Multiple Settings Evenstar City: IC

[Ginko The Mushishi]

Evenstar City: Volume 1
Call of the Hero
(Red Eclipse Arc)

Mysterious Items
District 1: Mask: A mask with scuffed encryptions against the mask.
District 2: Keycard: A keycard with no depiction of a face, but a blacked out photo remains. No name on the keycard.
District 3: A ring with an indentation left behind, a gem could be fitted inside it.
District 4: Suitcase: A suitcase fitted with a bio-lock. It feels heavy
District 5: USB: USB Drive with encrypted data, impossible to crack.
District 6: Cube: Ornamental cube with a slot on one side. Something can be fitted into it..A card perhaps?
District 7: Orb: A glass orb that is small enough to fit in an eye-socket. It glows mysteriously on the inside..
District 8: Gem: A gem that looks like blood, within the gem is what looks like a chiseled crescent moon.
District 9: Laptop: A laptop containing various indecipherable text.
District 10: Burnt Photo: A photo of some children, the corners of the polaroid photo have been burnt. On the back is written "Find them"
District 11: Tube: A tube that seems to be cyrogenically preserved with luminescent liquid.. Eerie to the touch.
----------------------------------------------------

The night is quiet, perhaps too quiet around this time. But still, you seem to be capable of researching whatever you found from that shoot-out this morning. Though to no avail, you scratch your hair and wonder where this could lead you...Just a month ago you found your mentor dead, it had been an entire year since you saw them last don the suit and tell you they had business to attend to. Now you wonder why...Why did they not tell you anything? Did they not trust you? Were you not good enough? Now they're dead and you have no answers to why.

Your thoughts are cut short, the phone rings. You pick it up
An old man speaks
"I used to work with your mentor.. _____"
Your eyes widen, nobody should know their real name.
"I have seen the skirmish you were involved in today, I would like to help you towards an answer."

"Meet me at a warehouse marked 42 in District 3. It is by the docks. Please, do be discreet if you wish to meet me."

And so it begins, the story of the next generation of Star Guardians...All of it started with A Call.
A Call of the Hero.​

 

[DarkKitsune]

🗡ELIAS CARTER/KARMA🗡
INTERACTIONS: NONE
LOCATION: DISTRICT 8 PATROL ROUTE ROOF OF A CLOTHES STORE

Elias or 'Karma' sat on top of a roof of a clothes store somewhere in district 8. His suit had sustained some damage and he had physical injuries as well. His mind was foggy, from a earlier fight he had, the brain fog. That slowly started to clear up. He had been resting on the roof for at least 2 hours. By this point, brief thoughts of going home early happened often enough that he might actually do it. It wasn't because he couldn't use his powers anymore for awhile, but because he couldn't think clearly enough to use his daggers or think of proper attacks. By this point, when his mind had cleared up enough for thoughts of reason to tug at his consciousness. He decided to stay on the rooftop awhile longer due to the fact he also didn't want to freak his roommate out by stumbling in like a drunkard with injuries from god knows where. It was the middle of the night. District 8 or the Night District was illuminated with dull lights. It was on the poorer side of the city, so they didn't have the fancy lights that most other districts had, and it was mainly lit up by the light of the moon. Although not as poor as District 11, it still struggled. While sitting there, he held up a weird gem in front of the moonlight. It was red, a very potent crimson with a chiseled creseant moon in the center. He had gotten it from a shoot out that had happened. The shoot-out was the reason he was as injured as he was. He jumped and winced from a sudden jolt of pain due to his injuries when his phone suddenly started ringing. He thought it was his roommate, but he didn't get the chance to answer as the old man on the other line instantly started speaking.

"I used to work with your mentor 'Glitch'"

If anything snapped Elias out of his current state a bit more it was the mention of his former mentor. Did this man work with the Star Guardians? It didn't make sense to Karma though. Glitch had never introduced him to the star guardians. He refused to do it. And naturally, Karma would come to the conclusion that he never told them he took up the roll as a mentor. Glitch was a hero who could manipulate technology. He started mentoring Elias when he was 14 and did so until Glitch died an early death when Elias was 15. On top of the weird fact this man knew who his mentor was, he also seemed aware of Glitch never telling Karma his real name. Which did confuse him, but then again, Glitch had been a very confusing guy.

"I have seen the skirmish you were involved in today, I would like to help you towards an answer. Meet me at a warehouse marked 42 in District 3. It is by the docks. Please, do be discreet if you wish to meet me."

After the man finished speaking, Elias didn't get to respond when he suddenly hung up, which frustrated Elias. He wanted to make sure it wasn't a trap. If anything, if the old man had stayed on the line longer, he probably would've ended up cursing the man to hell and back, though it probably would've come out as gibberish. Karma nearly tosses his phone off the roof in anger but then decides to kick a damaged roof tile off instead. He sat on the roof for a good extra 30 minutes to recover some more before heading to the strange meet up. He put his daggers back in their scabbard like spots on his suit. He didn't have the means to drive due to his seizures. He couldn't even get a drivers license and the bus wasn't running this late. So he walked his way to district 3. As he did, he called his roommate explaining he'd be out later then usual, but if he were gone longer then 24 hours, then to call the police. He hung up before his roommate could ask questions. After a long while of walking with pain in his legs from walking through 5 or so districts to arrive, he entered the warehouse.

