(1940-03-04) The Warehouse: The Raid
Details for The Warehouse: The Raid
Summary: The MLE team descends on the warehouse to search for evidence relating to the Eibons.
Date: 4 March 1940
Location: A previously Fidelius Charmed Warehouse hidden somewhere on the Isle of Dogs.
Plot: The Warehouse
Related: The Stakeout; The Interrogation
Characters
RenaPeregrineKatherineGrahamHughPete

"It's bloody stupid, that's what it is." Rena mutters to herself as she sits down at her desk with a thud. It's clear that the little redhead is in a poor mood that is unlikely to lift any time soon - judging by her unusually irritated expression, anyway.

Placing her usual handbag into a drawer, she then pulls a small, slightly worn-looking carpet bag from beneath her desk. The Bottomless Bag has made an appearance. And now, opening the bag, she moves over to a piece of furniture that looks something akin to a Muggle Liquor Cabinet. Unlocking it with a silver key, she begins the tedious task of looking through the potion bottles contained therein. She doesn't like the mission they're going on, and she's going with ammunition.

Magistrate Urquart comes back from the direction of the carpeted corridor of power holding Ogden's office, among others. He looks just as dour as usual, with a sour pinch to his face. But as he passes Rena's desk, he gives her a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder, but says nothing, until he is past her, and turns around and says, "So, we are all aware of the potential dangers tonight, I trust?"

Hugh has his pipe shoved into the corner of his mouth already, but he removes it, to start stuffing tobacco…. with small green shreds in it…. from a tiny pouch, which is not his usual one, "Yes. Yes. Very much so. But nothing we can't deal with, eh?"

Graham knows there is only so much prep one can do for something like this. He would have consulted all his resources and brought whatever might help limit the dangers. He enters into the room looking at the others in time to hear the question "Quite understood, and hopefully it is not."

Sitting at her desk, twirling her wand in one hand, Kat smirks slightly and nods to Urquart's question then goes back to painstakingly reading the case report on her desk.

The young woman's expression softens slightly, and Rena forces herself to draw a slow, steadying breath to regain a little balance. She flashes the faintest, fleeting hint of a smile at Peregrine before turning back to the cabinet. Leaning her elbow against the frame and brushing her hand over her forehead, she seems a little more rattled than usual. Her concentration is suffering, seemingly. What is she even looking for?

Hugh's comment brings her around, and she looks at him with mild irritation: "'Ow can you be so calm? Sometimes I think I'm the only person 'round 'ere that takes the job seriously."

Hugh leans back in his chair, foul pipe primed, but interestingly unlit. He looks up towards the ceiling, and says, thoughtfully, "Now… what intelligence have we got about the place, and what we might find?"

"Well, nevertheless, let's make sure that we have wolfsbane with us. I'll also make arrangements to have a few constables staged outside of the area, who can be summoned by a flare spell." Peregrine says, folding his arms behind his back. He then goes over what they know about the warehouse - precious little, it seems. "So, basically, we are taking a leap of faith. As usual. Join the MLE, see the underworld."

The young man looks over to Rena and gives the smallest of smiles. "Its not taking it lightly, just a different way of dealing with the stress and fear." Graham says calmly he looks to the others "Basically we're going on two informants reports that this warehouse holds dangerous goods likely its guarded and perhaps traps and well the full moon." He looks over to Peregrine next nodding to his words.

Hugh gives a nod, and says amiably, "So, we're raiding the warehouse of a family who have famously entered a feud, on the say-so of a couple of informants, who may not be independent of each other, and who offer no actual collateral proof?" His eyes are closed, leaning back in his chair, facing the ceiling, so it's unclear if he's addressing the room, or his guardian angel. "I agree we have to do it, but…. a bit more information would have been good."

