spin_kick_snap | The Mount, Ex-Los Angeles, Friday Afternoon

Catching Banzai hadn't been as easy as one would like. In the two years since she'd died, they'd forgotten just how fast she was. And she was panic-running, flat out, not bothering to converse energy or breath. If she'd known the layout of the Rodenberry Building, they might not have caught her until she'd made it outside, halfway through the Mount.

But St. George had caught her up against a pair of locked doors and his impervious skin held up against her kicks and blows and scratches as well as it did bites from exes. He was glad he was the one who caught her, though; some of her attacks would have incapacitated anyone else if they'd landed. He just held her in the loose circle of his arms and let her wear herself out trying to get away.

He didn't take the heel to the groin or the gouge towards the eyes or the elbow to the throat personally. He wasn't even entirely sure that she could see him. Her eyes were wide and blank, constantly darting around, refusing to focus on his face. St. George didn't know how much Banzai remembered, but from the intensity of her reaction, he was betting it was a lot more than anyone had hoped.

When she finally sagged in his arms, exhausted and whimpering, he scooped her up and carried her back towards Max's room, shooing away volunteers and nosy patients. Max Hale's return to the living had brought up a lot of goddamn questions and it was time to get some answers.

Max Hale	The resurrected man tapped the razor on the sink, his handcuffs jingling against the porcelain, and rinsed away another inch of salt-and-pepper beard. St. George always suspected Jarvis would look a good ten years younger without the beard. He still knew the face beneath it, but it seemed more like a mask. Jarvis never had that confident, almost smug look in his eyes and tone in his voice. He didn't have a barely hidden swagger when he moved. But he did now. They locked eyes for a moment in the mirror while Max brushed the razor under his nose. For a moment, the confidence and swagger vanished and St. George saw two looks flash across the other man's face. Relief that he'd escaped a horrible fate. Worry that he somehow hadn't. Then the moment passed and Max winked at him. That was when St. George realized that Max's eyes were brown. Jarvis's eyes had been blue. "So, you caught our little surprise guest," he said to St. George. "Guess she's not as fast as we thought."
St. George	"Yeah, I wouldn't say that," St. George said, lips thin. He set Banzai on the empty hospital bed and fixed Max with a glare. "How the hell is she even here?" Never mind alive. Mystique had apparently pulled off yet another miracle, even above and beyond the one of getting to Baltimore and back alive.
Max	Max winced. "That was an accident," he said, rinsing his razor in the sink. "Call it a two-for-one special?"
St. George	St. George wasn't amused. "Does this have anything to do with whatever the hell Zzzap was doing?" That he also wanted answers for. His radio was still crackling with questions and requests for more information, or had been until Nick turned it off.
Zzzap	It's part of the process, said the wraith, staring into the window anxiously. He's had me practicing the symbols for months. But he never mentioned anything about... He gestured to the bed where Banzai was lying unconscious, exhausted into a fitful sleep.
Max	"And thanks, Barry," Max said, washing the last of the shaving cream from his cheeks. "And I'm guessing you got all the symbols done or we wouldn't be here right now." He froze as he felt the weight of Stealth's Glock pressed against the back of his head. "Hey now," he said, raising his hands slowly. "Take it easy."
Stealth	"What do you mean?" Stealth asked carefully. "You never mentioned these symbols before as part of your resurrection. You have now just implied disaster if they had not been arranged around the Mount, as well as having a clearly traumatized girl appearing on the floor. What is their true purpose?" "I was going to tell you." "You will tell us now," Stealth said, holstering her gun once again.
Kathy	For a moment when Kathy woke up, she thought she was still at home, snuggled between Dante and Anders, waking up from a nightmare of the likes she hadn't had in months. That pleasant illusion didn't last beyond her eyes opening to a hospital room. Nick was hovering over her, face contorted with concern. She was in a hospital bed, with restraints attached to the bars all around her. No, no, no. She remembered this, this was what happened before she died - she had died already, hadn't she? Was she still dying? Was the last year and a half all just a fever dream before the virus took over? A scream crawled up and out of her throat, bypassing all her instincts to stay quiet in case zombies were nearby. "No!"
