Wednesday, June 17, 1987
1980 Tulip St
The Fishtown section
Philadelphia, Pa
Ted Mathews sit atop the building across the street from the apartment of Steve Roberts and his roommate. He has staked out the apartment for several months now, hidden from sight by the camouflage attributes of his Hellion suit. Ted has years of experience in casing a crime scene and stalking people, but Steve Roberts has been a tough nut. By all accounts Roberts is a boring mundane robot that gets up at the same time every morning, showers, eats, and is on the train to Camden, NJ by 7 am. But there are those rare mornings when Roberts slips through Ted’s surveillance unseen to turn ups in Camden without taking the train. Checking his watch it is 7:30 am. Clearly this is one of those mornings.
This morning will be different, Ted has taken the opportunity to plant surveillance cameras. Making his way to the basement of the apartment building Ted unlocks the hidden cabinet he installed weeks ago. Inside a VCR recorder wired to the cameras he has planted has recorded the mornings events surrounding Roberts’ apartment. He pops the tape out and replaces it with another blank one.
Philadelphia Police Headquarter
One Franklin Square
Philadelphia, Pa
Master Warrior strides into Commissioner Aspen’s office confident in his unscheduled arrival. He recognizes Darla Eckroth from his previous visits to the office when he was on the Police force, but she has no idea who he is other than Master Warrior. She is stunned by his appearance in her office. “OH, oh can I help you?” Darla stammers her eyes fixated on the man’s physic.
“I would like to speak with Commissioner Aspen,” Master Warrior smiles feeling a little full of himself knowing that Darla is so infatuated by him. Darla appears to be paralyzed as she makes no effort to move or contact her boss. “Commissioner Aspen, could I speak with him?” he repeats. “Tell him Master Warrior is here, I believe he wanted to see me.”
“Yes, yes sir,” Darla finally manages to say as she jumps up turning to go into the Commissioner’s office. Moments later she returns with Commissioner Aspen.
“Master Warrior, what an honor it is for me to have you to come here,” Commissioner Aspen says reaching out his hand to shake. “Please come into my office we have so much to discuss.” “Darla, cancel my whole morning!” Master Warrior steps past the Commissioner into the office as Aspen steps back behind his desk. “Please, have a seat,” he offers.
“No, that will not be necessary, this will not take long,” Master Warrior replies. “I know you have had some concerns over my intentions.”
“I wish you had let me know you were coming by, I could have arranged a press conference,” Commissioner Aspen tells the local hero.
“That is exactly what I don’t want,” Master Warrior tells Aspen. “I’m not doing this to be a celebrity, I just want to help.” “To handle things that the police can not.”
“If we all work together we could accomplish so much more,” Aspen argues reaching into his desk drawer. “I would like to deputize you.” Aspen reaches out holding up a badge.
“I appreciate the gesture Commissioner Aspen but I need to work on my own,” Master Warrior explains. “I don’t want to be limited to one place.” “The things I can do can not be confined within the rule of law.” “Filling out paperwork is not my goal here.”
“A vigilante then?” Commissioner Aspen charges dropping the badge on his desk as he sits back down.
“That is not a term I would use,” Master Warrior replies. “I would prefer defender.” “The Elite Squad is good but they have their limits, I do not.”
“So you know about the Elite Squad?” Commissioner Aspen quizzes. “Why would I not have them arrest you right now?” Commissioner Aspen suggests.
Master Warrior smiles, “Do you really think that would be wise?” “By my count I have saved more lives in the past six months than any officer on the force.” “I intend to continue to do that.” “I can do what the Elite Squad can not, go places out of their reach.”
“NO!” “Stay away from me!” Suddenly there is a scream and a crash from the outer office. Master Warrior and Commissioner Aspen rush for the door. On the other side they find Darla’s desk overturned and the receptionist pinned up on the wall by her throat, held in place by the clawed hand of a cat-woman. Darla’s attacker has the snarling face of a tiger along with a white striped orange fur covered body. The she-cat has razor sharp claws gripping Darla’s throat, the slightest pressure would puncture the girl’s jugular.
“What on Earth?” Aspen shouts at the sight of the cat-woman’s tail that swishes back and forth.
“Who are you and what has Darla done?” Master Warrior demands jumping to the conclusion of Darla flirting with the wrong guy.
“This fool has done nothing, it is you I want!” the cat-woman hisses as she drops the receptionist to the floor. The tigress springs forward at Master Warrior, who is barely able to shield himself from her sharp clawed hands with his gauntlets. The momentum of her attack sends him against the wall. Her strength is an even match for his as she pins him to the wall, her fangs at his throat. “You can call me Smilodon,” she hisses.
“Hold it right there!” Aspen shouts holding his gun aimed at the cat-woman. The Commissioner’s demand cause a big enough distraction to give Master Warrior an opening. He swings his attacker around by her arms to the floor.
Master Warrior’s cape extends outward around him to act as a shield as the claws on her feet slash out at him. He needs to restrain this creature. Pulling his arsenal from his thigh, throwing it at Smilodon, commanding it. “Retraining strap!” The golden arsenal transforms into a two inch wide band that coils around the cat-woman. “You will find it unbreakable,” he says as she lays on the floor struggling.
