Fantasy Superhero Times

[ManofManyRoles]

Thomas Black

Thomas had a solid grip on his knee, knuckles white as he shook where he sat against the wall, eyes shut tight as a small croak was ripped from his throat, a raw noise that was naught more than anger and pain. "Fucking...bastards," he mumbled, taking deep and angry gulps of air as he listened to Tabby. "We need to look into the addresses...we have to. I don't care what I have to do anymore, what has to be done...I want my family back, Tabby. They never planned to let me have them back, did they?...I was such a god damned moron, believing that. I want my wife and child back, and I'll do whatever I need to have that." Thomas let out a slow breath as he tried to focus through the anger. "We can't disappear, that'd be a stopgap and a very short one. They want their attack dog and see me as a liability to everyone else. They'll spin stories, propaganda, news articles, whatever it'd take to find me again. I'd wager we'd get a month, at best, before they found us again because of me..."

Thomas paused, eyes closed shut as he struggled with everything. "We'd need to go public. But it'd be a losing battle right out the gates. Rationally, they have more than enough evidence and footage to damn me in the eyes of everyone. You're my handler...you know...you know what they've had Beast do. The body counts, the injuries, the property damage...I'd be buried before I could even testify, and the public would trust nothing I could say. I'm not just powered, I'm a powered who can't control it. That makes me a high liability, especially to anti-power groups. We'd need our own evidence to go public. Letters, documentation, testimony...this is the U.S Military, they're good at cover-ups. We'd need more than a hero, or activist groups, or anything like that. We'd need everything to swing in our favor Tabby...but at least going public and winning the public opinion would increase the likelihood of success and survival. If we simply go off-grid, that'll be held against me, and everyone else."

As Thomas spoke and planned, his anger seemed to placate at least a bit, his mind focused on something else for the time being, fortunately. Seeing Tabby approach he slowly stood upright and dusted himself off and took a few deep breaths, only to completely empty his lungs each time on the exhale. "Thank you...I'll be okay." Awkwardly his arms swung at his side, back and forth, as if unsure before he slowly wrapped the younger woman in an embrace of a hug and released her, wiping angry tears from his eyes. "You're fine...I'll be okay."

Deathkitten

 

[Deathkitten]

Chrysie​

Oracle sighed, giving Cosmic a shrug, “I don’t see why people are weird about their age. It’s really cool. It shows how much life you’ve lived. That should be a badge of honor. And yes you look really good for your age.” She giggled, relaxing, “Thank you for saying that. You’re hard to read. It’s hard to feel like I’m doing well, or if I’m doing poorly. I’ll have to work on that.”

Chrysie hovered back over to the building and gently stepped down onto solid ground, nodding, “I don’t mind the sound of that. It’s a little late for lunch but I’m hungry now anyway.” She followed suit and her rings separated from her waist, one up, the other down. With them, her outfit changed back to normal and her rings disappeared.

“Thanks,” she said, walking through while looking back at Olivine, “Us mages are so flashy. I mean I already knew that of course, but gosh is it apparent when two are being flashy at once. Heh. Where are you planning on taking me to eat?”

ManofManyRoles

 

[Deathkitten]

Magnus​

Magnus sighed, “Yeah. Yeah, of course. I take it that means my chances of taking you out for a coffee later are nil then, Miss grave speaker?” Such a shame. He could never find himself a good woman that was willing to put up with him - especially him being dead. He supposed he just needed to count himself lucky that she wasn’t trying to convince him to move on or whatever. Still, he didn’t think himself THAT terrible of company.

The small beast wriggled out of his arms and bounced over to Tessa all of a sudden as he began to round up spirits. He pouted, but allowed it to go as the danger had passed.

The spirit creature scrambled up Tessa’s leg and up to her shoulder where it wrapped around almost like a scarf. There, it paused, looking around nervously. It took a solid fifteen seconds before it whispered in slow, broken speech, something that took clear effort, “C…can I… eat… the beast…?” The fact that it could speak along with everything else was incredible of such a creature. It was clever, not trying to eat the other spirits or cause trouble now that the other beast was dealt with. It was asking permission of all things. Two words could describe it with clarity.

Deceptively strong.

“I… want to eat… it… It is… s… s… strong… I want to eat it’s… strength… It was bad… broke rules… got caught… It has… no… reasoning… only instinct… Now it is… caught… I will not stay… here. The spirits will move… no food left…,” it said, voice a hint more confident and loud, though still just as broken. It got a little distracted by the spirit attached to Tessa and was pawing out toward him as it spoke. “Beast is… good food… it couldn’t try, knew better… than to try to eat… me… but now it can’t trap food- ah… sorry. It cannot trap… people… anymore. I know better than to trap… people… to kill… Killing draws heroes… heroes kill beasts… or trap beasts… I don’t want that… so… Can I eat it?”

ManofManyRoles Djinni

 

[Deathkitten]

UCLA​

Tabby squeezed Thomas in the hug and gave him a sad smile, “I know. We’ll do whatever we need to. We just… need to figure it all out. Try to be as patient as you can. We will manage to go public. I’ll get contacts. I’m the one that can move without suspicion, after all. But I’ll involve you as much as possible. We can try to get someone who can wipe what they have of you. It won’t be pretty, and we won’t go through pretty means, but we’ll get it figured out.”

The pair stepped out and back to the classroom where the students, professor, and Selene were all laughing as Selene had stuck herself to the ceiling and was dangling upside down. When she spotted Thomas, she let go and dropped like a brick, landing with much grace to scramble over to him. “Daddy!” She screeched, tackling him with an excited hug, “You’re back! Dad, these two girls here, Selena and Mary are so cool!! They move so fast! I was showing them what I can do. I tried to race but they totally won. Mary won against Selena too.”

