Arc 4The Stable and the Arena

Nick investigated Steven Bamford’s death and uncovered an organ-harvesting operation, then entered the Movie Ticket’s alien arena with Dahlia and a group of strangers. The group survived their first attack by the arena’s creatures, but remained stranded on the alien world.

  • Nick and Hancock traced Steven Bamford’s death from his necklace to the free clinic, where Dr. Levin had treated him for a spider bite.
  • Nick and Monroe confronted Fox Wesen dealer Frederick Calvert, who admitted selling powders made from human organs and gave Nick the supplier’s number.
  • Nick and Dahlia used Gracie and Hansen to draw the kidnappers out, then joined Hancock and the ERT in raiding the Stable, where they rescued six survivors and Levin died fleeing.
  • After the FBI took over the case, Nick entered the Movie Ticket’s next instance with Dahlia and found himself parachuting into a rainforest with armed strangers.
  • Nick identified their situation as a Predator survival game, and the group discovered an Obsidian Pillar, dropped crates of dangerous creatures, traps, and evidence of earlier victims.
  • The group climbed beyond the rainforest and saw an alien planet beneath a ringed companion and shattered moons, then faced an attack by monsters.
  • Nick and Dahlia fought the creatures with the others, using Upas tree poison against one monster, until a strange whistle made the remaining attackers flee.
Chapters 77–103 Vol. 1 Read

Ch. 77The money-making plan

Nick reflected on the supernatural dangers around him and decided he and Dahlia needed more money for weapons, safe housing, and a secure identity for her. While Nick trained in Arizona, Dahlia made a profit shorting S&P 500 E-mini futures, growing their $80,000 stake to $185,000.

  • Nick concluded that gaining strength and legal firepower was essential because Wesen and unexplained magic could threaten him.
  • Nick and Dahlia considered buying a secure identity for her, which a Wesen black-market dealer offered for $150,000.
  • Nick planned to use the coming housing crisis to buy a backup property and considered Bitcoin too slow to meet their immediate needs.
  • Dahlia used $80,000 of Nick's savings as margin to short six S&P 500 E-mini futures contracts.
  • Two days before Nick returned to Portland, Dahlia's investment had grown to $185,000.

Ch. 78The Drowning Case

Nick and Hancock investigated a young man’s body found downstream from Multnomah Falls, where evidence on the victim’s neck suggested he had not simply drowned. The chapter left them poised to investigate a possible homicide.

  • Nick and Dahlia’s stock gains continued, but Nick’s Magic Movie Ticket remained less than half charged and his Hexenbiest investigation had stalled.
  • Andrew Wu called Nick and Hancock to examine a body suspected of having drowned near Multnomah Falls.
  • Hancock recoiled from the young man’s battered body, while Wu showed Nick the puka shell necklace found with it.
  • Nick examined the victim and questioned whether drowning explained his unusually pale skin.
  • Nick turned the victim’s head and revealed two bloody holes on the right side of his neck, making him suspect the death was not an accident.

Ch. 80Homeless teenagers

Nick and Hancock investigated the death of Steven Bamford, an eighteen-year-old homeless teenager whose autopsy showed he had been drained of blood before drowning. The case remained unexplained as Nick noticed the body had been found near the Labe family’s estate.

  • Harper Riley told Nick and Hancock that Steven Bamford had drowned after suffering severe blood loss, likely from an intravenous needle wound.
  • Harper suggested blood-draining rituals had appeared in past cult cases, and Nick teased her and Hancock about their history before Hancock hurried them out.
  • Nick and Hancock learned Steven had a record of minor offenses and used a post office box for people without permanent addresses.
  • Hancock noticed the waterfall lay upstream from the city, while Nick spotted the Labe family estate near a forest two kilometers from where the body was found.
  • Nick recalled Frank Rabe’s recent update about his family’s kidnapping case and decided against pursuing a closer relationship with the wealthy lawyer.

Ch. 81The Girl Selling Necklaces

Nick and Hancock traced Steven Bamford’s mailbox and a necklace he had given away to a homeless girl named Gracie. When Nick showed her Steven’s photograph, Gracie realized something had happened to him and broke down crying.

  • Nick and Hancock searched Steven Bamford’s postal box, but found only advertising mail and learned he had not collected mail for at least a month.
  • Hancock noticed a Puka shell necklace on a girl at the postal center, and Nick showed her Steven’s photograph.
  • The girl said she had traded for the necklace and directed the detectives to Gracie’s stall near the downtown square.
  • Nick and Hancock found Gracie selling handmade jewelry beside the fountain and asked about Steven.
  • Nick showed Gracie Steven’s photograph, and she began crying when she recognized him.