The address given puts the Warehouse in the Docks area of London, known as the Isle of Dogs. Broom fly-bys have determined that there are 3 exits. Two large cargo doors on the west side of the building, the main entrance on the east side and a gate into a courtyard on the north side. Above the main entrance there is a balcony that is posted with guards during the day. No info on security during the night because this is only the day after the information was gained. It's a two story building, while the west portion is clearly the warehouse areas and thus has tall insides the recon seemed to think that the second story on the east side is an actual bedroom. So a caretaker is probably going to be there.

Hugh considers, "I wonder…. it's doubtless warded against Apparition…. but if the warders were sloppy, they may have put it on the walls, not the whole structure. In which case, that balcony…"

"If you're not comfortable with it, Auror Carruthers, I'm sure that you can bow out." Peregrine says, with a little shrug, "I would suggest that we make entry through the warehouse area, since we suspect that whatever we're looking for will be there. While that's an interesting idea, apparating in, none of us have been there before, and I don't think this is dangerous enough - at present - to warrant the possibility of splinching someone on the way in. We will, of course, announce our lawful authority before opening fire, but protect yourselves at all times. I'd rather explain a stunner than an injured Auror or Hit Wizard."

Katherine looks up from the report she's reading, pushing it away with a sigh as relief as action looms. "Three entrances. We might want to gain entry through all of them at the same time, instead of using just one as a large group." Getting up from her chair she puts her wand into one of the pockets of her robe. "So, are we ready to go?"

Hugh gives Peregrine an amused look, "Oh, I'm comfortable enough doing it. Just pointing it out, so you all know I'm going into this with my eyes open." The concept of walking through the door doesn't appear to have been Hugh's first thought, however. What sort of Auror _is_ he? Kat gets a little nod in agreement. "Four, if we include things like getting onto the roof and pulling some slates off."

Rena quietly places several glass bottles containing the Wolfsbane herb into her little carpet bag, allowing the men to talk. After a long silence, she closes the cabinet door and her bag before turning back to face the others. "Why am I the only person who always thinks of using the 'Uman revealing spell before entering a strange place? Better to know who might be in the vicinity than to just barge in blind."

Pausing, she breathes a faint sigh: "I'm as ready as I'll ever be." Directing herself toward Peregrine, the young woman smirks: "Whither thou goest, I shall go."

"Its only the unknown nature which makes me hesitate in splitting forces, strength in numbers and all that." Graham says though he's as ready as he'll ever by standing up and checking things once more "Suppose we can go in with the group plan and re-assess things once we've gotten a better idea of what we're facing."

The group being ready - or as ready as they're going to be - they depart from the Ministry and head across London to their target location. It's a cold but blessedly quick ride on broomback in the darkness of a flurrying, freezing cold night in early march, the full moon peeking out between the clouds now and again, a taunting reminder of what time of month it is. The MLE team lands just outside the two massive loading doors in the rear of the building.

As for Rena, there is somewhere else she would far rather be, right now. But, there's nothing for it. She's here to do her job and do it to the best of her ability, come what may.

Dismounting from her broomstick, the young redhead wastes no time. Withdrawing her little Rowan wand, she brushes a few curly tendrils of hair away from her forehead and directs her attention to the warehouse. Even if she performs the spell well, the place is likely too big and grand for her to reveal everything in the vicinity. However, be that as it may… "Homenum Revelio." She states, clearly.

Hugh slides from his broom, and glances around, and then levitates his broom up to sit in a guttering. "Once we "Homenum Revelio", they're going to know we're here. So, are we knocking, or blowing the doors off?"

Graham is glad the trip isn't very long broomstick not being his preferred method of transport after all. He can get from point a to point b at least. He will land with the others and looks over "Hrm, depends what'd you find Rena?" he asks needing to know this before they can choose which course of action is best.

The building, when they pass over it, is roughly T-Shaped, with a first floor over the front part of the T, and the warehouse forming the broad arms. Rena's spell strikes true - so to speak - and no sooner is she alerted to the presence of three people inside than three long, keening, discordant howls greet the group, causing an atavistic chill.

