Gang symbols are a new thing on campus. There's the S/C, which you see spray painted (or paw and hoof painted?) on walls and buildings. It stands for the Stimulus Committee. There's the big shrimp tag -- that's for the Shrimp Chimps. And most lately the H-C-CL stencil you see tagged on the bus stop and on transformers and things. That's for the Chloroform Kids.

Even though I study a lot, I'm not a total square -- but I really don't know anybody who's part of any of these gangs. Isn't tagging some kind of art kid thing? Do we really have "criminal gangs" on campus? I have to say I really don't get it.

We had a scare in @Candi Wolfe's car tonight. We had gone to the pop-up psychic arcade that's in town, in the empty video store at the end of the strip mall with the Pet Co in it. It was one of those totally unsanctioned arcades--unsanctioned by the school or any of the psychic regulatory commissions. They usually get shut down by Psycops in a couple days, so they never stick around for long. It's kind of a rite of passage for all Psyhigh students to visit them when they come to town. Naturally I didn't tell my parents.

They're not really that dangerous--those kind of games won't really "break your mind" like they say they will. Unless you played one for hours maybe. But there's no chance of that because it seems like every junior and senior in school is there and wants a turn.

But on the way home, this big black muscle car pulled up next to us at a stoplight and started revving its engine. Candi said it was a Fantasm. It had tinted windows so you couldn't see in, and a small H-C-CL stencil in white on the side of the door. It was Chloroform Kids.

They started up their stereo but I think technically it was more of a sonic weapon because immediately the thudding of the mega ultra bass cracked all of Joyce's windows. That's Candi's car's name. Joyce.

When the light changed, Joyce took off. Candi wasn't even touching the wheel or the gas. Joyce was taking matters into her own hands. But the Chloroform Kids stayed right on our tail.

There was tire screeching and quick turns around blind alleys and Joyce shut her headlights off and we couldn't even see where we were going. Then Joyce backed herself into space between a container and a loading dock and turned herself off. We waited till we saw the Fantasm drive by. It kept on moving, and we heard the thudding fade off into the distance.

Joyce let Candi take the wheel and she drove me home by the back streets. And I had her text me to let me know she got home safe. She just texted. We're both still kind of freaked out.

After getting chased home on Friday, I just threw myself into homework all weekend. Who are the Chloroform Kids anyway? Do they go to Psyhigh? There's plenty of other paranormal high schools out there--like Satanic High and Mildly Paranoid High and Antediluvian Academy--all of which are within the Tri-cities area. Or maybe they go to Supernatural VR Academy online? Or they could be demonic dropouts I suppose.

In any case, neither @Candi Wolfe or I are in a hurry to go late-night cruising in her old Volvo any time soon. Her dad was able to fix the windows (I guess you can melt shattered glass back together with the right chants) so Joyce is right as rain. Candi told him it was all from a cheerleader routine that went wrong at the pep rally. She didn't dare tell him anything about the Chloroform Kids or he'd never let her out at night again.

I have even more homework tonight. Extrasensory Processing stuff. You know--when they have you put your hand in a black velvet bag with shapes in it and you have to figure out what each one is just by feeling? It's one of those, but the bag is huge, and full of mostly non-euclidian shapes. For instance, I've got a non-euclidian chicken shape in my hand right now.

Guess that's a sign that it's time to visit the Chicken Lady again. I wonder what I'm doing tomorrow after school?

The Chicken Lady had two cups of tea ready when I arrived at her campsite. Just like she was expecting me. I assumed the chickens had told her. They were milling around with their masks on.

She looked at me and said "Creeping Charlie."

"I'm sorry what?"

"The tea. It's Creeping Charlie. Grows everywhere around here."

I realized that I wanted to tell her about the Chloroform Kids. I certainly wasn't going to tell any other adults about what happened, but somehow the woman who lived in a tent in the forest with masked chickens that told the future didn't count.

She asked me "Have you seen one in the flesh?"

I had just taken the first sip of my tea. It was horrible.

"No, just their tags around campus. And that car, but the windows were tinted."

She said "They sound like Witchfinder GPS types. And obviously there's chemicals involved. They obviously want to make that clear."

She got up to shoo the chickens back toward their pen. "They're part of the dissociative fallout of the Reality Accident. Meaning evaporates, and it leaves people dried up and mindless. Marionettes made from gristle and bone. They're left without energy, without POWER, so they need stimulants, whether it's hunting witches or huffing chloroform. But it's not really chloroform, I'm sure. That's just in stories. There's all kinds of new chemicals every day... don't they have somewhere at your school where they make them?"

I'm a science person, but this term all my science classes are theoretical. I hadn't had any reason to go to the labs. Till now, I guess.

I haven't been getting many visitors in my wing of the Science Lab--not since @Rather Large Rabbit and @JJ Cricket helped me barricade the doors. I need to concentrate on my work full time, and can't have pesky do-gooders nosing around. I've got investors to consider nowadays, and they are very demanding...

