Game, Start!

[Wixard]

Ah, the shining city of New Portsmouth! The third Sanctum City to be built anywhere in the world. After the brief, but devastating Delta Wars of 2009-12, the world has spent the past four years rebuilding itself. The Sanctum Cities incorporate the most cutting-edge technology into building the city of the future. Sanctum, one of the founding members of the Sentinel Alliance and a brilliant Delta, designed this city to be built where Portsmouth once stood. It's sprawl will extend through Maine and New Hampshire, spilling into Massachusetts and serving as the capital of the United States of New England.


Sanctum is fully funding the project himself, and has full authority to carry out his plan for bringing the third city of tomorrow to life. Commerce from around the world is drawn to the Sanctum City, as businesses crave the security and reliable consumer base it promises. While the city is still under construction, it is already home to just over half a million people, with an unusually high population of Deltas.

(Introduce your character doing whatever is normal for them on a Saturday morning)

 

[Taggerung]

Howard Moriean hesitated with his hand on the doorknob. He had to go to class. Already he had been absent for two days, hiding out in his dorm and trying to figure things out. He would need to be all caught up before finals rolled around in three weeks. That wasn't the problem; Howard was a dedicated student and a fast worker. I cant just pretend like nothing happened though. At least two of my peers saw me transported across the lab in the blink of an eye, and it wasn't quiet either. He looked back to the Scandium sample he had sitting on his nightstand and felt the the slight tingle of its pull. He remembered the same feeling over the last week from a number of different samples in his chemistry lab, all rare earth elements. If he wanted, he could flash right over to it and be back in bed, ready to go back to slee-



His watch chimed the hour, causing him to jump. He was already late; there was no more time for deliberation. Howard yanked open the door and hurried out of his residence hall, staggering into the blinding sunlight of a beautiful Saturday morning. Being inside for 3 days will do that to you.



He jogged along the university campus, past the row of forest-green New Harvard banners That was the other thing; Howard was too far away from home to feel comfortable dealing with this unexpected turn of events. He liked it when things went according to plan, and this was certainly not part of his. But he was on the opposite coast of North America and on the wrong side of the 49th parallel, to study in one of the world's top schools, nestled in the heart of New Portsmouth. He had done well so far, and he wasn't going to let this... accident, interrupt his studies.

 

[Pajamas]

Tane Manawa Kautarewa Hika was the name written on the silly little paper tag. But he would only ever introduce himself as Tane Hike. Tane grabbed the large burlap duffel bag with his name on it off the luggage carousel. He thought to himself, 'American airports... Huge, eh?' He threw the strap over his shoulder and headed to the closest exit not caring to follow the signs. He just wanted out. He had never flown before, well, in an airplane, and he hated it. The direct flight was eleven painful hours from Auckland. Tane had had enough of this crowded place. There really were so many people in America. 


As he walked he untangled his headphones, popped the buds in his ears, and listened to the first song that came up. He chuckled to himself, trap music was so mean lately, he couldn't get enough. He reached the exit and as the doors slide open he pulled his bag of and removed his tank to reveal his rippling muscles. His massive brown wings slowly formed behind his large shoulders. No point in being subtle here. He had come to make a name for himself and he figured the quickest way to get in touch with DSRT was for them to find him. His wings brushed against a couple of nearby people, they looked a bit freaked out. As soon as his wings were unfurled and he threw the bag over his shoulder again and lunged straight into the air taking flight. A gust of air startling the bystanders left in his wake. He flew only so high just to get away from the airport. But once he was clear the next song began to play, 'Sweet as' he thought and smiled to himself. He flew higher and higher, faster and faster. It was so surreal, he was in America.


In the distance he could see New Portsmouth, the developing city that would be his stage and playground. He pushed himself past his limit and flew even faster. His brown locks whipping his neck, tears streaming from his brown eyes; squinting from the air burning them. He pulled his wings in tight to maintain his speed. The whole world would soon know the Hika name! 

 

[Wixard]

Waking up in a new place felt good. Though it was momentarily disorienting, it was the beginning of feeling like her life was moving again. 


