Shadows Inc. Journal
History File 02
The VIAL
Roll Call : Anthony Baker
Derek Lone
Antagonists : the HAND (ninja assassins)
New York on a Tuesday evening – its been a very hectic day, as Derek Lone stares at the hospital bed where Anthony Baker lies, recovering from an attack – and if stories are to be believed, Baker himself successfully stopped an attempt on his life… or make that, partially successful, since he ended up in here. How did this happen? He can’t really tell – no sing of any antagonist could be found – with possible exception to some ashes on the floor, and overturned furniture, there was no one else in Baker’s apartment when he arrived. In fact, it was just luck that he was close by – having just met and exchanged numbers with Baker this morning.
He thinks back at the conversation they had…
The meeting took place at noon – in a place called Josie’s. Baker arrived 15 minutes early, to case the joint, it would seem, and he immediately liked the ambiance. It was a bar that likewise served food. Not too pricy… just right. The lunch menu was decent.
Derek was already there and he had chosen his usual spot, a corner table with his back against the concrete wall, and he raised his arm to get Tony’s attention. Tony sees him, approaches and takes the offered seat. Derek then calls the bar’s proprietor, Charlie, to both introduce him to Tony and get Tony’s order while they’re at it.
Apparently, Charlie recognized Tony from all the TV exposure he had after the Ape caper – good, this means that Tony was indeed a viable partner to an investigative agency, with Tony as the recognized face, while he would work in the background – away form the spotlights… the way he prefers it. Charlie hollers to everyone in the bar to point out that a local hero chooses to dine at Josie’s – that’s Charlie… taking every opportunity for free marketing… and cheap at that, since, all Tony got was a free drink.
Derek gets drawn back to the present as he looks at the nurse enter Tony’s room, if frequency is any indicator; this same nurse has fallen into a routine which could mean that Tony’s condition has stabilized – though it was touch and go for a while, after all, they had to surgically remove a shuriken from Tony’s left eye – a souvenir from the missing assailant. Derek shakes his head… was Tony fighting a Ninja? Did this have anything to do with the vial? He recalls again…
They were getting into the thick of their intended conversation, when they notice someone by the bar’s window seemingly staggering, then falling to the ground. They both rush out – apparently just two of a possible handful of people who’d noticed the man – and apparently, only the two who decided to go out to help.
There were some typical New Yorkers standing around, while others were calling 911, but apparently, both he and baker were the first to reach the fallen person and carefully turn him over.
Tony tried to help the man, who seemed delirious and feverish, telling him that help was on the way – a quick sizing up of the man seemed to make Lone think that this guy seemed to be some scientist or doctor – at least, the white lab gown he was wearing seemed to say that… and the ID connected to his shirt pocket seemed to verify that. All this, Derek took in with one sweep, while Tony was busy listening to something the man was seemingly whispering to him – then the hand-off. It was hardly noticeable, had it not been for Tony’s facial expression and the way he looked what was at his hand… a small vial… and a now seemingly convulsing doctor, who suddenly slumps limp and unconscious.
Unfortunately, unknown to the two… Derek was not the only one who noticed what Tony was holding. Two eyes… staring intently at what was happening from a few floors up in an adjacent building – his mission foiled temporarily, and with this new development, new instructions were needed… hence after seeing the crowd part as an ambulance came, the crimson-clad ninja assumes a meditative position to commune with his superior and report what has transpired.
As Lone and Baker watch the ambulance leave, Derek asks… “So, what did he tell you… and what’s with the vial?” Tony looks at him with an incredulous look, “He said that we must not let this fall into the hand… I guess he meant wrong hands. He also said this needed to be given to some organization called shield.
Lone’s internal radar bristles upon hearing the name and intent… the last thing he needs is to be wrapped up with some pseudo-militaristic squabble – after all, his laying low was basically to avoid any military organization leaning on him and his other business venture. “Maybe we should continue this conversation someplace more private.”, he says in a very serious tone – one that Tony notices at once. Thankfully, Tony Baker agrees with him and after they settle their bills at Josie’s – deciding to just have their lunch ‘to go’, they move to Tony’s apartment to discuss what this could all mean, and what to do next.
