Sunset Shimmer: War Mage

Many items touched by the Truth of the Supernal - colloquially known as Artefacts - lie hidden in the Fallen World.  They have been scattered and lost repeatedly throughout history, only to be rediscovered and placed into the hands of the one willing to do anything to seize it.  The most valuable have storied histories soaked in the blood of those unable to keep them.  Some have been the cause or the focus of wars between Awakened factions as associates betrayed one another for the right to claim ownership.

All of the Orders maintain several treasure troves of such objects, catalogued and buried where only a few trusted members can access them.  Of course, not all of those members had been trustworthy, leading to many of the tales of violence and betrayal.  Such was the case of a particular Artefact.  Perhaps, had the Mysterium hidden it better, Sunset Shimmer could have stayed home.

'You really think that old bastard would've sent you after something else?' her other self whispered as she stood outside the enemy stronghold.  She was not too close, remaining near another building as she pretended to be taking a smoke in an attempt to avoid detection.

'No, probably not.'

"Brains to Bacon.  Come in, Bacon."

Though she was officially reformed from her aggressive ways, Sunset would have gladly reverted just for the time needed to pummel the person who started the 'bacon-head' nickname.  She suppressed an annoyed sigh as she opened her mic to reply.

"Bacon here.  What's up?"

"Spooks confirmed.  Lilac, Muse, and Brains are go."

"Bacon and Smokes are go."

Despite the lack of ley lines or any other Mana-producing spots nearby, the inhabitants were maintaining strong wards that would prevent any mundane traffic bothering them.  The keep, had the general public noticed it, appeared to be yet another office building.  Located in a business-dominated suburb of Philadelphia, the building had only one floor and ostensibly hosted a doctor's office, a staffing agency, and a print shop.  Of course, no Sleeper ever set foot in it.  Those drawing close would remember they had to be elsewhere immediately and then forget the building existed as soon as it was out of sight.  Even for fellow Awakened, finding such a stronghold had not been easy.

Bacon entered by way of the doctor's office, her accomplice in tow.  Three guards, one disguised as a receptionist and the other two as waiting patients, sat in the lobby.  They eyed the visitors, naturally wary of anyone able to bypass their wards.  Though all three concealed them well, they carried firearms to supplement whatever magick they could fling at intruders.

"The Father's blessings be upon you," Bacon intoned as she raised her hands in supplication.  "May His wisdom guide us."

"And also upon you," the receptionist-guard replied.  "For His everlasting dominion, amen."

The other two guards - both male - had stood, also raising their hands.  One of them nodded to the guests and said, "We didn't expect our sisters to come here.  Does the Father desire our service?"

Smokes replied, "Though I am the least, our mighty Father has granted me His blessing.  By His order, I have come to discern threats to our brothers and sisters in Chicago."

Though the wariness was still present, the guards were giving them a chance.  Bacon raised her estimate that she would leave the building without lead poisoning to an even ten percent.

"The Great Lakes Tetrarch is aware your mission?"

"Of course.  He has confirmed our Father's order with the Minister of Paternoster himself.  Please feel free to verify our duty.  We will gladly wait."

The male guards pointed to the seats, where Bacon and Smokes waited under surveillance as the female guard went into another room.  She returned a few minutes later to ask, "What are you names and to which Pylon do you belong?"

"Milky Way of the River Sisters."

"And I'm Bolis."

The female guard nodded.  "They're legitimate."

The rear door led to a staircase that spiralled into the earth.  One of the male guards escorted them to the bottom and then knocked a particular rhythm on the door, causing it to open.  He nodded and gestured them into the hallway on the other side before closing the door behind them.

There was a single door at the end of the hall, another guard standing at attention before it.  She likewise opened the inner door at their approach, giving them access to the rear chamber.  She ushered them into it before sealing them into the dim room.

Three men sat behind a table, a safe in the wall behind them.  Without speaking, the one in the centre opened it.  Bacon felt multiple security spells disengaging before he swung the door to the side and removed a velvet pouch.

The other two men arranged a small, circular table with a single wooden chair.  Bacon's partner took her seat.  The guard holding the Artefact placed it in the centre of the table before her.  They all took their seats again as Smokes gingerly lifted the bag and opened it to extract a tarot deck.

