Scene #7820: The Wolf (1/2)

Owner	Pose
Vaxis	COLORADO HIGHWAY ROADSTOP EVENING Leaving a busy city in Colorado, one would always reach this quiet highway with a cliffside railing, a roadstop, and a bar, as well as a long hill leading upwards to a failed construction project. Each and every Elite brought here has received a personal letter with coordinates, asking them to save three individuals (a middle-aged male, a young adult male, and a teenage adult female) from a crisis that will take their lives. They are told to fear the wolves. The letter is signed 'With all due respect, A Nobody'. The cliffside railing has a commercial jeep parked next to it. No one is here. The roadstop has only a few employee parking spots filled up - as well as a motorcycle parked illegally, not that anyone cares. The lights are on and the sign is set to OPEN - 24/7. Through the windows, there is a young man in a riding jacket playing with a coin and a deck of cards, a waitress serving him coffee, and a cook in the kitchen. The bar is to the side of this building, entrance positioned in a way to be facing the diner walls instead of outwards. The neon-lit sign reads 'WOLF BAR'. A middle-aged man flipping a coin in his hand enters the bar, presumably to get wasted. The hillside construction zone has both a concrete hill to climb up and a road going up it. Smoke, presumably from a cigarette, can be seen and smelled by those with superhuman senses at the top, which is a little weird because it's abandoned. Splitting up is optimal. All paths will eventually converge into one.
Kale Hearthward	Kale Hearthward had just gotten a release from medbay (the possibly euphemistically named 'recovery center') and cleared to go do stuff when he got the suitably ominious warning. And while he'd be down for doing something... aggressive, as a chaser to the heart-off that was the Winter Slayer, something more straightforward like preventing some deaths is probably more appropriate for a first new mission. He's gone to check out the abandoned construction zone, figuring it'd be a suitably unsafe place (assuming the warning is true and accurate), and while he's there he takes note of the cigarette smoke. Time to go check that out.
Seras Victoria	The place is seriously called Wolf Bar? Seras gazes upon the sign with a bit of dismay, having arrived on the outskirts via inconspicuous Paladin transports. She's decided to arrive in white sneakers, blue jeans, and a light, hooded windbreaker - no doubt, covering something else. And... unarmed? Probably a concealed weapon or two in there somewhere.. "The place is CALLED the Wolf Bar. ... does that mean the proprietors are the 'wolves'...? Or the patrons?" Her nose twitches on approach though. "That smells like..." Her words drift off as her attention does too, head turning towards the distant construction zone. "Who would be there at this time of night? That's suspicious..." Well. Could be someone just minding their own business. But there's other possibilities... "I'll swing by and check the bar next..." Seras breaks into an easy stride, at easily olympic level speeds but no faster. She'll clear the distance to the construction sight in no time and attempt to use the various vehicles and obstacles as cover to sneak up on whoever's there and get a closer look...
Kukuru	Three people to save, some number of wolves to save them from (probably), and a relatively small area to figure things out in before their targets are killed. Kukuru's taking her sweet time approaching this section of the highway as she sees some vague shapes moving ahead, not quite recognizing Kale nor Seras, yet not looking too concerned about their movements. She can't see anyone up top, anyway, so it'll probably be fine. <<"He-llo, everyone. Don't get too tuckered out up there, okay? We might have a long night ahead of us.">> She suggests over open channels, approaching the roadstop and not bothering to hide her approach whatsoever as she sees that man in the riding jacket. Stopping to ask him about anyone that might want him dead is sure to startle him, however, so she instead opts for a different approach! "He-llo there. Are you waiting for someone?" Kukuru asks with little self-awareness about the situation, then proceeds to order some chicken-fried steak and pitcher of sweet tea.
Darren	An RV about ten or twenty years past its prime rolls up the road. A satellite dish is bolted on to the flimsy beige paneling, and the roof is host to a slowly swiveling radar array of some sort with solar panels taking up what space remains. Behind the wheel sits Darren, illuminated from the back by the glow of what must be several computer monitors and TVs. The back end is plastered in all manner of incoherent and eccentric bumper stickers, some newer than others, some larger than others, some with names and faces of famous people believed to have disappeared mysteriously. As he drops it into park and cuts the ignition, he rises with practiced ease and disappears into the back. A few moments later, the glow from those screens cuts out, and he steps into the evening air. After doing some on-the-spot calisthenics, he extends his hand as a drawstring backpack is slung around his shoulder. His grey zip-up hoodie, white tee, track pants and sneakers hardly convey an imposing air, but the fact that the backpack flew, seemingly of its own volition, into his waiting hand, is certainly unusual. Bouncing from one foot to the other to get nice and limber, his medium locs bounce along with him, revealing bright green eyes in fits and starts. At last, he heads into the roadstop and takes a seat opposite the young man in the riding jacket. "Hey, my man. You ever heard of the Third Arch Theory? Helix Tower--third arch, hidden in plain sight. Hologram reality, bro."
