Yet A(nother) Year In Seattle

Sunday October 31, 2066 - The warriors carry the day

Aztec Calendar - Day sign for 10/31/2066

  • Daysign Cuauhtli Cuauhtli is a day of fighting for freedom and equality. It is a day of the Warriors of Huitzilopochtli, those who sacrifice their lives willingly to keep the present age, the Fifth Sol, moving. It is a good day for action, a bad day for reflection. A good day for invoking the gods, a bad day for ignoring them.

  • Aztec calendar information supplied by: http://www.azteccalendar.com/

    I wish we could have rested on our laurels but there was still work to be done-the work Yachacheq had brought us here to do, the battle we needed to finish: rescuing Matt's child and if you followed the calendar, it was a good day for action.

    By now the military had taken over and were investigating what had happened at the temple. Let's face it, when a region's governor is trying to sacrifice visitors to ancient gods… well… let's just say it's bad for tourism.

    They could have sent us all packing but fortunately they had a former UCAS Navy Seal working with them. Nick had been trying to get the military to step in from the moment Case and the others had been rounded up, but no one likes being told what to do in their own home even someone with as much experience as Nick.

    Well, last night's fireworks were hard to miss and thankfully they decided to step in. It only took them a few hours of interviews and occasional interrogations to realize we had been targeted and why.

    The why was actually rather well known, it turns out our little incident with the statue of the Incas was a much bigger thing down here than it was back home.

    While most of the team involved saw this as a good sign, the more suppositious members of their group were dubious.

    Let's face it-it was that very thing that had made us targets. Almost to a man the military unit decided it was best they process the crime scene and protect the injured while the rest of us were allowed to continue and find where the trail led.


    Monday November 1, 2066 - Tricking the Trickster

    Aztec Calendar - Day sign for 11/01/2066

  • Daysign Cozcacuauhtli Cozcacuauhtli signifies long life, wisdom, good counsel and mental equilibrium. It is a good day to confront the discontinuities, disruptions, failures and deaths one suffers in life. Cozcacuauhtli is a day for tricking the Trickster.

  • Aztec calendar information supplied by: http://www.azteccalendar.com/

    Between our investigations and those of the Amazonian Federal Police, we learned quite a bit about our opposition. The AFP interrogated the Governor and his followers while Case and Philip along with the Amazonian equivalent of the FBI investigated his known associates. Forensic accountants went over his books while magical and technological specialists traced his activities and those of his known associates.

    Waiting was hard enough but Nathan was like a caged tiger I have seen Nathan in the heat of battle-I have seen him take a life in my defense and I have seen what it cost him afterwards. This was different.

    This was cold and calculating and I honestly wasn't sure if I was more afraid for his safety or his humanity. I know what Nathan is capable of physically but there has always been a humanity that kept that capability in check. The thought of Nathan letting go, letting the end justify the means was just too much for me.

    The only problem was putting it into words. It took me a while, and about three broken windows to get the message through, but it did get him to think and finally focus on plans that did not involve him getting hurt or becoming the enemy.

    And there was quite a bit of information. We learned a lot about the organization or the lack of organization involved. They operated in cells, coming together when needed but fading into the woodwork as soon as they were done. It made infiltrating their organization nigh impossible.

    I think that was another part of what bothered Nathan:everything we could do would take time and illusions would never last past the initial meeting.

    It was about that time I realized just what sort of 'illusion' would work.

    They were a lodge-an organized group magnifying their power through numbers and unification. Their power was their trust and their willingness to work together. Without the trust they are nothing. Betrayal was unthinkable and would have shattered that trust.

    Or… the illusion of betrayal, there's nothing like a long interview with the Federal Police and then being taken out of prison and secreted away some place before arrests began to make people think they'd put their trust in the wrong people.

    Sometimes the best illusion is just a case of misdirection.

    When I suggested it to Case, his smile said it all.


    Tuesday November 2 2066 - Sifting through the ruins

    Aztec Calendar - Day sign for 11/02/2066

  • Daysign Ollin This is an auspicious day for the active principle, a bad day for the passive principle. Ollin is a day of the purified heart, signifying those moments where human beings may perceive what they are becoming. A good day for transmutation, which arrives like an earthquake that leaves in its wake the ruins of rationality, order and the preconceived.

  • Aztec calendar information supplied by: http://www.azteccalendar.com/

    A word to the wise, toppling secret societies is a lot harder than it sounds.

    Okay, once they started not trusting each other there wasn't that much work to be done, but we still hadn't gotten any closer to finding my niece/nephew. I was getting frustrated-I mean let's face it, they worked really hard to make sure no one could take down their whole organization and it's not like they've left an audit trail that could be used against them. There were no accounts for killing enemies, stalking potential sacrifices and, alas, no secret 'stolen child fund.'

    Of course this made things more difficult than any one of us wanted. Then again just because there were no obvious accounts, there were other things that could be traced.

    Working with Matt we established a timeline of expenditures and spending patterns we were looking for. Trips to Seattle, midwives, baby supplies, clothes… it all cost money and you either use a cred stick, write a check or pull funds from an account and use cash.

    Cash would be harder, especially if you knew expenses were coming up. But some expenses are high enough that cred sticks are preferred.

    It took a little work for me to get the forensic accountant to understand what I was looking for, but once they understood the types of patterns and date ranges in question-they began pulling data based on the dates in question.

