Liam did admit that much as the idea of recycling Viv into something considerably less psychopathic did appeal to him, he did have to try and maintain group consistency. The idea annoyed him, and he felt decidedly apathetic toward preserving Viv's existence, but he'd...he'd have to. Speaking up, Liam stated, "I've got six Thopters who are already at the scene, and if she's crazy enough to wreck them and continue fighting..."
And lemme admit that's probably the case...
He once again opened a computer screen on his arm, and stated, "I can deploy Specialized Neutralization Thopters to go take care of the problem."
Of course it's Vivian causing trouble. She literally can't stop herself. I should have uploaded some kind of immediate shutdown virus in that unstable bucket of bolts when I had the chance. Damn what the Saint says, she's not to be trusted.
Vivian(s)-Warehouse-False Start
Viv found herself shaking her head slightly as sensors came back online. Damn but she hits hard. Viv hadn't yet learned how to fully integrate her own martial arts into a less lethal form in regards to her increased strength and speed, and so had mainly relied on plain old fisticuffs. Clearly this version had kept up her training.
She glanced up to see Alt!Viv cheerfully giving one of the strange little machines the finger. "Calm down, Liam. I just wanted to see how tough she was. Think of it as checking her bona fides. You can go back to the Dorksteel Obelisk and play with your toys." The robotic woman turned to Viv and leaned down to pull her to her feet. As she did, she leaned in to mutter to Viv, "All these guys changed themselves so much. As if they want to be different people now. Shame, really."
Liam was directly patched through, and he audibly sighed, "Just don't make this a fracas. We don't want any interdimensional...incidents."
The Thopters then started to fly up and outward, making it clear they were starting to head out but would still be observing.
Liam with that turned off the direct patch through, turned and looked at Prophet, reporting in already about the Vivian situation, "So Vivian claims that she was "just testing" the visiting Viv's abilities. I personally call bullshit, but ehhh...I'll leave it up to you to decide on that Prophet. She has stopped attacking and there has been no need to deploy any additional Thopters."
He breathed a sigh of incredible relief. It was clear as of now that they'd need to keep an eye on Viv, well, perhaps both of them. And who better to do that than the person with an eye everywhere?
"Making a note to self to keep an eye on the situation and prevent any further conflict escalation..."
Where am I? What's going on?
Squad 2 - Iris
Iris winced from her position a few buildings away. They were really taking a beating. She wished she could do more to help and protect her friends, but right now revealing her position would be... bad. She wasn't nearly as durable as Martin or Marky.
Her eyes watched from their position on Martin's back as he flew through the air toward Ryuu, and then suddenly one of her Children popped into view, jumping up to catch Martin with its optic nerves. Iris smirked. She couldn't get too close herself, but the Children were expendable, so she had summoned all 5 that she could manage and currently had them in various positions around the building that was serving as their battlefield.
Then Holiday took the shot and Saint stumbled. Quickly, the eyes that Iris had planted on Marky's back wrapped around to his chest and began to open fire with freeze beams.
Breath of the Sun
Squad 1 - Nariko
Ellie's eyes widened slightly at the rebel, her pupils dilating, and her hand twitched, fingers flexing as her claws glinted dangerously.
"Ooooh, I'm going to have a lot of fun with you." She purred.
Then Prophet spoke up, letting the rebels go, and Ellie looked at him, genuine hurt on her face. She opened her mouth as if to argue, but then closed it again and scowled. "Tch. Fine." Her eyes flicked back over the Squads. "I can have more than enough fun with our clone selves. Too bad there's no other me, though."
Nariko sighed. That resolved that, at least. Though the alternate Martin confirmed that these 'Saviors' were not like them. Killing someone in the heat of battle was one thing, but inflicting the death penalty for an attack in which no one was even harmed? These were extremists.
"I suppose that's... agreeable." Nariko said. She gave Prophet a firm look. "So now... I want to know what made you..." She gestured at him. "Different. The Martin in our world would never condone killing anyone. Nor would our Saint, if he were still alive. But yours killed a man in cold blood. Something happened here that didn't happen in our world - or vice-versa - and I think we all want to figure out what it is. We also want to know why you sent your Saint to impersonate ours."
"Well, our Saint didn't die." Ellie said, flatly.
Nariko shot her a glare. Ellie stuck out her tongue.
"That alone wouldn't explain it. So why?" Nariko asked, turning back to Prophet.
What is so amusing about this? Why do you take lives? How can you forget?
Prophet-Savior HQ
He turned his eyes to Nariko for a moment and shook his head. "Do you want the honest answer?" for once the sheer weight of his presence seemed to die down a bit, showing a bit of what was hiding under it. A sense of utter exhaustion. "Its because this," he waved toward the rebels behind the squads. "Doesn't stop. New threats will always appear, the day is never saved for more then a small period of time. You defeat one evil organization and another appears. You stop one inter dimensional creature and another will come next month bright and early. And bit by bit we got worn down. We got more exhausted and the villains got to rest in a cell, or in their pocket dimensions. And when the Saint almost died we realized what kind of world would be waiting for us. A world where every single threat would be met without an ace in our pockets."
He then gave a dramatic wave over the city. "But now? We have agents everywhere across the planet, enemies converted into allies, defense systems aimed outward and inward to protect the people. Crime is done to numbers your reality would think of as a bad joke. If at this moment we were to be invaded by every scary thing out there waiting for us, we would have all of them bowing down to us." step by step that pressure returned, static dancing along his body. "How many more monsters can your world stand against? How many enemies do you have left before you get broken down?" he looked over each of them, daring them to say that somehow they could make it through. "To melt it down, at some point we got tired of being afraid. And so we have created a world where so long as you do only good, you will be greeted each day with the insurance that you still have a life to lead."
Squad 2-The Fight
Martin felt himself collide against Iris's summoned creature, feeling grateful despite the creatures rather disgusting body. Once he was let down back onto stable ground he put a hand against his ribs, trying to dull the pain with the fires of creation inside of him but only so much. To become too numb would cancel out the flood of adrenaline pumping into his body. He would take any advantage he could against Saint, especially considering that both Marky and himself had been tossed around like toys just a few moments ago.
