Jakey_K

I'd like to nominate Knighty for his take on ShadowFury, showing a firm grasp of anatomy.

And you know, people who give make me feel fluffy inside.

that amused me more than it should, XD

*plays with it for another five minutes*

'cause ... er ... um ...

OH LOOK, A PIGEON WITH A GUN! I'M SURE HE'S GOING TO KILL US ALL!

*escape*

Caught on Camera

Don't shoot me, I like living.

this was just a quick headshot from funny angle that my friend showed me how to filter with Photoshop. I'm really BAD with photoshop, and prefer to ignore it and try to replicate filter effects with real media, but she thinks it's good for me to know so she showed me how to do grain like this.

I don't like the angle of the hat, but I wanted his eyes showing so figured he'd tip it back every now and then. :P Duster hats and I are still at odds when it comes to drawing the buggers.

Noooo, stop eating my cat!! D:

He will give you indigestion.

My very good friend is staying over for a few days, and she makes me draw and then colour what I draw. :P I'm not as good as her, and probably won't be ever ever ever, but here's my attempt.

Ha HA! Can't catch me, I'm the GINGERBREAD cat!

Disclaimer: Cat is not actually made of gingerbread.

It took a while for the lemurs to work up the courage to return to their throne room, their guide leaving to go find them again, in which time Esher had declared himself the 'l33t Kingz0r' and sat proudly on the large stone chair. Jakey curled up on his lap, taking advantage of the peace to have his pre-lunch nap. Esher, for once, stayed sitting down longer than five minutes.
"So … Rogue Islander." Avenger folded his arms, looking down at Immemoria with a slightly lifted eyebrow.
"So, Paragon Hero." Immemoria had his hands in his pockets, looking slightly bored. Muse checked his watch.
"How long are they going to keep us here? I asked Arc and Winters to watch the baby for half an hour …" he murmured.
"One of these days, someone's going to ask before dislocating me to do their bidding." Shingi glowered at Esher.
"Bow downz before the L33t King!" laughed the young man, making Jakey twitch a bit in his sleep.
"In your [censored] up dreams."
"So what do you think this 'Light Warrior' business is all about?" Chillblaze folded his arms, looking up at the foliage that sprawled across the roof. Something that looked like a bunch of grapes was visible through the leaves.
"I don't know, but look at this place …" Shingi left off trying to get Esher to behave in an adult manner and walked to the open wall. Rubble crunched under his boots and the others turned to watch him.
Beyond the room, a ruined stone city, nearly lost under verdant vegetation met their eyes. Flocks of birds as brilliantly coloured as tropical fish swung around crumbling towers and spires. Their calls filled the air with a cornucopia of sound.
"It's a-"
"Paradise." Immemoria's quiet interruption made Shingi glare around at him. The fairy shrugged.
"Well it is. I can't smell any fumes other than wood smoke and that's miles away."
"I just want to know where we are so we can go back." Avenger put his hand on Muse's shoulder, just as worried as he. Unlike the others, they had a baby at home. Chillblaze joined Shingi on the 'balcony of tree branches and caught stone.
"Well … unlikely we're on Earth. Unless Earth just started orbiting a gas giant without telling anyone." Shingi put his fists on his hips.
"That's going to make checking the stars at night complicated."
Gaze joined them both, Immemoria keeping close.
"Do you think you'll be able to work out where we are, Shingi?" Shingi shrugged.
"I would have thought stars were more Chill's expertise." Chillblaze threw up his hands.
"You become a professor of Thermodynamics once and everyone expects you to have eight degrees in meteorology and astronomy!"
"Can you work out where we are?" Gaze asked him again. Chillblaze dropped his arms and shrugged.
"I can give it a try." Gaze nodded and looked down at Immemoria.
"Think you can lend a hand? I know fairy technology is-"
"I'm a general, Gaze, not a scientist," he said, his hands in his pockets. His comment made Chillblaze and Shingi exchange glances, the latter pushing his visor up to get a better look at the short man.
"Guys, the fluffy things are back." Muse called the others out of their huddle. Gaze watched as the lemurs started collecting in the branches, one of the older ones with a silver muzzle was peering at Esher anxiously. The young man picked the still sleeping Jakey off his lap and scrambled up onto the back of the chair and peered at the lemur back. The lemur shrank back a bit. Gaze could feel his anxiety in raw spikes and rubbed her temple.
"Esher, come back here." Esher turned his head to look at her then jumped off the chair and joined them. The lemur with the silver muzzled leapt onto the back of the chair and peered down at Jakey, who was curled up with his hands over his face in typical cat fashion.
"You are the Light Warriors?" The silver muzzled lemur crouched down, his long tail hooked lightly over a vine. Despite his anxiety and earlier panic, he seemed firmer than the others. Gaze took a step forward and bobbed her head a bit.
"The one who brought us here said we were, your majesty." Her intuition paid well, the lemur drew himself up a little, revealing the glinting gold chain half-buried in his neck-fur.
"Then you must be. Kel is our supreme arch-mage. He does not make mistakes." The lemur king nodded down to their guide who hurriedly groomed his haunch, as if embarrassed by the praise.
"We'd like to know why we were brought here, if it pleases your majesty to tell us." Gaze silently thanked all the time she'd spent with Madam Delphine, watching her mannerisms and listening to the way she spoke. She didn't know anyone who had more experience dealing with 'nobility'.
"It is said that the Light Warrior is the salvation of Bolero. We are in desperate times. An enemy is determined to take our world and kill us all." The lemurs in the vines made unhappy, frightened noises and clung to their neighbours. Gaze had to half close her eyes to focus on just herself for a moment.
"You are at war?" Immemoria took his hands out of his pockets and folded his arms, giving Gaze a moment to centre herself. The king shook his head.
"We cannot fight them. They are giants like you, covered with a skin so thick nothing will get through."
"How come you haven't already been taken over then?" Immemoria may have been frowning, it was difficult to tell. The king pointed to the open wall, his tiny finger indicating a large domed structure.
"The Ancestors left us a device that protects Bolero. There is a shell around our world like an egg."
Gaze glanced at Shingi, who flipped his visor back down and started tapping his fingers against the contact pad on his palm. He blinked when he saw the power signature. He turned on the radio in his helmet, so he would be able to talk to his team-mates in private.
"It's some kind of nuclear reactor, but it's way beyond anything we've got. These Ancestor people must have been a hundred times more advanced than us."
"If you have such a shield, why do you need us, majesty?" Gaze asked. The king's ears went back a little and he looked around at a much older lemur sat up above him and watching the proceedings with cloudy eyes.
"The records of the Priestesses who have tended to it for generations say that the star that burns inside it grows smaller. The shell will fail when the star dies. They say that the Light Warrior can fix it and make the star live."
Gaze blinked. They wanted them to fix their generator? She turned her head to glance at the others. Chillblaze shrugged, Muse and Avenger looked at her quietly and Esher was shifting restlessly. She looked down at Immemoria, who was giving her a hopeful look. It would be a good opportunity for them to spend time together without having to be afraid of being seen. Not just that, helping people who couldn't help themselves was what Heroes did.
"We'll certainly do our best, your majesty, but it may take some time," she said. She believed in her team-mates, four of them were among the smartest people she'd ever met. If they couldn't fix a generator a hundred times more advanced than anything they'd ever seen, then nobody could.
On that cheerful note, she smiled reassuringly for the lemurs.
"Of course, of course! Bolero welcomes you, Light Warriors! You are our guests and whatever you want, we'll do all in our small means to provide." The king looked heartened and all around them, lemurs cheered happily, like their salvation had come.

[ QUOTE ]
After 2 weeks of just school work, I needed badly a break and did these things fastly yesterday night... Grumbl... I'm not exactly "satisfied", don't know exactly why...


[/ QUOTE ]

can you try dicking about with the background of Iron Skin, maybe throw in some 'noise'?

Edit: also, forgot to mention, I really LOVE this style. It seizes your attention and there's lots for your eye to take in but at the same time, it's not cluttered.

more like group sex.

Defenders do it in groups, after all, XD

hey, LoC, I teamed with you the other day as North Face,

Down in the slightly bizarre place we call us and a few coalition buddies, it's Tank Appreciation Day.

Here's what I did for it.

Five for my favourite tanks who make me laugh, keep me safe and brighten my day just by being around.

