Chapter 6: Old Friends and Bad News

            Alice and Nathaniel jostled their way through the crowded streets looking for a taxi to take them back to the Mann mansion. The problem with that plan was that it was the Saturday night before Mardi Gras and the city was already packed with people looking to celebrate early. Cars of any sort were locked in due to the sheer amount of foot traffic and unoccupied taxis were nowhere to be seen. The pair walked in silence for several blocks before Nathaniel finally spoke up. “I don’t need you to nanny me you know.” Alice laughed derisively “How long ago was it that you were left for dead in an Alley?” She has a point spoke the projected voice of his employer. Nathaniel jumped despite himself and Alice stopped in her tracks to glare at him. “I get that you just went through a lot, but it’ll take us forever to get to your place if you keep jumping at shadows. Let’s move.” She turned and picked up her pace almost vanishing in the crowd. Don’t lose her idiot. She’s your best lead on the amulet, and the only reason you’re still alive. Nathaniel hurried to catch up, his strides might have been longer than hers, but that meant nothing when she seemed to be able to get the crowds to part around her. Get her talking, I don’t care what you’ve got to do. “Hey…” He said when he had finally caught up “I just wanted to say thanks for earlier. It wasn’t terribly gracious of me to act that way after you helped me…again. Though you have to admit it’s quite the coincidence that we’re both looking for the same amulet.” Alice attempted to ignore him as she rounded a corner to head in the direction of the mansion. “Nothing to say eh? Or is it that you’ll get in trouble with dear old dad if you talk about work?” Alice gritted her teeth and kept walking resisting the urge to simply knock him out and leave him down another alley. “Maybe I’ve got it wrong. Is he your grandfather? Don’t tell me he’s your boyfriend?” The glare Alice shot at him could have cut through a steel plate. Nathaniel, displaying a startling lack of self preservation instincts, became overjoyed with this reaction. “Struck a nerve have I? Didn’t think you’d be into older men, at least not that old.” Alice’s hand shot out and clamped around his mouth. “If you shut up I’ll talk. Deal?” Alice could feel Nathaniel’s grin widening beneath her hand as he nodded. I’m honestly surprised that worked.

            “So who is he?” Nathaniel asked. Alice lightly jabbed him in the stomach with her elbow. “I thought you were supposed to shut up. He’s not exactly my father, but he’s close enough. He adopted me years ago and has been training me ever since.” “Training you in what?” Alice punched him again for talking but answered him all the same “Training me in just about everything it seems. Martial arts, different forms of magic, investigation techniques, whatever he thinks I’ll need. I’m supposed to take over for him when he retires, assuming he ever does.” They walked in silence for a moment before Nathaniel finally asked “Well what does he do?” Alice made to hit him and chuckled as he flinched “WE are investigators. We find things, or people. Usually we wind up fighting demons or werewolves or other things that bump in the night. It’s dangerous work, but necessary, and I’m proud to be doing it.” Nathaniel steeled his nerves and tried his luck. “You’re proud to do it, but are you happy?” Alice stopped in her tracks and turned to him with a stare that could melt a steel plate. “I think you’ve asked enough questions.” She growled. Nathaniel stood frozen in place more terrified of this young girl with the piercing gaze than he ever was of any clockwork death machine. Alice’s hand darted into his jacket pulling out the listening bug she and Jonah had planted at the mansion the prior day. “Your turn to talk. Explain why you have this.” Nathaniel scrambled to come up with a suitable lie, but found himself unable to think with her so close. “I saw it back at the mansion, I don’t know what it does, but it seemed valuable. I figured I could use it to bargain with, I didn’t even realize it was yours when I took it.” You’re an idiot. It was almost impressive how a disembodied voice projected into his head from a continent away could sound so disappointed.  Alice stowed the bug in her pouch, turned back down the road and resumed her relentless pace.