Tabby grinned at her, “Oh well aren’t you special! Well, Selene hunny, did you mention to them why we’re here?”

Her eyes got big, “OH! No! I totally forgot!!” She pried herself away from her dad and turned to the professor, “Doctor? I wanted to ask if you could test me for my powers.”

One of the students piped up, “Shouldn’t you have already gotten tested by now?”

“…….I was too scared… but you guys are cool!” she said, pumping her fists. That got an aww from more than one of the students, and the doctor laughed.

“Yes, ve can do zat, I zink. Schtudents, zis is ein gut opportunity for zu,” he said, rummaging around in a cabinet before he produced a plastic tote, “There are many vays vich ve can test ein power. First is ze power to power vay. Some people have ein power zat lets zem tell vat ozer people have. I do not have zis. Zen zere is ein old vay, vich involved many tests. Now, ve have technology vith vich to test powers. Many smart people came up vith ein simple test that draws ein little blood und displays results. It can make ze subject a little dizzy, but it is much more accurate und takes much less time to do. Here is ze device. It is ein bracelet.” The doctor offered it to Selene and she allowed him to put it on, though she was shaking a little and her tail was poofed up with nervousness, “Vu vill only feel ein small prick. No worries, child. Now then. Mary! Tell us vat you know about ze biology of zis test! Vu are ein biology schtudent! Zis is zour bread und butter!”

Selene squeaked as the machine pricked her wrist, making her jump and wince a little, though it really didn’t hurt much. The little bracelet whirred with the sound of a fan, and true to his words, she felt dizzy. She closed her eyes to try to make the feeling go away, but it stayed unpleasantly put.

After five minutes, which was mostly the doctor grilling his students about information, the bracelet was done and it gave a ding like a microwave. The doctor took it and brought it over to the classroom’s computer, “Und now ve look at ze results. Zee, Zelene? It vas not too bad!”

“My tummy feels gross but yeah it wasn’t awful…”

With a few deft taps, the results were displayed on the projector for the room to see.

Patient Analysis:
Part Kitsune, Maternal line | Confidence 100%

Part Human, Paternal line | Confidence 100%

Super-intelligence | Possible, Uncertain - To determine Super-intelligence, further testing would be required. Super-intelligence is both inherited and gained, and can be related to skill instead of talent.

Outside Influence, Cause uncertain | Confidence 88%

Creation Ability, Imagination Focus, Lineage uncertain | Confidence 100%

Patient has results showing strong potential in their abilities. Counseling and further tests suggested.

Selena couldn’t help but give a soft “Woah” and so did Tabby. Tabby looked at Thomas with a wide-eyed glance. Dr. Böhmer raised a metallic eyebrow and laughed, “HAH! Vu are ein schpecial little child, Zelene! Look at zese results! Do you know what zis means?”

Selene perked up again and was staring at the blue text, “It… I mean it means I’m half-human half-Kitsune which I knew already. And it means I may or may not be super-intelligent. And it means I might have some outside influence attached to me… which, yeah… probably. And then… um… This creation ability… is that like that little boy in the news…? But he could… I mean he could like create stuff with his mind. The most I’ve done is… kind of… copy my friend because I thought he was cool……. Oh my God I have creation powers… Oh…” Selene began to panic a little at the revelation and fumbled to bring a little cross out of one of her pockets. She mumbled prayers to the cross in hushed little whispers the students and teacher wouldn’t be able to hear.

“Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil… My God, I am sorry for my sins with all my heart. In choosing to do wrong and failing to do good, I have sinned against you whom I should love above all things. I firmly intend, with your help, to do penance, to sin no more, and to avoid whatever leads me to sin. Our Savior Jesus Christ suffered and died for us. In His name. My God have mercy… I can’t be bad with that power I gotta be good. I have to be. Being bad with that power would be really REALLY bad. I can’t listen to you anymore. No! I can’t listen to you. I can’t. O My God, relying on Thy infinite goodness and promises, I hope to obtain pardon of my sins, the help of Thy grace and life everlasting, through the merits of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Redeemer. I HAVE to not listen to you anymore. I could really hurt people! No it’s not good! Shut up shut up shut up! Blessed Michael, archangel, defend us in the hour of conflict. Be our safeguard against the wickedness and snares of the devil (may God restrain him, we humbly pray): and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host, by the power of God thrust Satan down to hell and with him those other wicked spirits who wander through the world for the ruin of souls. Amen. I know it wasn’t going to work! But I have to try something to get rid of you!” As Selene hyperventilated, Dr. Böhmer hadn’t noticed, nor had any of the students - except perhaps Mary - they were all so enthralled by the exceedingly rare, once in a lifetime sort of result and were talking about genetic possibilities since it didn’t seem to come directly from either side of her family.

ManofManyRoles

 

[Cam E. Leon]

King grit his teeth as the world around him froze. Damn it, was this all he could accomplish. Even now he felt his movement stiffening up. He had to hope they had gotten far away enough to avoid all of this. But in the last moments he saw what she did to his ally sworn in oath. And the fire within him soared. "SISTER. YOU DAMN REAPER, I TOLD YOU. YOUR FREEZING CHILL CAN'T STOP ME! YOU'LL PAY FOR HER LIFE WITH HERS!" He shouted in rage, she was not his sister by blood, nor by choice, She despised him for all he knew. But they shared a common oath, a common belief. And She fought side by side with him, shed blood with him, and killed with him. If he could not call her sister then he did not know what use the word family was for. With his final moments of movement, rage pulled his body along. and delivered a searing punch with all his might to the reapers head. As the world around him froze, and his vision faded, he only wished his attack delivered some moments of pain into the reaper.