Back to the present, Derek again looks at his watch… its now close to midnight – the operation and recovery, having taken the best of three hours… and not just due to stitching up, but because of the need to counter some form of poison introduced to Tony Baker’s system. His being here, in the hospital right now, is insurance… just in case whoever did this to Tony might decide to finish what was started.
Derek realizes how stupid they were to go directly to Tony’s place, and not some other place that was safer… maybe more secure. It should have been his place, but he wasn’t really thinking too well – being preoccupied with the possibility of discovery from the military authorities. It was also amateurish of him, and Tony, not to make sure they were not being followed – though he did not consider anyone capable in non-detection, as these ‘ninjas’ are rumored to be. He decides that doing what-ifs and the blame game won’t help him or Tony now… best to be alert and prepared for anything. After one peek at Tony’s room, he decides a quick trip to the coffee machine a few yards down is what he needs.
As he moves toward the dispenser, he recalls their conversation in Tony’s apartment…
“Are you crazy?! We can’t just walk up to a pseudo-militaristic organization and hand this thing to them? They’ll have tons of questions, and they’ll probably want to detain us! Heck! They might even think we did the doctor in!” blurts Derek to a still recovering Tony, who then replies, “Okay, I’m sorry… its not everyday a man dies on me before handing a vial with a warning, you know.”
“I thought you worked in homicide?” blurts Lone, which is then countered by Baker, “And they were normally dead to begin with, so this is something new to me, alright?”. Lone then gestures for Baker to slow down… “Okay, okay… lets calm down – you wanted a Detective Agency, might as well start thinking like detectives and get used to this – besides, most of our clients will be living, from now on.”
“Ok…”; taking a few deep breaths, Tony seems to settle down, then he continues, “…so what do we do then?”; and quickly adds, “By the way, this does not mean were officially partners, we haven’t finalized anything regarding this.”
“What better way to see if we can work together? Consider this a trial run… anyway, as I was saying…” Lone sits down and asks, “…got any brewskies here? I work better with a wet whistle.” Baker goes to his ref and pulls out a pair of beers, opens them and hands one to Lone.
After a few sips, Derek continues, “…as I was saying, maybe we can ask a few of my contacts about SHIELD. See what they can come up with – but it will have to be discreet – I don’t want this traced back to us.”
“Yeah…” agrees Tony, “…and we wouldn’t want the wrong hands to get to it either.”
“Okay, I’ll make a few inquiries then return to you soon as I hear something – meantime, you place that vial, and whatever it’s holding into a safe place… you got nay number I can reach you with?” Derek asks.
“Sure…” and Tony picks a pen to scribble his name and number on a Josie’s napkin, then hands it off to Derek, who looks at the note, uses the number to see if Baker’s phone rings, before stuffing it into his coat pocket.
Before Tony can question him, he simple says, “Now you have my number.” He finishes his beer and stands up – ‘Nice seeing you again, Tony. Like I said, I’ll keep in touch… I’ll give my contacts 24 hours, at most, to see how we can arrange an anonymous contact with SHIELD.”
“You know…” adds Baker, maybe we can ask the officers handling the scientist’s case – he might have been contacted by this SHIELD, and maybe we can just give him the vial.”
“Yeah, that’s a good idea.”, agrees Lone. Maybe we can pursue both angles. I’ll let myself out.” And he does.
It wasn’t even thirty minutes after he’d left, that Derek suddenly receives a missed call from Baker, and after trying to call back and getting a busy signal, Lone decides to rush back… as he approaches Tony’s pad, he sees some neighbors looking at the place, and he quickly asks them, “What happened?” A lady roughly in her mid-40s looks at him, and tells him that they heard a lot of noise – like there was a fight, and they even called 911 when they just heard everything stop, and no one was answering their queries.
