Chapter 11 How Many Men Does It Take?
How Many Men Does It Take?
Butcher's gravelly voice had carried across the cemetery with unusual urgency, and now six of Cauldron Falls' most capable men stood in a circle around the great stone Devil Tree, staring down at a peculiar mark branded into the earth near its base.
The mark was roughly circular, about three feet in diameter, with strange crystalline residue scattered around its edges. The grass within the circle was completely gone, leaving behind what looked like frozen water.
The precision of the damage was unsettling. This wasn't the random destruction of natural forces or the chaotic aftermath of magical combat. Something had created this mark with deliberate intent, though its purpose remained maddeningly unclear.
"Well," Murphy said finally, stroking his beard, "what do ye think it is?"
His question hung in the air, met by the kind of thoughtful silence that indicated everyone was hoping someone else would have an answer.
"Beats me," Roam replied, crouching down for a closer look without actually touching anything. He was picking up traces of energy that didn't quite fit any category he was familiar with. The scent was all wrong.
"Never seen anything like it," Dr. Wimpleton added, adjusting his glasses as he studied the phenomenon with academic interest.
Miles Montgomery circled the mark slowly, his hand inches above it, "The vegetation's completely gone. Not burned exactly, more like... vaporized."
The plant matter at the base of the stone sculpture hadn't been consumed by fire or withered by disease. It had simply ceased to exist within the circle's boundaries, leaving behind only the glassy residue that caught the morning light with prismatic reflections.
"Could be enchanted residue," Colin Scott suggested, though his tone indicated he was just guessing.
“Thanks, Sherlock. But from what?" Murphy asked, looking around the group hopefully.
They all shrugged in unison—a coordinated gesture of collective bafflement.
Butcher, who had discovered the mark during his morning rounds, stood with his arms crossed, looking as stumped as the rest of them. "Found it when I was checking the headstones," he rumbled. "Wasn't there yesterday."
"Definitely wasn't," Dr. Wimpleton agreed. "We would have noticed something this... distinctive."
"So it happened during the night," Roam concluded. “Maybe at the same approximate time as the town square incident."
"Connected?" Miles asked.
"Has to be," Murphy said. "Too much of a coincidence otherwise."
They continued staring at the mark as if prolonged observation might reveal its secrets.
"Maybe it's some kind of... thing," Colin offered helpfully.
"What kind of thing?" Roam asked.
"A... mysterious thing?" Colin replied uncertainly.
"That's very helpful, Colin," Murphy said dryly.
"Should we poke it?" Miles suggested.
The scientific method reduced to its most basic form—when faced with the unknown, prod it and see what happens.
"With what?" Dr. Wimpleton asked.
"I don't know. Something pokeable?" Miles shrugged.
"Definitely shouldn't poke unknown mysterious things," Roam said firmly, though he continued staring at it as if it might spontaneously explain itself.
That's when Sean arrived, having heard from the Shifter patrol his presence was needed. He took one look at the gathered men all staring intently at the ground and asked, "What are we looking at?"
"No idea," they replied in perfect chorus of confusion.
Sean studied the mark, walked around it twice, crouched down next to Roam, and straightened up with a puzzled expression. "I've never seen anything like it."
"Aye, for Pete's sake. You and Roam are the investigative experts here," Murphy threw his hands up.
"Well, yes, but..." Sean scratched his head. "I mean, I've handled dozens of standard spectral incidents, but this could be anything.”
“Do you think it’s one of those loophole things?” Murphy’s agitation was evident. “Look at it. It looks like a hole.”
“Loopholes are so rare that most agents never see one. I've studied them extensively, but seeing one in person..." He trailed off uncertainly.
"So, it could be a loophole?" Roam asked.
"Could be," Sean said, though he didn't sound entirely convinced.
"The shape is right, and the residue pattern matches the textbook descriptions, but.
.." He shook his head firmly. "No, that's impossible.
I applied fresh loophole protectant everywhere yesterday.
Triple-checked the coverage myself. If the protectant is working properly—which it should be—then loopholes simply cannot form. "
"But what if it is a loophole?" Dr. Wimpleton pressed.
Sean looked genuinely distressed at the possibility. "Then either my equipment failed, my application was faulty, or something went catastrophically wrong with the protectant itself. All of which would be..." He paused, looking slightly sick. "Very bad for my career prospects."
"So, what else could it be?" Miles asked in his most positive tone.
"Well, it's not supposed to be possible," Sean said, his denial growing stronger. "This shouldn't exist. Maybe it's something else entirely. Some kind of... magical water thing? It looks like water in the middle.”
"What kind of water thing?" Dr. Wimpleton asked.
"Like a water... glass like thingy?" Sean offered weakly.
"Now you're just making up words," Miles said.
"We're all making up words at this point," Colin replied. "We have no idea what we're looking at."
"It's not water. And it's got nothing to do with the falls," Murphy shoved his hands in his pocket and stared at the sky. “It’s a loophole.”
