Sooner

Welcome back

I shall go make a new kin right now on the second account.

If we went to a coop zone we could bring in both villain and hero. I'll have to see what that status of my kins is... I went through a real "I'll never play another kin ever," phase, but I've got at least one I could bring to the table.

River? Care to make this happen?

Threadjacking! It's a Protector tradition!

Grabbed a couple bio nukes and Ici is standing by in the hive.

Part XXV is posted

Part XXV

Kings Row
"Ok, Red. What can you tell me about Hellions?" Ahren asked. The pair had been following the trail of a magical artifact stolen by Hellions across Paragon City, and that trail led here. This would be their first real test as a partnership.

They crouched atop a roof looking over an abandoned warehouse in Kings Row. The day was cool and overcast, but still muggy. Sooner Red wore the costume just delivered the day before, so new the leather still creaked sometimes when she moved. It was similar to her sisters, with the red leather bustier, but instead of the red form fitting pants her sisters favored, this Sooner had picked a short skirt. It worked well with her graceful fighting style.

Ahren waited as Cerise considered his question. The teacher in him appreciated the careful thought she put into it, but the experienced Hero knew that you didn't always get time to think. Just as he was about to tell her that time was up, she looked at him and spoke. "They claim to be devil worshipers. They like fire and arson, but they don't have the power to expand out of Atlas Park and Galaxy City... oh... and Perez Park. This group is trying to get a foothold in Kings Row. Recently they have been collecting magical artifacts, like the one we're tracking. They have a violent, bloodletting ritual for initiation-"

Ahren raised a hand. "That's good enough for now," he said with a nod. "Expect them to attack with fire. Watch out for Fallen and Damned. I'll get and keep their attention while you take them out. Ok?"

He hid a smile as she made a good show of confidence. He could see she was nervous, but she was ready and willing to go in at his back. They didn't bother with stealth, it wouldn't suit either of their styles, they just jogged to the door and kicked it open. Ahren kept a close eye on his young partner as they fought. She was young, eager and nervous and that would make her prone to making mistakes. He observed that same natural grace and strength that her sisters had used to great advantage during their careers. She was still learning how make use of her abilities, of course, but that was what this mission and the ones that would follow were for - to learn how be a hero. She was like a dancer, leaping and twirling, darting in and out with those magical glowing blades of light moving like extensions of her own hands. But one thing was becoming very clear to him. He'd noticed it while they were tracking down the clues that lead them there, but as they moved from group to group it was becoming very clear: Cerise rarely finished off a fight. She moved quickly and skillfully from target to target, but it always fell to Ahren to finish them.

Despite that, they made a good pair, and the Hellions fell before them. They fought their way through the run down, dusty warehouse, trying to find the one called Brimstone and the artifact. At a T interstection, they chose to go left and almost immediately they heard raised voices. Ahren led the way carefully down the dark corridor.

"But where did He go? Why did He leave us?" a high, nervous tenor asked.

"It's not for you to question Him!" snapped a deeper, harsher voice. "He's back now, and that's what matters."

"But how are we supposed to teach the others if He's not here?"

"Shut up, you idiot!" the deeper voice snarled. "You don't want Him to know you've been questioning him! Not if you ever want Him to mark you, anyway."

"But-" the tenor cut off with a startled yell over the sound of a open hand slap.

Ahren snuck a glance around the corner. He saw a tall, broad, dark haired man matching the description of Brimstone standing over a skinny blond man with a scraggly beard. The large, open room was filled with boxes and dust, and with an assortment of rough looking young men and a handful of young women. The men favored red, orange, yellow and black clothing. A few wore horned masks over their faces. Brimstone wore his mask pushed back onto his forehead, with a red vest worn open over a shirtless chest. Ahren frowned. From their angle, he didn't have a good view of the tattoo that covered Brimstone's chest, but he could tell something was off about it. Instead of the red horned goat at the center, there was something black.