He doesn’t think twice, aims his insulated shoe at the door and stomps hard – satisfied that it gives in on the second attempt – he and a few other neighbors find the room in a mess – a very different state as to how it was about half an hour earlier.
Derek rushes in to find a slumped Tony, bleeding with a shuriken embedded in his face – his gun in his hand with a few expended bullet shells near him. He orders the other observers to call an ambulance, as he checks for vitals – then he looks around quickly… Baker shot someone, did he hit? Miss? So where were the bullets and the body – heck, where was the other person? There was blood around – but without any analysis, he wouldn’t know it what he saw were Baker’s or his assailant’s.
Door was locked, window pane shattered… but Tony’s room was on the third floor… how did the other person come in? did Tony let him in? Too many questions – ones that have to be set aside for now… at least until Tony got medical attention, which, based on the siren getting louder, would be very soon.
So that’s how they got here… Derek made sure Tony was cared for, but stayed at a distance. He befriended a nurse to get some details – telling her he was a colleague, and that Tony had no family in New York… thankfully, due to his high profile, Tony was afforded emergency medical care… that and Derek having some cash in hand… just in case.
As he sips his coffee, he notices the nurse station missing – not impossible, but he’d wondered why there was a break in routine… after all, even if this floor had several patients, the nurses were not scheduled to check anyone – at least, far as Derek’s observed timetable seemed to suggest.
Derek sees a shadow in Baker’s room, and his instincts kick in. He reaches the door, looks in as sees a crimson-clad figure over Tony’s bed. He shoves the door open, raises his hands – both holding sub-machine guns… with the coffee seemingly disappeared in the process.
“Freeze!” he shouts to the mystery figure, but instead the figure – he can’t really tell if its male or female, crouches and in quick succession, unleashes several shuriken. Lone goes low as the shuriken whiz above, nearly hitting his head, he sees the assailant’s feet and releases suppressed bursts from both guns – taking great care not to hit Tony’s bed.
Instinct kicks in as he sees the assailant fall with hardly a grunt – Lone quickly narrow the gap, but the ninja… and he seems convinced that this is a ninja he’s fighting, pulls out a weapon with chains to hit Lone’s ruining his aim at least. It works with one gun, but Lone still has the other and thinking that this ninja was still too close to Baker, decides to take the ninja down with a few rounds to the chest.
That final act seemed to work, just as the ninja was about to quickly unsheathe his sword and use it on Baker. Derek approaches carefully, making sure the Ninja is no longer a threat, then when he’s satisfied that the ninja has no pulse, he keeps his guns and checks Tony, who seems to be untouched.
While he’s busy checking the vitals of Baker, he feels it and sees it at the corner of his eye – the Ninja, somehow having fooled him, reaches to his leg and grips him tightly… with his hand seemingly vibrating fast – a vibration that quickly transfers to his leg then his whole body… a gun suddenly appears on his hands and he fires point blank at the ninja’s head.
A second later, Lone finds himself falling to the ground, as his motor function skills seem to fail him – and all he can do is look helplessly, as the Ninja’s body seems to start smoking. He tries to call for help, but he can’t even move his mouth – whatever the ninja did to him paralyzed him good.
He starts feeling dizzy, and vaguely hears several feet running to the room, the door opening, and a few surprised shrieks. He feels hands grab him and then he passes out – wondering it this is how it ends.
Light... at first, blurry, then noise - sounding like a doctor giving an autopsy... Derek awakens to a morning window’s brightness and a television’s broadcast – its one of those CSI shows, and he sees Tony on an adjacent bed, in a sitting position, watching with his one good eye… the other still bandaged real good. He tries speaking, but he finds it hard.
Hearing Derek mumble, Tony grabs for something behind his pillow and presses the nurse’s call button. “Nurse, he’s finally awake.” Then turning to Lone, he says, “Welcome back to the land of the living, partner. You gave us quite a scare.”