She made her bed, showered, and brushed her teeth before breakfast. Breakfast. She hadn't gone shopping yet, so she didn't have anything to cook with, so the recipies she'd pulled up on her tablet weren't going to be helpful. She pulled up a list of restaurants in walking distance instead, scrolled through the pictures until she found something open for breakfast that looked fresh and healthy, and pulled up the address on her smartphone GPS.


She got dressed in casual clothes and sneakers and made her way down to the restaurant. She had lived in a Sanctum City before, New Venice. Old Venice had gone the way of Atlantas during the Delta Wars, thanks to a powerful Delta who'd destabilized the already sinking city. When she'd lived there she'd thought that Sanctum had done a good job of paying homage to the beauty of Old Venice without letting it define his vision for the city.

She hadn't been to Old Portsmouth, but New Portsmouth was laid out in such a way that emphasized the beauty of the land on which it sat, and used that beauty to compliment the city itself. She was surprised, even though it had a familiar quality to it, it was very different from New Venice. Still Sanctum, but it seemed that he'd designed this from the ground up rather than adapting his New Venice city.

When she got to the restaurant, she ordered English muffins with cream cheese and blueberries, and a grilled sandwich with stewed tomatoes, basil, and mozzarella. For lunch later. 

 

[SorinWolf]

Hail slammed the book shut. Three hours of study on astromancy, and now he was ready to try it out for the very first time. He visualized the constellation of Leo, of the month of August. He could visualize every detail, which the book had very thoroughly outlined. The stars of the constellation shimmered, and shed their light upon the ground. Out of thin air, the bright blue essence of a spectral creature emerged, in the shape of a majestic lion, ready to fight on his behalf-


Morning light blinded him as he awoke. Something hard and bulky was under one side of his pillow. Peeking underneath, he discovered a thick volume, titled The Novice's Introduction to Astromancy, hiding there. The bookmark was where he left it last night, page three. Had he honestly only dreamed about reading it? Was that even possible? It had seemed to make so much sense in the realm of pleasant fantasies, but now, looking at it, he knew why he had found the book so dry and boring. His bookmark was covered in scrawls of notes on decoding runes. The book was ancient and faded, and in a language that might as well have been binary. He always hated binary. Such a dull and useless language. He had yet to see a use for learning it in today's modern world. Still, he had never had an aptitude for star magic, and he did not like being reminded of his weaknesses. Translating and reading the book- a necessary evil...


Hail slammed the tome down unto his desk, opening it up to page three and withdrawing a notebook from one of the doors. His pen had just met paper when he noticed the new folder on his desk labeled: 'Today's Chores.' Seeking any excuse to avoid the tedious task before him, he picked the folder up, and leafed through it. It was relatively thin today, with only three assignments:


1. Assist Ares at press conference


2. Befriend visiting Argentinian prince


3. Coerce black market dealers


Hmmm... which one first? Hail wondered.

 

[Wixard]

In the distance he could see New Portsmouth, the developing city that would be his stage and playground. He pushed himself past his limit and flew even faster. His brown locks whipping his neck, tears streaming from his brown eyes; squinting from the air burning them. He pulled his wings in tight to maintain his speed. The whole world would soon know the Hika name! 

Ace was admiring the view of New Portsmouth from his tower at the center of the city. There was still a great deal of building to do, but the holographic projections on his windows showed him what the city's skyline would look like when construction was finished.


This was his city. Sanctum had given it to him in exchange for an exclusive security contract. From now on, pilots of his ACE (Avionic Combat Exoarmor) suit would protect and police every Sanctum City in the world, including those that weren't built yet. 


True, Sanctum's ambitions made this a daunting task, but Ace was confident Sanctum's new recruiting program would bring in the personnel that he needed. After all, they weren't going to do all the work. Every city would have a regular police force, a DSRT complex, and likely even a Sentinel Alliance team. His pilots were, when it came down to it, a supplementary force. They could respond faster than Sentinel teams and with more firepower than DSRT. This suited Ace fine. It meant he could test his prototype's performance in extreme circumstances without having to worry about the tedious details of policing a city. And if it meant a seat of the board of Sanctum Enterprises and his own city to play with, all the better.


"Mr. Ace, Skywatch has detected an Unidentified Airborne Contact to the northwest."


