Baxter Building
"I don't think anyone's been here for a long time, Kitana." Sokka said, keeping a careful eye on anything ahead of her before moving to the back, so as to keep Kitana from stepping into possible traps (a sharp contrast to the words coming out of his mouth). "That door was probably unlocked when the people were trying to leave this place behind and go somewhere safe. You know what they say- last one out, lock the doors. Or something like that."
Sticking to the back, Sokka tried to find something to say whilst the group climbed the set of stairs. "So, Toph," He muttered, rubbing the back of his neck. "Just like old times, huh? Except now I have claws and you can turn your entire body into metal... which is pretty cool. You know, considering how much our powers seem to match who we are, I was kinda expecting Zuko to just turn into a fire person. Like a human torch. Yeah, that would be pretty cool, wouldn't it? Although, if we go by that logic, shouldn't I get boomerang powers or something like that?" He said, his voice growing more confident as he went on and on abou fire people, before eventually arriving at their destination- level nine, to be precise.
"Wow, that didn't take long!" Sokka exclaimed happily, partly unaware that his new abilities made the climb an effortless task for him. "Right, according to the blueprints Fury gave us, we should step out into a series of hallways and find the giant, safe-shaped door at the end of it. He said we can't miss it."
Outside, however, Instinct would soon notice the odd collection of footsteps in the dust, along with a few clean spots on the door to the Baxter Building. Someone had just been here...
China
"Uh, ma'am?" One of the SHIELD agents said, pointing at the long-haired figure watching them. "What should we do about that?"
"Sounds like a possible hostile," Another agent explained. "Matches some of the descriptions we have for one Chase Young."
"I have both the palace and the generator in my sights!" A rocket launcher-carrying agent yelled. "Orders, ma'am?"
Headquarters/Helicarrier
"Come now, don't be ridiculous." Tatu said, crossing one leg over the other and placing his hands around both Child and Joan. "You're scaring the little girl! This place is completely safe- I swear!"
It was at this exact moment that the threatening shape of the Helicarrier appeared from behind the clouds, advancing towards the Headquarters threateningly. The sound of a giant ship careening through the sky was enough to stop Tatu's little pow-wow. "Oh." He turned around, spotting the Helicarrier. "They're throwing an entire ship at us? That's new."
Standing up and stretching his legs, Tatu pointed at the teleporter. "I suggest you take your friends- and Child, of course- to the teleporter. Go to somewhere far away where you won't be reached. As for Brutus, let's just say-" Tatu spun his hand around until a bone spear appeared in it. Gripping it easily, he winked at Joan. "This Ceasar can bite back. And by bite back, I mean I'm going to kill them. Focus on the other senators, will you?"
Meanwhile, in the Helicarrier, Loki gripped Gavrill by the waist and looked into her eyes lovingly. "It's a shame we're in public, because I'd love to thank you properly for this act." He said, in what was this couple's twisted way of 'lovey-dovey' talk, the chaos consuming the city illuminating them as he leaned in for a kiss.
Kahndaq
The lightning provides an amicable end to the entire situation, a final dot that ends up a bit anticlimactic when compared to the grandiosity of a fountain of blood spurting from the innards of a giant Hulk beast. But the grey thing stops squirming and shaking and breathing and living, turning into nothing more than a husk, the odd scent of charred skin coming from the inside as his eyeballs roll off, having been severed from the body thanks to Dio's penchant for theatricals.
With the situation solved, Amon returns to a form his followers would find familiar, mask firmly in place. But Dio would easily notice that the wound in his neck that showed the Carnage mass within had grown, now resembling more and more a bustling living being wearing an empty suit of flesh. Amon noticed it too, quickly covering it up with a blood-soaked hand as the citizens swarmed out of their homes and into the public square- coincidentally providing the Seekers a covert way of approaching the nearby statues.
"Did I not say," Amon begins, weakly, before recovering his strength. "That our loyalty to the faith of our ancestors would be rewarded? Look upon this beast, my citizens. Watch this threat that the western lands have sent to destroy the prosperity we have built. Watch!" He demanded, prompting all the citizens to peer over one another. "See? It lays defeated. A power from the heavens itself coursed through my veins and helped me defeat it. It is... a burden, yes. But it is a burden I am willing to carry for my people!" His hand then pointed at Dio. "Our faith and our nation grows so strong, that even men from the western lands seek to join us! Our hard work is being rewarded by the forces that rule this world! Praise to the Great Nation of Kahndaq, now and forever!"
As the people cheered his speech, Amon glanced at Dio, waiting for a reaction to the other speech they had heard- the one coming from Gavrill.
Los Angeles
"Says the true pawn," was all Cheetah said (or managed to say) to Menardi before falling unconscious due to her spell. Unfortunately, those were also her last words, as she was quickly transformed into nothing more than a collar for Zeal to display.
Saranac Lake City
"We don't have time for this!" Zuko exclaimed to Fletcher, not wanting to stop and lose all the momentum he had been building up. "Shock him up—"
The young man's sudden speed surprised Zuko enough for him to stop. Sometimes he forgot just how good Fletcher had gotten at being the Winter Soldier.
"If it's Mordin, he has it covered-" He grumbled, trying to nudge Fletcher back into motion. "The rest of the police will be coming after this guy. We need to hurry."
Alternate Teridax landed with a mighty thud on one of the trash piles, smashing it to smithereens as he marched towards the shabby copy of himself, not even giving Tesseract's forces a moment of his time. "So this is what passes for a Teridax in this reality?" He asked, metallic lips crackling into a scoff as his hand snapped into three separate parts, reforming into a weapon he promptly pointed at the 'younger' Teridax, placing one foot on a cracked refrigerator so as to steady his aim. "Don't worry." He explained, pulling the trigger to send a powerful heat beam at the younger Teridax. "I'll rid this world of your existence."
"You drive a mighty bargain." Sinister said, not even bothering to give Tesseract enough of his attention and turning his eyes back to the screens. "But I'm just not sure it's enough of a deal for me. You see, why should I believe the kind conqueror Tesseract would willfully sink one of his cities into the ocean because... oh, let's say... Molly Hayes' body suddenly turned into a psychological black hole?"
He nodded at the screen, displaying a readout of every mind that Molly had consumed, categorically separated by age, gender, abilities and more. And on one of those categories was a jumble of readings, a hive mind in itself. "Your Hand, I presume." Sinister explained. "Yes, I wonder what would happen if I were to follow this... interesting strand of events. Then again, we don't have to devolve into this... savagery. We could always work out a better deal."
"You keep Molly Hayes secure, and I'll fix her. But in exchange... I want your leader's body." Sinister raised an eyebrow, smiling. "I know your ilk won't be on this Earth for long. And once you're gone, I want to have a body... a powerful one... so I won't have to rely on half-deceased mercenaries to carry out my plans. How about it, Mr. Tesseract? Do we have a deal?"
"Yes, I do surprise myself some times—"
Loki flinched for a moment, looking down at his chest. A normal human would have been destroyed by that bullet. A god at full power could have shrugged it away with a bit of magic. But Loki was neither of those. His godliness had been toned down after years of constant malnourishment. And his magical abilities had no fuel to draw on, his staff was now nothing more than a glorious waving stick. Which meant his first reaction to seeing the hole on his chest followed by the blood leaking out of it was to look at the direction the bullet had come from and mutter:
"... really?"
... before unceremoniously falling back, blood pooling underneath his half-conscious (but still full-on confused) body.
Times Square
Rolling his eyes and pushing up an invisible pair of glasses, Loki tried placing his hand on Tira's shoulder yet again. "Because, my dear Tira, gods are not Gods. This image humans have created of us is faulty at best. We're not amazing beings capable of wiping things out by pointing at them. We're very powerful, yes. Immortal too. But we're not omnipotent, or omniscient, and that sounds like a terrifying fate. Where's the fun in knowing everything's that's going to happen?"
