Fantasy Superhero Times

[Osuka]

Fay Fluorite
AKA: Celesteon
Location: Aphera House

Aquilias was right. He had to sort himself out. With a very quiet groan of acknowledgement, Fay began his slow trudge to the showers behind the rest of the group, almost having to work too hard at remembering that he had to go to the Men's showers and keeping his eyes locked on at least one of the males to know the route. At this point, honestly, he didn't think anyone would be surprised if someone as feminine-looking as him wound up in the female showers, but he also didn't have the desire to see anyone - and he meant anyone in the buff. Call him weird, call him unmanly - hell, call him a prude, but he was extremely adverse to the idea of nudity and the display of it.

Looking down, Fay had allowed the door to the changing room and the door to the showers showers to bump into his head - too tired to care and whatnot about the slight pain that it caused before he stripped down and kept to himself in the stalls. He would choose the stall furthest from the rest for many reasons, but the only one he chose as his excuse was isolation. From the pocket of his jeans he pulled a small stone, which shattered in his hand as his body became clean, then again to clean his clothing before stepping under the scaling hot water and... Existing. It hurt, sure, but over time, the pain dulled and turned into something at least somewhat pleasant as the liquid cascaded and dripped from his body. It felt as if the water itself was soaking through his flesh to sink into his muscles, making them relax and expand for the moment. He had lost track of just how long he had stood there before idly reaching up, and then suddenly slamming it straight to as cold as the handle would allow, and almost instantly he woke up. A deep, shivering breath came and went as his muscles shuddered in protest, and he still felt drained, but he was awake. Afterwards, all that was left was to turn off the shower, get dressed, and leave. What he found inside the changing room, to his pleasant surprise, was his pet Aiko.

Aiko was something akin to a bunny if it was more round and had a jewel set into the forehead, and for some reason always looked absolutely jovial. It hopped once, twice, and then a third time to land in one of the lockers before it opened its mouth and then unceremoniously expelled his full gear, but clean and dry. A smile - a genuinely wide and gleeful smile came over Fay's visage as he reached up to pet the little ball of fluff, which chirped in joy before he changed once again into his gear. It took a little longer than his civilian gear, but Aiko was sure to gobble all of that up before it took its place upon its shoulder and almost seemed to meld into the fur of his cloak. Already, with the mana that resided in his gear and his staff, Fay could feel his Mana coming back to him, and it was enough to draw in more.

A slow, deep breath in brought with it invigoration as the ambient mana in the room filled his body, and a slow breath outward seemed to expel his every ache and iota of stress. In his gear, he was far more powerful and capable, and as his stature changed to something more upright, with his spine straight and his shoulders back, Fay felt anew once more. It wasn't just the shower that had woken him up, but with the boons from his extra gear and his beloved pet and staff at his side, he felt safer than before. It showed in his stride as he left the changing room, and even Argus lifted a brow as Fay had wandered back to Aquilias's side.

"Alright, Aiko," he started, left hand reaching up to scritch the fluff below its tiny chin. "Let's go see what the rest of the day has to offer. I'm ready to give my information for today, Aquilias. Let's get it done somewhere we won't be interrupting anything."

"Well, don't ye just look fit as a fiddle, lad!" Aquilias nearly cooed as she looked Fay up and down. A smile was spread across her face as she nodded towards a nearby chair. "How's about we jes' do it here? It ain't nothin' new to a family like th'Aphera, after all, an' they got a medical team here anywho, so it's fine. Start when yer ready, my boy."

Well, if she wanted to do it here, then he'd do it here. She was the Merlin, and so when Fay sat, he sat with his body slouched with his staff to his chest. One deep breath in and out, two, four, and then ten in the span of a minute was all Fay would do as he began to compile the memories in his mind. From the moment that Argus had first shown up to give him his assignment, the drive to the location, his traversal of the Crater and his run-in with other heroes, and then to the collection of the Heroes and his landing at the Aphera residence. All of what was said, felt, and done clicked into chronological order rather than having faded in and out, and once he held onto the collection of memories, Fay's left hand rose. It rose with a slow purpose, index finger lifted but curled as it touched his temple, and then with the same deliberate grace, it would pull away. What came forth from his mind was a manifestation via mana - a reel of ethereal film which continued far enough that he would have to turn his head and lean away before it finally popped and curled into itself.

"Very good, Fay," came Aquilias's voice as she pulled a canister from her robes. Once Fay had opened his eyes, everything in the reel had flashed across his sight, and the film of mana solidified into reality once he had spoken a word, and was slipped into the canister Aquilias held out to him. "Ye did a good job today, dear. Ye'll have yer pay in yer account and we'll be on our way. Do take care of yourself."

After all was said and done, Aquilias looked to Argus and nodded, then seemed to disappear entirely - as if frames of animation had been cut from reality itself. Fay's phone dinged with a quiet chime that notified him of the funds, and he was able to relax.

"And mission complete, Aiko," he said with a smile to his pet. Aiko chirped again in glee before slipping into the hood of his cloak and nuzzling his cheek. "Now we can do whatever else Jewel had planned or whatever."

Deathkitten

 

[Aelia Aeldyne]

Rogue Killer - The Airport​

The situation at the airport had become completely chaotic in the span of a few seconds. From the southern wing, the SWAT and LAPD teams were being kept at bay by the terrorists with the aid of heavy weaponry, while the northern wing was silent. At the front of the area, battle had suddenly erupted as several heavy-weaponry terrorist teams had deployed and started firing at the support units that the feds had deployed. An alert crackled in the general radio channels as the FBI helicopter above the scene swerved wildly.

“Attention to all units. Long-range s-p units deployed by the enemy on the roof. Airborne approach compromised. Attention to all teams, sharpshooters deployed on the roofs. Attention to all heroes, please secure an entryway as soon as possible.”

While the two of them – Rogue Killer and Warboss Mazok – were running towards the building, Whittaker’s voice echoed in their communication devices. It rung with a sense of urgency.

“Sorry to barge in, but please hurry up and find a way for us to get in! One of my agents managed to sneak in by the rear, and it’s practically guaranteed that they are somehow getting reinforcements. With all the civilians trapped inside, you know just like me that we can’t afford to let this situation devolve into a siege battle, not as long as they’ve got potentially three thousand hostages.”

Hayato nodded silently. Taking a cursory glance at the façade, he whipped out his bow, and fell on one knee a couple yards behind Mazok. Putting the tip of his right index and middle fingers on the arrow shelf, a small sphere of dark purple light appeared, crackling and shimmering with ominous strands of energy. Drawing back the string, with the sphere of power still at the tip of his fingers, it shaped an arrow like a skeletal, grasping hand. It stilled everything. For Hayato, an eerie silence had fallen upon the scene, and everything moved in slow motion. He was drawing into the dark akasha of his own skeleton, the untold power of this accursed library of five thousand years of written evil. And for one to become so steeped with knowledge of death, it also meant coming closer to Her. The gears of his heart were spinning, clicking… slower. Ticking down like a clock of doom, marking the pulse of the dark magic flaring through his entire body, surging up to flow into his fingers, flowing and fuelling his arrow.

It was strange, to him. Like an un-sound. A silent howling, a choir of a thousand voices, a thousand hands melded into one, all grasping at the same desire… Reach. Kill. Fly. Fly to them, reach them and kill them. The words were becoming clearer in his mind. The incantation was defined. It was only a matter of saying it, now. And with a slow exhalation, the arrow was loose.

“Aht nim tago nid khrish – thre va khrishi”

Fly, my hand of death – Death’s gale blows. Muttered almost inaudibly in the midst of battle, eight words that would seal the fate of so many lives. Imperceptibly, his fingers disjointed. In half a heartbeat, the arrow had gone from dark purple light to pitch black smoke. In half a heartbeat, it flew forward, un-loudly howling at its target while leaving behind naught but a trail of silence. A line of blackness was drawn through the air, almost perfectly straight, almost perfectly curved – the arrow jolted past the remains of a shattered window and landed on the external corridor of the third floor, releasing its power. Grasp. Reach. Kill. And the un-choir’s wish was granted.

The unfolding power released itself under the guise of a silent breeze carrying an anthracite grey smoke, roiling soundlessly and inexorably through the corridor. It had gone silent – none of those who had been there would ever be heard again, their voices enthralled with the rest of the song-less choir. Their clothes, vanished. Their bodies, turned to ash. Their souls… forever screaming at the walls of a cell they knew would never resonate with them no matter how hard they struck at it. When the ill-omened cloud dissipated, the corridor of the third floor was empty. Even the dark blue carpet had taken its leave – all that remained was the bare bones – the structure.

It had all taken less than ten seconds. Rising to his feet, Hayato eyed Mazok, and his voice rung with a dark kind of steel; pointing at the edge of the building and the small metallic door blocked by rubble that was there, he spoke.