​

 

[Statny]

Kaiden Braxton/Knight Shade
Interactions: Kouji Datura and The Total Eclipse Gang
Location: District 1 then District 3​

District 1 remains relatively quiet in the crime realm. But even though the District is wealthy they still have their own issues. A lot of their problems are more hidden. Rather than dealing with crimes of more violent nature their crimes are hidden very well and used as pawns in bigger schemes that usually affects other Districts. Kaiden’s mentor, known as Selaphiel and named after an archangel, explained in detail the way the crimes in D1 worked so Kaiden could understand how he could deal with these issues properly and find them as Knight Shade. Money laundering, trafficking, inside trading, bribery, blackmail, hacking, and illegal trading to name the most common. It’s all done in style but the violence tends to affect other Districts so Selaphiel explained the bigger burden they had to protect more than their own. It was the big picture and transparent relationship than made Kaiden even closer to his mentor and dedicated to his work. He enjoyed being needed and involved in something more than himself and his normal bubble of life.

Kaiden had his fair share of fights when he got close to exposing rings and ending dangerous dealings. But he didn’t have the physical exposure to the same level as other Districts. Selaphiel did her best to train him physically and mentally and to maintain his training as he never knew what could change in District 1. But Kaiden would experience a fight like he hadn’t before, testing his limits the way Selaphiel did when she was ensuring he was the one to take over her role.

It started like any other day in District 1…

Kaiden finished his typical 9 to 5 at his marketing firm then headed home to change and prepare his rounds as Knight Shade. He would cook a warm meal and take an hour or so to prepare both physically and mentally. After dinner he enjoyed a small desert, tonight was a bit of chocolate cake, along with a cup of dark brewed Bulgarian coffee. As he enjoyed his coffee and desert he went through his files on his laptop, reviewing the leaders and companies he was monitoring and assessing where they were at in regards to when he would take action. Sometimes he would be waiting for days on days until the right moment to make a move. Selaphiel taught him to be tactful on his approach because his first shot was his best.

His laptop glowed against his light skinned face, hazel eyes concentrating through strands of chestnut hair that had broken free from his morning gel. A notch appeared between his dark eyebrows as he focused in on his research; Debussy played in the background.

Alex Helmsworth, CEO of the pharmacy company Omnicare, was on the move. He had been monitoring Alex's nighttime activities because there have been links to his company and illegal trades. Tonight was supposedly the night Alex would be meeting an informant for a large purchase. Kaiden took a last bite of cake and last sip of his coffee then promptly got dressed to go out. He used his teleportation to a nearby storage to get to his 1969 Ford Mustang Mach 1, dressed and ready as Knight Shade. Selaphiel made it clear it would make his job a lot harder if his real identity was known and he wouldn’t maintain his internal access as a prominent socialite in the community to get close to his targets.

Alex Helmsworth was a scumbag. He was always seen with very young girls, treated any staff member he had like trash and valued his money as if it were his children. Already annoyed just thinking of Alex, Kaiden revved up his Mustang and left the storage, driving towards his target. All his research and intel led him to believe Alex would be having a meeting at the race track, which would be empty at this hour.

Knight Shade parked his car nearby so he could easily teleport back to it. He did a final teleportation jump to the roof of the race track where he lay flat and watched carefully below for any sign of Alex. He wore dark jeans, a tight dark suit Selaphiel built to hide his daggers and provide an extra layer of protection, and a black hoodie. On his belt he wore his wire clip. He was ready.

But Kaiden wasn’t ready for what would happen next.

Alex Helmsworth walked out onto the vast empty track, looking around nervously. His short peppered hair, round stomach and fake tanned skinned made him very easy to identify. Alex was not the master behind the operation. Kaiden knew he was working with someone bigger than him, smarter than him. Someone who definitely had more class.

Shortly after, another man walked onto the track and Knight Shade’s stomach clenched, his breath stopping in his chest for a moment as the realization set in on who he was looking at. The man had long wild hair, his muscles bulging from a shirt too tight and yet in a way fashionable.

Kouji Datura. Motherfucker. Kaiden knew him, knew him well, and Selaphiel warned him of his nest in District 1. But he was an oily target and was not one to easily be pinned down. Knight Shade had been mostly able to put out his fires but yet to chop off the head of the snake. Knight Shade pulled his inky smoke around him to make his hiding place even more discreet from the scene below.

Kouji walked up to Alex and extended his thick arm, opening his hand palm up. His faced was obscured by the trademark red mask. He glared down quietly at Alex, who was already standing at 6’1”. Alex was trembling but gave Kouji something, an item Kaiden couldn’t exactly see. Maybe it was a thumbdrive. One of Kouji’s men walked up to the pair from the side, masked as well, and handed Alex a brief case; this was no doubt full of money. Alex clutched it tightly, gave a side smile of nervous satisfaction, then turned to walk away from their complete deal.

In a display of unnecessary fashion, Kouji turned to his true form with a guttural growl, the ground underneath him shaking. Alex whipped around, only able to take one step back and leak a pitiful squeak of terror before Kouji’s massive clawed arm swung down and slammed onto Alex’s head, squishing him into himself in the spot where he stood as if he were a tin can. A pile of bone, skin and guts puddled in a pool of blood was left.

Kouji swiftly turned back to his human form. He stood silently for a moment, staring down at what was left of Alex. Then he turned and looked directly at Knight Shade.

Knight Shade’s skin grew cold and his whole body tensed. He was far away on the roof top, in the dark, shaded by his powers of cloudy ink, essentially a shadow for anyone’s eyes. And yet Kouji looked directly into his soul.

“Shit” Kaiden whispered to himself.

The Total Eclipse Gang began to spread across the field, Kouji still staring in Kaiden’s direction. Two of his men appeared behind Knight Shade. He had but a moment to see Kouji turn and walk slowly to leave the track while his goons would attend to Knight Shade.