Nick	Immediately, there was a group clustered around Banzai's hospital bed. "Shh, baby, shh, you're okay," Nick said, grabbing onto one wildly flailing hand and holding it tightly. "You're here, you're fine, you're safe. Nothing's going to hurt you. We won't let it."
St. George	St. George pressed a hand against her shoulder, keeping her from lunging up again. He didn't want to have to chase her down her a second time. "You're in the Mount," he added. "We know it's a shock to you, it's a shock to all of us. But Nick's right, you're safe here. There are no exes inside the Mount." Anymore.
Kathy	Kathy kept struggling until their words penetrated the fog of panic. She blinked up at them for several long, ragged breaths. "I'm not--" she swallowed hard. "Not an ex? Not going to change?" Not going to die?
St. George	The heroes above her exchanged a long glance, with St. George raising a questioning eyebrow and Nick shrugging slightly. "We don't think so?" St. George said slowly. "We thought your friends had fixed that." Beat. "Uhh, they did fix that. Didn't they?"
Kathy	Kathy pushed herself up into a sitting position, belatedly realizing that while the bed was festooned with restraints, none of them were attached to her. She drew her arms into her chest, rubbing her wrists to rid herself of the memory of cuffs. "They did," she said, gaze inward, trying to convince herself that Fandom hadn't just been a fantasy. "I've been okay. For twenty months now. I've been okay." And now she was back here.
Nick	"You're still gonna be okay," Nick said, his hand on her back to help her sit up. "You're strong. I know this is a shock, but you're gonna get through it. And we'll figure out what the hell happened and see how we can fix it."
Zzzap	I'm sorry, Banzai, Zzzap said through the window. I never meant--
Kathy	"Kathy," she said, her head snapping up to glare at him. "My name is Kathy. Not Banzai. Not anymore."
Zzzap	There was a brief silence in the room as everybody stared at her. Uhh, okay, Kathy, Zzzap buzzed. Still sorry though. I don't know this was gonna happen.
Max	"Hey, whoa," Max said, wiping his face off with a towel and coming back into the main room. His face was an unsettling blend of the features they recognized from Jarvis and those they remembered as his own. "Okay, those sigils I had you do are not responsible for Ban-- for Kathy being here. Those were something completely different." Stealth moved and Max waved a hand at her, then pulled a face at the handcuffs still wrapped around his wrists. "And I'll explain those in a second. But let's get Kathy squared away first, okay?"
Stealth	"You may proceed," Stealth said, her arms folding over her chest. "So long as you actually provide answers and cease stalling for time."
Max	"I'm not stalling!" Max said, looking injured. "I just figured we should handle these one at a time is all. And Kathy's right here, so..." Stealth made an impatient noise. One that sounded a lot like a Glock leaving its holster. "Okay, I need to give a little background. For real! So you all understand how this works okay? So, you all remember the Sativus medallion that let me transform into Cairax, right?"
Nick	"Yeah," Nick said. "It made you look like Flava-Flav's uglier white brother."
Max	Max rolled his eyes. "And it let me hijack the body of a Reaver Lord of the Abyss every time I put it on," he sneered. "But, hey, at least your shitty steampunk goggles let you look cool." St. George clapped a hand on Nick's shoulder to keep him from retorting and gestured at Max to get on with it. "Anyway," Max continued, "that's the kind of thing that can get you into trouble in the long run, so I had some backups installed."
Danielle	"Installed where?" asked Danielle, breaking her silence for the first time since Kathy had appeared. She was standing all the way across the room, deliberately not looking at the girl on the bed. Or maybe avoiding Nick, who was parked right next to her.
