Sooner

This epilogue was written by M_I_Abrahms, the player behind Thin Line.

Homecoming - Addendum part 2
By M_I_Abrahms

A black envelope lay nearly hidden in the shadows of a door stoop. There is no name, or address written on it, and it is not sealed. And yet, as careless as this 'delivery' may be, it is still the very person for whom it is intended that picks it up...

I see 'Killer' is as tenderhearted as ever. Even with his talent for taking lives, he is still driven to save anyone that doesn't have a price on thier head.

I had a vision. A world that ran red. My masterpiece, painted one body at a time, and it was so...boring.

But then, I found you. You and your dear sister, and I saw how much you cared, how far you would go for her. I had to see what you would do to protect her, and you didn't disappoint.

But such anger, such emotion. You have to learn to set these aside or when I come for you, and I will come for you, you will falter. And I don't want that. No, I don't want to kill you...too quickly. After all, what would I do without you? The music is playing, the night is young, and there will be many dances between us two.

At least I hope so. You have a rare fire I've only seen in one other. But if you let your Rage blind you, if your Grief causes you to stumble...well, I guess I'll just have to find another playmate. Perhaps the lady in the red, or that angry young man who fights as I do. Or, I could go back to your sister. I have to admit, killing someone I've already killed would be a first. Even for me.

You don't want that. In truth, neither do I. None of the others would have your fire, your spirit. They would all be fighting for a teammate, but you...you fight for something deeper. And that's a fight I'm looking forward to.


Be seeing you.


PS. Next time you run into the 'Hero' tell him this: "I know what you are doing on your nights off. Even for a guy like me, that's cold."

This epilogue was written by Major T, who is the player behind Bounty-Killer

Epilogue by Major T
Pocket D
8:30pm, days later.

The crowd is lively. Most celebrating. Some commiserating. A few doing both. In a dark corner on the ground floor of the Monkey Fight Club, a lone figure sits in the shadows sipping his usual drink. He thinks of Ici Cold - one of Paragon City’s most powerful and most beautiful heroes - and the life they can never have together. He thinks of the clandestine rendezvous they share, and the look on her face when he leaves. He remembers the way her lip quivers when he says he has to go, the way she curls her knees to her chest as he shrugs into his trenchcoat, the speck of a tear she tries to hide as he walks out the door. And he wishes to his core that things were different because what they have will only end badly.

"BOUNTY-KILLER!"

His melancholy environment is immediately polluted by the loud and venomous use of his name.

A slender blonde woman in a dark, form fitting outfit marches towards his table oozing attitude. She slams both of her fists into the table, looks directly into his eyes, and yells, "YOU LIED TO ME!"

He breaks eye contact. The last time he'd looked into those wide blue eyes they had been filling with grieving tears. Today, they were flashing with fury. He takes another sip from his drink.

As he withdraws the drink from his mouth, she slaps it from his hand, the glass shatters on the ground.

"YOU TOLD ME SHE WAS DEAD!"

A bouncer look in their direction, and starts moving towards them. Bounty-Killer waves him off, looks at the wasted alcohol and rolls his eyes. He stands up and ignores her. He puts on his sunglasses, straightens his tie and smooths his trench coat, intent on leaving the club.

Neely, infuriated that he hasn't responded to her, walks around the table and shoves him in the chest. He takes a step backward to re-balance himself and his back is pressed firmly against the wall. The bouncer again looks in his direction, Killer slightly shakes his head, letting him know not to intervene... yet. He takes a deep breath and responds in the most sincere and tranquil tone he could muster, "I didn't lie to you, I told you what you needed to hear."

Neely's fury would not be denied and could not be calmed. She reaches back and lashes out in an attempt to slap him. Bounty-Killer catches her hand inches from his face.

She snarls, "Lying [censored]!" and spits in his face.

Bounty-Killer removes his glasses with his free hand, takes a half step forward and looks down at her and growls, "Do you want to start a scene?"

The kheldian power flares inside of her, her eyes glow a brilliant white. "I want to kill you!" she sneers.

He squints at her. His looks into her face and studies it for a moment. Damn. She meant it. He exhales heavily and replies, "That can be arranged, meet me upstairs in 20 minutes. I'll have the safety protocols turned off," he looks her up and down and smirks, "and then you can have your chance."

Neely yanks her hand from his grasp and stares at him. Bounty-Killer, pauses for a moment, then walks around her and heads towards the base portal.


Pocket D
8:55 pm

He enters the Monkey Fight Club, wearing all black and carrying a large duffel bag. His steps are deliberate. His demeanor is anything but pleasant. He proceeds up the steps, the other patrons of Pocket D move out of his way, avoiding physical and eye contact.

She watches him, her anger boiling. The adrenaline races through her veins... she was going to avenge her sister. She is going to kill this man.

He heads to an arena terminal; she joins him.

He presses a few keys before walking away without speaking a word. She watches as he speaks to a gaming associate. He watches the other man's eyes open wide and then look directly at her with shock and horror. The pair speak in urgent and hushed tones, and then suddenly stop talking. Bounty-Killer staring at the man, the man returning his gaze. The man nods his head, and proceeds to the master control station while Bounty-Killer moves towards Neely.

Killer looks at her, "He wants to talk to you," and tilts his head in the man's direction.

She walks over, and he asks her a single, simple question: "Are you sure?"

"Yes." Her reply is firm.

The man takes a deep breath, looks down at the computer, and keys in a series of commands on the control panel. He then looks up into her beautiful blue eyes, fearing that he may be the last person to see her alive in Pocket D. At that moment, he doesn't see a powerful hero, he sees a precious young woman going up against a known murderer, a skilled assassin, a vicious killer. He shakily tells her, "Good luck."