“What is she?” Commissioner Aspen asks stepping closer still holding his gun on the trapped creature. “Oh my God, Darla!” Aspen suddenly exclaims remembering his fallen assistant. He hurries to attend the woman on the floor who is still in shock from the attack.
“Shhhee said she came for him,” Darla manages to say pointing at Master Warrior, drawing his attention to her.
“I ask again, who is she?” Commissioner Aspen demands.
Master Warrior moves to assist Aspen in helping Darla to her feet. “I honestly don’t know,” Master Warrior tells them. “I’ve never seen anything like her.”
The sound of thrashing on the floor changes briefly and then there is a, “Roooaaarrr.” The trio look in time to see the hindquarters of a Saber-tooth tiger flee the room into the hall. Master Warrior recognizes the cat instantly as he leaps over the overturned desk to follow after it, grabbing up his arsenal on the way.
He has the prehistoric beast in sight as it charges down the corridor. There are many screams as people lunge to get out of the escaping cat’s path. Master Warrior dodges around the fallen office workers his only goal is to capture the cat! A rope is the solution, he thinks as he wills his arsenal into the shape of a lariat. He is no cowboy but he has uses a rope before in the tournament. As he lets the rope fly the large cat jumps up through it and then through the plate glass window at the end of the building.
Picking up speed as he runs Master Warrior dives out the window in pursuit of the beast. Flying out over the rooftops there is no sign of the Saber-tooth tiger or Smilodon. He circles the block to find nothing before returning to the Commissioner’s office.
“Thankfully, no one was hurt,” Commissioner Aspen tells Master Warrior as he returns to the office.
“Now do you understand why I can not be tied to this department?” Master Warrior asks. “There was no way she could have known I was coming here today, I told no one.” “Yet she found me.” “Imagine if I sat in some precinct at a desk everyday.” “Imagine all the danger everyone around me would be in on a daily basis.”
“I suppose you are right,” Commissioner Aspen confesses. “But you said you didn’t know her.”
“I didn’t, but that transformation into a Saber-tooth tiger gives me some ideas,” Master Warrior tells the concerned head cop. “The speed at which the tiger disappeared into the city makes me think she can become completely human too.” “How else could she have gotten into this building unnoticed.”
Holiday Inn Express
100 N Christopher Columbus Blvd
Philadelphia, PA
Ted Mathews returns to his motel room not far from the Ben Franklin Bridge. Switching on the light and peeling off the black suit Ted heads for the shower. It has been a long night watching over his target. A hot shower is what he needs to get to sleep for a few hours before heading to Camden to pick up the trail.
As the hot water washes over him, he is eager to watch the video tape to learn what Roberts is up to on the mornings when he disappears. The thought of Roberts is somehow aware of his spying crosses his mind again. Roberts has been a weird egg from day one. Acted as if he knows things about the world that no one else knows. Ted pushes the idea from his mind as he turns off the water. Toweling off he thinks about when Officer Roberts arrested him. How the cop resisted his power. How he gave him a lame talk about turning his life around before it was too late.
Wrapping the towel around his waist he leaves the bathroom more eager than ever to watch the tape. Popping the tape into the VCR that he has wired into the motel TV. Ted didn’t risk planting cameras in the apartment. The recording has a four way split screen to follow four different cameras at once. The first camera records outside the apartment door where it begins recording at 6 am. Which is a good thing because Steve Roberts left his apartment a half hour early today. He dressed for work like any other morning, but this morning he does not head down the stairs but up.
Ted took the precaution of planting cameras to follow to the roof as well as to the street. The camera on the roof is at a slow panning speed as it picks up as Roberts exits the stairs door. Following him as he walks to the center of the roof where he stands looking to the early morning sky. The sun peeks over the horizon as Roberts moves his hand to his ear. Just then the camera pans away. When the camera pans back Roberts is gone.
“What the Fuck?” Ted shouts.
Trademark Investigations
Camden, NJ
Steve arrives to work late after the events at the Police Commissioner’s office. He is still thinking about Smilodon and the only explanation he can come up with is that she is one of the Shadows that got away. If what Galio told him is true by this point she will be a threat to no one, accept him. That is both a blessing and a curse because Master Warrior’s danger sense gave him no warning of her attack.
“Ah, here he is,” David says as Steve walks in. “Steve Roberts this is Hillary Beachum, our new client.”
Steve reaches out his hand to greet the distraught woman before taking his seat behind his desk to put Smilodon out of his mind. “I am so sorry for making you wait,” Steve apologizes. “How may we help you?”
On the verge of sobbing the woman says, “As I was telling Mr Rogers, I need you to find my son.” Hillary Beachum fumbles reaching into her purse. “I’ve brought this photo.” She hands a photos of a bikini clad young man doing a pose down to David. Both of the detectives look at the photo and then to each other think what an odd photo for a mother to bring of her son.
“Is he a bodybuilder?” David asks politely.
“Alexander was in a few competitions some years back but now he works as a personal trainer in Center City Philadelphia,” Mrs. Beachum replies.
“Center City Philadelphia?” David questions. “Why come to us, surely an investigator there could do this job for you.”
“Alexander has not been himself of late,” Mrs. Beachum answers. “He has been ill, had problems with his vision.” “The last time I spoke with him he had seen his last doctor with no good news.” Mrs. Beachum fumbles in her purse again for a tissue. “He said he was coming home to Camden, but he never arrived.”