Still, he wasn't going to get a better opportunity then this, so it was time to put up or shut up. "Well if I'm only getting one shot might as well make it count." with a deep breath he summoned up his stored energy into his limps, pushing himself right next to the edge of his limits. "99% Hero Ace!" with the name out of the way Martin moved, through calling it that would be underselling it. Windows rattled in their panels before spiderweb like cracks formed around them. The very air surrounding him heated as he charged his former idol at a level he hadn't been pushed to use in almost a year. "Grit your teeth Saint, this is going to hurt." even if he had been weakened the Saint's sheer level of durability and strength meant that nothing but his best would make a dent. So that is what he would use. His fist reared back and sprung forward, a picture perfect punch directly toward the alternate Saint.
Edited by Kingxana0 on Dec 14th 2019 at 9:34:45 AM
AKA Nixer
Lily – Saviour HQ (Squad 1)
Not wanting to provoke them, Lily had remained in her defensive stance, listening silently as the two sides clashed with ideologies and Vivian clashed with... herself. That she might've intervened with, but she didn't know the plan. Uncertainty held her back. The thought of rushing in and palming the alternate Vivian's skull into paste flickered into her mind, but she shook it away. Then she realised what was happening to her.
She had been taught to fight.
To win.
Not by the Foundation, mind. By her own family. The Aquatos had never had any qualms about killing their opponents. It was an ideology she had grown up uncomfortable with, but never truly questioning. If anything, she had been sent to Saint University because she had become too reckless in fighting.
She had become desperate to prove herself as a killer. If it wasn't for the others being around her, she wasn't sure when she would've stopped with many of the villains they had faced. And that realisation made her feel...
...nothing.
She felt nothing.
And that alone scared her more than anything.
Maybe it was that horrendous experience in the nightmare realm. It had certainly stopped her from fearing death. It had stopped her from feeling pain. It meant nothing to her anymore. But inflicting pain and death on others? She wasn't sure. She did plant the killing blow on her father. Her not-real father. Was it her apotheosis? She did need to be calm. Immensely calm.
She was panicking now. She could feel her chest tightening and her breathing becoming shallow. Her vision becoming blackened and veiny as a temporary blindness overtook her. An intense nausea and lightheadedness that made her feel almost too weak to stand. Why couldn't she feel guilty? What happened to her?
Why did all this alternate Martin was saying make an uncomfortable amount of sense?
Tired of being afraid.
“...I'm tired too...” she muttered, unfocused eyes now locked to the ground as she tried to nurse her disoriented and anxiety-ridden head. “But that doesn't... mean I'll stop fighting. It's not about winning. It never was.”
You're one to talk, Lily. What changed?
She wasn't sure what had changed in her and what hadn't anymore. For all she knew, this could just be her brain spewing irrational and nonsensical thoughts at her. When she thought, it all became jumbled. It was easier not to think, after all. Her Divine Form required it to remain active. Perhaps it was affecting her more than she had thought.
Her breathing calmed as she momentarily latched onto this faint glimmer of a rational explanation, and she forced herself to concentrate on the here and now instead.
“...It's about... scrambling. No one looks up to a hero who wins. Everyone looks up to a hero who fights. Why do we remember them when they fall?”
e Uwj psic nIn M c
Her opposing thoughts weren't even making sense anymore. Her mind had given up entirely by this point.
“It's about effort,” she managed, letting out a sigh as the tension released slightly from her shoulders. “Ideals... never come about. We're human. We'll fail. But we fight. That's what makes us heroes. Not... fighting villains, either. Fighting ourselves. Fighting everything. Fighting everything that stops everyone else from doing the same. And it kills you. I know you're tired, and I'm sorry, but...”
She shook her head, a glimmer of the old Lily coming through as she clenched her fists by her sides and squeezed her eyes shut in refusal to even look at them.
“...no. I can't. You've given up. I'm sorry.”
Holiday – Tall Building (Squad 2)
Saint was stunned. Mission success. Well, her mission anyway. From here on out was support. Iris had already made the first move in helping Marky while also firing back herself. Brave girl. Even Holiday didn't dare try fighting him yet.
Ryuu had been sent flying, last she checked. So by sneaking around, attempting to remain out of sight of the now vulnerable Saint, she darted to where she had seen him be launched—choosing to follow the path of destruction that his impact had left behind.
He looked dazed. Possibly concussed. Joyous.
“Hey. Ryuu. Can you hear me? I have more reckless idiots to keep tabs on. Count my fingers. How many are there?” she queried, holding up her hand with her fingers splayed so he could clearly see it.
She'd have to work quick. She hadn't moved him off the field yet. If he was too hurt to carry on, she'd have to carry him to somewhere safe. If he wasn't, then she'd back away. But as it stood, they were both out in the open.
Come on, not-Saint. Be occupied for me.
bork
Cole - Squad 3
Cole was for his part ready to charge in and mess up Darth Vader over there, but then Lily started talking and snapped him out of the combat mood. He looked over at her, and then down at the floor, doing some quick breathing exercises to cool off. He knew he needed to be calm and collected in this so as not to cause any incidents here. He didn't want to be the one that flew off the handle.
And at least they'd managed to get the rebels "banished" instead of killed off by Prophet. That was a definite plus. Still, there was some definite contention in the air.
It seemed that there was some argument going on about heroism right now, an argument Cole didn't exactly have much stock in, but he just crossed his arms and held back.
Liam was barely qualifying as listening to what was going on, finding Lily's philosophy to be not much but glorified struggling and suffering for...for sanctimony's sake. For seeming like you're just such a goshdarned good person for living through it. And that wasn't scientific. That was insipid mysticism - almost religion. But he didn't care enough about it to really say anything on the subject while she was going on and on about it.
By the time she was done he worked up some care, and spoke on the subject.
"...Seems to me you exalt the idea of hero as the underdog. That things are perpetually immutable, and we can't do anything but fight everything and keep fighting and fighting...well, I'd disagree. Saying people can't achieve something and that they should just keep on fighting and fighting nevertheless...that's delusional. Unscientific - it's mysticism, almost religion. Eventually, science advances enough that your mystical belief system there about heroes as basically martyrs ceases to be viable."
Liam seemed to outright spit the word religion, and then went back to toying with some of his technology. It was rather obvious he'd stopped caring again by this point.
Vivian(s)-Rooftop View
The two metal maidens were now standing on the top of the building where they'd been "sparring." Oh, Alt!Viv had plenty of hidey-holes scattered all over the cities, and even some that Liam had never found, but why irritate him more without cause? And they both wanted to see what was happening.
