Blood_Wolffe

Chapter 3


I ordered an autopsy on Mike. In my report I referred to the small pieces of metal that came from inside Mike's brain. I want to know about them specifically, but it would be another day before the autopsy report came back on Mike. So I go back to my apartment in King's Row and decide to drink myself stupid. I take a couple pills and go to work on a bottle of whatever is handy. I sit in a beat up red leather recliner that I assure you, is more comfortable than it looks, and turn on the TV. The news talks about an upcoming election in the senate. Its a debate between two candidates.

“Paragon City is the focus today, as the two candidates, Senator Harry Whittaker the current Senator, and James Schaeffer the challenger, clash on issues regarding the method of hero registration. We go now, live to the debate floor.”

Senator Whittaker was an older looking man, his white hair and glasses accentuated his nearly regal presence. James Schaeffer, on the other hand was a slick young man in his early thirties with an Armani suit and a killer smile.

He began his argument, “Increasing the time it takes for heroes to register will only hurt Paragon City. With the current level of criminal organization activity lengthening the process will only prove to be dangerously beurocratic. At this point in time we cannot afford to do this.”

James Schaeffer gave his counterpoint, “However, Senator Whittaker, the current registration process is irresponsible. Downright negligent! Anybody can walk into city hall and walk out as a licensed vigilante that day! Where is the screening process? I agree that slowing down registration would be dangerous, but giving contracts out to private organizations to screen, train and equip these heroes will keep the rate of new heroes in the city up while still being able to see who we are giving such authority.”

Senator Whittaker raised his voice over his challenger, “I refuse to hand over the city's most powerful assets to the hands of private companies! They do not have the same agenda and I believe, and I am sure even you Mr. Schaeffer, can agree that they would not have the city's best interests at heart. The Citizen Crime Fighting Act protects these fine heroes from being exploited and owned by corporations. I will do everything in my power to protect them.”

James Schaeffer snapped right back fearlessly, “And I will do everything in my power to protect the citizens of Paragon City. Contracting out to companies that have the manpower to do this, under strict regulations and guidelines of the city is the only way to see who these heroes really are.”

John was drunk now, but the suits on TV gave him a headache with all their bickering. Mixing his medicine with brown liquor made him drunk fast. At least when he mixed it with alcohol the pills took all the pain away. He turned off the TV and drifted off to sleep still gripping an empty bottle of whiskey that was rested on the floor.

Where am I?

I cant move. Strapped to a chair.

I look down to see what is holding my hands down. Oh god, my arms. My arms are cut open. Muscles pulled back like I am being studied in a lab.

"Look at me."

I slowly pick my head up and look in the direction of the voice.

I see a man, but not his face. He hides in the shadows.

“Jonathan... Michael ... Kimber.”

As a machine gives a mechanical high pitched whine and drills into my brain a buzzing sound rumbles my body so hard I try to scream. I cant hear myself over the noise.

John awoke with a start again. He hated that dream. He wiped his face as he yawned, then looked at his watch. Half past five in the morning, he had slept for almost twelve hours. That autopsy report should be done by now. He got in the shower to wash the smell of booze off, then put some fresh clothes on. He wasnt one of those suit-wearing detectives, he wore a leather jacket, t-shirt, and jeans. He found not looking like a cop worked to his advantage when talking to civilians. He grabbed his badge, pills, and gun on his way out the door. Then he remembered the small silver tab. He had hid it away in a secret compartment in a desk he had. He got it out and studied it for a moment. It still had dried blood on it from his friend. He furrowed his brow as he tried to decipher what it was fruitlessly before putting it in his pocket.

He got in his car, an '88 oldsmobile, and headed for the country. As he drove he saw some heroes occasionally, on their way to serve justice. He arrived at the little rural police station. Stepping out of the car, the heat of late June slammed him. He squinted from the bright sun, looking at the much nicer police station than his, it had pine trees on either side of it and a wooden sign in front. Backwoods rednecks probably. Much less busy looking too. He put on his sunglasses and walked in.

He walked up to a rather bored looking kid of a cop at the desk resting his face against his hand. He couldn't have been more than nineteen years old. Small town. He was watching the news, still talking about the election and was unaware of John's presence as he walked up to him.

“Excuse me.” John said to get his attention.

The kid looked up at him with half open eyes, “hmm?”

“I'm Detective Jonathan Kimber.” He showed him his badge, “I am hear to see the autopsy results of Mike Ellis... You do have a morgue, don't you?” He said a little impatiently, raising an eyebrow.

“Yeah, its through those doors and follow the signs.” He said pointing towards the double doors.

He walked through the doors and down the hall following the signs to the morgue. Just outside the morgue was an older man. It was Sheriff Brady from the cabin.

“Hello Sheriff, have you guys found anything out from your autopsy yet?” He asked.

“The doc is in there now, writing his report.” The sheriff hesitated a little, “Are you sure you wanna do this? Your friend is pretty messed up in there.” He said.

John ignored the sheriff's inappropriate comment, then pushed the door open went inside. He walked over to the small, slightly creepy, thin man in his surgeon outfit.

“Can I help you sir?” He said.

“What did you find out about Mike Ellis? What are the metal pieces?” John asked.

“Ah, Mike Ellis. Are you the officer who ordered the autopsy?”

“Detective. And yes, I am.”

“Well I found nothing of the sort Detective. No metal pieces, I assure you.”

John flustered for a second, “No. I saw them myself. I know they were there. Show me his body.”

