Fantasy Superhero Times

[Deathkitten]

Darren​

After a good twenty minutes of sitting there and feeling absolutely disgusting and like a pile of garbage - mixed in with a little bit of self-loathing in the bathroom, gracing the toilet - Darren was free of anything left in his system for his body to revolt against. He still felt like an absolute pile of trash, but... eh. He stood in the kitchenette and chugged two full glasses of water, trying to replace all the fluid that had just gone down the drain. He could barely feel the liquid go down his throat. His sensation was a little worse than normal.

It was still raining outside, he could see as much from the window. He quite enjoyed the rain. Natalie wasn't here to stop him or tag along with, so he decided he'd go ahead and take a walk. Just a short one; he didn't want to be caught outside if he decided to throw up his stomach lining too. He felt weird. Being sick sucked. Even still, he took the stairs down. He didn't build up lactic acid, so there was little wrong with doing so even on a bad stomach. He wasn't sure where he even wanted to go - he was hungry now, but didn't exactly feel like risking it. It'd be a waste of both food and money.

He checked his wallet as the stairs came to an end... how much money did he even have on him right now? Not much... or... damn it. His mom slipped a couple of hundreds into his wallet when he wasn't looking. It made his stomach turn once again thinking of how they probably went straight into crime once they were left on their own. Natalie would... no, SoulFlare would hurt them. He was so torn about that whole thing.

Darren stared up at the clouds, unblinking as rain hit his eyes. Maybe he could find the hero side of his family? Would they accept him? How was he even going to find them? Maybe some sort of census he could reference? He'd have to ask Nat later. That sort of thing was probably at the sign-up place, a Hero Admin building. For now, though, he just stuck his hands in his pockets and let the rain soak him as he walked down the sidewalk.

ManofManyRoles

 

[Deathkitten]

Sean and Ada​

The poor kid swallowed as he let the viewing dissipate and Ada's father continued to assemble a gun. He didn't even react to his powers! He just kept on going with questions like nothing happened!! Sean squirmed a little, "Um... so... my mom met my father when she was only 14. He was like... 30-something. Her upbringing was pretty rough, and she didn't really have a choice but to end up with my father. Sort of... an arranged marriage situation. Trying to make a strong kid... guess they succeeded on that front. She's... eh... she tolerates him. Everyone tolerates him... because they have to. He's a mean man. He puts on a face for the camera and does good for activism, but behind closed doors, he's a drunkard and abusive... and way too into young girls."

He looked uncomfortable and a bit angry, staring down at his hands, "I'd never want to be like him... and my mom's really nice but she's a complete pushover. She doesn't stand up for herself and does whatever her clan wants her to do, and whatever my father wants her to do. I don't want to be like her either. I don't really want to go into activism either. I'd like to become a researcher. In particular I want to research temporal anomalies and the long-term effects of them across multiple timelines. I think it's fascinating, and a decent use of my powers. Well... a non-violent use, anyway."

"The military wants to draft me so badly to be an oracle for them. I've said no what feels like about two-thousand times. I am interested in getting my hero's license, though, once I find a mentor. I think it'd be really convenient to have it in case I do want to do anything like... I wouldn't go with a company or something, but if I ever needed extra money, then I could just go look at a job board or something - like a for-hire hero. That way I can choose my own hours and stuff," he cleared his throat awkwardly and glanced at Ada. She looked really cute right now. She was even blushing. If her dad wasn't here and absolutely terrifying, he felt like he could admire her for hours.

ManofManyRoles

 

[Deathkitten]

Diadem's Castle​

Seiva gave Etern a sly smile as she let a blanket of shadow consume his fireball. She sidestepped the blade coming down at her, and in the same movement slammed her knee into his junk with enough force to raise him up off the ground. "Try that again, Etern. You're too obvious about your movements, and that's no way to greet a Demon Lord and you know it. If I was Belial you'd be dead right now for that insolence."

Zuzu was completely shocked and scared, much like Yami, at the barrage of attacks. What the heck did they do to deserve such a rude welcome??? She peered up at Archus, "Don't be mean! Stop it with your bolts! We just need to talk to Lord Diadem. We have something important to talk to him about!" There was another blast from behind that Grune deflected and she squeaked again as the assault continued, "You too? Why are you all so mean? What did we do but knock?" And then some weird lady on a turtle joined the fray, and suddenly Nadia had a knife to her throat.

Nadia was unphased, looking up to Loki with a continually polite expression, "Oh, you're looking for Lady Seiva's mystery present as well, Mister Loki? This is a rather bold way to do it. She gets quite angry when someone tries to use me, though. I'd really prefer you not die... I'm interested in hearing about your personal progress." She could, of course, teleport away from him. She was a natural teleporter, after all. But... she kind of wanted to see Seiva get all protective. It was pretty attractive...

Seiva turned and smiled too wide at Loki, "Release her or you'll have no hands to receive a gift if you even manage to touch me." She pointed a blade that lowered from her shadow in her palm into her hand at Archus, "Archus! Cut your shit with them or I'll go up there and pin you down and pleasure you so much your magic will pop and crackle." She knew he didn't have a great handle on that whole facet of his emotions, much to his chagrin, and she'd use it against him.

"Nilothep, nice gun. Did you modify it a bit since last I saw you? After we settle down you'll have to regale me about your magitech improvements. And Thiris! I am SO gonna have to cuddle that turtle later! Can I give them some treats??"

ManofManyRoles @Daniel Reaving Cam E. Leon

 

[Deathkitten]

Vice​

"I- wait, what?" the girl stuttered in her tome, startled at the sudden sensation of the grimoire being opened. On the inside, it looked like a library. He- no, this part of him was a girl, so she... She didn't expect this book to be found anytime soon... or at all, for that matter. She had all but forgotten it existed. It had been so long since this part had been tricked and bound.

