July 31, 2005
.07.31.05. - research [roxy] *ul

**technically not completed until sunday, heh**


[river city condos - apartment 312]

(james)
each Eagle goes their own way to recouperate from the nasty Tacoma-killing battle

Hyde recollects, Decker mourns, AnneMarie watches, Kemp guards
James is perhaps the most distant from the group
sequestered away in the kinfolk's posh River City Condo
recovering from his direct intersection with the pack's former monstered out truck
though after the first night passed by while others took watchman shift
the Gnawer Elderman was recovering from something far more detrimental

a guy can get over a cyclopsian beast bitchslapping him into the pavement with a 4x4
a guy can even get over the fact he'll never live down breaking his Alpha's beloved truck
what the raggedyman couldn't get over where the horrors unfolding throughout the night
the relentless phantasms that marked him with dark shadows beneath umber eyes come morning
the half-heard notions and mistaken sounds swelling til he's left no choice but to wake with the force of his own raw voice drowning out the rest

chittering rat spirits that followed him all the way from a near-forgotten night in Newark years ago
wailing howl of La Llorana ringing to fill the silence of unconscious mind
its echoes even haunt him well into the brightening hours of this new day
errant sunlight slash tickling warmth over flesh like the ghostly touch of lambent flame

he's never known such blind. terror.
there's not been once before that he can remember such utter lack of control
it's far easier for a predator to lose their mind than live with the perpetual spook of one hunted
Gaia's ultimate weapon bridled with the weight of inarticulate weakness
(.... don't dare speculate what's leaked out over the Totem Line as you slept, do you, Jamey-boy?)

the Ahroun will not be satisfied until he sees the bitch dead, himself

few hours spent occupying himself at the nearby library uncovers a select bit of information
books carted back to the apartment as now he's free reign with newly approved clearance past the guards downstairs
much preferred circumstances compared to the glares and suspicion of few days past
the stack of tomes gives him reason to think of the lingering images in a different, productive light
at least he's working to assemble the frightening pieces
some sense of security with the inevitable return of dusk half the day away

luckily, Roxy's high-speed internet access provides welcome distraction
and the afternoon hours pass with Gnawer and Walker stationed in the living room
Peroxide Fox manning slimline keyboard, patiently introducing James to the world wide web
lanky dreadlocked Fullmoon tucked crosslegged by the foot of her chair
Camel hanging out of the corner of his mouth, dark eyes tipped towards flickering screen
idly skimming the webpages she diligently brings up for his query search
pointing out the ones here and there that contain enough fact over apparent fiction to warrant print
by the time he's got a stack or twelve organized on the carpeting around him
James' voice notches in his own addition to Hyde's commentary
rifling through the papers and notations in order to keep all of it straight
deep down there's a flickering thought his Frankenweiler mentors would be proud

Been digging with Rox for more on it both over the web and at the library. The Bloody Mary urban legend's been around for about thirty years. Name Mary Worth comes up constantly in reference, among others Hyde mentioned. I remember it as a cub. That myth kids would dare each other to do as a rite of social passage, or whatever. Basic ritual goes along the lines of repeating her name or a phrase some number of times in various situations to call her forth. Most common are "Bloody Mary I killed your baby" or "I don't believe in Mary Worth." She's portrayed as having blood on her face, black eyes.... few drawings and sketches we found hit the mark on what it is we saw at the fountain and factory. or that James sees everytime he closes his eyes Also often referred to as the Mirror Witch.

La Llorona is a known myth based on an Aztec or Mexican ghost called the Weeping Woman. She supposedly killed her own children by drowning them in a river then disappeared.

Then things got really interesting when I talked with Mother Eldridge from Tampa's Sept. She gave me the name Bl'Dye M'ree. Seems that a pack of Furies attempted summoning Bl'Dye M'ree by folklore's steadfast method of chanting the spirit's name before a mirror in a darkened room. They reported failure, and then vanished several days later. No explanation. Gone like the were never there. Just that the spirits became really defensive and evasive when asked about it. Most disturbing thing about it was that several of the children that vanished appeared to have been lost cubs. Stories say she bursts through mirrors to snatch up her prey. Strikes children about the face with a red rosary. Sets the skin of young boys on fire with pain. Destroys the will of young girls to reward her followers... ruthless criminals who wreak havoc for her delight with pliable slaves. as well as murder innocently bystanding trucks, no doubts Seems the apparition is very common among children of Garou relations. Most recurring aspect about it is the children give one chilling warning - once Bloody Mary's seen your face, she will haunt you until you're dead.

thankfully Roxy's still staring at the computer's monitor and can't see the Ahroun's slight shudder
though the impression may unconsciously translate along the pack's open frequency
James was having a hard enough time coping with one night's repercussions

Sounding familiar yet? Far as I can tell, La Llorona, Bloody Mary, Mary Worth, Bl'Dye M'ree, and all the rest are pretty much the same seriously wigged out spirit - just seen in different ways by different people like Hyde pointed out. Connects what multiple names that bane jabbered at the park, and Andrea's spitting out Spanish in the factory, religious iconography and verse, constant presence of water close by, whole nine yards.

a pause, here, as connection distances for a few moments
gives his packmates time to assimiliate their finding's with Hyde's offering
weed out the fluff, confirm the best prospective tale, figure out what they're dealing with
in reality, it serves as James' partial distraction when Roxy offers him a fresh beer
though his prattling on continues once first amber swallow is over with

Touched base with the Green, too, and Mother Larissa filled in some blanks about the Jersey killings that set this whole thing off. Few spirits were convinced to talk and said seven children were sighted at the house. A spirit that fit the same description as our problem was described as being there, too. Said the sight of it threw a kid into his first change, and he sounds a lot like the Crinos we found with Andrea at the Bronco. That'd be Judas. The Stag spirit was killed defending him and the two remaining girls - our very own Andrea and Molly. It wasn't Judas' kinfetch, though, the Stag was the guardian spirit for Molly. Four that didn't get away were three mortal boys and a girl, not enough left to even ID them through dental records, but Mother Larissa thinks they were all Judas' friends and I've little reason to doubt her theory. Without Andrea's wallet getting left behind, there'd be no connections or leads whatsoever.

it must be amusing, for Roxy, to watch him internally converse should she glance away from screen
randomly gesturing a half-hearted point by bottle's float this way and that through the air
dark eyes rapt on the research collected... he's probably not even aware of doing it

Turned up a few local bits that fit into the story, too, Roxy caught these from the news archives. Few days ago an eight-year-old named Kevin Bowen was killed at the women's shelter. Kid's father found him and two other boys, one injured with severe burns. A lady named Vivian Tate was killed by apparent vicious animal attack in South Side about the same time. Imogen's probably best lead for more, ME's Office is quoted in the article. And some lady named Lopez is getting hit with murder charges for beating and burning her three daughters to death last Saturday night.

now, the pause spanning a rather hearty draught off the bottle signals intermission
that's the summary of his busy-worth thus far instead of momentary distraction
legs uncrossing so a foot reaches out to nudge the base of Roxy's chair
stretching himself, waving to the kinswoman to take a break while Eagles collaborate amongst themselves

What's next?

Posted by james at July 31, 2005 12:00 AM