Katherine hops off her broom right barely missing a pile of crates first then a lorry second and a wall third. After stuffing her broom away in a corner with a disgruntled "Hmph!" she joins the group just in time to hear Hugh's question. "Since we are not covering all the doors I would say blow the doors off and swarm in as fast as possible to give anyone inside the least chance to scamper away." Her wand is already in her hand but for once she is actually waiting on others before just busting the doors in.

Peregrine shivers involuntarily at the sound of wolves inside. "Nobody here but us chickens…" he says, then motions towards the doors, "Knock, knock."

As Graham has often seen in the past, Rena pauses. Lifting one hand for silence, she tilts her head slightly while the spell takes effect. Once it has done so, her lips part to speak… but, the words do not come. They stick in her throat upon hearing the howls, and she takes a nervous step back.

"Th-that," she replies, finally. "Three." She adds, pointing her wand in the direction of the three forms revealed to her through the spell.

Graham lands looking over the building though the howls to the air make him stand straight a second not speaking though he'll add. "Well they know we're here now, I think sticking together is best." He sticks to this plan though he looks over to Rena nodding to her about the three humans. He will remove his wand from his sleeve though he's just looking over the building for now.

Hugh pulls his own wand. "Quite so." He glances towards the door. "Right ho. Knock knock. Who's there?" He ambles towards the door, touching his wand to his pipe, to light it, and then looking for a letterbox or other gap in the door, such as a spyhole.

"I think we've lost the element of surprise." Peregrine observes, with a dry swallow. Werewolves, after all, can do worse than just kill you. "Maybe we shouldn't give them a chance to get ready." His own wand comes from inside his robes, its well worn handle coming easily into his hand.

Those close to the 'tached one will notice that his normal tobacco is not present. Instead there is a heavy herbal smoke coming from his pipe. And he's taken the pipe from his mouth, and is holding it in his left hand, as if he doesn't want to breathe it in.

Katherine reacts similar to everyone else when the wolves howl, clearly tensing up. But unlike the others she's already tired of the discussions. Clearly thinking along the same lines as Peregrine she says, "We definitely lost the element of surprise. Bombarda!" With a flick of her wand she sends a ball of force flying at the lock on the warehouse doors.

The cannonball crashes into the door - it's not really the idea door opening spell, but it does bash a quaffle-sized hole through the area with the lock, and there is the sound of smashing boxes and breaking things inside. Someone - or several someones - will either have to make the hole bigger or lift the door, though. And there are now howls, coming closer.

Hugh sighs, and points at the door. "Confringo!"

"Bloody 'ell!" Rena exclaims, genuinely horrified that Kat would do anything so foolish and brash under the circumstances. However, she doesn't bother scolding the other woman for her actions. Instead, she beats a hasty retreat, away from the others. Is she turning tail and running? Abandoning her co-workers and friends in the eleventh hour?

Of course not. She returns far quicker than she left, arriving on her broom (side-saddle, naturally) and keeping well off the ground. Warehouses are large, and there should be a decent amount of head room for a decent flier like herself. She'll play a game of Keep-Away with the Werewolves if need be to help the others. They can't fly, after all.

The door simply EXPLODES in a shower of splinters, boxes behind blow up as well, and a single Eibon Family Shipping label flutters down to land on the ground at Hugh's feet.

Conversationally, Hugh adds, "It works on the Walking Dead, too. Interestin' story that."

Graham stands moving to form up at the doors it seems its go time. He holds his wand at the ready. He watches as Kat regains herself "What are you?" but he finds out what she's doing in the form of the cannon curse blasting at the door. Well they are going out of order but oh well it might buy them sometime after them being disoriented. When the door is blasted off at this point he'll point his wand "Wont hurt'em but maybe blind'em for a bit." "Lumos Solem!"

There is a flash of light from Graham's wand, but it doesn't seem to stop the three enormous wolves that come galloping out through the smoke of the blasted door, howling and showing yellowed, finger-sized fangs. Two head towards the Aurors, while one stops to sniff the air before he heads off in the direction that Rena went.

Hugh's wand was already up. As the wolves reach the doorway, still bunched up, he yells, "IMMOBILUS!"

