The Good, The Bad, And The Spandex III: Electric Boogaloo

Freisch Manor

"Aw. It's nothin'." Setsuko grinned, taking the flower and sticking it behind her ear. It didn't match her eyes, but she thought it looked pretty regardless. "Besides, Mikael's the one who's letting you stay with him."

Said half-demon had cocked an eyebrow at the cat that suddenly appeared. "Hm. You're a Super."

"Oh, right." Setsuko looked sheepish, realizing she hadn't mentioned it before. "Mikael, this is Cheshire. Alice's powers are kinda weird like that."

It clicked almost immediately. "Ah. That's... interesting. So should I be worried about the rest of Wonderland showing up?"

"Not as long as she stays sane. I think." Setsuko scratched the back of her head. "It's something to do with your mental state, right Alice?"

Jumping Bean, Red Tiger & Black Wolf—Police Station

As Red Tiger and Black Wolf murmured their assent with Ryan's statements, Jumping Bean put a hand to her chin, stroking it a little while she thought.

"Say, I heard something about a...Commencement Ceremony? Shouldn't it be taking place sometime close to now, or am I mistaken?" she asked.

The Printer Family—Easton City Library

Wilma was waiting for her mom and dad on the Library's front steps, reading a book. She ran over to them as soon as she saw them, saying "How'd the meeting with the lawyer go? Is everything alright?"

"Fine, Wilma. We haggled for a bit, then he said we didn't have to pay if we didn't win the case," Paige said, hiding her own anxiety.

"But that means he thinks we won't win—Ow! Hey!" Wilhelm was promptly thunked on the head with a notebook by Paige.

"Remain optimistic. We'll get through this," Paige said sternly.

"You'd think that if the Library weren't on land, we wouldn't have to be taxed for the space it takes up," Wilma joked, thoughts and grandly impractical schemes coiling behind her glib facade.

The family entered the Library, shutting the door behind them.

Edited by JumpingFruit on Mar 12th 2019 at 10:21:48 AM

Alice – Freisch Manor

Alice didn't answer. She looked frozen in one spot. Staring ahead with a wide-eyed, blank expression, the girl didn't even appear to be breathing. A strange sent of smoke drifted through the air as her skin began to gain an oddly shrivelled and dry complexion; flaking into pocks and scars as the ground beneath her feet seemed to char and blacken–

“Best not pry, hmm?” The Cat swiftly interrupted—causing Alice to immediately blink out of her stupor and glance around in disorientation. “But no, needn't worry. Denizens are... occupied. Until she needs them.”

Alice seemed to have completely gained awareness by this point, and the bizarre effects had faded along with it. She clutched The Cat ever tighter, staring up at them both with a haunted expression as she managed to whisper something out in the faintest of breaths.

“I... I'd rather like to go in now, I think...!”

The cautionary glare The Cat shot them spoke volumes.

Commencement Ceremony - Easton; 3:33 PM

Gathering in a large plaza with a central podium demarcated with the logos of the JFI, Noble Tech, and the City of Easton's coat of arms, the people of Easton seemed excited by the information a new superhero team had formed to take up the vigil for the city. There was a lot of excitement for the events to come - as was evidenced by the swarms of cameras, reporters, and local personalities.

At the forefront, right out in front of the mayoral office building, the hero team in question gathered by the podium.

Ryan, Jeff and Arkhiel were all dressed up in tuxedos, Ryan looking a lot more uncomfortable in his due to the size, but willing to deal with it. The mayor seemed to have something to discuss with Isaac Noble before officially beginning the lighting of the Torch of Commencement.

Ryan looked out over the crowd. Damn but he felt so fucking nervous around so many people. He was the freaking human nuke...what if something happened? Ryan looked down, trying to calm his nerves.

He couldn't let publicity get to him. This was a part of the kind of super team they were. He clasped hands briefly with Jeff, who whispered to him, "Don't worry, dude, we're all here for you."

However, as if confirming the fears of the living WOMD on stage, far off on top of a building the villains of the hour made ready for their attempt. Myrkaan awaited the arrival of Walker with his gun, he'd sent him the details and location. And now it was just a matter of him getting there. He was of course in his incorporeal spirit form, though now, his body was never far behind him.

Once this shot is made, my inferior self, his friends, those damned Inspired...they're all going to die, along with the wretched citizens of this city. As for my Nazi underlings...well, who gives a damn about them? They're Nazis.

Edited by NickTheSwing on Mar 13th 2019 at 7:29:15 AM

Easton Rooftops

Though few to none would notice, there was a humanoid figure on the rooftops, seemingly disappearing and reappearing on another nearby rooftop repeatedly.

