Justice Avengers: A Black Day in Hub City

Outside the Hydra Warehouse

For a moment, Tandy was convinced that she and Ty were going to die, and the sudden release of gas was a relief in comparison to the explosion and sudden death she expected.

Tandy had no problem with breathing in the smoke- she didn't technically need to breathe anymore- but she couldn't see the man anywhere. Her anger faded, replaced with worry; while she chased revenge Ty could very well be dying.

Tandy landed near her brother and felt for his pulse; to her relief, it was still there. After teleporting them just outside the smoke cloud, she pulled the dart out of Ty's arm.

He started twitching before shooting up into a sitting position. "Did he get away?"

Tandy's response was a quiet "Sorry."

"Don't be. I'm the one who apparently can't hit the broad side of a barn." Ty was trying to be jovial, but Tandy noticed an undercurrent of genuine frustration.

"The warehouse seems to be important. We should keep watch." Shadow daggers shaped themselves in Ty's hands, and Tandy floated above him, her light casting shadows upon Ty. It was a trick they had figured out that served to psych their opponents out and keep their eyes on Cloak while Dagger took them out.

A rooftop near the Hydra warehouse

Carefully leaning over the edge, Spymaster, after waiting to make sure he had not been followed, brought out a cell phone and sent the following text message via an untraceable number:

"Mission aborted. Unknown parties interfered, both inside and outside. Currently monitoring events from a safe distance. Instructions?"

A few seconds later came the answer: "Continue observations. Report anything ASAP."

"Understood"

On the other end, Anarky cursed. His plans required the acquisition of the Serpent Crown, which Hydra (presumably) currently possessed. He might have to be more overt to achieve his ends.

The enormous mechanical being was incapable of registering surprise or bewilderment, and so even a de-aged mobster in his underwear dropping down from the sky and yelling blue murder wasn't enough to phase it. It did, however, come equipped with an alarm system, which manifested as a loud siren that played as it stumbled about, trying to dislodge the maniac on its face. The other sentinels registered the alarm, and started convening in that direction. One came stomping straight past the actual, unconscious Silvermane.

Slide Wilson's speech was met with great applause by the crowd, with even the proctor joining in with some polite clapping. "Thank you, Mister Wilson," he said, "Stirring stuff. Now, for the second candidate we have today, who was in fact the second to begin her campaign for mayorship just the other day. By this point, I'd say we're committed to going in reverse order." He held for laughter, of which there was a small amount. "Ladies and Gentlemen, Larisa Canips!"

Through the walls of the building, Cloak and Dagger could hear the sounds of commotion within. Rapid gunfire, yelps from the guards and generally a lot of loud clanging and banging as the guards grappled with the intruder.

Streets of Hub City

Silvermane got groggily to his feet. He didn't even know he could still be knocked out anymore, so he supposed that was some good information to have. He ran after the Sentinel that stomped past him and leaped up, trying to drive both fists through the back of its knee.

Carl Manfredi, meanwhile, was attempting to rip the eyeballs out of the Sentinel he was fighting.

Spiral joined in the gentle applause after Slade spoke, and then straightened herself. "Thank you, thank you," she said, responding to the applause she herself was given. "As you know, my name is Larisa Canips, currently the acting CEO of Good Mojo Entertainment. While I grew up in my home city Los Angles, crime and corruption were things that were frequent enough to be common place. Every city has them in some capacity no matter how great or small, even in that sterling beacon of America, Metropolis. How much crime and corruption is often indicative of how healthy a City is, and Hub City, to be frank.........well.........to say Hub City is on life support would be charitable assumption. Most people in the nation would compare Hub City to a dying dog that needed to be put out of its misery.

"Myself, on the other hand, instead saw something else," she continued. "I saw this City actually has a fighting chance to truly live again, to be healthy and happy. But in order to do that, we need some massive upheavals to the system, change how this City fundamentally works. Yes, this City is going through turbulent times, but what better time than now to build a new foundation just as the old ones are about to break?

