I got jumped tonight.

[Willie Long]

Marty Wall, a lawyer working to improve local communities, was killed early last week. He was caught in the crossfire between some bangers and died on the way to Northwest Memorial Hospital. I went to his funeral Friday; even Mayor Daley was there.

So I was very surprised tonight when Mr. Marty Wall, Esq. himself lunged out of the shadows and wrapped his cold, grimy hands around my favorite neck as he moved in to bite me.

I butted his head, pulled his hands away, and kneed him in the solar plexus, but that didn't seem to take the wind out of him. I wasn't gonna stand there holding hands with a dead dude all night, so as I turned my back to him I brought our arms up, leaned back for leverage (he tried to bite me again), and threw him across the street. He seemed groggy after hitting the wall, so I asked him, "What's wrong with you, man? What're you doing, roaming the street mugging brothas when you should be resting in Rosehill?"

He didn't answer. A red Caddy with her lights off pulled up next to him and opened fire on me. I dodged a few, then dove for cover. I think Marty got into the car. I know he wasn't still there when it roared off.

I better check things out in the morning.

[Ron Caliburn]

I hate it when they mix guns and monsters. I'll tell a story fo what me and koyla got upto on our "field trip" this summer that illustrates that.

In the meantime, I suggest you get a vest, get a crucifix and be ready for them to come after you.

[Private Dic McVay]

Los Angeles has quite a vampire problem, and Ron is correct, you can't be too careful with them, so pack your lunch carefully and stay on guard. Becoming a vampire is a fate worse than death in my eyes.

[Ellie]

All I have to say, is that a quiver of stake-posts and a super soaker are some of the best weapons you can carry against a vamp, without getting in any real trouble with the authorities.

And I've got a bent uzi and some old x-rays of a broken arm to prove it.

[Willie Long]

Ron: I've heard that a "hard armor vest" offers top of the line protection. Do you know anything about them? Any links you find would be great.

I've been asking around, and I've managed to reconstruct the events leading up to the shooting. Kye, the younger sister of a Double Deuce Crip called Lolo, had gotten beaten by her boyfriend Rafael, a Demon Fist banger. Lolo and Kye went looking for him, and instead found Rafael's brother Poison, loitering outside the lawyer's office, waiting for Rafael to pick him up. His brother arrived, and the four of them had a heated argument, which Mr. Wall tried to mediate. He failed, and by accident or design, someone shot him in the chest. Paramedics rushed him to the hospital, but he died enroute. Police haven't announced a suspect, but all four are wanted for questioning.

None of which explains why the dude jumped me a week after his funeral. I'll investigate further over the weekend.

Dic, Ellie, I appreciate the advice, but I haven't found any evidence that Marty's a vampire, he's just surprising active for a dead guy.

[Willie Long]

I'm already familiar with the 22st Crips, so I started looking into the Demon Fists.

They're a South American gang involved in weapon smuggling in addition to the usual crimes. They show their allegence by holding their hand upright, palm out, fingers curved like they're holding a baseball. Colors aren't a big thing with most Latino gangs, but this group seems to favor green bandanas.

The odd thing is, more than one person thought the gang was being run by Satanic cultists. However, I also heard rumors that the OGs could start fires with just a glance and give people the evil eye.

It seems likely that the deceased is now working with them, but I'm no closer to finding out why.

[Kolya]

Armour - hard armour is the best. Personally I would not wear anything less than Class III.

I also suggest that the vest has groin, hip, and possibly shoulder attachments. You end up looking something like a samurai but you will stop caring the moment one of those add-on plates saves your bacon.

The National Institute of Justice has done some testing of armour and likely has a report somewhere on its website. There is a search feature of the "Publications" section of the website. That might be a good place to start looking for information on body armour.

Your investigation - I got nothing to add, sorry. It is outside my realm of knowledge. I will ask around though.

[Heretic]

Don'cha just love it when they come back all vamped up and happy to see ya?