“Keep suppressing them, I’ll clear a way through the emergency exit staircase.”



chaieftainoftheeye

 

[Cam E. Leon]

SHARD AND RURU
Devils Tale Bakery​

Shard polished some plates as he heard The angels question and smiled. "I must agree with you..... Earth is not the most riveting place...if you ask me... I despise Earth. Truly. I hate it. From the vermin called humans that crawl upon this world and call it their own. To the monsters born from its darkness. and the self proclaimed messiahs born from light. I hate it all. To say i would not smile if it was engulfed in fire today is a lie. To say I would rebel if I was ordered to lead an army to slaughter the innocents, is a lie. Truly. I despise this pitiful existence of my own weakness.. that I can not make my dreams come true." He said as his eyes were filled with the despair of a man who has seen his entire life crumbled before him. But his smile was that of an insane man in denial. But then he sighed. "I could tell you that. But all that may be a lie. I can simply tell you that I simply stopped caring. Stopped caring about this whole damn thing. War between angels and demons. the sins of humanity. The demon lord himself. I can say I truly don't care. and want to be left out of the whole fucking play orchestrated by the man above.... Or...." shard smiled sadly as he looked to Ruru reading her comic. "i can tell you I'm simply a sad excuse of a man... doing his best to fulfill a long broken promise. Of two parents taking their child to her favorite place. and settle down there training the child to be able to survive in this crazy world. Whichever is the real answer... I'll let you make that choice..." he said going back to the plates he was polishing before whispering to himself. "because even I struggle to remember which answer is right" He then smiled brightly as a customer walked up. " Welcome to Devils Tale Bakery. Where the only sin allowed is gluttony! " his cheery smooth demanor back as quickly as it left as he took the customers order


Ruru meanwhile. was oblivious to the whole conversation as she had put headphones on listening to a podcast on recent nature studies

Deathkitten

 

[Cam E. Leon]

Xiard

​

Xiard stood out of breath staring in front of him, at the colossal elder Dragon. "my apologies....but i must uphold my orders" he said to the dragon tightening his grip on his sword with both hands. Charging at the dragon. The dragon responded to his words with a bellowing roar that shook the ground itself. A light glowing from its mouth before it opened its jaw wide. an almost ethereal beam of energy exuding from the dragons gullets bending air around it. Xiard clicked his tongue as he held his sword tight. covering his body with the blade taking the brunt of the beam using his sword as a shield. his armor glowing white from the heat as he yelled in pain. When the beam ended he yelled throwing his sword straight into the neck of the scaled beast. a sonic boom emanating from his throw launching himself back from the force. "I UNDERSTAND YOUR PAIN! BUT I SHALL NOT FALL" he yelled as he landed atop a scorched patch of earth. charred dead bodies or knight around him. He quickly kicked a body grabbing the war hammer from beneath the knights still smoldering corpse. He gripped the handle tight as he charged at the still recovering elder dragon. Diving beneath rocks as a second ethereal blast came his way. When the blast subsided he jumped out from the rocks continuing his charge. Dodging and weaving the giant claws he yelled drawing his strength as he jumped towards its neck. and with all his strength swung his war hammer straight into the pommel of his sword. delivering it even further into the elders dragon's neck. The blow containing enough strength that even the elder dragon was knocked back. Upon which it let out a wheezing roar, flapping its impressive wingspan the gusts enough to launch even Xiard high into the sky. Within the dragons domain of the air Xiard was defenseless as the dragon chomped down upon the body of Xiard. its large fangs piercing through his armor impaling his chest. Screaming in pain he grabbed the teeth and with desperation in his arms pried the dragons mouth open pulling himself free. Falling down from the dragons mouth high in the air he skid down the neck grabbing the handle of his sword. "REST NOW!" he yelled swing the sword slicing through the dragons neck shattering and ripping its scales. The dragon let out a dying roar as its wings went limp and began its nosedive descent into the ground, bringing Xiard with him. The dragon collided with the ground shaking and rumbling the land. Xiard crawling out from beneath it. his armor broken. and him having giant holes in his torso. it took him leaning on his sword stabbed into the ground for him to even stand. As the skies rumbled Xiard weakly looked up. Seeing two shadows descending from the clouds... Two more elder dragons. Groaning in pain. Xiard pulled the sword out of the ground barely able to hold it. "Please....just retreat" is all he mumbled, blood gargling his words before his grip tightened again and with a gargled scream charged the two elder dragons.

Xiard looked up at the night sky.... The darkness decorated with beautiful glistening jewels. each dazzling in their own way... The stars were truly a beauty. and a much better sight then what was below. sitting up and looking around. All he saw was scorched earth, scorched earth. and thousands of corpses. Knights and melted armor everywhere. scales littering the dirt as as rivers of blood pooled, originating from the corpses of 5 elder dragons. Upon one Xiard was sitting. "Wooooow. its been forever since you've had this dream" a voice cheerfully mocked him. He turned to his left to see a woman. in mysterious garbs. carrying more then 20 staves. and having bow quivers filled with magic wands. "when was the last time you dreamed of a fight in which you had two hands... hmm what was this battle. Jinsy? Balri. Styr? I cant remember. well....neither can you i guess." she joked happily slapping the weak xiard on the back. "so buddy.... seems like your in a fine piece of shit... trapped in a world unlike your own. everyone you know gone. And as far as you know no way getting back. So buddy. as lovey as this dream is" she said disappearing. Xiard turned around to see 30 of woman. all in red priestess like robes. one eye carved out as they held fire within their hands. "its time to wake up and face reality Xiard" they all said in sync smiling.

Xiards eyes jumped open as he quickly sat up breathing heavy looking around. "where am i!?" he said stressed

Osuka

 

[Aelia Aeldyne]

Starfinger - Aphera Household​

I could do with a shower. In fact… It would seem that I needed a shower. The crater had been one heck of a shabby and dusty place to wake up in, and I had been wearing “armor” for the last hour or so; not even taking into consideration that for all intents and purposes I technically hadn’t washed for almost an entire decade, and even if we skipped those ten years to the present day, my dignity could use some hot water. And, I thought, as some ideas of “this is a waste of time!” started to arise in the back of my mind, it was not negotiable. I would be washed and well before the next twenty minutes were over.

Apparently, the Aphera household had separated showers. In all honesty, it was about the first time that I went to the bathroom in this place – taking a piss notwithstanding. Digressions aside, I gave the old man a small nod, silently thanking him for this opportunity to feel something else than dust or metal upon my skin for the first time in ten years. Gods it would be good. After that, I’d be more than happy to take care of any business he might want me to deal with. That said… To the bathroom.

When I finally got there, I saw that Caesar was already having way too much fun in the bath, so I walked aside under the shower. The water was warm, which was also a source of comfort, I have to admit. Having to take a cold shoulder – shower, sorry, cold shower – after ten years of not being able to even reach water would have been something like a pinnacle of sadism, somehow. Though I had no doubt that most of my family would without a second remember to hate my guts like the second I left to take that sky nap. Strangely, that put me in the mood to start singing under the shower – though obviously my repertoire of songs wasn’t exactly full of rainbows and sunshine, so I kept the lyrics to myself and merely hummed the tune while warm water flowed down my body, washing away my uncertainties.

That said, even a small moment of relaxation should not be a pretext for me to let go of old-ingrained habits, prime of those being, “Any instant is an advantage.” Which meant that I should use whatever time I was given to keep myself ahead of whatever foes I might have. For my family, the simple fact that I existed and didn’t have my connection with the Golden Man severed was already a huge advantage. It meant that I had access to my powers and that I was able to overcome about anything they could throw at me. As for my other foes… I think a communication with the rest of the golden council – the members of it with whom I had a link, at least – was warranted, so that I could keep myself up to date with the latest events in the domain of interplanar politics.

I sat down to meditate under the shower – no it wasn’t weird – and I sent the call to those among the council I would call friends. Blyethe did not answer… Elizhash neither… On the third call, the Sunbreaker answered. The face of a skeleton adorned with his ever-present purple gemstone appeared in my mind. The Sunbreaker was an oddity among the council – but I guess we all were – because he actually enjoyed partaking in warfare, instead of simply participating out of duty. Though I could not blame him for seeking excitement, as he had spent over six millennia as a scholar and priest before ascending to lichdom and becoming a minor deity of his own. His voice rattled in my mind as he spoke.



“Kakaka… So you are back, Henry. It has been a long time since we last saw you. I guess time is relative for our ilk, though ? Kekekeke… Anyway, judging by the early hour at which you contact me, I guess that you are still applying this old “Any instant is an advantage” saying of yours. To break you the news… Forta still stands independently, the Armada suffered a handful of defeats against bastions of the Consortium, and the Ashvale is getting restless, so Rumenas garrisoned me here for the time being. Oh, and reddie suffered a major setback. One of the Hexwives has been slain.”

Listening through the news, I whistled at the last one. The Hexwives were the six daughters and forced brides of the Scarlet King, an eldritch motherfucker of prime division, who was not driven like all the others by a desire of rulership, but by sheer hunger. His mere thought was corruptive and keeping him at bay from many dimensions was our task as Warlocks of the Golden Man. The Hexwives all bore immense power and are notoriously hard to even be acknowledge due to the sheer energies of the Scarlet King. That one of the six had been slain was indeed a prowess to be remembered.

“Who did the deed, Sunbreaker ?”

“Ah, it was Guranja, the ruler of Iwamba. Used <repel> with perfect timing when she struck at him, and she was torn to bits the next second. Reddie lost his right hand in the explosion.”