-end history file 2-
History File 02
The VIAL
Roll Call : Anthony Baker
Derek Lone
Antagonists : the HAND (ninja assassins)
New York on a Tuesday evening – its been a very hectic day, as Derek Lone stares at the hospital bed where Anthony Baker lies, recovering from an attack – and if stories are to be believed, Baker himself successfully stopped an attempt on his life… or make that, partially successful, since he ended up in here. How did this happen? He can’t really tell – no sing of any antagonist could be found – with possible exception to some ashes on the floor, and overturned furniture, there was no one else in Baker’s apartment when he arrived. In fact, it was just luck that he was close by – having just met and exchanged numbers with Baker this morning.
He thinks back at the conversation they had…
The meeting took place at noon – in a place called Josie’s. Baker arrived 15 minutes early, to case the joint, it would seem, and he immediately liked the ambiance. It was a bar that likewise served food. Not too pricy… just right. The lunch menu was decent.
Derek was already there and he had chosen his usual spot, a corner table with his back against the concrete wall, and he raised his arm to get Tony’s attention. Tony sees him, approaches and takes the offered seat. Derek then calls the bar’s proprietor, Charlie, to both introduce him to Tony and get Tony’s order while they’re at it.
Apparently, Charlie recognized Tony from all the TV exposure he had after the Ape caper – good, this means that Tony was indeed a viable partner to an investigative agency, with Tony as the recognized face, while he would work in the background – away form the spotlights… the way he prefers it. Charlie hollers to everyone in the bar to point out that a local hero chooses to dine at Josie’s – that’s Charlie… taking every opportunity for free marketing… and cheap at that, since, all Tony got was a free drink.
Derek gets drawn back to the present as he looks at the nurse enter Tony’s room, if frequency is any indicator; this same nurse has fallen into a routine which could mean that Tony’s condition has stabilized – though it was touch and go for a while, after all, they had to surgically remove a shuriken from Tony’s left eye – a souvenir from the missing assailant. Derek shakes his head… was Tony fighting a Ninja? Did this have anything to do with the vial? He recalls again…
They were getting into the thick of their intended conversation, when they notice someone by the bar’s window seemingly staggering, then falling to the ground. They both rush out – apparently just two of a possible handful of people who’d noticed the man – and apparently, only the two who decided to go out to help.
There were some typical New Yorkers standing around, while others were calling 911, but apparently, both he and baker were the first to reach the fallen person and carefully turn him over.
Tony tried to help the man, who seemed delirious and feverish, telling him that help was on the way – a quick sizing up of the man seemed to make Lone think that this guy seemed to be some scientist or doctor – at least, the white lab gown he was wearing seemed to say that… and the ID connected to his shirt pocket seemed to verify that. All this, Derek took in with one sweep, while Tony was busy listening to something the man was seemingly whispering to him – then the hand-off. It was hardly noticeable, had it not been for Tony’s facial expression and the way he looked what was at his hand… a small vial… and a now seemingly convulsing doctor, who suddenly slumps limp and unconscious.
Unfortunately, unknown to the two… Derek was not the only one who noticed what Tony was holding. Two eyes… staring intently at what was happening from a few floors up in an adjacent building – his mission foiled temporarily, and with this new development, new instructions were needed… hence after seeing the crowd part as an ambulance came, the crimson-clad ninja assumes a meditative position to commune with his superior and report what has transpired.
As Lone and Baker watch the ambulance leave, Derek asks… “So, what did he tell you… and what’s with the vial?” Tony looks at him with an incredulous look, “He said that we must not let this fall into the hand… I guess he meant wrong hands. He also said this needed to be given to some organization called shield.
Lone’s internal radar bristles upon hearing the name and intent… the last thing he needs is to be wrapped up with some pseudo-militaristic squabble – after all, his laying low was basically to avoid any military organization leaning on him and his other business venture. “Maybe we should continue this conversation someplace more private.”, he says in a very serious tone – one that Tony notices at once. Thankfully, Tony Baker agrees with him and after they settle their bills at Josie’s – deciding to just have their lunch ‘to go’, they move to Tony’s apartment to discuss what this could all mean, and what to do next.