(left to right: Kalis Elfling, Gekido, Winter's Knight, Lionheart UK and the MidnightAvenger)

"How did Mr Avenger take it?" Winters asked, sitting in the mini with her knees pushed up against her stomach even though the seat was back as far as it could go. Jakey rubbed his nose with the back of his hand.
"Surprisingly well. Gaze and Lionheart were cooing over her when I left. Muse wants Venji to be her legal guardian and her parent too." He stopped at the red lights and glanced at the statue of Atlas that dominated most of the views in Atlas Park. Winters nodded.
"What was it like in there? The delivery room, I mean?" She too glanced at the statue, then looked back when the light went green. Jakey pulled away from the line.
"Tense. Then that elf woman offered me up as sacrificial victim to the hungry Nictus. Must remember to thank her adequately for that." He glared at the road with some intensity and Winters hoped Delphine would be watchful of Jakey for a while.
"Still, it all worked out, right? Oh, about the house, did Muse say he wanted a garden?"
"He did. And it's got to be away from the Council's territories." Jakey took the turning for Steel Canyon.
"Alright, I think I know a good place to look."
"I'm leaving it in your hands. Apparently I have fun baby things to go buy." Jakey propped his elbow on the mini's door and leaned his head on his fingers. They drove in silence for a while until they turned down the road that lead to Winters' apartment block. A shattering explosion going up from the building and Hellions dancing around outside made Jakey put the brakes on with a screech of tires. Already several heroes on fire patrol were racing past them to the scene, some to take down the gangers and others tackling the fire.
"My … apartment …" Jakey couldn't see Winters' expression in her helmet, but her tone said it all. He blinked.
"You had insurance … right?"
"Y-yeah but … they blew up my home …"
Jakey watched as a huge man covered with stone armour bounced a Hellion's head off the sidewalk.
"How about you come live with me and Muse and the baby? It'll be fun, I promise. We can all learn about nappies together."
"They blew up my home … I had CDs in there … really good ones …"
"Next time, buy fire-proof ones."

fin

The delivery room was quiet for a moment, silent for just a second after the cries of Varehn eased. The doctor took the surgical scissors from Delphine neatly and made a cut, handing them back without a word. He took the towel offered and cleaned out the mouth of the baby, wiping it clean and then lifting it into the soft, clean blanket the elf held out. She wrapped the tiny form in it for warmth.
By the side of the bed, Jakey was crumpled on the floor, his eyes rolled back in his head. Varehn dropped his hand and removed the last support holding him up. He sagged in a small, fragile looking heap. The soldiers, who had long since put their weapons down at ease, eyed him sceptically. Perhaps they were really seeing him for the first time. How small he was, the delicacy of his limbs and the fluid way he bent. He did not seem something to be terrified of any more. The Nictus pushed herself up slightly, eying Delphine with an exhausted smile, her face still etched with the grimace of pain.
"It seems your usefulness has come to an end, my dear. But this service you have done will not go ignored. You will make a fine host to one of my brethren. Now give me my child."
Delphine smiled a little, holding the bundle.
"What child?" Varehn frowned tightly, about to move when she gasped and held her stomach.
"Your work is not yet done, or didn't you know why they call it 'after-birth'?" Delphine's smile was brilliant behind the veil. Varehn's eyes flashed with black purple vapour.
"Mind your tongue! Give me my child!" she spat. The men now lifted their guns and pointed them at Delphine.
"Shoot me and I drop the baby. She won't survive a fall like that." A hard edge entered Delphine's voice as she backed towards the door, the entire room in her vision. Varehn groaned as her body started its aching pushing again.
"Just grab her and take the baby, you FOOLS!"
Delphine suddenly lifted the bundle above her head.
"Try it and I throw her down!" A ripple of shock spasmed through the soldiers. They faltered, unsure. Varehn chuckled, then laughed, gripping the edges of her bed. She looked at Delphine.
"Oh will you now?"
"I have seen the results of a Resonance explosion. I will murder before I see it happen in this world. The baby goes with me, or I kill her." Delphine's voice was cold. Varehn bared her teeth in a grimace, which turned into a twisted smile.
"If I did not require this body to sustain my child, I would dearly love to take you for myself. You do not seem to understand, my dear. You can't get out. There's no way your gambit will work." Even as she said it, she motioned her soldiers to step back and lower their weapons. Seeing that Varehn was going to try and negotiate rather than force her hand, Delphine lowered the baby into the security of her arms.
"You forget, my dear, that Honourable United never works alone."
The door behind her hissed open. For a moment, Varehn's smile was triumphant, until she saw who was on the other side.
The huge, imposing forms of Winter's Knight, Jambalaya and Langlais seemed to fill the doorway. Beside them, almost unnoticed, stood Sapphire Serenity and Thunderstrike. Behind them hovered Andreas Smith, still in his 'nova' form and in front of them stood Muse, tousled, bedraggled and smeared with the blood of his comrades.
"Sorry we're late. Traffic was murder." Muse sounded hoarse and a trickle of blood worked down from the corner of his mouth. Delphine never took her eyes off Varehn. She smiled softly.
"That's alright. All's well."
Varehn gave a bitter, bitter hiss, too weak to stand.
"You were bluffing, you [censored] …" her voice was loaded with hatred as she stared at Delphine. The elf woman smiled again, then snapped the blanket open. The soldiers started with shock and Varehn howled with fright, then stared at the absence of baby.
"B-but … where-?!"
"Surrender, or we all fight and we'll win." Muse cut past Varehn's shock. The soldiers, true to their Council training, attacked while their commander was stupefied. The fight was short and over before any significant injuries could be taken by the heroes. Langlais watched as the prison teleport tag dematerialised Varehn and then turned to crouch by Jakey.
"Is he alright? What happened in here?" Winters crouched by him too, her helmet on the floor beside her as she prodded her mentor. Langlais gathered him up into his huge arms with a light frown.
"Seems he's been on the receiving end of draining. Nictus do it to preserve their life." He unfocussed his eyes a bit, then nodded, "he'll be fine. Just needs to rest and recover. He's made of sturdy stuff, I doubt I could have hung on after such sustained draining."
"Muse, I would like to introduce you to someone." Delphine crouched by the bed and took something out from under it. Muse stopped worrying about Jakey and stared at the tiny bundle of blanket.
"How did-?"
"I travelled with gypsies for a while in my youth, earned our way as a circus. I always had a flair for stage magic." Delphine smiled warmly as she showed Muse how to hold the baby.
"Muse, meet your daughter."
Muse stared at the tiny head visible in the blanket. She was so small and weighed virtually nothing in his arms. It didn't seem entirely real.
"She's so small …" he whispered. Delphine rubbed his shoulder comfortingly. He stroked a finger down the baby's round cheek. He could barely believe it.
He was a father.

Muse was having a quiet panic attack, having drawn them all back into the first shaft. He clung to the rope, his weight swinging about on the harness in the wind.
"It's been fifteen minutes. What the hell are we going to do? Once the baby's born, the Council are going to kill Dell and Mr K." Andy's voice whispered over the radio. Winter's Knight leaned her shoulders back against the shaft wall.
"I don't mean to alarm anyone, but its getting warmer in here."
"The Council have turned on the heating elements. They think Dell and Jakey weren't alone." Jambalaya reached a hand up to steady Saph, who's feet were kicking about as he was blown from side to side.
"Aren't they supposed to be fast heaters?" Muse demanded.
"They must be having a problem with the coolant. If you superheat the air-con, it bleeds into the base unless you have the coolant systems activated. Breaking the fan into the delivery room must have interrupted the flow." Langlais, right at the top, grimaced.
"Then we'd better get into the base real quick, fellas. I have a plan that is both sexy and hot!"
"Oh? What is it?" Winters looked back up at Thunderstrike, just able to make out his grin in the gloom.