She spins on her heels and walks purposefully over to the terminal where Bounty-Killer is standing. He presses a button on the terminal and the countdown begins.

10 ... 9 ...

He pulls up the facemask that is around his neck to cover his nose and mouth. He pulls the hood that was dangling against his back to cover his head. The only parts of his body left uncovered are his eyes, barely discernable under the shadow of the hood.

... 6 ... 5 ...

He reaches down to pick up the duffel bag at his feet. He tilts his head from side to side, cracking his neck. Neely watches him. Each move he makes irritates her fractionally more. She clenches her fists and tenses her muscles. Her eyes are no longer blue, the brilliant white glow of Kheldian energy is flowing from them in preparation for battle, a battle to the death. She is determined to win. She is determined to avenge her sister.

... 2 ... 1.

In flash, Neely was transported from the loud and lively environment of Pocket D to a silent and somber abandoned office building. Neely quickly takes in her surroundings. She is standing beside a staircase to a catwalk that overlooks the lowest level. A small office space is suspended from the ceiling allowing for a bird's eye view of the cavernous room. In the middle is a waiting area and reception desk, unmaintained office equipment and chairs covered in thin layer of dust.

Neely hovers a few inches from the ground, looking for her target. She floats upward and over the catwalk, and eyes her intended victim. Bounty-Killer stands in the middle of the catwalk like a defiant statue.

"YOU!" she snarls.

Neely fires three blasts of luminous energy towards her foe. He side steps the first blast, leaps over the second, and draws his sword to block the third. Who is she kidding?

Her power intensifies, fueled by revenge and focused upon the figure in front of her.

She chases him, firing blast after blast, and watches as he back-flips and twirls to avoid the projectile energy.

"My sister sat in a cell for MONTHS, because of you!" Her fury flares from her hands as she fires at him relentlessly.

He leaps down from the catwalk to the ground below. She follows him.

"She suffered torture, she lived in terror because of you!" She tries to close with him, she wants her fists on him. She leaps into the air and brings her fists down, but he is no longer there. She lands heavily and spins until her blazing eyes find him again.

She fires her blasts toward the ground in front of Bounty-Killer, the explosive force of the impact causes the ground to shatter and chairs to fly in his direction. He leaps backward.

"She was at the mercy of people who HATE us, and she did not get rescued because you LIED to me!"

She accelerates directly at him, he jumps towards her. She swings her fist and lands a blow to the side of his face, ending his graceful leap and sends him tumbling away from her. His landing is awkward, he rolls on the ground and then flips himself upright, staring at her.

She lands on the ground and feels a burning sensation in her left shoulder. She landed the first blow, but Bounty-Killer drew first blood. Welcome to the big leagues, little girl. As she hit him, he managed to swipe at her with his blade. Neely's fine dark blue uniform is now marred with a slice and stained by her own blood.

She looks at her shoulder, then at Bounty-Killer. The initial shock of seeing her own blood passes, the memories flood back into her mind, and the rage returns. Her thoughts go back to Keely.

"I left her there, I left her to that. She's gone because of YOU!"

She screams, but the sound emanating from the woman is no longer human. The glow of Kheldian energy flares from within Neely and the delicate blonde woman vanishes with a thunderous crash and the hulking form of a white dwarf takes her place.

This has gone on long enough, time to end this. Bounty-Killer grips his weapon, crouches slightly, then leaps at his foe. He swings at the dwarf only to have his attack deflected by an armored claw. A retaliatory bone jarring back hand delivered to his sternum sends his body sailing backward. His flight is abruptly halted when he slams into a wall. He slides down and lands unsteadily on his feet. He stumbles, the floor is spinning and he is having difficulty finding his balance. Drywall particles from the impact crater cover his back and litter the floor. The dwarf hits a lot harder... this could be a problem.

Neely teleports in front of him, grabs his shoulder and flings him across the room. He lands in a cluster of room chairs, sending them tumbling. He slowly rises, trying to support his battered body on bruised legs. With every exertion, his muscles scream out in pain. His mind aches, his vision is cloudy, he tries to focus, to use all of his senses. The ringing in his ears is replaced by the drum-like sound of the dwarf stampeding towards him. His raises his head as the dwarfs massive limb smashes into his chest. The impact compresses his ribcage, his internal organs shift to compensate. The air flees from his lungs, and the acute pain is so intense that his brain refuses to acknowledge it. He is once again flying across the room, tumbling to a halt in the middle of the dust filled carpet.

He hears a throaty growl, but it seems so far away. He clutches his sword as he raises himself up to his hands and knees. His face and chest are badly bruised and his mouth is full of fluid. He pulls the face mask down and bright red blood spills from his mouth. This isn't going well. He reaches towards his chest to feel a tender sport on his torso. He flinches when his fingers make contact. Broken ribs. He takes a deep painful breath that ignites another intense flame of pain in his chest. He squeezes his eyes shut for a moment in a futile attempt to block out the excruciating sensations. He feels hot blood flow down his sinus passage and trickle from his nose. He opens his eyes to watch as it splatters in the pool of crimson that is slowly soaking into the dingy carpet.

He struggles to get one foot on the ground and balances himself on the other knee. His foot spreads his vital bodily fluids across the floor. Each breath he takes is a painful battle for oxygen. He can only assume that he has a punctured lung. He feels light headed and looses his balance, falling sideways into a reclining position, propped up by his elbows. His arms feel weak, his world is spinning, and he lays back to allow himself a moments respite.