Forced to evade the men who joined him on the roof top, Knight Shade teleported down to the track. He had to be careful with how much he was teleporting or he would drain his powers too quickly. But there was more than a dozen men surrounding him and he was only feet away from THE Kouji Datura. Knight Shade shot multiple daggers to the back of Kouji as he saubtered away. His men were already covering for him, slashing away the knives and blocking the blows. There were too many for Knight Shade to get close to Kouji, at least 20 of them, and he was forced to fight the Total Eclipse Gang on the track if he wanted any chance of getting to Kouji.

Kaiden blew smoke around him and teleported swiftly between the goons, using two daggers in each hand to slice the weak spots on them and bring them to their knees. Gun shots rang loud in the night as Kouji’s men fired towards him. With a gasp of pain he felt a bullet rip through the side of his left arm, a close call. He was forced to keep moving, using his inky smoke and teleportation skills, as well as jumping into the air to avoid the gun shots and being over run by too many of the goons. Indigo smoke plumed all around them. Knight Shade could see clearly through it but the gang could not. Knight Shade was constantly teleporting while blowing his opaque ink, making him a literal ghost they couldn’t touch while he struck each time that he reappeared. Slowly, the Gang was dropping like flys, lessening and giving Knight Shade a better chance. What seemed to be an infinite amount of ruthless goons was becoming a small group he could better manage. The problem was, the only way he could evade the horde of Kouji’s gang was quickly exhausting his powers. He was draining fast and he could feel it. Once he realized the guns had run out of ammo he slowed his teleportation down and used martial arts and his daggers to get close to do more intimate takedowns. The problem with this was there was still at least 7 men left. He tried not to use his powers, focusing on brute strength, take down techniques, his knives and choke wire. With 4 men left he could feeling his body shaking with exhaustion. He had very little left in him. Three men left, and when Knight Shade needed to pause catch his breath he was rushed by two of them and pinned to the floor. They two goons slammed his body down, digging their boney parts into his flesh and weighing him down. For as lithe as the gang looked their bodys felt like heavy stone. Knight Shade groaned in pain, but looking up he could still see Kouji sauntering away. He still had a chance. He just couldn’t teleport or he would be too wasted to fight Kouji or try and retrievethe item. The third goon broke Kaiden’s sight on Kouji with a swift kick to his face, knocking his head to the side. Kaiden cried out in pain, his vision blurring. Another blow landed on his ribcage, his back, his thighs, the gang member was relentless and the other two kept Knight Shade from being able to escape the painful blows. He could feel warm blood running down the side of his face. If he wanted to survive he needed to use his powers again.

Knight Shade blast his indigo smoke, blinding the three remaining members of the Total Eclipse Gang, then teleported out of their grasp. Back on his feet he staggered in pain for a moment but swiftly brought down his daggers on the other two, rendering them motionless. The third and final member rushed him, grip of steel wrapping around his neck as they both knocked to the floor. Knight Shade landed hard on his back, the breath knocked out of him as the goon began to choke him with a literal grip of steel. The cold metallic hands ironically kept Knight Shade conscious enough to teleport out again, whipping out his wire. He wrapped the wire around the goon’s neck while he burst upward, dragging the gang member with him into the air. The member choked and squirmed as they flew upwards several yards. Knight Shade screamed in rage and a final push of energy as the clenched the wire. He came back down to the ground, stumbling to his hands and knees and the goon fell limp next to him.

Gasping for breath, Knight Shade was trembling, exhausted and just about defenseless. Several yards away he could still see the silhouette of Kouji. Kouji had stopped and was staring at Knight Shade silently. He still had in his hand what Alex gave him. Kouji dropped the item, paused, then turned and walked away disappearing into the night.

Confused, eyes stinging with tears of pain, body trembling, Knight Shade couldn’t comprehend what was happening.

The race track was quiet again. The members of the gang he had stopped were scattered across the track but soon they silently dissipated. All that was left was the glob of Alex.

Kaiden groaned in pain, wiping away a streak of blood that was dripping into his left eye. He took a few moments to catch his breath then stumbled over toward the item Kouji had dropped.

A mask.

A small, dark mask.

Kaiden gripped it and cautiously looked around. Kouji and the Total Eclipse Gang were gone.

With his final energy left, the backup plan Selaphiel insisted Kaiden kept at all times no matter what, was a final teleportation. He jumped to his Mustang and slumped into the leather seat, chest heaving. The silence was broken by a ring on his cell phone. Kaiden pulled out his cell and stared at it. He wasn’t stupid to think the timing was a coincidence.

Kaiden answered the call but said nothing. The silence didn’t last long and a voice sounding like a man spoke from the other line “I used to work with your mentor Sasha.”

Kaiden, wincing in pain, straightened himself up. He had his attention.

“I saw the fight you were just involved in. I saw what was left behind. I’d like to help you towards an answer.”

Kaiden remained quiet, his mind racing, his body aching.

The stranger continued speaking saying “meet me at Warehouse 42 located in District 3. You’ll find it by the docks. Please be discreet.”

The line disconnected.

Kaiden looked at the black mask in his hand. It was a stained leather piece with scuffed encryptions. Sasha/Selaphiel was involved. He had to move forward. While his body healed faster than normal men he would still need time to recover and had tapped the last of his powers. He revved up his Mustang and began the drive to District 3, his mind racing. When Sasha had became Selaphiel one last time out of seemingly nowhere it already felt strange to Kaiden. Then her sudden death came shrouded in foreign mystery, Sasha was always transparent with Kaiden. What was she protecting him from? Why did she have to die?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kaiden drove up to the Warehouse in District 3. He stayed in his car, his tinted windows concealing him. He would wait a bit before going in to gain more strength. The anticipation was just as torturous; he was thirsty for answers.