The times in a woman's life that she doesn't wish to smell of Chanel No. 5 are few and far between - if she's of good taste. However, this is one of those times for Rena Lee. The Werewolf in question has NO difficulty in tracing her by smell alone, as she always carries the scent on her person.

With a whoosh, she sweeps into the warehouse, Doggie trailing a short distance behind. Pulling up to a stop, she wheels around and doesn't hesitate to throw a spell down at her pursuer. It's a fast one, meant only to buy time if she can before doing something more drastic: "Locomotor Mortis!" she cries, attempting to lock the werewolf's legs and bring him down momentarily.

The werewolves stumble as the floor beneath them suddenly tries to hold them in place. But they quickly recover after slowing only a moment. The largest one, shaggy and black, is still heading towards Rena, whose broom is rising.

Katherine seems to think along the same lines as Hugh because as he casts his spells she's also leading the wolves with her wand as she calls out, "Immobilus!" Ready to jump out the way in case the wolves manage to break through her spell she asks to everyone at large, "Were we authorized to use lethal spells if necessary?"

Well that didn't work, as ray doesn't seem to phase them. The wolves are free and don't stay frozen long either "Locomotor Mortis!" he will point at the nearest one. Graham hears Kat's words though speaking not in official terms but preservation "I don't think they are going to offer us quarter." He says quickly.

Hugh lets out a soft curse, but he's already tracking sideways, slightly, moving around. Possibly looking for a bit of street furniture as cover. His next move is targeted, "Incarcerous!"

Peregrine points his wand at one of the beasts and shouts, "Deprimo!" The advanced charm makes the pavement under the creature's paws start to crumble and collapse into a hole, but the beast jumps sideways, slowed but not stopped. Rena's charm strikes true, but doesn't seem to lock the wolf's legs, and Pete follows the scent of Channel upwards towards the broom. A huge muzzle comes within inches, close enough that the Auror can smell the rancid stink on his breath and feel the slavering jaws approach as they slam shut like a trap door with a crunching sound just beneath her heeled shoe. Kat, too, manages to strike, but while the wolf stumbles for a moment, it quickly recovers.

Peregrine shouts, "Defend yourselves!" His wand comes back up, just as another wolf is coming at him.

The Magistrate, who probably thought this job was retirement, moves to the side as the beat leaps at him. He is just half a step too slow, and while he avoids crushing jaws, sharp flaws rent his robes and score the flesh beneath. He gives a shout of pain.

The advantage of numbers means the wolves can't target all the MLE personnel at the same time. Doing her best to keep all the wolves in her peripheral vision Kat focuses on the biggest threat, the one attacking Peregrine. "Bombarda!" She's clearly decided that keeping the werewolves alive and unhurt is not a priority at the moment.

Rena is not above being scared. The essence of bravery is facing your fears in spite of your fear… And right now, she's absolutely terrified.

A sharp little scream escapes from her as she just barely manages to fly out of the reach of the snapping jaws of the Werewolf. For one uncanny instant, her eyes lock with his, and there is a sense of eerie recognition before she raises her wand to strike harder. Peregrine's cry of pain stops her momentarily. "Perry!" She cries, dismayed.

Refocusing with a shake of her head, she directs her wand at Pete: "You bastard - Bombarda!"

Once Perry gets hurt, it seems that the gloves are off, and at least two magical cannonballs are released, one by Rena and one by Katherine. The Aurors aim is true this time, and while werewolves are a hardy lot, they aren't likely to enjoy taking a blow that would rip through iron. Especially Pete, who is leaping at Rena at the time she fires, and takes a bombarda directly to the snout. He has time for one almost canine whuffle-whine of pain before he falls to the ground in a still-breathing but quite unconscious pile of wolf. Katherine's target, meanwhile, is taken on the side, and goes flying back into a wall with a thud. She stirs once, and then stops moving, tongue loling out, and her chest movements labored. The final wolf is leaping clear of Peregrine's portable hole when he's hit with a leg-locker curse that locks all four legs and sends him sprawling. The massive jaws snap around as he is unable to move, but still alert and… angry.