"Thank you, and good luck to my opponents," she finished, humbly bowing her head to the audience.

edited 21st Aug '16 3:04:26 PM by UdtheImp

Anarky's Hideout

The young villain slammed a fist on his desk in angry frustration. His minion, Spymaster, had failed to procure the Serpent Crown from Hydra, and without it he could not bargain for Morgan Le Fey's aid against his nemesis, Spiral. And now the latter -in disguise- was taking part in the public debate for Hub City mayor; this was the moment he had been waiting for, to strike while she was distracted. But he had to do it in a way that drew no traces to him. She was too dangerous.

He sat still a few minutes, hands steepled, lost deep in thought.

Eventually, he came to a decision.

He reached for his phone, and sent an anonymous message to one Adam Strange: "Mr. Strange. You might wish to investigate the following orbital coordinates. You will find something there that threatens the safety of Earth."

edited 20th Aug '16 3:28:43 PM by Sijo

Hydra Warehouse

In a flash of light, Cloak and Dagger disappeared from the rooftop and reappeared inside the warehouse.

"Who among you will challenge the Lady of Light and the Duke of Darkness?" Ty announced, shadow daggers appearing in both hands. Tandy hovered above him, looking ethereal and slightly creepy and trying not to laugh.

edited 20th Aug '16 8:56:15 PM by emilyorthoclase

The sentinel was immediately alerted to the presence of Silvermane on its ankle. It turned to look down, and, after a brief identification, sent out the same klaxon as the sentinel before it. You will cease resisting arrest. It said, before swinging the leg with him on into the neighbouring building's wall, slamming him into it repeatedly while reiterating You will cease resisting arrest. You will cease resisting arrest.

The robot at Carl's mercy was down to about forty percent of its original vision when it registered the alarm. Arresting Silvio Manfredi took priority over defending oneself from another Silvio Manfredi. Vision compromised. Attempting global positioning. Carl was in for a wild ride as the machine went blundering off in the direction of the siren. The GPS memory was a tad outdated, so there would be a couple of face-first collisions along the way.

Cloak and Dagger found the guards in the middle of battling the Steel Serpent. As the two made their grandiose entrance, two thirds of the room pointed their guns at them, and the ones directly around the Serpent paused in the middle of restraining the man to stare at the two kids. "Are you fucking kidding m-" one began, but Serpent took the opportunity to take the upper hand, flipping said guard onto his ass and landing lighting quick blows in the rest.

A more subdued applause for a more subdued speech came around. "Very inspiring," said the proctor. "And now, last, but certainly not least, the rest to step up and present himself for the role of mayor. Ladies and gentlemen, need I introduce our distinguished guest, Mr Harvey Dent."

Hydra Warehouse

Tandy floated above the armed men, drawing their fire and letting the bullets phase through her, while Ty threw his daggers at the men, staying in the shadows to avoid their attention.

Tandy caught Steel Serpent's eye and waved at him. "Hi! I'm Cloak, and he's Dagger. Are you a superhero too?"

Two Face walked out onto the stage, waving at the crowd before coming to a halt at the podium.

"People of Hub City. As most of you know, I am Harvey Dent. Allow me a moment to explain why I am the most suitable candidate for the office of Mayor. First, a glance at my opponents."

We have Mr Wilson. While I have not had a chance to glance over his milltary record, I am sure he was a fine soldier. However, he lacks experence in goverment office, and the post of goverment offical demands a diffrent skillset then the battlefield."

"As for my other opponent, Ms Canips, I am afraid her viewpoint is rather....flawed. Were she to have her way, we would face nothing less then anarchy. Change is needed to fix the problems of Hub City, this I do not contest. However, a total upheaval of the system that has been in place since the founding of this city will only cause many more problems then it solves. And, again, I will point to the inexperence of my opponent in goverment offices."

"As for me, many of you know my history. I have been many things, most notably District Attorney for one of the most crime ridden cities in America and, later, during a darker period in my history crime boss. I have been on both sides of the law, and this has given me a unique viewpoint on the criminal mind and how it works. This, on top of my prior experence as Gotham's District Attorney, makes me the mos qualfied to tackle the gang problems our city now faces."