Back to the present, Derek again looks at his watch… its now close to midnight – the operation and recovery, having taken the best of three hours… and not just due to stitching up, but because of the need to counter some form of poison introduced to Tony Baker’s system. His being here, in the hospital right now, is insurance… just in case whoever did this to Tony might decide to finish what was started.
Derek realizes how stupid they were to go directly to Tony’s place, and not some other place that was safer… maybe more secure. It should have been his place, but he wasn’t really thinking too well – being preoccupied with the possibility of discovery from the military authorities. It was also amateurish of him, and Tony, not to make sure they were not being followed – though he did not consider anyone capable in non-detection, as these ‘ninjas’ are rumored to be. He decides that doing what-ifs and the blame game won’t help him or Tony now… best to be alert and prepared for anything. After one peek at Tony’s room, he decides a quick trip to the coffee machine a few yards down is what he needs.
As he moves toward the dispenser, he recalls their conversation in Tony’s apartment…
“Are you crazy?! We can’t just walk up to a pseudo-militaristic organization and hand this thing to them? They’ll have tons of questions, and they’ll probably want to detain us! Heck! They might even think we did the doctor in!” blurts Derek to a still recovering Tony, who then replies, “Okay, I’m sorry… its not everyday a man dies on me before handing a vial with a warning, you know.”
“I thought you worked in homicide?” blurts Lone, which is then countered by Baker, “And they were normally dead to begin with, so this is something new to me, alright?”. Lone then gestures for Baker to slow down… “Okay, okay… lets calm down – you wanted a Detective Agency, might as well start thinking like detectives and get used to this – besides, most of our clients will be living, from now on.”
“Ok…”; taking a few deep breaths, Tony seems to settle down, then he continues, “…so what do we do then?”; and quickly adds, “By the way, this does not mean were officially partners, we haven’t finalized anything regarding this.”
“What better way to see if we can work together? Consider this a trial run… anyway, as I was saying…” Lone sits down and asks, “…got any brewskies here? I work better with a wet whistle.” Baker goes to his ref and pulls out a pair of beers, opens them and hands one to Lone.
After a few sips, Derek continues, “…as I was saying, maybe we can ask a few of my contacts about SHIELD. See what they can come up with – but it will have to be discreet – I don’t want this traced back to us.”
“Yeah…” agrees Tony, “…and we wouldn’t want the wrong hands to get to it either.”
“Okay, I’ll make a few inquiries then return to you soon as I hear something – meantime, you place that vial, and whatever it’s holding into a safe place… you got nay number I can reach you with?” Derek asks.
“Sure…” and Tony picks a pen to scribble his name and number on a Josie’s napkin, then hands it off to Derek, who looks at the note, uses the number to see if Baker’s phone rings, before stuffing it into his coat pocket.
Before Tony can question him, he simple says, “Now you have my number.” He finishes his beer and stands up – ‘Nice seeing you again, Tony. Like I said, I’ll keep in touch… I’ll give my contacts 24 hours, at most, to see how we can arrange an anonymous contact with SHIELD.”
“You know…” adds Baker, maybe we can ask the officers handling the scientist’s case – he might have been contacted by this SHIELD, and maybe we can just give him the vial.”
“Yeah, that’s a good idea.”, agrees Lone. Maybe we can pursue both angles. I’ll let myself out.” And he does.
It wasn’t even thirty minutes after he’d left, that Derek suddenly receives a missed call from Baker, and after trying to call back and getting a busy signal, Lone decides to rush back… as he approaches Tony’s pad, he sees some neighbors looking at the place, and he quickly asks them, “What happened?” A lady roughly in her mid-40s looks at him, and tells him that they heard a lot of noise – like there was a fight, and they even called 911 when they just heard everything stop, and no one was answering their queries.