"Tatu lied to you, dear Tira." And at this he made sure to snap his fingers and make his staff disappear, just so he could sling one arm around Tira's shoulder and use the other to point at the horizon. "He would like you to believe there are Gods like the ones you were taught about, and that he's one of them, and that you're nothing more than a pawn in a little game of gods. The reality, however, is much more searing. Yes, there is no God, but life still follows a certain path. Somewhere, in the distance, the forces that make the fabric of this universe converse amongst each other."
Loki smiled, pulling his hair back to give the moment a dramatic pause. "That is the truth about this universe and all beings that live within it. We're not pawns of gods, we're pawns of reality. There is no true master of all, not even my great All-Father. Which is a grander and exaggerated way of saying that, like all beings born with a conscience, Tatu knows this and tried to find a way to counteract it... except whilst some of us turn to poetry, or philosophy, or the satisfying sound of a blade piercing human flesh... he turned towards tricking 'poor simpletons' into believing he's more than what he truly is." He grabbed Tira's hand, the one holding Soul Edge, and held it up. "And like all charlatans... Tatu... must..." He smirked as he slowly brought the hand down, 'slicing' the headquarters in the distance just as the Helicarrier made its attacks. "... die."
"What the sh—" Deadpool complained out loud as his swords barely managed to poke Desco in the back. Unfortunately, he didn't have enough time to properly react, as both Kirei and Schala's spells consumed the mercenary in flames, covering the entire central area of Times Square in a fire that refused to burn off. There was silence... and then... clanking. Ragged footsteps as Deadpool stumbled out of the fire, with some parts of his body completely charred, whilst others tried to heal themselves back.
He smiled. "Is that all you've—" The mercenary spat a pint of blood on the floor, grinning. "—got?"
edited 13th Mar '16 12:15:46 AM by Stratofarius
Teridax
Sometimes, doing nothing is the best choice in life. This, thought Teridax as he sat in the heart of his abode, was truth. He had witnessed the chaos unfold through the eyes of his junior aboard Tatu's New York base and had thought it best to sit down and wait it out instead of leaping into action as his fellow Overlords had done; after all, no one was threatening his domain. Of course a curfew had been issued the instant Deadpool had appeared on television- standard crisis procedure. Of course his legions of expendable body doubles had been activated- also standard crisis procedure. He had sent one of them to the Saranac dumps in his stead- a simple gesture to Tesseract that he was trusted to make the right decisions in regard to Sinister.
Seeing all this in motion, Teridax had half a mind to return to his laboratory. After all, this was more than enough excitement for a single day. He never thought the day would get even better.
Excitement came as it always did- all at once. The tingling down his spine came first- the presence of another Makuta within his domain. Now this was nothing if unexpected. For one, he was quite certain Menardi had dealt with Icarax. So what then was this? Had Tatu brought in a new general? Impossible, no one new had appeared in the New York base. Perhaps a Makuta with the mask of dimensions had somehow crossed the great breach and ended up here- plausible, but the chances were mathematically dubious. Thus Teridax was left to consider the possibility that a Makuta had appeared purely because of the Overlord situation- a concerning thought indeed. Where could the new comer have come from such that they were aware of the situation in this reality?
Teridax found his questions being answered faster than he anticipated. His dummy in the Saranac dumps already had a visual of the new Makuta. To see himself crashing down among the dumps was no small surprise- an alternate Teridax? Teridax could not help but smile- interesting, though not original.
But he had little time to consider this, for events were proceeding with speed in an alarming direction elsewhere. An alert had just been triggered by a very confused police officer near the Saranac market place. Teridax listened with growing anticipation as the police officer did his duty; what he heard in response gave him cause for surprise like nothing else in several centuries. The bug on the man shorted out after the last transmission but Teridax knew what he had heard.
Fletcher- the teleporter. Fletcher was alive. Audio reviews immediately authenticated the voice- this was no copy cat wannabe. Teridax sat back in his throne and tapped idly at the arm rests- this was unprecedented. One seeker meant the whole bunch; and he'll be damned if he didn't realise the amount of know how the seekers had gained. Teridax was ignorant to the generators the boy spoke of, but the boy knew about the Winter Soldier- that alone indicated some form of reconnaissance. Just how long have the seekers been alive? Teridax didn't know, and he hated not knowing.
He glanced at his controls. The pieces were on the board and the pawns were in play. They were on his doorstep- he would be a poor host if he did not welcome them.
Saranac Market place
There was a short stunned silence after Fletcher took down the policeman on the roof. Then, the sound of opening doors broke the reprieve. Doors opened left right and center, and slowly, people began to peep out from behind. A little girl, more plucky than the rest, called out from behind a shop window.
"Have you come to save us?"
Saranac Dumps
As Alt!Teridax hit the dumps with a crash and crunch of crushed garbage, the Teridax that stood atop the pile of junk turned towards him. Surprise crept into his features not a moment later- the raised eyebrow, the dilated optics. Yet he was silent, choosing to simply stare at the newly arrived Makuta.
He stared even as his older counterpart readied his weapon; he stared even as Teridax leveled his gun at his face. Then, just as the alternate Teridax pulled the trigger, he smiled- a thin wiry crack that split a red line across his metallic face. It would be the last thing the older Makuta saw, before the head disintegrated under the heat of the blast.
Yet the essence did not fade immediately upon decapitation. Any Makuta worth his salt would know that total combustion was required for permanent death; and during the time before the Alternate Teridax could put a total end to the body, a mocking voice drifted through the air, echoing amoungst the trash.
"Speak not too rashly my good friend. If you think yourself a Makuta, standards must have really taken a plummet in your world."
Saranac Markets
Elsewhere, a lone female figure slung a sniper rifle over her back. Tapping the side of her helmet, she breathed a sigh and whispered:
"Copy that. I'll see to the boy first."
edited 13th Mar '16 4:33:07 AM by biomechtraveler
China
Seeing that strange figure disappear into the (literal) mouth of the cave, Hol felt a temptation to just teleport over there and stick a bullet right between the figure's eyes. It was probably one of the Overlords, after all.
He knew better, thankfully. He was, after all, in a situation before where blindly rushing in would've gotten him killed, even in a moment of apparent advantage.
Baxter Building
Glacius couldn't help but take note of Sokka saying 'human torch' word for word.
"Well, if we are referring to THE Human Torch, I am now possessive of his abilities."
The alien took a look at his three digited hand, as if there were something to contemplate on it.
"How well I can use them, however..."
He was pushed off of that train of thought when Sokka declared that they had reached their destination. Wary, the giant surveyed the area for potential traps, cameras...and of course, the safe-like door that apparently 'couldn't be missed'.
"Shake the dust." - Anis MojganiTira stood silent while Loki explained his take on gods and misconceptions caused by stupid humans. Once he had wrapped up his speech, Tira looked at him, nodding.
Yes, I think I....understand what you are saying. And what I am hearing....I don't like it. Who the hell are these "Forces that make up the fabric of reality" to dare to dictate what I do? I'm not a fucking pawn! Fuck them! Tira went on, now infuriated enough that she no longer cared what the lying god would think about her true goals. Do you know what I want, Loki? What I really want, beyond all else? I want to burn it all to the ground. It was her turn to take Loki's shoulder and turn him toward the ruined New York skyline, extending her hand to motion toward it.
In my ideal world, all of this would be nothing more then ashes. The humans, damn them all, rejected me. They called me insane, they tried to kill me for the crime of being different, the crime of doing what I wanted. So what if I killed a few humans? Who's going to miss them? They're all morons anyway, wasting their lives away. Killing them is almost a mercy. Until I found Soul Edge, I was all alone in the world. When he told me his plans, how he planned to turn the world to ashes, you have no idea how happy I was. Like I said, I would have done anything for him.
That was before....all of this. Before anyone told me there were more worlds with damn humans on them. Now I understand. Burning one world to the ground, it's not enough. There will still be countless more where humans survive. If I want to exterminate them all, truly exterminate them all, I have to find these.....forces that you speak of, the ones that hold reality together, and rip them apart limb by limb. Only then will my task be complete.