"I'm really not sure about this …" Winters said, her feet hanging over empty air as Langlais and Jambalaya held her arms between them. Everyone else was clinging onto the rope, twisted into various positions so the two men could hold her in this way. Jambalaya half smiled.
"Remember what I said, Winters, think cold thoughts." His voice was as laid back and calm as ever. Winter's helmet turned as she looked at him.
"Ellie."
"Daniel. On three." The seven foot woman curled her legs up a bit, anxious.
"Trois." Langlais let go. Jambalaya let go.
Winters barely had to encourage herself to think cold thoughts, the fall did it for her. As she plummeted thirty feet, a foot thick coating of ice flushed over her armour and the fan below didn't stand a chance.
"I thought we were going to count up to three?"
"Non, takes too long."
Saph peered down the shaft.
"Is she alright?"
"Let's go find out." Langlais unhooked himself from the rope and dropped down after her. Thunderstrike grinned.
"I wonder how long it'll take us to clear a Council base! Let's race the baby!" He unclipped himself and twisted midair, whooshing down the shaft. Saph blinked.
"Didn't Mr K ask us to hold our positions?"
"Technically yes, but he's been captured and that makes me in charge. We're going to beat the snot out of the Council to teach them to mess with my baby." Muse followed Thunderstrike down. Jambalaya gave Saph a pat on the shoulder.
"Trust me, when it comes to throwing down anyone who's not on our side, Jakey will approve. He's flexible like that."
Andy grinned at Saph.
"C'mon you, they'll hog all the fun."
"Fighting isn't fun, it's a necessary evil. One I pray I will be forgiven for." Andy just nodded and waited for Saph to drop down before flying down to join the others. He came down in the middle of a fight and had to drop to the ground and roll as Thunderstrike unleashed a double blast of lightening.
"Sorry Andy!"
Andy rolled to his feet, a handful of burning white energy forming in his hand which he thrust at the warwolf who'd picked up Muse by the neck. The warwolf roared, blinded for a second and didn't see Sapphire Serenity coming to kick him in the solar plexus.
"Leave them alone!" Jambalaya reached out his hand to the troops turning their weapons on Andy and Muse, beckoning. What it was about his intonation, neither could say, but the troops suddenly turned and fired at Jambalaya. Bits of ice fragments popped and whizzed through the air from his armour. Winters, now back on her feet, none the worse for wear for her plummet, did her best to loom at the warwolf in front of her. Lightening blasted the air everywhere around them, stinging it with an acrid smell.
"Bickety BAM!" Thunderstrike thrust his fist into a man's face, sending him carting back wildly. Langlais slammed his hands together hard behind the men starting to fire on Thunderstrike. The tiny cosmos crystals imbedded in his gloves sang out and the concussive blast of sound sent all the soldiers around him staggering, holding their heads.
"We can't hold them for long!" Andy yelled, slamming two handfuls of white kheldian energy into the advancing soldiers. Jambalaya and Winters were doing their best to form a wall between the attackers and their team, so much ice flying off their armour from gunshots that it felt like it was snowing indoors.
Saph suddenly hit the ground next to Muse and he crouched, feeling about for a pulse. The bloody mess of his chest made the attempt almost laughable. Muse bit down on his lip when he heard Andy yell in pure rage and the tunnel shook as he exploded with energy, his flesh and blood body replaced by one of energy. The ever-present scrape of his frequency against his senses intensified, but Muse didn't look around at the strange floating squid-like creature Andy had become. He put his hands on Saph's chest and forced his eyes closed as he pitched his Resonance to restore his body. Each bullet had gone through, that was a mercy. The flesh, encouraged to regenerate, closed the wounds and Muse changed the tone to the frequency of life. The Council had been willing to go to all this trouble for that power. His power. Cosmos. That's why they were all here again, trapped in a tunnel and flanked by trained killers. He used it to heal, but it could be used to destroy absolutely.
Saph stirred under his hands and started to pick himself up.
"I'm alright, thank you, Music Teacher. I can fight again." Sapphire Serenity, true to his name, took his near-death in his stride and returned to combat. Muse forced himself to his feet and focussed again on using his Resonance to heighten his team's physical condition, give them new limits every time they hit them.
Another scream drew his attention, a woman's scream. Winter's was down on one knee, holding her stomach. Thick red blood was sliding through the hole in her ice armour. A lucky round had hit the kink in her plate mail. Blood and ice was collecting around her knee like a grisly slush drink.
"Ellie!" Jambalaya's attention was torn away from the soldiers and he staggered when more rounds hit him.
"[censored]!" Langlais couldn't reach them in time, he was holding the other side of the team, keeping himself between gunfire and Thunderstrike, giving the other man the protection to keep up his lightening barrage.
"Void Seeker!" Andy's voice rippled from the mass of tentacles either side of his shoulders. Sapphire Serenity reacted immediately, vaulting over Jambalaya and Winters and throwing himself through the mob to reach the Void, ignoring all others.
It was all happening too fast. They were going to die. There was nothing Muse could do.
'No! I don't accept this! I have a baby and he needs me to come through for him. I WON'T let the Council have my son!'
"Jambalaya, leave Winters for now, follow Sapphire and draw fire off him. Andy, TS, give me every wide dispersal hit you can summon. Langlais, draw fire off them. Winters, hang in there. I've got you." Muse pushed his Resonance to a new frequency, he felt his insides twist over themselves as he forced Winters' body to heal itself faster than usual. He staggered a little in pain, but she stood, sound again.
"Langlais, watch our back, we're advancing this way! We need to give ourselves some room to breathe!" Muse pushed away his pain for now, he had a job to do. He'd spent too long cowering behind stronger people, depending on them to protect him. He wasn't physically strong, but he could protect people back. It was time to stop hiding.
It was time to fight back.

Muse was very grateful for the climbing harnesses and rope when he was hanging in a vertical shaft, a fan below cutting the light into strobes. Above him Langlais pressed against the wall with his legs, keeping them steady. Below, Thunderstrike was working his way into the horizontal shaft, pausing to wipe dirt off his face as he hooked himself onto the next rope. Muse was relieved that for all his bluster and shouting outside, once they'd started the mission, he was focussed and quiet. It was reassuring and now Muse knew why Jakey had not sent him packing. His faith in his best friend renewed, he worked his way down to the second rope and braced his feet against either side of the tunnel to unclip himself and attach to the next. The wind blew his hair around and Muse was glad he'd opted for the combat fatigues Langlais had offered. He was convinced that if he'd been wearing a jacket and tie, it'd have been blown off and shredded. Even Jakey had put aside his hat for this one.
A bit of grit dinged against Muse's goggles at high speed and he winced as he negotiated his upper body into the second shaft. It would have been so much easier to come in through the front door. The curved walls of the shaft were lined with dirt and sticky with the residue of various fumes the base had played host to. The radio by his ear blipped.
"Muse, I've found the delivery room. Get comfy mate, we're going to be here a while." Jakey's voice sounded resigned. Muse pulled the mouth-piece around to his lips and protected it from the wind with his gloved hand.
"How long is this going to take?" he demanded. Jakey, ahead at the front of the line, swinging idly from his harness glanced back down through the vertical shaft he was suspended over. His ears twitched, picking up the voices inside the room below easily.
"Estimate she's two hours into labour. So your guess is as good as mine." He was distracted by a feminine howl from below and winced. Delphine, who was right behind him, grabbed his foot and shook it to get his attention. He looked at her but her dirty goggles and whipping face-veil made it too hard to make out what she was trying to convey. She pulled her own mouthpiece down in vexation.
"It's going badly!"
Winters, despite Jakey's demand for radio silence except when he was issuing an order, pulled hers down too.
"What do you mean, Dell?"
"I mean something's wrong."
"Can it, the pair of you!"
"Shut up, you obnoxious cat! I've been in enough birthing rooms to know when it's going badly. Listen to how anxious they sound." Delphine hissed into her mouthpiece, making the receivers crackle a little. Jakey fumed a little but did so. The Council below did sound a little stressed, but they were in the room with a probably rather violent and pregnant Nictus who was experiencing the pain of childbirth. Maybe their reason for being stressed did not necessarily mean the birth was going badly.
"Males!" Delphine's bitten off comment was the only warning the rest of them had when she drew her sword and slid it up under her harness, twisting the blade to cut cleaning through them. Jakey bounced in the air as the rope sprang up a little as the weight dropped off. Delphine had plummeted down the vertical shaft, sword first.
"Everyone hold your positions! That's a bloody order!" Jakey put so much force into his words that even Jambalaya had cause to double-take. The cat unclipped his harness and dropped after the elf woman, internally cursing her with every foul disease he could think of to suffer for the five minutes she would survive.
The shafts rang with a squeal of metal on metal and a thunderous crash. Delphine staggered up from the wreckage of the fan unit, dropping her sword and putting her hands up.
"Parlay!" A second later, Jakey dropped out of the shaft behind her, landing on his feet and sinking to his hands. The Council soldiers, true to the rumour they were the best, already had their weapons trained on them. The room looked like it had been hastily transformed into a delivery room, cleaner than most Council bases had business being and some effort had been made to bring what were presumably comforting affects for the Nictus. She herself was on a flat bed, her knees hiked up forming a little tent from the blue of her surgical gown. She was gripping the sides of the bed, purple black vapour snaking from her fingertips as she rolled her burning black eyes to the intruders.
"K-kill them!" She tipped her head back in another stifled yell of pain. A soldier, presumably the doctor, though it was hard to tell any difference in his uniform, pulled a cap off a needle.
"Do as Lady Varehn commands! She is still your commanding officer!" he snarled. Delphine stepped forward urgently, ignoring the sound of safeties being flicked off.
"I'm a trained midwife, the baby will die if you don't let me help." She said it quickly, looking right at the Nictus as if there were not five soldiers all pointing their weapons at her head. The Nictus twitched a little.
"Hold fire …" she hissed. Sweat slicked her skin and made her hair straggly. No Nictus worth their salt would choose to look this horrendous. Delphine had an inkling of how devoted she was to her commander for her to even consider this mission.
"It is in both our interests for me to help you. I came here to rescue the child. The Council wants the child for the power of Cosmos. You are being tended to by amateurs." Jakey gave a small start behind her, aghast. Delphine ignored him. Varehn gave a harsh laugh, heavy from her pants.
"Amateurs?"
"Your doctor is shaking. He doesn't know what to do. Trained only in simulations, I suppose. Childbirth is full of little variables that only experience can prepare you for." Delphine sounded calm, almost tranquil. Jakey wondered bitterly if she had bargained with those who wanted to kill her so many times it came second nature now.
"Of course. You wear the fleur de lis. Honourable United isn't it? You've been a collective spanner in the works before. Fitting, perhaps, that you should be present. Come then, my enemy, help deliver the child who will destroy you. Men, keep your sights on Lord Jakey K. He can play insuran-" She broke off to scream again, arching off the bed a little. The doctor administered the drug he'd been preparing and glared at Delphine.
"Woman, get over here. If you're really so experienced, prove it!" He made no effort to hide both his anxiety and hate. Delphine stepped gracefully out of the wreckage of the fan and took off her goggles. She washed her hands at the basin and pulled on the spare coveralls one of the men thrust at her. Maybe it was her calm demeanour that soothed the tension in the room. Jakey kept his hands behind his head, glaring at one of the men holding a sonic blaster at him. He could take them. There were only five of them holding weapons at him and the other three were so busy with the birth that they'd not even get a chance to see him coming.
Delphine frowned as she checked the screens.
"When did the baby's heart start doing that?" she demanded, eying the monitor that showed the erratic, small blips of the baby's heart. The doctor shook his head, fussing with a drip.
"About an hour ago. It settles for a bit and then starts off again. Nothing I do is working," he answered efficiently. Clearly his hate for heroes must wait until the mission was successfully accomplished. Delphine frowned, then put her hand on the Nictus's knee. She took it off a moment later.
"She's draining the child's life-force."
"What?!" Varehn propped herself up on her elbows, her face furious. Delphine motioned to one of orderlies to adjust the bed so she was propped up in that position.
"Birth is one of the most strenuous experiences a human woman can go through. Your baby is a week late, it's gotten bigger and your pelvis hasn't. It's hurting you and you're instinctually reacting by drawing energy from the nearest thing to supplement yourself. I need a volunteer."
"The cat," Varehn was watching Delphine avidly, practically daring her to contradict. Delphine looked at Jakey.
"You want me to voluntarily give up my life-force or whatever to a Nictus?!" Jakey demanded, looking furious, his tail swishing from side to side. Varehn's response was to cry out with pain again and grip the bed. Delphine gave him a sharp look.
"The baby is going to die if you don't. It has to be you. Trust me." Jakey gave her a black look, meeting those dark, secretive eyes for a long moment. Then he took down his hands and pulled his gloves off, shoving them in his pockets.
"I can't believe I'm doing this," he muttered, walking over to the bed. The muzzles of five weapons followed him greedily. None of the Council were going to underestimate him. He prised Varehn's hand from the bed and gripped it with both of his. The effect was instant, his eyes watered and the baby's heart monitor showed an improvement. Delphine nodded to the doctor, then stroked some of the sweat streaked hair back from Varehn's face.
"It's alright now, you're in good hands."

