Kokuin froze himself to the skylight and proceeded to hurl ice at the remainder of the Arachnos swarm. "The next time I go to a meeting..." Kokuin hurled a piece of frozen metal into an oncoming tarantula "...i'm bringing a big can of Raid!"
Kokuin sighed a bit of relief when he saw Tress flying towards him with Techtro in her arms. The relief was shortly lived when the sound of metal clad boots could be heard coming from under the floor board. Kokuin immediately picked up their presence and knew what was coming. "Bane spiders." Kokuin whispered in a grave voice to himself.
He saw that the rest of his newfound team mates were still buried within swarms of the mechanical pests. " Unless you guys want to be Mako's new chew toys, we have to get out now!" Kokuin picked up a section of the already crippled sealing and hurled it into the crowd of Tarantulas, hoping to help free his comrades.
(Just to confirm, am I in or out? I didn't see the message until I was finished with the intro. Either way, looks interesting. Hope you guys/gals have fun.)
[ QUOTE ]
(Just to confirm, am I in or out? I didn't see the message until I was finished with the intro. Either way, looks interesting. Hope you guys/gals have fun.)
[/ QUOTE ]
((I'll make an exception this time, since you didn't see it. Besides, another villain should make this interesting. 
Happy posting!))
(Thanks a bunch. I appreciate it very much.)
Mortanis chuckled as he watched the ...6... he was hired to slay trash the Tarantulas. He wondered why Arachnos even bothered spending such capital on worthless machines. Well, maybe not so worthless...
These people, they were good. He would give them that much. Mortanis desired a closer view, but he was not yet ready to risk his exposure. Instead, he made a call to the Marshal at HQ.
"Marshall, I am in need of several nanofly scouts. Yes, the ones which can monitor and record. Yes, I realize they are quite expensive. Look, you wanted me to do the job. This is what I need to do it." Amid several vulgar and profane comments Mortanis replied "Always a pleasure" and hung up the phone. He shielded himself with the darkness he could create to bend the light, and flew as fast as possible to the base. Three fly sized robots awaited him there.
The Marshall had apparently been watching the battle too, for his color had gone to a deep magenta of rage. "This will come out of your check you know." Mortanis grabbed the vial and returned to his hideout.
I wonder if they can help me find him.
Biting back an acerbic comment about who was hiding from whom Ceus nodded at the bellowed order. Vauge commands always yielded the most interesting results. Rather than pry for more information, the villain activated her Ouroboros portal. Lazerus still owed her a favor and what better favor than to appear in Paragon before His lordship even bellowed the order?
The faceless woman considered her target. Asuki the Assassin. Didn't ring any bells. Hopefully they possessed enough common sense skip the obligitory fight sequence.
Infinity
Sam Varden 50 MA/Reg Scrap
Doomtastic 50 SS/Inv Brute
Ceus 50 Eng/Kin Corr
Cinderstorm 50 Fire/Fire Blaster
((Jebus... too much too read >.> BTW, the swarm isn't like... HUGE, just enough for every hero to have 3 to fight off if they were to have that advantage of no tanks...And for this scene, just assume Blood is destroying spiders...))
Her pale eyes scanned the scene, smirking devilishly, "My oh my..." She said, before cloaking her body, and slipping onto the scene from the hole, walking upright, weaving her way through the Tarantulas, licking her lips as she neared the fallen hero and the "healer" type girl. "Easy money..." She chuckled, pointing her hand from behind the girl, as if her arm were a sword, she lunged her piercing arm forward, intent on a quick and painful death.
Techtro felt hate corse through his being, as he was subjected to listening to the voice again. It had been manipulating his emotions for entertainment, making him hate and love, feel joy, fear, peace, sadness, and even insanity. And now it was talking again.
I am being really generous, you know. I'm on your side. And just to prove it, I'm going to release your pathetic body, just so you want to watch you would-be rescuer die.
The voice faded away, hissing its glee.
Suddenly he woke up and found himself being carried by the heroine with the singularity. He sat bolt upright, shouting a warning. He never even saw it coming. Like Zeus' thunderbolt, he was struck directly in the head by the assassin's blow. His helmet rang as his from collasped once again to the ground, writhing in agony as the umbral power of the strike tore at his mind and body. His final thoughts were, "Can't you stay on your feet for three seconds?!You. Are. A. Complete. Idiot!"
As she stepped out of the portal, Ceus shielded herself from the visible spectrum. Good old Mender Lazerus didn't disappoint, and the crazy old bat didn't ask questions as long as she signed up to kill Nazis every other weekend, almost as entertaining as killing the Rikti for Vanguard.
The building was a mess, Ice and mechanical tarantula bits everywhere, but since she wouldn't be in it very long, it didn't matter.
The assassin had moved up for the easy kill on a hero transporting one of their fallen, who had jerked into the path of the blow. A comedy of errors, it seemed.
Before the hero thought to react, Ceus dropped her invisibility and reached out tried to drain her speed.
"Asuki? I've got an invitation to extend."
((At least that's how I read the last few panels.))