"Ooo, this should be fun. Liam's gone all sciency. Didn't he want to avoid an incident? Oh well, as long as it gets you folks out of here soonest. Not that I don't like having you around, but we do have a place to run here."
Despite herself, Vivian was actually growing to like her double. The other woman was much more easygoing and voluble than she had been since her change, and it made her wonder what had triggered the alteration in her personality. Probably quite disturbed, but Viv was self-aware enough to know that she needed much more therapy than she'd been receiving.
"So, what do you do here? I guess your Martin is the leader, that Liam guy is the Boss of Spooks, and...what? The Saint just runs around being Top Cop?"
Alt!Vivian grinned. The expression was one that Viv had seen on her own face before, and yet it suddenly chilled her.
Edited by Booky on Dec 15th 2019 at 1:19:10 AM
AKA Nixer
Lily – Saviour HQ (Squad 1)
“I didn't mean you could never achieve anything. But you can't live up to everything. Are you okay? You sound angry. You're not doing this for the same reasons, are you?”
Whoa. Where did that– no. Hold on. I might have something here.
“Are you projecting?”
Oookay. Nevermind. Might've just made it worse. What's he talking about? Religious? Do I... not exist in this world or something?
“...Thalassa.”
It was both a reply and a trigger, in a way. As soon as she had whispered the word an eruption of water exuded from her person, swirling around her and infusing into her hair so as to instantly transmogrify her into her Divine Form. Her pupils vanished into the whites of her eyes, and strands of her hair stiffened and changed into neon blue colour. Her skin became translucent—like crystal clear water—and her voice vanished into an incomprehensible lapping of waves.
Perhaps she needed a change.
Stacked up against this group, she realised she was only a fraction away from them.
But it only served to make her more determined to go a different path from them.
When this is over, I'll tell them all what they mean to me. This is... too important for me to just go along with without thinking. I need to change my perspective.
She made no move to attack. She just remained standing in place, her Divine Form flickering in and out of existence as she formed her thoughts in her head.
Decide who I belong to. This family, or the other.
bork
"...No." Liam sighed and shrugged his shoulders, "I'm not projecting. And I...guess you're right. I'm not doing this for the same reasons." Liam tapped on his shoulder a few times as if trying to work up the motivation, and continued, "I don't particularly care to struggle when I don't need to, I don't care to repeatedly do things when I know science and precise development can eliminate the necessity, and I don't care to scramble or fight needlessly."
Observing her seeming to turn from human into some sort of divine state, Liam wryly commented, "...Gods are powered by belief. And belief is something that can be shut off when approached correctly."
He audibly let out an exhausted sigh, "I really do not like debate...makes me tired. Sooner this nonsense can get done, sooner I can go back to my projects."
Surrounded by weirdoes
Squad 1
Sam could only give the not Martin a sad look, but then Lily decided to respond to him, and he smiled softly at her, but she looked so troubled, so he moved next to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. He knew somewhere in his mind it might be a bad idea, but then again, that just doesn't really stop him.
Looking at Liam with a bit of a mocking look, he just shrugged his free arm.
"Maybe so" He said "But then again, the world never really made much sense to me, or the people, really"
But he just looked to his counterpart, seriously for a second.
"Of course, I guess in the end, I just liked a small world, and to appreciate the beauty in the small things around me, life included, so I try to protect that. I guess if all that matters is what you can see, things are just boring and depressing, man"
His other self looked forlorn for a second, but shoved the feeling away.
With all that's lost, all that matters anymore is what can be seen
Squad 2
"27" Ryuu muttered, managing a small smile "Just joking, 3" He groaned.
"Cover your back, things are gonna keep sucking for a while" He told Holiday, losing track of the world for a moment.
Wake me up at your own risk.
Gloria, Squad 1
Gloria listened to Lily, pausing a moment to get her thoughts in order.
“Unfortunately, I don’t think it’s that simple. We’re coming at this from two different value systems – we value freedom, they value control and security. We treasure the sanctity of life, they believe the cold hand of death is an acceptable means to achieve their desired ends. The bitter reality is that when you’re arguing from such incredibly different premises, kind words – or ‘thoughts and prayers’ as Cole would put it – are meaningless. All you can truly do right now is accept that the people before you are not the same people as your friends – not in the ways that actually matter. If they were, the Saint wouldn’t have invaded our world in the first place. We wouldn’t even need to be here.”
“The mistakes they’ve made in pursuit of their goals are theirs to carry alone.”
“The justifications they use for their actions will only intensify, not lessen, as we attempt to challenge them. That’s just how it is.”
“At the end of they day, we are each other’s enemies. I don’t say that to imply we should fight to the death or something terrible like that, far from it. But that’s still a reality we can’t run away from.”
“I’d like to be able to change their hearts, I truly would. But at the end of the day, you have to know your own limitations.”
Gloria really didn’t like saying all that, but she felt it needed to be said. She didn’t want people getting their hopes up over something she saw as impossible.
She then turned to the group of rebels.
“Well, the good news is that it seems they’re letting you go. Let’s get out of here before they change their minds.”
AKA Nixer
Lily – Saviour HQ (Squad 1)
As expected, there was silence from Lily, before a soft lapping of waves indicated that she was communicating. Not through words, as that was impossible. But water was flowing and weaving itself into calligraphic words in front of her, speaking in place for the voice she currently lacked.
Maybe you're right. Maybe I'm still too caught up in my feelings. But... thank you for sparing them. I promise you won't regret it.
I hope they won't, anyway.
The feeling of Sam putting his arm around her caused her breath to catch and her Divine Form to flicker temporarily. But she soon regained her composure, and elected to keep quiet now. She got the feeling she was only making the issue worse. It'd be smarter to just stay careful. Do what they had to do and get out.
Preferably without alerting them too much.
But still...
Yeah, I agree with Sam. I think more... small, she wrote. I don't think as big as that. So it's not my place to stay.
...best to admit it when I don't know what I'm saying.
Holiday – Tall Building (Squad 2)
“Affirmative,” Holiday nodded, satisfied as she meaningfully turned back around to Saint's direction. “As long as you cover yours. If you get too damaged I'll have to drag you off the battlefield by your toenails. And you can hold me to that.”
That actually sounds difficult, so he really can't.
Holiday braced her form and waited, knowing that the others had already taken the initiative in attacking the Saint. If he made a charge at her for whatever reason, she'd be ready to move in an instant. If he did not, she could take the opportunity to attack for herself.
bork
Tall Building
This was it, wasn't it? Iris had her children shoot their freeze-rays straight at the Saint, while Martin was going for one last desperate punch. All while he was still vulnerable. Unless he did something now, he'd be shattered into countless little bits of frozen Saint and strewn across the pavement.