She looked to a screen in her library, a sort of... scrying frame she had set a long time ago to see the outside world, or in this case the new owner of the grimoire. She thinned her lips in an annoyed glare at the screen, and spoke to no one in particular, though James could of course hear just fine, "When I next see Nyarlathotep... I'm going to beat his head in with our chess table. The cheeky bastard wants nothing more than to find loopholes and to drag random people into his games."

There were others this person had mastery over... she could sense it. Hm.

"Call me Vice. Thanks to a friend - no, I'll call him an acquaintance for the moment - you've gotten ahold of this grimoire. I don't know how he managed to find it, but he's wrapped you up in one of his games, and it seems, me as well. I'm furious at him, but I won't take that out on you. You're as much of a victim here as I am. I can sense others. Five, so I make a sixth. Fun. I suppose that would make you a sort of macabre summoner, yes? And I your summoned being. Fun fun fun. Let me know what to call you, new Master. For as long as I'm in your care, I'm yours to order about, I suppose. How do we start this...? Ah... perhaps you can start by asking me questions?"

ManofManyRoles Cam E. Leon

 

[Cam E. Leon]

Kali

Kali calmly proceeded into the kitchen as she heard the light singing of muse. The songbird really did love to sing? How adorable. But before kali could continue her thoughts she felt as if a cloud of fog had entered her mind. She felt hungry as her vision became unnaturally focused. Silently she entered the kitchen fully as she looked upon muse. So defenseless.... not a worry in the world, kali couldnt stop herself nor did she have any intention too and she slowly drew a chefs knife from her cutlery and with silents steps walked right behind muse. Did she even notice kali? she was still humming to herself, it would be so easy to just..... slice her throat right here. Would she struggle, be bale to cover her windpipe and know what to do? would she silently accept her fate or maybe even fight back. What if it was to the spine? Kali could paralyze her. Keep her locked up in this house, give it a year and maybe Stockholm syndrome could kick it, she wouldnt even want to leave. A little songbird stuck in a cage as lovely as kalis house? That should be wonderful.

Just as kalis knife was about to touch the nape of muse. Kalis eyes shot wide opened as she reared her arm back and swung down. However,it did not fall and stab into muse. Rather, It had stabbed into kalis own hand straight through, pinning it to wooden cabinet next to muses head. Kalis breath was ragged as blood dripped from her mouth. Her body covered in sweat, she had bit her own tongue at the last moment to gain some small control of herself. Looking at her left hand. the chef knife currently sticking straight through and into the wooden cabinet. she let out a sigh and turned to Muse. "please... be mindful.... of singing when you are not alone.... Had i not bit myself..... i may very well have tried to kill you." with a grunt she pulled the knife out of the cabinet keeping it in her hand. The knife was clean, so infection wast what she worried about. But she needed to keep the knife in to prevent major blood loss. "be a dear.... and grab the first aid kit under the sink." she asked muse as she held her arm, faking the feeling of pain. She was quite use to the feeling of pain and could have easily not reacted to it... But this act was much more effective for her long term plans with muse.

Deathkitten

 

[ManofManyRoles]

Casey Kemp

Casey nodded along silently, grabbing the last piece of the gun and putting it together, slowly looking it over. "I see. You want to choose your own path instead of what someone else wants...I can respect that. Let me make it amply clear though. Do not use your power on me or Ada. If I find out you have, I will gladly give you an attitude adjustment you seem to be in need of. And trust me...I'll know. I will always know, Sean." If he had to get a god damn cabal of mages to watch this boys every move, he would. Though...he'd be good at doing it himself as well. Probably going to have to figure out some sort of way to tell if that power of his was being used against him...Jewel was her name, right? She wanted him to take a contract, he knew how he'd be getting paid now. Casey regarded the boy in silence for a few moments, a cold hard gaze settled on him the entire time. "Sean, you know the meaning of the word 'no', I trust? If Ada says 'no', that's the final verdict on any given situation." Sean was going to be a pain in his ass one way or another, he had the sneaking suspicion. There wasn't going to be any avoiding that he felt. He could only dictate whether Ada gave the boy a date or not. And if he found out his father even glanced at Ada in the wrong way, the boy would be short a parental figure in moments. He knew how to make it an accident, and he knew how to make it so that Seans' father never even existed. "You said everyone tolerates your father. I'm not everyone. Let that be the only warning...that goes to him, and you."

"Final questions Sean...you said you have guards. Are you completely incapable of defending yourself then?" If Ada wound up dating this boy and he wound up being more dead weight than anything, she'd have to leave him at some point. Cruel as it was, that's how their world worked. You couldn't protect your other half and work your job. Not to mention that if something happened to your other half, they had to be able to handle it themselves. "What other abilities do you have? Cerberus was 'kind' enough to hand me files, but unless she decides to open the rest up, I'm going to have to do that myself."

Deathkitten

 

[ManofManyRoles]

James

James paused his reading as he heard the feminine voice emanate from the book. He was honestly hoping he was wrong, but oh fucking well here he was. "Wait...back up a second. Did you say Nyarlathotep? As in, H.P Lovecraft outer god of chaos and messenger of Azathoth?..." Sophia had said it was one of her kin who did this. Goddammit, he got yanked here by fucking Lovecraftian shit? Make his life harder why doesn't the universe, right? "Right...Vice. Got it." The girl inside here was friends with one of Lovecraft's greatest big bads. Lovely. "First off, please don't refer to it as macabre. I know it's not ideal, but it's how things work, and I'm trying to fix it. Secondly, for the love of god never call me Master. My name is James Porter, so just call me James. Also, we both know the 'order about' concept you just said is pure BS. In my experience, the most I'll get is to ask a grimoire to do something, and if I'm lucky that day, you'll cooperate."