Two Face ended his speech and looked to the annoncer.

edited 21st Aug '16 7:31:51 PM by Meanken

Slade had to hold back a few glares and growls towards Larissa. After all, he wasn't supposed to openly antagonize her. They had just agreed on attacking Dent from different sides of the battlefield, a way of ensuring that victory would go to the veteran. But still... looking at her, he could remember that night. The night he left Bucky behind to lead for himself. The night where, in a moment of loss, of need, he turned to something he could grasp, despite not fully comprehending.

And he almost hated himself for wanting it again...

Carnal needs aside, Slade turned his attention to Dent. The mere concept of that criminal running for Mayor was laughable. Then again, Slade had killed plenty of people. Scratch that. Plenty wasn't enough. He had killed hundreds, maybe thousands of people. But that... was different. Dent killed for money, for power. Slade killed for the greater good, for a chance of freeing society from the leeches that hung onto it. The leeches that, in turn, fed into Dent's despicable little fantasy. Sure, Dent didn't have a cape, but he was just as guilty of it as the ones that did.

"If I may." Slade said, leaning forward after Dent finished his speech. "My experience in the battlefield was not unlike the one necessary for the Mayor position. After all, being a soldier isn't just about wielding a weapon and fighting in the front line. It's about managing your troops, taking care of your fellow men, performing under stress, and most importantly, knowing when to back out of a fight. In the end, being a soldier is more about not pulling the trigger. Unlike Mr. Dent in his previous job, that is the one thing I seek to avoid."

He expected that statement would net him some controversy from the media crowd. "Let us not skirt around the subject. The idea that this man, who once terrified the entirety of Gotham City under the moniker of Two-Face would be capable, let alone sane enough to fill the position of Mayor, is not only laughable, but a disgrace to the name of this great city. There's no possible argument that could justify Mr. Dent's presence in tonight's event."

Two Face turned to Slade, the smile not leaving his face. He knew full well what Slade was trying to do, get him to snap on live television at him. Even now he could feel his darker half yelling curses inside,willing him to leap across the stage and strangle him. It took all of Dent's considerable willpower to keep him suppressed as he began his response.

"Terrified? I believe you may be confusing me with The Joker, Mr Wilson. While I do not deny that I committed a number of heinous acts while under the tenure of crime boss, I was hardly on the level of Gotham's more.....troubled criminals. Even at my worst, I was no Joker. I ran an organized outfit, more concerned about getting money then killing innocents. You will never hear me deny my former actions, but to compare me to such people is, quite frankly, insulting and inaccurate."

"As to the question of my mental health, I assure you I would never consider this venture if I was not rehabilitated. The good doctors at Arkham Asylum have helped me to overcome my problems that I once faced." An easy bribe had ensured all the paperwork was in order on that front before Dent had departed Gotham. "Today I stand here a changed man, one ready to help his new city overcome their issues." He paused a moment before looking directly at Wilson.

"And, not to mention, I have followed all of the local laws and processes to apply for candidacy of mayor of Hub City. If you review the laws that you should already know, given you also applied to this position, you will find I have as much of a right to be here today as you do."

Nearly-Naked Aliens Fighting Robots

Silvermane let the Sentinel send him through the building and came out the other side none-the-worse, although he was missing most of his skin. He quickly vaulted up the building and leaped forward with both fists out, aiming to puncture between where the second and third ribs would be on a human, like a bullet.

Meanwhile, Carl had dug his hands and feet into his Sentinel's face, but after hitting a few buildings he had begun to move around to the back of the Sentinel's head. With his feet and one hand dug into the metal, he reared back and straightened the fingers of his other hand to jab into the back of the Sentinel's neck, over and over, like an ice pick.

The innocent question was met with a disgusted harrumph from the masked man. Between him and Dagger, they managed to take out just over half the minions still remaining. Cloak's ploy wouldn't work forever, though, and the ones shooting at her were beginning to try more creative techniques. Like, for instance, aiming for the head.