A little heavy on the martial arts and bullet dodging. Given the heightened strength and other invulnerabilities of bloodsuckers, I'm left curious about the edge you had over it. And, yes, I've had a couple of run-ins with vampires other than the ones that haunt Dennys every Saturday morning.

[Willie Long]

I appreciate you looking into it, Kolya. The samurai armor (Ron called it "tactical armor") isn't that obvious when I'm wearing my robes.

A little heavy on the martial arts and bullet dodging.

Sorry, Jack, it's just my thing.

Marty wasn't nearly as strong as I am and it seemed to hurt him when I threw him across the street into the brick wall. If he is a vampire, I wonder why Hollywood gave them such a hard core rep. I haven't read Dracula in a while, but as I recall it only took a couple of dudes to jack him up.

[Kolya]

Just a little brainstorm over lunch.

• Do you know Marty Wall? Was it random chance that he attacked you, or did he do it for a reason? Perhaps you or someone you know pissed him off?
• Perhaps Marty was not the good guy he seemed to be?
• There are other undead besides vampires. Or perhaps it is not him at all but some shape-changer.
• Is Marty's body still buried?
• Any leads or information on the cadillac?
• What about Marty's living quarters? Has it been investigated?
• Any known clients that might have some information?

Good luck.

[Magikadept]

I had a similar run in back in the '90s when I was doing a follow up on the Plessey Defence Systems suicides. Two dozen dead and devoid of blood.

After pressing the coroner about the lack of blood, some goons showed up at my apartment. A bottle of Aqufina, some bruises and a broken leg later, they ran off. I did not stick around to find out what or who they were. I caught the next Delta flight out to the midwest.

Hope all turns out well for you.

[Willie Long]

Thanks for the advice and well-wishes, peeps.

A bottle of Aqufina, some bruises and a broken leg later, they ran off.

Damn. Your leg or theirs?

Do you know Marty Wall? Was it random chance that he attacked you, or did he do it for a reason? Perhaps you or someone you know pissed him off?

We'd met a few times when he came by the temple. He said we were a very positive influence on the area, that our classes taught discipline and self-respect to kids who never would have learned it otherwise.

Master Ko and I put out some feelers, and none of the brothers spoke of negative feelings toward or by Mr. Wall. Right now it just seems like good luck that he jumped me instead of someone who can't fight back.

Perhaps Marty was not the good guy he seemed to be?

That's... always a possibility. My contacts say he's not a dealer or a user, and the editorial page of the Tribune had nothing but praise for him, but anything could come to light.

Is Marty's body still buried?

Any leads or information on the cadillac?

What about Marty's living quarters? Has it been investigated?

Any known clients that might have some information?

Maybe, no, no, and no.

Mrs. Wall was at the open casket funeral and didn't notice any funny business. The police made a report about the drive-by, but the car hasn't turned up yet. Marty was killed on the street by a gang member, so the police had no reason to investigate his house or office.

I think I'll go back to that alley and prowl around.

[mrloucifer]

Be bloody careful mate! Poking around the alleys is bad enough, but this bloke seems like he has it in for ya, and thinking in villain minded ways, I'd expect you to return to the place of the incident.

[Magikadept]

Thanks for the advice and well-wishes, peeps.

A bottle of Aqufina, some bruises and a broken leg later, they ran off.

Damn. Your leg or theirs?

Mine.

After getting in the taxi, I noticed my leg was no longer working. Still have a limp.

[Willie Long]

Sorry to hear that, Adept.

***

I'm glad I took your advice, Lou, and brought my homegirl "M" with me, 'cause things got a little rowdy downtown.

[KonThaak]

I...remember that, vaguely. I don't remember much, but I remember some big hullaballoo about this lawyer guy dying in "gang-related violence"... Late August, early September, somewhere through there... I remember the mayor giving some big speech about cracking down on gang violence after that, but I also don't remember seeing much actually getting done...

It doesn't sound much like a vampire. New vampires, from my understanding, can't be made after being killed in such a manner, for one, and for another, a vampire striking from the shadows usually doesn't leave much opportunity for their victims to fight back...