He drummed his fingers on the table, reaching out to grab his coffee and take a sip of it before setting it down. "Right, questions. What are you, Vice? How'd you get stuck in the grimoire? What can you do? If you had to rate the abrasiveness of your personality on a one to ten, with one being personable and ten being unfathomably hostile, what is it? If I summon you, am I at risk of being bent into a pretzel? If I summon you, are you going to be infatuated with me on sight for some ungodly reason? Do I have to worry about you leveling a city in a temper tantrum? Are you cooperative or are you the kind who's going to do whatever she wants to do no matter what I ask. What do you look like? If I thank you for you help, am I going to get bent into a pretzel? If I look at you wrong, am I going to get stabbed in the kidneys?" There were so many god damn questions he had to ask anymore, he wasn't sure he'd be able to cover everything at this point.

Deathkitten

 

[Deathkitten]

Father Anderson​

Father Anderson was setting some things up in the church's kitchen when SoulFlare made herself known and began to look for him. Of course, he was out in short order, smiling sweetly at the rowdy woman, "SoulFlare! Welcome to the church. This clearly isn't a simple, friendly visit... what is amis?"

The answer was a large truck full of sickly-looking angels waiting outside. He did not expect that. In the countless things he might have expected God to throw his way today, this never would have crossed his mind. Once the situation was made clear, he turned to his firey friend, "I'll gather some healers. I'd like your human side's more gentle touch to help me with this mess, please. She needs to help me take them inside and start tending to their wounds. Start with the youngest. Pluck all broken feathers around the site of the injuries. If they're broken they won't heal right with a simple spell, so it's easier to pluck them and the healing spell will grow them anew."

"The one with the collar still on is the worst off so I'll focus on him personally," he explained, stripping his robe off once more to reveal the tank top and muscle underneath. He didn't want to dirty his robes. If he did, the children and worshipers would worry. There was little space on his arms and shoulders that wasn't taken up by angelic markings, and as he went to work on the worst injured of them all, a good many of them glowed.

ManofManyRoles

 

[Deathkitten]

Sean and Ada​

"N-no, sir! I wouldn't use it like that. The only time I'd ever do that was if you or Ada were going to die and I knew about it!" he stuttered, hands up in defense waving in front of him, "I'd only do it in that situation. Otherwise, no. It's just wrong to do it, especially on someone I like and her dad! That's... that's like way too close to roofies or something. Horrible."

The next question was an expected one, and he nodded vigorously, "I don't expect to always agree with her, but I understand that no means no. If Ada doesn't want to do something, I'm never going to force her. That's not cool... plus I get the feeling that if I tried to force her to do anything, even just something small, she'd beat me up." He was half joking, but she really did seem like such a tough chick. It was really attractive, but also intimidating. He could see where she got it from now!

"I don't want people to tolerate him. I have to, or I'd have nowhere to live. People with a choice shouldn't, even if he has clout in the community."

The final two questions had Sean squirming again, "I... uh... no... no, I can fight... I don't like to fight, though. I feel like if I fight, other people end up getting dragged in and it ends up being a bigger mess than it needed to be. But... yeah. I can defend myself. My other abilities... they're more conducive to that. I... um... let me show you. Just... please don't shoot me, okay?"

He stood slowly, then in seemingly no passage of time he was instead beside Casey, still squirming and looking awkward and uncomfortable.

"Time pause. It's... draining and limited and I can only do it for a really short burst right now, but it makes for instant movement for when time starts again. I have about ten seconds or so? More if I push it. It's also in a limited area, like... a bubble or something. You can do a lot in ten seconds, though... I um... have killed someone before in that ten or so seconds... in self-defense, of course... So... yeah, the guards are more to limit threats. Things still get past them. I'd be dealing with stuff way too often otherwise."

He walked back to his chair and sat again, looking away, "There's only one other ability but I don't use it. It's a weird one. I open a tiny portal, and a destructive force comes through it. It's temporal-related as well. It's a portal to a would-be apocalypse that never happened in our timeline. I can count on my hands the times I've used that, though. Only when my life was desperately threatened. Panicked, threw my hands up, and hoped that whatever came through would help. Lucky for me, it did. It's got a really sour feeling to it, though. The pain and hollow feeling of it... I don't think I can handle it yet, to be honest. Maybe when I'm older."

Ada piped up finally, nudging her father, excited about the prospect now. Sean was way more interesting than she thought, and he actually seemed really sweet. "Well??" she half-whispered, trying to hold in a smile as she nudged him again.

ManofManyRoles

 

[Deathkitten]

Vice​

“Yessir, James. Nyarlathotep, the very same. He and I have an odd relationship, though not with this instance of me but with the whole. This part of myself got trapped a long time ago. I was tricked and bound, simple enough. I wanted a book and was dumb about it. Too trusting. An issue I still end up having from time to time. I won’t call you master, but please don’t order me around if you can avoid it. If you truly order me, then I have no choice but to listen. It’s part of the binding. I don’t like that idea, though. It’d be unpleasant for all parties.”

She sighed, “I am a kemonomimi, and to put things simply, I’m a reality manipulator. I can do a lot of things, but I don’t like causing a big mess. I don’t like making big changes. I like my books, my library, and sharing knowledge with people that are respectful of the knowledge. I’m very personable, but since I don‘t like to make a mess I am not so likely to act... even if you might like me to. I am not hostile, though. I would hate to fight directly, and I would never harm you.“

She paused, audibly confused, “I... I’m sorry, what? I like men, but um... I doubt you’re my type, no offense. And like I said, I don’t like causing a mess so, no, no temper tantrums to speak of. If I’m upset I sulk with my books. What sort of people are the others?? Your questions are so concerning. I’d say you’re welcome if you said thank you, not turn you into a pretzel. And NO! No kidney stabbing! Geezus man, are you alright??”

