Four; Gather

It was a sunny day at El Matador Beach, and a young couple was enjoying a romantic picnic together. The girl, about 20, laughed at a joke the man had said. They looked into each other's eyes.
"This has been a great day," the girl said. "It's really nice out here."
"Yeah," the man said. "Just me, you, and the-"
Suddenly, Alan, dressed up in his vigilante mask, with Akro Tirio around his shoulders, fell to the ground, landing between them on the picnic blanket.
"Oh my god!" the girl shrieked.
"What the fuck!?" the man said.
"Ow!" Alan said, sitting up. "Damn it. Um, sorry for ruining your whatever..."
The ground shook with the sound of something very large stomping toward them. The couple looked into the distance and saw what appeared to be a man approaching them. But as it got closer, it began to look less like a man and more like a giant stone golem. It grew larger and larger as it approached. It was at least 30 feet tall, with jewels embedded in its body, and a pair of stone tentacles sprouting from its back.
"Holy shit!" the man gasped.
"You two might wanna run," Alan said, as he stood up and wiped some peach cobbler off of Akro Tirio's cloak form.
The couple did as Alan said and took off running. Alan angrily approached the stone giant as it came closer.
"God damn it, Dygra!" Alan said to it, as it broke into a ground shaking run. "Can't I spend one fucking day at the beach without one of you guys showing the fuck up!?"
 Akro Tirio's cloak split  into wings and lifted Alan into the air and toward Dygra. They were almost upon each other, when Alan grabbed one of Akro's tentacles. Akro let himself fall from Alan's throat as he shape-shifted into the form of a very large sledge hammer.
"Stop!" Alan shouted, swinging the hammer in midair so that it collided with Dygra's head. "Hammer time!"
After getting his strike in, Alan fell to the ground, landing in the sand. The hammer in his hand vibrated a bit as Akro let out a grumbling sound and shrunk to a more natural size.
"Well, I don't see you coming up with one-liners!" Alan snapped.
Dygra, having barely felt the earlier attack, raised a giant fist and slammed it down where Alan was standing. Alan dodged the attack and slipped between Dygra's legs, coming out behind the giant monster. One of the Tentacles smashed down, barely missing Alan, and then the next tentacle came down, and Alan had to jump on top of the first one to dodge it. The tentacle he was standing on suddenly lifted into the air, throwing him off balance, and he fell down to the ground. He tried to get back up, but his vision suddenly began fading and he lost his sense of balance.
"God damn vertigo!" Alan shouted.
Dygra turned around and lifted a foot, preparing to crush Alan beneath it. Alan rolled out from under it and raised his hammer into the air. Akro quickly shifted into his gun form, and Alan fired a few bullets directly into Dygra's face. Dygra let out a low, gravelly war cry, and raised its leg again.
"Akro! Fly me!" Alan said.
Akro Tirio shifted back into its winged form and lifted Alan into the air. They flew up to Dygra's face, and Alan slammed one of his steel knuckles directly into its ruby colored eye. One of Dygra's tentacles swung through the air, and Alan was just able to dodge it. The next tentacle barely missed him as well. Dygra cried out angrily and struck Alan with a powerful backhand.
Alan wasn't expecting that attack, or the force it had carried. The smack was strong enough that it sent Alan and Akro both flying into the horizon.

