Voodoopunk [Closed- Goibniu/Claes the BEST COP TEAM EVER]

When Goibniu asked what was going on, Kalt slowly turned to look at the barrier placed. There was a tension around him that was hard to place. His shoulders were stiff and his arms stuck tight against his sides. A hand lingered anxiously around his pistol.

"A strange encounter of our own," he said. "A Walpurgis trying to pass the border had no papers. They tried to break through, but we managed to stop them. Only thing is, they managed to slash Gretchen on the face. I had to bring Gretchen back and apprehend the person. That left the station abandoned, so I put up a temporary barrier to keep people from passing through and redirect them to different checkpoints."

Kalt let out a small sigh.

"That's the seventh time this week we've had a violent attack," he murmured to himself. He then turned to Goibniu. "Anyways, the problem's resolved. What's happening on your end? Did a Walpurgis try to break through as well?"

The look of Goibniu's face turned to one of concern, as Kalt explained him the situation. "Oh dear, that sounds mighty awful! I sure hope Officer Gretchen can recover well from her injuries." He said, as he turned to look at the barrier in question, a look of disappointed at their situation present. "This is rather regrettable, but at least the fiend was able to be apprehended. Nothing good can come from not being orderly in such a delicate matter!"

And then he remembered why he was there in the first place. "Oh, right! Officer Eis, I come to warn you about something vexing that happened in my and Officer Alfson's post a moment ago!" He said, and then proceeded to relay Kalt with all the info they were given. About the woman that passed through their post, and about the meeting she has heard of, including time, location, and the rather strange chants they uttered. "... And that's all we were told. Do you perhaps have any idea of what this all could mean? It would be rather troublesome and coincidental if the intruder that passed through here had something to do with this."

As Goibniu briefed Kalt on the issue, the officer's expression started turning grim.

"That definitely does sound suspicious," he said. "Normally I'd pass it off as hearsay, but after what happened to Gretchen, we can't be too careful. I'll send officers at Parchen square a notice right away to keep an eye out for any suspicious figures. That said, you best return to your station. I feel ill at ease leaving Claes alone and--"

BOOM!

A loud explosion sounded from a small distance away. The ground would shake and the two would hear screaming as smoke rose into the sky.

"What in the gods' name...McCrae! Follow me!"

Kalt broke into a sprint, hoping that Goibniu would be able to keep up. As they reached the source of the sound, they would notice it was a small merchant lane. Where organized stalls used to be were now stores blown to pieces. Glass, wood, and debris seemed to have been flung everywhere. People were fleeing, but others were on the floor, covered in smoke and bleeding. Goibniu would also catch glimpses of fire. Wood that had caught onto flames, cloth that was smoldering, and smoke started to trail up into the air.

The color from Kalt's already pale face seemed to drain from him completely.

"McCrae, find any civilians that may still be around," he said. "I'm going to summon back-up and put out the fires. If you find anything weird, give a shout, okay? We don't know what we're dealing with here."

The officer would rush in the other direction, leaving for Goibniu to survey the area around him. A little further away, there was a man stuck underneath a food cart coughing and trying to squirm out. He looked rather young, dark hair, pale skin, cat-like yellow eyes. He was wearing an apron and a shirt and trying to pull from under the cart.

"H..help!" he gasped.

A nod came from Goibnou as Kalt explained that it was better to go back with Claes and make sure their border is secure. After that attack, who knows what would be awaiting them! However, before Goibniu could speak again, a large explosion was heard, making the Enkidu tremble by the sudden shock! "Blazes, what was that?!" Quickly, Goibniu ran behind Kalt to reach the scene of the commotion, his morning jogs finally bearing fruit.

But when they reached the source, it was too late. What apparently used to be a merchant lane now laid in rubble and ashes, a sight that drained the blood from Goibniu's faces. "What the..." He said, as he looked at the ruins of the lane, even catching a glimpse of civilians on the floor, battered and bleeding. Quickly, Kalt adviced him to start searching for civilians, while he tried to search for help to quell the situation, and Goibniu didn't hesitate in accept. "Sure thing Officer! I bid you good luck!" He said, his voice not hiding the concern despite trying to remain professional in the face of chaos.

His first thoughts were to try and check up on the civilians that couldn't make it, but the pleas from someone far away caught his attention. It sounded like the cries of help from a man nearby, and as Goibniu got closer to the source, he saw that it was a young man stuck under a food cart. "Worry not lad, I will get you out!" He said, as he went towards the card, and with all the force he could muster, lifted the heavy object, trying to alleviate the pressure the man was suffering and try to squirm away.