As Walker blinkstepped his way across the roofs, he couldn't help but think to himself Finally, a chance to alter the path these people are taking. They need to be aware of what happens when augments try to organize.

The Pioneer rifle was slung across his back, jostling gently as he stepped. There was a vaguely menacing air about it, more than just an intimidating appearance; it almost felt as if it hurt the eyes to look at it, or as if the gun was looking back. Walker didn't understand what he had made. The creation of it he left entirely up to the Pioneer mind inside of him. As such, it had created something far beyond human powers and incomprehensible to the human mind. In a way, he was almost afraid of it.

Pioneer artifacts tended to have a mind of their own, that he knew. The more advanced ones were practically sentient, not to mention harmful to the mind just to look at. Luckily his merging with the Pioneer mind helped mitigate the effect. Still, some part of Walker believed that the only reason he still had control over his own body is that the Pioneer mind was using him, using him to further its own agenda. He was pretty sure the Pioneer mind was simply trying to recreate Pioneer civilization in its own way.

Eventually he arrived at the rooftop Mikael had told him to go to. And indeed, Mikael was there. Walker hoisted up the Pioneer rifle, taking care not drop it. He wasn't even sure if this rifle was volatile or not; for all he knew, breaking it would destroy Easton. Hopefully not.

"I'm ready," Walker growled. "Just tell me when to shoot, and which one I'm shooting."

Elsewheres in Easton - Cascade & The One Eyed King

Three officers were rushed to the emergency room at Saint Mary Magdalene Hospital near the downtown area, just a few blocks away from the central precinct. The extent of their injuries was severe - shrapnel scarring, internal hemorrhaging, burns from both explosives and acid attacks. A few hours ago they reported moving the prisoners from Easton West Precinct and contraband off site due to a sudden assault by an unknown assailant, but apparently they had been attacked soon after - and judging by the condition of their bodies, they were lucky to be alive. Thankfully the hospital had the most state of the art medical gear, as well as a few spellcasting healers on site. But the sheer brutality inflicted on them lined up perfectly with the M.O. of the person who had assaulted their precinct, and with vehicle, prisoners, and contraband now in enemy hands, central HQ felt an even stronger push to go after the mysterious woman.

The One-Eyed King appreciated how dedicated to the cause their followers were, to willingly endure such mutilations for the sake of appearances. Police officers, especially, were often given the benefit of the doubt in the public eye. Meanwhile, their calling card kept an eye and ear open on Rig, now made off with the police van and the stolen gear, both hers and the Neo Nazis' along with assorted others, while her cultists got to work on the few remaining fascists still left in their hands...

Commencement Ceremony - Charlotte Silverberg

As for the king herself, well, she had other affairs to attend to, after all. At the very front of the audience, honored guest, mayoral candidate, and darling of the city media, Miss Charlotte Silverberg, single and glamorous, sat in a simple but lovely black dress to match her curves. It seemed that it was taking a bit for the events to start proper, so the actress and aspiring political figure ran her eyes across the men and women Mr. Isaac Noble picked out to represent his JFI. Rather eclectic group, though I suppose most of them are local. Still, a lot of them look rather green...

Charlotte smiled, first to herself, then to the new recruits, her gaze practically stripping them naked with the intensity with which it laid upon them - a coquettish, teasing look in contrast to the machinations running through her mind.

Closeby the Ceremony - Ial "The Thespian" Lesson

...and so the slate is wiped clean once again. Curtains rise... You know, I've had a thought in this long pause from day to night backtracking back towards noon.

Please, do tell, as though I have a choice any other way...

We've been a bit too passive in our motions thus far, I think. A purchase here, a word there. Not to mention there's quite a bit I'm capable of that you don't have access to, and that's simply not fair, limiting your toolset as such. So, a proposal.

Take off the mask.

Ah, and before you inquire as to why - the mask acts as a seal upon me and my abilities. I will tell you upfront so trickery and dishonesty will be preempted - I could take over your body, quite easily in fact, if you were to do this. But laying my cards down to bare, I am having a lot of fun watching you perform the stage, enough where I'd rather stay backstage and give you more with which to improvise.

...how kind and generous of you. You should know how suspicious that all sounds, yes?

Exactly why I set it forward. But if you take off your mask, I can give you back your face, provide you with a bit of my vision, and quite a bit more.

Am I allowed the will to refuse?

I'll leave you to answer that.

Jumping Bean, Red Tiger & Black Wolf—Commencement Ceremony

The Wuxia Warriors had all dressed up in tuxedos, though with minor variations in style: Red Tiger had rolled up the sleeves of his (opening the top buttons on his shirt and ditching the tie entirely), Black Wolf's had longer lapels so that it looked like a coat (he hadn't bothered to button it, and his tie hung loose around his neck), and Jumping Bean had opted to wear a bow tie on the account that it was harder to grab.

