Chapter Text
"Thank you all for showing up. You are here because we have been warned about the arrival of some new residents of our city, the Whitehalls, and this has come from the FBI. From the size, and the age of the file, it's more surprising that they haven't been caught. Now, let's begin with the family's History, which is important." Director Piggot spoke to the gathered collective of capes, field agents and patrol team leaders, even New Wave was present, as it was deemed important that they know of what was coming into the city.
"The Whitehalls can trace their family's lineage back to their families arrival to the America's, where they happen to have arrived on the same ship as Lord Thomas Brockton, who founded the colony of Brockton's Bay. The Whitehalls, at the time named Witulls, were, however; banished from the colony under the accusation of witchcraft.
The next time they were known to show up was before the civil war, now under the Whitehall name. They had begun an occultist society, seeking out "the old gods of the land". They were however suspected to be involved with cults of an unknown nature, but human sacrifices were believed to be involved, what role they played in such accusations is unknown.
More recently in the 1900's, they were connected to several unusual claims, they traveled to the Empty Quarter of the Arabian Peninsula, the Antarctic, the South Pacific Islands, Egypt, the Balkans, Siberia, China, the Amazon, the Congo, among several other locations around the world. These trips were supposedly in search for reported origins of the "forgotten histories that should not be remembered". They made several donations, including the claim of 1 Necronomicon, Latin translation, the Impaled heart of an Immortal being, the head of a Awakened Elder, shrunken, the claw and scale of the Last True Dragon, A chain link that could not hold Fenrir, the broken Shell from the rock egg of Flower Fruit Mountain, and the bottled Essence of the Winged Serpent. The majority were taken back after the university they were given to was closed after WW2. While in the presence of the University, they were all tested, and all found to be "authentic". Several books were also donated, the oldest being from the 16th Centurty" Piggot emphasizes the claim of authenticity with doubt.
"So they are crazies that hoaxed a bad university with items with "mythical" natures, and they were rich weirdos who travelled the world to "find" said artifacts." Aegis spoke up, putting quotes around "find" with his fingers.
"That would be the case, if there was not recordings of some such artifacts." Piggot shook her head, before the projector showed an old grainy video, digitized reel to reel footage showing a heart, in a jar, with a piece of wood through it, still beating.
Everyone muttered.
"The FBI began to be more involved, after supposed rumors of criminal acts. The investigation was less than fruitful, finding nothing that could be proven, only supposed: this did include grave robbery, human sacrifice, kidnapping, murder, theft, and a list of other crimes by all members of the family." Piggot explained.
An image was projected, a family of 7 people, 3 standing, 2 sitting in chairs, 1 resting on the ground, and 1 in a wheelchair. Each one varied in age, but most of them were in some way unsettling. Each had a number next to them.
1: Zacharius Whitehall: Family Patriarch. Age: 90+ (exact unknown). He was a considerably tall man, and thin, his face was also long, his eyes sunken into his skull, with light grey hair. Dressed in a suit, with a bolo tie on.
"Zacharius is the oldest of the family, a record of serving in the US army in Germany during ww2, having been a part of several raids. He was placed in jail twice for the attempted theft, and destruction of "Items best forgotten", the exact nature of the items are unknown, but many more items are believed to have been stolen at the time. Afterwards, he would marry his late wife, and give birth to his 2 children.
2: Amadeus Whitehall: Eldest Son: Age: 58. Well dressed, in a fine, if more modern style suit, not as tall as his father, and sharing his mildly elongated features, and beginning to grey hair. He noticeably had an eyepatch on.
"Amadeus is a successful lawyer, practicing, however takes few cases. His history indicates an erratic series of episodes where he was placed in a mental facility, yet has recovered. It is believed he is the one responsible for the family's current Finances. He is married, and is noted to have an "unsettling gaze" that makes him difficult to speak to for extended periods of time.
3: Olympas Whitehall: Eldest Daughter: 52. Wearing a beautiful gown, with a small book in her hand, her pale skin was almost bleach white, matching with her hair and the clear red eyes, it was obvious she suffered from Albinism.
"Olympas has supposedly continued the family "occult" practice, and is a medium, fortune teller and in an odd twist, a successful private investigator. She is also married, however her husband has never been seen, so it is unclear if this is a false report, or he has passed, those that speak to her are uncertain of her mental status, so it is possible the marriage is a delusion."
"Ok, so those are the "heads" of the families, I take it I will need to make myself acquainted with Amadeus?" Brandish asked.
"It is entirely possible that you may encounter him in a professional sense. His record for cases shows how he deals mostly in rather quick trials, often with an open and shut conclusion." Piggot explained.
"Who marries a guy like that?" a captain asked.
"Moving on, we can discuss that." Piggot pointed to the woman sitting in front of Amadeus.
4: Eden Whitehall, formerly Eden Crowley: Age: 51: Wife of Amadeus Whitehall. Having a simple dress on, her features were very smooth, elegant and refined. Her hair was a warm chestnut, as it ran past her shoulder.
"Eden married into the family when Amadeus was 32, after his education as a lawyer was complete. Eden is a botanist, and has been noted to be the most…welcoming of the family. Her status in the "occult" part of the family is believed to be limited, if at all. However, while her husband was placed into the mental facility, she was noted to have brought him flowers every few days. This period was also when she became pregnant, with their children."
5: Khavhod Whitehall: Age: 15: Eldest child of Amadeus and Eden Whitehall. Being the one sitting on the floor, Khavhod still was a tall being, having unusually long proportions. What stood out most was the lack of visible features, as they were shrouded by a hat and scarf, the only hint of features were silvery circles that were seen from the darkness.