"DIE!" The dwarf bellows and teleports beside him. Visions of Keely flash through her mind: the beautiful woman she was and the emaciated shell of her former self she had become. She will avenge her sister. This man will pay for the suffering that her sister endured. She will take his life away from him, just as he had taken Keely from her. The dwarf looms over his head, raises a powerful leg and slams it down, intent on crushing his skull.

Bounty-Killer rolls away. Time for plan 'B'. He pushes himself to his feet and his right hand reaches into his tunic and throws blinding powder at the dwarf. As she flinches back, she roars her fury to the room. She blinks her eyes to clear her sight, but he is nowhere to be seen.

The dwarf howls. Her frustration of the missed opportunity adds fuel to the re-ignited rage. She was so close to getting her revenge. She was so close to getting revenge for her sister. She hears a sound over by the stair case. She teleports to it and swings at the cement wall. An enormous chunk is smashed away from the structure, leaving a large hole and a cloud of dust in it's place. She stops moving and listens.

Click

She hears the familiar build-up of energy. The dwarf is instantly enveloped in a blinding flash of blue and white light as the crackle of electricity clouds her vision. Neely feels the kheldian power drain from her. "A sapper rifle?" she thinks. She looks down at her hands only to realize that she has returned to human form.

Click

She spins on her heels as she hears a different yet familiar build-up of energy. She and her kheldian half gasp at the sound. She finishes turning in time to see the ominous purple and blue swirl of a quantum blast streaking toward her. Her eyes open wide, hundreds of thoughts race through her mind: dodge, run, fly. But her body in it's weakened form can do nothing. She raises her hands in a futile attempt to ward it off. The pulse of energy invades and surges through her. She feels like she's on fire and freezing at the same time. She feels dizzy, nauseous, and helpless. she falls, writhing from the excruciating pain, struggling to maintain conciousness. She curls up into the fetal position, trying to comfort herself. Her brain aches, her muscles spasm. Her skin feels like it's being prodded by millions of needles. The kheldian within her is silently suffering. She squeezes her eyes shut to hold back the tears. She can feel it's agony, but neither one can do anything to comfort the other.

She opens her eyes to see Bounty-Killer carrying a large, double barrel weapon. He has removed his hood and face mask. Through her blurry eyes she can see his bruised and bloodied face. She watches as he walks with a notable limp towards her, but is helpless to do anything more.

"Seems I underestimated you." He coughs, a noticeable amount of blood seeps from his mouth. He wipes it away with his free hand. "Glad I brought insurance with me," he says as he pats the weapon.

Neely can only stare at him. The debilitating pain is still there, preventing her from taking any action. She lays helpless on her side, shivering. Watching him through tear filled eyes, her arms wrapped around her body and her knees pulled up to her chest.

Bounty-Killer puts the weapon down and unsheathes his sword. He grimaces as he does so. The dark art of Kuji-In Sha could not repair all of his wounds. He is now positive that he has a punctured lung, and that injury is only partially healed. He pauses to watch as the fallen hero tries to move. She is determined, but her determination isn't enough for her now.

He kneels down and straddles the defenseless hero. He places the blade across the side of her throat with one hand, and leans over to support his weight on the other. She can feel the cold, sharp edge pressed firmly against her neck.

He speaks directly into her ear, "I had Miss Rose build that weapon for me a few months ago... a special request. The Shades have many larger and more elaborate weapons in that base. Probably more than I could see."

She listens to his voice. He's so close to her. She was so close to her goal. She struggles to get control of her mind and her body, to finish the fight... to finish him. But the strength will not come.

"If you would have tried saving your sister, you would have been killed." He pauses, and speaks his next words in a slow, deep, sinister tone, "or worse."

He removes the blade from her neck. He stands up and grimaces. He retrieves the weapon and the empty duffel bag and thinks Thin Line would have killed her, twice already. This is why he calls me “hero,” With his back to her, he turns his head and looks at her over his shoulder from the corner of his eyes, "This will be the second time I've protected your life. Don't expect any more kindness from me." He turns his head and limps his battered body out of her view.

Her lips quiver. The pain subsides slightly, and she summons the strength to whisper, "I could have saved her."

My apologies. I thought you were looking for people who could could commit to do all of them.

*clings*

The conclusion of Homecoming is posted in RP.

Neely

She screamed out her rage as her prey escaped her. She flew up high, questing for him, but he was gone, and then the energy that sustained her ran out, and she plummeted back down to drop to her knees in the dirt. Gasping for breath, she could barely raise her head to look up at the place where her friends stood in a quiet circle. She pushed herself to her feet on sheer determination, and staggered back to her sister.

She’d left her sister’s body, and the body of her friend, in the care of Celestial Nav. She had been patched up numerous times herself by Nav’s skill and expected to find both Vir and Keely alive and well. But, when she pushed into the circle, she found Vir gone and Keely motionless. Nav was sweating and her skin was white. She looked like a woman who hadn’t slept in a week, a woman not far from falling over herself, and yet she was still trying to pour her energies into Keely’s body. Sooner Spirit pulled her back, saying, “She’s done, Nav. You can’t do any more,” but Nav jerked away and put her hands back onto Keely’s body, trying again to bring her back.

Neely flung herself to her knees beside her sister’s body. She shook the frail, limp form and screamed, “Come back! Come back!” She rolled Keely over onto her back, out of the puddle of blood starting to thicken underneath her and shook her again. “No!” she screamed, and grabbed Keely’s body up in a desperate hug.