That was impressive. Last I had heard of Guranja, he had barely established his nation of Iwamba in a minor plane filled with life energy. That was a quite dangerous place to be, since life energy planes were very coveted due to the fact that it was extremely easy to quickly grow armies in those. That he had not only managed to survive and maintain his foothold, but also inflict a grievous defeat upon the greatest interplanar conqueror of this age spoke volumes of his abilities. Besides, I let out a small chuckle at the carelessness of the Scarlet King, who notoriously scorned intelligence work and barely even had scouts, relying solely on brute force to get his way. Guranja’s folk were masters of the counter-attack. The stronger the blow, the harder the one delivering it would feel it strike back at them.

“Well, if it isn’t good news… Alright, thanks for the report, Sunbreaker. See you at the next meeting. I’ll send you a delayed message with my report in it, if anyone has the slightest idea of what happened to me.”

“Understood. Have fun, Henry.”

And with that, our psychic communication ended and I opened the eyes to find myself under the shower still. I turned off the water and grabbed a towel – hot water was nice, but you gotta go dry at some point. When that was done, time to get the clothes on. Undies of course, then white shirt and black suit with a black tie. No need to fix what isn’t broke. And I headed back to the main room. Overhearing Caesar talking with Alida, I dropped the both of them a quick telepathic message.

“Have fun checking the city, lovebirds. I need to stay here a little longer because it seems like I need to talk with my family, and then I’ll have to go and check to see if Cthulhu didn’t break into my basement. See you later.”

That said… I was not really pleased with the presence of those members of my family. Godsdamnit, could I just get more than a shower’s time worth of tranquillity? What’s worse, in ten years they still had kept this stupid habit of random ass space themed clothing. I mean, I get that it’s the theme of the family, but still… dear mother Sybil would have a few things to explain. I internally thanked the medical personnel for providing me with a distraction from those thoughts – and it never hurt to know whether or not there was any issue with my body.

After this was done, a girl from my side came up to me. Well… She looked adorable, but sure as hell not prepared enough to be wearing a hero costume. What was Sybil thinking, allowing teens like her into the ranks? Did she want to get them killed? I’d have to rant later. I listened wordlessly to what she was saying, and my discomfort was growing by the second. When she was done talking and looked like she was about to leave, I grabbed her wrist to make her look at me in the eyes. I might have been a little bit scary with how I looked, because I sure as hell did not have the habit to give stares that intense to people. I could see it in the way she tensed, and I did my best to loosen myself a little and not sound like I was about to rip her in half. Hoarse voice is hoarse.

“Chrysantia. You are not bothering me. Yes you can talk to me, and I will go as far as to say that you have to talk to me now. What else happened that day ? Sybil is dead ? Rose became the matriarch ? How many of them died in that explosion ? What is the situation outside ?”

I tried my best to relax and breathe normally, even though it was quite difficult given all the news I suddenly had to take in. And the realization that maybe the entire family was here, if the whole lot of those who were not had died in the explosion that day. Which would mean that the Keatons were down to a rough dozen, me notwithstanding… damn. Maybe I would have to consider recreating some ties with my family in that situation.



[Interactions : Caesar ( Osuka ), Alida, Chrysanthia ( Deathkitten )]

 

[Deathkitten]

Chrysanthia - Aphera Household​

She was... a little afraid of him, to be honest, until his questions made her realize what she had said. She pulled her arm away, not to run, but to cup her mouth with her hands as she visibly paled a little. Oh no... Of course, he wouldn't know. She swallowed and a ring appeared at her head, drifting downward like a falling petal as it changed her outfit into that of a civilian. She looked like her mom... no, more than that, she looked a lot like a younger version of her grandma, Henry's mom. She didn't want to have this serious of a conversation in costume. Not to a family member.

Chrysanthia let out a small sigh and cupped his hand that had grabbed her, "I'm sorry. Grandma... your mom... Sybil. She died in the fight against the OA. My mom, Rosemary, became the matriarch. As far as I know, she didn't want to be. I was only seven, but I remember a lot of crying that day." She squeezed his hand a little, continuing with the sweetest of calming voices, "Hamal's significant other at the time, Erin, died. Their child Jamal is now ten. Delphi and Keon... Victorian and Marshal... their child Vassalia. Cherry. Pyxis. Volantis. Caelum. Dahlia and Pavo... and... half of their children died. Antila, Bellatrix, June, Juniper, and Ain. Syrma just turned eighteen this year too..." She had to pause to let a shaky breath out.

"Libra. Lukas... I could keep going if you want... my mom made me memorize their names so they would never be forgotten... Probably the most shocking death that day was old Hoshitoki. Apparently he was my great-great-great-grandfather. Had been alive since the 1700s... He died that day," she looked down at his hand for a moment, "Your father, my grandpa, Peter. He's still alive. He's not the most jovial of people though. And... as for what the situation outside is..." How was she to explain that...

"Civilization keeps going. You saw some of it on your way here, didn't you? Or were you teleported...?" she looked back up at him, meeting his eyes without wavering, "There are definitely some changes. Things are harder. Supers are still kind of hated by groups of non-powered protesters. There are more superheroes registered now. There are more villains now. Because of the increased demand, the apprentice age was lowered to 15 minimum. They want more superheroes for when the OA comes back... and everyone thinks they might this year. It's hard to guess though since there's been no information on them at all. After the crater... they just disappeared."

Aelia Aeldyne Osuka

 

[Aelia Aeldyne]

Henry Keaton - Aphera Household​

So many… So many. So many… About half the family had died that day ? So many… What did that make me, if not a murderer and a craven? I had secretly hoped that an entire decade would have given me a clean slate to work with when it came to family relationships, but it definitely seemed like I would feel those ten years weigh on me one way or the other. I was a coward for having accepted to put up with this masquerade of hatred that had estranged me from the rest of the family. A coward and a fool, who had denied himself and so many people a chance at happiness and who was the only one who did not have to pay the price. Had I not given in to my mother’s wishes…

Fuck that. The dead are not guilty. Had I not followed my sister’s orders to make me look like Julia’s murderer, I would not have been hated by the majority of my family… I would’ve had a chance to know them, to grow to like them, to protect them. Instead I went and waged war in someone else’s name, in places beyond even imagination. Instead of being with my family, fighting to protect them, I was elsewhere doing Gods know what for whatever reason. If I had been there more for them, then they would not have died. They all had died because I killed them by not being there enough, and because I wasn’t good enough. I killed them because I had been too weak. Again. Twice in a lifetime my weakness had caused members of my family to die. If I had a nickel for every time someone died by my fault, I would have a fucking dragon hoard and nothing to spend it on but alcohol to drown my sorrows.

What was the point of our petty grudges when half the family was GONE and most of those were kids ? And where were the authorities trying to go by lowering the minimum age ? It was dangerous enough when Caesar and Alida and all the others were still around to NOT let FUCKING KIDS play in that yard. What were they trying to do, turn them all into corpses ? Because if so, they were damn well going to succeed.

I punched something. It was in front of me, I punched something. It might have been someone, I don’t care. At least it wasn’t her. Judging by the sound and the flash, there was more than a little bit of power in that punch. I don’t care. She was on my side, and she tried to calm me. I wanted to push her back, to tell her that it was her fault, that she should not have told me all of that. That it was all her fault. But I did not. I think the expression on my face was enough of an indicator of how I felt at that moment. It wasn’t her fault. She was barely seven when the battle happened. Just a child, a young ball of innocence. She did not deserve that. I breathed out, and I tried to ask calmly

“Chrysanthia… Dad, Rosemary… where are they ? I want to talk to them. And… old man, Sybil… all the kids… where are their graves ?”



[Interactions : Chrysanthia ( Deathkitten ), nearby Caesar ( Osuka ), Jupiter.]

 

[Deathkitten]

The Aphera Household​

StarFinger's outburst hushed the crowd of people. The head of the house cleared his throat after just a second, a physical barrier up where his fist had connected, making sure that no one would get hurt. As understandable as it was to be upset, he didn't want any accidental casualties.

"The medical team has given you three a bill of health. You're free to do as you please. After pulling a few strings, your licenses are in order as well. Just... expect a few strange looks," he explained in simple terms, clasping Caesar on the shoulder as he did so, "I understand you may be itching to get back into the swing of things, but please, don't be brash. Remember that villains are sometimes cunning. I don't want to have to see you at the doctor's office two hours after you're back home. Got it?"

With that out of the way, the mutterings of the crowd started up again, conversation returning to normal as quickly as it had ceased.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .​

Chrysanthia didn't waver, surprisingly enough. She continued to look into her uncle's eyes. Sadness and anger both touched below the surface, but neither boiled over. She was good at the serious, just not with meeting new people. She nodded, "I'll take you to them, but don’t put this on yourself... I’m sorry to sound so harsh but that’s selfish of you to put it on yourself. You haven’t had to live with this for the past ten years. Everyone will envy you. Some will be upset it wasn’t their wife or husband or child, but... everyone would have died anyway, whether you were there for them or not. There’s a 30-mile crater in the middle of Los Angeles. Everyone who went there to help died. There were no survivors in the epicenter. You may feel guilty, but... uncle, believe me, the people who didn’t die there feel far guiltier that they weren’t there to help you... to help everyone.”