It was an automated notification from his digital secretary. One of Sanctum's other board members, a nerdy girl whose name he couldn't remember, had created the AI, and all other AI that helped run the Sanctum Cities.

Ace turned to the northwest and quickly spotted the object in question. With his ocular implants, he had vision as keen as an eagle's. A large, fearsome-looking man with bird wings, soaring over the city. 

Well, he could be a villain. He certainly seemed dangerous, or he had the potential to be. It would be best to intercept and contain him first, then figure out the details later.

"Assistant, prepare my suit and notify the nearest two pilots on patrol that they are to escort me on an intercept mission," Ace instructed. He'd never bothered to name his AI assistant. He'd probably get around to it eventually.

"ACE unit 1.9 Alpha is ready in launch tube three." The computer said. Ace climbed into the tube and held still while the tube's automated system strapped him into the suit. It was much faster than putting it on manually, and the machine could complete the preflight checks at the same time. In less than a minute he was rocketing across the sky, flanked by a pair of ACE pilots in suits of their own, streaking towards the target.

 

[Wixard]

Paige rode her motorbike to her office after breakfast. It was Cosmonaut's, actually, one of the few things of his she'd brought with her. They'd disagreed on many things, but he had managed to convince her of one thing: finding a parking space and navigating city traffic was a lot easier on a motorbike. You just couldn't beat the convenience. 


Although Paige had never followed through and bought a bike of her own, uncomfortable with the lack of protection they afforded. Cosmonaut's bike was fortified with the same tech that he'd used to build his armored battle suit, so it was an entirely different set of rules. It didn't look too unusual, but it handled like a dream and it kept her safe. She'd never be able to go back to driving a normal car.


She hit it at the far end of the parking garage and stuffed her coat, gloves, and helmet into a rentable locker. She didn't want people to see her wearing them. It would set up the wrong image. 


Casefiles were already pouring in for her. She would have preferred to shift through them at a leisurely pace, taking her time to make ample preparations for each individual case. However, circumstances didn't allow for that. She'd been handed a backlog of cases that should have been actionable weeks ago. She didn't really have time to sort through them, she had to just start at the top and work them into her system as quickly as possible. Once she was caught up, she could start ordering things according to her system. But getting back into the life of an Acclimation Counselor wasn't easy. She'd been able to take her time before because she'd worked hard to get and stay ahead. Now she was starting from the ground up again.


First case: Howard Moriean. Unconfirmed reports of teleportation. Paige called his school and asked them to page Howard to the student services office. She'd check on him in person, get to know him a little and see if he'd be open to the program. Time to put her helmet back on. @Taggerung

 

[Pajamas]

Tane was just over the edge of the city when he noticed something flying towards him. He changed his eyes, they grew larger and became a yellow-brown color. He almost couldn't believe what he saw! He shouted out loud, "Nah way!!! Their sending iron man out to get me! I love this country already!!!" He pulled his earbuds out and shoved them in his bag. They iron man posse was coming at him really fast and he doubted he could out run them. He kept watching them and dove towards the closest and tallest building. He thought, 'That was quick, eh?' Seems like DSRT don't mess around! He couldn't take his eagle eyes off the three headed for him. He wanted a pair of iron togs for himself now! 

 

[SorinWolf]

Hail waited beside a door down the hallway from his room. He knocked lightly. 


"Ares, are you busy right now?" Hail asked.


"No," came a reply from inside the room.


"Good. Then come with me. We're going to have some fun."


......


"Is this some kind of joke?"


"No, I assure you, this is very serious."


Hail held a sketchbook to the dealer's face. It had a neatly drawn depiction of a spherical artifact, with fragmentary notes in the margins. Hail adjusted the page, so that it was angled precisely into the noonday sunlight, which was streaming down from right above the small alley in which they stood.


"Perhaps you only require a closer look?" Hail said in a mock-friendly tone.


"I need no further look, the Eye of Evalas is a legend. Nothing more."


"Oh, so you're familiar with this item? How interesting."


"I've read about it."


Hail chuckled. "Don't play games with me. We both know you've seen it firsthand. Now, if you could just tell me where it is, then I'll leave you be."