“Certainly sir.” The coroner said.

He walked over to a metal drawer in the morgue and pulled it out. The man unzipped the body bag and opened it up to show John.

There it was. Mike's body laid out cold on the drawer. Not a single silver piece of metal in his wound. He couldn't believe it.

“Open his head up. I want to see everything.” John said.

“Right away Detective.”

The man put the body on a table and fetched a bone saw. John winced and looked away as the man worked. Then the coroner opened the head, exposing the brain. Nothing. No small pieces of metal. Something wasn't right.

“Maybe what you saw was... your imagination, Detective. Its just a suicide, nothing more.” The man said like he was telling him that was what he had better believe for his own good.

John's hand was in his pocket, feeling the small silver piece of metal that had come from his friend's wound, “Yeah, you're probably right.” He said taking a step back, “No need for that report then. Thank you.” He said as he turned around and left the morgue. As he did the coroner eyed his hand in his pocket.

Out front was the kid cop at his desk, still watching TV. He nearly walked out the door when the kid spoke up.

“That coroner is pretty creepy huh? Our regular guy called in sick today and referred us to him. That guy never calls in sick. I remember this one time he had a really bad cold, but he still came in. He musta caught something really bad.”

John froze in with his hand on the door at that. Then he quickly resumed towards his car. He got in and sat down, breathing hard. He tossed his badge on the passenger seat and it bounced to the floor. He almost reached for it but decided it wasnt worth the trouble. His heart was pounding.

The coroner stepped outside the morgue, “Thank you Sheriff. Make sure this room goes unused for a little while longer, my associates will be by shortly to relieve you of this burden and you will receive your money. Now if you will excuse me, I have a call to make.” he said glaring in the direction John had went.

Every muscle in my body tells me to get out of there as fast as I can.* I want to.* But I freeze there in my car.* Somebody did something to Mike’s body.* Somehow they took those little pieces of metal out of him.
*
Go John.* Put the keys in the ignition and go.* Now!
*
John took his keys out of his pocket with a trembling hand.* He forced himself to start the car and start driving back to the city.

Someone was trying to cover this up now. Who was it? What did Mike get into? I decided I probably wouldn't get answers from this side of the table. So it was time to see my friends who didn't operate on the straight and narrow.

Pinnacle also has a large RP SG ring called the rp congress. I would say Freedom has very little from my own experience.

((Dont quite follow you on "current story". This has nothing to do with any other stories besides some slight references to in game history. Anyways, here is the next chapter.))


Chapter 2


Before I was a detective I was a patrolman in the Hollows before it was known as that. The crime rate was soaring as trolls suped up on drugs overwhelmed us. We were fighting a war and we were losing. Eventually it became known to several companies that specialized in police equipment. With the new demands of the police force they raced to find the next biggest tool in the war against super powered crime. It seemed to good to be true when they donated their services to us in the hopes that it would be a huge success when field tested.


Before the Hollowing


Several officers sat in a presentation room in a high rise office in steel canyon. Most watched the cloth draped over some mysterious object, but John Kimber kept his eyes on the man in his expensive suit. He eyed him suspiciously. He was from Gyrospear Industries. A mega company that designed military weapons.

“Officers, I give you the latest tools to keeping the streets safe.” The man said.

He took a cloth off in a manner almost fit for a second rate magician. Underneath the cloth was a very high tech, very powerful looking rifle. It was close to .50 caliber.

“This is the 'XT9 - Savage'. It is specifically designed to take down the biggest threat you face out there, meta-powered criminals. While the rifle itself is light years ahead of anything out there now, the real miracle is the bullet itself, so I will begin there.

First, it is made of a special alloy. This alloy doesn't break down while in flight or while travelling through objects." Objects. Ha, funny. He meant people, "This means it travels farther and straighter. It also adds to its ability to penetrate. Second, in the bottom of the bullet is a solid fuel core, effectively making the bullet a rocket. This has many benefits. The kick on this puppy is really strong and we didn't want it to be any stronger, but we wanted the bullet to have more power, this does that. It also adds to the accuracy and range, but here is the really great thing about it. We discovered that the fuel core speeds the bullet up to the point where it breaks the sound barrier. Meta-humans can sometimes be so fast that they can dodge bullets from hearing them incoming or even feeling changes in air pressure. This eliminates that. Depending on the distance, a sonic boom reaches the target nearly a full three seconds after the bullet arrives. The bullet gets there before the shockwave.

Third, and this is where the actual rifle tech comes into play, the barrel gives the bullet an electromagnetic charge as it exits. This helps the bullet to penetrate any kind of energy that might be protecting the meta human. Think of it as making the bullet very slippery, allowing it to squeeze through about ninety-eight percent of nearly every kind of energy out there.”

John found it interesting, but they were in close quarters battles. Not much use for a sniper rifle there. Before he could ask a question he got the answer as the presentation moved on to the next company and the next project. Another man in a slick suit from the Biotechnologies corporation.

“Ladies and gentlemen. For years we have studied these meta powered criminals. Trolls, Outcast, Tsoo. We have discovered several technologies, training and procedures that could level the playing field, sometimes even giving you an edge in the war on crime. We can safely make people faster, stronger, able to heal themselves nearly instantly. We can make you Meta-Cops. We call it, 'Project Steel Eagle'”

One man raised his hand, concerned.

“What about side effects, or risks?” he said.