Infinity
Sam Varden 50 MA/Reg Scrap
Doomtastic 50 SS/Inv Brute
Ceus 50 Eng/Kin Corr
Cinderstorm 50 Fire/Fire Blaster
((OOC: Hmm, by Blood's count we may have actually destroyed all the spiders by now and my plan to drop a building on them seems a little overkill and redundant. Oh well, ca c'est la vie. Now I just need to figure out which new threat Techblaze is gonna address....))
Techblaze's energy fists dismantled yet another tarantula. The numbers were thinning and for the moment he appeared to be in the clear. A large number of the robotic spiders lay in various states of inoperation while the few remaining seemed more concerned with Blood Owman and the Professor, both of whom seemed to be doing just fine. As for the other heroes, it seemed they had made it out the roof exit and were likely safe for the time being.
Kokuin's call brought his attention to the hole in the floor however, from which the sounds of heavy steps could be heard. Techblaze's mind raced. He really didn't want to have to fight more difficult opponents on this field. The ambush had obviously been given a lot of planning and effort, and those traps around the room.... The traps!
Techblaze's visor zoomed in on the nearest trap. It appeared to be a simple proximity mine. Techblaze noted the device's sensor, the explosive payload, and most of the inner workings. Anyone who approached it would be in for a rude surprise, but there didn't seem to be anything actually affixing it to the ground or, more importantly, a trigger related to that purpose nor a transmitter connecting it to any of the others.
"Professor!" Techblaze bounded over and joined the red costumed hero, bashing a couple robots to draw their attention towards himself. "We seem to have company coming. Do you think you could put out the welcome mat for them?" he asked, indicating the trap nearest the gap in the floor.
((Um, tag Professor IQ, just to be clear. PS: Try not to kill us all!)
Kokuin knew now, that with the new arrivals coming, there was no chancen their original escape plan would succeed. He had overheard Techblaze's call to Professor about puting out the welcome mat. Kokuin leaped from his original fixture and landed next to the openning where the Arachnos troops were about to enter from, being careful to avoid the traps set.
He gripped the holes openning. "They better wipe their feet first." He jested as he covered the openning in a thin sheet of frost, in hopes as to give the troops a 'quick ice skating lesson' and throw off their balance. As soon as he finished laying his own trap he felt the presnce again and quickly turned towards Techtro and Tress. Techtro looked as though he was in agony. "Tress!" Kokuin shouted "Techtro is in more danger then we realized, I think something's grabbed hold of him from the inside, like he said." Kokuin had just grasped the realitization that what ever got Techtro might have their sights on all of them.
Tress' altitude dropped slightly as she tried to hold onto Agent Techtro and he jostled and spasmed.
Tress glanced over at Kokuin when he called to her and looked down at Techtro still in her arms. The confidence from battle flew from her face and was replaced with a unsure worry.
She quickly dropped to the dirt covered ground, laying Techtro out.
"I'm not sure this'll work, sugah. I heal the external mostly." she murmurs to Agent Techtro.
She put a hand to his forehead, searching anything she could heal. She pushed a pulse of green energy, then two red energies (heal other, fortitude, clear mind), leaving his head glowing a faint pink.
She waited a moment, hoping that it would strengthen the man enough to come back to them.
Mortanis was amazed at the recent turn of events. As the continual stream of soldiers began to sputter out, something... something seemed odd. The heroes who had been excelling at teamwork seemed distracted. Time to see what these babies can do. He opened the vial containing the roboflies, the three small mechanoids spinning in circles through the air.
"Scout out the base. Keep tabs on the heroes, but try to remain inconspicuous. Confirm directive?"
" Directive confirmed. Beginning reconnaissance."
Mortanis watched the flies descend to the battle. He picked up the binoculars and settled into a comfortable position.
Hopefully this will yield some results.
Kokuin rushed over to Tress and Techtro's side as she emitted a green aura into him. Kokuin kneeled next to Techtro, who still layed there unconcious. He closed his eyes and tapped into his psychic signature. "whatever was in his mind found the exit, there's only traces of whatever took his body from him." Kokuin could only meet Tress' worried expression with his own. He hoped Techtro would wake up, Kokuin wanted to know more about everyone here, it would be far to sad if they lost one so easily.
Down at the hero base, amid the clutter from the recent skirmish, several flies wandered into the complex. One settled in a corner near the ceiling, one kept watch on the monitor screens, and the last flew lazily around the room. Feeds from all three were transmitted back to Mortanis. He saw what they saw, heard what they heard. He was particularly interested in what happened to the one they kept calling 'Techtro'.
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"Professor!" Techblaze bounded over and joined the red costumed hero, bashing a couple robots to draw their attention towards himself. "We seem to have company coming. Do you think you could put out the welcome mat for them?" he asked, indicating the trap nearest the gap in the floor.
[/ QUOTE ]
Professor IQ looked over to Techblaze for a moment and pulled down his reflective shades to the end of his nose. Techblaze saw an odd gleam in his eyes; one of those gleams that one might see in a Tanker's eyes in midst of a large mob of enemies.