Ch. 82This Damned World

Nick and Hancock questioned Gracie and her brother about Steven Bamford’s death and learned that Steven had disappeared after being picked up for a job. The investigation led them to a free clinic, while Nick reflected on the harsh prospects facing people living on the streets.

  • Nick told Gracie that Steven’s body had been found, and her brother stepped in to protect her from the detectives.
  • Gracie and her brother said Steven had recently found a job and that someone had offered to pick him up, but they knew little else.
  • Gracie said the last time she saw Steven was when she and her brother took him to the free clinic on 15th Street for an infected bite.
  • Nick gave money to Gracie and her brother and took a necklace before he and Hancock left.
  • Nick and Hancock drove to the clinic, ate burritos in the car, and discussed the dangers faced by homeless people.

Ch. 83The clinic

Nick and Hancock investigated Steven Bamford’s medical history at a free clinic, where Dr. Levin recalled treating him for a spider bite. She said he had been malnourished but otherwise in fairly good health, leaving the detectives without evidence of prior anemia.

  • Nick and Hancock went to the free clinic and asked manager Tom Daniels about Steven Bamford.
  • Tom Daniels found Steven’s record and said he had been treated for a spider bite about five weeks earlier by Dr. Levin.
  • Hancock told Tom that Steven had died, and the manager arranged for the detectives to speak with Dr. Levin.
  • Dr. Levin said she had prescribed antibiotics for Steven’s spider-bite infection, but he had not returned for a follow-up.
  • Dr. Levin recalled that Steven had some malnutrition but no other major health problems.

Ch. 84Monroe Comes Calling

Nick invited Monroe to dinner so Dahlia could see a Wesen transform for herself, while he and Hancock planned to investigate farms along the river for the source of a possible case. Dahlia watched Monroe become a werewolf without fear, and the three shared dinner afterward.

  • Nick and Hancock decided to investigate farms along the river after leaving the clinic, then ended work for the day.
  • At home, Nick and Dahlia were interrupted while cooking when Monroe arrived with flowers.
  • Nick persuaded Monroe to show Dahlia his werewolf form, and Monroe transformed before her.
  • Dahlia reacted with curiosity rather than fear, and Nick warned her that Wesen could lose control if they transformed too often or stayed in beast form too long.
  • Nick served Monroe and Dahlia dinner, and the three chatted casually over the meal.

Ch. 85"80% receivers"

Nick and Hancock investigated a horrific traffic accident after Andrew Wu found what appeared to be transported human organs at the scene. The injured pickup driver revealed himself as a Wesen before collapsing, leaving Nick to focus on the man’s phone for clues.

  • Monroe agreed to join Nick and Dahlia in visiting a Fox Wesen black-market dealer to resolve Dahlia’s forged identity.
  • Dahlia demonstrated her sniper skills to Monroe, and she and Nick used 80% receivers to build a stock of automatic rifles.
  • Nick arrived at work planning to investigate farms upstream of Multnomah Falls, but Andrew Wu summoned him and Hancock to a multiple-vehicle crash.
  • Nick and Hancock found numerous human organs and blood bags spilled from the pickup, which they suspected were connected to Nick’s case.
  • The injured pickup driver’s face changed into a Wesen’s, and he collapsed after seeing Nick.
  • Nick gave Wu an evidence bag and asked him to check the driver’s BlackBerry.

Ch. 86A "False Alarm"?

Renard formed a task force after Nick and Hancock found evidence of a possible illegal human-tissue trafficking operation, though Nick doubted the organs were meant for transplants. As the investigation began, the detectives discovered the dead driver and the stolen truck were tied to false identities.

  • Renard reacted to Nick and Hancock’s report of human organ tissue and ordered a task force under his direct command, giving them forty-eight hours before the FBI might take over.
  • Nick explained that the organs’ transport conditions made transplantation unlikely, and the men considered whether they had been intended for another use.
  • Hancock found that the dead driver’s identity, Andrew Purbas, belonged to someone who had died in 2005 and was listed as an organ donor.
  • Nick reviewed records showing the truck was stolen and its license plate did not match its model.
  • Wu brought in the deceased’s belongings, including a credit card bearing the name Harry Calder, which Hancock suspected was another false identity.

Ch. 87Going to See a Lawyer

Nick investigated the cases involving a Vulture and visited lawyer Frank Rabe to ask about the monsters near Multnomah Falls. Frank denied involvement in illegal dealings and began explaining a connection to herbal medicine.