The sun inched over the horizon, turning the twilight into dawn. The air was crisp and cold, clean after the night chill. Jakey turned away from his lookout position, lowering his binoculars and waving to Sapphire. His forefinger and thumb held in a ring told the monk that all remained clear. The young man nodded and hurried through the underbrush, ducking under the camouflage tarpaulin. It was set next to a grille in a small cliff, forming a hidden alcove.
"Still no sign of the truck," he reported. Langlais had a screwdriver in his mouth, so only nodded. Thunderstrike put his finger to the wires Andy held out to him. A tiny spark of lightening melted them together and the peacebringer passed the wire over to Langlais. Delphine was screwing a stout metal ring into the rock, wearing a pair of safety goggles over her veil.
"We're sure it's going to be today?" Muse asked. He chewed on his thumb knuckle, looking stressed and tired. Langlais grunted, taking the screwdriver out of his mouth and applying it to the mess of wires and boards in his lap.
"We're not sure."
"It's a baby, Muse, they're not very easy to predict with any kind of precision," said Delphine as she hooked a nylon climbing rope onto the ring and yanked on it. Muse frowned tightly.
"Come on, people can predict the weather a week in advance."
"Not always very well though." Jambalaya looked around from where he was clipping the climbing harness to Winters. Her helmet lay against the wall, but she was wearing the rest of her armour and frowned when Jambalaya tugged on it hard enough to sway her whole body.
"I think it's secure."
"Alright, summon the ice." Jambalaya stood back to give her room. Delphine looked around from where she was securing another ring, curiosity in her eyes. Winters looked awkward.
"Can you threaten me with something?" she asked, pushing her armoured fingers together. Jambalaya blinked.
"You can't will it?"
"Sort of. A little. No?" Winters took a deep breath and looked at her hands, flexing them in the gauntlets with a series of metallic clicks.
"So it's just a reflex when you're in trouble?" Jambalaya took her armoured elbow and tugged her a little way from the group. Thunderstrike watched them with a wide grin until Andy nudged him to get back to soldering duties. He melted a wire onto the board.
"Jambam's got a new project! I always knew he dreamt of large, Nordic women!" His elbow knocked Sapphire staggering. The monk looked perplexed as he knelt down beside Andy to watch the complicated system of wires and boards take shape.
"He does?"
"Of course!"
Andy rolled his eyes and his tail tip flicked around.
"I'm sure it's totally innocent. They have similar powers, after all. They probably have some sort of camaraderie going on." He held the mess of wires out to Langlais who took them without looking. Delphine got started on the third hoop, wielding the power drill.
"He probably has much experience to draw on for Winters benefit."
"Oh, I'm sure he'll happily let her take advantage of his experience!" Thunderstrike sniggered, much to the mystification of both Andy and Sapphire. They shrugged at each other and the monk crawled out from under the tarpaulin to go check on the truck status again.

Langlais frowned as he looked at a diagram on the dining room table, the corners weighed down by various household objects. Jakey sat on the dresser opposite, his tail tip twitching as he regarded both the diagram and the ex-Archon.
"I've never heard of these heroes you're bringing in, Jakey."
"Good. The Council know what to expect from HU's best and strongest, but bringing in unknown elements will unbalance them." The cat picked up a piece of paper and started to fold it in his fingers. Langlais watched him.
"Can I know what to expect?" he asked. Jakey grinned a little, his teeth sharply white against his dusky skin.
"First off, Jambalaya is my old mentor, he was the first hero I ever teamed with. Heck, he even taught me to how to jump over buildings. His power is extreme temperature manipulation. Sapphire Serenity is one of HU's new recruits, he's a talented martial artist and Andreas Smith is a Peacebringer and excellent at keeping his focus even when the odds stack against us. I've never seen even one of them cut and run out of fear."
"Courage does not a Hero make-"
"Yes it does." Jakey looked at Langlais over his sunglasses. Langlais drew himself up and a silence stretched between them.
"Do they have the necessary skill to take on the Council?" he asked after a moment. Jakey smiled, his fingers teasing out the wings of his paper butterfly.
"They have you to teach them, nobody knows more of the Council than you. I hear a car, it seems our reinforcements have arrived in time for tea."
Langlais grunted and walked out of the dining room, joining Muse and Winter's in the living room. Jakey looked at the butterfly in his hands. He blew on it gently and for a moment nothing happened then it flexed its paper wings and fluttered off his fingers. He watched it fly out of the window, disappearing into the great wide world. He looked around towards the living room and then at the diagram, smiling to himself.