Even several steps to her side, Bacon could feel the magick radiating from the cards.  It almost whispered to her of the future, every possible line of fate laid bare to them.  Smokes did not have to provide any Mana, that particular deck already prepared to share its knowledge of the world.  She could only imagine how they felt to Smokes, whose reverence as she touched them was as obvious as the lights of Times Square at New Year's Eve.

"Mighty Father, grant me Your wisdom to divine the plots of our enemies.  By Your will, I obey."

She began a reading, shuffling the cards in her skilled, nimble fingers.  She did not speak as she laid them in a five card cross and studied them intensely for several minutes.  Once she was satisfied, she began a second reading.  Bacon had only side glimpses of the images, but she recognised the Awakened iconography in the form of runes and Watchtowers.

As Smokes finished placing nine cards in groupings of three, the rest of their group went into action.  Though they only felt a small tremble from their location, it was obvious their mercenary demolitions expert had earned his commission.  The three guards with them maintained their vigil, the Artefact too precious to allow from their sight.  It was to be expected, but Bacon could not help the fear at knowing she would have to deal with them herself.

She knew she would have only one chance to secure their quarry.  When she felt the second tremble, she asked, "What was that?"

Smokes turned, an exaggerated glare of frustration on her face.  "We are here on our Father's will.  Do not tempt His wrath by interrupting this task."

She winked briefly, prompting Bacon to shift into battle mode.  Before entering, all of the team had ensured their Patterns held as much Mana as was possible.  The infiltrators carried no mundane weapons, depending on their magick to see them safely home.  If any of the guards were also Warlocks, Bacon and Smokes were dead.

Bacon reached into her pocket and grabbed her onyx brooch as she formed a spell in her mind.  She Reached for an instant casting as she targeted all three guards simultaneously.  She added High Speech that invoked the concepts of obedience and somnolence as she levelled her magickal weapon at them.

"Sleep," she ordered.

They raised barriers as her spell finished, the Mana-infused energies clashing violently against her demand.  If Awakened magick were visible to the naked eye, she imagined it would take the form of three lances probing for a weakness in their helmets.  Time hung on that moment of battle as she willed her magick to overcome theirs.

Two lacked shields of Mind and succumbed to her decree.  They slumped at their table, one already drooling on the wood.  The third guard was already preparing a spell to counter hers as he drew a gun and pulled the trigger.

Smokes did not bother with a Fate barrier.  She targeted the gun directly, causing a sudden jam.  During the guard's brief moment of distraction, Bacon jumped the table and kicked him.

He had not been expecting a physical assault.  The force of the blow toppled him, causing sufficient mental chaos that he lost control of his Willworking.  The gun clattered into a corner, where Smokes grabbed it.  Bacon took advantage of the Paradox gripping her opponent to hit him once again with a compulsion to sleep.

The battle had taken less than one minute, yet Bacon was gasping as though she had been running a marathon.  The adrenaline remained, as they were not in the clear.  They still had to escape, and there was no way to know if their accomplices had survived.

Smokes placed the cards back in their bag as Bacon took a position by the door.  She opened it when Smokes was in position, the useless gun nevertheless acting as a deterrent to anyone in the hall.

It was empty.  Bacon did not bother to dwell on considerations of why their opponents had opted to remove the extra guard; they needed every second available to get back up the stairs and out of the keep.  The upper door was closed, and attempting to mimic the rhythm and magick of their opponents did not grant them an exit.

"Blow it."

Smokes pressed a mass of C4 against the latch, detonating it as soon as they had some cover.  Bacon's use of Forces acted as a shield and a sound-proofing barrier, keeping the explosion and resultant shrapnel from reaching them and the noise from their enemy.  They were able to open it and found the front of the building in ruins.  Bacon was unaware they had purchased so many explosives, but she was not going to complain.

In the parking zone, an old junker sat just beyond the blast radius.  Two subwoofers in the boot were pumping noise like several cats and dogs being strangled into the surrounding blocks.  Tens of witnesses were already crowding outside the neighbouring buildings to observe the cause of the disturbances, several with their mobiles directed at the ruined office building.

The original guards, the one from the lower door, and two others were holding guns and had crouched behind whatever cover they could find.  Each had spells ready, but Bacon's team was nowhere to be seen and the growing number of Sleeper witnesses ensured that vulgar magick was no longer an option.  Bacon and Smokes tossed several teargas containers, using Fate and Forces to ensure the contents would envelop the targets, most of whom failed to place appropriate barriers in time.  A couple smoke bombs completed their cover.