All had gathered their considerable amounts of hair into tight buns, though Jumping Bean had opted to spend a considerable amount of time deciding whether or not to apply makeup (was it being too attached to earthly things?) before just powdering her face. All the other Xian ladies did it, so why couldn't she?

They bowed politely in unison to the crowd before joining the rest of the NJI by the podium. Black Wolf sneezed as he caught the scent of something extremely odd on the wind that he didn't recognize, but he dismissed it as just another quirk of Easton.

Jumping Bean raised her eyebrows challengingly at Charlotte's lascivious gaze if if to say Begone, THOT! (albeit in far more antiquated language) and crossed her arms haughtily. She was displeased that Red Tiger and Black Wolf were looking back with the same amount of interest, perhaps even more.

She didn't hope to find her friends committing acts of public indecency. Then newspapers would make acquaintances with heads.

The ogling (at least on the Wuxia Warriors' end) was cut short by the arrival of the mayor, who pulled up (as usual) in a long black limo. Then, the press started mumbling with interest and the two yaoguai brothers snapped back to attention.

Edited by JumpingFruit on Mar 13th 2019 at 10:19:39 AM

Somewhere in a business hotel near the Commencement Ceremony...

MJ carefully peeked through the curtains at the busy plaza across the way before swiftly pulling them shut and pulling up a nearby armchair. She left a brief gaze at her doubly locked door before turning on the tv to a sufficiently noisy channel. Then it was just a matter of setting up her equipment on the provided desk.

A few twists of her watch here...a tap on her phone there...dozens of live camera feeds for the ceremony instantly popped up on her glasses. MJ smirked.

Security is still terrible, I see...Good.

As she shifted through the sources for select HD ones, she could feel a growing twinge of annoyance and disappointment poking at her conscious. She sighed and whispered in a firm tone. "I'm still not attending the ceremony, Star. We are not ready for direct involvement in our current living situation."

An image of the long white ruffled dress that was bought recently floated longingly into her mind, followed by MJ as a princess gracefully descending a staircase into a ball scene. She fought hard not to chuckle at how romantic Star made it seem.

"I appreciate the compliments, but your fantasies can be fulfilled at a more convenient time. Please just observe the event as planned. Alert me if anything dangerous comes up."

She got blasted by a picture of an queen carved in ice before she got mentally jabbed by a shard of contempt and the line was cut off. She could see out of the corner a small group of her bugs pulsing dark red forming by her bedside table. As they headed in the direction of the window, she stood up and moved to place her hand on the handle. She paused to mumble, "Dancing with handsome men all night isn't my forte anyhow...", and then pushed the window ajar.

Surprise emanated at first from Star before the beetles burst into an array of cheerful colors, as if laughing at her comment. They immediately settled down into their usual copper tone once they flew off into the night but MJ could still feel the lingering joy from Star’s display.

A satisfied smile spread across MJ’s face, then it was gone as soon as it appeared when she turned her attention back to the cameras on her phone. Efficient as ever, she pulled up her her computer and started recording with a watchful eye on any intruders in both realities.

Ceremony

Mason had worn a tux a grand total of one and a half times in his life.

It showed as he stood up there on the stage with his arms behind him and looking hysterically uncomfortable. His hair combed back and managed, his glasses pressed up on his nose and trying to look dignified.

His driver pressed tight against the inside of his shirt sleeve, hence why he was hiding it. It didn’t look well on Mason, who was used to looser fitting clothes for easier maneuverability and the fact this was constraining him really killed his vines.

It was why he was trying so hard to not shift around so blatantly but it was almost stereotypical in how fucking uncomfortable he was.

He hoped this wouldn’t go on too long.

Tyulla – Commencement Ceremony

Amusingly, Mason wasn't the only one looking uncomfortable in a tux. Evidently the primordial being had misinterpreted proper wear, and was looking enviously over at some of the more feminine garbs. Mainly because they actually seemed like they fit. Tyulla hadn't even managed to get a suit properly proportioned for her—so she'd had to alter her shape somewhat to squeeze in.

Which was inconvenient, as it meant she had leftover mass. Thankfully though, she'd compromised by lengthening her ‘hair’ somewhat. And to her credit, she managed to look smart.

But by her uncomfortable stance, it was clear she'd never be wearing anything like this again if she could help it.

“Is this usual practice?” she eventually asked—leaning in a little to Mason and dropping her voice down to a whisper.