Vaxis	THE CONSTRUCTION SITE Crossing up to the construction site, a blonde-haired teenage girl is smoking a cigarette, MP3 player playing tunes directly into her ears. A cellphone keeps buzzing - numerous rings, set to vibrate. She is ignoring all of them, and doesn't see the people being stealthy as she plays a game on her Game Boy SP. Seras immediately gets a danger sense - not from her, but from something in her possession. It's a gut feeling, but it's hard to tell what is causing it. THE ROADSIDE DINER As you enter the roadstop, Kukuru's order is served. The man with the cards glances to her, smiling at the pretty older lady, and shakes his head. "Nah, just getting some coffee in me. Got a long ride." Darren also gets a reply, half-befuddled and half-distracted. "Woah. That's cool. Why don't you tell me about it over a card game? I could use some cash for the road." The platinum coin he's flipping registers as valid currency to your brain, though Kukuru and Kukuru alone will, after a few moments, realize that this thought seems to have come out of nowhere. It is marked with the symbol of a gray wolf.
Kale Hearthward	Kale follows the smoke to its source, and sets down in front of her. "Hey, it's dangerous to be here," he says, arms crossed. "Don't you got... some sort of disco roller rink to go hang in, or something? Some place more 'hip' than an abandoned construction site?"
Seras Victoria	Naturally, upon feeling the weird, bad vibes that something terrible lurks near that young woman.. Seras attempts to warn Kale not to approach recklessly. Naturally, her warning isn't heeded. Her face contorts with a 'god, why are men always like this' scrunch, and then she decides to swing around the excavator she's using as cover and approach, slowly, just a bit nervously. "Isn't this a weird place to be playing video games? It's bound to be nicer in the Wolf Bar."
Kukuru	"That sounds rough. Make sure to rest up when you can, then. Don't be afraid to take breaks every now and then, okay?" Kukuru semi-asks and semi-warns, already doting on the young man a bit. Darren gets a light wave as well, although Kukuru's pretending not to recognize him for the time being just in case... She's not too sure why, actually. It might help if the mysterious wolves are around and watching them, though. Noticing that coin being flicked around, she lets out a quietly curious noise while digging into her food. "Neat coin... Where's it from?" She asks of the young man, tilting her head slightly to get a better look at the symbol on it. "A wolf...? Huh. Is it like one of those arcade tokens?" She's not particularly subtle about indicating that she's noticed something off about it, although she does have enough sense not to look over at Darren nor directly at the man in the jacket. She's still eating, after all, and she doesn't want to make a mess on the counter!
Darren	"Oh, bet. I'll play you, sure. If you win, I'll pay up. If I win, you gotta hang out with me and homegirl over there. Deal?" He angles his head towards Kukuru. "That's Kukuru, by the way. I'm Darren." There aren't that many people here. This young man's one of a few with coins--so he's probably one of the few here who are in danger. Darren cheats--five minute clairvoyance is of limited use, but in gambling and cards, it's a pretty useful safety net. "So," he says, making conversation as hands are dealt. "It's like this. Helix Tower's got two arches, but it was built with three. An organized crime syndicate invaded all three, but the news only tells you about two. The third..." His eyes glimmer with excitement. "That's where they work on genetic engineering programs even the highest halls of academia could only dream of, and it was the real target." Dismissively. "Not teleportation technology. Nah, the Silph Co. skuntankworks, that's where the action is. It might even be that them amorphous shapeshifters dotting the countryside came from a lab in that third tower." "Anyway--you can read all about it on my blog, fam," he says, motioning for the waitress. "Aye, can I get a coffee, too? Thanks." Glancing back towards the young man, "Where you headed on that long trip?"