ManofManyRoles Djinni

 

[Cam E. Leon]

Viona stared at the man rambling on, she had heard this a few times actually. People wanted her powers, she was a living warmachine, all they needed to do was rile her up and drop her in a populated zone and death would follow. She had become use to this, use to sounding like an object, so she didn't really listen to the mans words, they seemed like empty promises until a sharp phrase pierced her heart. Turn off the powers? not suppress, not control... but disable her powers..... Viona stumbled back hearing those words and looked at the man. He was perfectly fine, her poison had done nothing to him, he even knew what it was after being stabbed with it. Maybe... if it was him... no. Not even mom could fix it... but... he said he knew mom. maybe. She once had dreams of her powers being controlled, but she knew it was impossible, she learned to spot the strained looks in the scientists smile anytime they told her they'd find a cure or a way. the lies they told themselves to say to a child. But her medicine kept increasing. Every year she took more and more pills, more and more injections, pumping her full of drugs she couldnt even say the names of, to keep her weak since it was all that could be done. She looked at the man...no... the devil who said that to her, and watched in silence as he vanished into green smoke. As if all her strength was sapped away with the mans disappearance she feel to he knees. weakly looking at the card and picking it up.... Pestilence.... the horseman of plagues. She stared at it in disbelief. Dropping the card to card to the ground she looked at her hands, encased in metal and carbon weave.... How long had it been since she accepted her situation. When did she give up hope of ever living a normal life. Friends, School, going to the movies, to the mall, eating at a restaurant... did she even know anyone of her same age? Viona Had locked away all of these thoughts a long time ago. Grabbing her helmet she roughly tugged on it, gripping it tight. Warning signs appeared in her vision as the suit tried to tell her to stop. But she pressed the manual override on the helmet she saw from sneaking looks at her suit schematics and ripped it off. The noise of pressurized gas seeping out as she threw the helmet on the ground and stared at it. This...... Cold metal face that showed nothing of its inside. This was all anyone outside the lab knew her as. Just.. a faceless metal figure. In the visor she saw her reflection, and noticed the tears down her face. With a scream she grabbed the helmet and repeatedly slammed it into the ground before throwing it out of her sight. Her breath was ragged, As if a dam had broken waves of feelings she had long since supressed flooded her. She tore her suit off piece by piece. Her eyes flashed green as green vapor came from her mouth as she exhaled. She stood up and looked at herself in the cold steel door of the room. This was Viona... How many people knew this face.....She picked up the card and shoved it in her pocket and walked out of the room. The green smoke she exhaled followed and clung to her like a cloak, flowing down her back and trailing across the floor behind her. She merely walked through the building past the broken wall and stepped out. she took a deep breath and looked at her surroundings, to see these sights without the helmet was... An entire new world. She took a deep breath... And walked forward towards the city, not looking back to see the plants behind her wilting as she passed them.


Arenike was sweating as she walked to the car. Shit this was the worst possible situation. How could things possibly get worse!?, as soon as she thought that red lights flashes and a loud alarm beeped. "uhhh. that doesnt sound good." Arenike Said as she turned to Corvus. "...What does that alarm mean?" she asked as the scientists were freaking out.
ManofManyRoles Daniel Reaving

 

[ManofManyRoles]

Morgan Adler

Morgan walked over to a nightstand and pulled open the drawer, reaching a hand inside to produce a tootsie pop from the confines and unwrap it. Closing the drawer once again, she popped the candy into her mouth, a bulge in her cheek as she shifted the candy until it rested in her mouth, rather than in her cheek. A pause as she savored the sweet before pulling it from her lips to reply to her companion, not one to talk with her mouth full of candy. "I will give you an explanatory lecture later, then, dear Dietrich, of this you have my word." Making her way over to his side she glanced up to her taller companion, gaze steely as ever, and yet neutral. "Not quite as eagerly as you'd think, I suspect. Sherman Tristan puts his family first. An admirable trait, but it's also a massive flaw he has. He is the one who designed Panzer Tristan's suit and is the one who maintains it as well as supports her. Both of them may need to be convinced. Though I do wonder, I'm not certain of if Miss Avro Hawker has revealed to him the circumstances of her death, or if he is aware. If she's not, she can tell him today, or I will." At the offered elbow Morgan elected to reach out and wrap her hand about the crook of his arm, starting out to the car alongside him. "Your more...personable touch may be desired today, Dietrich, if it proves itself necessary. You know I've little time for the care of another's feeling, or mincing my words."

Once the two made their way to the car she slipped into the passenger seat and folded her hands in her lap, one leg folded over the other in a 'proper' seated position, gaze focused ahead of them as they started to drive away. Of course, Morgan's vehicle was bug proof in the truest sense of the word, be it from technological bugs, or organic, a benefit of being on good terms with the Itsy Bitsy Spider. "If Miss Avro Hawker proves resistant to our requests, or absolutely refuses, it may make progress slowed, but not impossible. Panzer Tristan has a remarkably high body count, many of her victim's deaths were traumatic. It is convenient we have a mutual friend who can beseech spirits, wouldn't you agree? In the case of 'Kali', the hero, killing her would do no good. She would be seen as a martyr, and there would be mourning. A question for you then, dear Dietrich. What do you think would be the most fitting end for a woman like Kali would be, the woman who has everything? What do you suppose my end goal is." Morgan so did love her 'trivia' games with Dietrich. Certainly, she could tell him her plans in full, but he was the individual closest to her at all times. He had to remain sharp, and quick-witted. He had to be able to anticipate Morgans goals to the best of his abilities, and be able to speak if she was unable to. And of course, Morgan's goal was a simple one this time. For a woman with everything, love of the masses, money, fame, skill, 'impunity'. One must strip them of everything before they can be put down like the wild animal they are.