 

[blue tea]

scroll

superhero

lux.

alias

lumin / archangel

age

eighteen

pronouns

masculine

district

district eleven

outfit

xxx

pinterest

xxx

spotify

xxx

theme song

xxx

Lux hadn’t expected it, cursing himself for not being on his a-game, sent flying, barely able to catch himself before his back collided with the brick. His chest sputtered, breath caught in his throat as a pained whine escaped soft bitten lips. Shit, that hurt. He breathed shakily, dragging a hand through oily, blond locks, grimacing. Right—He blinked languidly, barely able to see the oncoming punch until he tumbled out of the way, wings flaring out, knocking into the building in his haste.

Now that hurt. He hissed, sensitive appendages blistering with pain. It wasn’t until brick, and glass rained down on him, arms snapping upward within seconds to wrap around his helm. He bit down on his bottom lip, tasting the coppery tinge of ichor that coated his tastebuds like tar.

He cringed, listening to the reverberating clings of his prosthetic that sent shockwaves up his stump and into frayed nerves, far too sensitive to be considered anything but concerning. He never bothered getting it checked out. He huffed. Lux didn’t have the best prosthetics, done hastily in a hospital with low funds. It was a wonder how he even got them then.

“Get your head in the game.” He hissed. He hadn’t been all there since holding his mentor’s funeral in stiff silence, unable to hold back the flow of tears. His mentor was dead. Someone killed his mentor—his father figure. The only person who gave a damn about him, missing limbs and all. He was dead. And Lux barely had any leads.

Hell. He needed a shower. He needed to eat. He needed to take care of himself, but it wasn’t like he wasn’t trying. He had so much to do, swamped with hero work it felt like he ran a thousand miles every day.

“Oh, shit.” He yelped. Gunfire broke out, splattering the abandoned building in a fiery haze of molten copper. He narrowly dodged the spray of bullets, pulling blood-splattered wings tight to his malnourished frame to get away from the mass sea of bullets, nearly becoming a cheese grater. Shit. Shit. Shit. He cursed, legs wobbly from the earlier impact that nearly sent him face-first into the pavement. He would have certainly ‘eaten shit’ if it wasn’t for the quick snap of his wings keeping him balanced.

His voice rang out across the empty streets, urging civilians to hide. It took a little convincing. If he used his body as a shield, then well, no one had to know, right? He grunted, glad his metal limb had some use then causing him nerve damage.

It was then that Lux used the only named skill he had, wounded wings speckled with ichor stretched outward only to snap forward, curling half-heartedly around his frame to send a gust of wind in their direction. He had hoped it would have knocked a few of them down, but they remained standing. He cursed. “Guess talking about this is out of the question.” He muttered, nose crinkling in disgust, already feeling the prickle of unease that made gooseflesh rise along his fleshy limb.

It went to hell after that, sending attack after attack, dodging gunfire, and keeping an eye out for any wandering civilian, Lux was getting his ass kicked as embarrassing as it was. He needed to get closer to do something other than run around like some clueless idiot.

The blond had dove inside the abandoned building, taking stock of his injuries, some healing, and others raw and bleeding ichor. He didn’t have the energy to heal anything else, already feeling the pull of his consciousness threatening to take him under. He bit the inside of his cheek, mind a maelstrom of thoughts. Shoot. Okay. Think Lux. He was running out of energy. That was obvious. He needed to end this fast, or—Lux winced. He had to run.

He breathed shakily until it turned into a coughing fit, ribs screaming in protest. The adrenaline was wearing out, replaced by bone-crushing exhaustion. He always prided himself on his adaptability, no less his quick thinking, but he wasn’t doing so hot. A laugh bubbled up, swallowed down by the clamp of his teeth.

He peeked out from behind the shattered glass, gaze widening behind circular frames at the bulkier members picking their way toward the building. Oh, that’s not good. He glanced down at his battered frame, blood splattered across his temporary outfit, shredded in some places, and looking as if he had gone through a war zone. I look awful. He laughed, blue optics crinkling.

Lux heard the heavy thump of feet echoing before he saw them, surging upward, wings angling to shoot out of another window and onto the questionable roof. He had urged the construction company to demolish it, worried it would collapse and cause more harm, but for now, the blond was thankful they hadn’t yet.

Lux had little time to think, instead of catching sight of the bulkier individual standing in all of his glory, hidden behind a weird mask. “Sending out the big guy now?” He muttered, huffing. Well, shit. He was doomed. Maybe he should have bolted before he became a viscera pancake. “Think we can talk about you guys—” Guess not. He narrowly avoided him, taking on a defensive approach as the other landed a hefty punch to his gut, nearly sending the hero toppling over if it wasn’t for his quick reflexes, landing a well-aimed kick to the lackey’s knee.

He huffed, chest heaving from putting his body into overdrive, sending a gust of wind in his opponent’s direction only to be sent sailing across the roof, boots digging into the ground to keep him upright, wings flared out. His blue optics narrowed, surging forward with newfound determination, hand shooting out to grab his superellipse-like barreled gun strapped to his thigh, aiming it and firing with terrifying accuracy into the bulkier male’s shoulder.

He didn’t waste time, tucking the gun into his thigh strap to grapple with the male, sending out a series of punches and kicks, feeling his nerves alight with such agony that Lux didn’t have time to dodge the hand that encompassed his head, dangling him in the air. His wings fluffed in terror, hands grappling at the individual’s wrist, blunt fingers digging into the meat of his wrist.

His vision spiraled, limbs falling limp until he let go, dropping his malnourished frame on the rickety roof unceremoniously. Lux barely noted the tube before his vision darkened, succumbing to his consciousness.

He woke up to the sound of ringing, groaning until he finished out the device to an unknown voice filtering through the speakers. His mind sluggish, thoughts broken, and ears feeling like someone had stuffed them with cotton made it difficult to hear until his mentor’s name sent him upright, muscles tensing.