She was abruptly surrounded by a purple fog and realized that the Kheldian was leaving the body. “NO!” she screamed at it. “Don’t you leave her! You stay! You save her! Don’t go!”

The fog coalesced over Keely’s body into a dark ball. An eerie voice echoed, Neely, our sister. I am sorry, the body has sustained too much damage. It is too weak, too hurt. Keely cannot continue, and I must find a new host quickly if I am to survive.

Glacius9 put a hand on Neely’s shoulder, “Neely, let her go,” he suggested gently, but she shook her head and resisted his effort to pull her back.

She reached out for the floating form, but there was nothing solid for her to grab. “You can’t leave her! Please, you can bring her back. I know you can!”

Neely’s Kheldian half recognized from the way the warshade’s form was wavering that it was not strong. But Neely could not give up hope. She couldn’t bear the thought of losing her sister, not like this, not after everything that had happened.

The ball of dark energy wavered back and forth. Then it spoke again, I wish it were so, our sister. But I am too weak. I must go, and soon, or I will die with her.

For the first time in years, Neely and her Kheldian did not think with one mind. Her Kheldian half recoiled at what Neely wanted to suggest, but it didn’t stop her. “You were a nictus, right? You used to feed off my kind.” Behind her she felt Glacius startle back as he realized what she intended. “Take energy from me. Take it and save Keely.”

No! the Warshade answered without hesitation. She would not want this. You could die. She would not thank me for killing you to save her. Neely started to speak and the Warshade spoke over her. No. I will not do this thing. I will not.

Neely would not give up on her sister. She could never give up. She knelt in her sister’s blood, one hand outstretched to the Kheldian leaving her sister behind. And then she reached behind her and grabbed Glacius9 by the hand. “Please, Glacius. It can take a little energy from us both, and then use it to save Keely. Please. Don’t let her die.”

“Neely....” Glacius started. His eyes were horrified, and shock was clear on his face.

Then abruptly, Neely and Glacius both went blank as the three Kheldians began to communicate on a level above the humans. It was as if they had lifted to a plane just slightly outside the ones the humans occupied. When Neely looked at the energy being that had bonded with Glacius she recognized something she had never seen before. “Oh, Ahren....” she breathed as she recognized the kheldian as the same one that had once made Ahren a Peacebringer.

She was dimly aware of Ahren turning towards her physical form but then the energy form of Glacius spoke up quickly, He can never know. He has suffered enough in his life already. This host was dying. I was dying after being ripped from Ahren. We would have both perished if we had not found each other, I can not return to Ahren, and he is stronger now. He is content. This knowledge would only bring him pain.

In the physical world, Neely closed her eyes, let her head drop back, and concentrated on convincing the Warshade and the other Peacebringer to save her sister.

You can take enough energy from each of us without hurting us, right? she asked. And then you can use it to heal the body and Keely will be fine!

The dark form bobbed back and forth with agitation. I can take the energy from you both without killing you, but it will hurt - very badly. I can heal the body. I can try to bring Keely back.

Glacius’s reluctance was clear, Do you understand what you are asking, of both of us, Neely? You are in effect asking a recovered addict to give in to addiction one last time, and you are asking me to let...., he turned to the warshade briefly, I mean no offense -a nictus to feed off me?

I am asking the same of myself. Of course I understand. I would not ask it of you if there were any other way. Her eyes begged him to say yes.

And the warshade cannot even promise that it will work, he reminded her.

“Glacius! Please!” she cried out in the physical world.Please! she continued, Vir would be dead if not for her. She deserves this chance.

Just do it, then, Glacius finally answered. Do it. The longer you wait, the less likely it is you can bring her back.

The Ghosts Reborn milled around the two entranced Peacebringers, aware that something was happening, aware that Neely urgently wanted something from Glacius, but not knowing how to help. Then, abruptly, the purple ball of energy darted towards the two Peacebringers. They were surrounded by the darkly glowing energy of the warshade and they both threw back their heads and let out anguished screams. Glacius dropped to his knees beside Neely, but before the assembled Ghosts could react, the warshade pulled away and sank back into Keely’s still and quiet body.

Ahren was crouched, ready for battle - as soon as he could find something to fight. Sooner Spirit hovered over Glacius and Celestial Nav ran to Neely. The rest of the Ghosts stood ready to fight whatever came, even if they didn’t understand what had attacked Glacius and Neely, or why.

Beside her, Glacius fell forward, supporting himself on hands and knees. He lifted one hand and gasped out, “We’re ok... it’s ok...” he managed before he sank down onto his elbows and dropped his head.

She understood completely. She felt like she suffering from a horrible case of the flu. She felt weak and each individual muscle was trembling. Her nerves still sang from the pain. Her head ached and throbbed and she alternated between bone-wracking chills and burning heat. Still, she crawled to Keely. She took her sister’s limp hand and held it in both of hers while she whispered, “Come back, Keely. Come back to us.”

One endless moment stretched on. Keely’s body - bruised, starved, and frail - lay still and quiet. In the distance, Neely could hear one of the interminable battles of Siren’s Call. Around her, the silence was broken only by the hesitant call of a bird.

Then, abruptly, Keely’s body shuddered to life. Every muscle spasmed briefly, then she gasped a deep breath, and a second. Neely laughed joyously. “Thank you!” she cried out, “Oh! Thank you!” But then the eyes opened, and Neely stopped. Those wide blue eyes, so like her own, turned to meet her gaze. The purple energy of a Warshade leaked out, but Neely couldn’t see her sister in them. Tears began to fall from both pairs of eyes. “Oh... no no no no....” Neely whispered.