It was at this point that the Helicarrier started baring down on Tatu's tower, and Tira took a moment to look up at it as she remembered something important. Something she had failed to consider up to this point. Wait a sec. But....if we kill everything....then won't Gavy die too? But....I don't want Gavy to die. I like her, really like her. She didn't call me names, she didn't judge me for what I was. She liked me, I think. She's just like me. I....I don't want her to die! The twisted girl started crying a little as her end goal clashed with her own feelings, the girl clearly torn between her purpose and Gavrill.
Urza closed his eyes for a moment to gather his strength. When he opened them again, he was ready. It was time to see if what they had built would endure. He planeswalked, taking his group across the square, into the scant cover offered by the line of statues.
"Wait until I have distracted them," he reminded them, "Then act, quietly if you can, but if not, act regardless. One of these statues has the generator. Try to find it, but if you cannot, destroy all of them."
Then he was gone, having 'walked again, back across the square, just behind the corner of a building, from where he could peer around and see the grisly spectacle and the onlookers who watched, half in fear and half in awe, from the shadows. They might present a problem, but also an opportunity. If he did nothing, Amon and Dio might simply depart, as, Gavrill's speech aside, reports would surely reach them about the other attacks. Yet they were on a time limit. Unfortunately, he could not wait. A distraction would have to do. Some of the powerstone anchors he carried flared dimly as the magic within them awoke.
But first...
Amon's weakness was silence and his power came, like that of Desco, from a red mana source, in essence. Urza would deal with him first. There was a ritual that could imprison a single creature of red within a perfect cage of white, immobilizing silence. No movement, no sound, only complete order and stillness. Normally it would take time and resources to prepare. He had had both and now he called on the magic that had been waiting for him. A blinding white glare lit the square from where Amon stood as Urza cast his spell.
It was swiftly followed by the phasing. A small army of artifacts phased into existence, surrounding the two Overlords in rings of silver thran-metal that would soon become more. Falcons, runners, and scorpions stood in silent formation. As a final touch, Urza spoke and his voice seemed to come from everywhere.
"And when it is said to them, 'do not cause corruption on earth,' they say, 'we are but reformers.' Unquestionably it is they who are the corrupters but perceive it not."
If this wasn't a distraction, very little was.
A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent upon arriving. -Lao TzuThe Skys above Times Square
Desco watched as the hellcarrier sent off tons of smaller aircraft throughout the city to begin an attack. That was rather strange. It was not very heroic and killing all of these innocent people wouldn't have any affect to Desco. She could wipe out her own cities on a whim without thinking twice, though Desco was nicer than that. It was the demonic thing to do.
Still, Gavrill was on that thing so it was time for Desco to step in. Completely ignored by the hellcarrier, Desco lifted up her arms. There were four obvious weak points to this vehicle and destroying them would probably make it come crashing down. That would get their attention! "Complete Annihilation! Hahaha!" Desco gathered up a ball of chaos energy above her. She let it grow and grow until it was a nice sizable ten times her own size. Then brought her arms down. "Desco's gonna kill you!" She threw the chaos ball at one of the giant rotating fans clearly visible from any point outside. When it reached the halfway mark the ball burst into a few dozen smaller blasts of chaos energy all aimed at the general area of the engine.
Times Square with DesX
Wielded by Schala but unable to have any actual control, a voice come out of the two bladed sword."Don't get wreckless! A simple spell like that doesn't usually kill. He appears to have some regeneration. We will need to press the attack!"
Sasuke, going like a ninja like a ninja do
"On it!"
Sasuke started to execute his ninja run towards Chase's palace, looking left, right and occasionally straight to be on the look out for traps.
There a place with a high vantage point?
Sky, going commando
"Thanks."
Sky thanked Urza for helping out when he found himself near the two statues as mentioned.
Even with bombs, I could attract more attention. Better do this the hard way.
Sky started to make his approach, walking slowly when he can since Urza hasn't started his distraction yet.
Tesseract the Kind Conqueror - Beneath Saranac Lake Dump
From behind him, Sinister would hear a laugh. All the soldiers in the room turned to the source of it, Tesseract. Despite the year of working together, they'd never heard the man laughing before.
It was... disconcerting.
"You still believe you hold any cards, Mr. Essex. Let me enlighten you."
He circled around Sinister, and continued to walk around him as he spoke. It was a psychological tactic, designed to make the recipient feel disempowered. Kirei used it frequently.
"Your plan rests on the existence of Tesseract the Kind Conqueror. On the belief that I am good at heart, that I wish to protect all the innocent under my rule. And I suppose, on some level, he exists. I do not like causing suffering in excess of what I set out to cause. Before a conqueror, I was an assassin. My targets died swiftly, and I did not kill who I did not need to."
"But I am still a killer, Mr. Essex. I did not leave my targets go. I am no pure-hearted hero, no Superman. I know this for a fact, I killed Superman. You believe that I would not level Kōka if needs be. You are incorrect."
"The image of the kind conqueror is one I have cultivated over this past year because it is useful. Rebellions are less likely to happen when the people who that if I am overthrown, one of my teammates is likely to take over. Apart from Menardi, I am the better alternative. The devil you know, the lesser evil. It also encouraged several nations to surrender to me rather than my teammates. That saved considerable manpower and material."
"It has been an easy image to cultivate. I simply did not take what I did not need. I did not take their free speech, their freedom of the press, their standard of living. And by comparing myself to Chase Young, or Anubarak, this makes me a saint."
"But the best part of cultivating this image, Mr. Essex? Has been you. You have truly made the entire exercise worthwhile. I have waited for the day that someone would mistake me for a hero, to believe I would not do what was necessary because what was necessary was too evil."
"Molly Hayes has been followed by sniper teams through Kōka. There is a squadron of attack helicopters ready to level the building she is in with rocketfire. A flight of F/A-18F Super Hornets is ready to bomb her location, and several B-52s are on standby in case we need more ordinance. A C-130 has been loaded with a GBU-43/B Massive Oridinance Air Blast weapon, and should be taxiing for takeoff at this moment. Several destroyers with nuclear-tipped Tomahawks are on standby off the coast of Japan, and if Molly Hayes can survive all that? The INS Vanguard, a submarine formerly of Her Majesty's Royal Navy, is prepared to to launch her complement of eighteen Trident intercontinental ballistic missiles. The combined payload of the Vanguard alone is the equivalent of over a hundred megatons of TNT. Theoretically, people in Osaka would receive third-degree burns, but instead of all eighteen detonating at once, there would be successive 5.64 megaton blasts. I doubt your creation can withstand multiple bouts of nuclear hellfire."
"I have no plans to use these weapons today. But no plan survives contact with the enemy. If you dare make Hayes' condition untenable, I will initiate the escalating response. And then I will kill you, slowly. You have regeneration abilities, correct? Would you regenerate your jaw as I break it over and over? What about the bones in your ear? I cannot touch the skull, otherwise you would die instantly. But I can be creative. And in tomorrow's press conference, the sacrifice of Kōka will be honoured across the Empire, and none will judge me for taking pleasure in killing the one who made it necessary."
Tesseract stopped his circling in front of Sinister, and leaned over, running a finger along his jaw.
"I reject your altered terms. Would you care to take the original deal?"
Fletcher Renn - Saranac, Near the Supermarket (I hope)
"Wamuu, Armani, pull back! Concentrate on getting to the generator!" The blonde ordered into his omnitool, directing it towards . "You don't put snipers on the outskirts of a town for no reason. They're protecting something, and it's not Teridax's tower. They might not even know who they've shot. If you two rush in, we're blown, especially you Armani. We get blown, Tatu is only three hundred miles away."
He glanced down at the people who were looking up at the rooftop, and calling up to him.
"If you want to live, run!" he answered them.
He didn't spare them any more of his time. If he did... he'd try to help them. And he couldn't afford to right now.