            “You mentioned an amulet; if I find it for you will you stay the hell away from our investigation?” Nathaniel hurried to catch up as his brain tried to process what he had just heard. “Wait! Are you serious? If you’re not here for the amulet then… Never mind I actually don’t want to know.” Not believing his luck Nathaniel hurriedly fished the drawing out of his jacket and showed it to Alice. Recognizing that drawing should have floored her, but Alice was far past being surprised by coincidences. There was just something about this case where nearly every damn thing was connected somehow and it was starting to get to her that this annoying boy kept showing up. “I already have this amulet, just not on me, it’s back at the inn I’m staying at. If you go back to the mansion and wait for me there I’ll bring it to you and you can go away.” “Not a chance in hell. If you have the amulet at all I’m going back with you and will take it from you wherever you’re staying. Otherwise you’re not getting rid of me that easily. After all, how do I know you’re not just trying to get rid of me so you can keep it yourself?” Alice ground her teeth at the prospect of having to take him back to One Eye’s but liked the idea of ridding herself of him sooner. A motion in the corner of her eye set her instincts on edge and she turned back the way she was walking and took off as fast as she could without seeming suspicious.

            “I said I’m not going back to that mansion damn it!” Nathaniel yelled after her as he practically ran to keep up. “We’re not going to the mansion and keep your voice down you idiot, we’re being followed” Alice hissed at him as she discretely slipped her hand to her revolver. Years of training as a con artist kicked into effect as Nathaniel slipped into character and pulled Alice closer, throwing his arm around her shoulder and whispering in her ear in a manner that was far too familiar for either of their liking. “I didn’t notice anyone different in the crowd, are you sure?” Bristling slightly at his touch but playing along she whispered back. “I can sense these things OK? You should be able to see him about a block back. He was dressed in black.” Nathaniel tilted his head a little to nuzzle her affectionately and cast a glance back. It was hard to make him out, not because the crowd was too thick, or even because he was being evasive, he just had something about him that made you look right past him as though he wasn’t there. It took effort, but he managed to get a decent look at him and made out a single detail. “Is it the priest?” That was the word. Alice stopped in her tracks and pushed Nathaniel away before whirling on their stalker. Sure enough the familiar figure of Brother Claudio was bearing down on them, the pleasant half-smile of his plastered on his face as always. If she had surprised him at all it didn’t show. “What the hell do you want Claudio?” “Language, young lady. I was sent by Jonah to collect you, I have a message for you both.” Nathaniel, though slightly confused from the rapid turn of events, caught on enough to try and work this to his advantage. “Well if Claudio here needs to take you back to your boss or mentor or dad or whatever he is then why don’t you take us both so you can get my amulet and I can go on my way?”

            Alice was getting very aggravated with this whole night which was only getting worse now that Nathaniel was making reasonable suggestions. A short time later the 3 of them were climbing out of the backseat of a cramped cab having just set records for “Most uncomfortable silence”. Conversation was attempted, mostly by Nathaniel, but Brother Claudio never talked much and any comment directed toward Alice was met with an icy stare. Alice turned on Nathaniel “Wait outside, no negotiations.” Nathaniel looked like he was about to object when Claudio placed a hand on his shoulder. “I’ll wait with him Miss Alice. Men of the cloth aren’t generally looked favorably upon in these establishments.” Alice nodded her thanks to Claudio and ducked inside before Nathaniel could say another word. With a quick hello to One Eye she ran up the stairs to her room and dug through her trunk to find the amulet that was given to her by Lady Celeste. She found it on top of the egg she had gotten from Lady Celeste as well. Alice froze staring at the egg. Though she hadn’t paid it much attention when she had gotten it she was now finding herself overcome with curiosity about it. She was still staring at it when Jonah came into the room looking for her. Thankfully she managed to hide it before he noticed what she was holding, he still didn’t know she had the egg, or at least, she hadn’t told him. It had felt somewhat wrong that she had a memory of his locked in that egg so at the time it made sense for her to not tell him. “Hey kiddo, ready to go?”

