As the woman walked up to the Professor, Loki took a closer look at her aura, inspecting it in much greater detail than he normally would.
The somewhat rapid pulsing of her bright, vibrant aura told him that she was nervous and a little excited, but Loki also recognized the distinct discoloration of fear. For all her regal bearing, this woman was afraid; probably for the life and well being of her son and herself, but possibly also of her husbands potential reaction to his wife taking his son away from him.
"Seems our target has a spark of the Talent. Could be useful...", Loki mused to himself as he continued staring at the very core of this woman's being.
"Wait, what's that?" he thought when he spotted the tiny shadow in her right palm, and a slightly larger one in her chest cavity.
"Some form of tracking device, probably, maybe an RFID chip? And that thing has to be a biomonitor. Here's hoping it doesn't trigger if she gets a little stressed."Moving his gaze from the wife to the bodyguard, he instantly saw that he was a different matter all together, and Loki had only seen his kind a few times back in Cara'Sir. His mind was quiet, his demeanor stoic but with a firm resolve to keep his mark safe, and he was much more difficult to read than his protege. As he examined the aura more closely he pondered the implications of his discovery.
"Hmm, those tendrils invading his entire body are similar to Derren and James', but much more delicate, somehow; nothing is pervading or overshadowing his aura like theirs. This must be quality work, probably the benefit of working for a mega."He finished his observation of the two, and slipped up through the roof of the building, soaring into the night sky and settling high above the Denver streets. He'd always enjoyed the freedom of this realm; the Astral made things possible that most could only dream of. He had been so shocked the first time he encountered it back in the Tir that he had ended up huddled behind his dumpster, shaking so badly he couldn't stand. Hours later, after he'd had some food and a little rest, he'd sought out the place in his mind that had frightened him so, but this time on his own terms.
Shaking himself out of his reverie, he focused on the task at hand.
"Time to keep an eye on where this lady goes". He settled down onto his knees in mid-air, bowing his head in silent supplication and began "speaking" in what he thought of as a whisper.
"Ancients, heed my call, for I have need of you." Focusing on the mana around him he began chanting in the Astral, feeling the world slowly shift in tune with his speech.
"Thus is our treaty written; thus is agreement made.
Thought is the arrow of time; memory never fades.
What was asked is given. The price is paid."As the last word lingered in his mind, he brought out a black, vicious looking dagger, and slid it across his wrist in a fluid motion. The wound it left closed up immediately, and Loki watched with satisfaction as a lone warrior dressed in dark , simple wool and leather garb appeared before him, similarly kneeling in the air.
"Thank you for coming, my friend," Loki said as he reached his arm out to the man, and the two clasped their forearms together in a traditional warriors greeting.
"I have been tasked with keeping a woman and her child safe from harm, and I need your keen eyes to watch her for me while I prepare the next step of my plan. Stay out of sight and follow her to wherever she goes to rest for the night, and report back to me. If you encounter any other spirits and risk being seen, or any solid obstacles appear, report her location to me, and then return freely to your people."Looking the ageless warrior straight in the eyes Loki saw that he understood, and they both nodded.
"Thank you, my friend. You honor me, as your people always does." And with that, the spirit was gone. Veiled in a cloak of shadows it raced off to follow the woman to her destination, wherever it was.
Loki resumed his soar and watched as the people of Denver went about their business, far below in the dark of night. Their auras were like fireflies, buzzing around near the ground. His was like a raven, beautiful in the night sky, feathers cresting in an unseen breeze as he floated on raw streams of mana pummeling him about the higher he got. In an instant, he changed direction and he was suddenly plummeting towards the ground, arms behind him like a raven performing a dive, his voice a shrill screech of elation.
And just as quickly, he was outside the vehicle where his body lay motionless in the back seat. Peeking inside, seeing his flesh like this had always disquieted him a little, and his mentor had cautioned against being away from his mortal shell for too long.
"The body cannot live without it's spirit, without the essence that makes it whole", it had told him. And Loki had felt it, once or twice, the pain of the longing, as he'd spent too many hours in the Astral, looking for answers without luck.
"No matter now", he thought as he looked around to see if his companions had made it back yet, then flowed through the shadow of the vehicles outer shell and settled in his body.
Assensing the woman and her bodyguard; I see everything 
Astral Perception [9]: Assensing: 12d6t5 6
Summoning a Spirit of Man; 2 net hits = 2 services, Drain DV of 2 fully resisted. Asking it to conceal itself (1 Service, using a power), and to follow the woman (mental image of her aura provided) to wherever she goes (1 Remote Service, as she's bound to be moving more than 500m away from me). He'll hopefully continue following her until she rests for the night or he risks being seen by another spirit keeping guard, or encounters a mana barrier.
Summoning [3]: Force 3 Spirit of Man & Spirit Resist & Resist Drain: 9d6t5 3 3d6t5 1 13d6t5 3
