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[It's been a while since Hellboy's shown his face. Not since the zombie attack. Truth be told, he hasn't felt all that social over the last week or so. Liz is gone again. He's not really sure how he feels about that. But her absence has got him thinking, and too much thinking lead to old habits that really do die hard. He spends most of the week at the bottom of a bottle holed up in his living room, staring at the intricate star chart that had been given to him by a stranger. Trying to make sense of things. Just trying to figure out how this fits into the big picture.

He thinks a lot about Liz, and the seed of an idea she planted just before she disappeared. She'd wanted to start some type of Bureau here, and maybe that wasn't such a bad idea. If there's one thing the Foreigners needed, it was organization. And if there was one thing Hellboy needed, it was a distraction. This could very well be a recipe for both.

Though he's dubious of his actual organizational skills. His strategy for everything was almost always to plunge in head-first without any kind of preparation. He was nothing like Bruttenholm or even Manning, but he could damn well try. He'll do it for Liz.

So he cleans himself up a little, or about as much as Hellboy ever does, and puts on his best game face. (Which, when your face is mostly stuck like that, is never hard.)

The feed starts with a steady silence and a level, golden-eyed gaze. Then he realizes the thing is actually on and begins.

Here goes nothin'...]

Anyone who knew her, Elizabeth Sherman disappeared about a week ago.

[He can't say for certain she's back in their world. There's no way of telling that for sure. He tries not to think about it too hard.]

Before she left she proposed getting together an organization similar to the one we worked for back in our world here on the Turtle. For anyone who's not familiar, I'll give you a quick run-down.

It's called the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense, an organization that studies the paranormal around the world and is responsible for fighting off any big nasties that might pop up in the meantime. Ghosts, demons, vampires, you name it.

Most of our employees are researchers, like to paw through rotting manuscripts and study trolls. Me... they just send me in when things get messy. Though I've trained plenty of new agents before.

I'm not really the administrative type. So if anyone's willing to help get this off the ground, I'd appreciate it. What we really need are people interested in the actual research end of things. Though field agents aren't a bad thing either.

I know a few people spoke to Liz in her first message. I'd like to speak to them again if I can. Just let me know if you're interested and what you might be able to bring to the table. Maybe we might start making sense of this place.

[Yeah, this sure won't be his father's Bureau, but it might be something.]

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[ She nods. Science was bred into her. She may not have as much experience as her father, but she certainly has his latent talent. Along with the scientific advances Krypton held over Earth. ]

I was going to join the Science Guild back home. I've worked in a lab before.

[Interesting...]

What kind of lab?

[He will always be leery of scientists. He's had too many bad experiences not to be.]

Genetics. And sometimes I help Father with his work, too. He does a lot of geology and practical applications of chemistry.

[...Genetics. Great.

Okay, so he knows most people don't reach the levels crazy of Von Klempt or the various, more twisted researchers at the Bureau. He just needs to get beyond that knee-jerk reaction.]

I don't know much about the science end of things. Most of what I do is out in the field. But if there's something you can do to help figure this place out, that's fine by me.

I'll do the best I can, but I'm not sure how much I'll be able to learn without help. [ Or a lab. Or conventional Kryptonian tools of science. The x-ray vision should help, but apart from that she's practically scientifically helpless. ]

We can try. If you need something, let me know. We'll just have to figure out how to get it.

[ She's quiet for a moment while she thinks. She frowns, and chews her nail some more before speaking again. ]

Did Agent Sherman leave any equipment behind? A lab maybe?

[Did Liz leave a...? Okay, that's kind of funny for some weird reason. Maybe it's just the idea of Liz in a lab. Luckily he's not prone to laughter, his mouth just twists in an odd way that's supposed to be a smile. What it actually looks like is some kind of grimace.]

Nah, that really wasn't her thing. But if you make a list of equipment you need, I'll do my best to find it.

[ That is. A very strange expression. She isn't really sure what to think of it, as she's a pretty good judge of character and he doesn't make her uneasy. But she isn't sure how to read it either. ]

I suppose if I find something I need to examine in a lab I'll figure out what I need from there.

[Story of his life.]

Good a start as any.

I'll be in touch then. Thank you.

[Hellboy nods once, feeling like he should be the one doing the thanking. He really does appreciate everyone's willingness to help.]

Take care.

[He'll contact her again in a few days.]

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