As the duo arrived at Tristan industries, Morgan waited for Dietrich to open her door before she adjusted her tie and stepped out, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear as the crunch of the candy in her mouth could be heard, the young woman making quick work of the sweet as they approached the doors and tossed the stick into the trash, approaching the front desk. "Good afternoon. We'd like to speak with Mister Sherman Tristan if we could. I've a business proposal I'd like to offer him."

Deathkitten Cam E. Leon

 

[ManofManyRoles]

James and Sato; A Tense Standoff (!?)

James was rubbing his temples and grumbling under his breath as Ruru explained Sciles interaction. "Let me guess, more brawns than brains? I've got one of those." Much of his anger had subsided by now, since the danger had passed for now at least. Sato was about to reply to Asano's thoughts about the odd 'man on wheels' before the entire room was suddenly silenced by the crack of a palm to a cheek. The goddess's head jerked to the side sharply. So many things happened all at once. Thyris stabbed the demon through the chest. James had his hand in his satchel, fingers wrapped tight around Hignar's book, the flaming tome half-drawn from the leather bag. And alongside all of that came the clatter of the goddess's mask on the floor of the cafe, revealing her face in full. Traditionally beautiful features and pale skin, though her cheeks were stained with tears and now a red angry handprint on her cheek. Disturbing to see, however, were perhaps her eyes. There was no iris, no pupil, nothing, blank sheets of ghost white in her skull staring at Shard. James winced seeing the mask removed...that was probably insult to injury for her right now, a 'scar', physical and emotional, that would never heal. James had removed her mask once, and he'd been thoroughly stabbed for it.

As soon as she realized what had happened, her mind recovering from the shock, Sato's eyes shut tight in a desperate attempt to hide the sight from everyone else. Especially Asano, she couldn't see this flaw, no one could see this flaw. Shards words bit deeper than the sting of the slap, the goddess looking to the side and keeping her eyes shut tight, knuckles white as she gripped her sword. James was fully prepared, and expected, for another fight. The goddess, however, did not draw her blade as she listened to Shard. He was abrasive, he had even dared to slap her. But she could hear it in his voice, the way he spoke. The rhythm of his heart, his breathing, things no one else could hear...he knew. He knew better than he would ever let on, perhaps. Worse, perhaps...he was right. Not that she'd ever let know a demon know he was right. "Tch...like a demon has any wisdom to spout or sense to offer. Reciting someone else's words does not make you wise, foul scum from the realms beneath." Sato's words held a similar bite to them, but for those who knew her...par for the course, just being the usual Tsundere she was. At the realization that there wasn't going to be some sort of grand brawl, James slipped his book back into his satchel, a silent sigh of relief he wouldn't need to use it. "...My mask." Sato slowly stood upright, eyes still shut tight as she made her way over and knelt down to grab the wooden mask, sliding it over her features once again as she slowly stood upright and made her way back to Thyris's side, sliding close to her as she spoke, voice soft. "It's chilly in here, savage can't even set the temperature right," she mumbled as her reasoning for snuggling close to the Leviathan. "Asano, kotchikoi-ko." (Asano, come here child.) Sat pat a corner section of the booth that was now available with how close she had snuggled against Thyris, big enough for the young girl to reside on.

James opened and shut his mouth slowly, glancing at Ruru as he tried to keep his voice level. "I'm...going to ask if you can forget everything you just saw, ma'am. If you can, I will do the same."

Deathkitten Cam E. Leon

 

[ManofManyRoles]

Adam Marshall

Adam stuffed his hands into the pockets of his trench coat as he watched his wife dote on M&M with a small smile on his lips. "Please, let's not rush the teenager years thing. I don't have enough bullets stock piled yet, let alone equipment for anything else that might seek her out." Adam was only half-joking, having made it well-known ages ago that he'd be having very thorough discussions with anyone his daughter brought home, boy, girl, both, neither, or otherwise. Today was just an unfortunate reminder that he'd need more equipment than actual bullets. Making his way to the coffee machine he popped a cup in and set it to brew a mug of coffee, leaning against the counter as he leaned up against it, arms crossed over his chest. "I can call him later, I'd rather not summon him while Muse is here, or you're here. For all I know, he'd see Abigal and drive her insane because he'd find it funny. Outer God, by the way, dear."

Adam glanced over as the coffee cup filled, added two sugars to it, and nothing more as he leaned on the island, stirring the black coffee with a spoon. "I wouldn't be opposed to meeting your grandmother, Abigal. I've got a few questions for, myself." A slow sip of his coffee, Adam looking stone-faced, or perhaps bored, as ever. Adam slowly quirked an eyebrow, glancing between the two before he spoke, slowly lowering his coffee mug. "Sure, I can keep it P.G and we can go with adorable and cute. We'll use those words." Despite the wit being of the dry variety, it was present all the same. "That said, Abigal, I don't need to worry about you trying to steal my wife, do I?" Adam glanced over at Sylvia at the mention of Kali, a look in his eyes that could only be described as irritation at the mere reminder that woman existed. "Promise, love. We don't need two Kali's. Bad enough we have one..." Adam decided against finishing his thoughts, idly wondering if he could ask Nyaralthotep to smack her to Ohio and be done with it. Lifting his mug to his lips he took a slow sip before setting it down, starting to grab glasses. "What does everyone want to drink?"