“These procedures have been thoroughly tested and been found completely safe sir. Most are even reversible if you ever decide you don't want to be super powered." He said with a smile. Most of the men gave a little laugh at his charm, "We assure you that we will take every precaution to ensure your safety. I would also like to mention that all volunteers for this project will receive a 20,000 dollar incentive award. We need brave young men like you to help keep the streets safe. Think of your fellow men. Think of all the good you could do for not only the city, but the future of law enforcement. We will have a contact sheet for you after the presentation, just leave your name and number and you will be contacted. I will also mention that there is no obligation to do anything if you sign up. This is only for an in depth consultation. I thank you for your selfless service gentlemen. Allow Biotech to serve you. Thank you.”

There were more presentations but that was the one that stuck on everybody's mind. Afterwards, men talked and joked about wearing spandex like the heroes that occasionally helped out. They made a huge line to sign up to get the consultation. Who wouldn't? They were paying to give power. John Kimber thought it was just too good to be true. He noticed some of his precinct buddies were lining up. Mike, a skinny tall guy, and Jase Mitchell. He was a big brute, but was generally harmless, unless his friends were threatened, then he was a bull on a rampage.

“What are you doing Mike?” John asked.

“This is a chance to help keep other cops safe. The money wont hurt, but if I can keep a family from waiting for their mom or dad to come home, only to get squad car with his uniform and badge in some apologetic stranger's hands then by god I will do it.”

Thats what Mike got waiting for his dad one night. He was ten years old when his father was hit by a stray bullet came through the windshield of his squad car because two drug addicts were fighting over the last hit, or turf, or who knows what. It was never solved. When the doorbell rang he had been the one who answered the door. He said he could see his father's blood all over it, even though it wasn't the uniform he was shot in.

John decided to keep an eye on his friends by signing up, after all it was just a consultation. He could just check it out. See what exactly these philanthropists were up to. He got in line with his friends and was silent, ignoring all the chatter around him. He wore a look of deep thought on his face.

What did two giant corporations care about some underfunded precinct? The same one at that. Nobody is that generous. Not without strings attached.

I never did get a call though. Two weeks later there was a APB to all officers in the Eastgate area. A raid had gone sour on a superadine storage area in the tunnel network and backup was needed. It was just bad luck that it happened to be right next to the explosives cache that made Eastgate what it is today. Our entire precinct was destroyed. Gone, like it never existed. Many of my friends died that day, and I would have too, but my car had its tire shot out by a gang member on the way to the scene. I was driving on a rim when suddenly the ground beneath me collapsed into the pit that lies there today. My car tumbled down the street that was now nearly vertical. It seemed like the whole world was spinning around me until I slammed into the crumbled remains of a building. After what seemed like hours I crawled out of my car, scraped and bruised. Then, everything went black in an instant.

I woke up a full two days later to the sound of a rescue crew. I had been half-buried in some debris. Mike, Jase, and I made it out all right as well as a few others. We were transferred to different precincts. My injuries were found to be too long term to be on the streets. My joints were shot, so I took the detective's exam and was transferred to homicide in the King's Row precinct. If only I had known.

((This story can get graphic in some parts.))

Chapter 1


Where am I?

I cant move. Strapped to a chair.

I look down to see what is holding my hands down. Oh god, my arms. My arms are cut open. Muscles pulled back like I am being studied in a lab.

"Look at me."

I slowly pick my head up and look in the direction of the voice. In a mirror is my reflection. The top half of my skull is gone and the skin is peeled back. As a machine gives a mechanical high pitched whine and drills into my brain a buzzing sound rumbles my body so hard I try to scream. I cant hear myself over the noise.

The buzzing in his dream faded into the real world slowly but he still jerked awake. It was someone at the door of his apartment. He grabbed the pistol by his nightstand and shambled for the door, half asleep but heart still racing from his dream. They were pounding on the door now. Looking through the peephole he saw that it was two uniform cops.

He rested against the wall next to the door, "Whattaya want?" He said loudly.

"Detective Kimber? This is the Paragon City Police, we need you to come with us." One of the cops said.

After a few locks turning the door opened revealing a strong young man in boxers, a three day old shave, and a look of apathy. The cops noticed the gun he was holding by his side right after that.

"Detective, we need you to get dressed. We have a hostage situation in the outskirts of town."

He looked confused, "What do you need me for then? I'm a homicide detective, not a negotiator."

"The man who took the hostages says he knows you."

“Who?”

“We don't know yet sir, he hasn't given his name yet, but our negotiators are working on it.”

"Oh... Okay. Give me a minute."

He shut the door and began throwing on some jeans and a T-Shirt, making sure to grab his pills on the way out.

The drive ended at a plush cabin style house just outside of town in a rural area. It was a beautiful house. Out front were several squad cars with lights flashing. Off in the distance was the sharpshooter team and behind the Police lines were the few spectators. Detective Kimber walked up to the police chief who happened to be on the scene.

"Hello Sir, I am Detective Jonathan Kimber. I heard the guy here knows me? You got a name yet?" He asked as he took two of his pills.

"I am Sheriff Brady, we got a name a few minutes ago, it's Mike Ellis. He says he knows you, but we couldn't find anything on him connected to you. Do you know him?"

"Yeah, he and I were in the same district in Eastgate before it became the Hollows." John said.

His expression grew serious at the sound of his friend putting himself in such a bad situation. He was always such a straight shooter. Nothing seemed right about this.

"Well, he is demanding to talk to you. You don't have to, but if you could help, it would be appreciated."