***Meanwhile, in the Knave's Way***

"God, it's dark in here," Jaxson said.
"Oh! I'm sorry!" Jarmil said. "I keep forgetting other people need light to see!"
A bright ball of crimson flames appeared in Jarmil's hand, casting light on their surroundings.
"Oh god, turn it off!" Jaxson gasped.
"Okay," Jarmil said, as the flames disappeared.
"Turn it back on," Artur said.
"Make up your damn minds!" Jarmil exclaimed, as the flame came back into existence.
The Knave's Way resembled a massive, underground cave, with alien rock formations, and jutting chasms and fissures. But what had frightened Jaxson were the creatures crawling around in the darkness. Pale humanoid beings, with no clothing or hair. Their faces were elongated like a canine's muzzle. Their feet were stretched out, and were almost in the shape of horse hooves, except that they ended in sharp claws. Their fingers were stretched out, and seemed to have four segments instead of the normal three.
"What are they?" Jaxson whispered.
"Ghouls," Artur said. He had donned a long, brown robe before coming into the Knave's Way with them. "And trust me, it's better that we see them than not see them."
"They're not too hostile," Jarmil said reassuringly. "Just don't get too close, or they might decide you're a threat."
"So... they won't eat me or anything?" Jaxson asked.
"Not unless you're already dead," Jarmil said, smiling.
"Creepy," Jaxson muttered.  "So, what's the deal with this place?"
"The Knave's Way is essentially folded space," Artur explained. "It makes it possible to travel long distances in a short amount of time."
"Interesting," Jaxson said. "So how do we get out?"
"We click our heels together three times," Jarmil said.
"Very funny," Jaxson said.
"All we need to do is perform a quick ritual, and a door will open," Artur said.
"Okay," Jaxson said. "So, how do you summon those fireballs?"
"These?" Jarmil said, nodding at the flame in his hand. "These are the flames of Cthugha. I stole his power."
"Excuse me?" Jaxson asked.
"Have you ever heard of the Necronomicon?" Jarmil asked.
"Yes, of course I have," Jaxson said.
"My father owned it for a while," Jarmil said. "He managed to decode some of its secrets."
"What do you mean 'decode'?" Jaxson asked.
"The Necronomicon contains many spells and information of the gods," Jarmil said. "But there's more to it than just that. There are rituals written into the book as codes, which few people know about. My father uncovered some of them, and taught them to me. Amongst them is the means to steal power from the Great Old Ones."
"So, you can steal the abilities of the gods?" Jaxson asked.
"It isn't easy, but yes," Jarmil said. "I've done it multiple times. Some gods even gave me their power willingly."
"Is that so?" Jaxson asked.
"Yes," Jarmil said. "I'm nowhere near as powerful as they are though. And I can only use one power at a time. Mixing them would be... ugly..."
"Uglier than the ghouls?" Jaxson asked.
"Yes," Jarmil said.
Suddenly, an orb of silver and gray flames appeared before them, hovering in the air.
"Holy shit, silver flames!" Jaxson gasped.
"What the hell is silver?" Jarmil asked, as the orb reformed itself, taking the shape of an androgynous, humanoid being. Its gender was obscure, and it glowed with a soft gray light.
"Hello, Jarmil," it spoke, with multiple voices at once, both male and female.
"Hello, Phoomy," Jarmil said casually.
"I told you not to call me that," the being said.
"What is that thing?" Jaxson asked.
"It's Aphoom-Zhah, the Cold Flame," Artur said. "It is the progeny of Cthugha."
"So that thing's an Old One?" Jaxson asked.
"Yes," the being said. "I've come to deliver a message to Jarmil."
"What is it?" Jarmil asked.
"Fifteen hundred years ago, I was asked to relay some information to you on this exact date," Aphoom-Zhah said. "Soon, in Japan,  you will meet someone named Alan Peredur. He will play a large role in Drahoslav's scheme."
"What does that mean?" Jarmil asked. "Is that some kind of prophecy? What side is he on?"
"I'm sorry," Aphoom-Zhah said. "That is all I can tell you."
With that, Aphoom-Zhah vanished. 

***Meanwhile, on the outskirts of Tokyo***

Jierge landed outside the city limits, and Takumi let himself down to the ground, holding his staff in his hand.
"Finally here," he said to himself.
He stared into the familiar city, stretching as far as his eyes could see. It felt odd, being back. It seemed like so long since he had left this place behind. But right now, it was his best chance of finding the Necronomicon.
"Jierge!" he said. "Suterusumōdo!"
Jierge nodded, and his coloration changed. New colors swirled amongst the green and violet, and they soon blendeed in with his surroundings, camoflaging him from all sides.
"Good," Takumi said. "Now... the 'Silver Wolves'... let's see what we can find out about them."