"I don't know where it is. I don't even believe it exists, I swear!" The dealer said, raising his voice.


"Still refusing to comply? Fine, how about I sweeten the deal? I can give you two thousand U.S.N.E dollars. I believe that's more than generous, considering the fact that I'm not requiring much of you. A little piece of information is all I'm asking for."


"I told you, it doesn't exist!"


"We can do this the hard way, or the easy way," Hail said, emphasizing his point by forcing a knife into his hand.


At a motion of the dealer's wrist, two men stepped out from between the buildings and pointed guns at Hail. Before the dealer could give another command, the guns flew from their hands and reversed directions to target the two men. A purple glow surrounded them, and they were involuntarily forced to their knees. A dark haired figure whose eyes matched Hail's stepped out of the shadows. His hand was clenched into a fist.


"Thank you, Ares," Hail remarked appreciatively. He turned to face the dealer. "No need to get uncivilized..." Hail clicked his tongue and waved his gloved finger in the air.


"Now, let's try that again. Tell me where the Eye is."


"Never."


"Alright, maybe I can still persuade you."


The knife dropped out of the air and clattered against the ground.


"I knew you didn't have the stomach." The dealer responded, grinning.


"Knives are far too barbaric. Fortunately, I have other tools to employ." Hail placed his finger on the dealer's perspiring forehead. He concentrated on a painful ringing noise. The dealer's face instantly tensed in pain. 


"You're mad!" He groaned.


"Perhaps, yes."


....


Hail strolled down the block with Ares by his side.


"That was fun, was it not?" He asked.


"Next time, you get to be the body guard."


"Whatever you say, brother."

 

[SorinWolf]

Hail stood by a door down the hallway from his bedroom. He knocked on it lightly.


"Hey Ares, are you busy."


"No."


"Good. Then come with me. We're going to have some fun."


....


"Is this some sort of joke."


"No, I assure you, this is very serious."


Hail held a sketchbook with a neat drawing of a spherical artifact to the dealer's face. Detailed notes were crammed into the margins. He adjusted it, so that it was clearly visible in the afternoon light, which streamed into the small alley in which they stood. 


"Perhaps you only require a closer look," Hail said in a mock-friendly tone. 


"I need no further look. The Eye of Evalas is nothing more than a legend."


"Oh, so you're familiar with this item. How interesting."


"I've read about it. Naturally, items of this nature interest me. But I'm no fool to believe that it actually exists."


Hail sighed. "Don't play games with me. I'm on a rather tight schedule, if you know what I mean."


"I assure you, this is a waste of time. I believe our business is done here."


"Not so fast." Hail put up a hand to stop him. "Tell me, what was it like?"


"What?"


"Seeing it firsthand."
"I told you, I've never seen it!" The man said, raising his voice slightly.


"Alright, still won't talk? Let's see if I can persuade you..." Hail raised his hand, and a knife flew into it. 


At a signal from the dealer, two armed men stepped out from between the buildings and pointed guns at Hail. Before the dealer could give another command, the weapons flew from their hands, and reversed direction to target them instead. A purple glow surrounded them, and they were involuntarily brought to their knees. Out of the shadows behind Hail, a dark haired figure emerged, his hand clenched into a fist. Their bright purple eyes matched. 


"Thank you, Ares," Hail remarked appreciatively. He turned to face the dealer once more. "Now, now, no need to get uncivilized!" Hail clicked his tongue and waved a finger in the air. "I only require a simple piece of information. Tell me where I can find this artifact, and I'll leave you alone. Why you're so reluctant to share is beyond me." Hail toyed with the knife in his hand.


"You think you can make me talk with that knife?"


"Nope."


The knife dropped out of the air and clattered on the ground.


"Knives are far too barbaric for my tastes. Fortunately, I have other methods to employ." Hail pressed his gloved finger to the dealers forehead. He concentrated on a painful ringing noise. The dealer's face instantly contorted in discomfort.


....


Hail strolled casually down the sidewalk with Ares, a satisfied smirk on his face.


"That was fun, was it not?" He asked.


"Next time you get to be the bodyguard."


"Whatever you say, brother."