"Of course. Where is he? I will go to him. I don't think talking to him in front of all these people is going to get us very far."

"I would advise against it, but we haven't gotten anywhere with him and I am willing to try anything at this point. You will wear a vest though."

He submitted to that, and followed a SWAT team up to the stairs leading to the third floor. They held back while he continued to the floor his friend had fortified. There were signs of a struggle and some blood. He made his way slowly through, following the path of damaged designer furniture, household goods, and blood. Then he saw the body of the man who owned the house with a bullet hole in his head. Mike was standing next to a window peaking through the closed shades.

"Mike? It's me, John. What is going on here? What are you doing? Who is that?" He said slowly taking off his bullet proof vest.

He continued to look out the window as he talked, "He is one of them... Something is wrong with me John. I can feel it. Underneath my skin. Behind my eyes. In here." He whispered pointing at his temple, “I can hear them in my head. Telling me to do horrible things, and I cant fight them.”

"We'll get you some help Mike. We can see some people and - "

He spun around pointing the gun at him, shaky, sweating, and with tears rolling down his face. John put his hands up. He regretted taking his vest off now.

"No! No, John. Nobody can help me. But I can help you, us. I will show you what they put in me. I will show them they cant do this to me." He said trembling as he put the gun up to his temple, "I'll show them."

"No!" John yelled.

The sharp crack of a pistol is so indifferent. It made me flinch. I have seen countless murders and suicides before. But I have never seen anything like this. My jaw dropped in disbelief. From the exit wound, coming out from it and in the wall were several small silver pieces of metal. Slender and flat, but long. They probably run throughout his entire brain. I look around to make sure no one is here yet. I only have a few seconds before the SWAT team bursts in, so I quickly get one of the small pieces of metal I can find and with no other place to put it, pocket it away. I'm not sure why, it could get me arrested. But deep down, I feel that I might need it. I will find out what happened to you Mike. I swear.

Name: Blood Wolffe
Apartment: somewhere on the fifth floor.
Story Teller: Blood_Wolffe
Description: Approx. 6'2 with canine teeth and blue wolf eyes.
Summary: Taken at birth and experimented on by Crey for 20 years until they decided he was a failed project. The scrapped the project and him, leaving him for dead in the woods of Alaska. He was going to just die when a mystic wolf bit him, transferring its power and soul into his body. He then gained powers (energy/fire) and his senses functioned at a supernatural level. Crey now wants him back, and occasionally tries to recapture him.

Thanks to Yydr for reminding me to do this.

Name: Blood Wolffe

Archetype: Science Energy/Fire/Fire Blaster

Age: 30

Origin Story: You Cant Make Some Heroes

Theme song: Supernova Goes Pop, Powerman 5000

Why: It just seems to fit him. I dont really have a theme song for him.

Backstory posts: Old open RP, and The New Empire (About the size of a small novel, you have been warned, I put the link at the first page with him in it.)

Personality: Very loyal to his friends and willing to make any sacrifice to protect his "Pack". Also very cruel to his enemies. Has problems with heroes that think killing is wrong. He has the mind of an animal so those morals dont apply. He also has the intelligence of a human so he can see their side too if he wants too. When he gets emotional or angry his human side takes over and he is less predictable. When his wolf side is in control he is keen and calm. Crey occasionally tries to capture him, usually with little success.

Physical appearence: Roughly 6'2 and very physically fit (Duh, he is a hero). Sharp, canine teeth and blue yet wolf-like eyes. He sometimes has a specific power when looking into his eyes, but in present time it is dormant. Other than that appears completely human. Wild hair and old shave. See sig link for further details.
In game appearence

More like a summary, like this...

Statues were raised for Tick-Tok and Blood Wolffe. Nothing big, they wouldnt have wanted that. They were made the way the people closest to them remembered them. Not as they died but how they lived. The artists were told to capture their best qualities. Tick-Tok as a young man, genius, kind, and always looking to the future. Blood Wolffe as he was when Captain Neem remembered him, wild, free, and fiercely loyal.


The next story will be in the present day anyways. Not related to this one. If you want you can PM me what you want said, I can brush it up.

Thanks everybody. Your support and advice helped so much in this. It took over 6 months (6 months 4 days to be exact) to finish but I enjoyed every bit. I looked through all the comments on it (not just to stroke my ego I swear) to appreciate how much support I got and realized it was huge.

I decided on no epilogue. I like it with its open ending. Not to say you cant decide what your character did afterwards. If you even want to post your character's epilogue, be my guest. Kind of like an open RP but please limit it to one or two posts. I thought I have held the reins enough. That and I am focusing on the next story.

Thanks again,

BW

Edit: Oh yeah, most viewed Fanfic! Woo hoo!

Very well done. The characters are described in great detail. It has a classic feel. Diana is one of my favorites among the gods too. But I wonder how the two will go as far as to become hero and villain.

After reading it all I have to say, this is a very well thought out bio. The in-depth explanations dont miss a thing. Of course the story is very good too. Well done.

I didnt really explain that one good. It was love for the fellow hero. That family bond. Love is the strongest power. Cant be hate with more hate kind of deal. I didnt want to delve to far into it at the risk of sounding too corny.

By the way, since this project was so big, I will be doing a small epilogue to properly thank all the people who volunteered their characters and helped me along the way.

XXIV. Conquerer of Worlds and Souls



The thick steel door silently swished open.

“Did you do that Tech?” Eternal Twilight asked.