Blüdlass – Easton Rooftops

“Okay, that's a sick-ass gun,” Beatrix admitted as she peered down at the guy with the oversized rifle. She'd have used binoculars, but really with a weapon that size it'd be redundant. “Looks like the #$&%ing BFG... but like, plausible 'n' s***...”

That was a bit of an exaggeration, but she was talking to herself. It didn't exactly matter. She took an idle bite out of her cheese pizza as she balanced the butt of her gun on the tip of her finger, resisting the urge to shoot at a bird as it flew past her position.

I'd probably get yelled at for giving my position away. God this is boring.

But still, it was a little amusing. They were both set up to take a shot. She couldn't tell who he was targeting, but she wasn't exactly going to shoot before him. In the ensuing chaos, it'd be easier to get one off of her own.

Yes, he'd probably retreat at that point. But she'd be damned if she couldn't hit a moving target.

Edited by Enirboreh on Mar 14th 2019 at 12:53:22 PM

At the business hotel...

MJ didn't have to stare at her screens too long before a panoramic view of the plaza began to emerge in her head. She sent a mental pat on the head and it took all she had to hold back the flood of excited pleasure in response so she could focus on the picture properly. Her eyes eventually caught and zoomed in on some human-shaped shadows on some nearby rooftops.

I was right to watch this party when I arrived...there's enough influential figures gathered in such a vulnerable area that I'm surprised more hitmen haven't shown up...

"Have you identified any possible targets?"

Her mind's eye was panned over to a lady in a black dress, a muscular man looking uncomfortable in a tuxedo, and of course, the mayor himself. She searched for data on the first two and soon learned enough about the mayoral candidate and the de facto leader of the new JFI to make her decision.

"You need to split up. Go assess the people on the rooftops and distract them if possible. As for the fit man in the fancy suit...try to warn him of the possible danger. Discreetly."

More bugs began to spread all over her bed sheets, leaving them rather threadbare as they swarmed together and headed up out the window. As the swarm soon caught sight of Walker and attempted to creep towards him for a closer look, MJ only sighed, knowing she was going to need to pay for new covers...again.

Meanwhile at the party, one of the cameramen was remarking how some of the leaves on some bushes nearby had disappeared after being covered by what they called rather drab ladybugs. Indeed, they had been for Star had need of them to help expand her scouting group more. She used just enough bodies to make a notebook with alerting red words: bad guys on rooftops and carried it with the rest of bodies. Placing it out of sight next to the stairs of the office building, Star carefully trailed a line of beetles from the book to the shoes of Ryan and crawled a bit up his pant leg to catch his attention.

Easton Third National Bank

AK-47 x4, mags x12
IED x3
Bulletproof vest x4
Machining gear
BRICK?????

Hanna stared at the list of the confiscated gear the King had granted her. The trip back to her nearest garage wasn't that hard, but she was down a lot of money and down one vehicle. She needed a win, and she had to get rid of this police van she had. She prowled through the city streets from inside the van, definitely shaking but she wasn't sure if it was with excitement or anxiety. On the other hand, this was going to be awesome. She snapped a selfie on Instagram, that would help get her excited! She did the cute pose, winked at the camera, and posted it. E 3 NB was all she posted, before dropping the brick on the gas and heading into the back of the van. She'd picked up one specialized vehicle and a couple sacks before coming out here.

An armored police van crashed through the front of the Easton Third National Bank, the back doors flew open, and a souped-up quadbike rolled out of the back of the van, the Clasher. The Rig rode on top, armored up and packing an AK in her offhand, firing into the air. "Everyone on the ground! This is a robbery, you know the drill, let's get this over with and you can all get the day off, go to the ceremony you all want to."

Magpie & Trickster—Easton Third National Bank

Trickster was puppeting several illusions of people to distract the tellers (with a subtle blur in their shadows) while Magpie snuck into the offices at the back to retrieve some dirty files. She was just sneaking back out when the Rig busted through the wall just like the Kool-Aid man.

The illusions wavered and dissipated as Trickster lost concentration. Magpie fumbled with the files and dropped them all over the floor, the pages detailing the bank's dirty deals scattering all over as both put their hands up. However much one could regenerate, it hurt to be shot.

"Excuse me, we were in the middle of something here," Magpie said tersely, voice flat. "Would you be so kind as to leave with all these files? You could take some if you'd like—I don't really care who reports corruption, as long as it's caught." There was a noticeable lilt in her voice as she said "corruption" and a rage-filled glint in her eye, but as soon as it could be seen it had faded.

"I'd tell you to shoot someone, but Magpie says killing is bad. Threats work much better. Makes evildoers feel scared. Guilty. Isn't that right!?" Trickster screeched, looking pleased at the muffled screams they managed to elicit. "Ah, calm down. I only bedevil the truly evil ones. Like the manager of this bank. Sadly, he's not here. Anyhow, you're not in any dan—"

"Please, stop talking. She might shoot us," Magpie stage-whispered. "I'd rather not be pumped full of lead another time."