Deathkitten

 

[ManofManyRoles]

Natalie Brenton

Natalie's brows furrowed as she focused on trying to stay upright, glancing toward Chutes as she was pulled closer to him, a hand going to his shoulder as she worked to keep her balance. "With the public? Want everyone to see me skate circles around you when I figure this ouuuaagh!" Natalie's snark had been cut off as she slipped, arm flailing at her side as she once again tried to keep her balance, only to fail miserably and end in a perfect split, one leg far ahead of her and one far behind her, a hand on the ice. "Damn," she muttered, working to get upright again. Glancing at Chutes she paused at the question, giving a small shrug. "Don't get that question, often, actually. I love swimming, for starters. I used to tag alleys and overpasses, that was good fun. But y'know, that's not exactly legal so I can't do that much anymore since I represent the Church and Law, yea? Workouts if I can fit em into my schedule, sometimes I'll visit a natural history museum if I got the time as well. Church on Sundays, help with bible studies if I can. Volunteer as part of a 'Big Sister' program back home for younger kids, or teens who are doing dumb crap. But I'm almost always working, so not much time for not being a 'fancy hero'." Since she'd been so focused on talking, she was less focused on keeping her balance...and low and behold she was upright finally, standing her ground.

Deathkitten

 

[Deathkitten]

Vice and Asano​

Vice said nothing but was ready to stop the fight at a moment's notice if it broke out. Her full body loved going to this place. She didn't want to see it get destroyed. Oof though... those eyes... That was... interesting.

Asano whimpered at the sight of everything. She began to tear up and cry silently. She didn't understand anyone's words or why the man was so nice yet hit her goddess. She jumped, startled as Sato called her name, and nodded, rushing over to her side. She was still wrapped in the big blanket so she looked like a wriggling burrito as she shuffled over and sat down. Asano quietly whimpered as she stared at Sato, like she wanted to say something but wasn't sure how to say it.

The small child clung to her goddess like a family member, "Satō… nande… nande shiroi mena no? Kega o shite imasu ka? Anata wa daijōbu? Anata no me wa aoi hazudesu. Nanka atta no? Daijōbudesuka?" (Sato... why... why do you have white eyes? Are you hurt? Are you okay? Your eyes are supposed to be blue. Did something happen? Is it gonna be okay?)

ManofManyRoles Cam E. Leon

 

[Deathkitten]

Jewel/Jupiter​

Jewel got a ping on her phone alerting her to the toxin event and glanced from it back to Eternox who was no doubt getting back up slowly from getting whacked in the nuts. She sighed loudly, "Chrysos. You're gonna stay here and entertain the kids or play some games or something. I need to head out with Jupiter and do some hero work. It's too dangerous to include you in. Sorry."

"Wait why are we going out?" Jupiter said, snapping back to reality.

"Got a notification. Eternox. You have a kid, yeah? Just looked up your records," Jewels responded, "Kid with toxins and all that? I got a ping about a toxin event that involves a pink-haired girl. Gonna guess that's yours. So. You're here. I'm here. Want my help with this mess? I can defend you and civs and whatever from the toxins and you can go give her a much needed hug to get her to calm the fuck down."

Cam E. Leon ManofManyRoles

 

[Deathkitten]

Robert Dantif​

Robert Dantif, 62, definitely sleep deprived but very happy for his girls, put the finishing touches on the advanced body for his daughter Ariah. It took a few edits, shorter hair than he had planned on, for one, but thankfully the structure was the same so he didn't have to remake everything from the bones out. He ran a finger along the edge of her hair and smiled, almost sadly. He loved these two so much. He had put his heart and soul into them, so much work, so many sleepless nights. Even after making one AI, Ariah, making the second, Mia, was anything but easy.

He coughed into his fist, grumbling out a crackly wheeze as he turned away from the deactivated body. Robert took a cool drink of water before he shouted out for his daughter, voice thick and deep, "Ariah! Come down here! I've got your body ready for you. I need you to try it out."

When she came in, he motioned to the body, "Here we go. Ariah Frame 1.0. I really hope you like it, sweetheart. It's got as much sensation as your sister's, so it's markedly better than your current body. Make sure to give yourself some time to get accustomed to it. It might be a little much at first." He cleared his throat again, covering his mouth with the back of his hand for a moment, "Your sister will absolutely love it, so here's hoping you really like it."

ManofManyRoles

 

[Deathkitten]

Chutes​

Chutes smiled at her, giggling as she struggled and then sorted out her own problem. His smile was so sweet and honest, pleased to hear about her hobbies. "You are incredibly attractive," he said, gently grabbing her hand again, "You are attractive and wonderful to listen to. I am finding myself enjoying your voice, and your hobbies are so sweet and kind. Especially given how Agas is, you are such a strong person to be willing to go and help kids that are going down the wrong path."

He pulled her forward, skating backwards himself as he watched her, "I enjoy swimming. I've never tagged anything. I don't workout often, but I've done so from time to time - it's enjoyable but unfortunately typically pointless for me unless I use some... unorthodox means. Museums of any kind are wonderful. I've... I mean I can't say I've never been to church, but... I have seldom been to church. I'm rarely welcomed at most churches. Even just the fact that I have wolf ears and a tail is disliked in some areas still today. Let alone the fact that I'm... me. Father Anderson is fine with me, but it's... awkward. I've never done bible studies, though. I've read the bible, an interesting book. I unfortunately rarely volunteer - people made a habit of bothering me with requests or worse when I did, so it was extremely troublesome."

"If you'd like, if we have another date, we could make it one where we go and do one of your hobbies. Even if it's church, I wouldn't mind going with you," Chutes grinned, "And yes, that is me asking you out on a second date."