***Several hours later***

Alan and Akro continued flying through the sky over the ocean. The momentum from Dygra's attack was still carrying them. Although Alan had panicked at first, by this point he was just bored.
"How long have we been flying?" Alan asked.
Akro grumbled a short response.
"Yeah, that sounds about right," Alan said.
Akro growled again.
"I don't know," Alan said. "Maybe I should invest in an odometer. Hey, do you think we might be moving fast enough for an iron-hide spell?"
Akro grumbled again.
"Worth a shot I guess," Alan said.
Alan pulled a sharpie from his pocket and drew a series of complex symbols on his left forearm. He then drew a large amount of cosmic energy into his body, and accumulated it all into his skin where the symbols where drawn. The energy thickened as it flew through the markings, and Alan allowed it to spread through the rest of his skin.
"Balahask'e!" Alan said.
Instantly, Alan's skin began glowing a deep red.
"Awesome!" Alan said. "Invincibility! Never had a chance to use this one before. Alright, Akro, this spell only affects me, so you should get off my back before we crash into som-"
Alan was immediately cut off when he crashed, back-first, into a building. The wall cracked behind him, and he became lodged in the dent he had made.
"You okay Akro?" Alan asked, as the spell wore off and his skin returned to normal.
Akro let out a low growl in response.
"That's good," Alan said. "I didn't feel a thing."
Alan then slipped from the wall and fell to the ground, landing on his feet. As he hit the ground, pain jolted through his left foot.
"Oh shit!" Alan gasped, dropping to his knees. "Okay, yeah, I felt that!"
He then became aware of several people giving him weird looks on the street. Of course. A strange man in a mask wearing a cloak had came flying across the sky and crashed into a building. Why wouldn't they be staring? Alan turned to run away, but his foot hurt again as soon as he put pressure on it.
"Shit!" Alan said. "Carry me!"
Akro's cloak tore apart into a pair of wings and tentacles, startling everyone. Someone snapped a picture as they flew off.
The two of them landed in an alleyway a mile away. Akro let go of Alan and returned to his normal form while Alan pulled his jacket out of his satchel and threw it on. He removed his mask and knuckles and put them on their respective hooks.
"Is it just me, or did those people look really... Asian?" Alan asked.
Akro grumbled something.
"I'm not being racist, I'm stating a fact!" Alan argued. "And those signs we passed a minute ago... I think they were in Japanese."
Akro growled in agreement.
"Was I just pimp slapped across the Pacific ocean?" Alan asked.
Akro grumbled something else.
"Shit," Alan said. He then bent down to look at his foot. "I think it may be broken..."
Akro let out a concerned growl.
"I'll be fine," Alan said. "I cover my body in burn wounds every time I go to sleep, a broken foot is nothing."
Alan pulled his phone out of his pocket and checked the time. It had been near sunset in California when Dygra had slapped him, and he had been flying for about three and a half hours. He was in another time zone, about 7 hours earlier than California, so the time was now about 2 in the afternoon. Thankfully, Alan's phone automatically reset its time whenever he left the timezone.
"Okay, let's think for a moment here," Alan said, untucking his shirt so that his belt was concealed. "We're in Japan. Neither of us speak Japanese. So, what do we do?"
Akro growled something as a response.
"Okay, as fun as that would be, I was actually thinking of learning their language," Alan said.
Akro replied with a grumbling noise.
"Well, I guess I'll have to find a bookstore and see if they have an English to Japanese dictionary," Alan said. "But there's only so much I can learn from that. That's why I need you to do something for me."
Akro let out a short growl.
"I need you to fly around and eavesdrop on people," Alan said. "See if you can learn some slang for me. In the meantime, I'll see if I can find a bookstore."
Akro growled again.
"I'll be fine," Alan said, putting a little pressure on his foot. "I just have to go easy on it. Now go on!"
Akro gave Alan another concerned look before taking off.

***Meanwhile***

A door appeared in an alleyway, on the outside wall of a building. Jarmil, Artur, and Jaxson all stepped out of it.
"An empty alleyway," Jaxson commented. "This isn't cliche at all."
"So, what do we do first?" Artur asked.
"You guys see if you can find that band Drahoslav mentioned in the note," Jarmil said. "They may know something. I'm gonna go find this 'Alan Peredur' character."
"Wait," Jaxson said. "I should go with you."
"No," Jarmil said. "You will go with Artur. You know music, he knows recon. You'll need each other's help."
"But how will you know where Alan is without asking someone?" Jaxson asked. "You don't speak Japanese, do you?"
"No," Jarmil said. "But I can learn a person's name as soon as I meet them. That will be enough."
"Are you sure?" Artur asked. "We don't know who this guy is. What are you gonna do if you find him?"
"I'll wait and see what he does," Jarmil said. "Then I'll decide what to do."