He pulled back around the corner and turned to Sooner Red. "I'm going to get them to come to me. You hang back, and then take them out as they come. Got it?" She nodded nervously and he smiled. "You'll be fine. I'll be watching your back."

Ahren stepped out in full view of the room. "You're Brimstone eh? That's an excellent moniker for you: dull, dirty, and exuding a foul stench. It's perfect."

Brimstone turned to face Ahren, anger blossoming on his face. "Who the hell are you and what the **** are you doing here?" he demanded, even as he broke into a clumsy run.

Ahren didn't bother with an answer, he stepped back around the corner, out of sight, and waited for the stampede. A chorus of screams rose from the girls as they scattered, and the men bellowed challenges as they charged toward the pair.

After waiting just long enough for the stragglers to arrive, Red stepped into the fight in a leaping twirling deadly dance, but she still lacked that crucial follow through. Ahren was more than able to take up the slack, but it was a puzzle - one from which he was abruptly distracted when Brimstone belched out a stream of fire which enveloped Ahren and scorched his skin. Ahren's nanites hadn't quite figured out how to deal with fire damage and that had hurt! Ahren was surprised again, however, when Cerise responded to his yell of pain by whirling into determined action, slashing and slicing around them until the last of the Hellions fell. Ahren studied his young partner while she caught her breath, covered with splashes of blood.

Ahren turned his gaze from Red to the fallen Brimstone. He pushed the severly injured man over onto his back and examined the tattoo. The horned goat's head had been almost completely obscured by a black hand print. The sight of it made Ahren frown thoughtfully. He put his own hand over the mark, and it looked like a child's hand on a man's hand print. Ahren observed the clawed points on each finger with narrowed and thoughtful eyes. Involuntarily, his hand hand rose to his own chest then he wiped his palm on the leg of his pants as if there were something foul and dirty staining his hand.

"Where did you get this?" Ahren asked.

"He put His mark on me Himself," Brimstone coughed out.

"Who is 'He'?"

Brimstone coughed. "He is power, and might, and fury... he will destroy you.... all.....," he said, but then slumped unconscious.

She shivered and her gaze flicked from Brimstone as his teleporter carried him away to Ahren. "So... who is 'He'?" she asked with a tremble in her voice.

"I have no idea," Ahren answered, but deep inside... he thought maybe he did. "There's the artifact, Red. Grab it and let's get clear."

They exited the warehouse into another overcast afternoon in Kings Row. Cerise turned the strange symbol over and over in her hand. "So... WHAT is this thing again?"

"Red," Ahren said, shaking his head, "I've never come close to understanding magic. That's you and your sisters' area. You tell me."

She smiled at him, a bright flash that lit up her face and made her green eyes shine. She started to speak, then her gaze shifted away from him and her eyes widened. Just a bit. "Hey! Is that Six-Four?" she asked. Before he could answer, she trotted away from him - a slender girl in red leather, her pale legs flashing under her skirt, a narrow cape floating away from one shoulder. He shook his head, trying to remember what it felt like to be that young.

Ahren looked after her and recognized the tall, dark haired man. He was leaning back against a wall in a narrow alley with a pad of paper resting on his left arm while sketching rapidly. He glanced up as Red and Ahren approached, glancing from one to the other. "Hey Ahren," he said with a nod. "Hiya kid."

Once they joined Six, Red became suddenly quiet and shy, and Ahren realized with an suppressed groan that his young partner had a crush on the Ghosts very own problem child. That would go nowhere good. He was considering how to nip that quickly and surgically in the bud, when Six-Four turned his sketch pad toward Ahren. "What do you make of this, Ahren?"

Ahren raised a brow. It was a remarkable copy of the same symbol he'd just seen branded onto a man's chest. He glanced at the wall to see the grafitti there - a hellion's symbol overlaid with a heavy black clawed hand print.

"I've been seeing this symbol more and more around Kings Row," Six continued. "I don't like it. Is it some new faction in the Hellions?"

Ahren took the sketch pad and studied it carefully. "I don't like it either." He handed the drawing back, holding Six's gaze, "and probably for the same reason."