“Anyways...,” she continued with a loud sigh, “I’m a small girl with white hair, wolf ears, and a wolf tail. I promise, I don’t bite. Worst I would do is surprise you and blow your mind with cool information.”

ManofManyRoles Cam E. Leon

 

[Kameron Esters-]

AXIOM

Axiom felt relieved upon clearing a way into the tunnel, he was just about to jump in until he felt a tremor almost making him lose his balance. He takes a look to see that Beast has made it back to earth. With the stranger in hand, no less. The timing couldn't be any more worse. He had just finished clearing out the blockage to the tunnel....But he couldn't let anyone die on his watch. Axiom looks to around and finds a boulder roughly his size. He spares no time grabbing the boulder and engulfs it in blue fire and electricity. Axiom lifts over his head and with as much strength as he can muster, throws the boulder at Beast.​

Deathkitten ManofManyRoles

 

[Deathkitten]

The Crater​

Beg and plead as he may, it did nothing with the beast. He was crushed in its hand and slammed against the rubble below. There was no time for him to focus on teleporting out of the way, and so bones were broken on impact - as though some weren’t already with that almighty grip. By his own cruel toughness, however, the boy was still conscious despite his searing pain and blood. He screamed in desperation, lifted up into the air again. He didn’t want to die. Gods above he really didn’t want to die here. He would survive being slammed into the ground but he knew this creature wouldn’t stop until he ceased breathing.

The other hero’s hurled boulder connected with the back of Beast’s head before he could slam the boy into the ground again. If the fireballs before were anything to go by, it wouldn’t do much, but it did give Tabby an opportunity.

The woman from before, Tabby, was already running their direction, and seeing that rock fly, she used the distraction to her advantage. From around her neck, she blew a trill whistle and waved her free hand at the beast to get it’s attention. The rain did a good job of hiding her utter terror she felt running up to this thing. She was it’s handler. Before, she had worked with zoos and trained dangerous animals... now...

“Beast!” She shouted, “Come here for a second! I wanna see your new toy! What’d you catch?” Tabby always had to play this carefully. Worst case she could forcibly knock the beast out psychically, but no. They wanted it trained if at all possible. Lucky for her, it was food-motivated and seemed to tolerate or even like her. They theorized that it was a combination of food and that she was nice to Thomas, and some of that translated to the beast... who knew for sure, though?

ManofManyRoles Kameron Esters-

 

[Deathkitten]

Addison Soleil​

Addison yawned as she flicked her stick closed and opened the door into their shared little abode. She walked into the bedroom, not bothering to turn on the light, and set her backpack down before heading back out into the main area to get herself a drink of water. She leaned against the countertop in the kitchen and breathed in a sigh of relief. Class was over with. Now she could relax.

“Mary?” She called out, ear turned towards her door, “It smells like the rain and the ocean in here. Did you go out earlier? Hopefully it wasn’t too bad out. I can’t imagine running around with the rain pelting you. That sounds painful.”

Addison finished off the glass of water swiftly, “Anyway, did you study for your test today? You know last minute cramming isn’t proven to be nearly as effective.”

ManofManyRoles

 

[ManofManyRoles]

Soul Flare Natalie Brenton

Upon finding Anderson, the skull-headed woman jerked her head over her shoulder. "Easier if you just take a look." Following him out to the truck she started to explain. "There was a slave trade ring for angels. Emphasis on was. I may have gotten carried away though, I don't know the buyers yet. I'll find them though...no one escapes their penance." Hearing that he needed her to revert she gave a nod, slowly looking around. "Gonna take a walk then." She couldn't just revert in sight of everyone, that was a bad idea. She had to get out of sight, even if she had to travel a bit. Taking off in a sprint down the street, it took a couple winding alley ways before she found a suitable secluded alcove. The fire dimmed and went out, muscle and blood forming over her face, only for flesh to coat that and eyes to reform in her sockets. Her clothes reverted back to normal, Natalie rubbed the back of her neck. "Shit...I'm going to beat the fuck out of Dara and Cianan when I see them next." It was always weird turning back. When her and Agas separated and there was no more SoulFlare, she got the information back in one big whollop, even though she was partly there. It was like dreaming everything as Soulflare, only for it to come back and solidify as reality.

Making her way through the alleys back to Father Anderson, she gave a quick two fingered wave. "I'm gonna get to work. You sure the church isn't gonna freak out with these guys coming inside?" Provided she got confirmation that yes it'd be fine, she started to lead the youngest angel that had been following Soulflare inside. God this was a mess. The blood and all didn't bother her, nor the fact it was an angel. Honestly, it was more so just a bit infuriating for her, that this happened. "Sorry if this hurts, love." Giving that warning, she started to pluck the broken feathers from her wings. "Can ya talk, hun?"

Deathkitten

 

[ManofManyRoles]

Casey Kemp

He stared Sean down, his voice it's same tone as always. "Smart boy. Don't go looking into my life or timelines. And glad you know why I'm forbidding you from ever using it on Ada." For once in this entire meeting, a small chuckle escaped him albeit a sardonic one. "I assure you, Ada would be able to put you in your place. If she didn't, I would." He didn't really flinch when Sean suddenly 'appeared' next to him, instead just slowly swiveling his head to look at him. "Don't go doing that either." At least the boy could defend himself, that was pleasing to hear. The last thing Ada needed was for her first boyfriend to be a dead weight that threatened her by being unable to defend himself.