"It might scare people though," Trickster responded, wide-eyed and looking oh-so innocent.

"Your call," Magpie said to the Rig, ignoring Trickster entirely.

Wren – Easton Third National Bank

A muted ‘pow’ might've been audible under the chaos if one's hearing was sensitive (or selective) enough, and a new presence was suddenly in the room. The noises had attracted them from elsewhere, and only a slight glimmer from a pair of crimson eyes was visible up from their position in a dark corner near the roof—claws and talons dug into the wall and effectively supporting their relatively light weight.

Staring down at them, it was only as a few black feathers slipped from their plumage did they show signs of alarm. They drifted downward and gently landed on the floor near a young boy, and he craned his neck up to see where it'd come from.

A bestial, feathered girl—almost impossible to see against the shadows—was staring back down at him wide-eyed, pressed up as far as she could go against the dark surface of the bank wall.

He smiled, and waved up at her.

She blinked, and tentatively waved back.

Edited by Enirboreh on Mar 15th 2019 at 4:39:07 PM

Bank Robbery

Oh man, dirty paperwork? Well, certainly made the guilt hurt less, and she had another idea if she was gonna Wikileaks this. "Sounds good to me." She said, keeping her rifle trained on a security guard as she wheeled over to the pile of paper. "I got an idea actually, I'll get these put on my twitter. I'm The Rig." She tossed a handful of the papers into her bag, kept The Clasher running, and dismounted over to the tellers. "Money in the bag, you know how this goes." She turned back to the two newbies. "Don't think I've seen you guys before, what should I call you?"

Closeby the Ceremony - Ial "The Thespian" Lesson

Ial had spent some time deliberating with his other half in the minutes that passed - though as it was unwritten, the knowledge of the conversation simply arrived within his mind. The voice had revealed itself as, indeed, another him - an Ial Lesson of previous incarnations, or at least one with the memory of them. Much back and forth about the nature of existence, the nature of self, before eventually Ial yielded just a bit of trust in the spiritual adviser that was himself.

...alright, but I hope this does not lead to regrets.

No worries. Let us show the world who you are.

Ial took a sigh and a deep breath before putting his hand over his mask and peeling it off... briefly revealing words before the words faded and were replaced by a natural complexion, green eyes, and a human face. Then a sudden jolt of information, of himself, of the world, and of its going ons. Ial pat himself down to make sure he was still there. "...well then. I guess this is no longer necessary." The mask disappeared into Ial's prop space, and the renewed actor set his sights up towards the rooftops. "Now..."

Snap

Commencement Ceremony, Audience - Charlotte Silverberg

Charlotte chuckled at Jumping Bean's defiant posturing before suddenly the sky became dark. Strange, the weather forecast didn't mention anything about cloud coverage - it was supposed to be bright and sunny all day. Curious, Charlotte took the opportunity to look up and... the sky was still blue. Tinted dark, but sky blue. It was as if someone closed the blinds or something similar on the ceremony itself, with no discernible cause.

Then, a light from the heavens. A spotlight from nowhere beamed down onto Easton, down near the ceremony, landing squarely on one very particular rooftop...

Where Myrkaan and Walker were setting up their sniping post.

Magpie & Trickster—Bank Robbery

"Cool, cool," Magpie said, much relieved. "Good to do business with you! I'm Magpie and they're Trickster."

"Those are our real names. We're not really human. It's justified," Trickster added helpfully.

Wuxia Warriors—Commencement Ceremony

All three of the Wuxia Warriors' eyes snapped to the place the spotlight highlighted. Black Wolf sneezed as he caught the eldritch scent of Walker's gun again.

"I have no idea what's going on over there, but it doesn't smell good," Black Wolf coughed.

"Do you think they might be troublemakers?" Red Tiger asked. "Damn it, I should have brought my skin and claws..."

"Don't worry, I got them," Jumping Bean triumphantly pulled out their equipment from under the stage. "The Art of War taught me something after all!" She laughed. "Always be on your guard."

Now, the Heavens that the three knew wouldn't intervene unless someone begged them and offered sacrifices, and they knew there were no other Xian around that they knew of. Therefore, either another Heaven was trying to intervene, or someone/something else entirely.

That thought wasn't entirely comforting.

Wren – Easton Third National Bank

Well, with the kid aside, Wren seemed to have avoided detection remarkably well so far. Which was relieving for that moment, but the aforementioned kid was still staring up at her in awe. Probably thought she was some sort of fairy or something. Which wouldn't do.