Six tucked the drawing under his arm. "I gotta run." He nodded over his shoulder at them. "Later Ahren, kid," he said as he sauntered away.

Ahren shook his head at the expression on Red's face. "Oh... Red, no. That's bad news there," he said after a moment.

"Huh?" she asked, tilting her head up with a remarkably believable guileless expression.

"Don't 'Huh?" me. Six is not some college boy, Red. Do not go chasing that."

She shrugged, nearly achieving a casual and natural gesture. "I was thinking about asking him to help me train with my blades. Since.. ya know... that's how he fights."

Ahren sighed. "C'mon. Let's get something to drink, and talk."

A few minutes later they sat at a patio table and Ahren shook his head again at how incredibly young she seemed sitting there with wide green eyes fixed on him under straight bangs, red hair pulled back in a pair of low pigtails, sipping a soda through a straw. And she picked Six-Four for her crush?

"Six-Four is a... ah... very dangerous man," he started, but could already see the stars flashing in her eyes at the phrase. "Ok.. let me tell you a story. He approached us as a young hero, just starting out. We knew he was skilled with blades, we knew he could heal incredibly fast, he was strong, and talented... and you know how things are with us and the Shades.. we are always looking for fresh talent, but... we have a certain way of doing things, we are heroes. We didn't know, because he concealed it... that he had a history with of the leaders of the Shades of Vengeance - a woman named Ebony Rose." Red nodded. You didn't get too very far in the Ghosts without knowing all about their enemies in the Rogue Isles, the Shades of Vengeance. "I suspect he approached us specifically because of our history with them, he knew we'd have intelligence he couldn't get anywhere else...."

Red leaned forward, listening avidly, and Ahren worried he was just romanticizing the story for her. "What happened?" she breathed when he paused too long.

"He used the information he gathered about her to track down her family. He uncovered some evidence that made it appear her father had commited fraud and might even be connected to a death, and that her mother might have known about or even been part of it. He pushed and drove that evidence until they were arrested, in hopes of drawing Rose out. It didn't work, Rose didn't show and it turned out her parents hadn't done anything wrong, but their lives and reputations were ruined." Ahren paused again, remembering the times he'd tried to talk to Six, tried to get him to accept help, to handle things better. "Eventually, he snuck off to the Rogue Isles to try to kill her." Ahren sat forward. "He went there to kill her, Red. Not arrest her, kill. From what we know, he very nearly succeeeded. Rose spent a long time recovering from that attack. Six nearly died as well - anyone else would've died from those wounds, I'm sure."

"He nearly died?" she gasped.

"Red.. he's hanging on to his membership in the Ghosts by his fingernails. One more mistep and he'll likely be kicked out. He is not the man you want to look to for... well... anything.

She sat up, clutching her soda and sipping at the straw. She nodded thoughtfully, but her eyes cut away from his. Ahren sighed. He hadn't helped the situation at all and might've made it worse. Well... one thing he could do... he was going to keep the youngest Nation sister too busy to even think about Six-Four until she got over it.

[Ahren does not know the whole story of just how far over the line Six actually went. You can read it here: Choices, but I'll just say that Six-Four broke a lot of rules in his ultimately failed pursuit of vengeance.]

Honestly, I don't recall. She did another piece for me some time ago, and I asked for it in the same style.

I THINK it's the cell, but I'm not sure.

Very well said, Boricua.

Major T's stalker Bounty-Killer.

They are in a hopelessly tragic star crossed romance ...I'm pretty confident it's not going to end with her stabbing herself and him poisoning himself. Other than that... it's not likely to end well.... blah blah blah...

...and they met in Oranbega... hence the setting.

Another great work by Liz Chesterman.

Thanks, Liz!

I really wanted to stay far far away from this thread - for a lot of reasons, but I caved. So.. here goes.

*Raises a pint of Guinness*

Such problems she has! People buying her cruises and stuff! Aaaaah!