Across the town, the gunshots continued in a haphazard rhythm. Fletcher's omnitool came into existence again, and he spoke into it.
"Mordin, what are they shooting at you?"
There was a pause before the response came through.
"30 millimeter. Depleted Uranium."
Fletcher swore. That could only be one of two groups.
"That's either Madripoor or the Empire. Neither of those should be here. Everybody, get to the supermarket, ASAP. Mordin, can you deal with them?"
Mordin - Saranac, building near the Dumps
"Am able, yes."
That was a lie. The low wall that representing his only cover between him and snipers was like paper compared to the rounds that were being fired at them.
He crawled over to Loki, his shields recharging from the first shot. The God of Lies had a large, gaping wound to the chest. Internal trauma was highly likely, but the momentum of the round meant it was likely a through-and-through. The Salarian raised his omnitool, and a clear gel came out of it and poured onto the god's gunshot.
Loki would immediately feel pain relief, and maybe some slight stinging as the anti-bacterial part of the solution got to work. The medigel quickly began to harden into a flexible plastic, which bound the wound together, stopped blood from leaking, and prevented foreign bodies from entering the wound.
He flipped the god over, and applied more gel to the exit hole.
With the patient stabilized, Mordin could focus on removing him from the battlefield. Mordin's shields crashed again, as one of the exploratory shots hit true.
He couldn't stand Loki up, he couldn't drag him off the roof. If they wanted off, they'd have to go through.
Mordin's hand grabbed the walking cane off his back, and the fingers of his gloves retracted. He charged the wood and metal with kinetic energy his body constantly produced for nearly half a minute, before bringing it crashing down onto the roof beneath them.
Gambit's power didn't just make things explode. They made things hit harder too.
Gravity overtook the pair as the roof beneath them shattered and crumbled into the room below.
Child and Joan Enterprise - Overlord Tower
There was a chorus of swearing as everybody noticed the helicarrier heading their direction. Joan scooped Child up in her arms, not without protest, and the group headed straight for the teleporters.
And in a flash, they were gone. The choice on where was simple. Whoever was hitting them was trying to hit them where they hurt. Japan was a powerbase for Tesseract, so was the Caribbean and Australia. They went to the only place they could be assured of their safety, the one place in the Empire of the Isles that Tesseract did not give a single shit about, and in fact hated.
Didn't stop him from having a home built there, though. Somewhere in Ireland, a group of housekeeping staff got a large amount of surprise visitors.
Helicarrier
Meanwhile, in the Helicarrier, Loki gripped Gavrill by the waist and looked into her eyes lovingly.
"It's a shame we're in public, because I'd love to thank you properly for this act."
He said, in what was this couple's twisted way of 'lovey-dovey' talk, the chaos consuming the city illuminating them as he leaned in for a kiss.
Gavrill leant towards him in kind, a vaguely lecherous grin on her face.
“Who cares if we’re in public? I reckon we have about five minutes before this thing hits the ground, so if we hurry-”
Before she could finish, there was a crash and explosion from the outside of the carrier, shaking it violently and knocking the two of them off balance. Gavrill’s face twisted into a snarl of fury in a heartbeat.
“For fuck’s sake, somebody’s not wasting any time-!”
She regained her footing and staggered to the window, catching sight of Desco in the distance.
“So, it’s that little brat. I really wasn’t sure which way that one would jump. Guess we have our answer!”
"Hold on-" Loki grabbed Gavrill by her arm. "Yes, we're both immortal, but you're not seriously considering jumping out of a flaming wreck into the arms of someone who wants to kill us?"
"Well I wasn't considering it, but a good idea is a good idea!"
"What?" He shook his head, looking at the only possible way out of this entire ordeal: the massive front window of the Helicarrier. "Oh no. No no no."
“You have exactly two seconds to come up with a better idea.”
“Well, we could-”
“TOO LATE!”
Without brooking any further dispute, Gavrill scooped him up in her arms in a manner not unlike that of a groom carrying his newlywed, and demolished the five inches of layered plexiglass which made up the window with one kick.
“I hope you’re not afraid of heights!”
"Gavrill— don't do it—" Loki had to hold on to his horn helmet as he was scooped up by Gavrill with incredible ease. "At least TRY to land SAFELY!" He yelled, unable to look at just where they were going to land due to the haphazard way Gavrill was carrying him.
edited 18th Mar '16 3:34:30 PM by Vox
Queen Zeal, The Skies above Time Square
Both Zeal and Greed left Los Angeles to find... New York under attack by a Helicarrier. Zeal was floating in the air, looking utterly, utterly peeved off, and magically amplified her voice so that Loki and Gavrill could hear her.
"Cheetah has been defeated, and I, Queen Zeal, come back to THIS!!!" Queen Zeal spoke like a goddess angered, and the clouds above New York began to darken into an overcast storming sky. "Well then, I will just just have to interfere... DESTRUCTION RAINS FROM THE HEAVENS!!!"
Queen Zeal then began destroying the vessels attacking the city with bursts of lightning. Her planning seems to have devolved into mad laughter and killing all who oppose Tatu that she can find!
Schala, Times Square
"Right."
Ignoring the arrival of her mother, Schala flew forward at Deadpool and attempted to slice him into pieces with the sword that Des-X had become. Should he be sliced into enough pieces, Schala would then blast the pieces with more Fire magic to hopefully destroy what pieces would be left from slicing him into pieces.
Dalton, Tatu's Tower
Meanwhile Dalton decided to take Zeal's slaves and teleport back to Los Angeles. As Zeal herself had said that Cheetah was defeated and had returned, Dalton was confident that Los Angeles would be the safest place for himself to be currently. He didn't care if either Loki or Tatu won, as long as he did not die in the crossfire.
B.B. Hood, China
"So blow it the fuck up?" B.B. Hood gave the advice to the Captain of this operation. "As for Chase Young, we Seekers should deal with Chase Young."
"If that's Chase Young, we will soon be facing an army of Chase Youngs so we should get that generator blown up before the Xerox Army gets here!" B.B. Hood again gave her advice to the Captain of the operation. "What is your command, Captain?"
Whatever Captain America commanded, B.B. Hood would follow through on it, but it didn't hurt to give a bit of advice.
Maria, Saranac Lake City
"Well, this mission has already gone to shit," Maria snidely commented when the situation went horribly off the rails, but Fletcher commanded them to head to the Supermarket, so Maria began using her stepping discs to get to the supermarket as fast as she could. They needed to be organized to win against the Overlords.
Wizard Needs Food BadlyChina
Riesbyfe nodded at the rocket launcher-bearing SHIELD Agent.
"Right. Take your shot, agent. Then we're moving in to make sure the job is done, and fast. We can't risk hanging around too long, I know, but we absolutely cannot settle for half-measures."
She marched ahead, shields at the ready.
"Pick up the pace!" She ordered.
Baxter Building
"I'm sure you'll do fine, Glacius." Sokka said, patting the ice being in the back, quickly regretting the idea as he tried to warm up his hand (sensitive skin, after all). "Listen, all you have to do is focus, right? It's fire! Can't be that hard to control."
China
Hol might have abandoned the idea, but his teammates, unfortunately, shared the train of thought. "Ma'am!" One of them yelled, grabbing Hol Horse by the shoulders. "He can run forward and inspect the target after the rocket has been deployed! Might save us some time as well!" The agent suggested- and there was a bit of a chuckle coming from the forces. After all, the palace was now in firing range, so it couldn't have been that far...
Behind them, the rocket launcher wielding unit got on one knee, positioning his weapon as he aimed at Chase Young's palace. His finger gently squeezed the trigger, and the loud, deafening rush of a rocket flying through the sky could be heard... before it was blown up instantly, in a blast that immediately consumed the agent and a few others surrounding him, leaving behind nothing more than charred remains and an empty patch in the snowy ground.