"Meet me at a warehouse marked 42 in District 3. It is by the docks. Please, do be discreet if you wish to meet me."

He remained silent, tucking his phone into his pocket, mind reeling. His heart bled, wounds reopening until a sob escaped his lips, hand pressed against his face, teeth-gritting. It was a sharp reminder that his father was dead. It hurt. It made his skin itch and burn, but he couldn’t sit here and wallow in his grief, instead focusing on the tube with some kind of luminescent liquid.

Lux leaned forward, picking up the object with nimble fingers to tuck it into his shredded outfit. Right. He needed to head to District 3 if he wanted answers. His curiosity getting the best of him.

He didn’t bother changing, sore wings outstretched till he was up in the air, sailing across buildings. It took some time until the familiar sight of District 3 came into view, landing ( more like falling ) with a quiet thump. His muscles quivered, threatening to give out at any second as he made his way to Warehouse 42.

thought speech​

♡coded by uxie♡

 

[RandomBlobMan]

"I'm sorry, kid. You're just... not him."

That day, for the first time in his life, Shawn felt a strong urge to not be sober. After all the effort he put, he thought he was ready to at least mimic a fraction of what Hellbent achieved in his days. All he got instead was a handful of disappointed villains that just... left. The district's lowlife criminals were bamboozled, and so was the police department. Things have been looking up, and many called it a miracle. For Shawn, it was just a hard reminder of how insignificant he was in the picture Hellbent was in. How wonderful.
But enough of the gloom talk. At least the streets were getting better and better, which was what he was fighting for. The police started arresting goons that lost their figures of power, and things that were left untended started receiving the much needed care. Shawn, when he had his costume (if you could call it a costume) on, spent more time helping the improvement of the society. Hellbent was never the type to openly express his emotions, so he would never be sure, but Shawn hoped the gritty hero could smile after all the hardships. Sure, all those villains were out there, but mostly wihtout the will to continue their sinister acts. Or maybe he'll despair to find out that the only thing keeping them going was himself.

---

Five hours ago, the mustache twirling old time villain Kaiser turned himself in. He had all the evidence for his crime organized in an almost taunting fashion, obviously treating this arrest as more of an "intricate retirement" now that his eternal rival would never come back. What a shame, he said, to lose the worthy opponent of the century. But that was not everything. He tipped Shawn of a new presence in town, some low budget degenerates seeking to cause chaos on his domain. Although, to Shawn, it almost looked like he just wanted a safe retirement with a new force around. The old man's influence was dwindling anyways.
Right now, Shawn stood before several tied up ruffians all disarmed and/or knocked out. The gang was dressed in an unfamiliar attire, presumably the new power that Kaiser mentioned. They ambushed Shawn with obvious ill intent, using tactics and equipment beyond street level. Had Shawn not been on duty, and therefore more discreet of the surroundings, he would've met dire consequences- at worst, death or more. But alas, bullets weren't enough to put him down. WIping a trickle of blood off of his face, Shawn finished tying up the last goon on the floor and sat in the corner waiting for the police to arrive.
As funny as it sounded, it felt like a good workout especially after Helbent died. Even including the several injuries he sustained in the combat. Hellbent always emphasized the brittleness of the human body, and how minimizing injuries was important, Shawn was just clumsy compared to the veteran.

From the corner of his eyes, Shawn spotted something among the pile of gadgets the gang had brought. Backup weapons, extra ammunition, everything else they could throw at anyone in the way, and... a suitcase. If they were trying to keep it away from him, they were doing a bad job.
"..Kaiser was right, of all things."
Or at least he thought so-Kaiser and his goons were always over the top with their exaggerated performances. A lot of craftsmenship was put into their 'performances'.

Shawn pulled the case out of the pile to feel the weight of the case. Quite heavy. It was locked with a bio-lock, so he couldn't open it right away. Great. With no connections that Hellbent had, there was more work than Shawn would ever manage to crack something like a bio-lock. With a disappointed shrug, Shawn Held the suitcase in one hand and disappeared into the alleyways as the sound of police sirens came closer. He'll leave the investigation of the gang to the police, listen to the results later.

Just then, his hero phone rang. A call, from an unknown caller.
"I used to work with your mentor William."
It wasn't even Hellbent's backup identity. It was his real name. Shawn didn't bother to listen to the voice's introduction. That was good enough to trust them, especially when Hellbent put enough caution to give out his real name to only trustworthy individuals. Or really nosy villains. Given to him was a location, in district 3.
Why not?

 

[Gaius Danius Griinia]

SLAM

"I just got off the phone with City Hall. The Mayor's been riding my ass so hard you'd think I was a drugged up stallion!"

Police Chief Bastion was in a foul mood on account of the person in front of him. Today had started less than ideal with Chief Bastion waking up after nearly no sleep the previous night. Now he had to deal with the jackassery of todays events. Not only was he going home exhausted after this. He'd probably have to endure calls from City Hall for the next few days. The uniformed officer in front of him, TheMan was the source of this current issue.

"Chief, that bucket of bolts was unlicensed. I had no choice but to try and bring it in"

"Dumbass... that didn't mean FISTFIGHTING A ROBOTIC TYRANNOSAURUS IN A SCHOOL ZONE!"

Yes, TheMan had noticed a truck hauling something strange when on patrol. Naturally when he found out that they were transporting the folded up robotic t-rex, his first thought had been to ask if they had a license to own heavy duty equipment like that. Discovering to his horror that they didn't had led to TheMan pulling out his gun. The T-Rex was sicced on him as a means of diverting his attention away from the criminals escaping. Naturally his gun wasn't working against the metallic dinosaur. TheMan was forced to fight it mano a beasto with only his fists. A brawl broke out between the pair that had begun in the streets, moved through a gymnasium and ended on a playground. Luckily TheMan had been able to finish it off with the aid of the industrial strength jungle gym produced locally by Evenstar Factories.