“My mom hates that she didn’t die there with the rest. Everyone does. Everyone wanted to be there, to help. Everyone wonders if things could have been different. But we have to deal with what’s real. We have to live in the now. People will be happy you’re back. It... it brings hope, and we need some of that. Especially with the anniversary so close,” she finished, then gave him a childish grin, "Oh my gosh my mom is gonna crap herself when she sees you. Maybe I can catch her expression on camera. She'll totally cry. She tries to act so strong and stuff, but I know she's actually a softie. She's missed you. Sometimes she'll talk about you, and how weird you are with your golden stuff."

She pulled on his hand a little, trying to get him to stand, "Okay. So. To the house..." Chrysanthia looked out at the crowd for a second a bit her lip, "Ummmmm... I only had enough taxi fare to get me here... I was just kinda planning on walking back. It's a long walk though... Oh, darn it. You probably don't have any money either. Why would you? You just got here. Uhhhhhh... I dunno. Can you teleport?" She looked up so she was looking at his face upside-down. He was kinda tall... she was also a little short... She was only 5'2" though, so most people were tall to her. "I can kinda teleport... ish... but that's... er... something I'm still working on. I'd prefer to not feel like throwing up though, so I don't think now is a good time to practice."

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .​

Henry seemed to be freaking out a little bit. Oof. Alida watched him nearly punch someone out of frustration, a nurse who was trying to check something on him that was trying to get him to stay still. Good that the old man blocked it. Damn, he was still so fast... Emotional crisis aside (which she sooo wasn't paying any attention to right now), they were just told they had a clean bill of health! Fuck yeah! This was after she had already showered and gotten a change of clothes, of course. Already the showering got her to think of not so pleasant things. She naturally wondered how many members of her family were dead. There were some people she had yet to see, and she wouldn't know yet if they were dead or just busy. She wanted to work right now and think about that later. She could do something good if she was working. If she was crying in a corner over the loss... she wasn't useful to anyone.

She tagged Caesar's arm with a soft, playful slap as she hopped up off her chair, "You get to drive! I'll beat you to the garage!!" Jupiter was running off without another word, escaping all of this. It barely occurred to her that Caesar's car might not even be there anymore.

Osuka Aelia Aeldyne

 

[Osuka]

Caesar Aphera
AKA: Lord Caesar
Location: Aphera House

Medical team cleared him, which was good. The old man cleared their licenses to work, which was even better. The only thing they needed now is an ass to kick, which hopefully was in spades, because he was itching to get back in the thick of it all. The only problem was that they were finding out the death toll as he listened in on Henry and Chrysantia - who he remembered being the tiniest thing he had ever picked up while it was breathing in his entire life, though that was just to safely move her out of his way. Now she was taller and had a lot more responsibilities on her shoulders. It was almost a shame considering the topic Henry decided to pick, but then again, it was bound to happen. They lost about half their numbers, if he was hearing everything right, and there was something that told him just punching the barrier the old man threw up wasn't going to be enough to blow off all the steam he was building up. The guy was gonna need to have some kind of stress relief after he came back from visiting the dead, that was for sure.

A sudden slap to his shoulder snapped Caesar out of his thoughts as he watched Jupiter start dashing off, which turned into a hurried stumble as she had just challenged him to a race.... And there was no way in hell he was losing a race - even if it was Jupiter.

"Hey!" He barked after her while his feet pounded against the hardwood floor, and he was sure to snag the keys that had his tag on them as he passed by. "Hey, c'mon, ya cheater! Better enjoy that head start while you can!!"

If he was still in just as good of shape as before - and with how he started catching up to her while they raced down the stairs to the underground parking garage it sure as hell felt like it, this was going to be a piece of cake. Caesar wasn't just conceited in the idea that he was the pinnacle of physical fitness; he was convinced, considering that was all he had aside from fire.... Which he was going to use liberally.

The moment his feet hit the concrete in the garage, he would use his flames to boost his speed, palms tilted ever so slightly downward as they pointed behind him, and his body would end up blurring straight towards where he remembered his car to be, which was thankfully right where it was when he last left it. He didn't have obstacles to worry about when he was airborne, and if Jupiter was gonna start this race with a lead on him, he was going to gain it back.

"Aaaahahahahaha!!!! Suck it, Jupes!" he cackled as the image of his car was quickly approaching. "Keys were already in my pocket and I got jets! How's that head start workin' out for ya?!"



Deathkitten

 

[Deathkitten]

Jewel​

Given all that just finished transpiring, as weird as it all was, they needed to get back to work. Villains weren’t gonna care if you’re feeling bewildered. She kissed her husband, cupping his cheek lovingly for a moment as she watched his eyes, “It’ll all be alright hun. I’m gonna go back out with Fay. The boy needs to get more experience. I’m guessing you’re staying here and sorting out all the family stuff?”

He nodded, running fingers through her hair. He already looked exhausted, but happy. “I’m going to try to just... take all this in and fix up Caesar’s accounts. I don’t want my brother to be stuck without money or anything.”

“I’m sure you’ll spoil him,” she said and moved to Fay. Jewel clasped him on the shoulder with one hand while the other ruffled the fur of the little rabbit poof.

“Alright! Let’s get back out there. You did a great job but it’s still just the morning. Check your phone, pick whatever event you wanna check out and we’ll go to that one.”

Osuka

 

[Aelia Aeldyne]

Zaphkiel - Beverly Hilton suite​

She was glad that he had let her sleep late this morning, compared to the previous days, when he went on a stealing streak. She had had an awful night – at least early on – so the additional hours of rest were not a luxury in her current situation. The nightmares, the screams – her brothers calling her useless, her sister turning her back on her, and the memories of Lucifer’s voice as he was hurled down to Hell – the fear, the loathing – she had sweated enough to darken the whole bedsheets, afraid that someone would find them, afraid that the one she was tasked with protecting would snap and start hurting her, afraid that she would die, afraid of going down Lucifer’s path; loathing herself for not foreseeing the string of events that led to this day, her siblings for not helping her, herself for not being able to deal with the situation by herself, Enzo for causing this entire mess, herself for causing this entire mess.

When she woke up, she was drenched in sweat, curled up with her small hands clenched around portions of the bedsheets, her hair sprawled across the bed like strands of silk. Her left hand was fine, but her right hand’s nails had torn through the thin fabric and right into her soft skin, causing her first sensation in the middle of the morning to be the slow and warm flow of blood on her palm. On top of that, not being an idle sleeper she somehow had managed to bury herself under the top blanket, waking her up with the usual anxiety knot in her stomach as well as a sensation of weight from above and below. Her eyes sleepily opened.

There was blood dripping from her hand. There was blood, and there was that familiar sensation of a rope, or a snake buried in her tummy, slowly crawling through her organs, making knots with her veins and going up all the way through her throat to her mouth… She knew it was only her anxiety, but the feeling was there, and she exhaled sharply, forcing her eyes open and her brain awake in the same motion. She felt the weight of the blanket, the pressure of anxiety, the blood… everything. It was too much. Second by second, she could feel her breath accelerating, the air burning the insides of her sore throat. The blanket was smothering her, she thought. So heavy, so dense… It felt as if someone was pushing down on it, trying to kill her. She thought…

I am going to die

The thought raced in her mind, and for a split second she did not perceive her surroundings anymore. When she came back to herself, she was sitting in bed, the blanket put away, and she was curled up, her legs against her torso, her arms clenched around. She looked around, trying to remember her surroundings… There was a small digital clock on the bedside table, a lot of space around… ah, right, a closed window, and in the opposing direction the doors to Enzo’s room and the kitchenette. That meant… She slowly remembered everything as she got out of bed, taking off her nightgown and leaving it on the bed, walking in the nude down the silent and dark corridor to the bathroom. She remembered everything, as she got in the shower, letting the hot water flow down on her body, cleansing her of sweat, blood and tears. She remembered, how Enzo enthralled the victims, forcing them to give him their belongings, then changing their memories when they filed a complaint. She remembered the way she felt when she saw him perform those acts, the shivers at the thought that she was risking more than simply her life by remaining at his side. Even though, she also knew she couldn’t leave, and she wouldn’t even start thinking about it anyway.

Turning off the shower, Zaph grabbed a towel, getting herself dry before heading back to her room. There, she just grabbed whatever clothing she had readied in the evening. Today… an angel dress; a long white robe with loose sleeves, the typical garment of lonely people, a piece of clothing that screamed “I need someone to love me”. She’d probably have to change before going out, if Enzo had planned so. She wouldn’t let herself be seen outside in an outfit that would lead to her be thought of as an escapee from an asylum. She felt her right hand hurt again as she was getting her clothing on, and saw that it was starting to bleed again. Grabbing a piece of bandage on the way to the kitchenette, she wrapped it around her wrist and palm and somehow managed to tie the ends with her left hand.

When she arrived in the kitchenette, her first reflex was to turn on the news, powering up the tablet she had left there the previous day. Now, time for the coffee machine to fulfill its office… It took her two long minutes to finally get her steamy cup of sadness deterrent, and she sat pensively while watching the news… The airport and the bank were under attack, and the crater had seen some strange activity. Nothing really out of the ordinary, but even then she paid attention, in case there would be a serious threat in the area. Slowly sipping her hot coffee, she turned off the tablet and quietly walked from the kitchenette to the balcony a handful of meters away. Gazing back, the clock indicated 10:00 – 10am. Opening the curtains, she sat cross-legged, staring aimlessly at the sky. The ocean was beautiful from there, as were the mountains in the background. A bird flew over.