            Alice tried not to look embarrassed as she pulled out the amulet and closed up the trunk. “Yeah, just turns out Nathaniel was looking for this. Not sure exactly how he and Lady Celeste fit into this, but I figure if I give it to him he’ll stay out of our way.” Alice thought she saw a moment of doubt on Jonah’s face and wondered if he had seen the egg, or if he just wasn’t sure about giving away an obviously valuable amulet just to get rid of Nathaniel. For Alice that price was more than acceptable. The pair headed back downstairs and into the night once again to meet with the priest and the con-artist. This was going to be another long night.

Chapter 5: The Bone Man Cometh

            Though the last weak rays of the sun fell on the streets of New Orleans, the alley that Jonah and Alice found themselves in had not seen natural light for a long time. The chill winds of a winter night howled down the empty alleyways biting to the bone and causing Alice to draw her cloak tighter, Jonah as usual seemed to not notice the cold. The investigators were in this lonely alley thanks to a tip from One Eye. Alice turned a wry grin towards Jonah “Are you sure that One Eye doesn’t actually want you dead?” A brief smile crossed Jonah’s scowling features as he responded “Not as long I owe him money…” The heavy steel door of the shop One Eye had directed them to worn and weather-beaten as though it had been there for as long as the city itself. A wooden sign hung on the wall next to the door proclaiming it to be “Ming’s Curiosities”. Jonah let his hand drift down to the revolver resting in its holster, a subconscious act of reassurance. “Ready kiddo?”

            Alice ran through a mental checklist, the same check she made before walking into any unknown situation. “Hold on Old Man. Gotta listen to some demons.” With sleep coming so hard at One Eyes she had forced herself over the last day to tune out her demonsense so that she would be able to sleep in its absence. However if there was ever a time when she needed the ability to sense demonic forces it was now. Closing her eyes and letting her mind open to the world around her she felt the all too familiar noise return. What began as the regular white noise of minor imps skirting around the edges of reality soon gave way to a more distinct sound in her mind. “Alice, what’s the matter?” Jonah asked, bringing her out of her head. Alice blinked rapidly as she returned to the world around her. “There’s something in there. It’s different than anything I’ve felt before.” She said while trying to collect her thoughts. Jonah’s scowl deepened as he thought it over. “This place deals in magical artifacts, it might just be that. Might also be that the proprietor himself is some kind of demon you haven’t seen yet.” Alice shook her head “I don’t know…” Jonah placed a hand on her shoulder and looked her in the eye. “Look kiddo, whatever is in there, we can handle it. If we stay on our guard and keep our wits about us we’ll be fine. Now I’m asking you again, are you ready?” Alice squared her shoulders and pushed the demonsense to the back of her mind again. Placing a hand on her tool pouch and looking Jonah in the eye she nodded.

Raising a gloved hand Jonah pounded on the heavy door listening to it reverberate through the building. A long moment passed in silence before Jonah went to knock a second time only to have the door open as he raised his hand. The room inside was too dark to make out who had opened the door, though someone was moving inside. A sudden flare of light illuminated a dark figure as a match was struck and went to a candle. The candlelight moved nearer the door and a slender woman’s hand pulled the door open further. “Come inside please” implored a soft voice. As the candle moved around the room the woman paused to light others bringing a soft yellow glow to the room. Finally resting the candle on the counter the woman stood revealed in the light. She was an exceptionally pretty woman with smooth caramel colored skin and long smooth hair that hung past her waist. She was dressed entirely in silks that were all different shades of red, each darker than the last. Even her lips, which were curled into a faint smile were stained a deep crimson. “Is there something I can help you with?” The woman asked, addressing the pair. “You could tell us where the proprietor is,” replied Jonah “somehow I don’t think you’re Ming.” The woman only smiled again and continued “I’m afraid that Sir Ming is indisposed currently, though I was left to mind the shop. Is there anything you or your curious friend are interested in?” Jonah cast a glance at Alice who was wandering the room looking everywhere, Alice however, was too distracted to notice.