Steve gets up from his chair moving to comfort the woman. “Mrs. Beachum is it possible that Alexander fell ill again while coming here?” “How was he traveling to Camden?”
“Alexander would usually drive but with his eye sight problems, I don’t know how he was coming,” she answers. “He didn’t tell me.” “He sounded rushed, like he was trying to leave as soon as he could.”
“Did he have a girlfriend?” David asks timidly, “A boyfriend perhaps?”
Mrs. Beachum gives David a dirty look, “He spoke of a girl one of the times I talked to him last month, Fiona I believe her name was.”
“Did he give you a last name?” Steve asks feeling a strange tinge at the sound of the name.
“No, I don’t even think he meant to say it,” Mrs. Beachum replies. “It sounds as if he was in some kind of competition with the girl.”
8th and Market Street Station
Philadelphia, Pa
Ted Mathews sits silently at the back of the train car watching two men who boarded the train by chance. He was on his way to Camden when Steve Roberts and his partner got on. It would seem that the bad luck he has been projecting onto Steve Roberts has had a hangover. Roberts has appeared to be immune to Ted’s bad luck power up until now, perhaps the continued exposure has gotten through that immunity. At any rate, Ted has picked up the trail after losing Roberts on the rooftop.
Steve and David disembark the train and walked the few blocks to the Thomas Lofts on Market Street to find the apartment of Alexander Beachum. Finding Beachum’s loft is not hard as they arrive at the door to find a policeman guarding it. Ted hangs back at the end of the hall even though he has already stripped off his jacket and jeans to use his Hellion suit to hide himself.
Steve recognizes the officer at the door from his time in the force. “Excuse me, Tony what’s going on?”
“Sorry, Steve I can’t say, you’re not on the force anymore,” Officer Pike replies. Steve looks past the cop to see his roommate Paddy in the apartment. “You should both leave,” Officer Pike says.
“Paddy!” Steve calls out to his friend trying to get his attention. New Detective Berger looks to the door to see Steve and David.
Paddy comes out of the apartment stepping past officer Pike at the door. “I’m sorry sir, I asked them to leave,” the Rookie cop says.
“That fine, “I’ll take care of it,” Paddy says taking the men around the shoulder to direct them down the hall away from the apartment in question. “What are you guys doing here?” Paddy asks them in a low tone. From the door behind Officer Pike, Paddy’s new partner Detective Grimes watches the exchange between the three men although he can not hear them.
“We’ve been hired by Alexander Beachum’s mother to find him,” Steve tells his roommate.
Paddy doesn’t look too happy with Steve’s answer. It is against all of the rules but knowing who Steve is he knows he could be a help to the case he is working. Paddy turns to look David in the eye for a minute before saying, “You, did not hear any of this from me!” “Am I clear?”
David is surprised by the Detective’s words, he has never had a cop be so helpful. “Of course, there is no reason for you to even says that, we understand completely,” Steve answers for his new partner.
“Remember that case I told you I was working on with the missing doctors a few weeks back?” Paddy asks Steve, who nods. “We had hit a dead end until a few days ago when we got a tip about this Xander Beachum.” “We had already cleared him, but Mark wanted to interview him again.” “Commander Olpere really didn’t see the point in it, so she send Mark alone to follow up with Beachum.” “After all who could hurt Zadlo right?” Paddy says under his breath.
“So what did Mark find out?” Steve asks.
“That is just it, Mark was a no show this morning,” Paddy tells them with a sad look in his eyes. “No one has heard from him since yesterday when he came here to Beachum’s place.”
“Did you find anything in the apartment?” David asks to a scowl from Paddy.
“There is no Beachum and no blood like the other disappearances,” Paddy explains.
“There might not be blood with Mark,” Steve suggests to a confused look on David’s face. Then Steve says more to irritate his new partner. “All we know is what Beachum’s mother told us that he had called a few days ago telling her he was coming to her home in Camden.” “But he never arrived and she had no idea how he was traveling.”
“Now get out of here, I can’t tell you anything else,” Paddy says pushing the two men away down the hall. Steve and David walk back to the elevator silently. Steve can’t help but think about the loss of his friend and former co-worker, Mark.
Once inside the elevator David states, “I had wondered if you would be able to resist thinking you were still a cop and not a P.I.”
“What do you mean?” Steve asks confused by his boss’s statement.
“You just gave the cops the only information we have for barely anything in return,” David charges.
Steve smiles at David, “I gave them information on a lead that we have no way of following up.” “Let them spend their resources hunting down train and bus tickets, while we get a head start to the gym where he worked.”
“I hadn’t thought of that.” “What did you mean by, “There might not be blood with Mark?'” David repeats back to Steve.
Steve knew at some point he might have to come clean about his old job on the Elite Squad to David he just hoped it wouldn’t have been this soon. But before he can explain the elevator doors open and two women step inside. “I’ll explain later,” Steve says not wanting to talk in front of strangers.
Ted Mathews follows after the Detectives down the stairs hidden from sight by his Hellion costume. Then suddenly the suit stops working, he is no longer blending into the wall of the stairwell. Then he hears another set of footsteps behind him on the stairs. Ted ducks out the door to the fifth floor to listen to the sound of the footsteps pass downward. It would seem he is not the only one following the Detectives.
“¡Dios mío!” A maid exclaims in the hall behind him at the sight of his Hellion suit.