Her voice rang out like a melody played on violin, soft and somber at the same time. She was talking to a nameless bird, staring at the sky, while silently wishing for a chance to be at peace.

“Yes, little one… Fly, fly… I wish I could join you.”


Kyrenka

 

[Kyrenka]

~Enzo~
Beverly Hilton Suite
​

He could ignore the whimpering, the soft crying, all of the noises the angel in the bed, laying next to him, made. Barely, but he could for a moment. Of course, she just had to push it. The shower turning on, the light sounds of movement around the room, the opening of the curtains. It was the whispering that finally caused him to abandon sleep and rip the covers off as he shot up. "Are you fucking kidding me?" A bird flew off in a startled flutter of wings, leaving the windowsill empty once again. "I ask for some fucking peace and quiet and this is what I get? You making all sorts of noises, banging around, opening the curtains and shit? Aren't you supposed to be an angel? Ever heard of being fucking considerate?" Pushing himself off of the bed, Enzo let his fury guide him as he drew closer to Zaphkiel, snarling, "You can't just be quiet for one night? It's always some sort of crying or moaning or even fucking screaming! You know how many times I've had to rewire people? All because you're screaming? And what for, because you're staying in a five star hotel?" Leaning right into her face, his tone changed from furious to mocking. "Oh boo hoo! I'm Zaphkiel and I have to sleep on a memory foam mattress and get whatever the hell I want! I don't even have to do anything, just watch Enzo work his ass off for all the shit we have! Life is so hard for me!" Jabbing a finger into the center of her chest, he finished with a dark, "If you keep waking me up with your dumbass crying, I'll give you something to really cry about." It wasn't an empty threat. If she kept pushing it with all of her whining and bitching he'd teach her to appreciate the things that he got her. "Fuck!" He was up now and wired from his rant. I need food. Usually he'd order some room service, but he couldn't stand being in the room with the angel right now. Without so much as a glance back, he dressed himself and left the room. The lounge should be open. If I'm lucky they'll have something hard available. After his rude awakening, he needed something to calm his nerves.

The lobby was crowded, as expected. High profile people filtering in and out as they went about their day, ignorant to how privileged they were. None of them know what it's like to work for what you have. Resentment festered in his chest as he scowled at the cheerful masses. Sometimes, he wished that his powers were more offensive. He would've loved to be able to actually hurt people; to wipe those irritatingly joyful expressions off of their faces as he mowed them down. They don't deserve it, I do. He'd just have to settle for a resistant angel that would only jump in to help after a shit ton of prodding and provoking. Zaphkiel was another thing that frustrated him to no end. He thought that angels were supposed to be warriors. The day they met she had seemed so strong and her stance practically oozed power; he felt tricked when he realized that she was just a broken woman with feathers. One day he would figure out how to pick apart her mind and remove all of those pesky morals of hers, but for now, influencing the divine was out of his depth.

((Interacting with Aelia Aeldyne 's Zaphkiel))

 

[Daniel Reaving]

Havoc
Location: Bank
Interaction: Cam E. Leon

Havocs look scowled in rage as she head the mans words. Whipping her head around only to see him knock out her people. Thankfully her adorable little psychic started to beat the man down like the brat he was. Hearing her worry Havoc walked over. Crouching down next to the girl she pet her head. “No no no darling. Don’t be scared ok. Sissy will handle it from here. You’re doing so good, just keep it up ok.” She said before kissing the girls cheek to comfort her.

Then her crazed eyes turned to him letting him see the purely insane look as she got up and walked over to him. Immediately she clotheslined him with a force a girl of her size shouldn’t be able to produce. Dropping him to the marble floor in an instant. “Someone wants to be a hero eh?” She asked as she leaned down. Picking him up by his neck and lifting him up. “God you piss me off!! Such a sexy guy wanting to be the good guy.” She said in a more flirtatious coo. Smirking she kissed his cheek before giggiling. “No matter though. I still get what I want... and now I have a prisoner.” She said before bringing him into a choke hold. Once she had him secure she walked to the vault. “Now baby. Let’s ask the simple question hmm? You gonna open my vault for me? Or am I gonna show you why you really REALLY don’t want to piss me off?” She asked him. Gently kissing his cheek again before waiting for his response. Just to give him a hint of what she wanted she held out her free hand towards the vault. Almost begging him to let her have some fun, her little“orgasm” of crazed chaotic evil fun.​

 

[Daniel Reaving]

Aia
Location: Car
Interaction: Kyrenka

Aia only nuzzled into her mothers chest more. Listening to her soothing words as she let out little whimpers and purrs in response. She could tell her tone meant she was sorry but still she was worried her mother was still mad. And it showed as she curled more into her Mother. Her tone was soothing to her ears though. So sweet and loving. It set Aia’s worried heart at ease. When she felt the sweet feeling of her cheeks being cupped she purred quietly and peered her big bright red eyes up to her mothers. Her tongue slipping out between her lips and gently snakeing up to her cheek where it gently licked at her cheek and her lips. It was a common sign for Aia to do this to Anne. Licking at Anne’s lips and cheek was a clear symbol of affection and love for her mother. Something she did probably more often than Anne might have wanted but so far she hadn't voiced objection to it so Aia did it happily. Her smooth alien tongue gliding over Anne's cheeks and lips as she purred up at her in acceptance of her apology​

 

[Aelia Aeldyne]

Henry Keaton - Aphera household​

What could I say… Of course, she was right. I was being selfish, and the worst kind of selfish at that… It just had hit me so hard. For twenty-five years I had not cared in the slightest about my family, estranged and aloof and not giving a damn fuck about them in general, and then the battle happened, and then everyone died and I came back ten fucking years later to learn that about half the family had died. Of course it would be a shock; even though I did not know some of the names she had mentioned, it still was gut-wrenching to think of how young some of them were that day… Considering I was barely 44 when the explosion happened, some of the youngsters should’ve been not even above twelve. I wanted to scream at her, to tell her that she didn’t know how it felt, that she did not have the right to lecture me about guilt. And it would have been damn wrong. Of course she knew how it felt and that feeling of powerlessness when you think that you could have done something. She was there before, and she was there after the explosion, and with all the powers she might’ve had, she could not have done anything.

And here was laying the source of the issue. In spite of all the powers I had at my disposal, that day I might as well have been powerless. Good going, Henry. What did it matter that I was one of the most powerful casters on this side of the states when I couldn’t even stop a tragedy like that from happening ? I resented myself for that, because I did not go all-out that day. I had not used my most destructive powers, and I had kept the others far below what I could have scaled them to. Because I thought I would not need that much power, because I thought I would not have to bring so much to bear against the opponent. What would have happened if I did bring out the entirety of my powers, I would never know, at this point. Still, couldn’t help but think that if I did then perhaps this entire situation could have been avoided. Or perhaps it would have been worse. I don’t know.

I just deflated. Chrysanthia was right, they needed hope instead of anger and sadness. I sighed when she mentioned catching Rosemary’s face on camera, and my “weird golden stuff”. Kids those days… I stood up as she pulled my hand, silent until she asked me if I could teleport. The answer was yes but I did not want to, and as much as I loved explaining what I knew of my own tradition of casting and magic, I was not in the mood for a lengthy lecture about the time energy-related dangers of teleportation. That said, whether I was in a bad mood did not change anything to the fact that I would not accept to teleport the both of us out of here, nor that I wouldn’t do so wordlessly.

“I am sorry, but no I do not have money on me right now. Everything I have should either be at the bank – if George didn’t get it back because I died, as was arranged our situation – or in my own safe deposit boxes at home. And yes, I can teleport, albeit I would prefer to avoid doing so for the time being, at least until I have made sure to disperse any temporal backlash I might have looming on me, if my theory is correct concerning what happened to Caesar, Alida and me. Which is why you will not have to listen to my ramblings any longer, because I am going to open a portal. Stand back.”

Saying that, and after getting a discreet but affirmative nod from the Aphera patriarch, I took the two minutes or so that were needed for me to open the portal, without much effort in terms of energy but quite a lot of concentration, since it was a branch of magic that I seldom used, not being an expert in it. After shaping the energies flowing from the Golden Man into a more or less circular shape came the exercise of breaching open through reality and linking both ends of the portal, which was undoubtedly the hardest part. That said… with a flick of the wrist more intense than it should have been, and a small pulse of energy throughout the room – which wouldn’t fail to sicken the least magic-accustomed people in here – the portal opened with a low and deep sound, showing the front of the Keaton household from across the street. I stepped back and nodded to Chrysanthia.

“After you.”


[Interactions : Chrysanthia ( Deathkitten )]

 

[Trashler]

Today is a very special day for Tomb, and there seemed to be a high sense of excitement in his walk. He had been given a high priority target, and from his experience, highly wanted targets tend to give him a greater lunch. He slowly lumbered his way across town, following the map that appeared on his digital interface. The map of the city was highly simplified, and something you would most likely see in a school. A ringing noise began to play from his earpiece, and knowing it was his employer, Tomb placed his finger on the device.