Vaxis	THE CONSTRUCTION SITE After a few moments of Kale talking, the girl finally realizes and mutes her music. "Huh? Are you a cop? And a bird? A bird-cop" Is all she answers. "I like it up here." Seras, however, gets an answer. "I'm nineteen. Sign says 21 and over." She's assuming they're cops, clearly. The danger sense is rapidly increasing, but the girl herself doesn't seem like she's planning on doing anything out of the ordinary. THE ROADSIDE DINER Darren and the man (Roger, he ends up mentioning) play cards. Roger is technically proficient, but he can't beat Darren's cheating. He sighs as he loses, laughing with a wince. "Well, alright. I've got some time." He also tuned out most of Darren's talk. "I'm headed somewhere. Anywhere. Probably Los Angeles. I heard the Korean BBQ is fantastic." The coin is flipped again. "What? This? It's just cash." Their plates are brought out, as Roger rolls the coin around his finger. The tea is pretty good. Right as Darren's about to drink the coffee, something triggers in his head.
Kale Hearthward	"It's local law - liquor-serving establishments don't allow in people under 21," explains Kale, for Seras's benefit. Then to the girl: "Not a cop, but... maybe find some well-lit, warm place without soft edges for the next couple of hours? It's dangerous to be here tonight."
Seras Victoria	"Really? That's a bit stricter than I'm used to... but not by much." Naturally, the laws where Seras is from have that at 18, with some other caveats involved. Seras has to wonder just how Kale's privvy to that knowledge, though. "Oh. Waiting on someone inside maybe? A friend told me it's gonna be wild in there tonight but I'm getting cold feet about the party."
Kukuru	It's a good thing Kukuru's not playing card games as well, because she'd probably bungle things up bad enough for both her and Darren. Luckily, he's got that handled, and she tries to keep up with what he's talking about! Keyword being tries, since her eyes just glaze over about a minute in. The mention of the blog has her letting out a relieved sigh, somewhat hidden in the safety of her shoving some more chicken-fried steak into her face. "I hear it's pretty nice over there this time of year." Kukuru comments, lying as easily as she breathes and eats. She's not actually sure what this Los Angeles place is. "If it's got fancy barbecue, it's gotta be good." She fixates on the topic of food easily enough, although the coin gets her attention again before too long. "Really? Huh... I've never seen any coins with that kind of design, though." She clearly doesn't believe that it's real money, especially with that strange though entering her head earlier at such an odd time. "The stuff it's made of is real pretty, though. Like a button, or something you could put on a fancy belt. it's from... Somewhere else,I guess. You might even make some more money selling that somewhere, you know?"
Darren	Something a lot more pressing than a win in a card game is revealed to Darren. A dark future which must be avoided. He waits until the prophesied moment is nearly upon him. Aura. 35. Hut. Hut. "HIKE!" Darren is out of his seat, his coffee flung one-handed as if he were making a pass in front of 90,000 screaming fans. In midair, something emerges--a wolf, which otherwise would have slain the traveler. Before the mug can shatter against the window of the establishment, two blue-and-yellow pokeballs fly out from his backpack, and open. Emerging then are a humanoid ladybug with an aircraft early-warning system for a thorax and a furious, towering yeti. In moments, the coffee cup and the wolf are covered in sticky webbing spewed from the ladybug, while the yeti's mere presence causes a localized hailstorm, pelting the wolf over and over with fist-sized hail. An aurora screen forms over the young man, the work of some energy transferrence by the yeti, protecting him from harm. "Kukuru! Let that sucka have it!"
Vaxis	THE CONSTRUCTION SITE "That's none of your business. You're not my mom." The girl speaks to Seras coldly, before staring at Kale, trying to make ou what kind of bird he is. "What? Aren't you two dangerous enough? I can handle mysel-" She peers to the right as footsteps crawl through. Four paws make their way forward, a massive black wolf with red eyes coming at her. Reflexively, she grabs her backpack and slams it in the face Everything inside cracks, as the wolf's head-mass diffuses, causing her to skitter up and start running down the concrete hill if Seras and Kale don't stop her. The wolf ignores them entirely, moving to hunt the girl. The danger sense is around both her and the wolf. THE ROADSIDE DINER "What? It's just a coin. How would I make more money selling a coin?" Roger replies, before spotting Darren hike his coffee. "Dude-" He doesn't get the chance to freak out normally. The massive black wolf with red manifests out of the coffee and lunges at him, before being webbed and pelted by Darren's Pokemon. It bulks up, hands appearing out of its side to grab and rip the webbing, as the hail diffuses its mass, causing it to shift and ungulate. Despite this, it does not attack the Pokemon. It's sole target is Roger, trying to bruret force the aurora screen. OUTSIDE: Screams from an older male can be heard. He runs past the diner window, darting for the jeep as several of those wolves pursue him. He's not going to make it in time - they're too fast.