Hovering above the SHIELD forces was Blackfire,
hair blowing in the wind and eyes glowing a threatening purple. "Sorry for taking so long!" She yelled at the palace, her voice being carried by unseen forces. "I'll take care of these ants for you." With a grin, she began showering the Seeker forces with purple blasts, hitting a few unlucky ones and causing more than a few sizable injuries in the lucky ones.
"Taking fire!" One of the agents shouted, as his teammate got her legs blown off. "Fire back! FIRE BACK!"
Headquarters
"Swing batter batter." Tatu muttered to himself, wielding his spear like a baseball bat as he tapped it against the ground. "Swing batter batter!" He repeated, wrestling with the urge to grin like a maniac as the nose of the (now in the middle of an explosion) Helicarrier got closer and closer. "SWING BATTER BATTER SWING!" The god finally proclaimed, raising the spear and hitting the nose of the Helicarrier with what baseball experts would call 'a weak blow'.
Fortunately, Tatu had the power needed to turn the weakest of blows into the strongest of attacks. The Helicarrier soared through the air, flying back at a breakneck speed, enough to turn it into an even bigger flaming wreck mid-flight. And then, with another crack of the bat, it exploded in a fiery maelstrom that threatened to consume New York's sky as a whole... before it was contained in a small ball, one the size of Desco's hands, one that flew right into Tatu's fingertips.
During this entire procedure, Loki and Gavrill had crashed through the window and landed in the same room Tatu was in. It wasn't a good landing. Heck, some wouldn't consider it a landing at all, considering how a normal human being would have died twenty five times thanks to it, but Loki and Gavrill were anything but normal. They landed without a problem, Gavrill right on top of Loki, in a position so suggestive you could swear gravity was a sitcom writer.
"Maybe this is not the time for that." Loki joked, raising an eyebrow (and trying to hide the fact Gavrill was right on top of his chest- not like he needed it to breath, but the whole thing was certainly very uncomfortable).
"I agree." Tatu spun around, standing on his fingertips as he contemplated the little sun ball on his fingers. "Now, I've got an explosion big enough to clear a city block in my fingers... and I'm thinking..." He looked down at Gavrill, finally letting his grin run wild. "What'll happen if I shove it down your throat?"
Kahndaq
Sensing the divided nature of the crowd, Amon resumed his speech. "As we speak, our allies are being attacked by the same forces that tried to steal Kahndaq's glory. I will join them, and I will help them, so that they too can see the light and join us under the sun. Praise be to Kahndaq, and to its allies, and to all who follow our faith!" Noticing that the crowd was getting more riled up, Amon lifted one fist to the skies, roaring. "And death to all who oppose—"
Amon gurgled, the clamor of the spirit of revolution getting stuck in his throat. His hands tried to reach for his throat, to try and understand what was going on, but they could not move. He could not move. The light coming from the ground blinded his eyes and forced back the symbiote trying to slither out of his neck. It burned... every crevice, every inch of his body burned, and he couldn't stop the tears of pain welling up in his eyes.
Struggling to keep them open, Amon shot one visual plea at DIO, unaware of the artifacts that surrounded them. He tried to pry his lips open with sheer strength, but all he could was plea. Why... why did he have to look so weak... in front of him?
Saranac
Mr. Sinister gulped, something that one would think wasn't possible when you didn't have a neck.
"... you drive a hard bargain, Mr. Tesseract."
He looked around, sweat dripping profusely from his forehead as he took a deep breath.
"I accept your original deal."
Zuko looked down at the little girl with initial unease, but he calmed down considerably after he heard her question. "Yes!" He yelled, taking a gentle step forward and standing on the edge of the rooftop. "But right now, you need to get inside, and you need to tell your family to hide! Once everything's safe, we'll come back for you guys, alright?!"
There was something comforting about... comforting others. It was a side Zuko hadn't really known until recently, until he had defected to the other team in the battle against his father and his nation. He still remembered the reaction he got from that village when they found out he was a firebender... so a chance to do it over (and to do it over without having to worry about being shunned for who he was) was welcomed in Zuko's eyes.
At the dumps, Alt!Teridax's hand returned to its original form as it grasped the still hot remains of the smaller Teridax, aiming to burn him up from the inside. "You're not worthy of using, let alone saying the Makuta name. Is this what passes for a Teridax in this world? A fool who hides behind parlor tricks, who parades shameless copies of his visage?" He chuckled darkly to himself, even as he set fire to what was ostensibly another version of him. "Frailty, thy name is Teridax."
Meanwhile, the injured Loki giggled lazily as he and Mordin fell through the rooftop. "Oh," He said, trying to pat Mordin's cheeks. "You have no idea how hot you look right now."
Times Square
"Oh, Tira, you can kill everything. And you probably will. But here's the magical thing about sentience."
Loki gently nudged her sight towards Desco, who had just attacked the Helicarrier.
"You don't have to kill everyone at the same time. So how about we put Gavrill in the backburner..." He lifted the rifle with one finger and pointed at Desco with the other. "... and have just a jolly good time?"
With that said, Loki disappeared in a burst of blue smoke.
"Oopsie!"
Deadpool mockingly laughed at Schala as he dodged every one of her blows, trying to move their dance over to where his weapons had been dropped. Once he got close enough, he followed up a crouch with a roll, grabbing the closest pistol and pointing it right at Schala's face.
"Eat lead, bitch." He growled before pulling the trigger.
edited 21st Mar '16 2:11:57 AM by Stratofarius
Baxter Building - Level 9
Level nine: curiosities storage and high-security vaults. One of the greatest headaches of Menardi after getting the building. While she had managed to crack several of the rooms' security systems, several had been too powerfully guarded by advanced digital and mechanical systems. And with severe automatic destruction systems in place for some of them, she had been unable to just teleport in and loot the rooms.
Thus, level 9 was a strange mix of storage rooms completely cleaned out, vaults that had been broken into through various means (several heavy metal alloy doors had been shattered, melted or, in one case, turned into solid gold) and some vaults standing completely untouched and serene. It was also the floor in the building with the second-strongest security measures.
The moment the Seekers stepped out of the stairwell, fire elementals lit up in the dark corners of the room. From every angle that watched the stairwell, they had lain dormant, awakened by the movement in the building. They were like humanoid torches, burning bright with blazingly hot flames. Featureless and voiceless, they spoke no words as they raised their arms, and a shower of fireballs the size of human heads were sent flying through the air towards the doorway.
Were the Seekers to seek refuge within the stairwell, the building's walls were strong enough to shield them from the fire. Menardi had learned early on that it was no sense in a security system if it left gaping holes in the building. But that did not mean that the stairs were safe. The more keen-eared could hear the rush of a wind blowing, as near-invisible and intangible wind elementals, they too humanoid in shape, were ascending and descending on the intruders from both sides. Brandishing blades of cutting air and force field shields, they cut off any chance of escape upwards and downwards.
So far, the Seekers had met no resistance as they progressed through the remains of the once-proud Baxter Building. But here, on the threshold of the object that they sought, they faced the threat of being boxed in and swiftly dealt with.
Join us in our quest to play all RPG video games! Moving on to disc 2 of Grandia!Ok, bye Loki! See you later! She said as she waved at the blue smoke. Then she walked over and picked up her rifle. Loki's plan was a sound one. Desco was out in the open, an easy target. She laid back down, aiming down at her. Then the helicarrier that she had been attacking vanished. Tira glanced up from her scope, confused by this.
Before she could question it, however, a much louder racket got her attention. Up above in the air. Zeal was yelling at the top of her lungs and making a big show of power. Tira, of course, reacted to this by wanting to take her down a few pegs, as it was clear she was not on her side. She got up into a crouch, being unable to aim up too high while prone, and aimed her rifle so hat the crosshair was between Zeal's stupid looking eyes. Then she pulled the trigger, and waited for Zeal's head to pop like a watermelon.