Sean apparently had a WMD in his back pocket, in a sense. A portal to an actual apocalypse...that'd be a pain in the ass one way or another, he was sure. God, this kid was just going to give him headaches wasn't he? Feeling Ada nudge him he glanced in her direction, then back to Sean. "I'm going to give you permission for one date with Ada. If it goes well, you two may have more. You can go to the movies or something, I really don't care. If I find out however you've done anything stupid, we're going to have another discussion." With his word of law delivered, he broke down the gun, far quicker than he had assembled it. It took maybe ten or twenty seconds to break the thing down and put it back in the suitcase. He'd intentionally put it together slowly in order to keep Sean knowing he meant business. And by breaking it down so quickly, he was doing the same as well. "Ada, was there anything you wanted to ask him?"

Deathkitten

 

[ManofManyRoles]

James

Greaaaat. The girl knew one of the biggest bads around, and this was only part of her full form? Could today get any more...annoying, he supposed was the word? "Vice, I gave up on trying to actually give orders so damn long ago it's not even funny. The most I'll do is make a request, you'll ignore it, my life will be endangered heavily, you'll finally help. Rinse and repeat." He listened to vice explain what she was, nodding along. "What kind of kemonomimi? Okami, kitsune, neko? There's a lot of sub genre's. On the subject of knowledge and books, consider my interest peaked. If you're telling me you're the kind of person who enjoys reading books for fun and learning, we'll get along decent enough I guess."

At the mention of him not being her type he gave a soft cheer, at least internally. Though that quickly died as he realized his life was bullshit and there was still the chance she could change her mind. "Am I alright?...Maybe? I got shoved into this world just today via isakei and...Nyarlothotep I guess. So I have to stop something, I'm guessing the O.A, before I can go home? This is the second time I've had to do this. Also, by your description, you're an Okami then, a wolf girl? Good to know. Well, I've asked about everything I can think of, do you have any questions for me?"

Deathkitten

 

[ManofManyRoles]

The Beast

The boulder landed true to the back of the Beasts skull though it simply...slammed and then dropped to the ground, and the damn thing didn't even flinch. It only caused him to look over his shoulder, growling low. "Annoying man!" Before Beast could decide to turn Axiom into a tube of used toothpaste, a shrill whistle pierced the air, causing the Beast to freeze up and lift his head to look in it's direction. As Tabby called him he went low and bent his knees, before leaping high into the air forward. Landing just a few feet in front of Tabby the ground shook with a tremor at the monsters landing. "Little man dropped building. Little man shot fire. Beast CRUSHED little man." She wanted to see the 'toy', so it obliged.

Moving it's massive clawed fist forward with it's 'prey' still inside its grip it let the man be face to face with Tabby. In truth, Beast did indeed like Tabby. It was in part because Thomas' fondness for her transferred to an extent. But it was also because Beast associated Tabby with food. And for all the creatures' strength, it was little more than a sentient animal, which made food a good motivator to stay in it's good graces...if you did it right. "Beast crush little man again?"

Deathkitten

 

[ManofManyRoles]

Mary Moon

Addison was 'home' it seemed like! Nice! Grabbing her papers she opened up her bedroom door, smiling a bit even though Addison couldn't see it. "Yea, went for a small run to the beach and down the coast. It helps me think. And I mean...rain sucks, but it could be worse. If anything, it helps me focus a bit more!" Moving over to the counter top to join her blind companion she blew a huff of air, cheeks puffing. "Course I've been studying! I've been studying since I knew we were going to have the test. I'm not thaaaat bad. I'm still studying, last minute cramming. Say what you will, if it works for me it works!" She stuck her tongue out for no real effect, looking over her papers. "Besides, it's my major in biology. Just gotta say mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell to each question and I instantly pass!" She was joking of course, she wasn't idiotic. But it was hard not to quip, it was like breathing to her. "So...do I smell too much like the ocean? Should I take a shower? I took one this morning, but if it's too noticeable I can hop in again."

Deathkitten

 

[Aelia Aeldyne]

Hugues - An apartment somewhere in LA​

The storm was raging outside, the clatter of the rain against the walls of the building being oddly reminiscent of clashing steel in battle. Frédéric - for that was his name in the life he was currently living - smiled thinly, a strange sort of nostalgia appearing in his thoughts. He did not miss the chaos of the battlefield in any way, this hazardous happenstance where death was breathing down one's neck and kept only one cut away by fear, instinct and luck. No two ways about it, he much more preferred the exquisite duels of wits that often were political scenes; his nostalgia was solely the remembrance of a long-gone thing, one he'd never liked but that had been a part of him anyway, once upon a time.

Not that courts cannot be just as deadly as battlefields, he thought fondly. And indeed, the games played on parquet and marble floors could prove equally lethal as the games of steel so often were. Words, poison and knives could undo empires just as surely as fifty thousand soldiers. The greater the reward, the greater the risks, however. There was, after all, no surefire way to victory in a field where the main tools at one's disposal are other people. But he liked to think of himself as a defterhand than most on this most deadly chessboard - who else, after all, could boast of fifty lifetimes of playing the Game and still not once having been offed ? Who else in the world had steered the destiny of untold thousands by the sheer power of sole wit and will, and still come out on top, if alive, when all others failed in manners ranging from the innocuous to the tremendous ?

Now though, now was time for business. On the outside and to the common man, it seemed like a lot of talking until everyone agreed on who got the money and then signing at the bottom. Beneath the layers of unspoken, lies and double meanings, the truth was both much more and less impressive. Oh, modern media had nailed the talking part - it was mostly that, and reading the opposition. In reality, business was just politics - with less poisoning and physical backstabbing, but politics nonetheless. Influence and money were as always the two things fought for, and savagely so. One word, one act could make or unmake fortunes, and since the birth of stock exchanges, half of the world's rich people were riding the tide of luck and mishap that stock market values were.

