Realistic or Modern Looming of Gálgviðr

[Fairfax]

Chaos had fallen upon the city.

For the last couple of weeks, civilians had been vanishing into thin air, leaving their friends and loved one to do nothing but uselessly wonder about their fate.

Luckily for Alice, this wasn't the case for her. While most other people had little choice to twiddle their thumbs whilst leaving the matter in the hands of the police, Alice was a mythical warrior. A person specifically chosen by a god to be a bastion of justice in troubled times like these.

And with each disappearance, Alice's resolve to protect her city had grown until at last she couldn't just sit idly by anymore.

So finally, here she was, patrolling the silent streets, her heart pounding with anticipation. She couldn't help but feel excited about the nights prospects. Truth to tell, Alice hadn't done much more than seeing what exactly she could use her newfound powers to eat since she'd gotten them and this kind of thing, solving a mystery and actually helping people, seemed like a more worthy usage of her powers.

Suddenly, a scream cut through the quiet night. Alice’s heart pounded in her chest. She was ready, her arms filled with more mouths.Without a second thought, Alice ran towards the noise. Her mind was buzzing as she rushed to help.

She didn't know what she would find, but she knew one thing - she was ready to fight.

 

[Nellancholy]

The distinct smell of solder wafted out the window of a small room in a cramped, messy part of town as Abilene Greene peered over a disassembled electric kettle on a table, her gloved hands deftly soldering a new heating element back into the plastic frame.

"I can't tell you how thankful I am that you could take some time out to help, Abi." Old lady Wilson sighed from the living room. "I've been missing my morning coffee for days now!"

"Mhm." There was little response except the sound of the soldering iron.

"I'd usually have Jimbo come take care of it, but he hasn't been returning my calls. He's never like that..."

"Uh-huh." Abilene muttered, holstering the iron and snapping the casing of the kettle back into place. "He's probably busy running the restaurant, business is good this time of year." Jimbo, or to pretty much everyone else, James, was Mrs. Wilson's son. Early 40s, unmarried, owned a decently-successful eatery in the area. Never offered to let Abi and the other members of Detox Princess eat for free (and they never asked), but always a welcoming presence to the community.

As Abi plugged the kettle back in and got up to leave, Mrs. Wilson stood and hobbled over, pressing a few banknotes into her hand. "Here, it's the least I can do, hmm?" It wasn't a lot, barely a day's food for four.

"It's more than enough, ma'am." Abi's expression was unchanging. "If I see Mr. Wilson I'll make sure he calls you."

---

As Abi walked out under the dusk sky, her tools in her backpack, her worries were not the least bit assuaged. The truth, of course, was that she hadn't seen James in the last few days either. No one had. In fact, the restaurant hadn't opened at all.

She had half a mind to head over there and get all CSI, considering how missing persons reports tended to be dragged out when brought up to the police from this part of town. They'd probably just ask if he'd skipped town from gambling debts or something.

Before she could consider her next move further, a scream rang out from nearby. She tilted her head up a bit, scanning the skyline.

Clambering onto a nearby dumpster, she grabbed onto a fire escape, hauling herself up and running onto a rooftop to determine what was happening.

 

[Gundam Watcher 27]

Riku Kuroko
(Open for interaction)

As far as it concerned Riku, this was just another Monday. She got up, showered, dressed into her business outfit (why is the under shirt so tight?), and made coffee. After making her coffee, she drove in her Camero to the nearest fast food joint that served breakfast in the morning. She always got the option with the most food in it. After getting to work, she eats her breakfast in her car, before going inside to the top floor, where she worked (She is the business manager.)

Nothing seemed off really. Whenever she checks in on the employees, they always were busy working in their cubicles. If a cubicle was empty, the person was most likely sick. Just a normal day.
"Something doesn't sit right with me."
Riku was in her office, pondering when that voice spoke. Riku found it annoying.
"Kana, the office always has at least one absentee. What makes this any different?"

"Every day I've been with you, I've observed the norm of the people going about their lives. There is 1 abnormality within this building you've overlooked. Who didn't come to see you this morning to bring you a Walnut Muffin that you generously refuse? Someone who always shows up to work."

Riku hadn't been paying attention alot, but Kana had just pointed out what was wrong.
"The crossdressing guy with a nice butt hasn't shown up......."
"Should we investigate then?"
"After work."
--------------
"HENSHIN!"
Riku had gotten to the rooftop after everyone left, in order to transform. Yelling her transformation word, a huge dragon appeared and spiraled around her. Riku's clothes vanished as she visibly shrunk in size, the spin around with new clothes appearing on her body. The dragon flew up and over behind her, as Riku did a pose, with the dragon roaring behind her.

"Magical Dragon Girl, Riku! At your service!"
Riku then looked down at her hands.
she really hated turning into a little girl. Why can't she look like one of those Busty Ninja Girls instead? Riku sighed and ran to the edge of the building, before leaping off and flying into the streetlit sky.​

 

[CuChulainn]

Tomás took a deep, heavy drag on his cigarette. The tobacco filled and burned the inside of hsi throat and into his lungs. He knew it was an awful habit but it just felt right. The day was passing by him so slowly. What seemed like hours since his shift started was really only one.