He doesn’t think twice, aims his insulated shoe at the door and stomps hard – satisfied that it gives in on the second attempt – he and a few other neighbors find the room in a mess – a very different state as to how it was about half an hour earlier.
Derek rushes in to find a slumped Tony, bleeding with a shuriken embedded in his face – his gun in his hand with a few expended bullet shells near him. He orders the other observers to call an ambulance, as he checks for vitals – then he looks around quickly… Baker shot someone, did he hit? Miss? So where were the bullets and the body – heck, where was the other person? There was blood around – but without any analysis, he wouldn’t know it what he saw were Baker’s or his assailant’s.
Door was locked, window pane shattered… but Tony’s room was on the third floor… how did the other person come in? did Tony let him in? Too many questions – ones that have to be set aside for now… at least until Tony got medical attention, which, based on the siren getting louder, would be very soon.
So that’s how they got here… Derek made sure Tony was cared for, but stayed at a distance. He befriended a nurse to get some details – telling her he was a colleague, and that Tony had no family in New York… thankfully, due to his high profile, Tony was afforded emergency medical care… that and Derek having some cash in hand… just in case.
As he sips his coffee, he notices the nurse station missing – not impossible, but he’d wondered why there was a break in routine… after all, even if this floor had several patients, the nurses were not scheduled to check anyone – at least, far as Derek’s observed timetable seemed to suggest.
Derek sees a shadow in Baker’s room, and his instincts kick in. He reaches the door, looks in as sees a crimson-clad figure over Tony’s bed. He shoves the door open, raises his hands – both holding sub-machine guns… with the coffee seemingly disappeared in the process.
“Freeze!” he shouts to the mystery figure, but instead the figure – he can’t really tell if its male or female, crouches and in quick succession, unleashes several shuriken. Lone goes low as the shuriken whiz above, nearly hitting his head, he sees the assailant’s feet and releases suppressed bursts from both guns – taking great care not to hit Tony’s bed.
Instinct kicks in as he sees the assailant fall with hardly a grunt – Lone quickly narrow the gap, but the ninja… and he seems convinced that this is a ninja he’s fighting, pulls out a weapon with chains to hit Lone’s ruining his aim at least. It works with one gun, but Lone still has the other and thinking that this ninja was still too close to Baker, decides to take the ninja down with a few rounds to the chest.
That final act seemed to work, just as the ninja was about to quickly unsheathe his sword and use it on Baker. Derek approaches carefully, making sure the Ninja is no longer a threat, then when he’s satisfied that the ninja has no pulse, he keeps his guns and checks Tony, who seems to be untouched.
While he’s busy checking the vitals of Baker, he feels it and sees it at the corner of his eye – the Ninja, somehow having fooled him, reaches to his leg and grips him tightly… with his hand seemingly vibrating fast – a vibration that quickly transfers to his leg then his whole body… a gun suddenly appears on his hands and he fires point blank at the ninja’s head.
A second later, Lone finds himself falling to the ground, as his motor function skills seem to fail him – and all he can do is look helplessly, as the Ninja’s body seems to start smoking. He tries to call for help, but he can’t even move his mouth – whatever the ninja did to him paralyzed him good.
He starts feeling dizzy, and vaguely hears several feet running to the room, the door opening, and a few surprised shrieks. He feels hands grab him and then he passes out – wondering it this is how it ends.
Light... at first, blurry, then noise - sounding like a doctor giving an autopsy... Derek awakens to a morning window’s brightness and a television’s broadcast – its one of those CSI shows, and he sees Tony on an adjacent bed, in a sitting position, watching with his one good eye… the other still bandaged real good. He tries speaking, but he finds it hard.
Hearing Derek mumble, Tony grabs for something behind his pillow and presses the nurse’s call button. “Nurse, he’s finally awake.” Then turning to Lone, he says, “Welcome back to the land of the living, partner. You gave us quite a scare.”
-end history file 2-
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