It was dark outside, the storm clouds gathered above the city forming a shroud with a fabric like roiling ink; it was not much brighter on the inside of the apartment, with only a few wall lights and two desk lamps on, giving the room a subdued, velvety atmosphere. On his desk was a laptop, pens and pencils, a few white sheets, a printer, a bottle of sparkling water and an accompanying glass, and an ancient-looking oil painting of a young woman in armor. Reaching in his pocket, Frédéric put his phone next to his computer and absent-mindedly checked everything as per the routine. A few ad mails and scams that were quickly deleted, messages from board directors pertaining to day-to-day company activities, requiring and eliciting only brief answers, online gaming notifications, Steam updates, and the most important news. He'd learned a trick about those, back in the day; a meditation technique that allowed him to filter out any unwelcome thought and focus on the possible ramifications of an event. Parsing through the superhero news of the two previous days, he let out a small sigh. The west coast was as usual a cesspit of powered criminal activity, no matter how scary the local vigilantes or how efficient the heroes could manage to be. The OA was resurfacing, which was mildly disquieting, but not a pressing concern; if anything, it'd take the pressure off of his own illicit activities in the area. Well. Nothing out of the ordinary for today's surface activities.

Switching to a secure VPN, Frédéric logged in on an information-sharing platform about military companies, quickly checking the billboard about anything linked to his own. As usual, there was nothing. Risks of information leaks were ludicrously low when it came to Paronac'h Industries, he had made sure of that. Next, the coordination platform for his network of spies across northern america; none were well-placed enough to have access to critical information, but they relayed intel that was definitely valuable when it came to business. Corporate espionage was, after all, his main field of expertise in the current lifetime, and so he'd been careful enough to not seek information that too few individuals could have had access to. This tended to lead to internal inquiries and the outing of the agent, which was always a net loss of time and resources. No, critical information theft was something that took months, if not years to organize.

He checked his watch.



It was time, then. He opened Zoom with his secondary account, logging in under the name of Roger Monteron de Carries. Doing so elicited a ferocious grin from him, as the real Roger Monteron de Carries had been dead for several years now; once upon a time, he'd been a rival trader at Paris' stock exchange, before the failure of a slightly too-ambitious takeover bid saw him disappear from the business scene. In truth, he'd been "disappeared" on Frédéric's orders, and replaced by a skilled impersonator for thirteen years now. Turning on a voice changer program, he logged onto the meeting he was to attend today.

Two dozen other names and a couple faces appeared one after another in the meeting, each and every person present being one of many of Lockheed Martin's stockholders. The most important ones at least. "Roger Monteron de Carries" was among the smallest of the biggest, his own share amounting to an astounding 3%. Among such a crowd, with about half a hundred more or less strong personalities, dissent was about as guaranteed as gossip in a fish market, and as such alliances of sorts had formed. Leagues of interest, rather. After all, everyone here was a gentleman - or woman - of sorts, and there could be no such thing as conflict amongst such people. Thus, interests were constantly sought after, checking who stood alongside whom when it came to voting about the future of the company. There were currently four large blocks - the first, including the current CEO and several company directors, was the conservative group, aiming for a steady growth and maintaining of the company's development, without risking losing too much on ambitious investments; the second was the prowess group, pressing for technological development first and foremost, above even stock value growth; the third was the renovator group, the ones who wanted to restructure the company, to make it into an employee-eating gigantic mechanism that would be able to churn out engines of war by the dozen every day; finally, the fourth and last group was the one to which "Roger" belonged, the smallest of the four and the one of the neutrals, those who did not take sides and only sought to prosper through the stock exchange, letting luck and financial skill carry them through the turmoil of worldly economy.

Today, the board was all aflutter; the director of the R&D department apparently had a big announcement to make, and speculations were going wild in the meeting room. Frédéric smirked slowly, messaging Lockheed's chief engineer's intern about the reveal through his phone.

Alois

me

At board mt rn. Heard smth abt a big annc. Rltd 2 new project u told me abt a while back ?

them

Full data! Boss was so happy it was finished, took it all to display. I think its gr8, probs ctng edge at least on the engines.

me

Impressive. will look in detail then. contact you later.

Alois was a good-natured person and a bonafide genius when it came to mechanical engineering, but he was also equally dim on other matters. He'd just revealed to Frédéric - "Roger", rather, the man who'd funded his college years - that the data the board would be given would be the full extent of Lockheed Martin's own research and development in the field of hypersonic military aviation. It was a very important moment for Frédéric, given that the source data for this project was an intentional unsourced leak from Paronac'h Industries' own R&D in the field, albeit slightly downgraded; an experiment of sorts, to see how far could Lockheed's engineers progress between two board meetings, and whether or not a culling would be necessary. Over sixty percent of France's armaments came from Paronac'h, which made Frédéric rather chilly towards the idea of letting a foreign power that was subject to regular spikes of tension with his own country have a superior level of technology. Well, that was only in a certain situation. If Lockheed's engineers had not gone beyond Paronac'h's, then he'd only have to wait and see. Ever-patient, ever-careful, ever deadlier.

Hushed steps approached behind him as the reunion went on and he'd printed the designs that the director had given to them all to see. He muted his mic, turning towards the coming person and vaguely motioning at the schematics.

"Your opinion ?"

There were a few seconds of thoughtful silence, before the sentence fell like a scalpel, sharp and acrid and carried by a woman's voice as voluptuous as fantasia's clouds and warm like tropical seas.

"Definitely fake. There's what, two months of our own progress done in six ?"

He scoffed amusedly.

"Word from the source that those are the real designs, no presentational downgrade."