Shaken - genuinely shaken - Rena sits atop her broom in the air, shivering for a moment or two as the dust settles. Pete has been incapacitated, as has one of the others. Meanwhile, another is not fully taken care of, but the other Aurors can surely manage him/her/it before it's too late, right?

The broom sweeps quickly toward the ground beside Perry, and the young redhead stumbles onto her feet so quickly that she loses one of her shoes in the process. However, she doesn't seem to care. Lop-sided as her gate may be, she trots up to Peregrine and drops to her knees beside him, ignoring the fact that her skirt will get dirty. "Mister Urquart, are you alright?" She asks, anxiously. "Please be alright…"

Graham strikes with his leg-locker though this wont stop them long, but if it is held still and he's loathed to harm anything if it can be helped. The wolf cant be allowed to regain its footing and attack any of them either. He'll jab his wand quickly "Stupify." he fires the bolt of red light which strikes the wolf which quits struggling as it's rendered unconscious.

Peregrine is mostly okay, except for the large claw wound that goes across his chest and arm, with blood slowly dripping down his sleeve to make a puddle on the ground. He's got his cravat off and is bandaging it up as best he can and making a makeshift sling. "Oh, it's nothing, really, I'll be fine, fine. I really need to stop doing things like this. I'm nae a bairn anymore." He puts his hand out for a little help getting to his feet, "Let's go in and see what all this fuss was about, hrm?"

After taking a moment to make sure the wolf that attacked Peregrine is not getting back up Kat spins around and aims her wand at the last remaining wolf, figuring some ropes would might be a good idea. "Incarcerous!" sending out a mass of black ropes from the tip of her wand to envelop the stupefied wolf. Then she turns back to Peregrine and Rena, "Does either of you need some quick healing? I did bother to learn the Patch-up Spell for a reason."

Peregrine waves it away, "I dunnae think they gave away my bed at St. Mungo's quite yet, and this is a bit more than a patch job. But thank you. Let's just gather the evidence and get out of here." He takes his wand and points it upwards, "Periculum!" A flare shoots out and explodes in the air to call the waiting hit-wizard, and then he starts towards the warehouse.

Hugh shakes his head. It would seem that he's not bothered to learn it. But he's already padding towards the door, pausing only to put down his pipe equidistant from the wolves, and pointing his wand at it. "Tempero Tempestus." Yep. He's raising a mist imbued with wolfsbane smoke. Yep. That's what's in his pipe at present. And then he's heading towards the door. Because someone simply CANNOT leave well enough alone.

There may be some irony in the youngest helping the oldest of the group to his feet. Rena may be little, but she's tough and strong - in her own little way, and she carefully helps Peregrine regain his footing. "'E's bleeding quite a bit, Kat," she answers unhappily, speaking despite his objections to the contrary. "But 'e's too stubborn to admit it's a bad cut. It ain't a bite, though - so there's good news."

Battered and bruised, but unbeaten, the Aurors and Magistrate make their way into the factory. Courtesy of Hugh and Katherine, the boxes nearest the door have been turned into so much paste, but the others in the area bear Eibon shipping labels and reveal a selection of bric-a-brac. Tasteless as they may be, Appleby Arrow Bobbleheads are not illegal goods. The only item of interest are several boxes near the edges that are not Eibon labeled, but instead Avery. The Hit Wizards will certainly be interested in knowing how those came into this warehouse.

There are smaller, locked storerooms off the main one, though, and that is more interesting, for they contain a veritable plethora of illicit goods. Canisters of silver unicorn blood. A cage of baby Acromantulas - with more eggs waiting to hatch. And a selection of books, not so crass as to have been bound in human skin, but still giving off enough of an aura of dark magic that no one in their right mind would open one tonight. The evidence can be sorted through later, but for now, it is merely boxed and cataloged, the three wolves magically restrained and taken off to a suitable holding location to wait out the full moon.

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