Kitana, in her position at head of the team, was the first to see the fire beasts rising up. Quickly, she threw her arm up to stop the rest before they could walk into the trap. "Fire elementals, get back!" Without waiting for a reply from the rest, Kitana quickly drew her fans and started spinning in place, creating a tornado around her that would block the doorway with the intent of deflecting the thrown fireballs away from her and the rest of the team.
edited 21st Mar '16 7:21:32 AM by Meanken
Saranac Markets
The girl stared at Zuko for a moment, before breaking into a grin. Before she could say anything in response, she was pulled back inside by her clearly distressed parents. However, before the door was shut and put under lock, the mother paused a moment to look up to Zuko and speak.
"Thank you."
No other words were appropriate, no other words were spoken. But Zuko would be able to see the rest in the woman's eyes- the relief, the hope, the suspension of disbelief. Then the door shut and the street was empty once more.
The seekers could ask for a better situation, if not for the growing agitation that gnawed at the back of their minds. The realization was simple: everything up till now had been far too easy, considering they were in Teridax territory.
...
Half a kilometer away, the woman focused her sights on the blonde haired boy still on the rooftop. Of course, another boy had joined him- Zuko if she remembered correctly. But the blonde was the main target- he was the teleporter after all. She readied herself for the shot, relaxing her body, calming her breathing. Her finger caressed the trigger. Five, four, three, two, one...
Teridax
All things considered, the Makuta realised that this world was well on its way to hell. Tatu had already made the metaphorical hand basket and now they were all on the merry ride. By now he had visual cues on the two boys on the roof: the blonde was definitely Fletcher; he could only hazard a guess for the other one: Zuko, if the memories he took from Elsa were anything to go by. Two seekers with a plan- an unprecedented disaster if he's ever seen one.
Meanwhile, his counter part from the dump was being as callous as ever. The Makuta did not grudge himself his decision to kill off the clone without so much as an inclination for negotiation: after all, he considered himself one of the few beings on the planet too smart to be kept alive. However, there just a slight hitch with his counterpart's aggression: killing a clone amounted to nothing. A light smirk cracked the sides of Teridax's mouth; all around him, display screens began to flicker as a high pitched background whine built up into a screech of ear shattering proportions. Slowly, the Makuta rose from his throne and raised his hands skyward.
-AWAKEN
-
...
The psychic blast that followed radiated inexorably throughout the city, washing over the terrified population like a tidal wave. The seekers would feel it like a chill wind cutting straight to the bone while those of a more psychic disposition would feel it like a physical blow to the temples. However, powerful as the shock wave was, the seekers themselves would feel no different from a moment ago; but around them, unseen, small metal nodes were beginning to come to life. The nodes grew warm and might have glowed a faint green if held to the light; but alas these details were lost to the world for these nodes were bound to the vertebral columns of the city's inhabitants. From the smallest child to the oldest man, the nodes were present in all of them; and as the nodes activated a change came over the inhabitants- they stopped what they were doing and waited.
Orders were coming soon.
Saranac Markets
For the seekers, no sooner had the psychic blast washed over them did they feel the change in atmosphere. It felt like they had been all immersed into the most arctic of waters- the air was cold and clammy, sticking to their throats. The fearful agitation at the back of their minds would suddenly find realization in the fact that Teridax was here, among them, around them. Though the sun shone in broad daylight, the metaphorical fog of terror had surrounded them- one small step out of line and they were dead.
There was a clicking sound- the sound of a door opening. To the right of Maria, a shop door opened and out stepped a man carrying a shotgun. Without missing a beat he aimed and fired- two shells spraying dozens of deadly pellets. It was like a switch- that shotgun shot; for as soon as the discharge of the gun echoed off into the distances, the doors of the city opened as one. Then out came the inhabitants; old, young, great and small. Well over half of them carried firearms- shot guns were loaded, assault rifles were aimed; then the bullets began to fly. Over by the supermarket, at least a hundred armed youths converged in an effort to screen the seekers out. Some carried baseball bats; some carried axes; there was the odd chainsaw; while others loaded their pistols and began to fire indiscriminately at the fast approaching seekers.
Cannons to the right of them, cannons to the left of them; cannons in front of them. Teridax was going to toy with his charges cruelly before ending them.
In the midst of the chaos flew a single shot- it had been fired the moment Teridax had given the signal. And now that shot flew straight and flew true- it flew for Fletcher's omnitool, aiming to shatter the device before the real fight began.
Saranac dumps
Alt Teridax would feel the psychic surge- more keenly than most. It swirled around him like a mighty gale, holwing into his audio receptors. Perhaps the only more affected would be the head of Mr Sinister only a few hundred meters away, but the attack was not meant for the mutant.
A chuckle reverberated through the air, dark and full of malicious intent.
Frail?
The still burning clone creaked and groaned under the heat as is slowly placed a hand on Teridax's arm.
My friend, you are but words. But you have my attention and also my ire. Come if you dare, -TERIDAX- come and meet me in the Saranac markets and see for yourself just how frail I am.
The clone finally collapsed, dripping from altTeridax's hand in molten chunks.
edited 22nd Mar '16 12:35:09 AM by biomechtraveler
China
-In the skies above, a horse-sized wasp buzzes urgently towards the palace. As an explosion lights up the ground, followed by Blackfire's arrival, it changes course to fly behind her.-
Alien, we are coming to help. Survive until then.
-Far away, the towering cloud of insects begins moving faster, leaving behind the Nerubians on the ground.-
Kahndaq
Oo, dat shut 'im up good. Now let's get shootin'.
-The mekboss starts taking out explosives festooned with threatening faces and insulting messages, and laying them around the closest statue.-
Saranac
-Iroh's arms move in a complex pattern, and a stream of flame bursts from his hands, becoming a wall of fire to discourage all but the terminally enthusiastic from getting close.-
edited 22nd Mar '16 12:51:22 AM by Chabal2
Baxter Building
"The very nature of fire is instability. Disorder. On top of that...I've had bad experiences with it."
Cinder's manic laughter echoed briefly in Glacius' mind.
The giant looked once more at his palm and clenched it into a fist.
"You are correct, however. Focus allows me to control it. It allows me the comfort of knowing this fire cannot harm me."
As he spoke, he found that they was suddenly under attack.
By Cinder-esque fire elementals too.
He immediately created a wall of ice between the group and the incoming fireballs, the fact that they were boxed in on both sides only dawning on him after.
"I was right to be uneasy it seems."
China
Hol scoffed as the agents suggested they make a scapegoat out of him. A part of him from the days of old was nervous at the idea, but he knew he was on top of them, not the other way around.
"Real funny, asshats. Listen here...we-"
Before he could finish that, Hol's ears suddenly rang painfully. Taking a few seconds to regain his bearings, he found a charred pile of ashen remains where a few agents had been before. And in the sky was their first opponent for the day.
His eyes widened as violet balls of energy came for him.
One of the spheres nearly engulfed him, but merely hit a cloud of smoke.
Reappearing on the roof a farm house that was on the path behind, Hol summoned the Emperor, the gun forming out of a swirl of energy in his hands.
"My favorite position: sniper duty."
He raised the gun and fired three shots in Blackfire's general direction. The three bullets swam through the air and circled around each other in a spiral, before suddenly spreading apart and converging on Blackfire's body.
edited 23rd Mar '16 7:26:20 PM by LatverianBadger
"Shake the dust." - Anis MojganiTesseract - On the battlefield, information is god...
"You have made a wise choice. I foresee a long, fruitful partnership between us." He turned away from the impotent head, and towards his own men. "Unplug him and have him brought to the lab in Antarctica."
His hand went his ear once more, as a new report came in.
"Very well, hold position for now. Do not fire on either."
The other hand dipped into Tesseract's pocket, and with the push of a button his outbound communications switched from "Royal Guard" to "Overlords".
"Teridax, would you mind explaining why a clone of yours is destroying several other clones of yours? And why Saranac has erupted into gunfire?"
Fletcher Renn - ...Artillery is the King...
The next few seconds were... hectic, to say the least.
The "innocent civilians" had gotten their guns and opened fire. They had to be brainwashed, there was no other real explanation.
