Detective Lafayette and Detective West, Las Vegas, are starting to see a pattern in the killings – three murders, all parents, all with young children present, all by a Shadow monster with a transforming bone arm, tentacles, and red glowing eyes, all with similar MOs, and all calling the children little angels when telling them to walk away. They’re beginning to think it’s a magical being, and that an AET team might be needed. Or maybe get some bounty on its head, so some hunter will go after it. Casinos help? Protection money? They write up a bounty report, and with the magical details, it is classified as a Level Four Bounty. They’re happy with that. Bounty notice hits Las Vegas Website, and Red eyes finds and reads it (See Characters, Red Eyes).

Feels that “They need to recognize my true power. Soon they will know terror that will be spoken of for generations.”

TUMB 06/8 Brownstone checks into hotel, for a week?, maybe if that’s how long Trey might need him. Hotel Owner asks him if he want a free week for Security duties. Brownstone refuses. Hungry. BBQ again? No, In-N-Out burger first, then Trey. Doctors Anders and Simmons, at a meeting, discuss rampage of their latest sample (XJ422). We were supposed to find the sample before the police. If the authorities get their hands on it they might be able to trace it back to our lab, especially if they get a wizard involved. We don’t want Oricerans realizing that we’ve been performing genetic engineering experiments involving mixing different types of Oriceran and pure human DNA. They’d destroy this lab if they realized what we could accomplish without using any magic as long as we have access to biological samples from magical beings. At this point, it doesn’t matter if we recover the sample alive. Just make sure its corpse is back in this lab before anyone else finds it. I’ll contact our investors and make it clear that we’re handling this matter.”

TUMB 06/9 James, on his way walking to the Burger place, sees two petty gangsters about to rob a liquor store. He almost goes on, ignoring it, then thinks of what Alison would say if someone got hurt because he hadn’t done something about it. He went in, went to the bathroom, when the alarm went off. He stopped the two armed men from robbing the store and shooting the customers, threw them through the window so the cops cold cuff them, then walked off the In-N—Out Burger, where they went later to take his statement.

TUMB 06/10 The Next Kill Trey Hoped his Aunt Charlyce wanted something besides money. He even had hopes that she might want to come back, to be part of a family again. He walked into the park to a woman on a bench, and recognized Aunt Charlyce. Now a family member stood right in front of him, one he’d thought was long dead. It was like being given a gift he hadn’t even known he wanted. A tearful, hugging re-union, each forgiving the other. They meet Brownstone at a local McDonalds.

Three suited men stepped into the dark abandoned warehouse, assault rifles at the ready. A dead building. The perfect place for a freak mutant to hide. Doctor Simmons said the sample would be within a few hundred feet of this location, based on what the satellite data said. Something about an energy signature. Red Eyes greets them refuses to go back to lab with statement . “I am no longer Sample XJ422. I am Red Eyes. I am Death. I am Terror.” Burst-fired bullets peppered the walls as the men tried to bring down their enemy. The shadows stopped spreading, and XJ422 leapt to the other side of the room, revealing his leathery and mottled naked body. The shadows cloaking the corners of the room vanished. XJ422 leapt toward one of the team members, one of his arms now tipped with a bone blade and the other contorting into a barbed tentacle. It killed two of the three. The team leader shot at it again. It collapsed to its knees and then onto its chest. The leader advanced toward the sample. The sample jumped up, and pain blasted through the man’s arm. He tried to pull his trigger, only to realize an agonizing few seconds later that his right forearm was missing and his gun was on the ground with his arm. The humanoid creature in front of him licked his blood off the bone blade, then sliced his other arm off. The team leader fell to the ground screaming in pain. The sample’s arms had already started to heal. The sample thanked the leader for bringing him food and toys, and screamed as XJ422’s fangs ripped into his throat.

TUMB 06/11 Maria Hall stops by the Black Sun, talks to Tyler, ask him where she might be able, unofficially, to get some of the Oriceran equipment (anti-magic deflectors) that was destroyed in the fight. Tyler tells her to see Dannec, and elf., and gives her his address. Maria Hall comes to Dannec’s area, finds him. Even though most people called the area Elf Town, plenty of different Oricerans lived in the neighborhood, both new arrivals and Earth families with Oriceran blood. Some had known and hidden their true nature throughout the generations, and others had only recently learned of their heritage. The neighborhood wasn’t the only Oriceran-heavy enclave in the city, but this was where Dannec lived. Hall not in uniform, and uncomfortable. Maria found the address, the apartment, knocked, and a frail ancient-looking elf answered. Maria told him Tyler had sent her, and a moment later the door swung open. Maria stepped inside and held in the gasp that wanted to erupt. Piles of magical items and artifacts sat atop several tables in the living room. Rods, wands, crystals, necklaces, bones, coins, and an assortment of other miscellaneous objects covered the tables. Maria gave him a ruined deflector. It’s AET issue. I work with AET. Lieutenant Maria Hall, LAPD. And why is AET interested in old Dannec, huh? “We’re not, not officially. I’m interested in you getting me more deflectors, or something that works the same. I don’t care. My men need protection, and the word is you can get them that.” These are better, probably thirty percent more absorption, than your fancy government-issued ones. She and Dannec make a deal, but she owes him a favor. Nothing illegal, just a favor. Brownstone meets with Trey and Charlyce. She tells him about Red Eyes, he agrees to help. Will leave Trey to take care of Aunt, look after Dina.

TUMB 06/12 Tessa walked down Hollywood Blvd in Los Angeles. She was strong. She could kill hundreds, if she wanted. But not now. She’d be good, because of Brownstone.

Detective West meets Brownstone at the Las Vegas PD, takes him to CPS, to meet Dina. (West likes BBQ, too! ) and Hannah. Brownstone vows to take him out.

Trey fields another call from the about-to-be bounty hunters with Royce, in training, bitching about Staff Sergeant Royce going all drill instructor on their asses. They needed to stop whining and start doing what their trainer told them. They weren’t gangbangers anymore, and the minute they accepted that, the easier it’d be for them to transition to being bounty hunters. I’m the one who led these boys, so it’s my responsibility to make sure they get with the program.” He chuckled. “We’ve got a Marine Corps drill instructor working with them. Some of my boys thought they knew tough, but between Mr. Brownstone and Staff Sergeant Royce they’re learning what real toughness is.” Trey wanted to do something nice for his aunt, so decided to treat her to a night at the Aria, a four-million-square-foot luxury resort.