Part XXIV is up. Just a little transitional piece while we get Cerise set up in Paragon City.

Part XXIV

The Ghosts Reborn Base
Cydney greeted her sisters with welcoming embrace. The three stood in the entryway of the Ghosts Reborn base, surrounded by blue and white banners with the gleaming skull logo, the austere stainless steel floors and walls reflecting the bright fluorescents back onto them. A small welcoming committee of members including Glacius9, Vir, Celestial Nav, and Neely stood by, but when Cerise's shoulders started to shake and three sisters stood clinging to each other, Vir raised one brow and waved everyone else out of the way. "They can find us later," he murmured in response to Nav's questioning look.

Several minutes of sobbing, shushing, and hugging later, the three stepped back. "Where'd they go?" Caryn asked, glancing around.

"I'm sure they're just giving us our space," Cyd answered. "C'mon, Cerise. Let's show you to your room, and then we'll give you the tour."

"From one dorm room to another, eh?" Cerise said a few minutes later, trying not to sound like she was pouting as she stood in the middle of the small room.

"So you'll feel right at home, eh?" Cyd teased. "You can unpack and settle in later. You've got a ton of people to meet.|

Cerise was dizzy trying to keep track of everyone. More names and faces than anyone could be expected to remember. And the base was huge, with those same metallic floors and walls everywhere. "Can I get a guide book, maybe?" she asked as they turned another corner and another enormous room opened up.

"You'll get it figured out, sis," Caryn promised. "Though I think some of us are still looking for the exit."

"This way, Cerise. I want to introduce you to one of my best friends." Cyd led the way deeper into the huge base. They turned into a brightly lit room filled with the sharp scents of disinfectant. "This is the infirmary, and this is" she said, and then cut herself off and sniffed - a sniff Cerise was long familiar with. It was the noise her sister made when she saw something she didn't like, but wasn't going to say anything.

Cerise turned her attention to the scene there. There was a man sitting on an exam table and Cerise noted with sharp interest the pair of gleaming deadly blades laying on the table beside him. Her view of the patient was blocked by a tall man wearing a doctor's white coat. All his visible skin was bright red, but he seemed normal otherwise. "We've got to stop meeting like this," the doctor said.

"Ya, you said that last time, doc," the man on the table said. "And the time before. You need new material. Just slap some surgical glue on me and let me outa here already."

The doctor assumed a thick "bad guy accent" and waved his arms theatrically, "We meet again, Mr. Four..." he said, then continued in his normal tone. "is that any better?"

"Ya, doc. I come here for the wit. Are we done?"

"Zem?" Cydney called out. "Everything ok?"

The doctor turned toward them, and Cerise gasped. It wasn't the doctor that took her by surprise, but her first view of the patient that made her eyes widen and her skin flush. The man sitting there with his shirt pooled around his waist was attractive in a hard, sharp edged way, as if just standing near him too long could result in a painful injury. He looked strong and mean and dangerous. His chest, shoulders, and arms were thick with hard, ropey muscle, clearly defined under skin dusted faintly golden by a lifetime under the sun, yet surprisingly smooth and unmarked. Unmarked, that was, except for a twisted burn scar that wrapped around his side and a puckered circle just over his heart.

Cerise felt herself blushing but was unable to look away. She noticed Cydney glancing at her with disapproval written clearly on her face, but she still couldn't take her eyes off him. It was like finding herself face to face with a beautiful but very deadly snake. She didn't dare look away.

She barely heard the doctor say, "Yes. everything's fine. Six-Four here is just working on his frequent patient rewards card. One more near-death experience and he'll get the toaster oven." The doctor turned back to the patient, "Yes, Six. we're done. You can go."

"Thanks doc," the man said, and hopped off the table. Cerise gasped again when he pulled the shirt over his upper body - a shirt that was little more than bloody rags.

"Don't thank me," the doctor answered. "I mostly just watch while you heal yourself."