“She is gone,” the warshade said. “The body lives, but... I cannot find Keely.” She lifted one slim hand, surrounded by dark energy, to rest on Neely’s shoulder. “I am sorry. I grieve for her as well.” Sadly, the warshade looked up at the Ghost’s surrounding them. “Keely is no more. You may call me Anjali.”
What is a dream? And what is a nightmare? For some, dreams are solace, for some they are an escape. For others they are a torture, and for some, they don’t come at all.

---

Neely
The Ghosts Reborn base

She finally escaped into sleep, but before she slept, there were no tears. She’d cried for Keely’s death already. Instead, she’d stared at the ceiling of a guest room in the Ghosts’ base and made her plans. Two men would pay for the loss of her sister. She wasted no time wondering why they had interfered in her sister’s life. That didn’t matter any more.

She didn’t yet know that the man who had murdered her sister was named Thin Line, that would come later. She knew Bounty Killer’s name, though, and she knew that he had lied to her to stop her from saving Keely from the Shades. She also knew that he spent many evenings at Pocket D. So... She would find him. She would confront him. And she would kill him.

Then she’d find the other one.



Anjali
The Ghosts Reborn infirmary

She lay dozing, but only because of the drugs keeping her quiet. She kept questing for the missing half of herself, but finding nothing. She’d cried until her eyes were swollen shut, but nothing helped. She was alone in her host’s body, and now she finally drifted into an uneasy sleep in which she relived again and again the exquisite taste of draining the life from a fellow Kheldian. Like an addict reliving another taste of its drug, she relished the memory, and yet tormented herself with guilt for the enjoyment. It was a taste she’d turned away from so long ago, but for which no Warshade ever really stopped craving.


Vir
Ghosts Reborn workshop

He tested the new simple challenge-response he’d added to his nanites AI, and found it to be working. He’d never predicted a day when his nanites would have to protect him from themselves, but should the need arise again, he’d be ready. He remained shaken to his core by his sudden vulnerability and how close he’d come to death. And how easily he’d been lead to it. Saved from his own overconfidence by a frightened girl - a girl he’d been unable to save in return. His face twisted with emotion that he quickly put aside and hid behind an iron determination that it would never happen again.


Cherished
Paragon City

Cherished couldn’t sleep as she remembered watching Neely’s grief. Neely had loved her sister so much, but even as Neely suffered, Cherished found she envied her. At least she’d known her sister. Cherished and Sable had been denied that by the interference of Arachnos in their lives. Sable was a stranger to her, and they were held apart by their situation. Maybe someday things would be different.

She pulled the covers up to her ears and finally managed to drift away.


Jagged Fortune
The Ghosts Reborn Base

He slept easily in his soft bed under warm blankets. He was too smart for these heroes, he knew he had nothing to fear from them. Razor 6 had instructed him to lay low for a few weeks, and so he would. He had time. He knew that when Razor brought down the Ghosts that it would be with Jagged Fortune’s help, and that he would earn himself a coveted spot in Razor’s new world.



Ebony Rose
Shades of Vengeance base

She had given up on sleep and made her way out into her garden. A fine mist thickened the air and caught the light of the full moon overhead. The moisture would be good for the roses, but she wondered if night-blooming jasmine could share the garden with her roses.

She stretched her arms out to the side and lifted her face to the fine mist, relishing the coolness and striving for peace. She turned in place, trying to banish the memories of the day until a noise broke into her reverie. Her eyes popped open and she saw, high on the roof above her, a tall cloaked figure looking down at her. He was silhouetted by the moon and the mist made the silver light glow around him in a shimmering aura.

Before she could do more than gasp in surprise, he spoke, “Evening, Rose.”

“Razor! You startled me.”

He stepped off the edge of the roof and flew down to land lightly beside her. “Where is Conall Cian?” he asked.

“He was humbled today by the heroes.” She shrugged. “He’s likely gone off to lick his wounds and shore up his wounded pride.”

“We need his strength, Rose.” Razor cautioned. “We must eliminate the Ghosts. Before we move forward, they must be destroyed. And for that, the Shades must be strong and united.”

Rose nodded. “He will make a move on us, Razor, you know that.”

“When it suits him, yes.” Razor said, “But I don’t think that will be soon. And not while we’re strong enough that he isn’t sure he’ll win.” Rose nodded in reluctant agreement. “You know we’ve been infiltrated.”

Rose lifted a brow, “You’re sure?”

“The warshade could not have escaped without help. And how did she know to shield UPS from the weapon?” He shook his head sadly, “If we don’t have a spy, someone is being profoundly careless.”

Rose sighed. “And the nanite sample is missing as well. I would not have misplaced it.”

“We have a spy,” Razor said. “We’ll find him. And eliminate him.”



Sable Murphy
The Shades of Vengeance base

It was dark and quiet, but still there was no sleep for Sable. She knew Black 6 was watching her. She was afraid Conall Cian was as well. For now, Razor trusted her, but how long until one of her watchers shared his suspicions with Razor? How long before Razor’s paranoia turned on her? And how long would she be safe once Razor began to suspect she couldn’t be trusted?

She was trapped. She was walking on paper thin ice that was doomed to give out under her and the only question was the one to which she kept circling back: how long?



Conall Cian
Nerva Archipelago

Deep in a the cave networks underneath Nerva Archipelago, Conall Cian crouched holding a beaten copper bowl. From the ceiling above him hung the body of a young hero, one of the Ghosts Reborn. He’d taken her from the streets of Kings Row, targeting a young recruit of the Ghosts specifically as vengeance for the damage they’d done to him. And this one had been an excellent choice. She had generated more power than he’d dared hope. He waited until several seconds passed between each drop of her blood, then lowered her body to the floor. He scratched his sigil into the skin of her back and then used a scrap of his hoarded power to send the corpse back to Kings Row.