Creating the Imago of the Break Boundary rote in her mind, Bacon allowed herself and her partner to 'blink' through the wall and into the print shop next door.  By the time the gun-wielders would be able to see, both women planned to be gone.

Bacon had trained herself to be a Disciple of Space for that day.  Her control of the Arcanum was sufficient to give them an escape.  Feeling her sympathetic connection to her car, which they were using to leave, she pulled at its interior and overlapped it with the space behind the counter of the print shop.  She was thankful the explosives had damaged any protective sigils blocking the use of the Space Arcanum within the building, or else they would have been in trouble.  She and Smokes held hands so that they could share the Co-Location rote.  Both stepped behind the counter, dropping into their designated seats in the vehicle.  That it was three blocks from the mayhem meant nothing to the magick.  Bacon severed the connection.

As they squealed from the parking zone, the passengers took the opportunity to observe their handiwork.  Multiple sirens were converging on the battle site, and a local news station's van was already en route, passing them as they took a turn for the highway.

"You know, when that guy said we could take out a bank, I thought he was exaggerating," Orchid commented from the driver's seat.  "We still have some left.  Should we keep it?"

"It might be useful the next time we need to recover a powerful Artefact," Dusk Shine replied.  The original plan had called for her to be the getaway driver, but her inability to bend traffic laws relegated her to the back.

Sparky stretched as best she could in the front passenger's seat.  The high caused by the danger was leaving her to be replaced by the euphoria of survival.

"I am never stealing another priceless Artefact from the Seers of the Throne ever again.  If I even joke about it, put me out of our misery first."

"It all worked out," Star Dust replied.  "We have the Supernal Tarot, and I was even able to get two readings.  Expect a smooth trip home from here."

Wild Tart lightly punched her arm.  "Don't jinx us."

"Witches do not jinx themselves or their friends.  We jinx others."

Sparky connected her mobile's Bluetooth to her car's stereo.  "We've got a long ride home.  Thankfully, I have every Meat Loaf album on a single playlist to get us through this."  She selected 'Peel Out' to start, setting the rest of the list to shuffle.

The thieves stopped near the state line.  While most of them needed the break, they also had to take care of their extra passengers.  Orchid pulled off the highway at an unassuming town and drove until they reached a deserted side street that led through a heavily wooded area.

Sparky watched as Star Dust opened the trunk.  Two bound and gagged women, the original Bolis and Milky Way, slumbered within it.  It had been time-consuming for Sparky and Star Dust to apply the necessary makeup and dyes to hide their natural skin and hair colours, but the results had been worth the effort.  They carried both a good distance into the woods, ensuring the car was no longer visible before settling them against a tree.

Sparky ended the spell that had kept them in slumber.  Both stirred quickly, glaring at Sparky and her friends as soon as they noticed the group standing over them.  She nodded, allowing Dusk and Wild Tart to remove their gags.

"What have you done?" Bolis asked.

"I'd strongly suggest the two of you go to ground for a while.  Even if Paternoster doesn't come after you, one of the other Iron Pyramids might."

"Why is that?"

"Well, you two just stole the Supernal Tarot."

Before either could curse her, Sparky narrowed her eyes menacingly and leant closer.  "Threaten me if you want, but you aren't the only ones in service to an Exarch.  I'm not going to play a game of 'whose master is stronger,' but you might want to think carefully before you try to track me down.  I guarantee my boss won't be happy with you."

"You don't intend to kill us?"

Sparky nodded.  "I got what I needed.  Now, back to sleep."

The two Seers had protected themselves, but Sparky was more experienced and had Star Dust to assist in the spell.  They set it for two hours, not wanting to risk their victims being hurt.  When the kidnapped women were thoroughly unconscious again, Sparky untied them.

She straightened with a groan, her bad knee protesting at the work of supporting her.

"Well, that's done.  Let's go.  We still have ten albums to enjoy."

Several hours and most of the playlist later, they neared their shared sanctum.  Orchid had moved to the back when Sparky gave her a break.

"I still can't believe we got away with that."

"It was rather anti-climactic," Star Dust offered.

Sparky snorted.  "I will not complain if I never have another moment of heart-stopping excitement."