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He didn't tell the girls to run. Even if Joy was holding Hope back, they'd thoughtlessly pursued Grace into the teeth of danger, and it would be a waste of breath to tell them to leave her now. He wouldn't have left Ros, or Harley.

He tore the pendant from around his neck, shoving it into Joy's hands and telling her in a whisper without looking away from those awful black eyes: "If something tries to grab you hold Hope and say 'Deus Ex Machina' clearly. It'll keep you safe for a minute as long as you're together and awake," he lied, not telling her what it did, and certain he'd be murdered for it, executed for sending civilians, if he didnt die here first.

It was not enough time to say what he needed to and it had taken too long to say it. It meant that he was deprived of precious seconds. It wanted to kill him? Thirsted to shed his blood, in particular? Good. He launched himself at it--and more importantly, away from the girls.

Hello, Dr. Feelgood. Maebe wondered if the pain was making her vision blurry, of if that man was actually as handsome as he seemed. Nevertheless, all she could do was nod when he called her on where she'd come from, holding her breath when he plucked something out of her hair. She hated bugs too, but when she walked towards the infirmary to go get wired up, she took one long look back at the garbage can.

She really hoped that had just been a bug.

Getting her jaw fixed up was probably going to mean being put to sleep. (At least, she hoped to God it did - otherwise, ow.) So it was time to send a few non-essential texts, so she didn't wake up to angry lovers.



Still no response from Taym worried her, but Edith's response allowed her a relieved sigh. Then she was off to let Dr. Stephen do whatever he wanted with her, because god damn.

A staff appeared in the woman's hand, summoned much the way any Hunter weapon would be with glowing runes and the distinct feel of a true weapon's power. Atop the staff, black crystals began to grow. Swift and light, she barely noticed Taym's strike as she went for the nearest girl.

Both girls held tight, their eyes closed and bodies braced, and shouted, "Deus ex Machina!" And then they were gone. The infirmary once again held new arrivals and the stir they caused would last for days.

With a scream of pure rage, the staff swung back towards him, and a once lovely face twisted with pure, unadulterated Vengeance. The assault would send an alarm through Fiona. Something was wrong, something massive and terrible loomed unseen. The staff was raised once more and...

A wall of earth shot up around the girl, towering over and caging her in. Behind him, Taym would find Edith, a baseball bat glowing with runes sunk into the asphalt, cracks forming around it. "See to the girl," she snapped. In the distance, several figures in white coats carefully circled the area.


HP: 59
Dmg: 7-3def = 4

The bandages had Grace seizing violently for several long, awful moments, and then relaxing into a constant, unhappy shiver. She moaned and whimpered, eyes briefly fluttering open before closing again. Soon her breathing evened out, though the small shivers remained. The golem in the van has been found, but unfortunately when Edith went to retrieve the girl wearing Sasha's face, there was nobody within the stone cage.

Face grim, the leader approached Taym, but she only had eyes for Grace's small, shaking figure. "The other two?"

For a moment, though he wouldn't witness it, Edith looked like she wanted to yell. But paused to think it through before giving a firm nod of genuine approval, again, unseen. "Good, I'll..." the leader was going to say, take her from here, but changed midcourse, and instead drew her own pendant over her neck and handed it over to him, "...get this cleaned up."

The arrived in front of the infirmary, where Dwight was holding onto his two panicked and sobbing sisters, torn between clinging to him and wrenching away to go find their third, all while several medics hovered awkwardly in the background. Everyone snapped to upon seeing Grace though, the siblings with exclamations or worry and relief, the medics with suddenly, finally, purpose. Within moments, Taym would find himself left behind with a single Moon, who dismissed him to "sleep off your wounds and write up the report."

His job here was done.

Neither he nor Maebe would see them until the next day. Grace was in a wheel chair when she visited Maebe's own hospital room. The girl tearfully called her a stupid b***h, and told her to watch out, because once she was old enough, she'd be back and then there'd be a hot new HBIC, just wait. She then adjusted her makeup and flirted with Dr. Stephen as her sisters said their thank yous and goodbyes while Dwight watched her with dawning dismay.

Later, at the lighthouse, Taym would be summoned. Joy would remind him to read the Diamond Age because it was important. Hope would explain what fridging meant, and why she was so glad neither he nor Maebe ended up as that particular trope. Grace would try to get a look at his a** and then do her best not to look disappointed. In the end, with both great self-importance and mild confusion, Grace would give him a new coat, and its golden crescents bore no handles.

She and Joy would also return most of the cigarettes they'd stolen from him, keeping one apiece through silent agreement and gross sentimentality.

But at the end of that day, they left through the portal, hopefully not to be seen again for quiet some time.