I'll find you in the morning sun. [Attn: Niko, Damon, Cellatus, Mnemosyne]

[Umbralwind]

It was hard to say exactly what the children had suffered at the hands of their tormentors. The illness of the Wyrm made it increasingly unpredictable and erratic. It was, however, clear in their faces that the children had suffered and some part of Sophia's heart sunk as she found herself having to see this.

To die was not something to be feared. Death was only a part of the cycle that all living creatures must go through. However, to have one's very being perverted, invaded in a manner as intimate as the invasion that altered someone's body and soul enough that they could truly be called Fomori, was not part of that cycle. Death was what it was, but this served no purpose, it achieved no end, it simply twisted and tormented... Infected the hearts and minds of these children like a disease.

Sophia found herself among them, her eyes closed as one of the children cowered in fear as she found herself pulled from one hell into the unknown by people whose very presence terrified her down to the very core. The girl had curled into a ball, she had wet herself as the fear took hold... She mumbled softly, and as she mumbled Sophia began to sing.

She wasn't sure where she had heard the song. The tune was old, and the language she didn't recognize, but she sang it as if it was something that had been sung to her since she was a little girl. She sang to soothe them, she sang in an attempt to calm the girl, and the other children who found themselves dragged out of one hell and into another, however, and most importantly, she sang for herself.

Rage doesn't always come from a searing hatred for one's enemies. It was the culmination of a range of extreme emotions whose power compelled the garou to act as they did. Tonight her rage wasn't fueled by the thrill of combat, but an intimate knowledge of the suffering that had been forced upon these children. She could feel tears running down her face, leaving streaks across her face as her eyes grew puffy and red. To be honest she looked ugly right now as the tears streamed down her face, but she could not stop herself. The horror in these children's eyes, the fear that echoed behind their voices, ate down to her very core, but this alone was not what caused the tears to roll down her face...

Three among them were different than the rest. Three among these children stood out. She could sense the infection had spread too far, the torment had metastasized, and there was nothing left that could be done for these three. They were too late... It was these three she wept for, most of all, these three who drew the lullaby from her lips. They had been too late to save them, and she knew that she could not allow them to be set free into the world, not after their souls had been corrupted. There was a chance for the others. There was a chance the others might make their way in the world, there was a chance the others might turn this struggle into a lesson and perhaps fight to ensure it never happens to any child ever again, but these three were beyond all hope. Their lives hadn't even begun and already... They had to be put to an end, all because they had been the victims of some twisted creature's perverse vision.

Sophia wanted to find their parents, she wanted to tie them down, and force them to watch and see what they had done to their children all because they lacked the patience and the tenacity to do their job as parents and actually provide what their children needed rather than shoving their responsibilities off on someone else. They had abandoned their children long ago, and now someone else would have to clean up the mess they made.

So she sang, to remind them in their final hours that there was still kindness in this world. She sang because she knew that somewhere inside these children was an innocent creature screaming in agony, begging to be set free. She sang because she wanted their final moments to be filled with a hint of the peace and kindness they were never shown in life.

When she stopped she stood and rose to kiss the forehead of the girl who had wet herself. She smiled tenderly as that voice continued to mutter to itself, still lost in the shock of what was happening, and she slowly stood to wander over to Tommy and Ingrid because this matter would be best handled as quickly and cleanly as possible.

She wiped the tears from her eyes and looked Ingrid directly in the eye, before closing her eyes and leaning in close in order to speak into her ear. She smiles just a hint as her cheek brushes against Ingrid's cheek, it was nice to be close to someone she knew. "Take them quietly from this place, don't let the others see..." She whispers softly to the woman. "They did not ask for this, remember that, let your blade take them quickly, do not let them see what is coming..."

Then she describes them, each of the three she had identified as Fomori, each of the three who were beyond all hope. Nothing could be done for these three at this point but to end their lives and force the bane from their bodies. The rest could be cleansed, the rest had a hope in hell at having a shot in life.

When she was done she turned to face Tommy and she gave another little smile. "Your jaw is rigid, your claws are swift, and you spit fire from your mouth like a dragon, but your heart is strong. I only hope it is strong enough to do what needs to be done." She says softly to the man. "Go with your Beta, help her do this, and remember that what we do here is done, not because we hate, but because we love." She says in a whisper as she leans in close enough to draw in his scent and put it to memory. "I will look after the others..." She finishes.

She was more than happy to help do the dirty work, but Ingrid was far better equipped to handle the matter of putting the children down, and Tommy's rigid balanced heart would need to be there to reassure her that what she did was for the best, and to remind her in the future that what she was doing was not a mistake. The other, the Fenrir who was not, was not around, and she was glad for that, she was not sure he would have had the ability to handle this with the sense of remorse or regret that she found important to keep the Garou from succumbing to the call of the Wyrm. It was best he never had to know what was done this night. It was best the Full Moon be allowed to focus on doing what he does best, fighting the good fight, and seeking peace wherever he could find it. Rage boiled far too deeply for the Full Moon... There was no sense tormenting them with actions of questionable morality.

[In short, 3 of the children they recovered were Fomori, Sophia identified them to Ingrid and now... She knows what has to be done!]

[errin]

Ingrid does not stand near the children recovered. She does not stand anywhere within sight of them. The practical reasons for this are obvious, no one to witness, no one to try and identify her to authorities later, no one to come hunting her down - or try to hunt her down. There are other reasons, the usual ones for their kind. Their Rage is unsettling, Ingrid's presence even more so. Her presence could agitate the children, make them erratic, prone to acting out or running away or worse, running toward the blaze they left behind.

If there are other reasons Ingrid keeps herself apart, she doesn't say them, doesn't show them. She appears to all as untouched and immovable as stone.

And while Sophia sings and looks for tainted presence, Ingrid waits for the order she knows is coming. She does not move away from Sophia when she comes to give it. Does not look distressed or eager. Does not appear to feel anything at all as she nods, and she goes to gather those three children. To Tommy, she only says, "Get the others out of here. I'll catch up."

This is not the first time in her life that Ingrid has had to do the unthinkable. A Child of Crow, she has been trained to watch over those in power and, should they show signs of weakness, lance it as one might lance a wart. And Tommy can't do it, not he who very nearly gave up the hunt tonight. Not Sophia. Erich might, but Ingrid would never let such a command ever reach his ears. He's changed since she met him. She has, too. They were always opposites, two sides of a coin, light and dark aspects of the same creature. But he's become lighter, brighter. No, Ingrid will do this terrible thing. She will gladly be swallowed up in darkness if it leaves him in the light a little longer.

So. Three children are tracked and herded and loaded into a car with the predatory animal known as Dances With the Hurricane. The others are left to Tommy and Sophia.

Ingrid drives them out and she does what needs to be done, and she does it well. She takes them out, one at a time, and she knows just where to place the blade so they feel no more fear and no more pain. Places it just so, so that the cutting edge does not leave telling marks on rib and bone, things forensics might find curious later when they find these bodies. And Ingrid puts them where they will be found, in the path of where she knows that blaze is heading. To those who find the charred remains later it will appear as though they tried to escape, these three, but that they didn't make it. Fires in Denver, fed by the dry scrub brush, they sweep fast, they consume the countryside in short order. The fire will take care of the physical evidence.

The memory, however. That is not so easliy erradicated.

[tl;dr: Three tainted kids dealt with, bodies left to look like they tried to escape from the fire.]