"Thank you, Mister Dent, Mister Wilson." The Proctor got some cards ready. "We'll go to the main questions in just a moment, followed by questions from our audience, and I'd like to remind viewers at home that they can join the debate online, using the hashtag Hubdebate. First, though, I'd like to turn to Ms Canips, leading on from Dent and Wilson's statements. Do you yourself feel uniquely qualified for the position of mayor?"

Silverman's sentinel showcased a surprising slippery streak, and rotated on one angle to dodge his attack. The most he managed to do was scratch the paint job before careening towards the other side of the street. Meanwhile, Carl was having better luck stabbing away at his giant robot's spinal cord. "Circuity c**zz****d. C***c*** *****mpromis** **s******D***** R****D****ZZSZZZZPAGETT********CKCHHH****"

The sentinel continued to spew static as it stumbled to the ground, twitching and lashing at the air. Carl had time to breath, but not much of it. He could already hear the clanking footsteps of the third and final sentinel, searching for its fallen kin.

Warehouse

Cloak 'eep'ed and phased into the ground after one bullet whizzed a mere inch past her head.

She resurfaced behind Dagger. "Time to go, Ty."

Dagger grabbed one of the still-conscious gunmen and pulled him close. Cloak swirled around them, and in a flash of light, the three of them were out of the warehouse and on its roof.

Dagger pointed one of his namesakes at the man's head. "I'm going to ask you some questions, and you're going to answer them honestly. Don't bother trying to lie, because I can see into your soul.

"Simon Marshall is a scientist who used to work for Os Corp. He's the reason my sister and I are monsters. We have reason to believe he's here in Hub City. Start talking, or maybe Cloak will drop you in the middle of traffic."

Streets

As Silvio skidded past the Sentinel across the pavement and hit somebody's Hummer, he was starting to get really angry. His body began to glow red with heat as he grabbed the Hummer and ripped it in half, smashing it into a pair of boxing gloves◊ before he leaped into the air and swung with a haymaker.

Meanwhile, Carl heard the last Sentinel coming and, thankful for his time in track and field in High School, ripped a lamppost out of the ground and held it at the ready like a javelin.

The guard giggled with fright, "Right! Yes! Simon Marshall. Simon...Mar-shall..." He desperately wracked his memory, sweat glistening in the afternoon sun, before finally he let out a great sigh and stared at Dagger with huge, pleading eyes. "I don't know a Simon Marshall, please, I swear! That kind of stuff's above my pay grade. All the boffins stick to the HQ or Zabo's labs, I don't patrol those kinds of site!"

Silvio's robot proved almost as slippery as before, dodging the oncoming haymaker. Waiting until Silvermane hit the ground, the robot clasped its hands together and brought them down on the cyborg.

Meanwhile, the final robot came around the corner, scanned the area, and spotted Carl one moment before a javelin lamppost came careening through the air and tore a gash through its metal face. Momentarily stunned, sparks jumping from out of its cheek, the robot got another look at Carl and began to charge.

Warehouse

Cloak and Dagger exchanged a look. After everything they had been through together, they were on the same wavelength by default.

"I know," Cloak suggested. "How about you tell us where HQ and Zabo's labs are, and we let you go? We won't even tell anyone about this. It'll be our little secret." She mimed zipping her lips.

edited 11th Oct '16 2:14:17 PM by emilyorthoclase

Anarky's HQ

The young man kept hacking into any surveillance satellite he could find near the North American hemisphere, scanning the surrounding space. Where the hell was Adam Strange? He must have had received his message by now!

Surely such a hero would not ignore a clue to possible hostile alien activity on Earth? Which was a bit of a lie on his part, admittedly, but it was necessary. The defenses of Spiral's HQ needed to be distracted as much as its mistress currently was for his plan to work.

His window of opportunity was getting smaller...

Manfredi Hq

Monica watched the television as her grandfather struggled to fight the sentinel before she sprang out of bed to quickly get dressed before tearing out of her room.

"Terra!" She called as she ran around the complex in a panic, "Terra!" Where was that girl? Her grandfather needed help!