That and the interactions going on below was too intriguing for her to ignore any further. She tilted her head at an angle for a moment, and tried to decipher what they might've been talking about. Something about money and files? That was all she caught from the distance she was at.

It dawned on her that she'd have to move closer.

Which by extension meant she'd probably have to reveal herself.

After a moment of deliberation, she began her descent—claws clacking as they sunk into the surface of the wall and growing in volume as she made her approach. Her lithe form became apparent as she finally moved out of the shadows, and she soon ended up perched on a vantage point above the tellers; talons tightly curled around the thin surface and rendering her remarkably upright.

She didn't announce her presence, but she wasn't exactly hiding anymore. The little boy who'd found her earlier was now clapping in utter delight and pointing at her from his position on the sidelines. She did eye the weapon wielded by The Rig in a somewhat weary fashion, though—remaining tense in the case she had to move suddenly.

Wren was no stranger to being stared at, and by extension she was also rather familiar with being shot at. Curiosity killed the feathered cryptid, as the saying went.

Myrkaan

Before long, after Walker got up there, an exceedingly old looking man walked out, gingerly carrying what looked like a small microchip in a container. Myrkaan was delighted to see that "that" was done. "Just in case" was the justification.

So he made sure to have this prepared.

"Mr. Walker, this is Doctor Degaton, an old friend of mine. He's carrying a microchip that will allow us to immediately communicate no matter where the two of us are, using mere thought! Thus, if and when this event collapses into chaos, we will still be able to coordinate."

And that was when it seemed there was a spotlight shined down. Remarkably fast that notion of things collapsing into chaos...

Myrkaan looked around, as if trying to find what in all this was. "...What?" His voice was trembling, sounding unsure, but beneath the surface was abject, unholy rage.

Contemplating who in all would dare intervene in such a way. Who would know their location...?

He was by now realizing something had well and truly gone horribly awry. Who...who!? Who in the damned Abyss was aware they were up here!?

Commencement Ceremony

Ryan was delighted to see that Tyulla, Michael and everyone made it, and so got ready for the main event. The mayor, it seemed, would be late due to last minute arrangements and communications with the police. The improvisation was thus to give Isaac Noble a speech right before the Commencement Torch would be lit, thus symbolizing the start of JFI's duties as a superheroic team.

Out of all the guys, Ryan and Jeff responded well to Charlotte's look at them, Ryan grinning cheekily, while Jeff tried to strike a more active pose to show off.

However, Ryan then felt something on his leg. He was figuring it was his calf, and the dress pants were tighter than he realized, the material and his muscle down there chafing. But then he looked down and tilted his head at the sight of what looked like little ladybugs. "...the fuck...?"

The bugs seemed to come from a direction, and Ryan looked over in time to see a truly dire warning. Etched on what looked like a notebook in red letters - Bad Guys On Rooftops.

Ryan immediately ducked out behind the stage and started to retrieve his Collateral suit. He was not about to just sit back and let this go.

Owing to the presence of weapons and people ducking and moving, and the eldritch light from above, the crowd was beginning to stir and frighten.

Ryan then darted back out dressed in his full Collateral armor, and shouted to the Mayor, "Get everybody outta here quick!" He hoped his word would be good enough for things to get underway. It'd only be worse if panic happened.

Edited by NickTheSwing on Mar 15th 2019 at 9:04:00 AM

Oh What a Wonderful Time We're Having - Ial "The Thespian" Lesson

Ial chuckled as things went from zero to a hundred with a single light. From up in the sky, unseen by most but observable from those deemed important (also known as player characters), a giant grey eye looking down upon the city with amusement, the beam of light radiating from its iris. It twitched to the left and the right but its focus remained squarely on the two (now three) people on the rooftops.

Producing a piece of paper from nowhere, Ial curved it into a cone akin to a loudspeaker then spoke into it, voice suddenly booming up from the alleyways up into the rooftops. Pitch and tone distorted, making his voice sound like that of an ancient man. "A suspicious spirit tells you a man is a living bomb, and you decide to try your luck on setting him off. I suppose you don't mind being caught in the blast to follow, eh, Mr. Walker?"

And... action.

Abruptly, the ground beneath Walker's feet opened up - what was once solid floor was now two wide open trap doors, leading straight down into the apartment complex below.

JFI Commence Panic - Charlotte Silverberg

Owing to the sudden darkness and the spotlight highlighting a sniper on the rooftops, Charlotte considered her surroundings, then came up with an idea. "Everyone, into city hall! Get out of the open!" And with that, Charlotte motioned citizens up past the event stage to the city hall behind, trying to get them into shelter away from the obvious shooter. "Don't worry, we've got tons of heroes here; just sit tight and stay safe while they handle it!"

