The harpy's dagger fell and skittered across the floor. The brown-haired woman held Tom in a tight hug, very similar to how children would squeeze him a bit too tightly when he was in his cat form.

A large book suddenly flew into the air and sailed across the room, smacking the harpy in the side of her head. She glared at Tom but, only for a moment because she suddenly found herself being tossed like a leaf on the wind.

"What the hell, Doc?" Bogie said to the scared woman in Tom's arms.

"Bogie? What are you...?" She released Tom from her embrace and stepped toward the only familiar face in the room. "We have to get out of here. They're trying to kill me!"

"They?" Bogie asked.

A second harpy suddenly came into view as she flew down the stairs from the upper floor. Her dark leather outfit and flaming red hair matched her black and red wings.

"PLURAL!" Bogie shouted again as he pointed at the new arrival. He grabbed the brown-haired woman's hand and pulled her out of Tom's way, as he shouted at the Bast, "Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!

The blonde harpy launched herself at Tom like a missile -- if missiles came equipped with razor sharp talons.
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:05, Wed 10 Dec 2014.

Tom was beginning to think that this bird might be an eagle... Nonetheless, he swiped at her with his claws, putting all his strength in the attack, and pushing hard with his mind to hold her still and disrupt her attack.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:19, Wed 10 Dec 2014.

Jack spotted the shiney dagger on the floor.  He dropped the fireplace poker and picked up the dagger.  "Now that's a knife!"

Weapon in hand, Jack bolstered his macho.  He waited for an opening, and more importantly, a path clear of the Bast.  A moment later, Jack made his move.  He lunged forward, battlecry through clenched teeth for the effort, intent on returning the dagger to the owner - pointy end first.

Tom pushed with his mind, forcing the blonde harpy's claws to miss their target. Then he leapt at her with his own claws out. He shredded one of her wings, causing her to tumble to the floor. Jack took advantage of her sprawled position and stabbed her with her own dagger.

The red-haired harpy screamed, "No!" and then she began to sing. It sounded as if more than one voice was coming out of her. It was a blending of a woman's voice, accompanied by a songbird. The words weren't in a language anyone recognized, but the melody was comforting. The human part of her voice shifted to English, while the sounds of a songbird continued. She looked at Bogie and sang, "Bind them." She grabbed a roll of duct tape from the top of the doctor's desk and tossed it to him.

Bogie had a glassy-eyed expression as he moved to tape Tom's hands behind his back.

"What are you doing??" The doctor exclaimed as Bogie stepped away from her.

The redhead slipped a bow off of her shoulder and aimed it at the doctor. "Do as your told, and I won't hurt you," the harpy sang.

Zoey stopped frantically looking for a weapon as the woman began to sing. She took a deep breath and looked around. "Wait, what?" she shook off her weird sense of calm and looked at the guys. "Bogie, no! Hey stop, stop!  You can resist this!" she ran in front of him and put her hands out trying to physically push him back but instead of feeling him push against her she stumbled forward into him.

Bogie suddenly tripped backwards immediately dropping the duct tape. "Bogie STOP!!" he looked confused as he gazed at his hands. "Oh god did I just..." he cleared his throat audibly. Shaking his head he suddenly looked at the harpy that had been singing. "Hey! umm ahem. My friends didn't come here alone and you can't control me, you can't even see me. So leave my friends alone. We didn't come here for bloodshed, we just came here for answers. So everybody just needs to calm the hell down and start talking. Now! Who are you people and what in the world is going on in here."

The sharp sound of metal striking stone filled the room as Jack dropped the dagger onto the hearth.  He held out his arms helpfully towards Zed and smiled a little dopey smile and sighed heavily.

The blonde harpy sat up with one hand clutching her side. "Kill one of them." Her voice was strained and blood trickled out of her mouth. "If the doctor values her people, maybe she'll start talking to save them."

"I told you, I don't know anything about your friend!" the doctor insisted as she kept her hands raised in the air.

The redhead had been keeping her bow aimed squarely at the doctor's face but, spun to point it at Bogie when he spoke. "What are you?"