Well then. He supposed it was time to get serious.
Suddenly his eyes flashed red, and a sudden burst of power surged throughout his body as he let out a mighty, fearsome shout. The electricity that been coursing throughout his body ceased, leaving the Saint free to act.
God help them all.
Just as Iris' beams reached their mark, the Saint vanished in a blur. Almost as though he were never there. And in the blink of an eye, he was right behind Marky. He stuck both his fingers into the eyes that Iris had placed on Marky's back before punting him like a football. Suddenly his eyes flashed red again, quickly building in intensity before unleashing one large blast of heat, incarating a nearby streetlamp and reducing it to smithereens. Which was something they knew without a doubt that their Saint could never do.
He tore off his shirt and spread his arms wide, grinning like a madman as he cackled to the heavens. "FOOLS! You were so convinced that it was merely the Saint you were up against when you never once looked at the larger picture! Did you ever once consider just how I survived my neck getting severed all those years ago? The answer is simple. I didn't. Instead, the dark lord Golgoma saw as it as his opportunity to make a foothold in my universe and instilled his essence within me. He revived me as his servant, and increased my power a hundred hold! How else do you think I could have rallied the Superhuman population under my banner? And now I shall you crush you under my heel just as I have done countless others! Unless you would prefer to swear fealty to me instead?"
Savior HQ
Suddenly a message began ringing from the Savior's communicators, assuming they had it. The voice that came through was somewhat urgent, but mostly it was droll and lackadaisical. As though it had reported this exact sort of scenario a million times before. "Mayday, mayday. Disturbance at Supercity University. Any help would be appreciated. God I'm too old for this shit." The voice cut out with a brush of static, leaving it up to the Saviors and anyone in earshot as to whether or not they would answer.
Edited by kkhohoho on Dec 18th 2019 at 1:54:55 PM
Tell Me, Have You Seen the Yellow Sign?
IW - Tall Builing
"...." Mahvash had to cover her mouth. For all the good a fan did at stopping unnatural sounds. Holiday had already gotten her attention in a performance she was honestly afraid to try to follow. Now Saint had ripped off his shirt like something out of WWE. Well, Saint had to hear her laughing at him. That helped.
Iris, remember when I said you had to stay back? Its for this part. You have to spirit the downed members of the squad away through portals. Quickly. Open them right under them or push them if you have too. She may have specifically had Martin in mind. He'd have a hard time resisting anything after blowing his reserve in a Death or Glory Attack. Don't venture out into the open though. In fact, meet up with Holiday ASAP. She can help you drag people.
As for Saint's question. "It could be based on a great big lie." Whatever his deal was, Saint 2 certainly did better than the one she saw being stepped on by his hate-crush's Mini-Mecha back in the academy days and was punching at something like 10% of his peak. They'd go back and analyze this but first her squad had to leave in good condition.
This environment hit her worse than Saint. A confined battlefield was excellent. One against a super speedster with allies she was actually responsible for was something different. Not to mention observers. Well, some things she prepared for when Martin was well clear. Ryuu was already. Of course if he came to me... But for now.
Covering the retreat. Her Saint had probably always wanted to strangle her. This Saint, who knew? But she could drive him to it. Mahvash started with a biting wind Saint's way. An attention getter more than anything else and one she could shut off if Saint used someone as a shield.
Edited by CenturyEye on Dec 18th 2019 at 11:24:38 AM
Look with century eyes... With our backs to the arch And the wreck of our kind We will stare straight ahead For the rest of our lives
Where am I? What's going on?
Squad 2 - Iris
"Aaaaaaagh!"
Ow. Ouch. That hurt. A lot. Iris had lost eyes before, of course, but having them poked out with super strength was a new, extremely painful, experience.
Right. Focus. Mahvash wanted her to meet up with Holiday. She could do that. That scream had probably given away her position anyway, so moving quickly was best.
A quick slip through the Eldritch Plane and Iris was next to Holiday on the rooftop. Where she had a front-row seat to her friends being brutalized. It made her angry.
Squad 3 - Rebecca
These... Saviors... clearly had no idea what it meant to be a hero. Although it was possible, even probable, that they were just following the example of their Saint, as Rebecca herself had always done with her own.
She shook her head. Example or no, they should know this was too far. Rebecca herself had a simple definition of a hero, one learned from her parents when she was still young. A hero was someone who assisted the police in apprehending criminals and protecting civilians. They weren't the judge, they weren't the jury, and they certainly weren't the executioner.
Still... the best way to protect these two people, right here and now, was to stay quiet. Their counterparts might be in the wrong, but they couldn't provoke them until there were no innocents in the line of fire.
Savior HQ- Prophet
Prophet listened to the communication and sighed deeply to himself. "This day was practically designed to annoy me," he turned toward the two squads for a moment before speaking plainly. "You are all most likely here because he showed his hand, I'm guessing someone died? No let me speak more plainly, someone was killed," there was no hint of mercy behind his words, as if a murder was nothing more surprising then an animal on the road during a long trip.
"They probably weren't innocent, no it was more then likely a small handful of people that would make him break cover. Now ask yourself, why are you so upset at this persons death?" he questioned them, trying to find any hint of an answer. "Is the world worse off now that they are gone? Are there now innocent lives in danger because they are gone? Or to be more frank, are you just mad because you weren't the ones pulling the trigger?" those words were colder then anything he had said before. "I doubt that any of you have gone your careers without wondering why you didn't just punch a hole into the person willing to kill hundreds to make a point. That when you saw them appear again to murder thousands that you didn't regret just killing them there. We live in a world without that regret, justice is served, the people lead happy lives, and the world keeps turning. If your world was such a utopia we wouldn't need to be there in the first place," he turned away and began to make his way to the university. "Go home, enjoy the fruits that the world we create will produce. Enjoy peace in your time."
The Fight-Paragon
Martin's hit landing on nothing but empty air, cracking the building as he saw Saint hover in the air above, shouting nonsense down at them with the usual gusto reserved for only the most insane of their usual villains. Still things didn't look good, even if half of what he said was a lie he couldn't exactly continue much longer. His new skill at holding back his power wasn't going to last with him this close to a hundred percent. So he would just have to use it, the new attack he had been designing for just this kind of situation. "Maybe its meaningless, but I still have to know just how I match up to you," he closed his eyes and focused. "Now releasing all restraints," small black fires appeared all around Saint, holding in the air like flickering candlelight. With a flicker Martin was pulled into the air, the same warping effect he had been working on mastering moving him between the points near instantly, most likely confusing Saint as he built up strength.