“Sorry,” Ted tells her slipping back into the stairwell. Behind the door Ted can feel the suit kick on as he disappears back into the wall. He can no longer hear the person on the stairs in front of him. However whoever it was they caused him to lose his targets, for the second time today. Luckily, that doesn’t matter because Ted knows where they are going. Ted hurries down the steps again. He doesn’t know much about this suit, but he thought of becoming visible again without warning is not a good one.
Platinum Gym
Center City
Philadelphia, Pa
Steve and David arrive at the gym where Xander Beachum worked. It is clearly a high end private club. Entering to the reception desk David asks, “We’re friends of Xander’s could we speak with him?”
“Xander is not in today,” the receptionist answers coldly.
“Perhaps we could talk with some of his clients,” Steve asks.
“Are you members?” she asks.
“Yes,” David blurts.
“Let me see your membership cards then,” she smirks.
“Well, that went well,” Steve says as they walk back out onto the street in front of the gym. David is silent for a moment looking up and down the street.
“I got another idea,” David says grabbing Steve’s arm to pull him across the street towards a Sporting Goods Shop. Inside the store David instructs, “Find some workout clothes!” Steve goes to the racks grabbing the first pair of shorts and T-shirt in his size.” Meeting David at the register. “Expense account,” David says pulling out a credit card.
Heading back across the street the detectives go into the alleyway and around to the back of the gym to find an employee entrance. “This is the place,” David says as he pulls his new clothes out of the bag and tosses it to Steve. “Get changed!”
“What here?” Steve questions as David starts to undress.
“Do you need a shower curtain, princess?” David charges already stripped down to his underwear and pulling on shorts. “We need to blend in!” Steve does as he is told as his partner stuffs his street clothes into the Sporting Goods bag. David looks at his partner who has squeezed himself into tight blue shorts and a yellow shirt. “Shit man, are those women’s clothes?”
Steve looks down at his overly tight attire realizing his partner is right. He didn’t even notice that he pulled the clothing off the wrong rack. “Shit!” Steve exclaims. At least it is more than he wore throughout most of the Tournament, he thinks in frustration.
“There is no time to change it now, we are losing our head start here!” David tells Steve as he retrieves his lock pick kit from his jeans to go to work on the door knob.
“This is breaking and entering,” Steve reminds as he adds his street clothes to the Sporting Goods bag.
“I’m not breaking anything, it is just entering,” David glares back at his partner. David gets the lock open to tell Steve, “We split up find as many of Xander’s clients can, find out what they know, before the cops show up.” The door enters into a kitchenette style break room. David stashes their bag of clothes behind a sofa that is against the far wall.
Sneaking out into the gym Steve heads for the treadmills as David goes over to the free weight area. Steve’s outfit draws the attention of several of the middle-aged women walking on the machines. He smiles at them trying not to feel too uncomfortable. There is a bleached blonde woman in full make-up about fifty stretching her calves at a rail on the wall. Steve’s first thought is to join her but he realizes that his shorts won’t be able to contain their contents if he were to stretch too far so he just does some back and shoulder stretches.
The bleach blonde woman stops what she is doing to watch Steve intently. “Are you the new trainer?” she asks with a big red lipped smile.
“Why do you ask?” Steve replies lifting his arm to stretch it behind his neck.
“Seems our old one Xander got himself sick and it looks to me like you could put me through my workout,” the woman says grinning, an over groomed eyebrow raised.
“So Xander was a good trainer then?” Steve asks lowering his arm.
The bleached blonde steps closer reaching out to take hold of Steve’s bicep. “He was a fantastic ‘Trainer’, he had my body doing things I forgot it could do,” she tells Steve as she feels the muscles on his arm. A second woman of similar age and appearance dismounts a treadmill and comes over to where Steve is being examined.
The red-head wipes the sweat from her head with a towel. “Oh Linda, is this the new trainer?” the red-head says with a smile, reaching out to touch Steve’s chest. “I bet you will do a great job!”
The aggressive older women make Steve uncomfortable but it is clear to him that Xander was doing more with them than the Jane Fonda Workout. “So how long has Xander been ill?” Steve asks trying to gently move out of their reach without offending them.
“Oh, it has been a few months and my body is yearning for a good hard workout!” the blonde tells Steve as she eyes his tight shorts. “I tried to get my husband to workout with me but he just doesn’t have the stamina of a young man anymore.” “I need it long and hard.” The woman’s tone is all too clear to Steve as her tries to grab his package.
He manages to brush the cougar’s hand away as he continues to question here. “Did Xander have a lot of clients like the two of you?”
“Most of the ladies here had private sessions with Xander, he never seemed to run out of energy,” the red-head say with desire in her voice.
“Like the Energizer Bunny he was,” the blonde giggles.
“That never caused a problem?” “Him having ‘private sessions’ with so many clients?” Steve asks.
“Most of us have husbands, we were all glad he could squeeze us in or rather, himself into us,” the red-head says licking her lips.
“Hey, why so many questions?” the blonde suddenly asks. Steve can tell he has worn out his welcome as their looks of desire for him turn to suspicion. He looks over to David talking with some guys lifting weights and decides it is time to move on.
“Thank you for your time ladies, I have an appointment, I don’t want to be late for,” Steve tells them walking away across the room. David spots Steve heading back to the break room and does the same.