  • Wu reported that the phone from the scene had no useful information, while Nick learned its SIM card was unregistered and planned to seek a warrant for location data.
  • Hancock showed Nick that the dead driver's fingerprints matched a phantom identity tied to six Oregon theft cases.
  • Nick went to the Willamette Law Group, where Frank Rabe greeted him and brought him to his office.
  • Nick described the recent cases, including the human organs and blood at the crash site and the driver's Vulture transformation, and asked about the creatures near Multnomah Falls.
  • Frank denied any involvement in dealings with Vultures and asked Nick whether he knew about herbal traditional Chinese medicine.

Ch. 88The deal

Nick learned that Vultures sold medicines made from human organs and tracked down a Fox Wesen dealer with Monroe and Dahlia. The dealer mistook Nick and Dahlia for Blutbaden and offered them discounted false identities, leaving Nick to test whether he could deliver.

  • Frank Rabe told Nick that a Fox Wesen in the city dealt in medicines made from human organs, and Nick suggested they could be friends.
  • Nick persuaded Monroe to ask the Fox dealer about the goods, and Monroe reluctantly agreed to help.
  • Nick drove Monroe and Dahlia to Calvert Tea and Spice Shop, where Monroe revealed his Blutbad form to the shopkeeper.
  • The shopkeeper revealed his Fox Wesen form, locked the door, and offered the group discounted false identities.
  • Nick concealed that he was a Grimm and asked whether the shopkeeper could deliver an identity for his wife.

Ch. 89Calvert Tea and Spice Shop (Part One)

Nick and Monroe investigated a Calvert Tea and Spice Shop that sold false identities and human gallbladder, then Nick returned and exposed the shopkeeper as a Fox Wesen. The shopkeeper recognized Nick as a Grimm and begged for his life.

  • Dahlia paid the Fox Wesen shopkeeper a deposit for identity documents, and Monroe bought a bottle of supposed fresh merchandise.
  • Nick and Monroe left the shop, and Monroe gave Nick the bottle to test instead of confronting the shopkeeper.
  • A Forensic Laboratory researcher confirmed that the bottle mainly contained ground human gallbladder and that some organs from the crash scene matched Steven Bamford’s DNA.
  • Nick returned to the shop while Hancock went to update Inspector Raynard, then confronted the shopkeeper about the merchandise.
  • Nick pinned the Fox Wesen shopkeeper to the floor, and the terrified man transformed, recognized Nick as a Grimm, and begged not to be killed.

Ch. 90Calvert Tea and Spice Shop (Part Two)

Nick pressured Frederick Calvert into revealing his organ-powder supplier and destroying his stock, then joined Renard and Hancock to discuss the investigation. The chapter left the police pursuing the supplier’s phone and the free clinic’s records for a lead to the victims.

  • Nick threatened Frederick Calvert until he admitted that a supplier delivered organ powders weekly and gave Nick the supplier’s phone number.
  • Nick identified the dead Vulture driver as Frederick’s usual deliveryman and made Frederick destroy his stock of powders made from human organs.
  • Renard told Nick and Hancock that investigators had found no recent cult tied to cannibalistic rituals, while Nick suggested the powders were sold as a form of mystical herbalism.
  • Nick told Renard and Hancock that the supplier’s prepaid phone could be tracked when switched on.
  • Nick pointed out that the organ donors were young and healthy, leading Hancock to realize that a free clinic for homeless people might hold their medical records.

Ch. 91An invitation to dinner

Nick invited Dahlia, Gracie, and Hansen to dinner as part of his plan to investigate the Vultures and learn more about Steven’s death. After the siblings ate, Hansen began explaining how he and Gracie had ended up homeless.

  • Dahlia questioned Nick's plan, but he said setting a trap was the fastest way to investigate the free clinic and asked her to bring her gun and Monroe.
  • Nick and Dahlia found Gracie and her brother packing up their necklaces at the square, and Nick invited them to dinner to discuss Steven.
  • Hansen guarded Gracie and initially refused, but Gracie accepted Nick's invitation to the Skyline Restaurant.
  • Nick let the siblings eat before discussing the case and ordered them burgers to go when he saw how hungry they were.
  • Hansen thanked Nick and said that he and Gracie were from Idaho and had become homeless because of their lousy parents.

Ch. 92Nick's Deal

Nick questioned Hansen and Gracie about Steven’s disappearance and learned that Kevin had vanished after accepting a job offered by a man in a white van. As Nick pursued the investigation and promised to help the siblings, a man stopped them in the rain while a white van approached.