"Awakened 100% Skill," his entire body glowed, both from his accumulated strength from his base ability and from the divine power he was pushing from the very core of his being into this attack. "Superhero Series: Dawnstar Requiem!" finally from under Saint he threw a punch with his full force, the shining radiant energy that Love had gifted him turning the sheer force of the punch into something akin to a shining beam as the very force of the punch became like a wall flying directly at Saint. Of course given his speed and skill he could probably manage to dodge out of the way.
That was of course, if the flickering black flames didn't vanish and send out their own gusts of kinetic energy, space pinching between them to launch the assault from multiple angles. Martin felt the bones in his arm shatter to a fine powder and found is hard to breath suddenly, his 100% changing down to a normal human level as the sheer force of the attack backlashes to hit him. He was unconscious before he even started falling.
Edited by Kingxana0 on Dec 18th 2019 at 4:12:01 AM
AKA Nixer
Holiday – Tall Building (Squad 2)
“Annnnnd cue,” Holiday noted, head whipping around to Iris almost immediately as he began to lose consciousness. “Catch him, please. Deposit him anywhere. I'll be over here ready to tend to him.”
Only now did she launch her drones; primarily to keep an eye on the Saint while she cared over Martin and also to provide somewhat of a distraction now that those fighting him were falling. It'd soon be on them to fight him personally. Which wasn't a pleasant thought.
By this point she'd unfurled a sheet and proceeded to quickly inventory her tools. Upon doing so, she deposited each of the items she would need to tend to his shattered arm while also mentally preparing for any more significant damage. He was unconscious, which wasn't inherently good. Or good at all. It'd depend on how long for. But she'd see when he was here and able to be scanned.
“If I could multitask,” she muttered half to Iris and to herself as she began sterilizing her tools, “I would be kicking our lovely not-Saint repeatedly in the balls while also performing an operation. As it stands, I'll have to focus. You are my eyes, Iris. Literally. I'll try to react quickly if something goes wrong but I'll need to stabilize him ASAP. I may not help you in time.”
bork
Gloria, Squad 1
There was a lot of emotion bubbling in Gloria right now that she had restrained until this point. Liam's... well, frankly everything he said rubbed her the wrong way. So did their glorification of violence, and their identity of "Saviors", which blasphemed the very meaning of that word. A bunch of little things were starting to add up and grind her patience to the bone.
But the insistence that they simply go back home and accept what the Saint was doing was the last straw. Gloria had enough.
“‘If your world didn’t need us, we wouldn’t have come there in the first place?’ Hmph… what arrogant, self-serving logic! From the very beginning it was you so-called Saviors that determined what course of action was most righteous for us, what threshold was necessary to cross before your intervention became justified, while we were treated as mere background players with no say in the matter. To come into our world and enforce your values on everyone through violence is nothing less an invasion. It is not only a challenge to our land’s authorities, but a direct insult to each and every person who strives to make the world a better place without resorting to your methods! To approach justice they way that you do, with the idea that your ways can never be flawed – this is but the height of malignant pride! Your world is ‘peaceful’? We were immediately met with people who would rather risk their lives killing what they thought were you than live in the world you created. Yes, it is peaceful – for you ‘Saviors’ who have beaten down most of who oppose you. But for us, your influence on our world has only caused people to chant for more violence, to reject the very idea of mercy. Which in turn, will only cause evildoers to become more desperate, since they know that any attempts to seek forgiveness or redeem their actions will only be met with a swift execution from people like your Saint. And yet, in spite of all this, you all think that that, what? That we secretly want to be just like you? And you..."
She turned to Liam this time.
"Not big into faith, are you? Well here's a message that I think might be more suited to your sensibilities - get the fuck out of our world and never come back. All of you. If you think this high school debate club level of reasoning is going to make us stop defending our planet, you've got another thing coming."
Well damn, Prophet really does like hearing himself speak. Me personally, it's not that engaging...oh.
Liam after thinking that was busy listening in to the announcement about the students and then contemplating what it meant. Well, that and hearing what the jr. boss had to say about their predicament. Student protest most likely, and...man, if that was getting announced then it meant things were probably serious. Groaning and checking his wrist for a generated clock, Liam shook his head.
"Aww dammit...I really don't care for this."
He then realized Gloria was saying something. Oh yes, the girl who had such a strong opinion of how things were, about the order of things, faith and salvation and yadda yadda yadda. She sounded like pages from a Bible Apologist website. Turning and looking at Gloria he said in a bored tone, "Okay. You done? You're done, right? Got it all on the table? Good. Because I'm juuuust about done caring to respond to you."
Liam looked around and then patched through to some of his Thopters, and as he looked at the tablet sized image on his arm, he saw what was going on at the university. He murmured to himself, "This. This is going to be a long, long day."
Tall Building
In spite of the Saint's declaration that he was a servant of darkness and all that was unholy, the heroes weren't backing down in the least. As such, whether it was this stirring show of bravado having stunned Saint into a stupor or that they just managed to seize the moment, the Saint was blindsided by a series of doozies. First came Matten's wind. Against the Saint, it still stung and was annoying as hell, but despite her best efforts, it wasn't enough to keep him down.
But the star of the show was Martin's last desperate gamble. A mighty punch that could devastate mountains, all striking from different directions via a searing black flame. The entire onslaught ravaged the Saint while keeping him in place, ensuring he couldn't escape easily. Or be knocked into another building by accident. Putting it mildly, that would not have been good optics.
Still, the Saint had been the world's greatest hero for a reason. Multiple reasons in fact, but first and foremost was that he could take a ridiculous amount of pain. And so, in the aftermath of Martin's last-ditch effort, despite having taken enough sheer force to decimate a small army, the Saint remained standing. He was still battered. A bit bruised even. But it would take far more than that to bring him down.
"IMBECILES! Did I not say it is futile to stand against me?! I am the servant of the dark lord Golmoa! I am the right hand of darkness that will decimate the world and everything you hold dear! I AM—"
"A fuckin' awful bullshitter." Suddenly a small explosion denotated at Saint's feet, sending him flat on his rear. A girl appeared on the edge of the building, still covered in tattoos and a butterfly shirt. Though if Matten looked closely, she may have been able to recognize her from her academy days.