Alice’s demonsense had grown louder in her mind as she looked around the room trying to determine where it was coming from. Whispered voices echoed through her head without ever passing her ears. Half heard slurs and mumbled threats were joined by high pitched screams of rage that seemed to come from far off yet were heard as though from inches away, though none of it was loud enough to be understood. Alice tried to push the sense from her mind when she couldn’t pinpoint the source and found to her surprise that the sense pushed back, growing louder and more insistent. A hand on her shoulder brought her back to her senses long enough that she managed to see a rare look of concern on Jonah’s face. “Something’s wrong!” She managed to choke out before the assault began again. The voice was now a raw bloody scream, incoherently raging at the world and heard through the padded walls of an asylum cell. The screaming hated everyone and everything and only oblivion would slake its thirst. Alice didn’t feel her legs give out beneath her or hear Jonah call out to her as he caught her mid fall. She simply clutched at her head and screamed with the voice as it fought its way into her mind.

Jonah spun on the woman drawing his revolver and pointing it at her head in one smooth motion. A flash of intuition hit him and he tried his luck. “Let her go Renee!” The woman only smiled again “It is not my doing, though I’d suggest you point that elsewhere little man. If I die there’s no one who can call off the Bone Man”. Snapping her fingers a curtain in the back of the room shifted to the side and the temperature dropped drastically. Alice’s screaming stopped as she collapsed to the floor staring into nothingness, Jonah ran to her side trying to revive her but keeping his eyes glued on the inky blackness behind the curtain. Frozen breath hung in the air as the Bone Man shuffled into the room. It had the rough appearance of a tall, featureless, naked human. It was so emaciated that it looked to be little more than leather-like pale skin stretched over a skeleton. It’s skin was oily and splotchy in some places, dry and cracked in others. Its face, if you could call it that, had no nose, eyes, mouth or hair, though it was obviously staring straight at Alice and Jonah. The Bone Man took another step into the room and it seemed as though every joint in its body was creaking and popping at once. Its skin glided over the skeleton beneath creating a ripple that suggested that the skin wasn’t attached, just something that it wore. Renee slipped behind it placing a delicate caramel hand on a greasy pale shoulder. “Take them” She commanded it before she slipped into the blackness behind the curtain.

Alice screamed again as the Bone Man resumed his march towards them. Jonah drew his revolver again and opened fire tearing massive holes in the chest, neck and head of the creature, but it still stood. The hold it had on Alice however had broken and she regained her senses enough to see the creature for the first time. The Bone Man simply stared at them with half its face missing and reached into the hole in its chest. Never breaking its stare at them they heard a snap as it broke a rib free and held the piece of bone before it on an open palm. Alice watched in horror as the piece of bone splintered and transformed into some form of insect. The insect didn’t live long however as Jonah’s next shot obliterated the Bone Man’s hand and the insect with it. “Get Back!” He yelled at Alice as he stood and flipped a release on a small device attached to his wrist. Alice’s eyes widened and she covered herself with her cloak as the device spewed a sulfurous powder into the air in the direction of the Bone Man. With a snap of his fingers Jonah caught the piece of flint embedded in the finger of his glove against the steel plate in the heel of his hand sending sparks into the air and igniting the powder. The fireball expanded outward engulfing the Bone Man for an instant and leaving several nearby shelves burning. A wave of hot noxious fumes from the burning powder washed over Alice, but she was safe from the fire beneath her flameproof cloak. Jonah had almost managed to get his own cloak up in time but lost an eyebrow. The fire had managed to catch on the thick black substance that the Bone Man used for blood though it still attempted to reach for them with its remaining hand as it smoldered and collapsed into a heap. The danger wasn’t over however as dozens of the bone insects scrambled from the burning heap and the reeking stench of the burning blood filled the room. Alice and Jonah found each other through the smoke and ran for the door throwing it open and letting the cold night air rush in crashing against the wall of hot smoke. They leapt into the alleyway slamming the door closed behind them.