Goibniu would successfully lift the debris of the man's legs, though from how they were all twisted and gnarled, it was hard to say he'd be able to get up.

"I...I can't move them!" he told Goibniu as he tried to crawl out of it using his upper body.

As the young man spoke to Goibniu, the Enkidu would see other officers flooding in, trying to help the other civilians around.

"Clear the area! Go, go, go!" someone was barking.

A handful of others started casting magic to put out fires and push away any debris. Another officer with deep purple eyes and dark hair in a braid approached Goibniu. While she wore the signature blue and silver, her uniform was a double-breasted coat that reached her thighs and almost looked like a skirt. She also had a white armband with a red cross on it. If Goibniu remembered his training, he would know the girl was a medic.

"Let me help him," she said as she knelt down. Casting several marks, the man's legs would start glowing in a cream light. Once she stopped, the man would push himself off the ground and look at the two of them.

"Th-thank you," he'd murmur. The woman would bob.

"It's fine. Please, follow the blue lights to evacuate the area," she said.

She'd look at Goibniu, give a brisk nod, and saluted him.

"Medic Marthe, reporting for duty," she said. "Kalt told me to come here. I'll accompany you as you go around looking for civilians just in case they're injured as you can't cast Carta."

As she said this, Goibniu would notice a figure in the smoky haze. It was the woman from earlier at the checking gate. She was holding her walking cane and looking around, but unlike everyone else she didn't seem to be in a panic. In fact, instead of evacuating, she warily slipped between the cracks of an alleyway. What she was up to, it was hard to say.

He let out a grunt as he managed to get the cart up, only to hear that the man couldn't actually move! His legs didn't appear to work at all! "Oh no, hang in there!" He said, trying to see if he could topple the cart over, but thankfully the rest of the Expiate came to help them, with many officers checking on the civilians and mitigating the damage.

Among them was a fellow medic, that took the opportunity to apply magic to heal the man, allowing him to finally move out of the cart. A sigh of relief escaped Goibniu as he moved it back down, returning the salute to the woman. "Ah, that's jolly good timing Nurse! The situation seems to be rather dire, so we better get the civilians safe as soon as-" He said, but then began to trail off, as he saw that behind the medic, the woman from earlier seemed to... rather calmly walk towards a nearby alleyway. Huh? What was she doing there? Wasn't she all the way on the other check?

And then Goibniu remembered the check. And Claes. Oh no.

Thinking quick, he assessed the situation at hand. The Expiate would need all the manpower they could get to keep the civilians safe, but at the same time, the sight of the woman in this moment was one he couldn't ignore. But at the same time, the five minutes were running out, and Claes would get mighty angry if he kept her waiting! A gentleman can't keep a lady waiting after all.

And then, he had an idea. Turning back to the medic, he began giving her instructions. "Actually, I need you to do me a favor! Please look for Officer Kalt, and tell him to inspect that area, if possible with someone else." He said, pointing to the alleyway he saw the woman go. "Tell him that a suspicious person was spotted, and that Officer McCrae sent you. He will most likely understand what you mean." And before she could say something, he started to run away towards the other outpost. "I owe you for this, many thanks!"

Thus became the marathon to make it back to the outpost before Claes notices the time. Was she okay? He dreaded to think his own outpost was in shambles while he was dilly dallying here.

"Someone?" Marthe asked curiously looking at the alleyway. Hesitantly she looked around before giving Goibniu a firm nod. "I shall look for him then. Please come find me or another medic if you spot anyone, alright?"

As Goibniu sped off to the checkpoint, he would come across it being empty and with a risen barrier quite similar to the one he saw at Kalt's checkpoint. Where Claes was, however, would become known to him when he'd feel a hand on his shoulder.

"McCrae, there you are!" she exclaimed, her eyes glaring at him. "I was worried sick! I saw the explosion and heard people rushing, I tried to look for you at Officer Kalt's station, but you weren't there either. Someone informed me of an explosion. It's important we get there and--"

Before she could say anything else, the two would feel the ground shake again as a mead bottle was flung against a building window and burst into bright green flame.

"GET DOWN!" Claes yelled as she pulled on his uniform.