“No.”

They cautiously moved in and the door closed behind them. The absolute quiet of the cavernous hanger like room they were in was a shock from the chaos of the battle outside. The slightest noise echoed. Every step they took was carefully placed. The ring looked up in awe at the massive machine in front of them. It resembled the old Portal Corp. portals but was roughly a hundred yards tall and wide. Vapors drifted down from its vents. It was in preparations to begin. At the middle of the machine, in the small open space was The Center in his armor, and Requiem, waiting for them.

Steele Magnolia aimed in and fired on full automatic. The tracer rounds could be seen curving away from him while he just remained still. When he decided he had displayed his power thoroughly he willed the gun out of her hands and flung it to the other end of the cavern. It smashed to pieces off the far wall.

“Charge!” Captain Neem yelled.

The Center and Requiem waited. As the group closed in on them and attacked every shot deflected off an invisible wall. Lord Raymond swung his axe with all his might, and watched it splinter a foot from harming The Center or Requiem.

The Center tilted his head toward the direction of the heroes. They all dropped in agony to the ground holding their heads.

“I have traveled across thousands of dimensions, conquered millions of worlds, burned entire planets into oblivion, and you thought that you could stop me? Hope is admirable, but it can only get you so far. Power is how wars are won, and mine is without limit.”

“Who are you?” Michael said through his teeth, gripping his head.

“I am The Center. My empire spans across hundreds of dimensions. I have been conquering new worlds for thousands of years. I will not stop until I have conquered them all.”

The Center looked at the control panel and telepathically began the sequence. The roof above them opened and the machine began rising up out of the mountain. The rain poured in down on them as they were lifted out of the mountain. The machine's individual giant rings of metal and wire began to rotate. The Tesla coils hummed deeply with electrical charge.

The Center spoke to the heroes still on the ground as they approached the top of the mountain.

“A long time ago I was mortal. I had begun my conquest of one world when I realized I would die long before I could reach my full potential. I decided it would not happen, so in another dimension long since wiped out, I had a machine developed. It serves two purposes. One: It is a War-Ender. Using my mind I can see into everyone else. I can see whether they will live under my rule or decide to rebel against me. I can see the weak and cowardly, the useless ones. In that moment I can suck the life right out of them. In an instant millions will die. It is the perfect weapon.

Two: To prolong my life indefinitely I needed unfathomable amounts of energy. With this machine I got it. The life force that gets sucked out of those that rebel is fed directly to me. I feed on war and death, and once all worlds are under my rule there will be only one state. A new empire of all known universes. All who defy me will serve my immortality. There is just one problem...”

Lightning struck the Tesla coils on the outer ring and lingered there. Its immense power radiating throughout the machine.

“I need someone to stand in the machine with me, one to be my lieutenant so I can see into the people of this world.”

Requiem stood a little taller.

“I want you to be my Lieutenant Michael.”

“What!? What about me!?” Requiem said with shock.

“You have served your purpose.” The Center said flatly.

“No!” Requiem yelled as he charged The Center.

Without so much as looking at him, The Center ripped Requiem apart with his mind. An explosion of blood splattered across the heroes.

“Michael. Rise and take your place as the lieutenant of my armies. You are Council, and you have proven your worthiness. I knew when I selected you at birth you had something special. I knew when you were a young officer in our armies, you had a lust for victory and the skill to achieve it. I had you trained by the best, and you surpassed them. Your place is with us. I know how you care for them.” He said waving his arm towards the others, “So I will spare your mother. My generosity doesnt last forever, so decide now.”

“Never!” Michael said taken aback by his offer.

“Then no one will live. I have set fire to countless families' homes and told them to quench the fire with their tears, I have sucked the first breath out of infants' lungs, I have made parents chew on their childrens' bones. I am The Center. I am merciless, and you will be no exception. I only need to conquer this planet, I do not need to rule it. I will rip the life out of everyone on this planet, and move on to the next one.”

The machine had reached full speed now, and at the center of it they were all inside a swirling dome of light that was getting brighter.

The Center removed his helmet. Living for thousands of years, his flesh barely clung to the bone. It was somewhat transparent, and twisted with milenia of pure evil. His eyes were nothing more than two lifeless eyes that belonged to the dead.

“Your family will die first.” The Center said as wire thin energy snaked towards him from the dome of light that surrounded him.

The battle on the side of the mountain stopped. Everyone turned to look at the top. A beam shot straight up into the storm. Everybody suddenly felt weakened, and felt as if they were getting thinned out.

Michael grabbed The Center. The Center felt a new Michael, his DNA slightly tinged with something new.

“Look.” He said, “Look.”

The Center looked at Michael's eyes, glowing blue with energy. In the mind's eye Michael could see everything The Center had done and The Center could see all the pain and misery he caused. So much death and pain caused by one man. How was it even possible? He was physically sickened by what he saw. What was worse was the look on The Center's face. It was not one of regret or pity. They were all victories to him and he was about to add another.

“Now, watch them feed my immortality.” The Center said.

“Not my family.” Michael whispered before charging him.

The connection between Michael and The Center broke the one gripping the group of heroes. They all got up and rushed to the two locked in an invisible battle

They all rushed The Center to each give him the most ferocious attack they had ever given. The mental wall The Center had protecting him crumbled under their combined might. But it was not because of their physical strength or even sheer determination. It was that they did it to protect each other.