Using her blood, he painted an intricate symbol onto the floor of the cave, taking care to make every line and angle perfect. His body was humming with power, and he used it to rip his way through into another dimension - his home.

He breathed deep of the familiar scent of the air and spread his wings wide. He bared his fangs in a smile and glanced over as pained whimpers caught his attention. Nearby a tiny red-skinned imp tormented a victim she had chained to a rock, and he smiled in admiration at her skill.

“Arano!” he bellowed.

“I am here,” the sepulchral voice of his long-time ally answered. Conall turned to see the hooded and cloaked figure approaching, surrounded as always by the magically bound corpses of long-dead kings. He glided towards Conall and stopped a few feet away, irritably waving back the corpses.

“It is time, my old friend,” Conall announced. “Time for you to join me.”

“You can bring me across?” Arano asked.

“I can. You can work your will directly on the humans, you can do as you will, as long as you come when I call, and stand at my right hand.” Arano considered it briefly, but the bargain had been in the making for hundreds of years. It was merely a formality when he nodded. “You will be the first, the first of many. I need allies to achieve my goals, Arano. And you will stand high above them.”

Arano nodded again, and the deal was punctuated by the sudden high-pitched despairing screams from the imp’s victim nearby. Conall turned to see her reaching her dainty hand deep inside her victim and removing chunks of tissue that she then used to paint a pretty design on the skin. Conall smiled broadly and carefully assessed his hoarded power. He reached out with a tendril of dark energy and grasped the imp. She squirmed and cursed, but he held her fast, drawing her to him. Remembering the struggle so long ago when he had been bound by another, he was determined to win this one. “And you will be the second,” he announced.

She cursed him thoroughly, in several languages, before announcing, “I want to stay HERE!” He wrapped her more tightly in dark power and pushed her to her knees. Her barbed tail lashed like a cat’s, her delicate wings flailed uselessly, she cursed, she twisted and fought, but she was no match for his stolen power and finally she bowed her head, admitting defeat. “What do you want from me?” she asked sullenly.

He trailed one claw down her cheek, “Your name?”

She hesitated - names were power in that world, and he took her jaw in the palm of his hand while he wrapped his dark power even more tightly around her. “Excruciatrix!” she spat finally.

“Excruciatrix....” he said. “I want you to come to the other side, serve me, and do to the human’s world what you just did to that,” he said, pointing at her victim still writhing and moaning on the rock.

She smiled, revealing needle-sharp fangs of her own. A tiny thing, she was, less than half his height and a fraction of his bulk, but when she looked up at him her eyes were red and gleamed with fire as she nodded. “Yes!” she agreed.

Conall tore open the way back, and carried the first two of his allies back to the world of humans. Let Razor have his own army. Let Rose keep living in the past. They both served their roles in his plans for now. For now.

To be concluded....

There are a pair of epilogues coming, but one of them is lengthy enough that it shouldn't be tacked onto this right away. The epilogues will be posted in a day or so.

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What servers are seeing problems?

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Protector

I logged in for a sec this morning and saw globals were down.

Just logged in again and they're STILL down. Wassup?

That sounds like fun. You can have my Widow or my Crab (I'd prefer the widow)

Killer?

*backs away slowly*

Ok...

Bioshock is a cute game. I'm enjoying it.

The "taking photos of the monster trying to kill you" thing is amusing.

That truly was the smoothest Villain side raid I've seen.

Nice job, all!

Well.. if you're all going to post your complete results....

I was
Explorer: 67%
Social: 60%
Achievement: 47%
Killer: 27%

That's a fairly common type of question on a lot of psychology tests.

Is it better to be loved or feared?
Is it better to have things or know things?

Part of the information comes from which one you pick even when niether is completely right.

Part 16 of Homecoming is posted in RP.

Ebony Rose

As Razor had predicted, with UPS down, the Ghosts were in disarray. When the assassin killed the Warshade, it appeared he also took Neely out of the fight, and Celestial Nav was putting all her attention on UPS. Even with Conall and Forbidden Blade removed, the odds for a decisive victory for the Shades was rapidly going up.

She ordered her robots to charge ahead of Razor and his soldiers. They boiled out of the broken window and started lighting up the field with lasers and rockets. Razor was single-mindedly questing for UPS, but even as he found his target and started to lift the weapon, Glacius9 was on him. The two fought viciously, blazing peacebringer energy against Razor’s devastatingly deadly mace, before Glacius managed to rip the weapon away from Razor and smash it against the brick wall behind them. Razor roared furiously and turned his full attention to Glacius, who demanded, “What is it going to take for you to STAY dead?!?”

Razor replied, “Coming from a dead man, that’s an interesting question.” He swung the mace in a wide arc and it crashed into Glacius’s shields with a flare of light. “When I kill you, I promise you’ll stay dead.”

Six-Four and Ahren waded into the fight, along with Sooner Spirit. Rose stayed safely back inside the building where she could direct her robots to where they would do the most good. Sable collapsed to the ground early, which was just as well, as her attacks were all shooting wide. Black 6 had jumped in to aid Razor, and Anhedonia had vanished from sight, apparently stalking after Six-Four.

The Ghosts were in trouble, and it brought a bitter smile to Rose’s face. They were slowly backing into a compact group around the injured UPS. The Shades pressed their advantage and the intensity of the battle increased with each blow and curse.