***Three hours later***

Alan stopped and leaned against a wall. He hadn't had any luck tracking down a bookstore, and his foot was beginning to throb. Plus, he had had two vertigo attacks since Akro left. This was beginning to take its toll on him.
"Damn it," Alan sighed. "This would be so much easier if I could speak enough Japanese to ask directions."
He started walking again, trying to put as little pressure on his foot as he could. The street he was walking down was empty, save for one girl in the distance, who was watching him intently. He didn't like it, so he decided to go down an alley to try and get out of her sight. He ended up stumbling across a group of  four men surrounding a girl at the other end of the alley.
She was just a couple years younger than Alan, and had dark purple hair, which was swept in front of the left side of her face. She was dressed in a long sleeved green shirt with a brown buttoned up vest over it, and her pants were dark black with a plaid skirt around her waist.
Two of the men had her by the arms, and another of them was standing back and laughing. The fourth one approached her and ripped her vest open, then began to fiddling with her skirt, while she screamed in protest.
"Chigau!" she shouted at the man. "Yamete!"
Alan had no idea what that meant, but he couldn't just stand there. He sucked in air quickly, letting out a loud noise. He had no idea how to whistle properly, but he could make a similar sound by sucking in air the right way. The ear splitting sound caught the men's attention, and they all turned to him. The man who was standing back shouted something that Alan couldn't comprehend.
"I have no idea what you just said," Alan said, slipping on his steel knuckles. "But I recognize an attempted rape when I see one."
The man who was standing back and the man working on the girl's clothes both drew switchblades and charged at Alan, shouting Japanese battle cries. Alan evaded their attacks and punched them both out easily. One of the men holding the girl released her and drew a gun. Alan fell sideways behind some trashcans to avoid the bullets which were now being fired at him. He grabbed what looked like an empty soda can on the ground and waited for the shots to stop. He got back up to his knees and threw the can at the guy's head. It didn't hurt him, but it distracted the man long enough for Alan to draw some cosmic energy into his body.
"Kazmararra!" Alan muttered, placing a hand on the trashcan next to him.
The cosmic energy built up in his body rushed out, knocking the trashcan toward the man with the gun. Startled, the other man who had been holding the girl loosened his grip, and she immediately took advantage of the opportunity. She twisted out of his grip and kicked him right in the nuts. The man cried in pain, and then backhanded her so hard she was knocked off balance and fell to the ground. Alan charged toward him immediately, ignoring the pain in his foot as it hit the ground. His right hand collided with the man's forehead, and he went down.
"Fuck you," Alan said.
He then turned to the girl. It was his first time seeing her this close. Whoa, she's pretty cute, he thought to himself. Her eyes were a deep violet, and she had a pale complexion. The side of her face which had been hidden by her hair before was covered in burn scars, surrounding her left eye, and the cheek bellow it, as well as part of her throat. It would have bothered some people, but Alan didn't care. Hell, his Dreamland form was even worse.
"Are you-?" he started to ask, but stopped himself. "Shit, you can't understand me, can you?"
"I-I can," she said softly, sweeping her hair forward to cover her scars again.
"Oh," Alan said. "Wasn't expecting to find an English speaker around here. Are you okay?"
He offered her a hand to help her up, but she just looked at it.
"I'm fine," she said nervously.
Alan left his hand out for her, and she hesitantly took it. As Alan's hand wrapped around hers, he could feel the outlines of more scars on the back of it. He pulled her back to her feet slowly. She was almost as tall as he was, and had a nicely curved body. Even with the scars, she was attractive.
"I'm Alan," he said. "Alan Peredur."
"I'm... Asuka Tsukino," she said shyly. "Um... I have to go..."
She took off without saying another word, leaving Alan standing alone in the alleyway.
"Um... I'll see you around, I guess," Alan called after her. Then he thought for a second and said "Damn it! I should have asked her where the bookstore is! And also how to say 'where can I find an English to Japanese dictionary?' in Japanese."
He paused for a moment, thinking of what to do next.
"Well," he said, looking at the unconscious men on the ground. "Let's see what these dicks have in their pockets."