Steve grabs the Sporting Goods bag from behind the couch and begins to pull on his pants over the shorts as David walks in. “What did you find out from those Cougars?” he asks.
“It appears that Xander was a very PERSONAL trainer, he was screwing half the women in the club,” Steve tells his partner as he finishes redressing to hand him the bag.
“Some of those muscle heads too,” David replies. “Sounds like he likes man ass as much as vag.”
“Gross,” Steve says as he catches a glimpse of something moving against the wall.
“Hey, you can’t be in here!” the receptionist announces as she enters the room. David hasn’t even gotten his clothes back on as both men charge out the employee entrance to the alley.
“Keep going, I’ll block the door,” Steve calls out turning back to break off the doorknob trapping both the receptionist and Ted Mathews inside the building.
Steve starts to leave the alley when he hears a voice call to him, “No magic weapons here, Master Warrior!”
Steve stops in his tracks, turning back to see green eyes peering at him from the shadows. “Who are you, what are you talking about?” Steve calls to the hidden figure.
“Please you may be able to hide your face but I have been tracking your scent all day,” Smilodon says emerging from hiding, her were-cat form on full display. “You smells of fear now,” she purrs stepping closer.
“Is that what you think?” Steve asks reaching for his left earlobe.
“Steve what is the hold up?” David says returning to the alley behind him. “Oh.” Steve drops his hand from his ear at David’s arrival.
Looking back as Smilodon stalks closer Steve shouts, “Dave get out of here!”
“What is that thing?” David asks frozen in place.
“David just go!” Steve demands again wanting only to take down the shadow creature. Steve steps back pushing his partner away from the attacker. Then Smilodon jumps becoming airborne her razor sharp claws going for Steve’s throat. He has no choice but to act as himself. Grabbing the cat’s wrists at lightning speed he swings her around sending her into a dumpster. “Come on, we have to go!” Steve shouts pushing David back out into the street.
The men begin to run down the street pushing past the pedestrians. Smilodon gives chase to the screams of bystanders. Now that Steve knows that Smilodon is a Shadow he is secure in the knowledge that it is only him she wants. Steve could easily change to Master Warrior now and fly up to turn back on Smilodon, but he doesn’t want to take the risk revealing himself. He even runs slower than he is capable of doing, that is his downfall.
Smilodon springs up over the crowd on the streets coming down to land on Steve Roberts’ back. She reaches down over his shoulder to dig her claws into his lower abdomen. Drawing back her arm she digs a deep scratch into his chest ripping open his shirt and flesh from waist to shoulder. “That should do the trick,” Smilodon purrs.
“Arrrghhh!” Steve cries out in pain drawing David’s attention back to him. David turns to see Steve fall flat on his face to the sidewalk, the cat creature still on his back with blood dripping from its claws.
David does something next that is completely out of character for him as he reaches for his ankle to pull out a gun. “Get away from him now!” he shouts holding the gun on the creature as pedestrians flee in all directions. The beast stands up on Steve Roberts’ back licking the blood from its fingertips grinning at David. Then it flips him the bird as it back flips off the body on the sidewalk to vanish back into the crowded street.
David Rogers rushes to his friend on the sidewalk to roll him over. The sight of the slash on the man’s chest is chilling. “Steve, Steve can you hear me?” he shouts but Steve Roberts has already gone into shock from the mystic poison that has been set loose in his body. “Someone call 9-1-1!” David shouts at the people standing around them.
DeScalo Estate
Ridley Park
South Philadelphia, Pa
It is late evening as Ted Mathews sits in Nicholas DeScalo’s study waiting for the man to arrive. He is dressed in jeans and a leather jacket over his Hellion suit. When he agreed to this partnership he never imagined this would be his first progress report. He wishes he had more to report but by the time he got out of the gym to the street the events had already taken place. Mathews never expected to be using the suit to eavesdrop on doctors and nurses at the Hospital either, but that is what he has spent the last few hours doing.
“Mr. Mathews, I hope you have some good information for me,” DeScalo announces entering the study closing the doors tightly behind him.
“That all depends on your point of view,” Mathews replies.
“I see you are wearing your working clothes so you must have learned something,” DeScalo says noticing the black suit and hood at the collar of the man’s jacket.
“Roberts was attacked today on the street,” Mathews begins. “He was slashed from his waist to his collarbone.”
“Very interesting,” DeScalo says sitting down in the high-backed red leather chair behind his desk. “I assume you were not the attacker?”
“No, I had been held up, by the time I got to the scene his partner was shouting for an ambulance to be called.”
“How long was Roberts at the Hospital?” DeScalo asks to Mathew’s surprise.
“You don’t seem to understand,” Mathews says. “He is still in the Hospital.” “He was infected by some kind of poison, the doctors can’t figure it out.” “Talk around the intensive care unit is that he might not survive the night.”
Now it is DeScalo who is confused. The things he has seen Roberts do are beyond anything that a simple cut should take down. He thinks through his options, could he have been wrong about this former cop’s stamina?
“Roberts death means the end to this partnership,” Mathews says standing up to leave.
“I don’t believe that, not yet, not until the body is cold,” DeScalo replies standing up. “I want you to go back to the Hospital, continue watching him.” “Make sure the doctors are right before we end our agreement.”