Six-Four snatched up his blades, tucked them into his belt, and started to walk out. "Hey Sooner," he said by way of casual greeting. He glanced at Cerise, flicked his gaze over her in a frank appraisal the made her want to self consciously cross her arms, and then he paused to study her face. He cocked a brow and glanced atCyd and Caryn, then back to Cerise. "What's this? There's ANOTHER one of you?"

"Six-Four," Cydney answered, but Cerise noticed her voice was tight. "This is my younger sister, Sooner Red."

"Hi," Cerise said, shyly offering her hand.

Six-Four smiled, a show of teeth that did nothing to make him seem more friendly or even less dangerous. "Hey, kid. Nice to meetcha." he answered. He glanced down at Cerise's outstretched hand, flicked his gaze to Cyd's glower, then stuck his hands in his pockets and strode out of the infirmary and out of sight, leaving Cerise with a nervous and very confused flutter in her belly.

She glanced up and saw both Cydney and Caryn watching Six-Four darkly as he strode away, then Cyd looked back at Cerise and arched a brow. "So..." she said finally. "This is my dear friend Zemuron. Zem, this is my youngest sister Cerise."

Cerise shook Zem's hand, but kept glancing down the hallway where Six-Four had vanished. She was unaware of the dark looks flicking between her sisters and their friend.

After just a few minutes of friendly chatter, a bright white light flared at the back of the room and a wounded man in a blue on white uniform staggered out of the column of light. Zemuron sprinted to help him. Cyd waited a moment then called out, "Will he be ok?"

Zem nodded distractedly. "He'll be fine. Just needs a little attention from a good doctor." Zem looked up with a twinkle in his eye. "You don't happen to know one, do you?"

Cyd laughed, and guided Cerise out of the infirmary. "Completely overwhelmed yet, sis?" she asked

"Yes!" Cerise answered with a nervous laugh. "Cyd... this is... so..."

"I know. I felt the same way. But I've got one more person I want you to meet and.. that should help."

Cerise nodded and followed, still staring around the huge base with wide eyes. She had no idea how to find her way around. "Do people ever starve to death trying to find the kitchen?" she asked.

Cyd smiled. "You'll be fine. And... here we are." She gestured for Cerise to proceed her into a large fitness center complete with physical rehab equipment, a lap pool, weight lifting equipment with a staggering number of weight plates, whirlpools... everything you could imagine in a gym. There were several people making good use of the equipment, but Cyd guided them to where a tall, fit, and handsome man with reddish brown hair and bright green eyes was laboriously hand walking himself along a set of parallel bars. He looked up, nodded an acknowledgment and finished up the last few feet before dropping to the padded floor. He took a moment to catch his breath before sauntering over to the sisters.

"This must be Cerise," he said and offered his hand. "I've heard quite a bit about you from your sisters."

Cerise smiled shyly as they shook hands.

"Ahren, how goes the rehab?" Cyd asked.

"Better each day," he answered. "I'm getting used to the changes - faster reflexes, increased strength - my brain just needs to catch up to what my body can do. I should be read to get back out there within a few days."

"Are you sure you'll be ready to start over that quickly, Ahren?" Cyd asked.

"As sure as I can be. I'm ready to get back to work as a Hero." He smiled as Cyd opened her mouth to speak, "And.. let me guess. You want me to take your little sister here with me when I go?"

"Well... yes." Cyd answered. "It just seems ... right that you head out into Paragon City for the third time with another Sooner."

He shrugged. "It's becoming a habit. So... what do I call this one?"

Cerise smiled. She liked Ahren on first impression, with his easy friendly manner, and it was obvious her sisters were comfortable with him, especially compared to the way they'd behaved around the man called Six-Four. "I'm Sooner Red." she answered.

"Red it is," he smiled. "Welcome to the Ghosts Reborn."

Ici will be there, glad to take on targetting duties if you like.

I <3 shepherd's pie.

If by "good old days" you mean the days when you ran missions by having the team stand by the door while the tank herded the map...... nope. Don't miss that a bit.