Kale Hearthward	A wolf appears. Not a normal wolf - this is one of the ones on all fours. Kale cuts off whatever comment he was going to make back - and goes to grab the girl, click his heels together, and jet off away from the construction site - heading out with no destination in particular in mind yet, just getting airborne with the wolf's apparent target.
Kukuru	"The material's fancy. People pay lots of money for dumber-" Hike? Isn't that Darren's sports noise for throwing something? Kukuru looks up and over as Darren flings his coffee and his balls, only then noticing the presence of the towering wolf coming after Roger. She only spares a brief glance towards the screaming man outside. "Ah... That's a shame. I'll fix him later." And with that, Kukuru joins in the defense with Darren, hurling herself right over the counter at the great black wolf. Even as it tries to tear through the yeti's protective screen, so too does Kukuru try to tear right through the wolf's form wholesale. She also manages to get her claws on somewhere between throwing herself forward and actually reaching the wolf. Like the wolf, she's using her own raw power to start tearing into the creature, aiming to ram the tips of her claws right through each side before drawing those same claws downwards and apart in a single, potentially gory shredding movement. "Oh. Um. Your coin might be fake or cursed or something. You should probably get rid of it."
Seras Victoria	Seras's vampiric instincts alight all at once. The chill of bloodlust on the air rakes down her back, and her undead breath quickens on instinct. Her eyes narrow and slowly shift to a faintly luminous crimson that stands out in the evening air and she ducks a hand into her jacket, pulling out a Glock 19. She moves with uncanny speed, placing herself between the onrushing wolf and its quarry just after it gets smashed into the face. This leaves Seras facing it down. She takes aim with lightning speed and BANG BANG BANG! Blessed silver bullets fly from the barrel for the wolf. Because that's what she's usually armed with.
Darren	Someone's outside--another of the three they need to protect. Darren calls a play adjustment. Blue. 32. Hut. Hike. Two more Pokeballs, also in blue and yellow, float from his backpack and rocket through the window. It's more accurate to say that the window bursts in advance of them, compelled to do so by some tremendous, invisible force. Shards of glass dart towards the wolves in pursuit of the man, and scarcely a second later, a friend-shaped plesiosaur and a smiley-faced Stonehenge emerge in their path. Nessie used Multi-Beam! Slabb's Power Spot increases attack strength! Blinding light forms at the tip of Nessie's blue horn, splintering off into beams that attempt to dissect the wolves, their light burning so brightly that the air around them sizzles and distorts visibly.
Vaxis	THE CONSTRUCTION SITE The girl is grabbed and flown off with. The wolves cannot fly. Her stuff falls in a rush, pockets emptying, phone cracking on the ground with 'MOM (four unanswered calls)' being the only thing Seras' heightened percepetions can pick off. Oh, and a wolf-marked coin. The danger sense is triggering from there, yet despite it being gone, the wolf moves to bypass Seras, trying to force its way through silver bullets (which appear to have no special effect, but do hurt it). It wants to pursue Kale (and the girl) on foot. He can see helicopters coming this way in the distance. THE ROADSIDE DINER The waitress screams, as Roger drops the coin. Despite no longer having it in his possession, the wolf keeps trying to push through the grinding of damage and claws. As it's being clawed at, no blood manifests. Instead, inky blackness pools along the ground, dissipating as soon as it hits. If Kukuru keeps this up, she can probably kill it. However, another one leaps from a kitchen pot, moving to try and tackle the aurora barrier. It won't last forever if the wolves are multiplying. Outside, wolves are maimed and disintegrated, but they keep coming - but not in large numbers. There's probably a limit to them, but the group might not be able to sustain all of them.
Seras Victoria	Off goes the wolf! Seras... actually flinches, because having a wolf charging at you and trying to get around you instead of running off when it's been filled with bullets is darned terrifying. So she sidesteps the creature and lets it past rather than let it barrel through her, giving her an opportunity to see what the girl left behind. And in that moment, realization dawns with a gasp. "Is that what--..." Bending down swiftly, she picks up both the phone and the coin but raises the coin up to examine it closer. Examine? No, more like glare. "There's... some kind of witchery on this coin. Where did she get it from...?" No time to dwell on it though. Seras stuffs both away into a pocket for now, then takes off in pursuit of the wolf. This... surprisingly, isn't that difficult. She moves with freakish speed across the ground, aiming to arc around and attempt to elbow slam the creature hard in the side with enough momentum to pick it up off the ground and pin it against one of the construction vehicle's tires. "What ARE you...?!"