So Willie, what happened when you went downtown? Any new updates on this issue, or have things been pretty quiet on the homefront over the winter?

[Willie Long]

...a vampire striking from the shadows usually doesn't leave much opportunity for their victims to fight back...

Yeah, Jack, but I don't need much. I've been training for a long time.

So Willie, what happened when you went downtown?

It was freaky, yo. I took a look around the alley while homegirl did her thing. She lead us from the bad part of town to the dead part, all rusted fences and crumbling buildings. In one of the weedy patches we stumbled across a ... ritual. Six dudes were kneeling around two guys lying on the ground. They had candles and all that shit. The dudes on the ground were in stained, ripped-up clothing.

They noticed me somehow, and a couple of 'em started busting caps in my direction.

Important firearms tip for Society members: If you're going to shoot at night, buy a damn light and put it on your gun, or you won't hit shit.

These punks didn't have them, and they didn't hit either of us. I was crouched behind an old dryer someone dumped, and since it was handy I tossed it at them. That caught 'em by surprise, and they hauled ass back to their car screaming, "The fuck!"

At least, that's what I thought they said. Homegirl set me straight later, said they were calling for "Dabuck."

The two dudes on the ground were still there. I shined my Maglite on them and saw they were both messed up like they'd been in a car wreck.

Homegirl told me, "It's coming."

Ol' Marty had stopped by to say hello. Still really strong, still way too active for a dead motherfucker. There was no grace to his attacks, no finesse, just brute force. That only works as long as you pick on guys weaker than you, so he never stood a chance. I beat the hell out of him.

Maybe literally, because one of the dudes from the car wreck got up. Another no-talent hack. I beat him down, and his buddy lumbered up for his share. That shit was getting old, Jack.

These fights were a little too rough for homegirl, so she stayed back and worked out a trick to stop this body-jumping bullshit; or whatever the hell was going on.

Car wreck guy #2 drops when homegirl finishes her trick and somehow another dude appears. I don't know where he came from or if he snuck up on us somehow, but he's big and ugly. He fought like the last three guys, just faster, with longer reach and sharper fingernails.

Homegirl helped keep him off balance with her flashbulb tricks, and used another trick to lock us into a steel-cage deathmatch. I didn't find that out until he tried to run and jerked to a stop. That scared him, Jack. He didn't like that at all.

Then he went to pieces. One of my punches knocked him to the ground and he came apart, with tiny bits of him scattering. Considering how the rest of the night had been going, I was worried, but homegirl was satisfied that it was "driven out."

It's a good thing, too, Jack, 'cause I was worn out. I had her drive me home.

Oh, and it turns out some Demon Fist OGs can use tricks to control fire. That was another night that sucked very much.

[KonThaak]

That's quite a story... I'm impressed.

Oh, and it turns out some Demon Fist OGs can use tricks to control fire. That was another night that sucked very much.

Do tell? And is there an end to this tale of undeath, or is it still going on?

[Willie Long]

This don't end, Jack. Life just keeps going. (I need a yin-yang smilie.)

**
As for the fire...

We set up around a house in the suburbs where our target was hiding. When I kicked in the door, the target leapt off the sofa and took off down the hall as I followed. He was in the kitchen reaching into a knife drawer when I pressed the muzzle of my rifle against his neck and he froze.

Then I heard a slurping noise behind us. There was an older Latino sitting at the candle-lit table eating soup. I yanked the target to the ground and held him there with my foot while I brought my rifle to bear against this cat. He just sat there (keeping his hands in plain view) slurping his damn soup.

Then he blew on the candle, and flames went everywhere. I thought, fuck me. Then the soup-slurper stood up and threw dishes and cups at me. I spun my rifle to parry them, stomped the target when he made a move to get up, and waited for Soupy to run out of ammo. He was glaring at me, and suddenly fire lashed out at me from the walls. I ducked it, dropping my rifle onto its sling.

Fire whips. Not good.