"Fine. Just a suggestion," Sean shrugged, looking as stumped as the rest of them.
“It could be another prank?” Miles said weakly.
"Damn it.” Sean rubbed his hand through this hair. “As much as I hate to admit it, I think it’s a loophole.”
“Thank you. So, what now?" Murphy demanded.
“Now, I figure out how to seal this properly and hope my boss doesn't freak out," Sean said grimly, pulling out his spray bottle. "Because if the Goddess of Death shows up asking why a loophole opened on my watch..."
"Your boss is the Goddess of Death?" Colin squeaked.
"Through several layers of management, mind you," Sean said. "Never met her personally, and Goddess willing, I never will. Because if she shows up at one of my assignments, it means all hell's broken loose, and I've made a right mess of things."
That's when the sound of approaching female voices carried across the cemetery.
"What are you all doing?" Uma's voice called out as she approached with Honey, Maisie, and Evangelina floating behind them.
"Investigating," Roam replied with as much dignity as he could muster.
"Investigating what?" Honey asked, looking at the gathered men with barely concealed amusement. The sight of six grown men standing in a circle, staring at the ground with intense concentration, struck her as endearingly helpless.
"This," Murphy said, gesturing importantly at the mark.
The four women looked down at the mark, then up at the men, then back at the mark. Their expressions suggested they were witnessing a particularly elaborate form of male confusion.
"And what have you concluded?" Uma asked, though her tone suggested she already knew the answer.
"That it's nothing to do with the falls," Roam said with professional authority.
"And it’s mysterious," Miles added helpfully.
"Don't forget circular," Colin chimed in.
Evangelina drifted closer to the mark, her expression growing serious as she examined the crystalline residue and the precise edges.
"Oh," she said quietly. "Oh my."
"What?" all six men asked at once.
Evangelina's form shimmered with what appeared to be a mixture of recognition and concern. "This is, or rather was, a loophole. The kind left behind when the veil between worlds has been temporarily opened."
“Damn it, again.” Sean blinked. "And how do you know that?"
"When you mentioned loopholes yesterday, I inquired with some of our older guests in the greatest of confidence," Evangelina explained.
"And while no one had ever really seen or experienced one, they indeed knew the legends and could describe it in great detail.
As the story goes," she pointed down at the spot in the earth, "it looks exactly like this. "
"See, I told you no one has really ever seen one," Sean smiled smugly.
Murphy threw up his hands in exasperation. "So ye did know what it was, but ye needed her to confirm it?"
"I identified it correctly," Sean said defensively. "But having confirmation from spirits who've heard the legends is valuable intelligence."
"Fair point," Roam conceded.
"The question is," Sean continued, "how did this happen when I applied fresh protectant yesterday?"
Uma studied Sean's obvious distress. "What exactly does this mean for us?"
"It means," Sean said, his voice tight with worry, "that any ghost who found this loophole when it was open could go anywhere in your town. No invitations needed. No restrictions. This is exactly the kind of security breach that gets enforcement agents... reassigned."
"How bad?" Roam asked, alarmed by Sean's obvious concern.
"The worst kind of bad," Sean said, running his hands through his hair. "Loopholes are supposed to be impossible with proper protectant in place. If word of this gets back to headquarters..."
Murphy stepped forward. "But how did it happen?"
Sean pulled a notepad from his back pocket and flipped it open.
“Well, I spoke to a Prudence Whitmore and learned that three ghosts were going around telling stories about being able to taste real beer and time travel. It sounded like a joke, and I couldn’t find anyone to corroborate her story. Then I got called here.”
Murphy's face went carefully neutral, but Uma noticed the way his eyes flicked toward her with concern.
"Ghosts can't taste anything," Dr. Wimpleton observed. "That's physically impossible."
"Exactly," Sean said. “But now I’m wondering. What if Prudence is telling the truth and this trio of troublemakers brought along something that could make them taste. Maybe that is something that could overwhelm even fresh protectant."
The group stood in stunned silence as the implications sank in.
“So, it might also track that the town square prank," Uma said slowly, “could have been caused by ghosts."
"At this point, anything is possible,” Sean nodded. "And I need to reseal this site immediately, then check the perimeter for other breaches."
"Sean," Uma began slowly, "I may have found something similar at one of the ginkgo trees in the square this morning."
"Similar how?" Roam asked sharply. Sean stared at her in alarm.
"That crystal stuff is around the base of one of the trees. I thought it was just debris from the prank, but if there's a connection..." Uma looked at the mark, then back at the group. "It looked like the same kind of residue."
Sean's professional composure cracked visibly. "Multiple loophole sites.”
“You mean the same loophole," Evangelina said thoughtfully. "Once to get to town, once to get back."
"I'm going to need a lot more protectant spray," Sean said, as he wiped his brow in preparation. “I’ll have to file an incident report that doesn't make me look completely incompetent, too.”