Kukuru	Despite Kukuru's and Darren's best efforts, the wolf's lack of self-preservation means that Kukuru has to make some choices here and now. How can Roger be saved if more of those wolves keep appearing out of pots of all things just to try and murder the everloving crap out of some random guy? "I wonder..." Despite the situation and likely getting some nasty cuts and clawmarks across her body in the process, Kukuru's tone is still about as languid and groggy as ever. She eyes the coin on the ground even as she tears into that wolf further, humming thoughtfully for several moments. Eventually, she just shoves off from what's left of the first wolf to launch herself towards where Roger dropped that coin. "Maybe this'll do it...?" She makes a diving grab for that coin, but she fumbles the grab with those oversized claws of hers and accidentally pops it into the air. Instead of making another grab at it, however, she slams a claw into the ground, flings herself right back at it, and bites down on it with a stupid amount of force and a whole mess of spiky teeth. It's a gamble, but she's willing to take it. Worst case scenario, Darren'll still be fine!
Darren	DINER These are familiar. Curses aren't quite his bag, but cryptids most certainly are. These wolves are like shadow-people--moreover, his time combing double-digit membership forums in the forgotten corners of the internet has reminded him of something. "Roger, my man, we gotta talk after this." There's more of them. These types of things have a limit, when it comes to how many can pass into our world, but finding them is tricky. Not, however, as tricky as the other way to get rid of them--if his hunch is correct. Saucer used U-turn! Roswell was switched in! Roswell and Darren used Psychic! Harry used Wood Hammer! The ladybug makes a bombing run on the wolf that leaps from the pot, sharp claws extended to swipe at its face. On the rebound, Darren recalls him, switching in a tiny alien in a trenchcoat. Darren and Roswell violently toss the wolf through the diner, slamming it into walls, before hurling it over towards Harry, who roars, and, with an arm larger than Roger's head, makes a devastating lariat, arm moving to clothesline with the force of a truck. Good hustle, Kukuru. That might sever the interdimensional gateway they're using to come into our world!
Vaxis	When Seras picks up the coin, the injured wolf suddenly stops. It turns towards her, and beelines straight for her. And then it gets suplexed, exploding into inky black smoke as it dies. There will likely be more, but it's no longer pursuing the girl. Seras has a chance to slide down and reach the roadstop where the others are being injured - Kale can handle the girl from here. As the black helicopters approach, machine guns begin gunning precisely at wolves, as do assault rifles from those within, ripping them to shreds via concentrated fire. Kukuru touches the coin after killing a wolf. Another is still attacking Roger - Darren can surmise she's unaffected. When she bites down on the coin, she finds it immensely tough. But eventually, something has to give, and it's the coin that does it. The other wolf attacking Roger disappears into inky black smoke. Darren's team starts tearing into the wolves through contact, and eventually, all of the ones there aer Gone. For now - with Seras' contact, there may be more soon. As the others all get a moment's rest, the black helicopters touch down. Armored personnel with heavy rifles and gauntlets, as well as several lab technicianns in hazmat suits, all of whom are wearing thick gloves. A man in a black suit and vest, white gloves, and a gas mask touches down, holding a heavy revolver. "Clear. Did you touch the anomalous objects?" The man says, before a soldier radios something along the lines of 'should we move to contain them?' and gets a 'negative, Outsider-class'. "Deposit all instances with the hazmat team and go about with your day, off-world. If you have made contact and had any anomalous reactions, either come with us or prepare for a night of fighting these things. We don't have time for Multiversals. What is this man's name?" He gestures towards Roger, and before Roger can respond, he gets a radio call, repeating the intel. "Alfred Yevon, 23. Former postal worker. Reported missing after death of Alice Yevon, 17. No foul play suspected." "You'll be coming with us." And then a pause to the others, to pre-empt a question. "John King, Department of Homeland Security."