She heard Sooner’s voice call out, “Vir! Why the hell are you still HERE? Go to the base! Get safe!”

Rose couldn’t hear UPS’s whispered answer, but Ahren answered him, “Go, my friend. I’ve got this.”

Razor’s furious roar could only mean that his target had escaped, but Rose cheered as she saw Anhedonia skewer Six-Four on her claws, and Black 6 send Sooner Spirit to her knees with a savage blow of his mace. She wouldn’t object at all to bringing either of those two back to Shade’s base to spend some time as a guest and let Conall work off some frustrations. She thought she could let go of her normal aversion to mistreat of prisoners for that pair.

A bright flash in the sky caught her eye and her elation turned to frustration. Four, no... at least five people flew at top speed toward their location from the west. They had to be Ghost reinforcements. And, in fact, as they flew closer, she could make out the blue on white uniform some of them wore.

“Incoming!” she called out in warning to her team. “Ghosts inbound!”

She leaned out the window to get a better look at the fight. It was unfortunately timing, as one of the Peacebringers exploded into a blinding detonation of light and energy. The blast threw her back to slam into the wall behind her. Most of her robots had been incapacitated by that attack, and she was stunned, her head aching, unable to stand.


Neely

Her mind was a seething inferno of white hot rage. She couldn’t even look down at the spot where her sister lay bleeding out her life across the body of one of her dearest friends. Vir was trying to push himself up, but Nav was holding him down. The fact that she could spoke volumes about how badly he was hurt.

Neely flung herself at the assassin, energy blazing at him from eyes, palms, and -when she was close enough - her fists. No one alive was fast enough to escape her rage, and she pounded him again and again, driving him back, relishing it when she felt bone give way under her fists and saw skin flayed by her flying beams of energy. She pressed her advantage, but he flung something down and thick black smoke surrounded them. Her vision blurred, and then he was gone.

She looked around, whirled, trying to find him, but he was nowhere to be seen. She heard Glacius expel all his energy in a devastating attack and watched one of Ebony Rose’s broken robots fly past her, but she couldn’t find the assassin.

“WHERE ARE YOU!?!?!” she screamed.

She heard his voice from behind her, “Right here, right now,” he crooned, and then... Pain. Horrible, ripping, tearing pain shot straight through her. She had just a moment to wonder why there was only one sword protruding from her chest. His volume increased and he sang out, “There is no other place I want to be!” She saw a bright white blade moving toward her throat. She screamed in pure rage, and her body vanished. There was just a ball of furious white energy enveloping his blade. She had no hands to strike him, no voice to scream at him, she was just energy and fury. And energy didn’t bleed. And fury could not feel pain.

She flung everything she had at him. She had no fists, but she could strike at him with blow after blow of pure white power. She knocked the wind from him with her first blow, and knocked him back reeling and dizzy with her second. Balls of white-hot light coalesced above her and exploded on him in unison, flinging him back to smash into a brick wall. He staggered back up, trying and failing to lift his swords as she continued to hammer at him. Bleeding, bruised, limping, he was trying to get back in the fight, but she never gave him the chance. Solid energy smashed into his face, shattering a cheekbone. Another blow split his lower jaw as she drove him back again and again.

She had never taken a life. She had hoped never to take a life. Before this one. This one life was hers to take, and she intended to collect it. He dropped to one knee. Blood dripped from his mouth, his nose, and ear. His neat suit was torn and stained. His left eye was swollen shut and yet the mass of scar tissue where his right eye had been still seemed to be tracking her. Incredibly, a smile crooked his mouth. “Oh... you’re going to be.... so much fun.” he breathed, “Farewell, until the next game...”. She lifted herself into the air, intending to smash herself down on to him, when golden light flared. And then he was gone.


Cherished

She was nervous and excited as she lead her team into Siren’s Call. From the chatter on the Ghost’s channel, she knew something horrible had happened toVir, and the fight was not going well for her friends. Her arrival with five seasoned heroes should turn the tide nicely.

She surveyed the battle as she blazed her way closer, and it was indeed not going well. The heroes were clustered together fighting desperately, except for the bright flare of a Peacebringer separated from the others. The sounds and the smells spoke of the fearsome battle being waged. As she got closer, she could see several bodies on the ground, a few heroes, and one... an arachnos crab spider backpack on a female body. Sable? She flew even faster to get there as soon as possible.

Glacius exploded in a tremendous explosion of light that flung robots flying and stunned several of the Shades. Cherished took that opportunity to plow right into Razor 6 with her fists ablaze. He turned away from Glacius just long enough to glare at her, and she was struck by how much he looked like her teammate. Her surprise held her still just long enough to give a large, muscular man with a crab’s backpack the opportunity to target her, and she cried out angrily as bullets pelted her skin. A moment’s concentration healed the injuries and in the meantime, the newly arrived heroes began flinging ice or fire at the villains, capturing their feet in thorn vines and rock that grew from the ground to clutch at them.

Razor let out a furious cry and whirled towards her, swinging his mace in a wide arc across his body to smash into the side of her head. The force rocked her back, disrupted her concentration, and flung her backwards. She tumbled to a stop just inches from Sable. She started to push herself back up, buy then she realized that Sable was looking right at her, with a crooked smile. “Stay down,” Sable whispered.

“Sable! Please, tell me you’re alright?” Cherished asked quietly.

“I’m fine. I took a dive. You’re ok?”

“A little rattled. I’ll be fine.” Cherished followed Sable’s lead and flattened herself to the ground as if unconscious.