Sitting on a bench outside a small bakery with a coffee and a pastry, he drifted in and out of the world milling about around him. Increasingly he found himself doing his work away from the police precinct. Lately being around the rest of the officers had just felt like such a burden to him. He just wanted to spend his time alone, contemplating, and solving a case every now and then.

THe street was busy, people milled to and fro, all had places to be other than here. He sat back, and enjoyed his food for a moment. He’d need to head back at some point but right now this was ideal. Watching from the sidelines.

After a few moments had passed, and he had finished his pastry he opened his notes from the case he was working on. Another homicide. Another case that was looking like it would lead nowhere. He was weary. Wrinkles lines his forehead, and dark bags sagged underneath his eyes. Another night of no sleep.

Sighing he took the empty coffee cup and plastic pastry wrapper and threw them in the bin before walking off down the street. He hadn’t gotten far when he heard the scream, he looked around. As if by magic the street had unnoticeably gone from busy to faintly occupied.

Did anyone else hear the scream? Was it in his head? Was it…

His thoughts trailed off. He didn’t think he had the mental ability to deal with a Banshee right now. But the memory of the scream clawed at the back of his mind. He was already jogging towards where he thought it came from, on autopilot. He awoke from his thoughts, moving down the alley, and he converted to a full run to find the source of the scream.

 

[Wilder28]

Yáotl

High above the rest of the city, Yaotl sat perched upon the precipice of a towering skyscraper, looking down upon the world below. The night was young; not long ago was it that the sun had gone down, dipping beneath the horizon while the moon arose to take its place. And as usual, as night fell and dusk gave way to darkness, Alejandro had set about his typical nightly duty of prowling the city grounds.

This had been the arrangement for years now. It had been more sporadic at first, as his freshness to the line of duty meant that an immediate transition to daily operation wouldn't have been handled very well. It was only every other night or so that his patron would call upon him, enough to give him a good bit of rest in between. But now? Ever since he'd gotten used to this new life of his, complications and all, he was expected to go out almost every night, where he'd prowl and scour the city for anything that he might need to take care of. On rare occasions, he'd find nothing, but most commonly, he'd be out until well past midnight - daybreak at the latest.

He didn't usually go beyond that, as Tezcatlipoca generally preferred that they operated in the dark; barring cases of convenience or emergency, the day was best left to other Warriors to take care of. Most of the real trouble happened at night anyway, and if he wanted to properly deal with that, Ale still needed to get some sleep here and there.

As it currently stood, he was perfectly well-rested and ready for action, as he always was this early on. Crouching with both his hands and legs holding tight onto the concrete roof below him, he remained almost perfectly still, every muscle of his body locked in place; only his eyes moved about, gleaming a vivid gold as they scanned the city below. Even though he wasn't fully shifted - only his claws were out, to help with maintaining his grip - he still possessed a fraction of the jaguar's vision, allowing him to see everything with startling acuity. Shadows didn't hinder him as much as they used to, and the city lights only made it easier.

That, combined with his hearing and his sense of smell, made it feel almost like nothing could hide from him. Barring the obvious obstructions, like neighboring buildings, he could clearly see every single person on the ground below. The pedestrians, the drivers, the muggers, the runaways - everyone. He could hear hints of their conversations amid the constant cacophony of engines and AC units, smell their bodies alongside oil and metal and even the occasional hint of ozone. It was all so familiar to him - and yet, in the subtlest of ways, it was noticeably different as well.

This wasn't his city. Didn't look like it, didn't sound like it, didn't even smell like it. Having watched over the streets of Houston for years now, he knew what it was like. And every night he spent here reminded him that, for better or worse, he wasn't there anymore. At least not for now.

But it didn't matter. Much as he resented this change in location, he would protect this place all the same. It was still his duty, after all.

For the moment, things were quiet. As quiet as they could be in the middle of the city, anyway. It was a far cry from downtown Houston, where there always seemed to be something going on, but that didn't mean it was peaceful. He had yet to spot any trouble, but he had been aware for a few days now that there was something going on in the area. He'd seen it all over the news - mysterious disappearances, occurring seemingly at random and growing more frequent by the day. No one had any clue what was causing them, and though he'd been looking into it, neither did he.

That was going to change, though. Tonight.

While he watched, waiting for something to catch his senses - the smell of blood, maybe, or sounds of violence, both pretty telltale signs of trouble - he pondered the recent happenings, trying to run through all the options of what the culprit of this issue could be. He'd faced all sorts of things, not just of Aztec fame, but from other mythologies as well; but nothing he'd learned so far pointed him in the direction of any particular creature. Even with his patron's guidance, it seemed like all his attempts at investigation only lead to a dead end. It was frustrating, but he wasn't giving up yet.

Luckily for him, after what felt like an eternity of waiting for something to come along, just when he was about to change tactics and go on the move, he heard something concerning: A scream.

His head snapped up almost immediately, facing in the direction he'd heard it coming from. It couldn't have been close; from what he could tell, it was at least a few city blocks away. But that was no problem; he could get there in no time.