"All you need to know is that I'm apparently more powerful than you. We might even be here for the same reasons, in which case maybe I'll let you have the good doctor all to yourself." Bogie remained rather motionless as he continued to speak. "We're here cause some people seem to be dropping dead, we cared a great deal about some of them and we have some compelling reasons to believe it's her fault. We'd like some answers as to what happened, I'm guessing you would too. The only way that's going to happen is if every one here stays alive. We'll let you tend to your friend here who looks like she could use some help rather soon and we can all go our separate ways once we all get our questions answered."

"My fault?" the doctor exclaimed. "Bogie, I haven't done anything wrong. They're crazy. They think I've kidnapped one of them. Why would I do that?"

"To make your human drug," the blonde said bitterly. "Humans have always hunted us to use our feathers in their magic rituals. Now, they also want our children."

The redhead watched Bogie warily and kept her arrow aimed at his throat. "Shortly after my mate went missing, the doctor started bringing Lix into the projects. She needs our eggs. She must be keeping Aello prisoner. We just want her back, unharmed."

The conversation caused the harpy to waver in her singing. Tom and Jack felt their free will returning.

Jack shook his head to clear it.  As he became completely in control, he reviewed what was just said in his head.  He moved a step or two slowly toward the dropped dagger, hands up in front of him.  But he made no move to pick the dagger back up.  Jack just wanted it to be within his reach if it was needed.

"Wait a minute.  Let me get this straight."  Jack pointed towards the harpies.  "You two think that doctor Karen here has captured one of your family.  That is why you are here.  We are here because evidence lead us to doctor Karen as a supplier of bad Lix that caused the death of one of my family.  And the good doctor here claims that she has done nothing wrong."

Jack addressed the Harpies.  "Either we are actually on the same side and have made a grievous error."  He faced Karen and said, "Or we have all been duped by someone else.  Either way, we need to stop fighting and get some answers.  Which is it Doc?  Two groups have ended up at your door by different paths for different but connected reasons.  If you want to survive this meeting, tell us why you gave Paul that special mix of inks.  And what did you make that mix out of?  Better start at the beginning." Jack warned.

"A mix of inks for Paul? My half-brother?" The doctor's confusion seemed to disipate as a terrible realization began to sink in. "No." She shook her head in disbelief. "He wouldn't."

"Your medical bag contains several vials of Lix," the redheaded harpy cut her off. "We know it was you."

"Of course I have vials of Lix," Karen snapped. "Lix addicts must be slowly weaned off the drug. Stopping cold turkey can do more harm than good." Her tone shifted from anger to frustration. However, I'm no alchemist. I couldn't make Lix even if I knew what was in it." She looked up at the harpy. "You have to believe me. I had no idea your eggs were a required component. Paul never told me what went into to making Lix and... I never thought to ask. Maybe a part of me didn't want to know."

"Well... There's a way to check that." Tom freed his hands with an effort, and slowly pulled out his glasses: "These glasses enhance the natural magical sensing abilities of mages and supernatural creatures. If we check the vials in the bag against the doctor's aura, we should be able to tell if she made the Lix."
This message was last edited by the player at 19:45, Tue 30 Dec 2014.

Jack looked momentarily frustrated, then angry.  "You mean that Paul lied to us?  Paul said that you had mixed his tattoo ink with an herbal concoction that would make the tattoo hurt less and heal faster.  And you are saying that Paul is your Lix supplier for the purpose of easing the addicts off the hard stuff."

Jack turned to Tom.  "Which is it Tom?  Could she be the one making the Lix?"
This message was last edited by the player at 22:18, Tue 30 Dec 2014.

"I've got more vials over here," the doctor said as she moved toward her desk. The red-headed harpy immediately swung the bow around and aimed it at the doctor. Karen stopped moving and stood with her hands in the air. "I'm just getting the Lix so your friend can check it."

"Slowly," the harpy said with a nod.

Karen kept her eyes on the harpy as she opened a drawer and pulled out a couple of vials and set them on the desk. "Did he... Did Paul tell you that it was me? That I was the one making Lix?"

As soon as Tom wore the glasses, his lips tightened: "Sorry Jack, we got duped. Doc is less magic than a glass of boiled water."