Seras Victoria	Seras... gains no answer, but the shadowy substance left behind by the wolf creature tells her that this thing is no creature of flesh and blood. She pulls away, gasping, with her instincts on alert still. She doesn't feel safe at all out here. Tucking her gun away after putting the safety on, she slides down the hill and rejoins the others. Just in time to hear about the 'night of fighting these things.' "What? These things will come after me now?!" She reaches out with the located coin and also the smartphone. "That phone belongs to the young woman. I never got her name... I... I think I can handle a few more of those..." Of course, she's probably going to pull in some help. Help from someone who'd enjoy midnight target practice...
Kukuru	The coin being important theory has been confirmed! Sadly, the interdimensional thing gets a long 'huh?' from her mind to Darren's, although there is a pleasant-sounding noise coming from her both physically and in her mind. With nothing else threatening Roger's life and anyone else she's aware of, Kukuru can finally focus a little more on realizing... This is what platinum tastes like. She turns to Darren with a thumbs-up (or equivalent thereof, considering she's wearing torso-sized claws), and then she turns to the new arrivals as that black helicopter comes right on down. There's a moment when her defensive instincts kick in, but she's relaxing again once the man speaks rather than just ordering everyone shot up. She nods at the first question, then looks over at where the hazmat team is coming from. They're promptly treated to the sight of a smiling green-haired housewife strolling right on up to them, opening her mouth, and dropping a pile of mildly saliva-coated coin chunks out of her mouth. She has to pick some of the more stubborn bits out with one of those claws and a prehensile tongue, but the deed is done sooner rather than later. There's probably bits of steak and batter, too. "I didn't get any of it on my skin, though." She clarifies before slipping those claws into her pockets somehow, then peers between the man identifying himself as John King and Roger/Alfred. "Oh yeah... My name's Kukuru." A pause for dramatic effect, then enunciation to make sure nobody mispronounces it. "Ku-ku-ru. What's going on here, anyway? Are those coins hiding something secret and mysterious? And... Um." She glances over at Roger again, covering her mouth briefly before yawning (open-mouthed, even). "Where'd you find that thing? There might be more out there, so if you know anything, we can help figure it out."
Darren	Darren steps out to meet the new arrivals. "Yeah," says Darren to John. "I believe DHS would be out here in black helicopters tracking interdimensional beings at the buttcrack of night." The way he says it indicates that he does not, in fact, believe this. "You gonna -make- time to deal with me, bruh. Darren Spears, enlightened scientist." He turns, cupping his hands over his mouth, and shouting towards the diner. "Ay, yo, team! Huddle up. This is Roswell, Harry, Nessie and Slabb." An alien, a yeti, a loch ness monster, and a stonehenge. "I got two more on deck, but we can keep this civil. Feel me? My business is the truth. You can have the coins. But you're not no DHS agent, and it's two reasons why you'd want my boy back there." He lists them off. "One, you wanna know how he got ahold of it, or two, you wanna purge its influence. The first we can find out right here. No interrogation room necessary. The second, just in case y'all thought I fell off the berry truck yesterday..." Darren's Pokemon form up on Alfred protectively--even the diminutive little alien. "Yo, Alfred," he says, looking over his shoulder. His tone, with Alfred, is much more warm. More concerned. "Or Roger. Whichever. You got some unresolved guilt that led them things to ya when you touched the coin. We gotta handle that, my man. Or else they might come back." He flashes a Concord membership card for King. A silent challenge. 'He's ours now.'
Vaxis	The lab technicians take Kukuru's coin pieces with little reaction, as well as Seras' coin and the phone. Several armed men head to the bar to search and sweep, and presumably find the third coin. "That's classified." John King responds, though he does eye 'Roger', who speaks up. "I-I got it from a vending machine." He's telling the truth, and King believes it. King is about to motion his men to take the guy away, when Darren stances up with his team and flashes his card. Rifles are raised. But... "Guns down. Keep him off-world, and there won't be trouble. This is our backyard, do you understand me?" King seems frustrated but maintains his cool under the gas mask. "Outsiders like you are only welcome as far as you don't cause trouble, and you always cause trouble. Containing the warpgates was an impossible task. Containing everything else is what we are supposed to do." As he moves to return to his helicopter, once the coins are gathered, he signals a hand towards Darren. "And one last thing." "Enlightened scientist isn't a real job." The helicopter lifts off. Others stay put - presumably to amnesia the witnesses, but nobody is taken as long as the Concord is there. At the same time, no one else really wants to go with them except for Roger. Take what victories you can get.