Thursday, June 18, 1987
Thomas Jefferson University Hospital
111 S 11th St
Philadelphia, PA
David Rogers sits nodding off in a chair by Steve Roberts bedside as Detective Berger enters the room. “How is he doing?” Paddy asks going to Steve’s bedside. Paddy looks down at the four long tears in his roommates chest that ooze pus and clear fluid through the many stitches. Steve is covered in sweat as he shivers with fever.
“Good I would say, seeing as the doctors said he wouldn’t last the night,” David replies. “They still can’t figure out what kind of poison that cat-freak used on him.”
“I called his parents last night, they are coming up from Florida on the first flight,” Paddy says. “I hope his mother knows what to do.”
“I didn’t know Steve’s mother was a doctor,” David replies getting up to stand by the bed.
Paddy isn’t sure how much Steve has told David about himself so he changes the subject by repeating, “Cat-freak?”
“I don’t know what else to call her,” David confesses. “It was the most authentic costume I had ever seen.”
“It won’t be the last freaky thing you’ll see with this guy as your partner,” Paddy comments “Trust me.”
“Look I have to get home, get a shower and some sleep,” David says running his hand through his hair. “You gonna stay for a while?”
“Yeah, I’ll wait for his folks,” Paddy replies figuring it is better that David not see Steve’s mother if he doesn’t know the secret. David turns to leave and Paddy says, “By the way, there was no sign of Xander Beachum taking a train, bus, or cab to Camden.” “No car rentals either, wherever he went it was on foot or hitchhiking.”
David is surprised by the cops honesty, he nods and says, “Thanks,” “You know it was his idea to trick you like than.”
“I know,” Paddy replies. “I guess it was your idea to break into the gym, he’s too uptight for that.” The two men smile at each other before David leaves.
Paddy returns to Steve’s bedside. He can’t believe how weak and vulnerable his friend looks in the hospital bed. “Come on kid, all the crazy shit I’ve seen you do, it can’t end like this!” Paddy pleads touching the sick man’s forearm. “Why didn’t you change to fight?” “Why were you running?”
An hour or so later Paddy had just returned to the room with coffee when the door bursts open behind him. “Oh my gods!” Dona Roberts cries as she enters rushing to her son’s bedside. Her husband follows close behind as Christine Roberts enters the room silently to sit down in a chair at the wall. Dona turns to Paddy grabbing his arm, “What kind of beast was it?” “I need to know!”
“I’m sorry Dona, but I wasn’t there,” Paddy replies. “Steve’s new partner David said it was a cat-woman of some kind.”
“Like a familiar, I wonder,” Dona mumbles. “Steve encountered one at the Academy, he should have known better!”
“I don’t think it was anything he had seen before, I don’t think it would have caught him off guard like that if he had seen one,” Paddy says looking over to Steve’s little sister. He has met her a few times before and has never seen her so quiet, so upset. “Why don’t we talk in the hall, find a doctor.” The distraught parents and Paddy step out into the hall.
Alone in the hospital room with her brother, Christine gets up from her chair to step to the side of his bed. She looks at the wound on his chest, it looks like lasagna noodles laced together with fishing line. “Gross,” she mutters. He is still shivering and his breathing is heavy and fast. Then Christine does something totally unexpected. She brushes the wet hair from his sweaty forehead, placing her hand palm down on his head.
“Calm down you Blockhead, you’ll give yourself a heart attack,” she said to him with a tear in her eye. Steve’s breathing slows and he appears more calm. “It is going to be alright, Mom and Dad are here now.” “You know Mom isn’t going to let anything happen to her pride and joy.” “You know that is true, all she can talk about is what a great hero you are becoming.” “No, I’m not lying!” “You’re my big brother and I love you, even if you are a dope sometimes,” she says a long tear streaming down her cheek.
“Christine!” “What are you doing?” her mother’s voice scolds from the door. “Don’t touch him we don’t know if it is contagious.”
Steve is not left alone in the room for long as a female doctor dressed in a lab coat enters from another door off to the side of the room. She approaches the bed leaning over the unconscious Steve Roberts. She reaches out her hand touching the stitches on his chest, moving her fingers over them one by one as the vanish. Soon the four claw wounds gape open again oozing. Then the Doctor moves her hands over the man’s chest drawing out a dark grey cloud that hovers under her palms.
The Doctor swirls her hands around lifting the cloud up over head where a few more gestures dissipate the mass. Then she turns her attention back to the man who lays again bleeding on the bed. Rolling her hands together she sprinkling sparks down on Steve Roberts sealing up the wounds on contact. Almost instantly the man’s chest is completely healed without even so much as a scare.
The family suddenly crowds back into the room. “Doctor how did you get in here?” Steve Roberts, Sr. asks.
“I’m Dr. Chaffee,” the woman in the white lab coat says turning to face them.
“Shanna?” Dona Roberts questions.
“It was a magical infection that could not be cured by medical science,” the doctor tells Dona. “I removed the infection and destroyed it.” “I can not do it again so he must defeat the Shadow now on his own,” Shanna finishes as she steps aside.
“What’s going on, where am I?” Steve Roberts ask groggily as he sits up completely healed.
“Oh my gods,” Dona shouts as she rushes to hug her son. The mother runs he hand over her son’s chest, not even a scare. Even after all of these centuries she is still amazed by the power of magic. Looking back to Shanna she thanks the woman with her tear filled eyes trying not to think about what the price might be on this miracle.