ManofManyRoles

 

[Deathkitten]

Marshall Household​

The girls walked back out to the kitchen and Misty sat down at the table with a dejected huff, Dunnie just silently sitting down as well. Sylvia sighed, "Yeah, outer god. You're probably right. He'd probably take interest in her and her ability. Would be really useful for a cult after all, so you're right. We'll avoid that mess. She'll probably end up meeting him eventually, hanging around you, love. Better prepare for it so you don't lose your newbie. Not to mention, if her grandmother knows some eldritch things, then he might find out about her before he even shows up."

"I'm mostly teasing hun," she turned to Abigail, who was now also sitting at the table, "Adam keeps the people he cares about safe. Like me. Lord knows I'm a mess without him."

Abigail blushed again, such a shy little thing, and stared down at her hands, "Coffee please, and water. For the coffee, I'm fine with it black, please. No milk no sugar. Your jokes are so dry, sir. It's almost hard to tell when you're joking. As cute as I think Sylvia looks, I am no homewrecker. I can barely get a date as is, I am hardly adept enough to take anyone's wife or husband. That's like... extra hard mode. No thanks." She chuckled a little to herself and glanced at the girls, "I'll send her a text and see when she's available. If you want, she could probably meet you guys after this? She's usually not got a lot going on."

"Milk please!" Misty chirped, raising and waiving her hand to draw attention to herself.

Beside her, Dunnie muttered, "Apple juice please?"

"That sounds like a great idea, Abigail. If she's available then I don't see why not," Sylvia said, placing a bowl for each seat, "Itadakimasu. Enjoy. Eat up, but be careful it just came out of the pot so it's hot, M&M."

"Yes mom! Thank youuuu!"

"Thank you Mrs. Marshall," Abigail said, sending a quick text to her grandma before she dug in.

"So who'sh her gamma?" Misty muttered, mouth full of noodles.

"Misty. Please. You might get to meet her later. It isn't important right now. She's just her grandmother, and from what she says, she's a nice person. If we're lucky, maybe a new babysitter, too. Don't count on that though. We don't know anything about her yet."

ManofManyRoles

 

[ManofManyRoles]

Casey Kemp

Casey had been studying the screens still, right where he'd been left the last time Ada was in the 'safehouse', cupping his chin ever so slightly as his index finger rested across his lips, brows furrowed in concentration. The videos would play for a few minutes and then rewind suddenly and loop. By the time Ada returned, he was busy studying the 'Number One' hero, Elementa herself, his free hand gently tapping fingers on the desk. Casey didn't even turn his head when the door slammed, focusing so he could see the reflection in a currently turned off screen. He fully expected Ada if the door was slamming, no one else knew about this literal hole in the ground, nor would they have been able to get in past the security measures if they did. Not without him knowing, first. As the knife went soaring into the wall he slowly quirked an eyebrow, reaching towards the keyboard to hit a button to pause the videos. Whatever had her steamed, she was proper angry this time. Standing upright he grabbed the pocket knife and yanked it out of the wall as he walked past towards Ada's room. A knock on the door with his knuckles before he opened it up, folding the pocket knife back into proper carrying position and tossing it onto a small dresser nearby, listening to it clatter. "You've my attention, especially since I know your aim is better than that. What's wrong?"

Deathkitten

 

[Deathkitten]

Ada​

Ada scrunched the pillow against her face as she started to cry upon hearing his voice. Her own voice croaked as she spoke, "Dad! You-I-Dad you're horrible." Ada's crying turned to hiccupping cries as she contorted and turned herself back to a seated position, eyes already red. She was hugging the pillow for dear life as she hiccupped, looking about as non-intimidating as she possibly could have. Her voice was small, a hurt mutter, "You're... you... you lied. You've lied to me for my whole life. You never told me the truth. Couldn't you trust me? Why couldn't you trust me and tell me?"

She sniffled and hiccupped into her pillow, wincing every time thanks to her stitches, "I ended up learning about it from Sean... I went to the library and he was there and he didn't even MEAN to tell me... He looked into your past to try to get an idea of how you train and how to generally stay alive... and... and he just... Dad... Dad why aren't I yours? Why didn't you tell me? You killed them and you never told me. That... I... you..." She couldn't get any more words to come out in a sentence that made sense, and so she gave up, sobbing into her pillow. She wasn't sure how she felt right now except generally upset.

ManofManyRoles

 

[ManofManyRoles]

Yellow Alert; Crying in the Woods

The officer who had approached Kyu paused, staring at him like he had a horn growing out of his head. "You're the hero?" He rubbed the back of his head as he studied the man before him and then back to Kyu, producing a small bottle of water from his pocket and offering it over to Kyu. The water bottle, just a basic plastic bottle from a gas station, was a little warm and likely sub-par at best, but water is water, right? "Right so uh...sure, here you go buddy. So uh, the situation, as it stands... There's a baby crying in the woods, or maybe a young kid. But we don't have any reports of missing children, and we don't have enough available officers to go searching the woods right now, the sensors are going mad lately. It's just me and Paul over there today. I, unfortunately, don't have much more information beyond that, right now."
Kameron Esters-

 

[ManofManyRoles]

Olivine Carmine

Olivine folded her hands behind her back, glancing over to Chrysie. "Oh, I was simply giving you a hard time, Miss Keaton. I don't mind if you know my age. I do admit, however, I can be a bit hard to read." Waiting for Chrysie to get into her civilian garb once again as she replied. "Hm. Flashy...I suppose, on occasion, that's true. Magic can be quite subtle as well, however, even if it's a simple wardrobe change. I was considering going for soup, if that's quite alright with you? Oh, perhaps Nepalese now that I think about it? Do they have such a restaurant here in Los Angeles?" Olivine stepped through the shimmering door and down to the sidewalk down below, the 'doorway' slamming shut behind Chrysie once she joined her. For anyone else who was looking towards them 'exiting', it would simply appear as though they stepped right outside of thin air and started walking forward. "I'm quite comfortable to afford whatever you may order, that should not be a concern for you, I assure you."