Max	"On me. That's what a lot of my tattoos were. They were wards and guards to make sure Cairax couldn't get me after I died. Being dead was like my safe house, if you like." Max tossed the towel back in the bathroom and leaned against the wall. "Demons can't affect the dead unless said dead person falls into their sphere of influence - basically, if they're going to hell. Otherwise, they can't touch you."
St. George	"So your plan was to go to heaven?"
Max	Max gave St. George an indulgent little smile. "God no. That's way too big a gamble for someone like me." Nick snorted and Max quickly amended, "Someone who's done a lot of magic. I was just aiming to make sure my spirit got bound to Earth so I'd have time to work through a few things and rack up a few more karma points."
Stealth	"Speaking of points, get to yours," Stealth ordered.
Max	"Jeez, okay, okay, all right. Can't blame a guy for wanting to give a little context, damn." Max heaved a heavy sigh. "But making sure I was tethered was only one of the failsafes I put in. I didn't wanna come back just to get killed off again or something. So, I created a spell and just...tagged all of you in it."
Zzzap	All of us? Zzzap asked, confused.
Max	"Well, not Danielle, cause Cerberus wasn't part of the crew yet. But you, George, Stealth, Gorgon, all the LA heroes. Including dear little Banzai," Max explained. "Just a small transportation spell. So that if I came back, all of you who were still alive would teleport in to make sure that I didn't get killed right away." He smiled at them, as if he hadn't just admitted to setting a spell meant to kidnap them all for his own protection. "However, you all were right next to me when I came back, so the spell skipped you. The only viable other target of the spell was Banzai, so the spell grabbed her and delivered her here with a bow on." His smile widened as he glanced down at her skirt. "Gotta say, I like the current ensemble a lot more than the rainbows and shapeless gi there."
Kathy	There was something about his explanation that nagged at Kathy, but she forgot about that with the way he was leering at her legs. Pretty much everyone else in the room had the same reaction, with Nick wheeling forward a few inches before St. George grabbed his chair.
Max	"Wow, hey, okay okay," Max said, holding up his hands. "No more noticing how little Kathy is all grown up, fine."
Stealth	"If you're quite finished with your little speech," Stealth said, voice cold, "it's time you told us about the rest of it. Just what did you have Zzzap do and why?"
Max	"I can show you, if you'd like," Max said. "Trust me, it'll be a lot easier."

The North Gate was a few blocks from the hospital. Like all the entrances through the Big Wall, there were a few hundred exes and the air crackled with the sound of chattering teeth. Half of them pressed against the gate. The rest staggered through the street. Kathy made a small sound in the back of her throat, clutching St. George's hand in a white-knuckled grip, but her steps didn't falter.

"Baby, you don't have to see this," Nick said, his wheelchair rolling along beside them. "You could wait in the hospital with Danielle--"

"No," Kathy interrupted sharply. "I need to see. I need to know."

In the middle of Bronson was a smoking set of lines, a scar in the pavement stretching from one side of the road to the other. The superheated material had turned a fresh, deep black that stood out from the faded charcoal of the street. Three exes had been slashed in half bu Zzzap's burning touch, too slow to get out of the way and too mindless to realize their danger. Steam still trailed from their severed bodies. A spray of gore marked where one had boiled and exploded.

To parallel lines marked out a ring fifteen feet across. Inside the double circle was what looked like two triangles--or maybe an hourglass--surrounded by squiggles.

Max	"Nice job, Barry," said Max. His handcuffs – wholly unnecessary now, he assured them but Stealth was firm - jingled as he gestured at the symbols. He swayed on his feet and St. George kept one hand on his shoulder.
St. George	"So what is this?" asked St. George, over Zzzap's muttered thanks.
Max	"It's the Hexagram of Water," explained Max, "modified with the six names of God and a thaumaturgic circle."