I reached around and twisted off the freezer door, and used that to block the next lash. He stepped back and seemed to draw the fire back into the hallway with him. Now I just had to figure out how to get through a burning hall with my target without either of us getting killed.

I clapped my target in chrome, pulled off the door to the fridge and dumped it out. I wet my face mask to keep the smoke out, adjusted my rifle to keep it out of the way, picked up the fridge and pulled it over us like a turtle shell. Once I had it balanced, I picked up my target with my other hand, held my breath, and chugged down the hall.

When I got to the living room, I tossed the fridge to the side and raced outside. On the lawn was the other two guys on my team, who had drawn their guns on an unarmed Soupy.

I walked up to Soupy, and warned him if he tried any more fire tricks I was going to roll him up in a rug and smoke him.

His smug expression never left as he looked up at me. "May I know your name, Senor?"

"Bail Enforcement," I said, and we left.

***
One of my rules is expenses are deducted before we divvy up the bounty. I made sure to deduct enough for one of those heavy duty fire extinguishers to add to our standard vehicle kit.

[KonThaak]

Dammit, I can't believe this post flew under my radar for this long... Since it's been a while, did the target give up any information?

Incidentally, have you (or anyone else in the Chicagoland area) been noticing an increase in necromancers? I ran into one just the other day... Unfortunately, I was unable to track him down, and we were in broad daylight at the time...but judging from the looks he was giving me, he could sense that I didn't want him alive much longer, and the feeling was, apparently, mutual.

In any case...if this turns out to be something along those lines, lemme know, by all means. It's high time I became more active again, especially with the bizarre weather patterns we've been getting, lately...

[Willie Long]

Not much, dawg. He told us the guy eating soup was fresh from Venezuela, just got here a few weeks ago. He had no idea how the Venezuelan did the tricks with the fire.

Since my last fight with Marty, I haven't seen any dead guys acting up, if that answers your question.

BTW, homegirl says I spelled "Dabuck" wrong. It's "Dybbuk".

[KonThaak]

Argh, I can't believe I didn't catch on to that sooner... Then again, those particular demons aren't terribly common, thank all that's holy.

That you took one on that easily is impressive! My hat off to you.

Yeah, since May, I haven't seen any more necrophiles around. I guess they could be lying low, but I'd prefer to think that you scared 'em off. XD

[Willie Long]

Argh, I can't believe I didn't catch on to that sooner... Then again, those particular demons aren't terribly common, thank all that's holy.

I take it you've heard of him/them before? What is it, and what did it have to do with the ex-dead guys?

That you took one on that easily is impressive! My hat off to you.

Thanks. I didn't grow up with my nose in a book like most of the Society, but when the shit hits the fan I can hold my own.

[KonThaak]

A Dybbuk is sort of a two-part creature, from what my studies have shown... First, they are spiritual in nature, able to transfer their essence from host to host. Unlike other haunting entities, they seem to lack any form of mentality higher than a predatory animal's. I don't know how well they can understand or speak languages beyond what a Doberman can; I've only heard reports of a few others I know dealing with them, and at the time, they had a few more concerns than finding out how well they grasp the English (or any other) language...

Second, they have their own forms, which kind of look like Frankenstein's Monster. That would've been the Mr. Ugly you fought. When they're destroyed while occupying this body, which they used to call "Corpse Demons", they're destroyed permanently. Like many supernatural creatures, Corpse Demons don't leave much of a trace, either; the CD's corpse disintigrates into a massive swarm of bugs. Once you've seen that swarm, your fight with them is over; they are destroyed, both physically and spiritually.

As an interesting side-note, the ancient Hebrews believed that Dybbuks were spirits that were expelled from Gehenna (which is kinda sorta like the Christian "Hell"), who came back to Earth to plague the living. That's probably because of the bodies they inhabited when they arrived here, and a limited understanding that the ancients had of the astral plane, and other dimensions foreign to us...

Sorry, that's probably more information than you needed. Hope it was enlightening, though. Destroying that thing is probably why the cult isn't around here so much, anymore, though, come to think of it...so I guess you did scare them off. XD