Lucie bit her lip, utmost surprise painting on her face. He couldn't help but think that it was a most beautiful face, as he always did. Lucie was a beautiful woman, after all, and her beauty was paired with equally awe-inspiring brains. Shoulder-long raven hair, ivory skin, eyes like black pearls and perfect cherry-red lips, statuesque loveliness hiding a mind like a labyrinth of steel, an analytical machine that very few in existence could outwit. As such, for her to find herself so utterly dumbfounded was an occurence most rare.


"But then... All of operation Coquille Saint-Jacques was pointless ? Parle bon sencimens d'e diey... What a waste of money."

He shook his head gently. She was lapsing back to her native obscure medieval french dialect as she always did when she was annoyed at him. Habits hundreds of years old were very hard to lose.

"Hollowing the shell from the inside to be able to pierce a hole in it was worth every penny invested. Hacking into the servers would have given us access to the public servers only. I suspect that they keep data such as those on the private servers, which we wouldn't have been able to access without an insider anyway. In our current situation, we have an insider and no means to trace us back. Five million euros were a paltry price for an entryway such as that into our main competitor's R&D."

She grunted, rolling her eyes.

"If you say so."

Frédéric smiled, as some great news came through an email.

"Looks like operation Fall Gray is a complete success. Sixteen foreign infiltrators eliminated during the tension period, three more identified and tracked. I'd call that... a victory."

She suddenly brightened, and clapped her hands.

"Right ! If it's a victory, we have to celebrate. Red ?"

"Red", he replied with a nod. "Take the seat, I'll fetch the bottle."

Mere gallantry, but gallantry cost him nothing and embellished the world ever so slightly, and so he gleefully indulged. He left the Zoom meeting after leaving a word of excuse for the sudden departure, and strolled from the office to the kitchenette, grabbing two wine glasses and a bottle of Saint-Emilion - 2044 vintage, the year of the blazing sun in southwestern France, a sweet wine for a sweet victory - and walked back to the other room.

Again, his thoughts lapsed when he looked at her. They'd known each other for over a thousand years, living their lives in parallel, ever friends, finding each other after each death or disappearance with a secret phrase that only the other knew. They'd loved, too, but never the other. Romance had never bloomed here; it was the drive, he thought. Even for a ruler, Hugues had always been singularly potently driven, the will to forge a strong country like an all-devouring fire in his stomach that very few could withstand. Lucie, for her part, had never sought to escape her curse, but only to protect her domain. And as years passed, and horizons broadened, their purposes melded into one, and since then they walked hand in hand with a shared searing goal waiting on the horizon.

He couldn't deny he felt attracted to her; she had, after all, an eminently beautiful figure, lean and tall and perfectly proportioned. He noted with a tinge of wistfulness that not even her beauty was enough to make his heart beat faster. His wife's death in childbirth and then Jeanne's on the pyre not even twenty years later had thoroughly killed any drive he had to take a partner and sire children. No, the attraction he felt towards Lucie was like he was a puzzle and she the missing piece; not a lover, but a being that completed him so fully that it would be wrong to think of any other way.

Pouring the wine, he let his gaze wander beyond the room and into the far, where the storm was raging still. She caught his look, and turned her face to the outside as well.

"Back in Lauzon, the weather was shitty like that every other day."

He chuckled.

"Good thing we found that sorcerer with the curse-containing amulet, eh ?"

"Oh sanct Maria d'e diey, imagine if I had to walk around with rain over my head in permanence ?"

"You'd be one hell of a bread-maker for umbrella merchants."

They toasted on that jest, and silently sipped at their glasses.

"One day", the accursed lamia from a long-forgotten village of southern France said, "One day we will not be challenged by foreign powers when trying to ensure our country's survival."

"That'd be the day", the king in the shadows who had lived fifty lives and forgotten none said, "But until then..."

"Even if the heroes come", she said

"Even if the Heavens rage", he continued

"Even if all of existence stands against us"

"We'll win", they whispered.

Thunder rumbled in the distance. Twin smiles bloomed on their lips, and they toasted again.

Sweet victory indeed.

 

[Kameron Esters-]

AXIOM

"No, don't crush, Beast!" Axiom exclaims as he runs up to Beast and Tabby. "Please, Beast...! No more crushing...! We need him alive...! To get a clearer picture behind OA...!" Axiom explains to the giant monster and the soldier that just arrived "You break him any further, we wont get any closer to find the ones responsible for this..." Axiom points to the giant expanse of the bottomless pit that was the Grave "We need to keep him alive long enough, get what we need from him about our main enemy and put an end to this once and for all! Beast...I need your help to do that...You'll be breaking the wrong one, Beast....But I guarantee you...There are others that'll need breaking soon enough...Help us break the real monsters...." Axiom didn't exactly plan on his small speech to work as no doubt, the beast was alot more simple-minded and driven by its own urges brought on by its own anger. But he would like to think somewhere in there, Thomas could hear him. He had to save the strangers life however he could without trying to escalate it back into physical confrontation. He just hopes he didnt get Beast upset after seemingly calming down just abit with the arrival of Tabby.
ManofManyRoles Deathkitten ​

 

[Deathkitten]

The Crater​

Despite the shaking of the ground and the feeling that her stomach just shot into her throat, she had a job to do here. There was a sharp clicking sound, a training tool, followed by a large slab of meat drawn from her bag of holding at her side being tossed to Beast. She smiled, "Good job! Thank you for coming over at the sound of the whistle. You're a good boy. Good job catching that little man too!"

Tabby snapped at Axiom's sudden appearance, "SHUT UP AND MOVE, AXIOM! Survey the entrance of the tunnel for any other personnel! Do NOT interfere with Beast!" She was normally calm and collected, even in the face of this monster, even when it jumped in front of her. Honestly, she hadn't snapped at the beast yet out of fear. She hadn't shown true "alpha" behavior towards it... even if the military definitely wanted her to. It was just too hard. If she thought about it, this was the first time the beast had seen her use her authoritative voice.