Edited by Starbound2 on Mar 15th 2019 at 9:26:55 AM

Easton Rooftops

Walker had been about to (reluctantly) accept the microchip when the spotlight appeared.

"Oh, shit," he said quite clearly.

Without anymore words, he turned around and took a knee in one swift movement, bringing the rifle up.

That's when another voice spoke up, a voice of an ancient man who seemed to know more about Walker then should have been possible. He hadn't spoken of his conversations with Mikael at all. Maybe Mikael had leaked his talk.

Walker didn't linger on the thought or the words spoken. Instead he aimed the rifle. It didn't take long; like magic, the rifle seemed to center on Ryan, almost perfectly still and within a second. Walker felt a momentary chill of apprehension. Maybe he shouldn't have let the Pioneer in him make this. It clearly had a mind of its own, and it seemed like it wanted to kill.

Well, at least he knew who to kill, Walker thought passively, and, without pause, pulled the trigger.

The rifle didn't fire immediately. First it made a split second, deep bass thrum, then -

Walker barely felt the recoil as it fired. He waited a half second after firing, then took a quick step backwards, not stopping to check if the round had actually made impact (though he was confident it did). Instead he turned around, hoisting the rifle over his back, and -

Fell through the floor. His head impacted painfully as he landed completely horizontally on the floor below. At least he hadn't landed on the rifle. Walker looked up. Then, without hesitation, made to get out.

"Scramble," he shouted up to Mikael. "Bring the doc and meet me later. Unless you want to help handle this mess."

Magpie & Trickster—Bank Robbery

"Oh, hello," Magpie waved to the odd bird-person in the rafters, the faint movement having caught her eyes. "What are you doing here?"

"Nothing to do with us," Trickster scoffed. "Stay out of this. This doesn't involve you. You'd only get hurt." The harshness of their voice softened with hidden care at the last part, and they made a shooing motion.

"Shush! Don't be so mean, Trickster," Magpie admonished, and then tried to get the files in the right order, fumbling a little.

Wuxia Warriors—Chaos Commences

Red Tiger and Black Wolf grabbed their skins and tried to shield people the best they could with them. Jumping Bean considered her gourd and sword (not useful here), and the handful of paper talismans. She hurriedly threw them out—and they went to shield the civilians with golden trigrams made of light.

They weren't the right target.

She just had enough time to teleport over to Ryan's side, moving one of the shields over in front of her in the process, and cross her aura-charged arms in front of herself, taking the shot for him. Fleetingly, she wished that she had worn her magically armored hanfu—

Impact.

The shot shattered Jumping Bean's shield into pieces. Her eyes widened in shock as the thing came tearing towards her, and at the last minute, she cupped both her hands in front of her and caught the eldritch Pioneer blast.

Merely holding the swirling mass of energy burned Jumping Bean's flesh and started to strip her flesh away, despite her aura. It burned. It was like holding molten iron, if molten iron could make your bones feel like they were grinding against each other whilst broken.

The Xian shrieked in abject agony, but managed to re-direct the blast (it kept straining towards Ryan as if it had a mind of its own) by going through various Bagua forms and finally throwing it into the sky to detonate in a twisted parody of fireworks.

She collapsed to the floor, utterly spent and with both arms bloodied and burnt. "My gourd...medicine...pour..." she gasped to nobody in particular, and then fell unconscious from the pain. Red Tiger and Black Wolf had gone into the City Hall and were not anywhere to be seen.

The business hotel

MJ blinked a few times in confusion and glanced outside when she noticed the sky darkening. The sky still a perplexing blue, she frantically searched the shaky camera feeds until she found the location of the spotlight.

Oh no...that's where I sent her!

She hissed a irritant curse as she snapped up her briefcase with a simple click. She wasn't really hoping to make her appearance so soon, but considering how slow the supers and Star were moving...She pushed the button on the case to turn it green and walked swiftly out the room and hotel in the direction of Walker's building. She only moved faster when she heard the resounding boom of a powerful gun.

A little sparrow's coming your way...

Nearby Walker...

Star had let her group sit in some close by shadows, impatiently watching the the rifleman talk to the old guy before perking up at the sight of the chip.

She barely managed to get a slideshow of the exchange before the area shone blindingly like one of those stage lights. It took a few minutes to shake it off but it didn't stop her from surging forward towards Walker's area when she heard the shot. She flashed a raging red before moving to swarm around his head that popped out of the suddenly existing trapdoor to keep him busy. She left a mental scream for help for MJ along with a picture of the rooftop she was on before attempting to crawl into his suit as well.