"YOU DESTROYED FOUR BLOCKS WORTH OF LOCAL BUSINESSES, ENDANGERED THOSE CHILDREN AT THE MIDDLE SCHOOL DURING THEIR FUNDRAISER AND GOT THE LOCAL PLAYGROUND TORCHED BY THE LASERS SHOT BY THE ROBOTIC DINOSAUR YOU FAILED TO DEAL WITH UNTIL THEN!"

"Cut the crap, Chief. You know none of the other officers in the precinct could have dealt with that robot. No one got hurt, so why is this an issue?"

"I wanted you to deal with this by the book... like Patrol-Man would have"

Chief Bastion realized he hit a nerve the moment his words left his mouth. TheMan frowned before leaving the room, slamming the door in the process. Patrol-Man had left this world too soon. The grizzled old hero was the shining star of the police department during a time where the public had begun to have more faith in costumed heroes than their local beat cops. Not many in the department believed in TheMan to fill the void that Patrol-Man left behind in the community.

Sitting in his car and checking his phone for updates on any crimes in the vicinity. TheMan was alarmed to find he was getting a phone call. Apparently the caller knew Patrol-Man and wanted to meet TheMan personally. Whipping out his gun and shooting his phone. He made plans to head to the meet-up with a desire to find answers.

 

[Bluffly]

Witch Fire
The lights danced across the Iniko's body as her heels rhythmically clicked across the dance floor. Eyes that landed on the young woman found it hard to detach from her image, an ethereal beauty. Iniko's moved as if she was the only one in the warehouse until her eyes locked onto another young woman. Their rhythm became one as they moved across the dance floor, until the words run were whispered into the woman's ear, before she could react Iniko had pushed them off the dance floor and mixed back into the crowd. Throughout the night, Iniko repeated the process until the rave was almost sparce. Iniko picked a new partner however they were different from her partners before. Compared to the people she booted from the rave, this person was teeming with mana, distinctly mana from the so-called angels, "Hello there big boy," The brute of a man ran his hands across her body, "Hands are we? Maybe in another lifetime!" Without time for a reaction, the man was laying on his back with Witch Fire's heel pressing into his chest. For all the muscles across his body he couldn't push the small woman off.

Brandishing her revolvers, Balance," Boys, girls, and theys! NOW THE REAL PARTY BEGINS!" The people pretending to be normal launched at Witch Fire with ravenous glee and possessed eyes. They had given themselves over to a celestial's will probably through some botched ritual. The people Witch Fire pushed out were probably targets. They may have even come with their friends who were already converted; however, they were the lucky ones.

Dance floor? Battlefield? It was hard to distinguish between the two, given the bodies hitting the floor, and the woman dancing. Strikes, slashes, and stabs. Nothing was able to touch her except the bass of the music. Witch Fire was engrossed in her dance until something cut her dress.

GASP

"Funs over, ya ganks!" Witch Fire's gunplay became more aggressive as she attempted to expel the celestial influence from the innocent, but she hadn't noticed the matching masks they were all wearing. Although their mana was similar to a celestial, they were not all influenced by one. Witch Fire tossed a few of her hex bombs into the air executing a smaller form of the Explosive Dancefloor technique! At the end, Witch Fire walked out of the warehouse as it began to crumble behind her, however she was followed quickly by one of the thugs running out of the building, but before they got too far Witch Fire fired a shot over her shoulder,"Better luck next time!" Saint dispersed into thin air to make room for a cube landing in the superhero's hand.

Iniko inquisitively looked at the cube, eyeing the the slot in the center when her phone's ringing interrupted her thoughts, "Hello?"
"I used to work with your mentor, Theodore..." Iniko stood stunned for a second. Theodore was a stubborn and paranoid man and didn't reveal his identity to many. Iniko swung her leg over her motorcycle,"Tonight was supposed to be fun, but my dress is ruined and somebody is asking for a bullet in the worst way! District 3 docks, here I come!"

 

[BuggaBoo]

'Ms. Ballistic' / CC

Location: Dockside in District 10-Hope. Flying to District 3 at the end.
Mentions: None.
Interactions: None. ​

The Fight To Find The Truth...

'Nah, shoot. It'll take like a second, Cherry. C'mon I'll be fine. You just stay here and look pretty, lil' chickles. Like what's the worst that could happen...?'

Another pair of shells hit her one right after the other. The explosions sent her flailing up into the air. As she fell back down to earth, she was forcefed an angry hail of armour piercing bullets. She let out a massive grunt as soon as she ate the dirt. Another hailstorm of bullets as she managed to crawl behind the building.

Sweat dripped from her brow and her breath was heavy and hot in her helmet. Her HUD flashed red, an internal incessant rising and falling wail warned her that her armour was reaching critical levels. It told her to fall back for 30min to regen fully. Flight status: Disabled. Aura Shield: Critically Low. Big grey eyes snapped shut, eyebrows knitting them down tight. A shaky breath she took.

How the hell was she going to get her back safely, let alone survive this onslaught?

But there was no way she was backing down from this. This was her fault. In her mind flashed the time when she first met her work partner, Nika. Her glinting blue eyes dulled as she gazed levelly into CC's soft greys, 'Don't let your guard down for even one single second. You look away for only a second...

"... 'and poof, they're gone.' Daaaaaang...!" CC slammed her armoured fist into the concrete, debris flew and in its wake was an angry crater remained.