Stealth	St. George, Nick, and Danielle all looked confused. Kathy's eyes were locked on the gate, staring at the exes. It was impossible to tell how much of this she was even taking in. Zzzap was looking as hangdog as it was possible for a gleaming wraith with few discernable features to look, shoulders slumped as he hung in the air. Max, of course, just looked smug. But it was Stealth that provided the answer. "Magic," she scoffed. "He is claiming this is a magical ward of some sort."
Max	"Very good," said Max. "There’s an appropriate one protecting us at each gate, and some stronger ones around the Mount proper." He waved his hands to the east and south. It was a clumsy motion with the cuffs.
Zzzap	Protection? Zzzap repeated. The glowing outline of a man turned to Max, trying to ignore both Stealth’s accusing glare and how little the face resembled Jarvis’ already. You said they were part of the resurrection spell.
Max	"Yeah, sorry," said Max with an easy shrug. "It was easier to tell you that."
St. George	"Okay," said St. George, frowning. "So what are you protecting us from?"
Max	"Hang on." Max scanned the crowd of walking dead beyond the Gate. "Wait for it." An ex a few yards away stopped in mid-stagger as its feet brushed the outer edge of the steaming circle. It had been a petite woman, her mane of wild hair clotted with blood and filth. It turned, searching, and glared at the people on the Wall. "There he is," said Max softly.
Zombie Woman	The dead thing raised a hand to point at them. It howled, the roar of a mammoth or dinosaur or some other huge, primordial beast. It echoed between the buildings. Half a dozen windows shattered. St. George winced. Ilya and the other gate guards covered their ears. Kathy flinched backwards, nearly tripping over Nick in his chair, who reached up to steady her a moment after her preternatural balance did the same. Even Zzzap responded, the outlines of his body flaring. Only Stealth and Max did not move. The ex filled out, its desiccated flesh swelling with new life. The trembling limbs stretched and its jaw swung open to reveal a bear trap of ivory fangs and tusks. Blue flames burst out of its eyes and set fire to its hair. Its fingers stretched out into talons. In just a few minutes it was over seven feet tall, then eight. Then the dead woman exploded in a spray of gore and blue fire.
Zzzap	What the hell was that? shouted Zzzap and this time everyone winced. Radios all over the Wall popped and screamed with static.
Max	"Remember what I said about how being dead was my safe house? Nothing could touch me?" St. George nodded. "Yeah?" "Well I’m not dead anymore." Max pointed at the bright circle of viscera that had been the undead woman. "That was Cairax Murrain. He's pissed I've gotten away and he's coming after me. And anyone he thinks might have helped me."
Zzap	*What?!* The streetlights all up and down the street around them shattered in a spray of golden sparks and a dozen walkie-talkes blew. Zzzap's head snapped back around from the steaming remains of the ex to his friends. Stealth was statue stiff. Nick was fingering his shades. Smoke leaked out from St. George's nostrils to curl around his shoulders..
Max	"Yeah," Max said thoughtfully. "I probably should’ve mentioned this a bit sooner."
Kathy	The screech that followed didn't sound like it could have come from a human throat. Out of reflex, most of the heroes turned to look at the gate and the remaining exes, all unmoved by the sudden explosive death of one of their own. Which gave Kathy enough time to slip through them and leap onto Max's back, her hands unerringly reaching for his throat. "You selfish, spineless fuck," she howled, banshee-like. "You useless, craven, bastard son of a bitch!"
St. George	If her attack had been unexpected, its ferocity was doubly so. Banzai had been the hero who'd worried about hurting the exes when they'd fought before, who had spent as much time tending the sick and wounded as she had fighting in the streets. And now she was here, clinging to Max like a rhesus monkey, using her body mass as a counterweight to choke him out while she shrieked invectives at him. The guards on the Wall looked concerned, one or two raising guns, but St. George waved them down. "Uhh, should we do something?" he asked Stealth.