A chilling breeze washed over his body, brushing against his back and flowing in the direction he was looking. A twinge of annoyance came to life within him.

"Yeah, I know," he muttered under his breath. "I heard it."

His muscles tensed as he prepared to move, turning his head to look at the building across from him. For a normal person, such a jump would be a death wish. But for him? In this form, it was easy work.

Less than a second was spent gauging the distance. Then, he launched, his hands releasing their grip while his legs propelled him forward with incredible power, sending him flying over the street. His claws retracted as his hands shifted back to normal, and just as he hit the ground - landing perfectly on both feet - he faded smoothly from view, cloaking himself so that no one would spot him navigating the city's rooftops.

He was on his way to the scene, and at this rate, it was looking like he would be there very soon.

 

[Ayama]

Lilia Calina Sokolov

The Ivory Bane

Chosen of Freyja

"Liliaaaaaaa, do you have that third edition copy of Tale of Two Cities? The customer is heeeeere!"

Lilia rolled her eyes and reached down to grab the aforementioned book, brushing a little bit of dust from her skirt as she straightened up and walked back to the front of the shop.

There was Ms. Clawthorne, chatting animatedly with the customer in question as he waited for the book to arrive.

"Ah, there you are," the shopkeeper exclaimed in her ringing voice when she spotted her assistant. Lilia held back a sigh and held forth the book, which the customer took and began to examine with a smile and a quiet 'thank you, young lady'.

He, like Lilia, and like most anyone else who spent significant amounts of time in bookstores, was gentle and soft-spoken. Ms. Clawthorne, on the other hand, was brash and loud and, Lilia reflected not for the first time, would have made more sense as a fishmonger than the owner of a bookstore.

Still, the woman had given her a job, in the environment she most preferred, so Lilia couldn't complain. Most days she would simply roll her eyes and chuckle at her boss' inappropriate demeanor- so out of line with her profession, and yet undeniably warm.

On other days, when she was stressed out or tired, the loudness got on the college student's nerves, and she tried as much as possible to ensconce herself in the shop's dusty and deserted back rooms, where the grating sound could barely reach her.

Today, she was in a decent mood, but as she caught a snatch of the conversation between her employer and the client while gathering up more books to bring back, her expression darkened.

"Yes, that's the fourth one now to disappear- it's like they've just vanished into thin air..." Clawthorne was saying.

Lilia pressed her lips together and hurried away, good mood gone.

She had indeed heard about the disappearances- had in fact been investigating them herself, at Ari's behest, but with no success. It had been several nights of fruitless searching now, and Lilia was getting frustrated with her inability to make any progress.

They can't really have just disappeared into thin air, she thought, could they?

*****​

When her shift finally ended, darkness was already beginning to fall and, as she walked with her head bent against the bite of the late autumn wind, she wondered if there was a part of town she hadn't yet explored or a clue she had missed and failed to follow up on.

She made her usual after-work stop at her favorite corner store, only to find, much to her surprise, that the person behind the counter when she got her bagel was not the usual affable shopkeeper she liked so much, but his weedy, nervous-looking son.

"What happened to Mr. Hafez?" she enquired of the youth, worried. "Is he sick?"

The boy shook his head.

"No, pop never came home from last night's grocery run," the boy responded in a trembling voice. "The police were just here taking a statement."

Lilia's veins went cold. Not portly, kindly, generous Mr. Hafez...

"I'm sure they will find him soon, Hameed," she said in as reassuring a voice as she could muster, "don't worry."

When she stepped outside, however, the dark expression returned to her face, the bagel in her hand quite forgotten.

So that made five disappearances now- things were getting really serious.

As she walked past the bakery, she noticed a man with red hair and beard and a slightly defeated hunch to his shoulders sitting there with a notebook in hand. She wondered vaguely if this was the detective who had taken Hameed's statement, and if he might have any leads.

Before she could work up the nerve to ask, however, he had already risen from the bench and walked off, and Lilia had resignedly turned back and started walking again herself.

It was only a few moments, however, before she heard the scream.

Someone's in trouble! she thought, immediately tossing the bagel to the nearest unhoused and running into the closest alleyway. I've got to help!

Once out of sight of the street, she stopped, closing her hand on the falcon-shaped amulet at her neck.

"Great Freyja, give me strength," she prayed as the amulet began to glow, burning white-hot in her hand. There was a great flash of light as Lilia's body was lifted into the air and enveloped in a bright cocoon.

It took but a few moments for the transformation to occur and soon, right where the college student had been, was a different-looking girl with snow-white hair and amber eyes standing in her place.

"Ivory Bane, Chosen of Freyja!" the girl declared in a strong voice even as a small bird of prey appeared seemingly out of nowhere, circling down to where she stood.

"There's been a disturbance, and another disappearance," she told her Patron as he hovered at her eyeline. "Please, find them."

The falcon gave the slightest of nods, as if it understood every word (which, of course, it did), and then was off again, soaring above the rooftops, Bane's eyes and ears above the din and chaos of the city.

Please, let me find them tonight, the Magical Girl silently prayed as she ran after him, darting through small streets and alleyways now dripping with the shadows of the oncoming night, let them be okay.

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