***Meanwhile***

"Any luck?" Jarmil asked into his phone.
"A bit," Artur replied from the other end. "They've got a concert coming up in five days. We're on our way to the theater to see if we can find out more."
"You think you're up to this?" Jarmil asked.
"Oh, please!" came Jaxson's voice. "I stalk bands all the time! I know what I'm doing!"
"Alright," Jarmil said. "Give me a call if you find out any-"
Jarmil sneezed loudly before he could finish his sentence.
"What was that?" cam Jaxson's voice again.
"He sneezed," Artur said.
"You know, they say that when you sneeze, it's because someone else is talking about you," Jaxson said.
"Those bastards!" Jarmil shouted, frightening some nearby tourists. "Don't they have any idea what they're doing to my nasal  cavity!"
"I'm sure that's just a myth," Artur said. "Anyway, I'll call if I find anything."
"Sure thing," Jarmil said, wiping his nose off.
He closed his phone and leaned against a brick wall, listening to the traffic as it passed by.
"Damn it, Drahoslav," he muttered. "Where the hell are you?"

***Half an hour later***

Alan approached a store, looking in its windows. It was a large store, about the size of a grocery store, and it was full of books.
"This looks promising," he said, walking through the door.
There were rows upon rows of books inside, and there was even a small coffee shop built in to one of the corners. It was just like a Barnes and Noble, only everything was in Japanese, and Alan had no idea where to look first.
A lady approached him and said something he couldn't understand. Not knowing how to respond, Alan scratched the back of his head and said "Um, Cone-itchy-wah?"
There was a laugh behind him, and he turned to see a young girl standing behind him. She had bright pink hair and green eyes, and was dressed in a dark red shirt and blue jeans.
"You're not from around here, are you?" she asked.
"Obviously," Alan said. "You speak English?"
"Sure do," she said. "My name's Ayako. You?"
"I'm Alan," he said. "Um... am I supposed to add a 'San' or something to the end of your name?"
"It's considered impolite if you don't," she said. "But I don't care."
Ayako said something to the other girl, who turned away and left them alone.
"So, are you looking for something specific?" she asked.
"Yeah," Alan said. "I need an English to Japanese dictionary. Do you know if they carry those here?"
"You can't learn a language just from reading a dictionary," she said, laughing.
"Clearly, you don't know me," Alan said.
"Follow me," Ayako said. "I'll show you where they're at."
"So, do you work here?" Alan asked, as they walked through the store.
"Sometimes," Ayako said. "Just for the next month or two."
"Neat," Alan said.
"So what brings you to Japan?" she asked, stopping in front of a shelf and kneeling down to look at the books on the lower shelf.
"It's complicated," Alan said.
"Okay," she said. "If you don't want to talk about it, you don't have to."
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," he said.
"Is that so?" she asked.
"Yeah," he replied.
"Okay then," she chuckled, pulling a book from the shelf and handing it to him. "I'm pretty sure this is the best one they have. The front half is Japanese to English, the second half is English to Japanese. Do you have enough money for this?"
Alan reached into his pocket and pulled out some of the money he had taken from the thugs earlier. He looked at it questioningly for a bit.
"I have no idea how to count Japanese cash," he admitted.
Ayako laughed loudly.
"Here, I'll help you with that," she said.
About ten minutes later, they managed to get the amount figured out, and the book paid for. Alan still had a bit of the stolen money left over as he left the store with the book in hand.
"Hey," Ayako said. "My mom's gonna be coming by to pick me up in about fifteen minutes. You need a lift anywhere?"
"No thanks," Alan said. "I'll be fine."
"Really?" Ayako said. "Because it looks like you're limping."
"It's nothing," Alan lied. "It's just a bit of a sprain. I'll be okay."
"If you insist," Ayako said. "See you around, Alan."
"You too, Ayako," Alan said.