Stealth	"Max has kidnapped her from her home, brought her here to what could easily be described as a hellscape, and has now informed us that he conveniently forgot to mention that his resurrection would summon a demon that would carry a vendetta towards all of us," Stealth said calmly. "I believe that Ms. Li's response is justified and well within acceptable parameters." "Sure," said St. George. "But he's turning pretty red." “It isn't until the face takes on a blueish tinge that he will be in any real harm. As Ms. Li followed the maxim, 'Do not kill' before her death, I am certain she will stop before that point." Stealth paused to consider. "Or, at the very least, not long after he loses consciousness."
St. George	A glance at Nick, avidly watching the proceedings, showed he would be no use and Zzzap was no more helpful; he would burn them down to bone with a single touch. Remembering Banzai's attack on him in the hospital, St. George wasn't as sanguine as Stealth in her assessment of Banzai's pacifism. When Max started to turn an ugly shade of plum and Banzai showed no signs of letting go, he sighed and waded in, prying the slender woman off her target. Max immediately sank to his knees and retched, while Banzai twisted and spun in his grip like an angry kitten. Or an ex.
Max	"Thanks," Max rasped. "Really appreciated the assist there. 'Specially the part where you all just watched."
Nick	"Hey now," Nick protested. "I wasn’t just watching. I was also rooting for her. Good job, Kathy, nice form."
St. George	St. George set Banzai down on her feet, keeping a grip on her shoulder so she couldn’t tackled Max again. "Banzai--"
Kathy	She rounded on him, fist connecting with his face. "My name is Kathy," she hissed. "Banzai is dead."
St. George	St. George didn't react to the punch even though it left Banz--Kathy shaking out her fingers. "Okay, Kathy," he said. "Sorry. If I let you go, are you going to attack him again?" "He deserves it." "All that and more," St. George said. The sound of Max’s coughing and wheezing faded as he stood and staggered back towards the hospital. "But if we didn't strangle Josh for genocide, we're not going to do it to Max, either."
Kathy	Josh's name bled the rage out of her faster than St. George's appeal to her better nature had. "What did you do with him?" she demanded.
St. George	"He's imprisoned for what he's done," St. George said softly. "Has been since we found out. Almost two years with no sunlight or food or even water."
Kathy	"That’s not enough." Her face was stony and unforgiving.
St. George	"Nothing could be," St. George agreed. "But it's the best we can do right now."
Kathy	She was silent for long seconds, something wild and feral lurking in her eyes. "I want to see him." "Nobody--" "I want. To see him." Kathy repeated. "He owes me." He had created this madness, but more than that, he had let her die. 'Owed' didn’t even begin to cover it.
St. George	"Fine," said St. George. He let go of her and stepped back. "If you promise not to attack Max again."
Kathy	Kathy glared up at him but finally nodded. "Deal." Beat. "When?"
St. George	"In a few days." Her fists clenched again and St. George held up his hand. "Wait, wait, think about it. We need to finish getting all the rest of the details Max is keeping behind his teeth. And you're already on edge just from being here. You should take some time to settle in a bit. Find somewhere to live. Eat. Breathe. Rest." He wasn't stupid enough to say 'calm down' to an angry woman, but he was thinking it. "Sleep on it. Make sure you really want to see him. Give yourself time to think about what you want to say."
Kathy	Kathy's baleful look made it clear she heard that underlying message, but she nodded again. "A few days," she specified. "Fine. Let’s go see what else that scumbag is hiding."
	***
Max	Max had returned to his hospital room and was examining his newly-bared throat in the mirror. Kathy's fingerprints were livid across his throat and there were ten bloody divots in the skin from where her nails had dug into his flesh; eight in front around his esophagus and one on either side from her thumbs. "Looks like I shaved a bit too soon," he rasped as the heroes filed in. His eyes locked with Kathy's in the mirror. "You gonna try to kill me again?"
Kathy	"You're not worth the effort," she spat, leaning against a wall with her arms crossed over her chest.
Max	Time had filled her out a little more, he noticed idly, but not much. As if he could hear Max’s thoughts, Nick wheeled between them, once again taking the spot next to her, and glared. "You have no idea how happy I am to hear that," he said, giving them both a thumbs up. Nick flipped him off.