Andy piled out of the rented car, tripping over his laces and falling flat on the tarmac.
"Are you alright?" Sapphire scrambled out of the back, hurrying to help Andy to his feet. The ex-pirate grinned, dusting off his knees.
"Yeeeah, I'm fine. Hey, Dell, thanks for driving us!" He looked around at the woman who slipped out of the driver's side. She smiled faintly and looked at the house.
"Any time, Captain Smith." She looked around when a soft-top jeep parked on the curb and a man swung himself out. Sapphire looked around and blinked up at the white haired man.
"Um … hello, sir?"
"It's not sir. Just Jambalaya." The man offered his hand forward. Sapphire took it shyly and shook it.
"You're a hero too? I'm known as Sapphire Serenity."
"Used to be, just back for a favour to a friend."
Muse opened the front door and waved them in, looking a bit awkward.
"Please, come i-"
"Bickety BAM!" Andy looked up when he heard the shout. He threw himself sideways to avoid the blue blur that was bearing down on him, colliding with Sapphire and they both fell over into the flower bed. Muse jumped, blinking at the sweep of the cloak and the smell of over-heated air.
"I heard you needed some Thunderstrike!" Muse's mouth opened as he stared up at the blond newcomer. There came a small sound from Jambalaya that made Thunderstrike turn around.
"Er … hi TS."
"JAMBA! I thought you retired!"
"Um … who are you?" Muse put his hand up tentatively. Langlais arrived at his side and frowned darkly at the milling mess of Heroes in his driveway.
"Everyone, get inside," he growled, marching out and physically picking up Thunderstrike and Jambalaya, carrying both the six foot men inside. Delphine watched as Sapphire and Andy followed, the latter tripping over the doormat and knocking a picture off the wall. She looked at Muse and smiled a bit. He smiled hesitantly back and rubbed the back of his neck, ushering her in.
"So … what's your name?"
"Madam Delphine. Yours?" She shook Muse's hand.
"The Music Teacher. Welcome to the mess."
Mess was just the right word for it. The living room now felt horribly crowded with the group of Heroes milling about. Thunderstrike straightened his cape, looking put out to be picked up and carted around like baggage by a huge Frenchman.
"So, what's the mission?! Who needs a taste of Justice, TS style!?" Sapphire watched the powerfully built blond with fascination. Andy stuck his finger in his ear and wiggled it then inspected the end of it with a slight frown.
"Jakey told me it's about a kid and the Council …?"
Muse blushed fiercely and put his hand over his face. He was starting to regret letting Jakey put this group together. He wanted to grab the phone and call Avenger and apologise for thinking it'd ever be okay without him and get him to come right over. Winter's was trying to be small in the corner, which she was having limited success at, being the tallest person in the room by far.
"Alright, guys. All assemble-"
"JAKEY!" Thunderstrike interrupted the cat as he walked into the room, beaming. Jakey stopped on the threshold, looking up at him. His tail twitched from side to side.
"… Blunderstrike?" Thunderstrike's smile faltered for a moment and he pointed to himself.
"Thunderstrike … you remember me surely! I thought I'd drop by and see how my favourite young scrapper is doing!" Jakey arched an eyebrow and looked at Jambalaya, who blushed and rubbed the back of his neck.
"I'm sorry, J, he just … he was just so happy to hear from me again."
Thunderstrike walked over and patted Jakey on the hat.
"So, how ARE you doing, Jakey?! Have you seen the Babbage yet?! That's one mighty robot! Have you been promoted yet?! What ARE you up to these days?!"
There was a short silence, broken by Muse's suppressed snicker. Thunderstrike seemed oblivious to it, grinning down at Jakey like a benevolent guardian angel. Jakey ran his tongue over his teeth.
"I thought you were giving up the Hero scene, TS …"
"The call to arms came! I am back to dispense Justice in a manner that is both hot and sexy!"
Andy and Winter's were now trying to stifle their amusement, joining Muse in making spluttering snorting sounds behind their hands. Jakey blinked.
"I see. Well, that's good, I might have a use for you. Right gang, everyone in the dining room for debriefing. Minion, I think we could all use a little tea, go put the kettle on."
"Sure thing, boss." Winter's stopped snickering and worked her way past the others to the kitchen, knocking plaster off the walls with her armoured shoulders.
Once they were all assembled in the dining room, standing around the table, Jakey looked around for Langlais. The big Frenchman was in the corner talking to the diminutive elf woman. He frowned tightly.
"Langlais, we need your expertise," he said curtly. Langlais apologised to Delphine and walked over to the table, moving his hand out of the way as Winter's put the tray down.
"The mission is going to be executed differently to how you're used to. It's going to be as covert as possible. If the Council are alerted to our presence, they will immediately take the objective and flee."
Jakey nodded, taking the tea Winter's passed him.
"The 'objective', as Langlais put it, is Muse's kitten. The mother is a Nictus and one of Arakhn's most loyal supporters-"
"You got it on with a Nictus?!" Thunderstrike looked at Muse suddenly, eyes wide. Muse glared back.
"I certainly did not!" Jakey put his hand up.
"Kittens, please. Focus. She was artificially inseminated, TS. If you want to take further issue, take it up with the Council. Now, the kitten is important to them because they hope it will inherit the power of Cosmos-"
"Sorry to interrupt, but what's Cosmos?" Andy asked, his tail curled around the Sapphire's knee. Jakey nodded to Langlais.
"Cosmos is the power to manipulate frequencies."
"Resonance, in other words?" Delphine said quietly. Langlais looked at her, nodding.
"Yes, it works on the manipulation of atomic resonance."
"I use it to heal, but it can be used to destroy," Muse whispered, folding his arms tightly.
"Maybe the Council are interested in the healing properties? I know I'd like to have a great healer hanging around." Andy beamed. Everyone looked at him.
"What?" he asked, eyes wide. Jambalaya shook his head with a sigh.
"How many guards are there going to be?" he asked. Jakey rubbed his nose.
"Anything relating to Cosmos warrants maximum security. There will be whole units of the Council's most elite troops guarding the base and the Nictus. From what Stargazer's been able to find out, there close to a hundred troops packed into that base, all of them high rank and all of them masters in their field. The Council do not want to lose the kitten." Sapphire peered at the diagram.
"This is an underground base, is it not?" he asked, looking up at the others. Langlais nodded, "Then can we not use the ventilation?"
Jakey smiled, like a teacher whose pupil has just answered a question correctly.
"That's the plan, a full frontal assault in such close quarters with such a weight of numbers between us and the objective is impossible to keep covert. However, the Council knows that their ventilation is a weak point." He nodded to Langlais who pulled another chart up and set it on the table, showing the ventilation network.
"If a fan stops for any reason, motion sensors activate at every ten feet within the shaft. Every fifty feet there are laser grids and if any of these sensors are deactivated, it sounds an alarm in the control centre. The tunnel itself has elements just outside the metal, capable of superheating the shaft and roasting anything inside it."
"And these defences are active when the fan is inactive. What about when the fan is running?" asked Delphine quietly. Langlais frowned lightly.
"The sensors are deactivated. The fans send all manner of debris through their activation fields. They'd be going off all the time if they were active and the fans were running."
"So we should go in while the fans are running."
"I don't think you understand how powerful these fans are, miss." Langlais gave her a surprisingly warm smile. Delphine looked at the plan.
"The fans must require maintenance every now and then. So they must be able to detach. If we can detach one at an entrance and keep it running, attached to the power grid, then the sensors won't activate. We can use grappling lines to secure ourselves against the wind."
Jakey looked at the plan then at Delphine.
"You've done this before."
"Well, not in a Council base, but in essentials, yes." Delphine gave him a calm look over her veil, "Are there any vertical shafts? It'd be useful if we had gravity to help."
"Yes, there are vertical shafts here and here."
Jakey looked at the plan again, rubbing his goatee. After a while he nodded.
"Alright, let's figure out a way to get the fan detached but keep it running. Get to it, people."

Muse sat in the armchair in the living room, positioned so he could see the road outside the window. A cup of cold tea stood on the table next to him and there were bags under his eyes. He wanted a hug. He wanted Avenger to come with Jakey, half hoping the cat had ignored his insistence and brought Avenger with him anyway. The sound of an engine outside and a convertible mini pulling up in the driveway distracted Muse from his pining. He stood up and walked to the window, pushing the net curtain aside to get a better look at the people in the car. One was seven foot tall, wearing plate armour and the other was four foot tall with a duster hat on. Muse smiled weakly, listening to the music through the glass. Trust Winter's Knight to be wearing shades over her helmet.
He hurried to the front door and opened it, smiling shakily at the pair of them. Jakey turned off the radio and hopped out of the car, walking around the bonnet as Winter's began the complicated process of unfolding herself from the passenger seat.
"Why on Earth did you bring a mini? Winter's must have had her knees pressed to her chin the entire time." Muse looked down at his flat mate. Jakey pulled his sunglasses off to clean them, then put them back on to hide his inhumanly green eyes again.
"You think my feet can reach the pedals of a jag? You live in a dream world, Muse. Now, what the Hell's all this about and why couldn't I bring Venji?" The cat gave him a sharp look over his glasses. Muse sighed, looking at Winter's. He'd only met the girl three times, but she seemed nice enough. Jakey had taken her under his wing, convinced she needed guidance. Muse thought it was good for the cat, actually. He'd been becoming more insular lately. Having someone to teach would give him something to do that forced him to come out of himself every now and then.
"Come in, it's going to take some explaining."
After Muse had brought Jakey and Winter's up to speed, he leaned back in the armchair, looking weary.
"So we have to get the baby away from the Council," he finished, not looking at either of them. Winter's looked thoughtful, her helmet on her lap.
"Can we do that?" she asked cautiously, well aware that both the other heroes had miles more experience than she did. Jakey pulled his shades off, standing straight in a single fluid motion.
"You mean to tell me that you want to take this baby from the Council with you, me, Winter's and Langlais? Are you smoking half a greenhouse?" He poked the free arm of the sunglasses at Muse.
"Who can I call on?!" Muse picked up his tea cup and went to drink. He grimaced when cold liquid spilled over his tongue. Jakey's tail lashed from side to side.
"You're absolutely set on keeping this low profile?" he asked tightly. Muse nodded unhappily and Jakey sighed, heading for the phone.
"Who are you going to call?"
Jakey put on his shades and flashed a grin at Muse.
"Can't be heading into trouble this hot without back-up. Don't worry, low key it is."

The waves boomed on the sand, promising a day of decent surfing, the breakers curling several feet high. He dug his surfboard deep into the ground and dropped his bag down next to it, crouching to open it and find his radio. At the very bottom, something rang and he frowned for a moment. After some hesitation, he opened the secret pocket at the bottom of the bag and looked at the slim phone tucked in there. He pulled it out and stood, pressing the green button and holding it to his ear.
"Hello?"
"Hey Jambam! It's me, Jakey …"
Jambalaya blinked, his mouth open for a moment before he actually managed words.
"Jakey?! What the hell man, been a while!"
"Yeah … soooo, how's retirement?"
Jambalaya looked at the high breakers fondly, the wind picking up to blow sand around his sandaled feet.
"Sun, surf and sand, little kitty dude. Can't ask for more. 'Cept maybe a flight out to Hawaii with some good friends who need to kick back and take a holiday."
"Was that an invitation?"
"You're the only cat I know who actually likes jumping into water. C'mon, you'd be a natural surfer." Jambalaya rooted through his bag and unzipped the cool bag, taking out a smoothie drink.
"I'll take a rain check. I actually called you because I need your help." That caught the surfer's attention. Jambalaya paused in his drinking and stared at the horizon. He lowered the bottle.
"You need my help?"
"I wouldn't ask if it wasn't important, Jambam. We're talking about a child's life and the Council."
Jambalaya sighed and closed his eyes for a moment, the wind tugging at his bandana and stray strands of his hair.
"… I'm not a hero any more, Jakey."
"And that changes … what now?"
Jambalaya chuckled, looking at the smoothie bottle in his hand.
"Nothing, I guess. Alright, kid. Where do I meet you?"