And to top that, someone had just sniped him. His kinetic barriers had absorbed the shot, but unless the police had deployed a sniper team already, that meant one thing.
Winter.
Fletcher dropped to a crouch and pulled the Black Widow from his back, ignoring it's wizzes and clicks as it folded out from it's storage mode. Almost immediately, he identified several spots a sniper could have fired from, and peered at them through his scope.
The second Winter fired again, he'd have her.
"Zuko, get to the supermarket, set the charges. Now." His omnitool lit up again, as he opened communications for the rest of the team. "Wamuu, Armani, belay my last. Fly to Mordin and assist him. SHIELD Team Charlie, change course to assist with anti-sniper duty. SHIELD Teams Alpha, Bravo and Delta, bunker down in the nearest buildings. Do not engage the civilians unless necessary. Everyone else, keeping making your way to the supermarket. Try to keep to non-lethal neutralization. But if you need to... do what you need to survive."
Mordin - ...Infantry is the Queen...
"Not time for sexual advances."
The constant beat of the sniper fire disappeared, replaced by the uproar in gunfire a short distance away. It looks like the snipers had lost sight of them.
"Assistance inbound. Evacuation unlikely. Snipers likely repositioning to acquire line of sight. Able to walk?"
Tesseract's Mooks - ...and we all know what the King does to the Queen
" You wanna go back?! "
"We're under orders. Protect Tatu. The teleporters are still operational in the tower, meaning it's still intact. He could be in trouble."
" He told us to run! "
"He told us to focus in the Senators. Our best chance of finding the rebels is making sure he's defended."
" Our best chance of finding the rebels is waiting for Boss to call us. "
"...fine."
Nerile, Kahndaq'
Nerile climbs the chain with her feet unscathed, primarily because she saw the spike glinting at her and immediately decided not to trust it. It clinks despite her best efforts, for a moment clatters terrifyingly against her sword. She takes that as confirmation.
"Voice down. Fuck's sake."
But on the roof, she sees more clearly. The blood, the collapse, the enraptured crowd. They're taller than she expected, even though she's not entirely certain what that was, and the blonde one looks as if he could drive a fist through one side of her rib cage and out the other. Everyone in this degenerate world has a sheen of artificial beauty, but these two take it to levels she's not sure she's seen. Put them under a lamp and they'd melt.
"You're right, though. That's Seiga's man, isn't it? N'chow. Alright, see if you can get us in closer. You don't want to fuck off the wiza-"
But it's too late. The wizard has been fucked off, and makes his play accordingly - over the past year she's seen enough of his handiwork to know when someone's down to him, the shimmer it all makes when he pulls out of whatever private corner of a plane he has for safekeeping. There's a truth to Urza, and the truth is, he scares her. There's no bottom to his eyes and no cushioning around his words, and while ordinarily she'd resent that, the real heart of it is what lurks underneath those garish robes and academic curtness. It's not that he could end her, in any one of a thousand different ways, it's that there's absolutely no doubt in her mind that he would.
Now the streets are full of glinting knives, and rapidly becoming less full of people. The heavens split to deliver a sermon, brief and meaningless, and Nerile feels the indescribable revulsion of recognition. Amon disappears under a blinding light, shiny skin and all, and by her count that marks one down. Seiga's man falters for a second, then commits himself to restoring the odds.
All of which means the window is open, and they're still two streets away from where they should be.
"N'chow. Fuck, I mean. Sheik, those statues, can you get them from here?"
Dio Brando, Kahndaq
The Hulk died, as was his only real remaining choice - the eyes which peaked through cracks bore witness, and we joined shortly thereafter by the crowds filing out of their hiding places. Noatak caught my eye from beneath his gilded deception, parasite for now in check, and it here I must divulge an omission made in the name of structure. Beware the treachery of images, O dear and plump imagined reader.
It goes as follows: during the battle of fifty seconds, we had been visited by an preparation who, by accident of placement, had arrived thigh-deep in a pile of screaming grey anatomy. This was Gavrill, I assume by way of Loki, and in the way eternal to her immaculate projection had demanded my attention. The maddened goat-eyes, the maddened voice, the gullet lined with shark-teeth. Breasts covered by leather kept in place by naught but prayer. No whiskey was stolen, but only through pragmatic accident.
When she spoke we were preoccupied, and it was only by the arrival of the crowd that her words were able to filter through the layers of immediacy preceding them - I could not decide whether this was disaster or serendipity. The words were rebellion. Naked, ugly, inelegant rebellion, ignorant of all preparation which allowed her to speak without immediate death. The prelude had been cut short, destroyed in its entirely, and replaced by the emergence of an impatient denouement. Her secret was laid bare, and mine by heady association.
So Noatak spoke unto his crowd. Divine judgement, the grace of God, the completion of the myth, but then he turned to me, and in his way implored without a single word spoken. The eyes interrogated; I hesitated, but then confirmed with a single subtle nod. Mass was the broadcast, forced was the hand.
Myself, Gavrill, and Loki. Tira, Amon, Kirei, and Medusa. Tesseract would not be swayed, that much I knew without thought, and Menardi held him in queer fixation - this did not matter. The first possessed a surplus of self-created weakness, and the latter could be contained . The rest were factors undecided. The players were assembled, albeit premature. Our odds seemed, on the balance of the facts, roughly acceptable.
The caution of the brave was finished. Time to run, naked, into the frigid moonlight. Yes, I nodded.
But as Noatak completed his address, retribution struck - I did not see its agent, could not see, even as the crowd scatted and I cast around in quiet urgency. This was a clever sorcerer, and his work was twofold. Noatak was consumed by a circle of light, a pinprick spread to a manhole cover beneath his feet, projecting up a cylinder. He did not jump away, could not jump away, for the light robbed him of movement, and so he writhed in a stilled agony.
Our eyes met, and he begged wordlessly. I replied wordlessly, tightening my grip on the Soul Dagger, stepping forward hurriedly - a field of burlesque devices materialised around us, two tight-knit silver circles swift becoming three. The moonlight glinted off their exposed edges, their construction queer and comprised primarily of blades and vicious hooks, but they were still, content for now with a silent but implicit malevolence of purpose. The crown, until now fearfully enraptured, scattered from these apparitions as if the sea before a disastrous wave. A voice rang down from illusory heavens, male, deep, dripping with authority, counter-quoting. With it, the ambush was complete.
"And when it is said to them, 'do not cause corruption on earth,'" said it, "they say, 'we are but reformers.' Unquestionably it is they who are the corrupters but perceive it not."
Behold, the power of truism turned against its masters.
I could pay it no heed. The Soul Dagger flashed in my hand, poised to cut a hole in that restrictive light and free my earnest-yet-trustful companion, but I discovered it could not. It was deflected, rejected, actively repelled. Magic immune to the unmagic, or something not magical at all - this a development inconceivable, my composure momentarily broken, I had no time for this leisurely speculation. There was only one recourse still open to me. My hand had been forced twice in the span of three minutes.
The Soul Dagger disappeared back into my forearm. For a fraction of a second I concentrated, pushed an internal pressure to the point of rupture. Wordlessly, for these are unnecessary, time was halted.
One second. The crowds were immobilised halfway between the street and the safety of their private refuges, moonlight glinted at the frozen cloud of dust their panic had raised. A last-ditch attempt to locate our assailant revealed nothing, and so I reached into that immobilised immobilising light and took Noatak by his arm.The resistance was gone, the mechanism stilled, and he came out with no apparent fuss.
Two seconds. We flew through the air in a high arc, raising a complimentary cloud of debris where my feet had left the ground, and touched down upon a roof to our right. Noatak was still postured in agony, now pleading unseeing towards the moon. I cast around again for the man who had done this, scanning the scattering crowd for an irregular, but could find nothing.
Three seconds. My fingers pierced Noatak's neck and took recompense for the energy this would cost me, blood thick with the particles and excretions of the parasite. I devoured these, stood tall, and let him slide off of me. My arms crossed, posture loosened, ready to face this storm with composure intact.