Stealth	"I'd save that relief for a bit," Stealth said flatly. "You have put everyone in the Mount at risk." Her sharp voice echoed in the room. She stood wrapped in her cloak, so it was impossible to see where her hands were. Smart money put them on her holsters and no one in the room blamed her for it.
Max	"Don't be melodramatic," said Max, rolling his eyes. "We're not at risk so long as we stay inside the walls. Or, well, behind the wards. That's what wards are for. So the nasty things outside them can't get at the nice people inside."
Nick	"So we're all for tossing Max out on his ear then?" Nick muttered.
Stealth	"And if someone did not stay within the walls?" asked Stealth.
Max	"Well, if someone goes out there, one of two things will happen," Max said, holding his cuffed hands up. He stayed quiet until St. George huffed forward and unlocked them, freeing his hands. "More than likely, Cairax will just kill them."
Danielle	"But you're Cairax," Danielle said. She'd skipped out on their little fieldtrip. She didn’t like being outside and near exes unless she was safely ensconced in the Cerberus battle armor. Hell, she didn’t like being outside of Cerberus much at all.
Max	"No," said Max. "We're two separate beings. Always have been. I just borrowed his body now and then. And maybe a little bit of his mindset."
Nick	"Which, if I recall correctly, was your excuse for molesting a dead actress," Nick said, false pleasantness in his voice.
Max	"Hey!" snapped Max. He whipped around and returned Nick’s glare from earlier. "That’s not what happened at all. The whole thing just got blown out of proportion. And none of you did anything to stop it, I might add." Nick scoffed, unimpressed by the tirade. "I slipped a dead woman some tongue and she bit it off. That's it. Considering what my perceptions were being filtered through, it’s an amazing example of self-control."
Kathy	"Well," Kathy snarked, "at least now we know you didn't do anything disgusting."
St. George	St. George took a slow breath and managed to get the flames in his throat under control. The trailer of smoke from his nose turned into a thread. "So," he said, attempting to get the conversation back on useful grounds, "it’ll kill anyone who goes past your marks. How?"
Max	"Well, you saw the ex. He's got a good four or five seconds before those bodies explode." Max looked St. George in the eyes, before pointedly glancing at the scar on George’s arm, the first injury worse than a bruise since George had gotten his powers. It had been left by one of Cairax's fangs, punching through George's impervious skin like a hot knife through butter. "You fought Cairax, George. How much damage do you think he can fit into five seconds?"
Stealth	Stealth's head shifted inside her hood. "What is the other possible result of passing through the wards?"
Max	"Oh. That's worse," Max said easily. "He might try to possess them. But the odds of pulling it off with an unprepared body are next to nil. Really, it's just another way he could kill someone. Just a little slower. And messier." "What do you mean?" Max rolled up the sleeves of his scrubs, showing off tattoos that hadn't been there when the body belonged to Jarvis. "If someone isn’t suitably prepared with the right sigils and agreements, a normal human body just can't take the stress of demonic possession. I had to undergo a lot of preparation before I dared to attempt it, plus I had the safeties of the medallion." He gestured at the bed. "Look how long it took me to work my way into Jarvis's body. That was hours. He'd need at least twice as much time."
Stealth	"If what you’re saying is true," said Stealth, hostility radiating off of her again, "the demon could possess an ex just as you did."
Max	Max shook his head. "He's too big. A demon needs a sentient soul to use as…as an opposing force, sort of. Without one, going slow isn't an option. They just rush right into a body, like filling a water balloon with a fire hose. Believe me, if the wards weren't up, people would be popping left and right in here. Cairax is just too impatient for his own good. That's why his kind didn’t overrun the world millennia ago.”
Kathy	"If Cairax knows that," Kathy objected, "why'd it bother to try and possess the ex outside?"