"Your target currently lives in the Beverly Hilton Suite. Professor Zicam is researching ways to limit or perhaps even disable super-human abilities. His research could impede my other workers, so you must eliminate him. He will leave the building in five minutes from now. Eliminate him, and walk towards the adjacent alleyway to receive your reward."

The raspy voice of his employer often scared Tomb, and this time was no different. He began to make his way towards the hotel, leaving an imprint of his large feet in the concrete below. Finally, after a solid minute of slow walking, he had arrived at the hotel. The large building certainly seemed populated, and his arrival had stirred a few of the bystanders around him. His large figure usually gave a sense of fear into most non-supers, which made it hard to find some friends for Tomb. He walked towards the hotel entrance and eyed the target. His mind began to boil with anger, as rage-inducing chemicals were pumped into the neurons in his brain. He let out a furious roar of fury and launched his fist at the Professor. He crashed through the concrete walls of the hotel, landing on the floor of the lobby, lifeless. The surrounding bystanders quickly began to rush out of the way, terrified for their livelihood. It took Tomb a second or two to calm himself, but once he did, he looked towards the body of the man. Tomb raised his hand towards his earpiece and spoke to his employer in a deep, slow voice.

"Tar.....get......Eliminated."

Tomb stepped away from the hotel entrance and into the alleyway beside. There, he saw a metallic lunchbox sitting on the ground. He picked the small lunchbox up with his hands and sat down on the nearby dumpster. The dumpster's metallic frame barely supported the giant and bent through the sheer weight of him. Tomb eagerly opened the lunchbox and began to pull out its interior. Inside were the usual items, Sandwich, Juicebox, and Chocolate Bar, but something special caught the eye of Tomb. Inside of the lunchbox was a little toy matchbox car, modeled after a sports car. Tomb moved the car on the rim of the dumpster, imitating car noises with his mouth. He tried to make the car do a flip, but he found that his fingers were much too big for the tiny car. In disappointment, he placed the car inside the empty lunchbox and began to snack on his lunch.

Tomb never remembered why he specifically got a Cuban Sandwich, but it was the sandwich that came with the lunchbox, and he had not tried any other kind of sandwich before. The chocolate bar was usually a Kit-Kat's bar that had somehow survived the hot interior of the metal box and remained perfectly intact. He enjoyed what he called, "Crunchy Crunch", in his chocolate, and enjoyed himself when he received a Kit-Kat bar. He gouged the Cuban Sandwich, eating the entire thing in three bites. Tomb had not eaten for a few days, and he generally found himself to get more irritatable when he was hungry. Tomb sucked on the straw of his Juicebox, drinking a small amount of it, before moving on to the chocolate bar.

[Interactions with: Kyrenka Aelia Aeldyne ]

 

[Cam E. Leon]

Scile
downtown

​

Scile sighed as she looked at a map. the map itself incredibly old and tattered. "uh the map says a saloon should be around here.... but this place looks a lot different from the gold rush times....." she said aloud as she dint mind the many stares and glances she got from people. "I tried using an operator on the phone but apparently those font exist anymore." she looked around at the large skyscrapers and busy streets as she looked at her map again, it was in fact, a map all the way from the gold rush. "and here i was thinking i could meet shard and sis after all this time. i cant even pay for one of those buses... why don't they accept doubloons? since when did doubloons stop being used as currency? they were so simple. i mean the military gave me some slips of paper...is that cash? jeez why do humans have to progress so fast!" she complained while holding a bag of doubloons in one of her six hands sitting down on as bench giving up for now.

 

[Cam E. Leon]

Kali
with muse​

Kali watched as her apprentice ran up to her... quite delicate to say the least. she didn't seam much like a fighter. "nonsense. you must pace yourself. a hero that ets themselves get exhausted before the battle begins is a hero that walks to their death." as she said that she reached into one of the folds of her armor pulling out a pistol giving it to muse. "until you learn to defend yourself. keep a pistol on hand and stay behind me. we are going to be assisting with trying to catch a teleporter." kali explained before sighing. Why did she take this gig. watching after a brat...however..she looked pretty photogenic if the hero business fails. maybe she could recruit muse as an actor and set her up with some roles. But for now.. a teleporter. they are quite annoying the best way to get them is to act quickly. or give them anesthesia with a tracker. so you can grab them after the pass out. Kali currently had neither method. as her swords were unfit for detaining while alive. This would be tricky, but a good chance for muse to show her ingenuity and quick thinking/

Deathkitten

 

[Daniel Reaving]

Viara
Location: Downtown
Interaction: Cam E. Leon

Needless to say Viara wasn't expecting ti see what she did, especially on a job. She had decided to do a little solo work and it ended badly rather badly in heinsight, having been caught beaten up and chased out. She still got what she came for though. Pushing through the crowds of people till she hit someone who clearly wasn't normal. grunting as she fell to the ground after running into the red woman she cursed and scrambled to her feet. Looking the girl down as she panted a little before the yells of angry men showed up again. Just down the street about 9 men ran towards them. Yelling about stopping Viara and how they where gonna get her. Her eyes shot between the massive red multi armed woman and the men chasing her. "Shit" she said as she turned around and bolted off into an alley. as the guys rushed past the big woman and down the alley. Only moments later the sound of a heavy crash, most likely someone being thrown into a dumpster with unnatural force echoed out along with grunts and laughs of pleasure from the men. Viara grunted as she sat against a dumpster. pinned there by a telekinetic who was with the group of men. "H-Help!" She groaned out which only made the men chuckle. 'This is what i get for doing this alone huh' She though to herself
​

 

[Deathkitten]

Chrysanthia and Henry Keaton​

He didn't even respond to what she said really, but it seemed to change how he was behaving all the same. She felt bad for him. This had to be impossibly hard, even if you weren't very close to the family. She hadn't even thought about that at first. Before she talked to him, with how stoic he was... she just assumed he was super strong and okay emotionally. That was dumb of her. Chrysanthia bit her lip but tried to give him a small smile as he opened a portal, "That's really cool. It seems so useful! I hope I can learn to do that one day, though, I doubt it. My abilities aren't so fancy." She was rather obviously playing her abilities down. No one in the Keaton family that had powers had weak powers. They were born and bred as a formidable fighting force.

Through the portal was the Keaton estate. Just as big as the Aphera one and used as a headquarters for the family. Not only a home but a place to organize and plan out resources. It hadn't changed much. There was a new domed building towards the back of the property that looked very new, probably a newer renovated observatory. The house was high up on a hilltop to avoid some of the lights and fog of the city. It made for a longer drive, but also meant they had a pretty good view.

It hadn't been thirty seconds before Rosemary opened and practically fell out the front door in her scramble. She froze for a moment, hands covering her mouth as tears streamed from her eyes. Normally stoic and stern, she was completely caught off guard and at the moment didn't care who saw her. Her form stuttered and she teleported closer in a few jittery, blinking steps that (out of context) kinda looked like something out of a horror movie. When she was close enough she hugged her brother so tightly it was like she was trying to squeeze the air from his lungs. She tried to say something, but nothing made sense through her sobs.

Chrysanthia squirmed awkwardly, looking out at the city instead of looking at her mom so... distraught? Happy? Whatever that emotion was she was displaying. It was weird.

Aelia Aeldyne

 

[chaieftainoftheeye]

he nods, "all roight den!" his fire intensifying as he advanced. "come get some ya zoggin gitz!" the bullet's smashing against the wall. the fungus growing into several, small figures growling at the target as they ran toward Mazok, growing slowly as they ran. he continuing the fire into their ranks, the rounds seeming to suppress them all as he continued an advancing fire.

once they got in earshot he shouted at them "OI ya gitz, go and get some scrap and dakka!" on the order they nodded and ran to the police. one of them approaching and speaking. "can we'z borrow yer dakka?"

Aelia Aeldyne

 

[Aelia Aeldyne]

Rosemary, Henry and Chrysanthia Keaton - Keaton Household​

I didn’t have anything to say. How long had it been since I last saw my sister’s face in real and not through a phone’s notification ? Not counting the ten years of not-quite-death, it would’ve been a rough sixteen years since I last met Rosemary face-to-face. And now that we were meeting again, I had nothing to say… When she came to embrace me, I saw that she hadn’t changed an iota - her hair still raven black and her skin white like porcelain. Her eyes though… their silvery hue had dulled, covered by the characteristic patina of the tears cried away at night in silence for too many years… A veil of sadness had been spun over the irises that once were clear enough to reflect the shining stars. I had nothing to say… I simply hugged her back, happy to see my sister alive.

“Hey Rose… I’m… I’m back… I am here…”

She gripped his face and looked at him, looking him over as the tears slowed to a dribble. “Are you okay ? Are you alright ? How has your golden... erm... god responded ? Is he pleased you’re alive ? Angry, confused ? Does he know what happened ?”

“Sis… It doesn’t matter, things are alright on my side of the equation, don’t worry. What matters right now is you… You know what, let’s get inside, sit in the living room and talk… The sidewalk isn’t the right place for a homecoming. I’m okay, I’m alright. Just… let’s talk about this inside.”