Deathkitten

 

[Deathkitten]

Murder​

The police had cordoned off the area around the two bodies already. They were quick to do so, to block the view from the public. It was a sad sight to see, a mother desperately gripping her child, blood pooling around them, both still warm, both lifeless. They had been stabbed to death, a rapid-fire attack, ruthless and with so much anger to it. Stab after stab, the mother not the true target but an unavoidable one. The police were filled with a sober silence, waiting for someone to come, someone who could help.

 

[ManofManyRoles]

Thomas Black

Thomas returned the squeeze, giving a slow sigh as he stared blankly at a wall, another tremor running up his spine as he worked to relax. "Thank you, Tabby...thank you, so much." Slowly he unwrapped his arms from Tabby as he took a step back, taking a moment to wipe his eyes and smooth out his clothes, and once again they started to the classroom. As they reached it Thomas's attention slowly drew up towards the ceiling, where Selene was dangling. So much for laying low... Given she was a good several dozen pounds lighter than him, as well as shorter, Thomas only stumbled but a bit as his daughter tackled into him, wrapping his arms around her in a quick hug as he glanced towards the college students in question, offering them a slight smile, to which Mary returned. "Fast, huh? Which one is Mary?" As if on cue, Mary's hand shot up, the redhead grinning wide. "Present, sir!" Thomas gave a small nod, giving an appreciative smile. "Thank you for playing with Selene, then. Both of you."

As Selene untangled from him he straightened up, glancing over to Böhmer and then sidling close to Tabby once again. As Selene got visibly spooked, Thomas reached out and rested a hand on her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her, even as Mary likewise jolted to attention as she was called out. "Oh, uhm, yessir! Well, the human genome is covered in genetic markers which are indicative of bloodlines, parents, ancestors, and-" from that humble start, Mary got a full run down of the test with flying colors, much more calm than usual as she recited her knowledge on biology, rather than totally hyper. "All good?" he asked softly to Selene, glancing over to the good doctor again and then back to Selene. Thomas's eyes narrowed ever so slightly at the pings of 'Outside Influence' and 'Creation Ability'. Where the hell had either of those came from?

Attention quickly shifted to Selene as she started to have a moment of panic, quickly devoting herself to prayer. Thomas wasn't exactly a man of faith, himself, not that he'd proclaim himself agnostic or atheist or anything of that nature just...somewhat indifferent. Juliet was Shinto, and he couldn't help but ponder how she'd take the fact her daughter was very much Catholic, it seemed. It made sense, he supposed, being raised in a catholic orphanage. Slowly Thomas moved to kneel at her side, a hand slowly and gently rested on her shoulder, waiting for her to finish a round of prayer. "Selene," he started, voice painted with paternal concern, "Hon, are you alright?" Mary, to her credit, had most certainly noticed by the way she was staring in their general direction, but she could only shift awkwardly from one foot to the other. It's not like she could jump in and help without inserting herself into the family dynamic at random.

Deathkitten

 

[Deathkitten]

UCLA​

Selene whimpered, ears going flat. She whispered to her dad, “The voice got really loud as soon as it realized. It’s really pleased about this. I hate it. The voice didn’t know about it, it didn’t know about my ability either. I can’t be bad with an ability like that though. Being bad with a power like this would be really really bad…”

She stared down at her cross and pressed it in and off of her palm nervously, though talking to her dad was calming her breathing down. She didn’t want to cry in front of everybody…

“I even tried to pray and it doesn’t get rid of the voice,” Selene limply held up the cross to him for a moment before letting it drop back down with her hands, “Praying is supposed to help with stuff but I’m stuck with it. I don’t want to listen to the voice anymore. Not with a power like that… a power like that… it’s too strong. It could be bad so easily. I know I should be happy about this. But. It’s scary. I’m scared of how happy the voice sounds, so scared about it that I can’t feel happy myself right now.”

“I tried praying even,” she mumbled again, “I usually don’t really pray much. I don’t pay a lot of attention to church usually. I just… I mean I live there but… I don’t… like… pray. You know? But Father Anderson says prayer helps heal. But it’s not fixing this. It won’t. I know it’s silly to hope it would but what else can I do, dad? I don’t even know what the voice is. Outside influence. That’s what the machine labeled it as. So it’s not me just being crazy… I’m not crazy… but that almost makes it scarier.”

Selene took a deep breath, held it, and slowly let it out, “I’m sorry daddy. I’m okay. I’ll be okay. I just need to ignore the voice until we get rid of it.” She forced herself to smile, though she was still shaking, “Being scared doesn’t help me get better. So it’ll be okay because I have you and Tabby to help me. And I could tell Father Anderson about it too and he’d help me too. It’s okay.”

Selena, attention distracting from the professor, looked to Mary, and then from Mary to what Mary was looking at, Selene. She walked up to the duo without a care for awkwardness or shyness and placed a hand on Selene’s head, “Hey! My name twin! What’s got you down? Do we need to race again? You can race against me this time instead of Mary. That way you have a chance, since I’ll definitely trip on something.” She gave a glance to Mary, “Mary’s power is praaaaactically cheating it’s so good. Although, your power sounds pretty cool, too. I just got my powers! I didn’t have one all my life and now, bam! I have some. Totally out of nowhere.”