The phone rang under a stack of empty noodle boxes, an elegant hand pushed them off, picking up the handset.
"Hello?"
"Is Andreas Smith there?" The woman blinked, then looked over at the man sprawled out on the sofa, snoring slightly.
"He's asleep, give me a moment to wake him up." Delphine laid the handset down on the side and walked over to Andy, crouching by him and shaking his shoulder.
"Captain Smith … Captain, wake up," she said. Her gentle insistence roused him finally and he yawned, his tail twitching.
"What is it?"
"Telephone call for you." Delphine straightened and walked into the kitchen to boil the kettle. Andy sat up and stood. He tripped over a packing box with a loud thud and his hand reached up to fumble the handset down to his level.
"Yo, Andy speaking."
"Who was that?"
"Who?" Andy blinked, locating one of his trainers and pulling it on.
"The woman who answered the phone."
"Oh, that's Delphine. She's my flatmate as of last night." Andy ruffled his hand through his fluffy blue hair and yawned. There came a grunt from the other end of the line.
"Fine. I've got a mission for you and Sapphire Serenity. I can't get him at his home, so call him on the radio. Keep this quiet, okay?"
"Sure thing, High Lord Kitten!" He grinned widely, saluting the opposite wall, "always a pleasure to serve!"
"Oh whatever, just get here."
"Of course! Er … where is 'here'?"

Jakey hung up the phone and looked at Muse and Winter's.
"Okay, the team'll be a bit green or rusty, but pretty much everyone knows their job. It'll be fine, don't worry about it." Something about his grin made Winter's and Muse exchange glances nervously.

The phone started ringing just as Jakey stepped into the shower. He paused, one leg in the delicious, inviting water flow, and the other stuck out on the bathmat. His ears both went back and he bared his teeth.
"If that's 'Tonight' again, I will scream," he muttered, pulling his leg out of the shower and pulling a towel around his waist angrily. He valued his privacy, but when you held the highest rank the city offered to Heroes, dubbed 'epic', you had precious little of it. If it wasn't talk-shows calling, it was postal service calling to ask you to remove the sackfuls of fan mail from their office. He stalked to the living room and snatched up the telephone.
"You've just reached my answer phone, there's no-one to take your call right now, so please leave a message after the beep. Beep."
"J, we don't have an answer phone …" Muse's voice said on the other end. Jakey heaved a huge, internal sigh of relief.
"I was just about to get into the shower, man. What's the call for?" he asked. Muse sounded a bit shaky, it put him in a more serious frame of mind.
"T-two things. One, we need a bigger house. Two, I need you to get someone and bring them on a mission. But it can't be Adam. Or Kate. Or Sally. Or-"
"What? Not bring Venji? Why on Earth wouldn't I bring Venji? And for that matter, why don't you want me to bring Venji?" He started to imagine that Muse was being held at gunpoint, being forced to lead him into a trap. He could think of a variety of people who would be so underhanded.
It was clear, the Circle of Thorns had kidnapped Muse to use him as leverage. It was so despicable. He hit the table by the phone.
"You tell that mage behind you that I will destroy him and scatter his component atoms to the four winds!"
"Um … reality check, J. No mages."
"No mages?! You're being held by the Council again?! I'll destroy them all! YOU LISTEN TO ME, YOU ARCHON *******, I KNOW YOUR GAME AND I WILL BE COMING TO DEAL WITH YOU AS SOON AS I GET DRESSED!" He heard a bit of clatter on the other end, then a new voice spoke.
"Bonsoir, mon petite chat, ca va?"
"Langlais?! Bonsoir, mon ami! Ca va bien! Et tu?" Jakey's rage dropped right away. Muse was safe if he was with Langlais.
"Bien, bien. It is good to speak to you again. Please go along with Whithers' request, we will explain all when you arrive." The big Frenchman told Jakey an address and the cat nodded.
"Alright, put Muse on again will ya?" He heard the clattering sound of the phone being passed over and a dog barked in the background.
"Convinced there are no mages yet?" Muse asked, he still sounded shaky. Jakey nodded even though it couldn't be seen.
"I've got someone in mind I can bring along, but you better tell me right off why I can't bring Venji or any of the others." He heard Muse sigh deeply. There was a long pause, then a slight sniff that made his heart sink.
"I … don't want them to know about this. Not yet. J, just get here quickly okay?" With that he hung up. Jakey looked at the handset for a moment, the hiss of the shower and passing sirens down in the street becoming distant. He couldn't imagine what was troubling Muse so much that he'd ask for Venji to not be present. If anything, if he was troubled, he'd insist on his lover to be let into the secret. The cat reached out and depressed the cradle button, then dialled a new number. He listened as it rang twice, ears pricking when it clicked.
"Hi!" said a young woman on the other end. Jakey cleared his throat.
"Minion, this is Jakey, I've got a little mission for you. It's well hush-hush, so keep quiet about it."
"Oh … uh … okay boss. Do you want me to make some tuna sandwiches?"
Jakey was about to say no, then reconsidered.
"Yes, and wrap them up, we're going on a little trip."

Author's Note: Plottish wise, this comes before Believe, and it's only a short.

Inheritance

Muse waited at a cold corner in Independence Port, one hand closed around the hipflask on his belt and he found himself taking a swig. He wasn't really afraid, but he felt he had some right to be a little worried. Last time he'd been involved with Phillippe Langlais, he'd been a Council archon, seeking the secrets of Muse's resonance. Langlais may have left the Council and escaped the Zigurski prison, but he wasn't sure he should ever trust him blindly.
A jeep with blacked out windows slide against the curb easily and the window rolled down. A familiar face looked over his shades at Muse.
"Hey, need a lift?"
"Topoulos!" Muse grinned and walked over, opening the passenger door. The ex-Council medic grinned, waiting for him to get in before hitting a button to roll the window back up.
"How you been lately? Heroing all it's cracked up to be?" he asked. Muse blushed a little, screwing the lid back onto his hipflask and tucking it back into its custom pouch.
"Things are okay, my flatmate's been making a name for himself. Mostly by accident," he chuckled, remembering the fluid string of curses Jakey had come out with when he'd received notification of his increased security clearance in the mail, having been avoiding everyone able to promote him for days. Topoulos grinned, stopping at a red light.
"Yeah, we've been keeping an eye on your lot. Don't mind saying that we're all very smug that Storm and the Avenger are right up there with the big boys now."
"You're keeping an eye on us?" Muse gave him a curious look. Topoulos nodded.
"Sure am. We like to know you're safe." He gave Muse a serious look. Muse looked slightly embarrassed and looked at the road. It started to rain, the wipers flicking across his vision to knock the water away.
"Still a high risk commodity, huh?" he asked quietly. Topoulos sighed.
"Look, even if you became as strong as Statesman, you'd still be hot property. That's just how it is while you've got the power of Cosmos. We've done what we can to sabotage the Council archives on it, but we can't exactly wipe the information from Arakhn and Requiem's brains. Heard you took on Arakhn by the way …"
"I didn't do much, I just tended bumps and scrapes." Muse clasped his hands on his lap, thinking back to receiving the call from a peacebringer called Moonfire. She'd discovered a plot by the Council to infect the population with Nictus. Of course he'd gotten involved, he couldn't bare the idea of unwilling hosts being forced to blend with the malicious aliens. It wasn't anything to do with his vehement dislike of Nictus. Nothing at all. He wondered who he was trying to convince as he watched the rainy city slip by under his watchful gaze. He'd felt a very uncharacteristic surge of angry triumph when he'd watched his team take on Arakhn herself and win. She was the one who'd sent Nadir into his life.
Remembering the Nictus made Muse lean his head on his hand, his elbow on the jeep door. If there was anyone he could truly hate, it was Nadir. He tried to push away the memories of that cruel smile and chilling eyes.
"How is Langlais anyway? And Bouncer and Monique?" Muse asked. Topoulos smiled at the mention of his boss and pets.
"Bouncer's huge these days, can knock me right down. The cat's … well, she's a cat. Can't tell so much."
Muse felt safer in the small subjects of conversation, asking after some of the men he'd met while being held by the Council at Stargazer mountain. The men had eventually all defected from the Council and helped the Honourable United team defeat the remaining Council on the island.
After an hour, the jeep passed out of the suburbs and pulled into a small, unassuming neighbourhood. The road was a pleasant cul-de-sac with neatly tended lawns and abundant flowers. Muse stepped out of the car, the rain slicking his clothes down almost immediately, it was that hard. Topoulos turned off the engine and got out, motioning him to follow him to the door of 872, his coat pulled up over his head to keep the rain off. Muse followed him, looking around quizzically. Surely Langlais wasn't using a quiet little suburb for his hide-out? That was silly. He watched the medic ring the bell, then peered over his shoulder as the door opened.
"Come in, come in. The kettle is on already." Muse half smiled at the man who stood there, beckoning them in. Langlais was still so broad he crowded the walls and had something close to a perfect physique.
"Whithers, stop staring, it's rude," Langlais grunted, his faintly French accent warm and familiar. Muse walked in and peeled his jacket off.
"Hey Phil, how's things?"
"Trés bien, naturally." Langlais took Muse's jacket and looked at it distastefully as it dripped from his hand. He took it upstairs and returned a moment later with two towels instead, handing these to the two men. Topoulos started to dry off his hair, opening the door to the living room. There was a thudding of paws and an enormous dog bounded out, heading straight for Muse and jumping at him, slamming him back into the closed front door. Muse yelped slightly, then spluttered with laughter around the enthusiastic licking.
"Bad dog! Bouncer, down!" he yelled. Langlais shook his head.
"Get down," he said quietly. Bouncer immediately left off slopping his tongue all over Muse's face and dropped to all fours, tail wagging madly. Muse wiped his face dry with the towel.
"Dog breath …"
"Come in, we have things to discuss that can't really wait." Langlais walked into the living room, followed loyally by Bouncer. Muse kicked off his trainers and padded after him.
The living room was perfectly ordinary, but displayed Langlais's simplistic approach to décor. Monique was sat on the windowsill, licking her forepaw idly before pausing and looking up at him, then returning to her paw. Langlais sat down in his armchair and Bouncer immediately put his head on his knee, tail thumping the floor. Muse sat down, patting at his chest and arms with the towel.
"So what is it that can't wait?" he asked. Langlais sighed and looked at Topoulos, then back at Muse.
"We thought, after Stargazer, that Cosmos had finally been put to rest," he started. Muse stiffened slightly, that wasn't an optimistic beginning at all.
"But?"
"But the Council are not so willing to give up. This is partially my fault, Whithers, and I regret it profusely." Langlais looked at Bouncer, who whined softly, and he rubbed the dog's head gently with his massive hand. Muse blinked. Topoulos sighed.
"Truth is, when you were first taken to Stargazer Mountain, we may have … taken samples of your tissues and fluids," he said awkwardly. Muse paled slightly.
"You took samples from me?!"
"It was by my orders, Whithers. I wanted them tested to find out your health level. However, some of the samples found their way back to the Council," said Langlais. Topoulos muttered something about Nadir, which made sense. Even if Langlais had not been wholly loyal to the Council, Nadir had been. Muse looked at the towel in his hands. He didn't pay any attention when Topoulos got up to make tea, leaving the two of them alone.
"There was always the chance you couldn't be persuaded to co-operate, Whithers," said Langlais, now soft. Muse looked up at him.
"Did they clone me?"
"No. There is no other way to say this, but you are going to be a father, very shortly."
The words hung in the air for a bit, as if Muse couldn't quite fit them into his head. He thought he'd remember if he'd made any moves necessary to becoming a father. The thought that he'd somehow had sex with a woman made him cringe inwardly with revulsion. He liked women well enough, but the idea of actually doing that with them made him feel a little ill.
"What?"
"As soon as an appropriate mother was selected, she was artificially inseminated. She is now about ready to give birth. It is absolutely imperative that we rescue the baby from the Council."
"Wait, WHAT?!" Muse was floundering in the conversation. What had the despicable Council done to some poor woman? Langlais put up his hand, as if forestalling what Muse was thinking.
"The subject was not unwilling to bare your child. She is one of Arakhn's most loyal followers, she's a fully blended Nictus."
Muse felt sick.