I said, holding her against me, gently patting her head as I heard her questions. In substance, everything I said was entirely true - matters related to the Golden Man were of my own responsibility - albeit I could obviously conceive that she was worried about that aspect of myself.

“Yes… Yes, sure” she muttered, shaking her head with a little smile, her face tearful still. She drew him inside, urging Chrysanthia to follow them. Once there… Well, the turn of events had led her to be quite distraught, and she couldn’t decide what drinks she should offer him. “Henry… uh… what do you want ? No… do you even want anything… Ah, it’s… I’m just… Nevermind. Just take what you want, and I’ll do the same.”

I smiled a little at Rosemary’s disturbed antics - she hadn’t seen me for nearly thirty years, of course she would be all over the place and not really having a feeling of what to do. I simply sighed and sat down, indicating that I wouldn’t have a drink. Hearing that about half the family had died had left a too bitter taste in my mouth for the emotion of seeing her alive to compensate for that - I would need to know if she was alright before the sourness would leave me, and I would need to see the graves.

“Calm down, Rose. I don’t feel like drinking anything right now. But feel free to have something for yourself. More importantly, how are you ? Besides the fact that I’m here, of course.”

Rosemary went to answer her brother with her same usual answers; “everything is fine,” “I’m fine,” “It’s hard work but someone needs to do it,” and such empty phrases that were common when trying to avoid answering. But it didn’t help here; it wouldn’t be right. “I’m… I don’t know,” she said honestly. She never thought about it, purposely. There was too much to do, too much management and too much focus on others around her. She was the leader, so everyone else had to come first, and a lot of people lost a lot of loved ones. “I’m happy you’re here. That’s what’s important right now. Are you sure you don’t want anything? I can only imagine you’re tired… Or confused… or… whatever someone feels when they’re suddenly not dead.“

Chrysanthia got herself a glass of water and got Henry one as well, whether or not he wanted one. If her mom was gonna be… weird… then she’d be the normal one. "It’s been ten years since you’ve had a drink or food. Aside from the shower you took at the Aphera’s place, don’t be a weird zombie. There’s lots of time to worry about each other, but if you suddenly keel over from not eating or dehydration or whatever, you’re gonna freak my mom out. Even if that ten-year gap had no effect on you, before that you were in a heated battle, one you definitely couldn’t eat in.”

Rosemary smiled softly at her daughter, “And this little spitfire is Chrysanthia. It’s… strange to think she was only seven before. She’s got a provisional. Laws have changed. She’s right though, you should probably eat.”

“To be fair… I don’t even know if I died - the only evidence that supports this theory is the fact that we woke up without any clothing and that Alida’s contracts were voided. Mine wasn’t, but it’s a special kind, so I’m not really surprised. Of course, I’m a bit confused as to WHY, I’m a little sore overall, though that’ll go away with some rest, but otherwise I’m completely fine. And no, Chrysanthia. From my point of view, it’s been a little under three hours since I last ate or drank something. I can deal with waiting a little more to get sustenance.”

I ruffled my hair, being a little bit embarrassed. It had been nearly twenty - or thirty - years since I last had a bond so close with a family member like the two of them had. Even though I smiled awkwardly, Rosemary’s last comment put a serious expression on my face.

“Yeah, old man Aphera said the same. Now they accept even younger folks into the ranks ? I just hope you weren’t okay with that, sis.”

“We need it. Clearly what we had before wasn’t good enough. Getting the kids more training is the way to go, even if we’re apprehensive about it,” she said, sighing as she settled a little, “It’s not an easy choice, but… There are a lot of regulations about being an intern or apprentice. The mages have been doing that apprentice thing for centuries, after all. But the… Ugh. Let’s use Chrysanthia as an example. She inherited mom’s moniker. She got her apprentice license at 15 as soon as she could. She had to take a test to do so, just like regular heroes. She is not allowed to do any sort of mission without a mentor, and even then, the mentor is supposed to only take them on low threat level missions. The mentor takes responsibility for the kid.”

“You know just like me that the definition of “low-threat mission” varies damn wildly between heroes - even between you and me. And even if she was matched with someone at her power level, nothing says that they wouldn’t be incompatible because of their roles. Doesn’t matter if the mentor is responsible for the kid, doesn’t matter if the threat level is low, if something happens because the kid wasn’t suited to the mission then the kid shouldn’t have been there in the first place. Oh, and because you’re using her as an example, who’s her mentor ?”

My voice might’ve been a little too aggressive and I quickly apologized to Rose. Even though I fully believed what I just said, I was in no right to snarl at her especially right now.

“I’m sorry for the tone. Shouldn’t have said that like that.”

She sighed, “She doesn’t have a mentor right now. She had one before, but they just wanted to get things from the family. Given my position… it’s been hard for her to find someone genuine. The person before, he was a good hero, but she wasn’t about to put up with his political leanings and whatnot. I know it varies wildly. Again. We don’t have much of a choice right now. We need the numbers… and it’s what the government has decided… On the plus side, getting more training is great for them. Most of our kids stay with mentors inside the family.”

“Can’t disagree with the training bit. The more experience beforehand, the better. Politics tho… for practicing them day to day when on the job, I can only say that it’s a complete shithole. And staying within the family isn’t exactly a good thing either - if everyone has the same mindset you’ll be helpless if a problem comes that you can’t handle. Didn’t try to look for mentors in the Aphera or Oscalia families ? or the Morishers ?”


Chrysanthia looked a little sheepish, “Well… I heard you reappeared… and I rushed over… cuz… I was gonna ask you to be my mentor.”

Rose raised a brow, “Aren’t you sneaky. I wondered where my radio went… I swear don’t you have a collection of them by now ?”

“You keep taking them back… or… other people nab them. But… yes,” she huffed, looking away from her mother’s raised brow and mildly annoyed look.

“And, even if we say no to a kid about getting a provisional license… they’d want to anyway. You know how kids are.”

“Wait, wait, wait. Did I hear that right ? You said you wanted to be MY apprentice ? Excuse me but are you out of your mind ? From your perspective I’ve been gone for ten years, from mine you’re still a youngster even at 17, and my job besides heroics here on Earth is way too dangerous for someone like you even if you are powerful in your own right. Yeah, by the way what are your abilities, Oracle ? And you’re going to have to make a convincing case if you want me to consider saying something else than no.”

I was flabbergasted. Keaton or not, Chrysanthia was barely seventeen, a seedling compared to the trees Rose and I were. She’d have to grow a lot more to be in our league. Besides…

“Just to make sure, Rose. I know I didn’t tell you a lot of things about what happened on my end, but you at least told her the little you knew about my activities, right ?”

“What reason would I have to tell her about all the weird things you do? I told her a few of your heroics, but… you were gone,” Rose said, a somber tone returning to her voice.

“I… um… the…,” Oracle stuttered, trying to think of what to say. She didn’t expect to have to make a case NOW of all times. They were doing gross adult emotional stuff. At what point did the conversation switch so hard??? “I do a lot of different things. I learned how to teleport recently, but like I said I’m still working on it. I know… erm… I like the idea of working outside of the main family, but still with someone I can trust. You were like a black sheep, yeah? So… you wouldn’t be an echo chamber… but from what mom said about you, you wouldn’t be the sort of person to try to get to my mom through me. You’re a safe choice, as far as that’s concerned.”

“I know you’re an S-class though, so a lot of the stuff you do is scary… but… it’s also more varied and would allow me to get a better, well-rounded view of the world. I wouldn’t see only the tiny stuff, I would see the scary stuff too. I would see what it’s really like… and… It would make me better prepared to punch a member of the OA in the face one day,” she swallowed hard, looking down, “But um… my abilities. As I said, they’re varied.”

She stood up and brushed off her dress a little before the same rings descended on her and changed her outfit back to the starry theme they were before, “Obviously I can do this little quick-change. It’s better to do work in this. Civilian clothes don’t stand up well to the…” She motioned vaguely, “everything. There’s the oracle stuff I can do… predictions, visions, and a tiny bit of manipulation.”

“Which I wish she would work on more. That’s such a rare facet in our family,” her mom interjected, eyeing her.

“Manipulation feels… weird. Um… but there’s also other stuff. Like… I can…,” she muttered, feeling the shyness descend upon her. She summoned forth the rings again, though they hovered and orbited in place now. She touched a spot on the ring and a screen popped up in front of her. She touched another spot and another screen appeared. Both were small, and followed the location where Henry and her mom were, respectively. “I can make these sort of… displays. They let me know how someone’s doing. How close they are to passing out, how much energy or stamina they have left… I kinda… modeled them after video games once I got how they worked better. I can cast through them to buff or otherwise… and if I used it on an enemy I could do a spell on them from pretty long range. I haven’t hit a range limit yet.”


I listened to her little speech, and faintly sighed when she finished. I have to say, the girl was full of surprises, though I had my lot of comments to make, and I wouldn’t shy away from expressing my worries if she ever thought seriously about becoming my apprentice. I rubbed my chin pensively before replying, trying to find the best words.

