House of Wolves

PHASE 1

House of Wolves
Dates run:	August 14-18, 2009
Run By:	Indiana J
Read the logs:	House of Wolves

"Agatha is difficult at the best of times and these are not the best of them."

An attack on Wanda's mentor leads to a lot of questions and very few answers.

Cast

Wanda Maximoff, Jake Gavin, Mark Sheppard, Illyana Rasputin

Agatha Harkness, Dr. Victor Shade, Terrance Ward, Ian McNee, Hanzi

Timing

August 14-18, 2009

Plot Summary

What was supposed to be a few days vacation in London for Wanda, Jake, Mark and Illyana turned into something more when a day or two before they're scheduled to go back, Wanda received a call. It seemed that the museum that Agatha Harkness is in charge of had been attacked. Agatha was in critical condition, as was Hanzi, Wanda's cousin who worked guard shifts, while three other security guards had been found eviscerated and torn apart. From all appearances, the police suspected that it had been an interrupted breaking and entering.

When the group arrived at the hospital, Agatha flatly refused to offer any information as to what had happened. Hurt and at a loss, Wanda nevertheless managed to get information from Hanzi. From what her cousin could remember someone had managed to get beyond the security and interrupted a pretty fierce 'story telling' in the guard room as they passed the time. In shock, he broke down, muttering about how the old tales were true and that something was stalking the museum at night.

Determined to investigate, Wanda contacted Dr. Shade, an old professor and lover, in an attempt to circumvent Agatha's wishes. Managing to convince him to use his stature as the head of the Department of Social Anthropology, and someone with a say in the museum, he used his clout to bring them in as outside help.

Once the police are done, the group has the run of the building. While Jake and Mark go to check out the security feeds, Wanda and Illyana search for what might have triggered the intrusion and subsequent attacks. Much to the older woman's shock, they soon discovered that hidden among the regular artifacts are objects of magic and ancient power. While a majority of them were under lock and key, some of the lesser known, lesser powered ones were on display; labeled as more mundane things, Agatha had been keeping an entire trove of magical artifacts under her watch. Another secret that rocked Wanda in terms of her mentor.

Meanwhile, Mark and Jake are forced to give Wanda and Illyana a heads up as something made an appearance. Ironically enough, Ian McNee almost fell into her lap in his attempt to get away from whatever had been in the shadows behind him.

Wanda had attempted to get some information out of McNee but was interrupted by the creature - a large, shadowed wolf-like thing - and they were all forced to beat a hasty retreat. Soon enough, they were rejoined by Mark and Jake and a running fight (in which McNee made good his escape) took them down into the basement for a final stand.

After a brutal and short attack from the group, the creature appeared to have been beaten. Stabbed, hexed, beaten and bloodied, it almost went down when the very fabric of the creature rippled and changed from the large wolf to a naked young man sporting only a broken pendant.

Immediately, everyone experienced a vision of their worst nightmare but as horrible as it had been for them, it seemed to have been their saving grace. Overloaded from their nightmares, as they all had had plenty to share, their attacker passed out.

Only the questions wouldn't get answered that night. The young man turned out to be Terrance Ward, a recently escaped, mentally ill patient of Dr. Moira MacTaggart's, after he had killed his watcher when his powers and mental illness overcame him. With the ability to transform into people's nightmares, he had obviously been under someone's command. He would later be transferred into a high security mental institution, with the prognoses that he would not be able to be cured.

The only clue Wanda would get, and the only information that Agatha would give her, would be that the symbol found roughly carved into Ward's back, which matched several others they had found, was what the new Chthon cult had started using in the last few years.

One that had grown in strength...

Related Links

Head Like A Hole

These Earthly Things

Operation: Anansesem

External Links

House of Wolves

Trivia and Meta

Trivia

Wanda and Jake slept together as part of the aftermath of the event and began a romantic relationship despite the two of them both having issues with committment.

Meta

Plotrunner: Indiana J