The Center stumbled back screaming. He fell backwards into the dome of light that surrounded them. In it he disintegrated into the swirls of energy. Everybody's energy returned to them as the machine lost all light emanating from it. The dome surrounding them fell away, and the machine began shaking violently and parts were flung from it in all directions as it began to tear itself apart.

“Run!” Captain Neem yelled.

They all took off at full speed looking for shelter as the machine shook the ground beneath them, getting louder and louder until its malfunction reached its peak.

To the side of the mountain the rebels, who had defeated most of the Council army, watched the top of the mountain as it exploded in a giant cloud of dust and debris. The rebels cheered, some standing on the enormous fallen robots, but Mister H just watched with concern on his face. When the others realized the heroes were up there they all fell silent, watching the top for any sign of life. When enough smoke finally cleared the could see Captain Neem holding Hero 1's flag as he hovered in the air.

The crowd roared with cheers. They had won.

Michael took the highly polished Council pistol he was awarded so long ago. The one he considered using to take his own life at one point. He threw it off into a random direction, never looking at where it landed.

Captain Neem floated downward to rejoin the tired heroes.

“Now what?” Helen asked Neem.

He looked up at the sun breaking through the clouds that used to be the storm and held her hand in his.

“We rebuild it.” He said, “Together, we will rebuild our future.”

“It wont be easy, there is much work to do.” Lord Raymond said raising an eyebrow.

Captain Neem looked at them, then at the crowd of rebels down below with a smile, “There is a whole world of heroes out there ready to do it.”








Deep inside a dark cave a rat chewing on a rotten carcass suddenly squeaked out in pain as it was run through by a long sharp piece of metal.

Metal Wolffe observed the dead rat on the end of his long sharpened finger.

“They stole my revenge. They took everything away from me! I wont forget it. They will feel the pain I went through. They will all pay, and I will be feared by everyone!”

Virtue is dubbed the unofficial RP server and I hear Pinnacle has alot of RPing too.

I would go for a batman type hero. A guy who works with gadgets and has personal reasons for fighting crime.

XXIII. The Best Laid Plans


Another deep clank resonated from the hollow wall in front of them.

"Ready?" Captain Neem asked them.

"Ready." They said.

The door to the main Council base was tall and wide. Hundreds of yards tall and wide. The small band of rebels watched as the ground shook, and the wall of the quarry shifted. The wall began to rumble to life, slowly moving up to reveal the inside of the base and whatever defenses waited for them. It slowly raised revealing nothing but a black abyss inside.

The door stopped and everything suddenly fell silent except for the sound of rain beginning to pick up and their pulses quickening. They watched the darkness, waiting. Lightening struck nearby and for a fraction of a second they saw them. Council soldiers, Warcries, Hoverbots, Vampires, and Warwolves. Looming behind them was a giant Council war machine bot. A red light moved back and forth, scanning them.

The Council began to advance to attack. The rebels aimed in but remained among the concealment of the small forest. The soldiers marched forward in perfect unison, the sound of their boots hitting the ground created the imposing cadence of a well disciplined unit. The Warwolves and vampires stalked behind them. Then the giant behind them slowly stirred to life and took a long, lumbering step that shook the ground. From deeper inside the base two more red lights activated and began scanning the enemy. The other two war machines began to slowly stride towards the opposing band of rebels. They could hear and feel the thump of each footstep as the war machines approached.

Some of the men began to inch back from their positions. Some began to tremble. One man began to back away a little too far.

"Hold your ground damnit!" Mister H yelled to everyone to resteel their nerves.

Then someone eventually got anxious and fired a shot into the approaching army. It was as if that was the Council's signal to charge. They all ran forward, the great war machines keeping their almost lazy pace. Both sides opened fire. The space between them instantly became a violent exchange of weapons fire as bullets whizzed and whipped passed, criss crossing each other.

"Go!" Mister H yelled to the Ring.

Lord Raymond looked up to the giant robots now winding up their giant gun arms.

"We should help!" He yelled over the gunfire.

"The best thing we can do to help now is to do our mission!" Steele
Magnolia yelled back as she tugged him away from charging the giant robot.

They skirted around the battle stealthily to sneak inside the main base. The battle became a close quartes one as well as the charging army reached the underground rebels. Warwolves savagely tore through people as vampires darted around bullets delivering lethal cuts and slashes with their claws. The sound of the giant robots weapon arm winding up was deep and loud enough to shake the ground. It fired and a huge explosion engulfed several of the underground and sent more through the air to land rough on the ground.

Mister H cut through a vampire yelling, "Fall back! Fall back!"

The Ring entered the main base. The inside was huge. The cold feel of metal and concrete was definately there, with the high ceiling and catwalks resonating the buzz of the alarm. It was apparently empty except for them. They moved deeper inside towards their goal.

James Keenan watched through the tops of the trees as the giant robot approached. Rockets exploded off its chest, not even slowing it down. The underground had fallen back deeper into the forest and the Council was giving chase.

"Come on! One more step!" He hissed through his teeth.

The giant war machine complied and it stepped onto the pit they had dug earlier and covered with trees and foliage. The trees snapped under the weight and the giant robot began to topple over. Its servos whined and clicked in protest as it came down. The Council soldiers in front of the robot scattered out of the way of the crashing machine. A giant spray of mud and trees exploded from around it and those who werent on steady feet fell to the ground as well when it shook. That was the signal for one of the few heroes who were among them with super speed to run up the arm of the robot. Trak streaked up to the back of the neck of the robot as it moved in slow motion to get up. He planted a bomb where the head met the neck and streaked back down. When the robot got to its hands and knees the bomb detonated, prying its head off its body. It wilted over slowly back to the ground. They hadnt counted on three though and having seen their tactics the Council would surely not fall for the same trick twice.

