Lazlo Agency Case Files

[Contact_21]

Fellow researchers,


From time to time, I will be posting portions of actual case file reports for everyone here. I would be interested to hear of any similar sightings or additional information about these things. Any theories or speculation are welcome too.


File # 1358

On October 14, witness, an amateur psychic investigator, found herself in an unfamiliar neighborhood after her car broke down. It was late at night and she did not realize that she was on Castle Street, the site of recent ghost reports. Upon approaching a large, abandoned home, she noticed what appeared to be starlight concentrated on a nearby tree. It was overcast and no other stars were visible. Realizing that something was wrong, she switched on a police style flashlight and observed at least two dozen butterflies coming toward her.

The butterflies struck her on the face, causing numerous small cuts, and also caused cuts to her clothing. She succeeded in swatting some away and even killing a few, when she noticed that they looked like leaves with white, glowing dots on the wings for eyes. In seconds, they discorporated into a black substance like tar. She then turned and ran the way she came and continued along a side street, all the while looking to see if the butterflies were chasing her. They did not.

In a statement to this investigator, she said, “I didn’t want to run away at first. For a moment, I wanted to study them. Whatever they were, they were like attack dogs protecting something. I don’t know why I thought that but that was my impression. I was scared and didn’t realize I had been cut at first.” Shortly after the attack, her face felt wet, and upon wiping it, she saw blood. She ran to a nearby convenience store and the owner, thinking she might have been in a car accident, called paramedics. She was examined and treated for minor cuts. No scarring occurred.

Upon returning to the scene, witness and this investigator, observed a home at 1866 Castle that felt wrong. A Psychic Sensitive was sent to the scene and confirmed that something evil was in the abandoned house. He also sensed something in a nearby tree, but could not identify it. There was no trace evidence of the butterflies, as expected. Followup investigation is pending due to high caseloads in other areas. Lazlo Agents, Agency Associates, and Non-Agency Contacts in the Chicago area have been alerted to the threat.

Name/Designation: Leafcutters (provisional)
Type: Guardian
Category: Physical life form
Characteristics: About the size of a butterfly, with similar flight characteristics. Wing edges are razor sharp. Two white, glowing eyes, one on each wing. Color matches seasonal leaf color. If killed, discorporates into black, tar like substance.
Threat level: Low
Origin: Unknown
History: No similar types reported.

[Geronimus]

Somehow, I don't think that a can of Raid would be too effective here...
maybe somebody ought to get an exorcist or somethin'.

[A. Pendragon]

"Have flyswatter - will travel"

[Fioravanti]

I've looked through a few books trying to find anything about trees, and all I came up with was:

1. "The Color Out of Space" by H.P. Lovecraft. The trees glow at night and sway when there is no breeze.

2. From "The Encyclopedia of the Occult" by Lewis Spence, on page 416:

Tree Ghosts : Indian tree spirits. Says Mr. Crookes in his Popular Religion of Northern India. "These tree ghosts are, it is needless to say, very numerous. Hence most local shrines are constructed under trees ; and in one particular tree, the Bira, the jungle tribes of Mirzapur locate Bagheswar, the tiger godling, one of their most dreaded deities. In the Konkan, according to Mr. Campbell, the medium or Bhagat who becomes possessed is called Jhad, or 'tree', apparently because he is a favourite dwelling-place for spirits. In the Dakkhin it is believed that the spirit of the pregnant woman of Churel lives in a tree, and the Abors and Padams of East Bengal believe that spirits in trees kidnap children. Many of these tree spirits appear in the folk-tales. Thus, Devadatta worshipped a tree which one day suddenly clave in two and a nymph appeared who introduced him inside the tree, where was a heavenly palace of jewels, in which, reclining on a couch, appeared Vidyatprabha, the maiden daughter of the king of the Yakshas ; in another story the mendicant hears inside a tree the Yaksha joking with his wife. So Daphne is turned into a tree to avoid the pursuit of her lover."

[Ron Caliburn]

So these bugs may be tree guardians then?

[Logos]

It MIGHT be because it's relevant to me, but... Does anyone think Ron is right about this one? Knowledge is power, as Sir Francis Bacon once stated.

[Razor]

Sounds interesting. I have had an encounter similar to this near a Native American burial ground. A tree or two there seems to glow, and sways faintly even without wind every once in a while. I've also spotted a couple of these leaf/butterfly things in the area, but they never acted aggressively.

[Kolya]

Yes Logos I usually think Ron is right.
This happens to be one of those times.

[Greydawn]

Mr. Kolya, young Soph says you will be coming out for vacation sometime?

[Ron Caliburn]

Thanks Koyla.

It's an interesting possibility - not that I think we should go down and burn down a forest to test it out - put down that sword KT - but we need to check this out in case it's related to these attacks on Sue and the "descendnts"

[Shadowstalker]

I don't think it is related.

[concrete_Angel]

Only if it grows, like, one hundred times the normal size of a bug. Or it's being caused by a psycho-freakazoid.

[KonThaak]

I can pretty safely say it's not related...

In this case, it does seem to be a case of a guardian force indiscriminately protecting an area, whereas in Angel's case, it has been anything but. The only thing the two cases seem to have in common is the word "bug", which, if we're going to use that to connect cases, we might as well throw in Robin's problems into the mix.

I don't know what to say about this... I'd check it out, but I don't know where Castle Street is, if it's in Chicago or one of the surrounding suburbs, or what...

Not to mention, at the moment, I've got a lot else on my plate.