***Two hours later***

Takumi stepped into Hamarikyu Gardens, with his invisible steed watching him from a distance. There was a group of at least a dozen men there, chatting quickly with each other in Japanese. They all had the same two symbols stitched into various parts of their clothing; shirts, pants, wristbands, bandannas. The symbols read 銀 狼,and Takumi grinned broadly. Gin ōkami. These were the Silver Wolves.
"Oi!" Takumi called, getting their attention. "Dokona no!?"
Takumi had asked them "where is it?", and one of the men sneered at him.
"Anata wa nani o hanashite iru!?" he said, asking what Takumi was talking about.
"Za· Necronomicon," Takumi said, glaring at the man.
"Watashi wa anata ga nani o itte iru no ka wakaranai," the man said, talking a step back nervously. He had told Takumi that he didn't know what he was talking about.
"Oshiete!" Takumi said threateningly, raising his staff. The gem at its tip glowed a deep crimson, and some of the men gasped in alarm. "Matawa Shinu!" Takumi added. He had told them to tell him, or die.

***Meanwhile***

Alan stopped at the bottom of a tall building. He needed a place to crash. He couldn't speak enough Japanese to get a room, so a rooftop would have to do. He pulled a sharpie out of his pocket and drew a large rectangle on the ground, then bisected it with a straight line. He then drew a circle at each corner, with a line through each of them, and then finished by drawing a triangle with another line through it in the center.
For the rest of the spell to work, Alan would need the blessing of an Old One who could control air. There were only two that he knew about, and since he had never actually met Hastur before, he decided to contact the god he had encountered in the past.
"Iebirust," he said.
Who is this? said an voice in Alan's head.
"Um, hey Ithaqua," Alan said.
Oh god, it's you again, Ithaqua's voice said. What is it?
"I need help with a Veratian Platform," Alan said.
My father would be more suited to this task, Ithaqua said.
"Well, I don't know him like I know you," Alan said. "I've never even met the guy."
So you went with the evil you're familiar with? Ithaqua asked. I suppose that makes sense. Give me a moment.
The symbols Alan had drawn glowed momentarily, then stopped. Alan reached forward, and his hands found the invisible platform that had formed above the symbols. It was made of solidified air, and couldn't be seen. Only felt. Alan stepped onto it.
"Up," he said, and the platform ascended.
Why are you so interested in getting up there? Ithaqua's voice said.
"Whoa, are you still in my head?" Alan asked.
Yes, Ithaqua replied.
"Why?" Alan asked.
Because you're an idiot and I want to make sure you don't screw up this spell, Ithaqua said.
"Oh, well thank you, ye of little faith," Alan said sarcastically. "I'm not that stupid."
You're walking around on a broken foot, Ithaqua pointed out.
"Yeah, whatever," Alan said.
The platform reached the top of the building, and Alan jumped off onto the roof. He winced as his foot hit the solid surface beneath him. He sat down and sighed.
"Thanks," he said.
Whatever, Ithaqua's voice said, before going mute.
Alan sat and opened up his new book, intending to get some reading done. It was dark out, so he reached into his satchel and pulled out a flashlight. He sat there for a few minutes, before he was distracted by something. There was a flash of red light in the distance. He looked at where it had been, and another flash occurred. It looked just like...
"Lightning?" Alan questioned. "What the hell is going on over there?"
Alan shoved his book and flashlight into his satchel and zipped it up. He stepped to the edge of the building and shouted "Akro Tirio!" before stepping off. The ground rose up toward him, but before he hit it, Akro Tirio swooped up to him and caught him, lifting him into the air.
"Nice catch," Alan said.
Akro grumbled something in response.
"Come on," Alan said. "We've got something to check out."
With that, the two of them flew off in the direction the red lightning had come from.

Kzed Report 25

I've discovered some more about the abilities of a Shoggoth. Through my experiments, I've learned that a Shoggoth can hear its master from across the vacuum of space. Don't ask how we tested that out. It wasn't easy.
Normally, sound wouldn't be able to cross through space, because of the absence of air. But then I had another theory. What if the Shoggoth isn't hearing at all?
Through more tests, I learned that whenever Hikomo says his Shoggoth's name, it causes a brief distortion in the flow of Cosmic Energy. The Shoggoth is able to feel these distortions and locate their master from seemingly any distance.
I've also looked into Hikomo's ability to understand his Shoggoth. It seems they share some kind of psionic link. That's why Hikomo can understand it but I can't.
His Shoggoth is named Uragira. I'm not sure why he decided to call it that.