And then, time resumed.
Jetstream Sam, Yuyuko's Holdings
"Not at all," says Sam, taking the offered hand. "Nice as this place is, it's probably best we don't overstay our welcome, ay? Let's go find out host."
He's not lying. While he can't speak for the logic behind the disks and terraces, there's a definite comforting quality to the whole display. Between the lilies, the moon, the warm glow of the lanterns and the quiet gurgling of the fountain, the whole night has a crisp quality forced onto it, simultaneously energetic and unhurried.
In the distance he can see an identical disk covered in peach and cherry blossoms, projecting the same mood but inexplicably more nostalgic, and he realises two fundamental truths. The first is that it's been five years since he last had the chance for a sword fight under the cherry blossoms, and in the more reckless recesses of his soul he's praying someone goes wrong and he gets the chance for a follow-up. The second is that he's seen this kind of set-up before.
The air is crisp, energetic and unhurried, slightly nostalgic. That's a calculated evocation, and more than that, it reeks of corporate. He's been in more than twenty offices with entire floors devoted to this kind of display, sometimes twice in the same firm's offices, almost always the brainchild of some overworked middle-management bastard trying to wean himself off the Xanax. The primary difference here seems to be the magic of that practically unlimited Oscorp budget and...
He honestly doesn't know. No cameras, no people, but it's more than that. Something feels different here, something earnest, maybe something genuine. He can't say why, but all of a sudden that strikes him as dangerous.
So as Seiga takes off, he turns his head back to her, smiling nonchalantly;
"Who is this esteemed Ms. Saigyouji, anyhow? You've seen the state of our intel just of late. What kind of a woman are we dealing with here?"
Wamuu, Saranac Lake City
"Understood," replies Wamuu, changing course sharply for the second time in ten seconds. "I shall assist your toad."
His shield is not a shield, instead inheritance from the previous owner of the Power Cosmic, a pacifist-slave with little understanding of will, that or of the warrior or otherwise. In the process of his training Wamuu devised new use for the tools he had been given, imparting upon them an honour they had not felt before, but the original functions remain intact. This is why, as he throws it from his arm, it does not fall to the ground.
Instead it hovers, a long and shimmering oval, and he lands upon it heavily. The silver shield becomes a silver surfboard. Gunfire explodes in the distance, splitting the air at his previous destination, but has just become irrelevant. Silently, he entrusts the battle to Fletcher and his men.
Rocketing through the air, it takes Wamuu only a handful of seconds to reach the pile of human refuse in which the scientist-toad saw fit to be deployed. His presence is a mystery, but as a mystery concerned with those unworthy of his attention, it's a mystery not worth solving. Above the dump it takes him a couple of seconds of circling to locate his enemies, one more to locate his allies, and his mood sours at which the winds tell him. The toad is with the traitor, and their unworthiness has tripled.
Wamuu enters through the hole Mordin made in the ceiling, descending briskly on his silver surfboard. The suit of winds makes his face invisible, but at the moment he opens his mouth, it becomes obvious he's scowling.
"Your attackers are repositioning. I may evacuate you as a coward, or we may fight as warriors worthy of our cause. Make your choice."
Mordin - Hole in the Roof Gang
"Evacuate Loki. Has major injury, requires medical attention am unable to provide. Am personally combat ready."
That reminded him, there was something he should probably tell the rest of group about. His omnitool glowed orange as he broadcasted a message to the entire Saranac group.
"Have deployed secondary Teridax to combat primary Teridax. Unless actively threatened, avoid firing on all Teridaxes."
"You're kidding me, right?"
"No. Loki also present, requires medical evacuation."
"Which Loki?"
"Alternate universe Loki."
Fletcher Renn - Winter is Coming
Fletcher, without even taking his eye off his scope, activated the headset Fury had given him.
"Fury, Loki and Mordin are in the AO. They've deployed a second Teridax to fight our own one. Loki took fire, prepare a medical team and transport back to base for him."
Times Square
"Yay Desco did it! But what happened to the giant plane? Desco didn't stop it from crashing." Desco floated for a few moments puzzled. But she reprocessed what had happened. The ship was falling and suddenly it shrank into a tiny bright ball and went into that tower, Tatu's Tower. Mr. Tatu must be there so, did he do it? Gavrill was going after him now, maybe she managed to get inside?
That was enough reasoning for Desco to open a chaos portal at her feet, and pop right back into HQ with Tatu holding the bright little ball and Gavrill and Loki standing before him. "Desco found the enemy! Mr. Tatu Mr. Tatu! Gavrill is trying to kill you! But Desco shot down her giant plane!" Desco looked all proud of herself, she not connecting that it was the plane she had shot down which was the main reason why it was about to fly right into Tatu's face.
DesX Times Square
As Deadpool grabbed a gun, one of the blades from the DesX sword split off from the base and transformed back into DesX in time to take the bullet. "It isn't that easy! I hope you are watching daddy!" Her Yogsothoth had appeared with her, and the tentacles all flew wide open at Deadpool attempting to make a strike before the puesdo body faded and the missing blade on Schala's sword came back out.
edited 24th Mar '16 10:13:31 AM by StephanReiken
Headquarters
Gavrill wracked her brain trying to think of a suitably snappy comeback, but none appeared to be forthcoming. She settled for emitting a pained groan and rolling off Loki onto her back, sprawling on the floor amid the broken glass with a crunch.
"Urhh... can I level with you for a moment? I didn’t honestly think that was going to work. But I’ve never dropped an aircraft carrier directly on top of a metropolitan area before. I was really looking forward to it. Is that really so wrong? But you couldn’t even let me have that could you, you bastard?"
Times Square
On the ground, a certain homunculus put a hand to his forehead and whistled as he watched Tatu play ball with a helicarrier.
Dude knew how to have fun.
With that no longer grabbing his attention, he turned instead towards Gavrill's forces. A grin escaped him.
"Let's blow off some steam."
As he strolled casually through Times Square, Greed's shadow melted into a pool at his feet, with sickly purplish eyes and maws of jagged teeth growing from it. With that, Greed's shadow extended in multiple tendrils, gripping whatever hostiles he found by the legs and separating their feet from the rest of their bodies.
"Shake the dust." - Anis Mojgani

Helicarrier
"Are you serious? Of course I’ve heard of it. Where the fuck did you think I was from, anyway?"
Well, most of her, she was pretty certain. Although she’d never been one hundred percent sure about her small intestine. As to what Loki was suggesting... while Gavrill had always remained a firm proponent of ripping people limb from limb with one’s own hands, nails and teeth, she couldn’t deny that bombarding fiery death on them from her new flying doom fortress had a certain je ne sais quoi, and she was loath to give that up.
On the other hand, the prospect of dropping hundreds of thousands tonnes of steel directly onto Tatu's house spoke to her on some very deep, fundamental levels. The fact that it would in all likelihood accomplish little more than mildly annoying him just made it all the more appealing.
"Yeah, that'll get his attention, won't it? Let's make us a mess..."
Smaller craft began taking off from the helicarrier. Fighters and attack choppers began strafing the nearby buildings, as well as the hapless populace. The human servants Gavrill had amassed around her in the last year feared their captain’s wrath far more than they did any retribution from Tatu or the overlords. Larger troop carriers descended to the ground, but the beings that emerged appeared to be nothing human: massively proportioned figures clad in thick clothing
◊ and carrying heavy weapons stepped forth, and began their indiscriminate attacks on the city and the people. The demons provided by Desco’s father, their loyalty being more questionable, were unceremoniously dumped into the fray some distance away, given no instruction beyond destroying everything they saw.
Before long, much of the city below was aflame. Screams, crashes and explosions rang out, smoke and fire rising from the ground. All the while the Helicarrier bore down on Tatu's Headquarters. Gavrill turned away from the view to gaze at Loki, stroking his face and chuckling softly.
"So... do you think they're going to notice us?"