As for the Saint, he was confused and infuriated in equal measure. "WHO DARES—"
"Oh, cut the shit! See, maybe you've got everyone else fooled, or at least got them second-guessing, but I could tell what you really are straight off."
"And who are you to presume such a bold claim?"
The girl chuckled, though she was soon as dour as ever. "Name's Jezebel. Let's just say I know bullshit when I see it. See, I'm a demon." She gestured toward her eyes. The rest of her looked human enough, but her eyes were like a fearsome beasts' in the moonlight. "Been one for the last few years. Now, I won't bore you with the details, but I'm able to tell when someone's got some dark or demonic presence in 'em. Just somethin' I can do. And I'm not sensing an ounce of it in you."
At first the Saint didn't say a word, but to the girl, his silence was proof enough. "So. Either you got yourself powered up through some other means, or, just putting it out there, you've been this damn strong from the start. Though what I can't figure is why you'd hide it."
The Saint was still silent, though he had ceased his over the top performance. Instead, his shoulders were hunched and fists clenched. His eyes soon dimmed, returning to their normal blue hue, and he hung his head in shame. "Because maybe I deserve this. Maybe I deserve to be hated. And maybe this way, they'd have a pretty good damn excuse to do so."
Jezebel pressed her head back against her hands, eyeing the trail of carnage and broken bodies he had already wrought. "Seems you're doin' a helluva job already without saying you're the spawn of the devil."
"Maybe. But after what I've done? After what happened to them? The both of them? After all that, I don't deserve to be called the Saint." He fell onto his knees, his arms hanging limp as he almost began sobbing. "I'm so sorry, Perry. Rebecca. Everyone. I'm so, so sorry..."
Tell Me, Have You Seen the Yellow Sign?
IW - Tall Building
"Going to f*cking kill him..." Mahvash hovered near ground zero. To get her squad somewhere else. And Martin went for another shot at the Saint. Not just any shot. He doubled down on going all or nothing. And really double down. She knew between hearing his bones shatter and being seared by radiant energy from the main attack and the ring. The thing shined brightly and didn't fizzle out. It just switched off. A sign even if she didn't feel Martin plummeting down.
She vanished from her spot, appearing near Martin but not stopping his fall right out. Especially not with the man lacking bones to protect vital organs. She held him and slowly bled off momentum before returning to a stable flight with Martin awkwardly stretched out on her hitherto purely aesthetic wingspan.
Carrying him would be doubly interesting. He really couldn't be over her open wounds. Bits of her bubbled and leak black ooze and smoke after the light show. Yeah, she should really see things like that coming.
Iris? Holiday? Where are you on getting yourselves and Ryuu out because you should be long gone.
That demon it turned out was waiting to make some point or another, but she needn't intervene now. Mahvash took opportunities. She'd blink out with Martin and Iris would carry Holiday and Ryuu (and Marky if it was convenient) off while the demon distracted Saint. Look with century eyes... With our backs to the arch And the wreck of our kind We will stare straight ahead For the rest of our lives
Where am I? What's going on?
Iris - Squad 2
The sight of Martin breaking himself against the Saint made Iris freeze in shock and horror. She found herself unable to move, even to retrieve him as she was supposed to. There was a pounding feeling in the back of her mind.
Then Saint got called out, and his reaction was all forms of infuriating. This man had brutalized her f̴̢͕̜͕̭̋͊͒͐̐̄̏͊̈́͜a̶̢̡̧̢̡̰̼̮̩̣͂̓̾̐́͌̓̌̑̐̓͋͑̓͐ͅm̸̛̹̠̪̓̂̓̑͌̕i̵̢̧̹̝̰̹͍̟͎͍̣̺̻̼͘l̶̢̨͇͓̮̰̩͇̥̫̙̭̓̌͋͐͒͂̚ỵ̶̨̢̛̦̤̺̭͔̮͚̰̜̎͑̍̃͛̐̿̃̑͑̅́̐̋̿͝,̷̧̹͖̯̯̹̹̦̮̗̬͕͈͔͕̪̓̑̅̀̈̏̈̀̒̅́̌̎ ̵̡̛̛͉̪̱͎͔̬̳̭̼̰̞̻̮̺̋̐̑̌̀̊ḁ̴̝̩̗̣̪̙͖̻̓́̽̆̈́̊̋͛̄̂͘̚͠ǹ̶̢̛̝̥̙̜̹̦̤̫̘̦̼͖̯͌̐̒̌́̌̀͊̈́̈́ͅd̴̢̲̪̻̤̙͖̝̮̥̳͉̓͐̽̌̄̓͊͗̚͠ ̷̧͇̮͍̳̥͎̹̬̑͜h̴͖̺̘̗̺̘̰̣̀͘e̶̯̪͇͊̐̅́͑͗̇̑̈́͂̍̐̈͘̕̚ͅ ̸̢̢̬͓͎̞̙̦̠̠͆͊̄̚h̷̨̨͎̬͓͙̩͙̳̦͎̲̬̀̂̈̈́͌̑͝a̴͍̖̙̼͉͚̜̪͆̾̋͑̀̿̐̔̇̈́̄̿̈́̇̿̓͠ḍ̷̡̢̟̦̯̹̟̳̦̼̺̯̘̲̖͊ͅ ̷̩̟̖̮̣͈͖̻̙̳̦̦̳̀̈͒̾̐͛̐̉̌̌̒͜͠ͅṫ̷̞̬̹̯̪̿̎̈́͊̀̊̈́̇̀̆͑͐̾͘ḧ̷̢̢̛̤͇̱͔̜̠͕̳́ę̶͚͚͇͕̲̱̂͌͠ ̷̧̨̥̩̰̗̱͎͎͍͎͋̍͗̐̀̽́͘͝ͅġ̸̩͓̹̪͇̜̂͑͆͆͐͐̍͊̕a̶̦̫͖̣̬̺̗͑͋͐̐l̴̛̼̓͋͒̌͐̊̅̈́̌̏̈́̚l̶̯͉̉̃ ̸̝̤̘̲̭͔͙̍͋̾̀́̏̏̄̿́̅̂͌̌̈́͘̕ț̷̡̧̩͔͔̻̯̭̰̗̖̄̅̈́̌̕͘̚ͅͅỏ̵̡̹͓͊͐̉͌͌̍̀̚͝ ̸̦̭͉͈̮̞̗̆͆̉̐͜l̴͕͍̞̻̱̳̜̞̼͒̈͛̉o̴͙̱̲̺͌͒̔̈́̓̋̂o̴̧̖̼̠͙̫̼̲̤̞̲̲̫͌̐̾͝k̶̨̡̢̳͖̝̙̳̫̳͎̼̯̟̠̱̓͌̋͐̊͑̑̉͛̈́͐̀̎̉̌ ̵̣͓̮͈͙̉͋̾͗͘a̴̠͕̦̙̪̅̅̈̓̐̾͒̓s̵̨̢͍̗̈̉͘͝h̷̥̘͔̙̯̠̦̻̦̹̭̥̟̟̓́̀̈́̉̾̓̐̃̉͒̚a̷̛͕̽̇͆̓̐̿͌̈́̎̆͝m̴̢̢̛͓̞̓͛̋̇̒̏̏̉̓̍͑̂̾̄̕͝e̴̡͖̫̻̱̫̳̞̤̥̭̔̇͆̅͊͒̃̚͜͠ͅͅd̸̡̪̩̞̗̲͚̦̞̥̥̠͓̀͌̿?̵̡̟̮̗̯͙̬̗͚̗͙̥͎̙̜̀͛͐̌̃͒̒̀̓̊͆̍̏̿̚̚͜ Something in Iris snapped.