Then he looked at the vial in her hands: "Same stuff we saw in Paul's studio. Not surprising, really, since he made it..." He took off his glasses and offered them to the nearest harpy: "Most supernaturals can sense magic, they should probably work for you."

Jack shook his head.  "No he didn't, exactly.  He said you gave him the vials, though. An herbal supplement for his tattoo ink.  Paul claimed no knowledge of the Lix, which implies you were the one that laced it." Jack said to Karen.

Bogie started shaking his head, "What? Really? It was him all along...intentionally? Why... why would he--" Bogie looked rather distraught for a moment 'till suddenly he stumbled forward and stood upright losing his former expression, he moved more naturally.

Zoey stumbled slightly as she regained her previous state. "I just don't understand? Why would he do something like this? What possible motive would he have to inject us with Lix?" She looked at Karen for a moment but got no response, Zoey looked over at Bogie beside her and sighed with frustration, "Well, that was interesting while it lasted"

"What the f..." Bogie staggered a bit. "Whoa... head rush." He rubbed his head with his hand as he slumped into the nearest available chair.

The redhead lowered her bow as she started to reach for Tom's glasses.

The blonde harpy dragged herself to her feet. She was clutching her side as she stepped toward Tom and her friend. "If her brother made the Lix, then we will deal with him too," the blonde said. "However, I'm not convinced the doctor didn't know."

With everyone's attention off of her, the doctor reached into her desk and pulled out another item. Suddenly three shots rang out. The doctor was holding a gun and firing in the general direction of the two harpies.

The rapid report rang out from the pistol.  Jack instantly reacted, leaping forward, intending to land on his outstretched hands.  Forward seemed like a good direction because he didn't see any guns in that direction.  The fact that the bleeding blonde was also in that direction was merely because he had recently tried to stab her.

As Jack fell forward, he was wracked with sudden hot burning pain as the lead projectile impacted his body.  Jack cried out.  His crouched position crumbled into something more fetal-like.  Jack's blood flowed from him, adding to the pool of harpy blood already on the floor.

Almost instinctively, Tom reached for the redheaded harpy. If nothing else, his glasses were a ridiculously rare magical artifact, and he had no intention of letting them get smashed. Also his shield was probably going to protect him from the bullet... Mostly.

The good news was that he saved the glasses, as well as the harpy. The bad news was that his shield was not as resilient as it could have been.
This message was last edited by the player at 07:13, Wed 07 Jan 2015.

Zoey quickly turned as the shots rang out, she looked back and saw Tom and Jack's blood spilling onto the floor. Eerily everyone suddenly heard a ghastly whaling throughout the room as Zoey cried out "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!" her anguished yell continued to resonate through the house as she rushed toward the doctor. Without thinking Zoey immediately grabbed her wrist and twisted until the gun came loose, she gripped it tightly and spun it around aiming at the doctor's face. She took a quick breath and stepped back slightly giving some room between her and Karen. To everyone else in the room all they saw was a floating gun trained on Karen.

A terrified look crossed the doctor's face as she heard the eerie voice and felt the gun being ripped from her hand. "What... what is happening?" she stammered.

"Whoa... that's trippy," Bogie said as he watched the floating gun. "Zoey, right?" He raised his hands in the air and slowly stood up. "Jack's hurt. I'm just gonna go check on him, ok?" Bogie walked over and knelt on the floor next to Jack. "Where are you hit?" he asked as he began to search for where the blood was coming from.

The blonde yelled something in an unfamiliar language as she reached for one of her daggers. Bogie quickly grabbed her wrist. He knew she was stronger than him and could easily pull away but, he was hoping to get her attention. "Plenty of time for that later but, right now, I need your help so these guys don't bleed out on the floor." The blonde paused and glared at Bogie. "Please!" he exclaimed. She didn't fight him as he pulled her hand toward Jack's bullet wound. "Put pressure on it." She did as instructed.

Bogie looked at the redhead. "Check on him," he pointed at Tom.

The redhead kept her bow nearby as she kneeled next to Tom. "I'm sorry. We didn't mean for this to happen."