Christine is the only one to watch as the mysterious Dr. Chaffee exit through the door she entered. As the rest of her family fawns over the return of her brother from near death Christine follows after the doctor. Christine yanked open the door to announce, “This is the bathroom, where did the doctor go?”
“Never mind that, get over here and give your brother a hug,” Dona Roberts insists.
Steve looks over at his sister standing by the bathroom door. She has the broadest smile on her face that he has ever seen in her life. “You were there, in my dream, calling me a Blockhead,” Steve exclaims pointing at her.
“Did you meet the Wizard of Oz in your dream too Blockhead?” Christine jokes moving to hug her brother.
“I have to go,” Steve says looking to Paddy standing behind his family. “That thing is still loose!”
“No, no you need to rest still, build your strength back.” Dona tells her son. “Shanna says she can not help you again, so you want to be at your best when you tackle this Shadow.”
“Did you say it is a Shadow?” Paddy asks.
“You know what that is?” Steve’s father asks.
“Steve explained it to me when he came home and took on his ‘side job’,” Paddy tells Roberts Senior. “I thought you stopped them all.”
“Apparently not,” Steve says laying back down in the bed. “I think this one has taken a human host.” “She can change back and forth from a normal looking person to something halfway between human and Saber-tooth tiger.”
“Whatever she is even a scratch from her is lethal to you!” Dona insists to her son. “Let me help you fight her,” Dona suggests.
“No Mom, I need to do this myself!” Steve insists. “She is only after me there is no need for anyone else to get hurt.”
Dona smiles with pride at her son saying, “Very well then, we will just be heading home.”
“Dona, really we came all this way for you to say that?” her husband argues.
“No, don’t leave, Paddy take them back to our place,” Steve tells his roommate. “We can have a visit after this is over.” “Now that I’m cured I have an idea of how to stop this thing.” “All I need are these sweaty sheets and a hot shower!”
Location Unknown
Ted Mathews wakes up on the floor of what appears to be a utility closet. “Where the hell am I?” he mumbled. His head is pounding and it takes him a few minutes to get his bearings. The last thing he remembers was hiding in the bathroom of Steve Roberts’ hospital room after a Doctor emerged from it. He heard some strange sounds but could not make out what was going on. Then he heard Roberts’ family return. There was some discussion and then the bathroom door opened and closed. Now he is somehow in a maintenance closet!
He stands up bracing himself on a metal shelf. The cloaking of his suit is gone, he tries to reactivate it with no luck. Whatever happened in that hospital room when that doctor arrived seems to have damaged the controls somehow. Having no other clothing to cover himself Hellion is forced to find out where he is now. Reaching for the doorknob he finds that it is locked. “Great!” he mumbled to himself. Looking around the maintenance closet for something to aid his escape he finds nothing. Then again, he spots an air duct register in the ceiling. It wouldn’t be the first time he crawled through ductwork. Usual he is breaking in, not out but either way it will do just fine.
Jumping up to the grate he pulls it loose letting it fall to the floor as he climbs up into the ductwork. His location unknown to him he crawls to the light coming from the next grate. From what he sees in the room beneath the grate he can only assume that he is in an office complex. Continuing on he hears people speaking below him. They are speaking French, which makes him wonder again where the hell is he? Has he somehow crossed an ocean in what felt like only seconds? Has he discovered a new power of the suit he wears?
Through the third grate he spots the Doctor from the Philadelphia hospital, what was her name? “Dr, Chaffee,” another man in a white lab coat calls to the woman as Hellion watches from above in the duct. Those are the only words that Hellion understands as the two below him begin to speak in French. After the two doctors finish talking, he continues to follow the woman in the white lab coat. He doesn’t know how she did it but she is surely responsible for him being here now.
Years of experience make Hellion nimble in the tight space of the ductwork as he follows the woman from overhead. The sound of her footsteps is distinct to him as she enters a room that is a turn in the ducts. He watches through a grate in the room as the doctor goes through files on a computer screen. From his vantage point all Hellion can make out are the words, Project Converse. Then there are photos on the screen of a man strapped to a table. What is this place?” he wonders as Doctor Chaffee begins to play a video of the subject. The man on the screen screams and struggle in what must be tremendous pain. He can not see the doctor watching the video’s face but she appears completely unaffected by the scene as she takes notes on a clipboard.
When the video is finished Dr. Chaffee close down the computer making a few final notes on her clipboard. Hellion watches as she leaves the room. He needs to know where he is, if he is to escape, to find a way out of this building. Opening the grate and dropping to the floor he believes this computer to be the answer to his many questions. His memory is sharp and it is easy for him to log into the computer system using Dr. Chaffee’s passwords. Unfortunately most of the files are in French, but he manages to find a diagram of the complex that is called La Citadelle. He is also able to decipher that he is now in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. How is that possible? He is hundreds of miles from home and only an hour has passed since he arrived in Steve Roberts room at the Hospital in Philadelphia.
“How in deed?” Dr. Chaffee says standing directly in front of the table on which the computer terminal sits. “I could feel your magic the whole time you were following me,”
“Who are you and how did you bring me here?” Hellion demands. “What is this place?
“As to your first question, I am Dr. Chaffee and that is all you need to know,” she tells him coldly. “How you got here is a very interesting question.” “It would seem that your magic linked with mine somehow pulling you along with me.”