The Professor stretched forth his hand and called upon the mystical energies that gave him these incredible abilities in the first place and said in a forceful voice towards the enemies coming in: "Then the man in the full of his summer is suddenly struck down like a scythe upon the wheat. He giveth up his ghost, and where is he? He is as the clay which reminds us all that sooner or later to it we all shall return..."
and let forth a tremendous wave of psychic energy renedering many of the wave of soldiers helpless; lost in the nightmares of their own minds and unable to defend themselves. He watched as many of them staggered right towards the trap door and then using his telekinesis he pushed his hand away from him with a powerful motion and the trap door flew open downward. "I love doing that!" He murmured. He then pushed his shades back up his nose and said to Techblaze, "Lets get everyone we can out of here before this all gets worse"...
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He then pushed his shades back up his nose and said to Techblaze, "Lets get everyone we can out of here before this all gets worse"...
[/ QUOTE ]
"...and get worse it shall." Mortanis prepared himself for what was to be done. He began to pack up the few technical doo-dads he had, keeping the feeds with his sentries open. He did not enjoy killing, albeit with a few exceptions, but killing was required for his line of work. Ever since his rebirth, Mortanis had an ever-growing loathing for Paragon and her heroes. Now, each one was an affront to his existence. Ordinary people like you believed they were doing the public a favor when they locked me up. They thought only of the common good, so without question I was 'disposed of' like some animal. My experiments, my work,...all lost.
Despite the aggressive feelings welling up inside him, Mortanis knew he needed only to wait for them to make their move. To abandon such a stronghold, especially with a wounded member, could lead to undesired consequences...
"This was bad?" White Masque asked the Professor, leaping into the conversation. "These were SPIDERLINGS."
[ QUOTE ]
She waited a moment, hoping that it would strengthen the man enough to come back to them.
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With a groan, Agent Techtro pushed himself up. He shook his head slowly to clear his foggy senses. His helmet had saved him from death, undoubtedly. Right now he could feel only one thing, white hot anger. He had seen the shimmering outline of a human being seconds before being struck. He hated villains.
"Thanks you guys," he murmered to his rescuers. He stood up unsteadily and began scouring the room with his holographic scanner, searching for those that had hurt him. They would pay... They would... would... The effects of the healing stung. It seemed to erode away something in his mind. Then he felt light, light and free. He had no idea what had been attacking him, but suddenly he didn't feel so eager to find it and fight it.
He looked around at the others. Most of their enemies seemed to be splayed out on the ground, but that didn't mean that he and the others were safe. "Time to be a hero."
Kokuin saw Techtro rise finally, sensing his recovery. He quickly rushed to the groups side. "So, any ideas on how to get out of this?" He queried.
[ QUOTE ]
"So, any ideas on how to get out of this?" He [Kojuin] queried.
[/ QUOTE ]
Tress grinned and went Kokuin's side, "Beat them till they stop moving?"
Kokuin looked back at Tress "Well I could have thought of that."
As more heroes came to the assistance of their downed teammate, Ceus lost sight of the assassin as she ducked behind the remains of a Arachnos Tarantula, never happier to have been entirely ignored in her long life. There was what, seven heroes running around in this place?
Willing her shield of invisibility around her again, Ceus hovered behind her cover keeping her grumbling to herself.
And where did that Asuki dissapear too, anyway?
Infinity
Sam Varden 50 MA/Reg Scrap
Doomtastic 50 SS/Inv Brute
Ceus 50 Eng/Kin Corr
Cinderstorm 50 Fire/Fire Blaster
"We need a more tactical formation" Kokuin said, observing the remainder of enemies, laying about in scrap heats, frozen to solid ice, or groaning in agony.
Okay, how about the heroes who can take the most damage, tankers, will form a circle around the professor, who can use psychic attacks, am I correct. Tress can stay in the middle and provide any healing and back up we require. We can move our way out of the room in this formation and fend off any enemy squadrens." Kokuin rubbed his chin and glared at the room. "Up for it...anyone?"
The victory of the heroes over the spiders posed a problem to Mortanis; it was possible they wouldn't leave. He counted...7 of them down there, and he wasn't willing to walk over and ask nicely for them to die. His patience was running out.
The images from his robotic friends were good. So good in fact he thought he saw... no, perhaps not.
The tall warlord smiled viciously as he watched the grainy photo of the dilapidated room. His programming skills were mediocre at best, but he had managed to hack into some surveilence equipment and get a thermal scan of the room. He had superimposed the red blips that represented humans and the lighter spots that represented the mechanical spiders of Arachnos onto the picture. "Satisfactory," he growled. The heroes were escaping, as of course they would have too. There was one human blip, though, that was behaving abnormally. Also, none of the others seemed to be encountering or at least reacting to its pressence.
He shut down the program before Arachnos technicians could trace the hack back to him. He roared in a strangely high voice to the darkness around him. "Ceus! I know you're there! I have ready your first assignment!" He waited and absorbed the silence of the dilapidated base. The lack of response did not bother him, it was expected.
"Your pay will be standard, and your bonus for succeeding will be full credit for anything you kill along the way. No more hiding under the shadow of you hirer, Ceus. Your job is simple. Go to Faultline in Paragon city. Bring me the assassin, Asuki."