Carl vs. The Sentinel

Carl leaped up into the air toward the last sentinel, trying to make a grab for the lamppost to jab it further into the robot's face, hopefully fucking up the wiring or something.

Terra, Manfredi HQ

Terra looked rather annoyed that she was pretty much being held here. Silvermane still did not trust her and she was trying to figure out how to get that to happen. However, when she heard Monica yelling out her name, she turned at walked over to her.

"What's wrong?" Terra asked, genuinely concerned by Monica's need to see her.

"Labs are in the Cindertown Historic District, in a five storey condemned block. Hydra Outpost's underground, and if I tell you any more than that, they'll do worse shit to me than you could ever do. Hell, you kids would be fucked up for life if you saw the bodies. Pustule mounds the size of my fist..."

It never rained, but it poured, no matter what planet you called home. Here was Adam, fresh off the Zeta Beam home, face still smarting from that last right hook from ol' Kanjar, and just as he was about to hitch off his jetpack, drop into the couch and tune in for his stories, he gets a message about something threatening the world. His head pretty much shut down for a few seconds after, and he had to conserve his energy by leaning head first against the door frame. Eventually, he convinced himself that one quick look see wouldn't hurt. So after a quick shower and glass of tropical fruit juice, he was back in his uniform and up into space.

He'd been halfway hoping that it was just a wild goose chase. Either some paranoid fanboy had got hold of his old essays on Google Books, or a bunch of those guffawing chinless wonders at the university wanted to have a little joke with the alien enthusiast. In any case, he'd come up primarily to get some fresh air blowing in his face, followed by a breathtaking look at the stars above, the planet below...and the dirty great satellite of unfamiliar design bobbing in the distance. After one last moment to grumble and curse his luck, he reached for the communicator on the right ear of his helmet, and with a few twists and presses, he called up the number that had texted him the coordinates. He aimed to figure out how this man would know about the whatever-that-thing-was, and whether or not he could be trusted.

Carl leapt to grab his weapon, but whatever bad luck his uncle was being plagued by had now decided to focus on him, it seemed. The Sentinel managed to grab him in the air, right when he was barely touching the lamppost, and he had to hold on tight to avoid being yanked away from it.

edited 21st Oct '16 3:13:29 PM by LizardOfAus

Warehouse

Cloak smiled. "Thanks. And don't worry about us. We've seen worse than pustules."

The teleporter returned the three of them to the warehouse's interior, then transported herself and her partner outside.

"I don't know where Cindertown is," Cloak said. "We'll have to go there the old-fashioned way. Want to get some dinner first?"

"You don't need to eat."

"You do. And you haven't eaten since breakfast."

Dagger sighed. He was feeling kind of hungry, not that he'd ever admit it. "Fine. Dinner, then we go find the outpost."

Carl vs. The Sentinel

Carl gripped the lamppost for dear life, gritting his teeth as the Sentinel's hand squeezed around his waist. Shit, this actually hurt! He tried to push the lamppost forward, trying to jam it into the robot's skull as he scrambled and tried to keep from slipping. It wasn't the hardest jab because of that.

Silvermane vs The Sentinel

Silvermane brought up his hands to try and stop the Sentinel's fists from crashing down on him, grunting as his feet sank into the asphalt. Damn it, this was easier when he was younger and the robots stayed in the books.

Manfredi HQ

"It's my grandfather," Monica explained hurriedly, "He's in trouble! He went downtown to go beat some answers out of the chief of police but then he got attacked by some robots! Carl went down to help him, but I dunno where he went! He needs help!"

Manfredi HQ

"Ah, I see, let's get out of here and I can help you find them," Terra said as she stood up and followed Monica outside. Once outside on the street, Terra held her upward and then moved her hand upward, breaking the part of the street underneath Terra and Monica. The two stood on the piece of street as it floated in the air.

"Hold on to me," Terra said to Monica, as she lifted the ground into the air and began flying above Hub City using it as a platform. "This is a trick I learned when I was learning how to use my mutant power to control the earth."