“Magic?” Hellion repeats. “What like card tricks?”
“You really don’t know how you give people bad luck do you?” Dr. Chaffee smiles. “It’s magic, you have a gift, a very impressive one I would say if it was able to connect with mine.” “Your magic is why that Alien suit you wear isn’t working.” “We are still connected somehow, the magic is blocking the science.” Hellion is completely confused by her words at first but then somehow it starts to make sense to him. “But it is time that ended and you went home.” Dr. Chaffee claps her hands twice and Hellion loses his balance, feeling as if he is falling backwards off a cliff.
Thomas Jefferson University Hospital
111 S 11th St
The Morgue
Philadelphia, PA
Few people like to go to the Morgue but most who do, don’t have a choice. It is late, most of the employees have gone home for the night only a few guards and staff remain. Oddly none of them see the teenage girl slip out of a fire stairwell. Fiona Jones shows only confidence as she heads to her destination. There are several different rooms, but only one is designated for contagious disease storage. The security on the room is high, a digital code lock bars entry for any unauthorized persons. She stands at the door knowing that what she seeks is on the other side, she can smell it.
Fiona reaches out to rip the touch tone button box from the wall, the wires sparking at its removal. Pulling on the door handle she still can not gain access to the room. A green fire burns in her eyes as Fiona undergoes as painless transformation. The small framed teenaged girl that Master Warrior met on his first day in Fairmount Park expands in size slightly. Her body is instantly covered in smooth orange fur, a tail sprouts from the end of her spine to swish over the tile floor. The facial features of the girl vanish replaced by that of Smilodon. She raises her razor sharp claws and strike down at the door frame, tearing loose the knob and lock.
Smilodon prowls inside the morgue storage room, her fur acts as a shield against the lowered temperature of the room. She can smell him even stronger now that she has transformed. He is here, in one of the drawers that line the north wall. Smilodon is drawn to that drawer without question. Slicing off the latch on the stainless steel drawer, she slides out the tray on which a body swaddled in sheets lay. It is saturated with his scent as she crawls up on top of the corpse. Smilodon’s prize at hand, she again transforms not so painlessly as the young female’s human body is cast off from the matrix of Smilodon. Fiona Jones falls to the floor next to the tray as the large Saber-tooth cat prepares for its meal.
“I wasn’t sure this cat and mouse game was going to work but you took the bait nicely,” Master Warrior says stepping into the room holding out his broadsword in front of him. The huge feline is confused by what it smells and what it sees. Then without warning it springs across the room at its foe. Master Warrior raise his large sword to bring it down, cleaving the Saber-tooth cat in half down the center.
Master Warrior’s capes expands to life shielding him from the massive spray of blood as the two halves of the cat fall to the concrete floor on either side of him. Soaked in blood the cape again retracts as if it has a mind of its own. Lowering his sword Master Warrior looks to the filleted cat on the floor at his feet expecting it to turn to dust as previous Shadows had done. But this Shadow had gained too much strength and power during the months it was within the girl, Fiona Jones. The cleaved carcass pieces being to twitch alerting the hero that the fight is not over.
Right before Master Warrior’s eyes the two halves each become whole again creating two identical Saber-tooth tigers. He backs away holding out his sword as the cats begin to stalk him. “Shit!” Master Warrior curses. “Didn’t see that coming!” Then one of the cats turns away running back to the unconscious girl on the floor.
Before he can act there is gun fire that strikes the cat, headed for the girl, in the side. The Saber-tooth tiger falls over sliding across the floor away from the girl. “I guess I don’t have to ask how it’s going,” Detective Berger says coming into the morgue room his gun drawn. He aims at the second cat.
“No, don’t you can’t kill them that way,” Master Warrior says reaching for his friend’s arm to lower his gun. “See,” he says pointing at the shot cat already healing not far away. “My arsenal can hurt them, it is the only thing that can end them.” Master Warrior touches the clasp of his cape and it extends cleansed of the blood on his command. He wraps the impervious fabric around his forearm. “Come on beastie!” he shouts at the cat still stalking him.
The Saber-tooth tiger takes the bait jumping at Master Warrior. The cat locks its jaws around his arm. Master Warrior moves swiftly as he bangs the cat to the floor and then flings it to collide with the other that closes in on the girl again, who now crawls back away from it sobbing softly.
The two Saber-tooth tigers tumble back together head over tails as Master Warrior reshapes his arsenal. “Fisherman’s net!” he shouts as he sends the broadsword airborne across the room. Master Warrior scrambles across the floor to grab the rope end of the net as it falls to ensnare the cats. He yanked the rope tight closing the net around the Saber-tooth tigers, making the felines howl. “Smaller net!” Master Warrior shouts as the net shrinks forcing the two Saber-tooth tigers back into one body. The tiger thrashes and struggles in pain as the two men step closer. “Smaller net!” Master Warrior shouts again tightening trap. The cords of the arsenal cut into the feline flesh until it turns to dust.
“Holy shit that was amazing!” Paddy announces as the dust swirls around disappearing from sight.
“I just hope that is the last of my Shadows!” Master Warrior says as he reshapes his arsenal back into a band around his leg. “Right now we have a frightened young girl to help.” They turn to the girl huddled on the floor under the open drawer.