As Goib was yanked downward, he'd see another mead bottle with a bright red cloth jutting from its neck and a Cartic mark on its label fly just two o'clock from them and hit yet another building.

Dust and debris flung into their direction as it exploded against the back wall of the building. As dust filled the air, Goibniu would see a man wearing in commoner's attire standing and looking at the damage. He wasn't fleeing in terror like everyone else, and he had a brass domino skull mask with jutting teeth covering his face. Claes was still coughing from the dust as the man started to run away with what looked like a satchel and a mead bottle with cloth jutting out of its neck...one not too different from the ones the two had just witnessed.

Much to his dismay, his own checkpoint was left in the same state as Kalt's checkpoint, in a bad state and with a barrier. His body was filled with dread at the thought of Claes succumbing to whatever attack happened here, that he almost fell to his knees. "Officer..." But to his luck, the tugging of something behind him would turn his attention away, revealing that Claes was alright all along. "Officer Alfson! I'm so glad to see you are okay!" He said, as he placed his hands on her shoulders, seemingly excited and relieved to see her. Something which lasted a small moment, as the two quickly moved down over another explosion.

As they laid flat on the ground, Goibniu catched a glimpse of the projectile that was causing these fires; bottles with cartic symbols and strange cloths working as corks. "What the..." And amid the dust, there was one figure that stood in front of them, one with a rather strange mask and a satchel that seemingly contained the bottles of the same projectile! "Hey... sir...!" He said, slowly standing up and clearing the dust around him, as he saw the man start running away! Claes was still coughing, and he couldn't abandon her again, not in this situation. So he had to think of something quick, something to quickly disarm the man.

And he thought of something. It was risky, but it was worth the shot.

Quickly, Goibniu pulled out his pistol, and in a swift motion, he cocked the hammer and aimed. He needed to be careful, as he wasn't sure if the combustion of those bottles could cause a bigger explosion if the shot landed on them, he wanted to stop the man, not maul him alive. So before he could get out of sight, he aimed the gun to one of the stranger's legs, and fired. He theorized that, should he have success, it would stop the man in his tracks, and immobilize him enough for him and Claes to catch up. But would he be able to land such a shot with the dust in the way?

Goibniu's shot would prove true as the figure would immediately buckle down and shout in pain. The shot managed to hit the perpetrator's thigh. The Enkidu would then feel Claes leave his presence as she dashed forward to apprehend him with a Cartic spell for binding. Before she did, however, another individual appeared in before her. This time it was a woman wearing a similar skull mask but in her hands, she had a pair of bladed tonfas.

Claes didn't even have the time to react before the new individual started slashing at her, to which she responded by grasping her cutlass and trying to block her hits.

"McCrae!" she called out hoping for assistance.

She was about cast a Cartic mark, but yet another gunshot sounded in the air.

Bang!

From where he was, Goibniu would see dark red start seeping from the back of Claes' torso. Her sword dropped against the ground and she fell limp into the woman's arms. On the floor, he would see that the man he shot had furnished a gun. The smoke coming from its barrel suggested he had made the shot. He would then look at Goibniu and try to fire a second time.

A smirk appeared on his face as he saw the shot managed to hit exactly where he wanted, giving him the opportunity to properly help Claes get up, who would then dart right towards the assailant. "You must remain still sir! Your acts border on terrorism, and it won't be tolera-" He started speaking, when suddenly a new person entered the area. One that wasn't friendly to the officers!

The woman seemed to wear a mask of a similar motif, which could mean she was aligned with whatever band the man was part of. "Madam?" He let out, before the woman went ahead to attack Claes! Goibniu was rather surprised, and quickly aimed his gun at the lady to try and stop her relentless assault. But when realized a shot was fired, a shot that wasn't his, he paused.

For a moment, things started to go slow, as he saw Claes succumbing to the bullet wound, and falling on the arms of her attacker. "ALFSON!!" He let out in desperation, as his eyes turned to the man on the ground, his gun still warm from the shot he made. With a look of anger, he quickly moved his gun away from the woman, and aimed at the hand holding the gun and fired, wounding the man's hand.

If it turns out the man was ambidextrous, he might need to use more lethal force.

As for the woman, Goibniu quickly turned to her, threatening her with his pistol, as he spoke up with a voice unlike his. "Let her how this instant, you fiend!" He ordered her, keeping his sights on her. If she did something drastic to further harm her, the cocking of his hammer would most likely dissuade her, as he would either literally disarm her, or worse.