CC was supposed to be an elite sentry. A 'talent guardian' that was supposed to keep safe and secure a company asset potentially worth 100's of millions. That 'talent' was her bff, DJ aja the online global sensation: "Miss Chaser." And CC had lost her. DJ had gone back into the hotel to get her water bottle from her suite. And she never came back. When CC finally left her car to go upstairs the only trace of her ward was a half moon pendant; the very twin of the one that the burly blonde herself wore. A shaky breath she let out then as she did in the here and now.

The one thing she was supposed to do... 'You look away for only a second...'

Fully armoured as 'Ms. Ballistic', she had been flying high above District 10-Hope, surveying madly, following the blip on her HUD. At least DJ's tracking chip was still active. There was a pair of black sedans briskly rolling along towards a complex of abandoned warehouses in Dockside area. Just outside 'Building K7' was parked an unmarked cargo van with a couple of dudes looking like they up to no good; just waiting to receive 'the package'.

Well, that made it easy enough for her to intercept the cars and rescue her bff.

A little too easy.

But that was her problem wasn't it? CC was a courageous and heroic young woman, that would just beat down and wreck opponents and villains alike. But there was no way she would out think them. Her greatness of her heart could never outweigh the weakness of her mind. She just could not foresee nor assume that this could be a trap.

They had ambushed her. They had nearly blown another hole into her. And here she was now straining to get up and run as their attack drones moved into position and all guns opened up on her. Another pair of rockets launched.

CC screeched as she dove right through the boarded up window. The force of the explosion propelled her straight across the room. Airborn, her huge body flailed out of control yet again, but mercifully several boxes deep of abandoned goods softened her immediate landing.

A massive growl she let out as she dove yet again for cover. The sound of the firing miniguns echoed away like thunder, amplified in the vast expanse. Yet not a single bullet hit Ms. Ballistic. They did however decimate the concrete wall that Ms. Ballistic hid behind.

She could hear the drones angrily buzzing away at the entrance. Little did she realize the best strategy was to bring the building down with her in it. Even less did she realize that they could do that; if it was part of the plan. CC had absolutely no idea that they wanted her alive.

And now she could hear the masked assailant backups moving in. CC swore beneath her breath as she ran hell for leather to the stairwell.

"RnR TIME...!" seethed the big woman. As she ran up the stairs two at a time, her armour faded away mid-stride, leaving her in her Armada Inc. tactical gear. She had no plan as she huslted up the steps, but she knew she had to drop her armour for it to regen. How much more reinforced it would be by the time she summoned it again, she had no idea, but after absorbing that last blast, her HUD had stopped flashing and was a solid bloody red glow.

All vehicles she had disabled. A whole squad of men she had taken out. But they managed to repel her; the closest she got to DJ was just enough to hear her bff swearing, kicking and screaming for them to let her go. The only glimpse she caught of her celebrity ward was the soft green glow of her nano-tattoos. That's it.

The people that pulled off this abduction were skilled and prepped. Never before had she seen these gang bangers. So a quick pic she had snapped of their weird swirlly patterned masks and sent off a quick text to her bodyguard partner, Nika to see if she could discern just who the hell this outfit was. And that may have been her saving grace.

She whipped out her phone as she leapt up the last set of steps and barged right through the security door to the top level of the warehouse. Nika was on her way. And she was sending a live feed from CC's car, Growler.

"Wut's good, chickles? Still alive? Hahahahah..." The cars several cams showed off that Nika was close. The one trained on Nika herself saw the brunette scowling and shaking her head, "No word on these cats. No one knows just who the hell they are. The drones however, they are black market military prototypes. Your new friends not only have money, but connections. You in it now alright. But anyways I'm about... 1km from your signal. So what now? You want me to pick up slushies first?"

"Ha. Ha. No time for jokes, Nicki. I'm down bad. Like real bad, sis. I took out the vehicles about a block away, and I'm holed up in... 'Warehouse V3'. I can hear the unfriendlies and their toys but I'm working blind right now--"

Big soft greys popped open even bigger. Suddenly her mind lit up. She could not see them... but her car could.

"Cherry...? Come in. Eyo, Cherry, you still alive?"

"I'm here. I'm here. Girl, pull up. But I need you to get visuals of the toys. On cam, 'kay? I have an idea..."

"Nah shiiiieeeettt, sis. I hate when 'I have an idea' comes outta your mouth... dammit fine. You lead. Okay, I can hear the birdies... I'll have visual... right about-- dammit I'm taking heavy gunfire, sis. Just a sec."

She could hear the sound of boards breaking and the hollow sound of metal bouncing around. A single cough she let out. Oh no. They were trying to gas her into unconciousness now.

"Nix... cough-cough... NIKA!! Sis, I really need those visuals. Like yesterday Cough-Cough Nicki please! Where the hell are you?"

"Got 'em. One south side, the other north. They lookin' like--"

CC put her phone away as she scanned quickly. She could hear the drone. A nod then she jumped onto the catwalk. Running full sprint now, she grit her teeth and balled both hands into fists.

"Just what the hell am I doin..." she muttered through white teeth. A wing and a prayer was all she had that this was the correct window. Maybe she should pause to think about this? Nah. Too late now.

"I have no idea but right about now it's... FLY-GIRL TIME!!"

The pink and black armour of Ms. Ballistic reformed around her, silvery blue ghostly flames ignited at the top of her helm. Her HUD was flashing red again, but she had enough energy to fly and blow right through the boarded up window. Into the unknown she screamed out a singular battle-cry.