“Would be more exact to say that I agreed to be the black sheep of the family - that aside, I am your mother’s brother, young girl, and I have nothing to gain from her just because of that, and while I might have a pragmatic mindset it doesn’t apply to family. That aside… If you are serious about becoming my apprentice, and if you become so, you’ll discover that while I spend a lot of time on the job here on earth, I spend a lot more on the job NOT on earth, and this is where the scary comes, because THERE, you’ll be force-fed scary until you pass out. Dudes like Cthulhu are chill compared to what I face out there. But granted, if you were to manage to endure through that, a member of the OA shouldn’t be a problem for you.”

Crossing my fingers in a professor X pose, I went through what she mentioned of her abilities.

“Manipulation, as in time manipulation ? If so, Damn, that’s one power many would kill for. Otherwise… your abilities seem strong, but not combat-oriented, from what I hear. You would probably be extremely valuable in a team, as a support or the central coordinator. I’m not saying you can’t be a hitter, but you’ll have to work for it if that’s your goal. You also sound suited for rescue/evac, which is always a plus considering the amount of combat heroes running around.”

“Which leaves only one question. What are your motives for becoming a hero ? Broadening your worldview ? Revenge against the OA ? Or something else ?”

“Multiple reasons… and… I have more than just those abilities… I don’t mess around with the time manipulation thing though. It… it’s disturbing. I know I’ll need to practice it eventually, but,” she shuddered, “It’s just not something I think a human should be able to see… like, physically see, not morally.” Oracle sighed and picked at her nail a little, “I want revenge, sure, but that’s not a good reason to be a hero. I mostly just want to make people safer. I want to protect those that can’t protect themselves. I want to change the world for the better… though uh… you spend most of your job off-world?” She looked… rather surprised at learning that. The idea of someone that looked like Henry, or any of her family members for that matter, going into space was a weird one.

“I have, um… a life-support sort of magic, which I guess would work in space,” she half-muttered, her rings changing and splitting, one going to her head, the other to her feet. A translucent purple barrier appeared in the space between, shimmering slightly in the light. “I can also do a little general magic. I’ve studied a lot. Like… a lot a lot. I love to read the latest peer-reviewed papers on magical discoveries and articles about new techniques and all sorts of stuff. My magic takes a… bit of a family-based turn, of course. I can’t get away from the space-theme, even if I want to, but still. It’s magic!” She seemed genuinely excited talking about magic now, and smiled wide.

“I think it’d be so cool to be given the title of Merlin one day! Or, or or. Some cool space title from somewhere you take me! Or… could take me… sorry,” she tilted her head as she spoke, mind racing with the possibilities, “Does your gold council have some sort of apprentice thing? Maybe your gold god guy could take me as an apprentice! If you don’t, that is. Or I could be both! I could be your apprentice and maybe I could meet your golden man! Is he cool? What’s he look like? Is he actually gold? And if he is gold, does he look gold like a sunset or gold like metal or gold like-”


Rosemary cut her off, “You are getting waaay ahead of yourself little miss. Calm down.”

I eyed my sister, and sent her a telepathic message. <I’m going to accept, but don’t tell her yet>. That said… She was eager to be a hero, which was always good, but she sounded TOO eager which was an issue. She also seemed to have an interest in magic, something I could only approve of, and in such a way that she was eager to learn more about it. Bonus points for her. I just had to clear two misunderstandings.

“Just to make things clear - or more confusing, but hey - I don’t work in space. Our plane is a mirror, I work on the other sides. And the Golden Council does not take apprentices - and describing the Golden Man is physically impossible. And your mother is right. Calm down. Eagerness is good, but so is patience. Therefore, I will give you my decision tonight only. You’ll have to wait.”

Rosemary raised a brow but said nothing, giving him a short nod in response.

Oracle squinted her eyes a little. That did make it more confusing. “So… like… different planes or something? Weird… and that’s okay. Take your time. I didn’t plan on asking you about it anytime soon since you freaked out so hard earlier.”

Rose looked a little concerned at the comment, brows furrowing, “Are you sure you’re alright?” She shook her head, “No no. You would say if you weren’t. I shouldn’t keep hounding you. Well… now you’re back. What would you like to do?"

I sighed, emptied the glass of water Chrysanthia had given me and asked.

“Would you happen to have some whisky somewhere, sis ? I’ve got a lot of graves to visit and one to piss on. Gonna need fuel for that.”


Deathkitten Osuka

 

[Deathkitten]

Muse and Kali/Shield and SoulFlare​

She nodded and bowed politely, "Of course miss. Sorry. I'll pace myself better." She was handed a pistol, and Muse looked it over for a long moment. These things were usually a little expensive, so she didn't have too much experience with them. She had hunted before, but that wasn't with a pistol. "A teleporter?" she repeated, thinking about the difficulties therein with such a thing, "As long as they can hear me, my singing should be able to at least slow them down, which would be key with such a villain... Do we know if they're armed?" An armed anything was more dangerous than an unarmed one.

Muse fiddled with her own radio for a moment, looking at the screen at the events currently in progress. Teleporter torturer. Sent out by SoulFlare. Wasn't she a spooky scary skeleton hero? She fiddled a bit more with the radio until she could call SoulFlare with it. A few minutes later, and the two of them had the location to meet up. "Warehouses by the crater... huh? I haven't spent a whole lot of time there. It's kinda creepy. Too quiet and somber. A great place for a villain to hideout though, I guess. There's probably quite a few over there that we don't know about."

Ten minutes or so later, and Kali and Muse had arrived. The abandoned state of most of the buildings readily apparent, with rust coating the metal, weeds overgrown, graffiti on more than a few buildings. Ten years of disrepair. Perfect for such a vile torturer.

Upon meeting with SoulFlare, Muse looked to her mentor to have the conversation, especially after noticing the villain Shield with her. That was weird. Was she babysitting him or something? And wasn't his rap sheet pretty awful? She wasn't exactly a no-kill hero, so why was he still alive?

Shield noticed Muse staring at him and sighed, allowing himself to get distracted as the heroes talked to one another. The boy wandered off towards one of the abandoned buildings along the street, wiping dust off the window with the side of his hand. He had hidden out here in this part of town more than once. It wasn't somewhere the heroes wanted to go. Too close to their biggest failure of the century. Most heroes were too ashamed. They didn't want to be anywhere near it. Painful memories, he supposed.

Cam E. Leon ManofManyRoles

 

[ManofManyRoles]

SoulFlare

After having roared off from the Hero Registry building, Shield was subjected to her daredevil like driving, the bike going over vehicle, road, and building. At one point she had ramped off of a truck meant for hauling cars, sending the bike into the air, and into flight. Something about being able to defy the natural laws of physics and drive like a madwoman all at once was a high that she couldn't get anywhere else...if only she could enjoy it. But in this instance, her focus was finding the psychopath responsible for so much undue suffering and giving them what they deserved. Soaring through the air towards the crater rim, the bike touched down to a skidding halt as she swerved it, leaving a streak of fire instead of skid marks.

Stepping off the bike and waiting for Shield to do the same, the vehicle was consumed in a hell-bonfire, leaving nothing behind once it died out. Eye sockets soaked in the sight of the destroyed and decayed buildings, a soft 'hmm' escaping her. Glancing over to take notice of Muse and Panzer she started over, glancing towards Shield to make sure he didn't wander too far. She doubted he'd actually try to take off on her, she could easily catch him again after all. "Alright then...I have no clue where the woman's gone off too, hence the ABP. Her torture building should be somewhere in this area...hopefully if we can search through likely candidates we can find clues on where she may be hiding at. If you catch her before me, just...hand her off to me. Neither of us are well known for cooperating panzer if what I hear is correct...but we both believe in people getting what they deserve, correct?" She wasn't ignoring Muse to be rude, but she wasn't sure how much meaningful input a new apprentice might have, and she wasn't one for pleasantries anyways, not while she was working.
Deathkitten Cam E. Leon

 

[Deathkitten]

Jupiter and Lord Caesar​

Without magic, there sure as hell wasn't any way Jupiter was gonna win that little footrace. As she slowed to a stop in front of Caesar, she was laughing and smiling. She patted the hood of the car, "Ooo! For ten years, this thing looks pretty nice still! Lucky you." She squeezed his bicep a little as she passed by and slid into the passenger seat, "You win, but you're still driving darn it."

She flipped on a display on the car's center console. As it sprung to life, it showed the events currently underway at the city, color-coded, and noted who was responding to each event.

Red events... there was something going on at the airport, but heroes were already responding. Bank robbing in progress... seemed like no one had really responded to that one yet. Civilian hostages... That might be fun. SoulFlare... whoever that was... was looking for some teleporter, but had some heroes helping. Yellow... someone named Razka was crossing the border. Preferred interception. Did they wanna drive that far though? Eh... they'd punch his face in if he actually made it here. Some... break-in at a library? What? Who breaks into a library? Then the one green currently active. Thefts over the course of the week. High-profile. It wouldn't be very action-packed, but it would be fun to do some investigation.

She looked at Caesar, "What do you think? Bank sounds like fun. Library sounds weird, but the crazies are always interesting. The thefts would be fun if you're up for more investigatory stuff, but knowing you I bet you wanna scare the shit out of a villain. Up to you. I'm cool with all three. I've narrowed it down for you. You're welcome." She grinned and stuck her tongue out at him before distracting herself with setting her seat in the position she liked best.

Osuka