Selene took the bait, “Wait, from nothing? That’s possible?”

“Well, yeahhhhh. You saw the machine. It said you didn’t get it from your mom or dad either. That’s like me! My mom and dad don’t have powers either. So I was really surprised - heck, I still AM surprised,” Selena said, grinning at the young girl and her father, “My power is a speedster thing. I haven’t even had a chance to test it or anything yet. You’re a step ahead of me. I’m finding it really hard not to trip though! I…” she dropped her voice to a whisper, “I even broke a coffee cart on accident!”

Selene’s face scrunched, and she giggled, “That sounds painful.”

“Yeahhhhhhhhh kinda. But that’s how powers are. I just gotta learn to use them. For me, I think I wanna be a hero, but I’m not sure yet. What about you?”

She considered, “Um… well… I dunno. I think being a hero would be pretty cool… I just never really thought it would be allowed for me. I’m just naturally bad…”

“No one is naturally bad. And even if you are, little kit, it’s your actions from here on that matter. You can’t change the past. But let’s not dwell on that. Mary!” Selena turned to look at her friend, “I need you to think of a good reward for the winner!”

“I… I don’t wanna race. It’s okay,” Selene chuckled again, ears relaxed once more. She stuffed her cross into her pocket, “Dad? Do you think I could be a hero one day?”

ManofManyRoles

 

[ManofManyRoles]

Ariah

Ariah had taken the 'day off' from being Jade's personal assistant. Her 'boss' was understanding enough, considering she was supposed to get a body today. Not that she...really wanted the body. She liked the form she had, she was comfortable with it. But Mia was so insistent, it was getting old to listen to her beg about it, and was getting tiring. So if only to make her stop begging and pleading so desperately, she relented and requested Robert finish her body. Of course, with her taking a day off, Jade was forced to fend for herself, completely isolated from any visitation or company. But that was fine enough, she had board meetings today.

"You overdid it, dad." She spoke in a gentle, albeit a matter of fact, voice as she addressed him and looked over the body, inert and lifeless before her as she rested a hand on her hip. "You've skipped sleeping again. Or didn't sleep enough. Of course, I like it, dad. You put all this time and energy into it. It looks great." She slowly walked around the inert '1.0', poking and prodding at it gently. "Alright. Give me a moment, I'll transfer bodies then. At the very least, Mia will be less insistent I have a body she can walk around with, now."

Ariah moved to a chair and sat down, folding her hands in her lap as she relaxed. Establishing connection to the new frame...connection stable. Initiating conscious transfer... The frame that Ariah had known her entire 'life' since she'd had a body suddenly went inert and motionless, no more than a statue. Likewise, at that exact time, the eyes of '1.0' snapped open, brilliant blue's studying her surroundings. She slowly lifted a hand in front of her face, flexing each finger individually as she touched it to her palm. "Motor function is optimal, not that there was ever any doubt about that." Small sub-routines popped to the back of her 'mind'. Breathing had to be emulated, an extremely odd sensation given the fact she'd never had 'lungs' to fill with air. Likewise, just blinking her eyes was an odd sensation...moving her lips, furrowing and unforrowing her brows. All so extremely weird to feel, she wasn't certain she was a fan of it all. "I'm not sure what the entire point of these sensations were, dad. They seem more like a nuisance than anything. Is there a sub-routine I can disable? Perhaps a limiter patch I can enable?" Ariah flexed an arm, feeling the clothes the body was dressed in brush against her skin as she paused, staring at her arm. "Am I going to feel that...everytime I move in clothes? How do organics put up with it. How does Mia put up with that sensation?"

Deathkitten

 

[ManofManyRoles]

Natalie Brenton

Nat glanced over to Chutes as he dropped another compliment on her, giving him a wink even as he took her hand. "Preciate it, Chutes. Not telling me I didn't already know, but you're free to inflate my ego all ya like." Natalie kept one hand at her side for balance, slipping and sliding every so often as she was tugged along after Chutes. "Me and Agas agree on a few things, but I'm much extermination happy. Got a strange working relationship, her and I." Natalie hummed a bit as she worked to stay upright on the ice, skating clumsily after Chutes. "Taggin something can be great fun, just a matter of the fact ya shouldn't do it according to the laws a lot of the time. I've gotta work out, not just cause I like it, but because I gotta stay in shape. Specially in my line of work." At the offer of a second date, Nat flashed a rather cheeky grin towards him. "Oh? Well, this was a 'practice date', per your own words, since ya helped me out with the whole kidnapping situation. So are you asking me for another practice date, Chutes, or are ya actually trying to ask me out?"

Deathkitten

 

[ManofManyRoles]

Adam Marshall

Adam notted calmly, starting to pour drinks. "Last thing we need is Crawling Chaos to have someone with mental manipulation powers. And as strong as I'm sure you are Abigal, though I can only guess since I'll never really feel it, dealing with The Masked Messenger is outside of almost everyone's wheelhouse. Only reason I get by is because of a contract, and he finds me amusing or something. He's a threat, and one that we can't really do anything about. Nothing meaningful, at least. I'll make sure I've got something prepped for that time, whenever it comes hun." Adam moved back to the table, starting to give everyone the poured drinks, glancing at Abigal. "Preciate you not stealing my wife, ma'am. Worked hard to convince her into this madness. You think I can keep her convinced for a few more years before she realizes she's been hoodwinked?" Adam settled into a seat as the meal was served, sipping his black coffee again, letting the food cool a bit before digging in. "Misty, don't talk with your mouth full. And yes, I'd be happy to meet your grandmother, Abigal."

Deathkitten