Hacking and coughing Jonah set about sealing the door with a magical ward while Alice propped herself up against the wall of the alley. Breathing the cold air in deeply and feeling the last of the noxious fumes get forcefully ejected from her lungs Alice collected her thoughts and searched out with her mind. The Bone Man was gone, but there was something else, something close by. Catching his breath Jonah sat down next to Alice “You alright kiddo?” Finding her voice and forcing it past the raw pain of her throat she managed a weak “Yes, but there’s someone over there” pointing down the alley to a body lying covered in a thin rug. Jonah got back to his feet and helped Alice to hers. Alice drew her own revolver and with weapons drawn and readied they approached the body. With Alice keeping a steady aim on the body Jonah reached cautiously for the rug to and pulled it away. Somehow neither of them seemed too surprised to find “Nathaniel” beneath the rug, it was exactly the sort of coincidence that happened too often in their line of work. “Well things just got more complicated” sighed Jonah. Alice shook her head “He’s not dead. I sensed his mind and corpses don’t have minds.” Jonah checked his pulse and found it faint, but undeniably there. Nathaniel lay on the ground, eyes open but without seeing anything. He appeared the same way Alice had only moments earlier when she was under the influence of the Bone Man, but it was destroyed now. “…the insect!” They yelled in unison. Jonah shot a glance at her “Get ready to help him out, or knock him out, whichever’s easiest. I have a feeling once that thing is out of him there’s going to be screaming and I’d prefer not to draw any more attention.” Alice nodded and knelt next to the prone man as Jonah cracked his knuckles.

Many years before all of this Jonah would tell Alice about his time training with the Buddhist Chi Masters of the East. It was a bedtime story to her to hear about the strange powers they were capable of and of their ability to heal any wound by the use of pressure points. It had become more than a bedtime story when he had used those same powers to set her broken leg after a run in with a bog imp. It was still one of countless talents that Jonah had yet to teach her simply because there hadn’t been time. There never seemed to be enough time. She watched carefully and tried to reach out with her mind to feel the way Jonah was focusing the energy in his hands. Jonah took a sharp breath and struck Nathaniel in the chest with his fingertips several times in lightning speed and precision. His body began to convulse violently and Alice clamped down on him to keep him on the ground as Jonah took the other side. Finally one of the spindly bone insects crawled from his mouth as Nathaniel went limp again. Before the wretched thing could scurry off Jonah snatched it up and trapped it in a small glass vial that he kept in one of his pockets. Nathaniel awoke with a start and sat up. “What in the? Oh hell, it’s you two” he said recognizing them finally. This comment earned him a sharp slap to the head from Alice “Don’t give us crap. We just saved your life.” She scolded and gestured to the vial. Jonah slipped the vial in a pocket and cast a knowing glare at Nathaniel “You’re in the wrong part of town kid. I think you need some protection to make sure you get home safely.” Nathaniel scoffed “No thanks old man,” and got unsteadily to his feet but tried to hang on to his indignation even after nearly tripping over himself, “my life is in danger enough whenever you two are around. I’ll manage.” Alice met his gaze and stared him down. “I insist.” Nathaniel looked at Alice and mumbled something resembling a concession while casting worried glances at Jonah. Jonah pulled Alice aside quickly “He doesn’t look like he’ll talk to me, are you going to be ok on your own?” Alice puffed herself up and nodded giving what she hoped was a reassuring smile. “Good girl. See if you can figure out why he was there and how to keep him out of the way. I’m heading back to One Eye’s to see what I can find out about this.” He said while patting his pocket with the vial. Jonah, Alice and Nathaniel exited the alley a moment later onto a street that was still packed and went their separate ways, each on their guard for their own reasons, and for reasons that would become good ones all too shortly.