excellent stuff! The lineart is nice and crisp and you've got some kick-[censored] expressions.

Gaze hung back at the group as they followed the lemur, next to Immemoria. This wasn't how she'd envisaged introducing him to her friends and brother. She glanced down at him, wondering how he could be so calm. As if he felt her gaze, he looked up and smiled.
"No bones broken."
"Wouldn't your magic fix them even if they had?" she asked, keeping her tone light and amused. Immemoria folded his arms behind his head.
"Well, they'd still need to be set back into position. But in theory, yes."
"I'm sorry, Immy. This wasn't what I had in mind for the first meeting," she whispered, hoping Jakey and Esher's superior hearing wasn't focused on her. Immemoria shrugged.
"Could be worse, Kate." His use of her real name made her sigh. The distance between them was a carefully measured three feet. It might as well have been three miles. She wanted to take his hand and just enjoy his company, she could feel him holding back the same impulse. The secrecy and necessary duplicity to hide their feelings for each other weighed so heavily sometimes. It was more for his safety than hers. She would be frowned upon for loving a Rogue Islander, he would more likely be killed for loving a Hero of Paragon. Even when they met in neutral ground, they were careful not to touch, lest people see and rumours fly. Their love affair had to be conducted in absolute and total secret.
She hated it.
"Least your brother hasn't put me through a wall, eh?" Immemoria's chuckle drew her out of her thoughts. She smiled, looking ahead at where Avenger was walking beside Muse.
"He's very soft really."
"I'll be sure to tell that to the others next time I'm in the Zig."
"How many times has that been, now?" Gaze couldn't keep the amusement out of her voice. It was easier to bare than fear for his safety.
"Three. You know that Arachnos chap, always so obliging in taking me back into the fold when I've escaped." Gaze looked ahead, watching Chillblaze's hair as it defied all laws of motion and stood resolutely up. She wondered which brand of gel he used to get it to do that.
"And your gang takes you back every time?" she asked lightly. Immemoria shrugged.
"You can't pull off a heist together if you don't trust each other. Me, the Attorney and Lieutenant Whithers have knocked over a few banks. Well, Lou wanted to really knock it over. He's gotten really silly since he got his memories back. I swear he's bi-polar."
Gaze had never heard him mention his associates by name. The last one really got her attention.
"Lieutenant Whithers?"
"Yeah. Apparently he's from another dimension where the Council took over and Sky Raiders were making a bid to over-throw them. He was their secret weapon apparently." Immemoria said it off-hand, trying to play down the news. Gaze frowned darkly, she didn't like the idea of another Muse running around in the Rogue Islands.
"Is he-?"
"Crazy? A little. I hope he and you don't meet. Apparently Archon Kyle Thurlow was a 'good friend' of his before being possessed by a Nictus." That made Gaze blink.
"'Kyle'?"
"Well, you didn't think you'd be female in all the possibilities of existence, did you?" Immemoria chuckled, taking great delight in bringing her that particular snippet of news. Gaze reddened slightly, like she'd just thought of something indecent.
"When you say 'good friends' …"
"I mean lovers, yeah." She could see the crinkle of his eyes as he grinned widely behind his mask. She swatted his head.
"You're enjoying this too much!"
"Better than my usual doom and gloom, yeah?" Immemoria was glad she'd been suitably distracted from asking further questions about his associates.
Before Gaze could think to take up her train of thought again, they passed out of the stone corridor into a huge open room. The curved wall on the right was completely open, held up by great pillars festooned with creeping plants. Plants had broken through the walls in several places and more of the lemur creatures were hopping and bouncing through the foliage.
Esher bounced into the middle of the huge room, jumping up and down.
"I are fluffy thing!" At his exclamation, every lemur in the room froze and stared at them. Then they screamed and fled, each one like greased lightening. It was not a second later that the heroes stood alone in the room, their guide covering his small furry face with his hands and shaking his head in despair.
"Well … this is off to a good start," said Chillblaze.

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Is it wrong to think Pinky looks quite cute in that?

[/ QUOTE ]

On many many levels.

[/ QUOTE ]

On every level ...