Iris disappeared into one of her portals, and moments later a second portal opened on the rooftop near the Saint. A multitude of eye-tipped tentacles shot out, moving to wrap around the Saint and attempt to drag him into the portal. An inhuman voice resounded through the area.
"̷̢͐͗̌Ÿ̸̘̟̞̔o̷͚̞͎̓͑ǘ̴͜ ̴̛̮͜ŵ̵͇ą̵̬̔̓͠n̵̼͆̽̚ͅt̴͈̙̏̈́̆ͅ ̶̠͙̥̒̇̚p̸͓̮̙͐͆u̴͈̖͊̕͝n̶͍͕̄͐i̸̲͈̝̐̾ś̴̡̭̩h̴̬̾͌m̸̨̗̘̿̔͌ë̷͕́͗n̷͚̂̎ṱ̵͆́̕?̵̭͍̏ ̷̺̔Í̷̘̭̇͠ ̵̳͊̋́c̷̻͉̞̽a̶̗̦͐͗͝n̵̫͙͌̒ ̴̱̹̊͒̍g̷̰͓̊́ȉ̷̻ͅv̴̡̲̂͆͜ë̵̠̝̀ ̵̗͖͆͜y̴̘̘̘͗̈o̶͚̮̮̿u̴̺͋ ̵̲̰̾̈t̴̯̀͘̕h̸͕͙̋̕à̷̖͝ṭ̸͋.̶͙̍̋͠ ̸͉̭̿̕͝Y̸͓̎̈́̇o̵̲͆́ͅu̴̻͘r̶̡̖̍̒̋ ̷̪̲̈͒͋e̸̟̎̄͝y̶͙̎̆̕ḙ̵̊͛̓ŝ̷̹̫͆ ̴͓̪͐w̷̹̆́͘ǐ̴͈͓̌l̶̞͍̏͑̈́l̷̻̼̥̂́̕ ̴̬͛̏m̴̗̹̔̈̀ȁ̸̙͝͠k̶̝̏͝e̴͈͈̔ ̴̯̘̭͊́ȩ̷̜̾͛͠x̷̣̮͎̊͒̒c̴̬̼̀͊e̶͖͊̀͠ḽ̸͙͝l̴̲͐̉e̵̜͂n̸̗̒t̷̽͆͌ͅ ̶̧̬̺̈s̷̳̈́̀͝n̸̨̯͇̿a̸͖̍c̴͔̉ͅk̷̤͗̄s̸̬̭̈́͝ ̴̞̊̅̀f̶̻̭̀̈ò̴̡̼͈r̴̜̅͠ ̸̙̅͌t̴̛̞̓̃h̸͎̿̊͒ẹ̴̥͒ ̶̥̳͛C̴͖̞̾h̵̭̎́ȉ̶̹͕l̵̘͙̑͌͠d̴͈̦̆r̶̨̿̄e̴͍͕͒n̵̙̄̂͠,̴̡̯͇̆͘ ̷͎̱̊̋a̶͔̮̭͒͋s̵̜̉̓̎ ̵͈̎ÿ̶̢̭̹̿̄õ̶̞u̷͔͊ ̶̡̲͊s̷̹̽͐̃ǘ̸̘̘f̴̞̫̓f̶̡͈̔̏e̷̝͗r̵͉̫̒̃ ̷̡̘̗̽̆͛s̷̨̩̮̈͆̈́i̵̹̔ģ̴͍̈h̷͈̜̹̐̊t̷̜̠̻̋͑l̸̮͆͋̃͜e̶̯̬̅s̶̨͈͋̓͊s̸̢̰̄̂̈́ ̵̺̗̓̏t̶͙̤̙̔ö̷͔͈r̶͇̟̲͂̒m̷͍̊e̶͕̟̋ǹ̵͍͆͌ť̵̠͑ ̸̭͖̻͂͑̃i̴͔̠͜͝n̶̺̥͒͠ ̸̺̀A̵̲͚̹̒̏h̶͎́̎ĺ̷͉'̸̢̗͗k̵̭̱͕̋̔͠u̵̹̽̈́û̷̮̻̇r̶̩͎͌̐͜'̵̟̎̍š̴̥̐̇ ̶̟̳̔̈́d̵̡͒̔̓o̶̡̫̿m̵̗̝̤͂͆̃ả̴̦̟̚͜͝i̸͇̫̘̿̎̆n̶͉̕.̵̯̓͐͝ ̶̞̞͂͒A̶͕̙̤͆̑f̸̝͙̿̓t̶̾͜e̸̢̞͉̐͊r̶̯͖̻͂͑̊ ̵̺̩̂̚a̵̲̯̪̍̅̏ ̵̱͑̄m̷͙̬͆̌i̷̫͋ͅl̶̙̗̂̈́̈l̶̗̘̯̊̆͝é̸̜͕͑͝ǹ̵̩ň̸͇̟̆ì̸̥̦̤̀u̶͙͋̀m̸͉̯̐ ̸̡̢͙̐͋̓o̴͙̍̓r̴̪͉̥̓ ̸͔̖̍̆͘t̶͕̋̕w̶̖̌̇̊ỏ̸̰̌͝ ̵̨͓̟̀̒͝ò̸̡̹͋̔f̶̧͓̃͠ ̷̡̇̐ͅs̸̹͙̺͌u̴̡̞̟̓̽f̸͚͈̯̄͊f̴̰͐͊̂ë̸̥̼́̃r̴̫̄͜͠ĩ̴̧͎͓͒n̷͉̦͌̒͝g̶̛͕͎͙̈́̅ ̵̻̗̐́̈́ï̷̳̠͒͜ń̴̢̫̮̅̀ ̴̣̥̍̾͘ͅd̴̢͙͆̾̑å̴̧̮̞̿r̶̞̻̔͛͝k̵͈̻͎̉͑͆n̷͇͆̚é̴͇̗̾͝s̴̟̳͇͂ś̸̯̤͙,̶̡͈̓ ̵̰͌͝p̴̯̍̐͜e̷̢͒͗͘r̸͈̃̏̏ḧ̷͕̥́́̕ȃ̷̲̻̫̿p̶̩̯̳̌͋̚s̴̫͂́ ̷͚͖͋̄ỷ̴̦̼͌ỏ̶̻͖͖u̴͇͒̆̽ ̵̲̯̗̌m̶̛̻͘i̴̽̋͜g̴͉̯̈́h̵̬̝̼͝t̵͖͕̣͊̃ ̴̭͈̋b̸͔͓͇͂e̶̜̖͉͋̈́̈ ̵̺̰́͑͠a̴͍̲͂f̸̹͎̌f̵̡̞͋o̵͔̜̠͐̅́r̷̙͊̀d̷̞̀e̸͉͗̔d̴̻͌ ̵͈̯͝͠ẗ̵̫͉̘́̿͑ḣ̴̟e̵̬͍̓ ̸̜̬̦̉̅ṃ̷̨̈́͊̏ȩ̸̤̠̍́̓r̵̖̲̯̓͘͠c̴̳̭͌̓ỷ̸̳͑̀ ̸̝̅̀o̶͓̊̈́ḟ̷̞̓ ̸̭͔̻̂̔̔d̴̳̠̓̈́͛e̶̝͂̍͜a̵̠̻̻̍͆̕ţ̵̦̯͆͑h̶̞̄̈͐.̵̢̿̌̉"̷̝̥̍͜
̵̩͙̮̊͗̚ "̶̠̆̑Ä̵͔́̿ṅ̵̦̋̿d̶͙̕ ̷̧́k̵͇̳͑̋n̶͚̟̈ŏ̵̫̲̀̿͜w̸̞͋̐͜͝ ̶̦̰͒̈́͋t̶̨͎̫̉ḩ̵̯̩̓̃͌ï̶̛̳̒s̸̗͛͠.̴̻̤̭͋͛́ ̴̳̜̣͑̓͠T̵̗̲̪͋̉h̷̯̣̜͊i̷̺̔̃ș̸̨̍̏͆ ̸̦̠̀͂̀p̴̲̑͆ú̵̞͜͝n̷̮͆i̶̹̟͑̏s̵̱͙̾̕͝h̵̢̛̚̚͜ḿ̸̬͍͓̇̃e̶̢͙̓̃̋n̸̼̩̭͠͝t̸͈̟͓̀ ̸̩͍̀̔͐i̶̮̭͊͊̾s̴̯̃͌̐ ̵̡̳́̇͆ś̴̛͖͐t̴͔̋i̵̤͗ļ̴̦̔́̒͜l̷̖̤̒ ̸̳̻̌̌ț̷̓̍͠o̵̢̦͌o̸͕̜͔̒̏̒ ̴̻̓ḡ̴̢̺͓ö̶̦́o̸̪̾ḋ̵̳̟̹̆̕ ̵̨̀͝f̶̛̘̟ơ̷̜̋r̸̨̘͉͑̽̈́ ̸̠̠̭̇̕s̶͉̯͌c̴͎͈͓̆̐̒ŭ̸̼̖̦̄̊m̸͙̒͂ ̷̦͙̔̏ͅw̸̬̔̎h̷̩̺̔͜͠ǒ̵̽͜ ̷̝̗̫̋̽w̸̧̨̾o̶̠͖̣̒̈́̃u̴͖̞̜̔̇l̴̤̎d̵̦̊͘ ̴̥͚̈̈́ͅḥ̷̦̣͐͒̕ǘ̸̬r̴̞̯̠͠t̵͓̱͊̓̚ ̸̯̫͊m̷̠̫̭̊̋ỳ̸̫̥̾͒͜ ̷̡͉̅f̷̩̮̋ͅa̵̡̰̚m̴̭̮̈́̍ḯ̴̡͔̇̈l̸̢̨̬͒y̶͎͗͛.̵͖̘̏