  • Nick asked Hansen and Gracie whether anyone else had disappeared after taking a job, and Gracie revealed that Kevin had left with Steven for work paying ten dollars an hour.
  • Gracie explained that Kevin had invited her to go with him, but she had stayed behind because Hansen was sick; Nick then offered to help the siblings escape homelessness after asking whether they used drugs.
  • Nick told Dahlia that phone signals had led police to a remote area near Merto Road, but he suspected the missing people were still hidden in the forest near Multnomah Falls.
  • Nick asked Hancock to relay his theory to Inspector Raynard, while he and Dahlia waited outside the clinic for Hansen and Gracie.
  • After leaving the clinic, Hansen and Gracie discussed Nick’s offer as a man approached and recognized Gracie as a girl who sold necklaces; a white van slowly came up behind them.

Ch. 94Raid on the Farm (Part Two)

Nick, Hancock, and the ERT raided the farm and rescued the captives, but Levin escaped into the woods and died in the burning corpse pit. The FBI took over the case, and Nick learned that Kevin had been killed and that the gang had claimed at least a hundred victims.

  • Hancock spotted Levin preparing to operate on a captive and fired, triggering the raid while Nick stormed the Stable with the ERT.
  • Nick and the officers killed the guards and assistant, secured the survivors, and Nick pursued Levin out the back of the Stable.
  • Nick found Levin transformed with talons and feathers; after she cried out “Grimm!” and fled, she fell into the burning corpse pit.
  • Nick learned that police had rescued six survivors and that Kevin had been recaptured, dismembered, and burned.
  • FBI agents Koenig and Deville arrived with evidence of crimes across several states, and the PPB yielded jurisdiction to them.

Ch. 95Dead on landing (part one)

Renard offered Nick political praise and support for helping the Hansen siblings, while Nick prepared to enter another Movie Ticket instance with Dahlia. The instance separated them and dropped Nick from the sky over a rainforest, leaving him unable to find his parachute’s ripcord.

  • Renard told Nick he hoped he would become the youngest police chief in Portland Police Bureau history, while Nick privately planned not to stay in the city that long.
  • Nick asked Renard to help Hansen and Gracie, and Renard approved bureau assistance and wrote them a personal check for five thousand dollars.
  • Dahlia insisted on accompanying Nick into the next instance, joking that she did not want him bringing back another pretty girl.
  • Nick entered the instance with Dahlia, but found himself alone in midair with parachutes he could not operate and a red-flashing device shrieking on his chest.

Ch. 96Dead on landing (part two)

Nick landed in a strange rainforest, learned his mission was to survive and escape an alien arena, and encountered armed strangers. After a minigun attack, Dahlia appeared with a Russian gunner, bringing Nick together with the companions he needed to find.

  • Nick survived a rough parachute landing, reset his dislocated shoulder, and saw the Movie Ticket’s mission to escape the alien arena with two companions.
  • Nick discovered he had taken over the mercenary Royce and found himself equipped with weapons and survival gear in an unfamiliar rainforest.
  • A ponytailed man armed with two Uzis landed nearby and confronted Nick, but a falling corpse briefly calmed him.
  • A nearby shooter opened fire with a minigun, forcing Nick and the armed man to take cover until Dahlia shouted that the attacker was down.
  • Nick met Dahlia, the ponytailed man, and a Russian carrying an XM556 beside the body of a parachutist killed in the fall.

Ch. 97A gathering of talent (Part 1)

Nick, Dahlia, Machete, and Nikolai compared how they had been dropped into a jungle and examined the device that had controlled their parachutes. Nick recognized their situation as a Predator battle royale, and the group discovered a silent man watching them from behind.

  • Nick, Machete, Nikolai, and Dahlia introduced themselves and shared that they had been fighting in different places before waking up in midair.
  • Dahlia suggested finding other survivors, and Nick examined a dead Marine whose parachute had failed to open.
  • Nikolai explained that a strange black disc had made noises before his parachute opened, and Nick identified their predicament as a Predator sequel's survival game.
  • Nick took an M4 and ammunition from the dead Marine for Dahlia, then gave Nikolai an M1911 and warned him to conserve his Gatling ammunition.
  • Nick noticed an expressionless Asian man in a silver-gray suit standing behind the group, and the others raised their weapons.

Ch. 98A cast of talents (Part two)

Nick gathered a group of armed strangers in a strangely lifeless rainforest and led them toward higher ground to survey the terrain. The group followed him, while the mystery of how they had arrived and why the jungle lacked wildlife remained unresolved.