Jakey swore as he rubbed his eyes, the bright light making his vision a mess of negative blue and purple. After a while, he made out Chillblaze getting to his feet next to him.
"What the Hell was that?!" demanded Muse. A chattering noise prickled his ears and Jakey stood swiftly. He had already set himself into a combat stance before his vision cleared enough for him to see that they were no longer in Siren's Call. They were in a round, stone room. A magic circle was still smoking around them and outside the circle was a stone lectern. A small, furry creature was crouched on the lectern, its round eyes staring at him, nose twitching anxiously. It put Jakey strongly in mind of a lemur of all things.
"Why did you summon us?" he demanded. Around him, Avenger, Muse, Chillblaze, Shingi and Esher were picking themselves up with various grumbling noises.
"Oh my, oh my, the book did not say anything about it being more than one person. Oh my, oh my!" The lemur hunched and started turning pages, hopping around on the lectern. Jakey relaxed his stance and looked up at Avenger, who frowned in confusion.
"What bo-"
"BAD THING!" Esher's sudden shout and jump behind Avenger startled everyone and they spun around. None of the others could see anything but Jakey suddenly bristled as he saw Esher pounce a shadowy figure up against the wall, holding him or her up by the neck.
"We've got a stalker!" His tail puffed up angrily and he slipped back into his combat stance. Chillblaze's fists ignited in two swirls of fire that illuminated the room. Shingi's carbon claws snapped out.
"Esher, stop, he's a friend!" Gaze appeared next to Esher, holding onto his arm desperately. The young man turned his head slightly to look at her, his eyes hidden behind the thick lens of his blast goggles.
"Friend?"
"He's my … he's my contact." Gaze's hesitation made several of them frown. They wondered what she'd been about to say. Avenger folded his arms tightly.
"Let him go Esher. It's not like he can hide from you and Jakey. Well seen, by the way." He smiled to Esher as the young man dropped the short figure and stepped back.
"It am OK, glowie man."
Gaze crouched and helped the figure to his feet. He shimmered into view as he got up, rubbing his neck. Being visible didn't make him much more recognisable, he had a dark purple hood up over his head and a purple mask over the lower part of his face. His open, sleeveless biker jacket showed a powerful physique despite his small size. Jakey was suddenly annoyed to note their 'stalker' had almost a foot height advantage on him.
"Guys … this is Immemoria of the Rogue Islands." Gaze stood by his side protectively.
"You're a fairy," Jakey said in a low growl. Avenger looked down at him with a surprised blink.
"And you're a cat." Immemoria sounded slightly husky from having Esher's gauntleted hand rammed into his neck at speed.
"Immemoria's been the one supplying me with the information on Arachnos' troop movements. At considerable risk to himself, I might add." Gaze sounded tense. Muse put a hand on Avenger's arm gently.
"Do you trust him, Gaze?" he asked. Gaze nodded.
"Implicitly."
"That's good enough for me." Muse looked up at his partner's face. Avenger sighed.
"I suppose we do have more important things to worry about." He took his eyes off the fairy and looked down at Muse, then covered his hand with his and patted it. Jakey glowered at Immemoria some more, not as willing as the others to trust this fey creature. Immemoria blinked at him, then held out his hand.
"Can we put the war on hold until we get back, cat?" His wording made Gaze blink slightly. Was there more to the cat/fairy relationship than she'd thought?
"Fine, but it's only temporary. Don't get comfortable," Jakey growled, shaking Immemoria's hand with a crisp, short gesture. Gaze looked puzzled, then caught Chillblaze's look. He shrugged slightly. Clearly he was just as mystified.
Now that the imminent threat from a Rogue Islander had been settled to most people's satisfaction, the group of heroes turned to the less urgent problem. The lemur was still on the lectern, staring at them with a twitching tail. Muse blinked.
"Awww!" He couldn't help it, it just burst out of him. He flushed a bit when Shingi gave him a black look through his visor.
"'Awww'? Oh dear, oh dear, this does not translate! Did I make a mistake?!" said the lemur, hopping about in an agitated way. Gaze blinked, feeling waves of its anxiety and she waved her hands.
"It's not a word, it's just a sound. It means admiration." She elbowed Muse. He blinked and rubbed the patch and then nodded.
"Yes, I'm very impressed by this … um … burned circle thing."
"How come you're never as impressed when I burn circles?" Chillblaze murmured. Muse gave him a flat sideways look.
"Because doing it in the base walls does not count as 'art'."
"If you insist." Chillblaze grinned cheerfully. The lemur's ears swivelled and pricked up.
"Ah, I think I understand. You can understand me as well?" It was difficult to tell with his fuzzy little face, but they thought he might be wearing a hopeful expression. Shingi grunted.
"Yes, yes. We all understand each other. Now tell us what the Hell we are doing here and why you've done this before I lose my temper and kick your fuzzy little backside out the door."
The lemur squeaked and hid down under the edge of the lectern. Gaze gave Shingi a reproachful look and walked over to the lemur, picking it up gently and cuddling it.
"Don't be so mean, Shingi. He's just little." She was surprised to find its fur thick and silken soft. She could also feel the pitter-patter of its anxious little heart, fair melting her own.
"Oh dear, oh dear. Light Warriors are so scary and big," wailed the lemur, hiding its face in its hands. Avenger blinked.
"'Light Warriors'?"
"Yes, yes, the priestess said you were our last hope! She did not say you would be more than one person. Oh oh … oh dear. What will they say when they find I have brought more giants to Bolero?!" The lemur suddenly scrambled up Gaze's shoulder and onto her head, trying to hide under her hat.
Chillblaze, who was trying to keep a straight face, coughed.
"Think we should leave this room and go see what's up?" he asked. Jakey yawned and stretched his arms over his head, his mouth opening further than a human's did, being slightly disconcerting to watch.
"I'm overdue for my pre-lunch nap."
"Um, can you take us to someone who can tell us what's going on, please?" Gaze asked, looking up at her hat. The lemur poked his head out from under it.
"Oh … oh of course. I'll take you to the King. Come with me!" It squeezed out from under the hat and dropped to the ground. It scampered to the large wooden door and jumped up onto the handle, using its weight to pull it down and then, dangling from its hands, it kicked its legs against the wall. The door swung open ajar and the lemur dropped down, slipping its little fingers into the gap and it pulled the door open enough to let itself through. The heroes all looked at each other and Chillblaze pulled the door open.
"Okay, question. This is your home, right?" he asked. The lemur, who was watching him pull the door open with wide, round eyes, nodded nervously.
"So why are the doors our size?"
"We didn't build the Home. The Ancestors did. They are very much bigger than we." The lemur looked over its shoulder and then scampered down the long corridor.
"Couldn't you have made a cat flap or something?" Chillblaze murmured. Esher dropped to all fours and mimicked the lemur.
"I r fluffy thing! Whee bounce!" Shingi watched the young man go scampering down the corridor after the lemur.
"Well, at least someone's enjoying himself."

"I'm hungry. When are we leaving this heaving hell-hole of scum and villainy?" Jakey asked, crouched on the very tip of a twisted girder sticking out of a mound of rubble. Chillblaze hovered next to him, rubbing his shades clean of dust with his cloak.
"When we're done, I guess," he looked through the lens to check them, then put them on. Jakey groaned and put his chin on his arms, watching Gaze and Avenger conferring in the bottom of the hole.
"Know why we're out here?" he asked. Chillblaze grinned.
"Hell if I know. Gaze muttered something about meeting her 'contact' and I just wanted to get out, stretch my legs … drink soda. You know, the usual stuff I do?"
"[censored] about and do as little as possible then?" Jakey's tail flicked in amusement.
"You said it, not me, Mr Sets-A-Bad-Example."
"That's Sir Napsalot to you, minion." Chillblaze laughed.
Gaze heard his laughter and looked up, she watched them both for a moment and looked back at her twin.
"He'll be here soon. Try to keep everyone occupied while I talk to him."
"Alright. One day I'd like to meet this so very secretive contact of yours," Avenger said, straightening his hat and kicking off, flying off out of the hole and landing on the ledge to talk to Muse, Esher and Shingi.
Gaze glanced back up at Jakey and Chillblaze again, worried about the small cat again. He'd been acting so strangely lately. But then, he'd been acting strangely since Sally'd been killed so suddenly. They'd been close friends. Maybe it was just grief. She hoped that was the case. She tugged the brim of her hat, fading from view on instinct as she walked. She didn't feel safe in Siren's Call, not since the horrific explosion had torn down an entire section of the War Wall and given the Rogue Islanders an access point to the city. That and you never knew who or what was watching you.
She ducked under some exposed girders and smiled as she found the tiny patch of green moss. Some weeds were growing with verdant enthusiasm and she could see the faint imprints of someone standing on the moss.
"Hi Immy," she said softly. The air shimmered slightly as the fairy man turned and looked around at her.
"Gaze! Is … is the cat anywhere about?" He sounded nervous. Gaze did not quite understand the relationship between cats and fairies or why they disliked each other so much, but she respected Immemoria's feelings.
"Avenger's keeping him distracted. Are you alright?" she asked. She heard Immemoria's soft laugh as he melted into view, pushing his hood back. He pushed a hand through his hair, ruffling it loose after long hours under the fabric.
"I'm good. I don't think anyone's onto me yet. Here." He pulled a disk case out of his upper pocket and held it out. Gaze took it slowly, glancing at it. Immemoria looked at one of his flowers and rubbed its leaves clean with his thumb.
"City air's so dirty … they can hardly breathe," he said softly. Gaze glanced at him, tucking the disk into her pocket.
"What's on the disk?"
"Troop movements, logistics. Pretty much all I could pull from the Arachnos database before the spiders came for me. Should help you head off a few more attacks before they reach their destinations." He didn't meet her eyes, his scruffy hair stirring in the wind. It was a pale, almost aqua blue colour at the roots that deepened to nearly black at the tips. Gaze regarded him for a moment.
"Thank you, Immy, but you can't keep doing this. Someone's going to notice you're spying on Arachnos sooner or later. I can't imagine what they'd do to you if they found out."
"Yeah. I know. Don't worry about the bugs, they're not suspicious yet. I can still be useful for a while." He looked at her, smiling slightly. Though he wore a mask over his nose and mouth, she could see the crinkle of his eyes and curve of his cheeks. She wondered briefly if he feared anything.
"Oh … and before you go, there's something I should let you know. There's been talk in the Islands, just chatter but I think it should be noted. Well, we don't have any empaths in the Islands. There was some chest beating talk about kidnapping a Hero empath and keeping them prisoner to provide their services." Immemoria rubbed the back of his neck with his hand, then blinked and looked at the heavy chain wrapped around it. He looked back up at Gaze.
"I did what I could to discourage the idea, but I doubt it'll be dormant for long. Getting banged up is part of Island life, a lot of people might start seriously contemplating abducting Hero empaths."
Gaze was slightly taken aback, feeling an uncomfortable prickle down her spine. She nodded.
"Thanks for the warning."
"No problem, it's what I'm here for." Immemoria stopped and frowned, looking around. Gaze saw him vanish before her eyes, an anxiety reflex no different to her own.
"What is it?"
"Can you feel that?"
She did not get a chance to answer before a flash of light splashed over them both and left the area deserted, only the flowers left to bob in the sea breeze.

I do see your point. My habit is to indent paragraphs, but forum posts love to left block them, so it's a huge annoyance. I use space between paragraphs to show a scene change, but your point is well taken. Possibly something I can experiment with.