Edited by PossiblyQuiteInsane on Dec 19th 2019 at 12:56:30 PM
Prophet-Foundation HQ?
Prophet sighed and looked at the still brewing shitstorm. "Great, Ellie and Zach you're both here. Because this day isn't enough apparently." he would really much rather not kill these kids, he had no real stake in their lives either way but they hadn't technically broken any rules and he could at least understand why they would have dropped in. Still there were lines that needed to be put up. "Okay everyone stop bearing your fangs at each other for a second and lets act like mature and reasonable adults for a second. You're going to give them the impression that they've entered a reality where we all ended up as monsters or something." he scratched the back of his head, already annoyed by this whole situation.
"If those two are taken into our custody we are going to kill them. As an acting head member of our organization I am given full justification by the law of the world to pass judgement on criminals. And if you didn't notice they were piloting giant robots planning to kill or injure our people. But because I'm a sane and reasonable person," he walked over to them, hands outstretched in the universal sign for 'I won't start anything if you don't'. "I hereby banish you from any territory or region within our control effectively immediately. Right now consider yourself refuges under their protection to do with as they see fit," he nodded to the members of Squad 1 and 3. He turned his head back to the other Saviors. "I doubt they know anything we could properly use, and so long as they are removed one way or the other it won't matter to anyone else."
He paused for a moment, arching his head before spitting out a curse. "Damn it! Can one of you go deal with Viv before I melt her down for parts and re-purpose her into a toaster oven?" his eyes flashed with a thrill of static as his fist clenched. This was already too much to deal with.