The heroes were making their way deep into the labrynth of a base now. As they rounded a corner a Council soldier spotted them.

"Intruders!" He yelled as he activated an alarm.

Immediately, Captain Neem blasted him with a pulse of energy, but it was too late. From outside another brief alarm sounded and the Council began to head back for the base. The two war machines slowly turned and began their long strides back to the base.

James looked for a super speeder but could not get near one as they darted around. They needed to close the door. If the Council got back in the Ring would never get there. Eventually he picked up a satchel charge off of a body and began running for the base.

The heroes came to a room full of computers.

"I can get us in with these." Techsupport said.

He began hacking into the system and the others stood guard waiting for the wraith of the Council to rain down on them. A sound caught Steele's attention. She followed it to a small tower with a screen on it. On the screen was the face of Helsinger. The Council had his personality downloaded so they could keep the powerful weapon.

"Helen... I missed you. Its been a while." He said smiling.

She stopped in her tracks.

"You're all going to die! All the ones you love first! Michael will die in front of your eyes! Then we will have some fun." Helsinger growled.

Neem was behind her, ready to calm her down if she broke down from it.

"Not this time." Helen said as she aimed at the screen.

She fired several rounds into the screen of a ghoulish, screaming Helsinger, then pulled out the hard drive and smashed it. A sense of closure, victory, and happiness washed over her for a moment.

Techsupport turned back to them, "Okay, I got codes and directions, lets go."

James Keenan came to the inside of the base with the Council chasing close behind. He searched for the engine that raised the door then ran for it when he found it. He climbed the massive engine and dropped the satchel charge into a groove in it. He turned around to climb down only to face a large Warwolf. He pulled a pistol and it charged. As James shot it, the Warwolf collapsed onto him. Its weight pinned him down, he could barely breath, it was so heavy. He struggled to get it off but couldnt. Two vampires and another Warwolf reached the top. James gripped the trigger and imagined himself back in his apartment in Steel Canyon. He decided that if he could choose where he goes that thats where he wanted to go in the afterlife. He gave the approaching Council a few choice words and pulled the trigger. The explosion took the engine, James, and nearby Council with
it.

With no support the door began to fall. One of the giant robots was near the door and put its arms underneath it as it fell to keep the door up. Its arms were violently ripped off and it was forced to the ground with the massive door as it crashed and dug into the ground, the earth around it shooting up into the air, shaking the whole mountain.

The Ring of Resistance arrived at the door to the room of The Center's machine. It was time to face the devil himself.

Good lord Swifty... I will write the next one. Consider me on it, it will be up within two days.

Are too!

[ QUOTE ]
No they don't!

[/ QUOTE ]

You're not arguing, you're just contradicting me!

So when does it start and when does it end? I certainly hope it doesnt end at 5% still. That is what? 25 hp at level 50? level 50 villains hit harder than that. If I am that low I have the villains full attention usually.

XXII. Preparing for War



Eventually the road turned and ahead of them was a rocky path that led up the mountain. It was old and worn down. Steep and threatened to sprain the ankle of the unwary traveler. Eventually they were using their hands to as the path faded away into rock and plant life. They climbed for what seemed like hours in the rough terrain.

Thoughts of "Where are we? Are we lost? Are we anywhere near where we are supposed to be?" ran through everyone's heads.

Lord Raymond was ahead and came to a plateau. For a moment he was watching something, then turned back to the group.

"We're here." He spoke as if someone had just drained him of all his energy.

Everybody rushed up the last few feet to join him at the plateau. About a thousand yards away and to the left was the rest of the mountain. A wall had been carved out of the side and roads led to the wall with a mining shaft cut into it. From where they were they could see it had collapsed up to the entrance. Other than that there was no sign that anything had been there for years. It was an old abandoned mine.

Everybody suddenly understood why Lord Raymond sounded the way he did. They all felt it too.

"Just Great!" Eternal Twilight said kicking a rock down the slope they just climbed up, "What are we supposed to do now!? Thats the master council base!? Its just an old mine!"

As Eternal Twilight released his frustration about their current situation Acier noticed something off to the right. Light smoke coming from over a hill.

"Shhh! Everybody look over there."

The group grew silent and looked at the rising smoke. Captain Neem and Steele Magnolia split the group into two silently and led them on different paths using hand signals to the hill to see what was causing the smoke. When they peeked over the hill they saw almost a thousand tents set up with campfires in various places strewn throughout the tent city. Captain Neem was about to send someone to scout the area when he heard the sound of a bullet being chambered from behind. Turning around he saw a man with a rifle pointed at his head and several of his friends pointing their weapons at the rest of the Ring. He slowly put his hands in the air. He looked over to where Steele was to see her in a similiar situation, hands in the air staring at him.

"Captain Neem!?" The man said, lowering his weapon, "We've been waiting for you guys! Come on, Follow me!"

The two groups joined up and were led deep into the camp. Various people were out of their tents, shaving, eating, talking or something else. When they passed, however, they grew silent and watched or saluted them.

"What is going on here?" Captain Neem whispered out of the side of his mouth to Steele."

"I have no idea."