    Four false starts, a lot of hair pulling and recalibration led to Case pulling us away from the computer and making us eat. He took us to the hospital so we could check on Jonathan and get together. (I think he also wanted Mom Walker do give me a good motherly scolding about taking care of myself, but her heart wasn't in it-she was still too worried about Jonathan)

    By the time we got back with the accountant, he was so excited we couldn't understand a word he said. He'd found one member who's spending matched our requirements- one Philippe Mendoza, the Governor's driver.

    I'd love to say I was in on the recovery, but with the driver under arrest and his family in the wind-tracking them down was left to people with more experience in the matter.

    Instead I was left in the care of the Federal Police, Mom Walker and a security detail from Council Island.


    Wednesday November 3, 2066 - The Marrow of Truth

    Aztec Calendar - Day sign for 11/03/2066

  • Daysign Tecpatl Tecpatl is a day of grave ordeals, a day of trials and tribulations. It is a good day to test one's character, a bad day to rest on one's past accomplishments or reputation. Tecpatl warns that the mind, the spirit, must be sharpened like the glass blade which cuts to the marrow of truth

  • Aztec calendar information supplied by: http://www.azteccalendar.com/

    If that don't sum things up nothing will.

    It seems some of the group decided to try and rally the troops and with Jonathan injured it's like playing to a captive audience. Of course that audience included one of the most powerful Shamans I know, the Scariest and Most Creative Shaman I know and a doctor I know better than to tick off… and her dad.

    You get the idea.

    While Case and the boys were out running down leads we got to display once again why we are the absolute wrong targets to mess with. The fact that Philip and his team had been covering us covertly only added to the whole 'you can't trust your leaders' vibe we were going for.

    The scariest part of the attack was when Jonathan got a bit protective of Trina. He was in no shape to be doing what he tried, but the action triggered Michael's protective spirit which was at least as affective.

    Michael also provided enough cover that the attackers never saw Mario coming. Case and the boys arrived while we were still cleaning up. You know it's getting to be old hat when your husband just asks, "how many did you shoot?"


    Thursday November 4, 2066 - Turning Tide

    Aztec Calendar - Trecena and Day sign for 11/04/2066

    A new Trecena, and it's going to be a long one My summary of the day sign is simple: roll with it. Whatever comes your way you ride the wave and let it do the work-adapt to the situation and keep your head above water.

    I can also tell you that that is much easier said than done.

    We had some leads but nothing really panned out. It was like chasing smoke. Still it does tell us we're doing something right: there have been a lot of people deciding that now was a good time to head off for parts unknown.

    Unfortunately that led to a lot more frustration all around. Let's face it, dealing with Alan on a normal day is bad enough, dealing with Alan when all this insanity is getting to Matt? Yeah, like I said, ride the wave and hopefully you'll reach land without too much pounding from the surf.

    I hope we find my brother's spawn soon-I'm not sure how much more of this I can take.


    Friday November 5, 2066 - Guy Fawkes Day

    Aztec Calendar - Day sign for 11/05/2066

  • Daysign Xochitl Xochitl is a day for creating beauty and truth, especially that which speaks to the heart who knows it will one day cease to beat. Xochitl reminds us that life, like the flower, is beautiful but quickly fades. It is a good day for reflection, companionship and poignancy; it is a bad day for repressing deep-seated wishes, desires and passions.

  • Aztec calendar information supplied by: http://www.azteccalendar.com/

    "…That which speaks to the heart who knows it will one day cease to beat…"

    One day, but not now-thank God not today. Today, Guy Fawkes night, Jonathan finally woke up and stayed awake. I'd love to say he woke up to the loving faces of his family, and while he did, but it was also to the sound of my brothers arguing with my husband in the hallway.

    The interesting part of all of this was Michael. Michael smiled at his brother, welcomed him back then excused himself from the room and walked outside where he managed to calm cse down and get my brothers talking instead of yelling. I knew he had it in him, I'm just glad he finally realized it.

    Everyone is doing better now that Jonathan is awake. It's as if we were all holding our breath waiting for him to come around and stay around.

    I called home to check on the Terror and let her know that we miss her. I'm not going to leave things unsaid with my family. Today is the day of expressing yourself and Bri did some expressing of her own.

    She's been watching over the twins and she told me I had better take care of her little brother, and make sure her uncles were back in time for Thanksgiving, all of them even the two who yell all the time.

    I sincerely doubt my daughter will ever have trouble expressing herself.

    And Guy Fawlkes? Well, you have to admit he was caught trying to express himself.


    Saturday November 6, 2066 - The Hunt

    Aztec Calendar - Day sign for 11/06/2066

  • Daysign Cipactli Cipactli is an auspicious day, signifying advancement and honor. It depicts energy and work, rewards and recognition. A good day for beginnings.

  • Aztec calendar information supplied by: http://www.azteccalendar.com/

    We have a line on my niece/nephew and it's not good.

    It seems while we've chased away a lot of the hanger-on types, the nucleus of the group has reacted to the pressure and is on the move. While Case and the others started gearing up to follow, I headed to the university to consult with the professor I'd met.

    It made sense, I mean if these people are following the Aztec calendar they aren't going to just stop-they're either going to try and lay low until the appointed date or they're going to find the best fitting day to do whatever it is they have planned.

    It looks like they had the same idea I had, only while I was perfectly happy just making an appointment, these people were more of the opinion that it was better to just take what they wanted.

    We got to the university just in time to see him being herded to a car at gunpoint.

    Now before anyone says anything-I was being careful. Michael was with me and we did hang back. Yes I followed them, but only until we could get through to someone to take over, I'm not stupid.

    Once Nathan took over we pulled back and began coordinating things between Nathan, Case and Philip.

    It's good to be on the hunt.


    Copyright 2010 M.T. Decker



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