Blüdlass – Easton Rooftops

Beatrix had looked up from her pizza for but a moment and this s*** had happened. Giant spotlight from the sky... or eye, looking at it (ew) and suddenly her target was nowhere to be seen. The sound of the shot firing off had almost made her choke on her slice. As she watched as the energy was redirected by one of those down below, she sighed—twirling her guns and placing one foot on the ledge of the building.

“#$&%ing goddammit.”

With an added corkscrew, she was off. Squeezing the bodies of her guns, she relished the feeling as the demonic seals painted across them seared into apparency; the familiar roar of her motorcycle below rushing to meet her sending a chill up her spine. As she landed in a crouched position (and inadvertently cracked the pavement) she almost immediately braced herself to perform a second extravagant flip—narrowly missing said motorcycle as it skidded underneath her and landing atop it in only a slightly wonky fashion.

“#$&%! Stitch, stitch, stitch...” she grunted, nursing her side for a moment before shaking her head. “Okay, never having pizza again... now where'd that weird-ass sniper get to...?”

He looked like he'd been Looney Tune'd right outta there, so she revved her bike and set off with a kickback of power towards the building her target had inadvertently entered. Weaving through the screaming masses, she slowly manoeuvred into a standing position—before performing yet another backflip as she let her motorcycle continue without her and crash solidly into the wall.

It exploded.

Violently.

The heat washed over her form like a wave, and her skin squelched in protest as shrapnel and rubble pierced straight through her body at speeds akin to bullets. She began at a quick walk before picking up into a sprint, vaulting over the smouldering remains of her motorcycle as she trained her guns inside the building and peeked inside.

“Yo. You alive? 'Cause I kinda need to kill you. No hard feelings, but payday's a bitch. So uh... yeah. Say your last rites or somethin'. Unless you wanna chat. I've done that before 's well.”

Tyulla – Commencement Ceremony

“Fool. Should've let me catch it,” The Primordial reprimanded in a gentle tone, watching in silent admiration as the Xian redirected the shot and immediately moving beside her. “Gourd is big thing, right?”

Ah, well. It was the most obvious thing. And if it wasn't, she could always call Mason for help. It crossed her mind that this might've been her first act of selflessness. It didn't exactly feel very selfless. It felt very nothing, actually.

More of an automatic response than anything else.

She wondered if that was a good thing.

“Keep still. You'll aggravate it,” she advised, inwardly wondering how she possibly knew that. “Hold my appendage– oh you're asleep.”

Ah. Not as medically inclined as she thought. She'd missed the fact she'd fallen unconscious.

“Mason, I can't see a shooter,” she called up as she began pouring the gourd's medicine out onto the prone warrior. “And my tux hurts. Can we go home?”

Wren – Bank Robbery

The feathered girl started as they spoke, but soon responded—albeit only after intently peering at their lips.

“...Wren,” she eventually introduced, pointing to herself with a taloned finger before gripping onto her perch again. “M'hungry. Need money,” she explained in brief, glancing around at those in the building before peering down at the tellers. “Can I...?”

Evidently she wasn't one to wait, as she 'ported away in a burst of feathers and sulphur-scented smoke immediately afterwards; reappearing in a second burst of plumage near the tellers and beginning to rifle through the cabinets in an effort to find some cash. What she'd do with it when she found it was uncertain. It wasn't as if she had any pockets to stuff it into.

Edited by Enirboreh on Mar 16th 2019 at 9:20:41 AM

Ceremony

Mason first felt immense and pride and happiness as he stood there, amidst the cheering crowd and accepted as a Hero.

His attention turned to the spotlight, and the pit in his stomach grew. He didn't wait, nor hesitate, as he quickly moved his wrist in front of him and flicked his switch on his driver, shifting to his Lightning form as he watched Ryan dash off.

Bean's shield cracked as she went down hard, and he and Tyulla rushed over to her. His mind racing, wondering why he didn't see this coming. He almost didn't hear Tyulla's questions as he tried to figure out the situation around him. But he needed to stay calm. Everyone else was being evacuated. Ryan was after the assailant. Tyulla was in charge of healing JB. So what the hell could HE do?

At the moment? Keep the peace.

"We'll go home as soon as we take care of all of this, okay?" He asked, his voice straight and trying to keep the wavering worry hidden. He gulped down his fear and tried to steel himself. "We need to make sure JB is going to be okay though. We have enough Heroes making sure people get into town hall and Ryan's going after the shooter. I just..." he ran a hand over his helmet. "Do you think you can keep her safe and make sure her healing works, while I go see if there's anyone else besides the first shooter? We need to make sure there's not anymore shooters or attackers. When she's okay...bring her inside, and meet up with me."