She focused her gaze again on the massive creature in front of her, "I need you to crush little man until he's no longer awake, Beast. If you do that, then give him over to me, you'll get a big cow carcass all to yourself, okay? And next time we run into people like little man, we'll probably need your help too. With those other little men, you can even EAT them! They're way stronger than this little bug. Sound good?"

If it did as asked and beat the boy into unconsciousness - honestly, she held little mercy for the person. As far as she was concerned, if he worked with the OA, he was more of a monster than the beast - she did as she said she would and opened her bag of holding wide. From it came a large cow carcass, held aloft by her telekinesis, and she offered it to the beast.

ManofManyRoles

 

[Deathkitten]

Father Anderson and the Church​

The young angel had tears welling up in her eyes as Natalie tended to her and plucked out broken feathers from her wings. Her little fists balled up from the pain, and she nodded, "Y-yes. I can talk, Ma'am... You're the same person, right? Thank you... a-and thank Agas for me too. I can sense her. She's an angel too, right? A really strong one? I wanna be strong like you two..." She winced and whimpered a little, but was trying so hard not to show her pain on her face. A priest ran up to them and offered the angel a robe. They were all still naked, after all.

She smiled sweetly at him and donned it, though she had to cut two large slits in the back with her sharp little nail for her wings to go through. She looked back towards the door, then to the priest again as he rushed off to give the others clothes as well. This was a place in Father's name. She had never been in one before... she never got the opportunity. It was beautiful.

"The small things mean a lot... I'm sad I never got to know Father. I think he would be proud of people like this, of a church like this in his name... They make the evil in the world seem not so... suffocating," she gave such an innocent, sweet smile to Natalie, a true little angel in every sense of the word, "Can you ask Miss Agas what Father was like for me? I'd love to... to hear about him." She winced again, then spread her wings out so she could get the inside as she knelt.

ManofManyRoles

 

[Deathkitten]

Ada and Sean​

Ada was now officially allowed to be excited. She bounced up into a standing position in a blur of movement and looked so happy. "Any questions?" she repeated, looking between her dad and the boy who looked like he had taken a massive sigh of relief, "Yeah! Where are you gonna take me on a date!? Have you ever had a date before? I haven't. Don't be surprised, but I'm definitely gonna take at least one weapon on our date. Aaaaaaaaaaaaa I can't believe I'm gonna go on a date!"

Sean let out a relieved little laugh, smiling at Ada. He was happy too, though... her absolutely terrifying dad kinda dampened the mood a little bit. He disassembled that gun like he could do it blindfolded with his feet. "Well... I... um... I was thinking of heading to a museum and treating you to dinner. I've never been on a date before, no, so I'm hoping it won't totally suck," he smiled wider at her and stood as well, "I'll do my best to not be boring. You were interested in biology and history and stuff at the library. Maybe a trip south to San Diego? It's a bit of a drive, but they have the Museum of Us, and they have a lot of interesting exhibits."

He paused, looking at her father nervously, "If... If that's okay? It'd be about two and a half hours away... I wouldn't mind if it made you feel better to drive us instead of one of my guards."

"I love the idea!" Ada piped up before Casey could even answer, "That sounds like so much fun! There's other museums around there too! There's a whole park of them, right? Balboa Park? I'd love to go!"

Sean paused for a long moment before speaking up again, "So... um... Sir... what's your job, anyway? You... kinda seem like a mafioso or something."

ManofManyRoles

 

[Deathkitten]

Vice​

"I would defend you if your life was in danger, yes. I don't have much choice in that. At the moment your existence is annoying to me, since you now own me, more or less... but again, that's not your fault, so I won't take it out on you emotionally or physically. That wouldn't be very mature of me, now would it? And yes. Okami I suppose would be most accurate. At my age and station... species or race means little anymore. I do look a certain way, though, so wolf girl it is."

She smiled, though he couldn't see it, "That does sound like a pretty awful day. I'll yell at him for both of us later, then. At the moment he's babysitting a small child, entertainingly enough. Maybe I can get back at him by getting him in trouble with the child's parents? I digress..."

Vice paused for a thought and looked around at her library that made up her space, "Allow me to invite you, James." As she said the words, he would be pulled into the grimoire's realm. She stood there in front of the screen, which now displayed a fake James sitting and reading the newspaper as though nothing had happened. Her eyes fell on the man that had just been pulled in and gave him a sweet smile.

"Welcome to my library. You like books the same as me, so I agree, we will get along swimmingly," she explained, "I've taken the opportunity to introduce you to this place. You wanted to know if I had questions, so here we are. There is an illusion in your place so as to not cause fear. As we talk, feel free to look around."

"At home, your original Earth, did you have any pets? Is there anyone or anything that I need to try to find a way to bring here? I cannot send you back, but I hate the thought of an animal or the sort perishing in your absence."

ManofManyRoles

 

[Deathkitten]

Addison Soleil​

Addison rolled her eyes at her chaotic roommate, "You smell fine. I doubt most people would even notice, and I'm sure no one would care in a test. People have other things to worry about during that stressful hour or two. Anyway, I'm sure you'll do great. You usually do. My class went fine today. I'm just quietly regretting taking a weekend morning class. I think my past self hated my future self. You seem like you always have two cups of coffee streamlined into your blood, so it's hard to tell if you even mind at all."

She reached for the fridge again and got herself more water, then set the cup on the counter. It was still a tiny bit early, but lunch sounded good... They got a pizza the other night... hmm. Addison opened the fridge and felt around until she found the box and grabbed herself a slice.

"Are you gonna eat before class or just wait until after? You're a quick test taker, so I imagine you wouldn't be there the full time."

ManofManyRoles