However, they're not very discerning. They'll take anything I mix up and dump into a 30 gallon barrel. So I've been going easy on the good stuff that @Bobby Mars brought by, and I'm just making sure whatever I pour into the barrels doesn't explode. I've even got the @Bimpliboos helping me with rolling them out to the clients... some to the loading dock, some to the landing field at night, and some into the woods. It's quite an operation.

Which is why I didn't have time to meet with our student body president or whoever she is when she came by to visit today. @Carol Song should find a real job and quit harassing hard working students like myself.

I made a complaint to Bill Weeener, faculty head of the Scientia department, about not being able to access the northwest wing of the science labs. He told me the wing was officially "checked out" to a student named @Marthew17 for independent study in psychic cosmetics development. He framed it like it was a great thing about how Psyhigh encouraged innovation in psychic STEM, and shouldn't I be proud that the school offered such great opportunities...?

Whatever. Something seems super sketchy about it all, but I don't really feel like leading a criminal investigation. Isn't that what campus security is for? Or the PsyCops?

@Candi Wolfe and I even got our courage up to go driving last night. Thankfully, we saw no big black muscle cars and no Chloroform Kids. But definitely more of their H-C-CL tags out there if you know where to look.

Joyce (Candi's old hand-me-down Volvo) insisted on doing the driving. Candi kept her hands loosely on the steering wheel--just for looks--but that wheel was moving on its own the whole time. Gas and brakes too. After some cautious sneaking around on back streets, Joyce was anxious to take us up into the hills, and we ended up on the one they call Warlock Mountain. It's called that because once upon a time somebody said they saw a bunch of people in black robes gathered on the summit in some kind of ritual, calling down purple fire or lightning or something. Purple definitely is always part of the story whenever you hear it.

We didn't find any warlocks, but we did find a clearing with a boulder with a big iron spike driven into it. By then it was pretty dark and late though, and we didn't want some Chloroform Kids to suddenly appear, drifting in with their headlights off, quietly crunching over the gravel with their fat six rubber tires. So Candi took me home.

PEST REMOVAL NOTICE from Panther & Bear Psychic Pest Removal Service.

Hi.

This is Jimbo Hawkins from Panther & Bear Psychic Pest Removal Service, and we wanted to let you know we'll be in your area working on your psychic pest problem. @Janitor Pete has called us in to work on your infestation issues, which we have determined includes both mutation and mythological vector components, and will require the use of Glamour Traps, Mesmerizing Potions, Bedazzling Riddles, and Baiting Melodies. If you or your pets are susceptible to any of these techniques, we ask you to steer clear of the Rickety Bridge over the Little Huber Creek to the southeast of campus as well as the yards adjacent to the Sceince Labs for the next few days. Also, please report any sitings of dangerous or distracting psychic pests directly to us for categorization and removal. @Janitor Pete has provided a list of student contacts including @Klarya, @Carol Song, @Fawn, @Glitter, and more. Please contact us if your name needs to be added to this list.


Sincerely,

Jimbo Hawkins
Panther & Bear Psychic Pest Removal Service
"We take care of pesky pests!"

We don't like that mean old man from @Panther and Bear no siree we do not like him at ALL! First we get squished by that fat cricket and that bouncey house but now that mean old pesty man is scooping us up in buckets and throwing us in the chopper! Oooooooo we don't like that chopper upper one bit no we don't it takes us HOURS to reconstitute our molecules! But for every one of us that gets chopped up we turn into five tiny babies so our population is GROWING and we are getting into all the tiny spaces even more and all your nooks and crannies. LUUUUV USSSSSSSSS!!!!!

I'm really upset with Psyhigh for hiring a psychic pest removal firm that uses such inhumane methods as @Panther and Bear. I have only been here for a couple of months and in that short time I've been lucky to be involved in the dolphin liberation support activity with @Jen Hex and really felt that the psychic justice focus of this school was in line with my personal beliefs. But now I am shocked -- SHOCKED -- that the school would hire a firm with such an unethical track record as Panther and Bear.

And if you're one of the students I have accidentally zapped and now has a tiny chicken head, please be sure to keep your student ID with you if Panther and Bear tries to shake you down.

To @Panther and Bear pest removal service

Pest Report:

Suspected Pest Species: Ahuizotl
Location(s) Sighted at: Beneath or near that rickety old bridge by the forest. (You'll know it when you see it)
Reason For Report: Numerous animal carcasses (mainly squirrels and rabbits) found without eyes or teeth. Second and first hand reports of infant-like cries coming from the area. Concern that the next victim could be a student or one of the fae-favored woodland creatures.

Additional Notes:
If you can, please remove this creature through peaceful methods! From what I've seen, I wouldn't be surprised if this was still only a little pup.

Additional additional notes:
Do you have any Blimpaboo repellent? There's so many in my room I can't take a step without almost squishing a little guy....