Eventually they came up to a tired looking man, who seemed to have just a little bitterness in him. When he saw the group he smiled and walked toward them, extending his hand. Captain Neem offered his with a flashy smile, but the man walked right past him. He watched the man walk past him as Steele let out a giggle. The man walked up to Mr. H, "My name is James Keenan. I dont know if you remember me but you were leading the underground resistance. I showed up at the last meeting it had."

Mr. H cocked his head at him for a moment trying to place him.

"Yeah, I remember you. I guess the underground resistance bounced back well, but how did you get here of all places?"

"Not all of us here are the underground, though most of us are just some bottom rung guys sick of being under the Council's iron fist rule." He said, as they observed the people with various weapons and civilian clothes, "We did hook up with some Meta-humans.

As for finding you, word has spread all over the world about you guys. We followed the trail of Council defeats you left. Then about two weeks ago we saw a bunch of Council movement and tracked them to this place." He said wide grinning face that turned confused at the group's stunned faces, "You guys dont know? You're all famous! Everybody knows about the Ring of Resistance, you guys are the ones everybody is counting on to stop the Council."

"I think Im going to be sick." Rose Cross said.

"Lets talk over here." Mister H said as he walked off with James to spare the rest from being reminded of the size of the situation.

Strangers began to walk up to them singing their praises, or asking them if they had seen a family member, or offering advice. It started to seem like they would turn into a mob on them until one of their leaders told them to disperse.

Mister H followed James into a large tent. On a table was some photos and other papers of gathered intelligence. "So you tracked them here, where are they?" Mister H asked James.

James looked through a few of the photos and handed one to Mister H.

"Is this what I think it is?" Mister H asked.

He was looking at a Truck with a flatbed trailer on it. On the trailer was the head of a giant robot, Council insignia stamped on it. Almost exactly like the one from the cleansing. Almost indestructable. It was driving into the wall of the quarry they saw before. Except it wasnt a wall, it was a door. In the picture it was raised just enough to let the truck in. Blurred out in the background was the two feet of the robot. He could see other things but they were too blurry to tell what they were. This time he was sure they would take more precautions to safeguard it from the same heroics that destroyed it last time.

"I think so, yes. We could hear alot of activity coming from inside the mountain a few days ago, but it has stopped since then. Now that you are all here I think we should strike soon. We also have this" James responded handing him another picture.

It was of a Council soldier at a small panel that opened next to the door to enter his code.

"Thats our ticket in." Mister H said.

"How? Its got a retinal scan, voice, and face confirmation. We have enough C4 to blow a small hole in the door, if we-"

"Save the C4." Mister H said, "I have an idea."

Mister H returned to the group with the photo and showed them the firepower they were up against.

"How soon can your troops be ready Mr. Keenan?" asked Captain Neem.

"We can be ready in a few hours." He replied, "If you can spare him, Mister H is our commander, I was just rallying them in his absence."

Captain Neem turned to Mister H, "Its his choice really."

Mister H nodded, "My place is leading them. Besides I have a plan. We have any tools for digging?"

Everyone looked at him with a furrowed brow, trying to figure out his idea.

The signals were sent throughout the tent city and everyone was either readying themselves for battle or digging. Mister H gave the Ring the rundown of his plan.

"Im open to any ideas if you got'em." Mister H said.

"Sounds good." Steele Magnolia said, "What do you guys think? This is it."

"This is what we came to do." Captain Neem added.

"Im always ready for a good fight." Lord Raymond said.

Everybody else nodded or gave an affirmation.

"Good." Mister H said, "We are going to do this right now. However it ends, its been good knowing you guys."

"Likewise." Michael said.

"Hurry! We dont have much time!" Keenan yelled to the people digging, "I hope this works." He said to himself.

At the hill before the tent city, Keenan looked to the mountain and the ground between him and it. There were some trees between them. Good for cover and concealment. He had no idea how many troops were waiting for them, but it was certainly going to be more than their few thousand. He felt a rumble come from the mountain. A brief one. The wind blew through the trees as the overcast sky grew darker. It would rain soon.

Eventually, the army of rebels was positioned in the trees. Thousands of them. Mister H was at the center ready to give commands. The ring was off to the side of the mass of people. Captain Neem gave them one last look. They reminded him of the citizens of Paragon City he used to save. The ones he couldnt save. He shook the thought from his head.

"Okay, Techsupport go hack the door."

Techsupport gave a nod and took off, flying low and fast towards the door. Hacking was his specialty. He came up to the console and turned the screen on.

"Easy." He said with a smirk on his face.

Opening the console he looked for a place to connect. He pulled out a disk he always kept in his armor, just in case. He put it in, and punched away at a pop out keyboard. Then he took the disk, shut the console and returned to the group.

"Did it work?" Steele asked.

"Just wait." He said confidently.

A few seconds passed and just as they were about to doubt Techsupport they heard a huge clanking sound. Like metal locks. The door was going to open.

As the first few drops of rain landed, Mister H looked up at the sky then the door, "Your move."

*Shoots hole in roof of car to get out, then shoots Revolver's gun several times, suspending it in the air while its spinning with bullets*

Dead or alive, you're coming with me!

*Grabs on to Revolver as cattle prod zaps him*

[ QUOTE ]
*slaps Blood_Wolffe around a bit with a 2x4*

Nothing like a good piece of hickory.

[/ QUOTE ]

It doesnt hurt so much here... or here... but more in this area here. Do you see a bruise?

/em clint eastwood voice and squinty eyes

Well, well, well.... Look who it is.

I accept your challenge sir