"Khavhod, supposedly suffers from a medical condition where they are hypersensitive to UV light. Such sensitivity has led to a phobia developing of any and all light contacting their skin. This has led to them struggling with attending school in most forms, however, academically, they are a high achiever. It is unknown what they look like under the scarf and hat, as they work hard to have their entire appearance hidden. We do however know that his height is unnatural, measured to stand 8ft, 2inches."
6: Sherra Whitehall: Age 14: Youngest Child of Amadeus and Eden Whitehall. The wheelchair bound member of the family, she wore dress pants, a vest, and long sleeve cuffed shirt. Her hair was braided down and resting on her shoulder. Her hands resting on her lip, the only oddity noted in her appearance was the two different colored eyes, a red-pink eye, and a blue eye.
"Sherra is notably "Unusual" by all who speak with her, It is seen that she has never been able to walk, when she was born, it was reported that she had no movement in her legs at all. She is a quiet individual, often found reading, and speaking to herself. Her mobility is not limited to the chair however, as she has been documented, appearing in places that she physically would be unable to reach in the chair."
7: Xiolet Whitehall: Age 10: Eldest Child of Olympas Whitehall and unknown father. Fully obscured, wearing a black dress and veil, holding a small doll in her lap, as she sat in front of Olympas. A second image showed a girl with pitch black hair and snow white skin, with a set of vibrant green eyes, seeming to be unusually large, a soft smile on her face.
"Xiolet is the youngest of the children, We do know of her appearance, she began to wear the veil at age 8, after an alleged accident, that is of an unknown nature. The Doll in her lap, is one she takes everywhere, that she named "Bridgette". Similarly to her mother, she takes part in the "Occult" aspects, which has lead to her drawing "wards" on places she frequents." Piggot explained.
"Ok, so we get it, family are occultists with weird genetics and some weird names. But why do we need to know that they are here?" Velocity asked, confused.
"Because, wherever they are, there are unusual incidents that follow them. Watchdog was once used to try and see if they were responsible for any crimes, we lost 3 thinkers that day with post-cognitive powers. We have been asked to monitor them while they are in Brockton Bay. There is also a chance that we will be able to analyze some of the artifacts that they claim to have, to see if they may be pre-discovery parahuman items." Piggot explained.
"So…we just need to see if they 1. Are not committing crimes with weird cult beliefs of theirs. 2. Are not crazies that have parahuman powers that make them dangerous to try and investigate. And 3. See if they are willing to separate themselves from their weird items long enough for us to prove if they knew of parahumans before the rest of the world did. Sounds simple. So, where are the kids going to school, if they are." Assault asked, shrugging.
"They enrolled their kids into 3 different schools. Khavhod is at Winslow, due to this, Shadow Stalker, I want you to see if it is at all possible to get an image of their face for the file." Piggot began.
"Oh come on! Why do I have to, why can't any of the other Wards do it?" Shadow Stalker complained.
"None of them will be around them for extended periods of time, with the greatest chance to do so." Piggot pointed out.
"What about the other two?" Glory Girl asked.
"Sherra is going to Arcadia, while Xiolet is going to Immaculata. If at all possible, we are to figure out the status and identity of her father, either from her, if she knows, or the family itself." Piggot continued.
"What do we do if the stuff they have is real occult stuff?" Clockblocker asked, clearly trying to make a joke.
"In the unlikely event that anything they have is actually "Real", then you best hope it comes with instructions on how to handle them." Armsmaster stated.
"Since when do you believe in any of that stuff, sir?" Aegis asked, confused.
"Ever since I got a look at the list of items they donated to the university, and then were given back.
"What? Do they have a unicorn's horn in their collection?" Gallant asked.
Armsmater pulled up a list, which had a description of what they were, and when/where they were from.
"They have spent the last 300 years gathering artifacts from across the globe. If even 5% of them are true, or even hold a bit of what they can supposedly do, you should be concerned. Images taken by the FBI of what they have serious historical, and societal implications. Select a listed item Clockblocker." Armsmaster instructed the Ward.
"Ummmmm, Number 329." Clockblocker randomly selected.
"That is "The Broken Sword of a traitorous Son", dating back to the 5th century AD, England. Found in the sight of a Salisbury Plains, excavated in 1804, the sword was broken from a strike that shattered the blade. A partial etching along the fuller reads "Blade of the" the other half of the blade was found some distance away with the remaining message reading "son of Le Fey". The implications of who owned the blade should be concerning."
"Cool, King Arthur was apparently real." Vista commented.
"So, when do they arrive?" Miss Militia questioned, changing the topic of the strange revelation to the history of England.
"They have arrived." Director Piggot stated, "Oh, and Panacea, you will be meeting their personal physician, he supposedly is never far from the family, one Doctor Ludvic Von Cranz. He is very easily identifiable." Piggot added.
"How obvious is he? He doesn't wear a plague doctor mask does he?" She asked, almost jokingly.
Director Piggot didn't react.
"You're shitting; me he does?" Panacea asked, in disbelief of such a choice in apparel.
"I will have his image forwarded to your mother." Piggot stated.
— — — — —
Across the city, the last box was unpacked, the case was shut, displaying the blanket created from the Golden Fleece brought the study together.
"Sherra, where did you place the candle lit by dragon breathe?" Old Zacharius questioned.
"It's on the third floor, Xiolet likes it as a nightlight and she made that her room. She says it keeps ghosts away better than any ward she learned from the family's tomes." Sherra explained, a stack of books in her lap as she wheeled herself into the library.
"Pity, I was hoping to display it next to the Hydra Fetus jar." Zacharius shook his head.
The family was putting the collection around the house, so many items, so much history.
"Maybe I can put it next to the jarred head of Medusa." He muttered to himself, looking at the jar with the multi-headed snake.