"I'M UNBREAKABLE!!" the silver blue of her protective orb errupted into life a heartbeat before she crashed headfirst into the boarded up window. Ms. Ballistic punched right through and slammed right into the heavy-gun drone, it hurtled away, whirring and buzzing as it attepmted to stay airborn. But the force of Ms. Ballistic's blind strike sent to spinning into the walls of the next door warehouse with a thunderous explosion.

Instantly, its sister drone came whirring about and opened fire on Ms. Ballistic. She could take on enough gun fire to get an attack on the drone but a pair of missiles...?

Another battle cry she let out as she flew head first at the drone, both fists extened out in front of her. It launched.

"More than brilliant, it missed--"

Well, only the first one did. The second one smashed into her forcefield orb, the ensuing explosion deflecting her trajectory away from her intended target. Her protective shielding fizzled. Silver blue flashed once. Twice. Then her orb completely dissipated.

"Nah well now I'm really fuuuUUUUUGHHH!!--" CC screamed as the heavy callibre bullets blasted at her back. Well, that plan was done. She was running on instinct now.

She spied her hot pink SUV below, peeling out and turning into an alley towards her. A grunt of extreme effort and she launched herself nearing the speed of sound towards Growler, the drone in hot pursuit. Yeah of course Nika had smiled and waved as CC flew right past her overhead and right into the midst of the pursuing masked gun men.

Several twists and rolls she nimbly made. Yes, her armour took some shots in the heavy calibre hailstorm. But the gunmen took even more heavy calibre friendly fire.

The next move was all or nothing.

A quick calming breath she took. At this speed it would be impossible to pull a 90 degree turn into the next alley way. She would have to break the laws of physics. Yet it was possible with the power of her suit. But it was all about timing. And luck.

At the last second she needed to drop her armour, twist her body to face the direction she needed to go, reform her armour and launch. That timing she had down. A few times she had eatien it badly from missed timing; she had passed out due to the sheer G's she was up against. But since then she had become an expert in this manouver. So yes, she could pull it off, but dropping her armour would leave her vulnerable to the drones gunfire. That would be bad. Real bad. And she knew in her heart that it would be lethal; a few more bad hits would break her armour, zero chance of reforming and her flight ability disabled for good. Splat. End of story.

"What the hell am I doin'..." big soft greys slowly closed, "wut else..."

One final breath. CC dropped the armour of Ms. Ballistic mid twist. The drone opened fire. CC was looking in the direction she needed to go. One final prayer. "...Flyin' to Heaven..."

Every single bullet missed her; prayer answered.

Ms. Ballistic was rocketing away as the drone flew right past her. It pulled up to do a loop-de-loop and use its momentum to whip around and pursue its target. It had two missiles left and--

"--BALLISTIC BOMB!!"

BOOOOOM!!!

Yeah it would never fire those missiles. Ms. Ballistic had pulled her 'Drop-armour-turn' a few more times and rocketed back, aimed directly at drone. With the last reserves of energy used to form her unbreakable orb, she was a wrecking ball as she slammed into the drone sending it and its debris crashing back down to earth.

She was drenched in sweat, but DJ didn't care. She was hugging her bff tight, tears leaking out the corner of her green eyes, spilling warm salty drops onto her half-moon pendant, "I'm sooooo sorry, Cherry... I should never have left your side... I'm sooo sorry, chickles..."

Over her shoulder CC made eye contact with Nika. The muscular brunette said not a word. The burning glow in those blue eyes neath that scowl said it all. Another drag from her cigarette she took then blew the stream of smoke in CC's direction. A singular curt nod. CC nodded back. Both of them knew that this was her one and only reprieve; CC got lucky and a huge assist went to her partner here to pull her ass outta the fire.

CC opened her mouth to thank and address Nika properly. But instead was interrupted by the smokey voice of her partner.

"So you still alive. So what now, sis? What do we do with this?" Nika stretched her neck to the left then right before holding up the polaroid left behind by the swirly masked assailants, "Anyone know just who the hell these kids are?"

DJ broke away from her embrace and positioned herself between the pair of bodyguards. A slender brown arm slid around the waist of Nika and she pulled her close to herself and CC, leaning her raven haired head into the the big brunette. "I could ask around... maybe they're from my fanbase...?"

"Doubt it, Facer. This is a message. Not for us. But for Ms. Ballistic. Eyo Cherry... Are you sure you don't know who you might've pissed off ? I mean... they really came at you. Hard. And all in."

DJ snatched the cigarette from Nika and took a huge drag, "Yeah, thinkin' you right, Nix. I mean, you'd think they'd try to get me for ransom or something instead of fleeing. I mean, they had reinforements, right? Instead they picked their guys up and left me like... like it was all for nothing...? Like wut?"

"Hmmmm yeah, this is freakin' weird..." CC shook her head as DJ offered the cigarette, "...and to be honest, chickles they almost got me. But like--"

CC's phone rang. Soft greys popped wide. That ringtone was her mentor's ring tone. But Ice Queen was dead.

"Hello..."

They had made preparations to protect DJ from further attempts to kidnap her. But Nika was adamant that they wouldn't be back to abduct DJ. After CC had told them what the caller had said, Nika was sure that they got what they wanted; a show of her capabilities.

One final fond hug to each of her friends then a loving caress she gave to her hot pink SUV; Growler now looked more like a hunk of pink swiss cheese on wheels. CC waved up high as they rolled away back to the Armada Inc. HQ. A wistful smile faded into a heavy frown as the blasted up car turned and slid out of sight.

One last glance at the kids in the photo. She flipped the polaroid over and let the black letters burn into her mind; "Find Them."

The one thing that she withheld from her friends was that the caller had mentioned her mentor by name. Not 'Ice Queen,' but by her given name.

"Laila..." whispered the big burly blonde.

One last breath and then she rocketed away into the sky, heading towards the warehouse in District 3.