  • Dahlia led Nick, Nikolai, Machete, and Hanzo through a forest where they found no animals, insects, or tracks.
  • Nick stopped Stan and Mombasa from fighting and persuaded them to postpone their grudge while they investigated their situation.
  • Dahlia shot through a branch to drop Edwin from a tree into a shallow pool, and Nick noted the lack of tracks around the water.
  • Stan, Mombasa, Edwin, and Hanzo shared their names and accounts of how they had lost consciousness before appearing in the jungle.
  • Nick chose to follow a stream uphill to find high ground, and Dahlia, Nikolai, Machete, Hanzo, and Edwin went with him.

Ch. 99A strange totem

Nick's group found a strange, metallic Obsidian Pillar surrounded by human bones and debated why they had been brought to the jungle. Nick dismissed their fears that they were dead or trapped in an illusion, urged them to work together, and continued investigating the pillar.

  • Hanzo scouted ahead and stopped in a clearing where he found a strange Obsidian Pillar.
  • Nick and the others examined the pillar and the heap of bones beneath it, including human skulls.
  • Edwin vomited when Nick asked him to identify the bones, while Mombasa suggested they were trophies.
  • The group speculated about an alien arena, a test, an experiment, or an afterlife, and several revealed they had faced imminent death before arriving.
  • Nick rejected the idea that they were dead or in a virtual world, urged the group to search for a way out, and struck the pillar with his machete, hearing a metallic clang.

Ch. 100Upas tree

Nick and the others found empty metal crates that suggested they had been dropped into the rainforest alongside dangerous creatures, while their instruments stopped working as they climbed toward higher ground. The group’s progress ended abruptly when a vine snared Stan and hoisted him into the air.

  • Nick identified an upas tree, warned Nikolai and Edwin that its sap was lethal, and collected some in a plastic container.
  • Nick guided the group uphill as the rainforest changed, then stopped them when he spotted an open metal crate beneath a parachute.
  • Hanzo uncovered the crate, releasing oversized black beetles and revealing a lining stained with bloody fluid.
  • The group found more empty crates, and Nick reasoned that they and the creatures had been deliberately dropped into the rainforest; Hanzo compared the setup to raising gu.
  • The group advanced cautiously as the rainforest thinned and their watches and compass malfunctioned.
  • Mombasa stumbled, and a vine caught Stan and lifted him upside down.

Ch. 101Traps

Nick and the others survived a series of jungle traps and discovered the corpse of a SEAL who had arrived before them. The group suspected a dangerous, intelligent beast had killed him, and Dahlia spotted a clean section of the machete clutched in his hand.

  • Nikolai tackled Edwin and Machete to safety as Nick pulled Dahlia beneath a tree, while Hanzo narrowly escaped a spiked trap after rolling into its path.
  • Dahlia climbed a tree and spotted a target 110 meters away, but lowered her rifle when she saw it was already dead.
  • The group lowered Stan and, with Nikolai's help, found several stake-lined pits and a decomposed SEAL corpse nearby.
  • Nick examined the corpse's chest wound and concluded that a powerful weapon had blasted through it from behind, while the others considered what might have killed the soldier.
  • Nick and Nikolai turned the corpse over, and Dahlia noticed that part of the machete in its left hand was still bright and clean.

Ch. 102On a Moon

Nick and the others discovered they had been taken to an alien moon and struggled to decide what to do next. As they headed down the mountain, an unseen creature howled overhead and growled from the bushes.

  • Nick gave Hanzo a strange blade and handed Stan a rusty pistol, which Hanzo supplied with a magazine.
  • Mombasa spotted a distortion near the treetops, and Nick warned Dahlia that Predators might be watching them.
  • The group climbed out of the rainforest and saw a vast planet, its ringed companion, and two shattered moons in the sky.
  • Machete demanded that Nick explain how they could return, but Nick proposed finding a place to rest while he considered their options.
  • A strange howl swept around the group, Stan fired at the sky, and a bestial growl answered from the bushes.

Ch. 103Encounter

Nick and the others fought off a pack of fast, spike-backed monsters in the rainforest, though the attack scattered their group. Nick discovered that poison from an Upas tree could weaken the creatures, and the remaining monsters fled after Hanzo killed one with his blade.

  • Machete opened fire when a monster attacked, and Nikolai’s Gatling killed it before more creatures emerged from the grass.
  • Nick and Dahlia fired controlled bursts while the others panicked; Machete fled, Hanzo drew his curved blade, and Edwin ran from the fight.
  • The monsters split up to flank the group, and Mombasa kicked a creature off Stan before killing it with his AK.
  • Nick struck a monster with his Bolo knife, and poison from the Upas tree sap made it stagger and pant; Dahlia joined him as they waited for it to weaken.
  • Hanzo beheaded another monster with his curved blade, and the remaining creatures fled into the grass after a strange whistle sounded.
Arc 4 of 9