Max	"Why do people punch walls? Or strangle someone if they don't mean to kill them?" Max shrugged. "It's pretty creepy, you've got to admit. And it sends a message."
Kathy	"Yeah, like stay the fuck away from me," Kathy snarled.
Max	"I remember you nicer," Max said, giving her hurt eyes.
Stealth	"So if we cannot leave," Stealth said before Kathy could retort, "what are we expected to do?"
Max	"Just relax," Max replied, switching his attention back over to her. "After awhile, he'll get bored of stalking around out there and head off to plot some demonic revenge against me." "How long?" "I don’t know. A little time. Ten or twelve days, maybe? Two weeks, tops."
St. George	St. George felt the fire building in his throat again. "You're saying we might not be able to go out into the city for two weeks?"
Max	"Two weeks at the absolute most," the sorcerer promised. "It'll probably be less than that."
Stealth	"No chance we could sneak out?" Stealth asked. "A small team, maybe with diversionary tactics?"
Nick	"Like tossing you over the wards," Nick suggested again. Look, it remained a good plan!
Max	Max shook his head. "Cairax is a demonic spirit. He can be in multiple places at once and he can see every living thing inside these walls. There's no getting out with without him knowing."
Stealth	"Unless we do what Gorgon suggests," Stealth said, "and surrender you to the entity now."
Max	"You could," Max admitted. “"But aren't we the good guys? Giving someone to a demon seems pretty morally unambiguous. Besides, it probably won't make much of a difference. Demons are legendary for holding a grudge and there's no way you’d convince it I misled you."
Kathy	"Lied," Kathy corrected. "And lemme guess. You wouldn't tell him otherwise."
Max	"Not if you gave me over to him, nope." Max was, as always, unrepentant. "All this will blow over in a couple of days. Trust me."
Zzzap	Weird how we're all having a little trouble with that right now, said Zzzap from his perch out the window, the first time he'd spoken since they'd come back. He sounded subdued.
Max	Max sighed and started rifling through the bag of clothing that Jarvis had left behind when he'd been admitted to the hospital. "So how are we playing this?" he asked. "I knew my return wasn't going to get cheers, but I didn't expect it to be this cold. Am I a prisoner? A partner? A free citizen?"
St. George	St. George glanced at Stealth. "I don't think we need to make you a prisoner," he said.
Stealth	"However," Stealth continued, "it would be best if you didn't go anywhere unescorted."
Kathy	"And me?" Kathy asked. "Do I need an escort, too?"
Stealth	Stealth paused for a moment, then shook her head. "I don't believe so. There aren't many people who knew Banzai's civilian identity and you vanished almost two years ago. It seems unlikely you will be recognized so long as you do not use your speed or bounce. Max still bears at least a superficial resemblance to Jarvis and will face scrutiny."
St. George	St. George glanced at Nick. "Hey, mind keeping an eye on him until we bring Freedom up to speed on this?"
Nick	Nick shook his head. "I was gonna show Kathy around, help her get acclimated. Maybe Danielle?"
Danielle	A flash of hurt and heartache crossed Danielle’s face, too fast for anyone but Stealth to notice. "Yeah sure whatever," she said, cross. She pushed herself up off the bed and stalked over to Max. "Ready when you are."
Max	Max held his hand out to St. George. "Thanks again. I owe you big time."
St. George	St. George looked at the hand for a long moment, then shook it. "Let's just get rid of the demon as quick as we can."
Max	Max held out his had to Stealth, but she stared past him. Kathy’s expression invited him to even try touching her right now, and Nick was looking at her, not the sorcerer. He pursed his lips, nodded, and left with Danielle.
Stealth	As soon as he left, Stealth looked around the room. "His body language is inconsistent throughout that talk. He's withholding information from us." So what do we do? "For the moment, we shall allow him the time he wants," Stealth said, voice calculating. "There are no scavenging missions scheduled for five days, so it changes nothing." She placed her hands on her hips, fingers straying over her holsters. "And then we shall question him again."