Sable’s hand moved and she carefully pushed a small object to Cherished. “Take this. It’s the last sample of UPS’s nanites. Rose won’t be able to remake the weapon without them.”

Cherished pushed the vial up into her sleeve. “Thank you.” she breathed.

“Candis,” Sable said, calling her sister by her given name. “There’s a spy. I don’t know who it is, but Razor calls him his “Tailor. This whole time, we knew exactly where your team was. You have to find him, for me, and for your Ghosts. If this Tailor learns about me, I’ll be killed. Killed ugly.”

A chilled ran up Cherished’s back, “We’ll find him.”

“Pull out!” Razor called abruptly. “Shades, pull out!” He was silent for a moment, then he bellowed, “ROSE!”

Sable carefully squeezed Cherished’s hand. “I have to go,” she whispered, “I wish.... I wish things were different.” And then she followed action to words, vanishing back to the Rogue Isles.


Razor 6

He fought off the insane fury that came from Shattered’s personality. It wouldn’t help him. The day was lost. There would be another. But he would not leave any member of his team behind.

He called for his team to retreat home, but... where was Rose? Her robots were gone, undoubtedly transported back to the base, but he’d received no word that she’d returned herself. He would not allow any of his Soldiers to be held by them, particularly Rose. “ROSE!’ he called again.


Ebony Rose

She knew it was terribly important that she get up. She wasn’t sure exactly why, she was dizzy and sick and wasn’t sure where she was, but it was very important that she get up. The loud noises -, explosions, gunfire, shouts - all reinforced how very important it was. She could hear Razor bellowing her name, but she couldn’t find the will to answer him. She pushed herself up so she was supporting herself on her hands. She started to roll herself to the side so she could stand, but she was so dizzy and her eyes refused to focus. Something was very wrong. With regret, she reached for her emergency teleporter, but it wasn’t on her. She looked frantically for it, and finally spotted it in the corner. She would have to drag herself to it.

She started her painful progress when a noise drew her attention back to the window. She blinked, but couldn’t focus, and could only make out the blue-on-white of a Ghosts uniform on a red-haired man pulling himself up and through the window. He straightened and then froze when his head turned towards her. Her heart pounded as he took several easy steps to the corner and picked up her emergency teleporter.

She was quite determined that she would never spend another moment in a cell - one lifetime as a prisoner was enough. She was ready to die to prevent that from happening. She reached for her rifle, but it was too far away as well. She felt her heart beat faster, her respiration speed up, and she fought to keep her fear from her face. She wasn’t quite out of surprises yet, and this hero wouldn’t find her to be an easy capture.

She cocked the wrist of her prosthetic arm as he approached, arming a self destruct device. It would take her out quite thoroughly, and might just take him as well. A simple flick of that wrist, and it would go off.

He crouched beside her, and now she could make out his face: Ahren, looking much healthier than the bruised and scarred man she’d allowed to escape from the Shade’s base so long ago. A tiny spark of hope flared in her. He held out his palm, where her teleporter rested in deceptively easy reach. “I think it’s time you went home,” he said quietly. He took her flesh hand in his, pulled her to her feet. He steadied her when she stumbled and smiled sadly at her expression. He placed the teleporter onto her jacket. “You did me a kindness. Now we’re even.”

“We’re even,” she said with a nod.

“Next time you and I meet...” he trailed off.

“I understand,” she agreed.

They shared one moment of perfect clarity and understanding, and then she teleported herself home.


Keely

There was just too much pain. She couldn’t do it anymore. Her body was so cold, and it hurt so much, it was sick and dying, and she chose to step away from it. She could hear and feel her kheldian half trying to pull her back, but she stepped away from it too.

Once free of the body the pain vanished, and she was warm and floating, like waking up slowly on a rainy Saturday morning snuggled up under the covers. It was nice. It was good to be free of the pain and the fear.

As she floated free, she could see Celestial Nav working frantically to save both Keely’s body and UPS. She wished she could tell her to stop. UPS would be just fine, and Keely... well, Keely was done. She hoped Nav wouldn’t do herself any harm trying to save the body, but she would have to return to it to tell her so. She hoped Neely would be ok too. She thought about returning long enough to tell Neely that she loved her, but decided Neely knew it already.

She floated away from the noise and the pain and towards warmth and comfort and peace.

The Bartle Test of Gamer Psychology

Take, report back what you got.

I got "Explorer, with Socializer secondary"

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Wow...fast advancment there Sooner. Level 4 and 28 pupils in the first day...sheesh.

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>.>

<.<

Marketing, babe.

Ok. That was cute.

http://sooner-red.mybrute.com

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Very nice...how much was it?

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I've blocked out the exact amount. I consider it worth it.

Sooner Spirit will finally get to be a dark red cloud of smoke instead of a black cloud of smoke...

...well... I'm happy about it.

Sooner Spirit looks like she is about to friggin POUNCE somebody!

And Sooner Red is about to slice somebody open!

And if that someone gives Sooner Magic the chance to finish getting into her stance, they are gonna regret it.

Those girls look fierce. I love it more everytime I look at it.

I just got this beautiful piece from Liz.

I'll get her link in just a minute, but I really wanted to post this.

Sooner Sisters

Imaginator Central - Liz Chesterman is the artist. Great work, I'm very happy.

I'll be there with MM goodness. I really want to be in on that pet streaming thing.

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Then give me a call and I'll treat both you and Jan to some of the BEST Puerto Rican food you have ever or never had.

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Ok.. I'm gonna have to plan this trip.

Plan it a little ways out, the plane ticket drops way down.