((Don't kill it, okay? Just keep trying to RP. I mean, really, what's so terrible?))
The scream was clearly a man. Vuron have now entered a swarm stage, meaning they will swarm quickly on passive or aggressive heroes and villains.
((Feel free to use the Rogue Isles in this RP, or anywhere else, really. Vuron are alot like the Rikti, they don't attack one at a time. Heck, Vuron could be in Beijing.))
((The problem is all our characters have no idea what's going on, so really they have no reason whatsoever to move from their current position. Thus, for them to find out anything events must be set in motion by the GM of the RP, which is you in this case.))
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: STOP!
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: WAIT ONE SECOND!
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: WHAT IS A SEAGULL DOING ON MY THRONE!?!?
((Well, we're kind of stuck. We, or I at least, have no where to continue from here 
))
[ QUOTE ]
((The problem is all our characters have no idea what's going on, so really they have no reason whatsoever to move from their current position. Thus, for them to find out anything events must be set in motion by the GM of the RP, which is you in this case.))
[/ QUOTE ]
(OOC: This. So far our only motivation is nothingness)
[ QUOTE ]
((Feel free to use the Rogue Isles in this RP, or anywhere else, really. Vuron are alot like the Rikti, they don't attack one at a time. Heck, Vuron could be in Beijing.))
[/ QUOTE ]
((No point in doing that, seeing as we're all in Paragon. I really don't wanna see this die, I know you're trying, dude.))
The Freedom Server Wallflower (shhh, sleepy)
Angelfish on DrunkDuck.com
Dr. Lore at HeroCon 2008
Arc 67690: Out For Blood
[ QUOTE ]
The scream was clearly a man. Vuron have now entered a swarm stage, meaning they will swarm quickly on passive or aggressive heroes and villains.
[/ QUOTE ]
((OOC: Okay, let's work with this. So we can assume wherever we are, Vuron are just going to up and attack us now? If I'm getting ahead of myself, lemme know in time to edit))
She skidded to a stop just across the street from the bank, and took a good look around. The police cars and road blocks were up, and that was the only thing right with this picture. Still, no people. She didn't even see or hear any Clockwork in the area. Dr. Lore rubbed at her face with both hands as it was now becoming painful to think.
"Where the hell is everybody? No people, no police, no Hellions, Skulls, Clockwork, and no signal from the nearest spy cell..." She sulked as she walked across the street towards the bank. "Maybe if I walked inside and hit the panic button, maybe some hero will come and tell me what's going on. This had better not be a @#$%ing Nemesis plot..."
Then came the scream. She quickly turned her head up to the sky and looked around. Where did it come from? Then, her eyes landed on the wall of the pawn shop across the street as a pool of red seem to seap across the wall. Her eyes strained to see better, and found that it was a mass of bugs like termites or ants.
"Ew." she commented before turning her attention to the bank, then she flinched and moved back to see another swarm of the bugs seaping from the bank doors. She turned on her heal and started walking away quickly. "Well, that could explain a bit... Now what do I do?"
She turned her head for a quick look behind her to see if they were following, and cursed her vision if it appeared that way. Not fond of the idea that she would join the rest of Paragon's population, she made a quick building-sized leap to get some quick distance from the swarm. Again, going anywhere. Anywhere. Hoping to find someone. Anyone. Even Statesman for all she cared. Anyone!
Her frustrations started causing her to swear out loud. "@#$%! @#$%, ^#$@, *%#&! WHAT IS GOING ON?!"
The Freedom Server Wallflower (shhh, sleepy)
Angelfish on DrunkDuck.com
Dr. Lore at HeroCon 2008
Arc 67690: Out For Blood
Target Lad glanced at the swarm of red oozing out of the walls. "Well. T'isnae informative, but 'tis a'least definite." He glanced down at Matrix. "Oy! D'ye ha' any o' those nifty oil-slicky type arrows? If'n y'do..." he produced an arrow from his cross-D quiver... the serrated head of which sizzled into eye-searing flame after a split second... "Th'n 'm thinkin' tha' a nice, warm moat might be an idea, neh? Leastaways 'til we c'n be findin' someplace a mite more defensible."
"A soft answer turneth away wrath. Once wrath is looking the other way, shoot it in the head." Seven Habits of Highly Effective Pirates
MA Arcs: #12285, "Small Fears", #106553, "Trollbane", #12669, "How to Survive a Robot Uprising"
"Or they could come to us, that works too", Richard commented as the bugs came for them seemingly from all directions. If the whole city was crawling with these things, then they likely would be overwhelemed eventually, but if it was that widespread how had it happened so quickly? Everything had been fine when he went to bed and as far as he knew, bugs weren't smart enough to build up such a force in secret then launch a coordinated attack citywide. No, there had to be something else going on here.
"Umm, not to interrupt your daydreaming or anything but will you please DO SOMETHING!", Areu yelled at him. Richard looked slightly startled, but did as she asked. The axe would be near useless a horde of bugs such as these, so he again resorted to the admittedly fairly basic fire magic one of his friends had taught him and lobbed a fireball at the nearest group of bugs.
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: STOP!
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: WAIT ONE SECOND!
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: WHAT IS A SEAGULL DOING ON MY THRONE!?!?
Matrix looked around at the swarm of bugs. He moaned, and cocked his head upwards so he could see Danny. "Lemme check" he answered, and quickly threw his free hand around his quiver. After a moment, he grunted loudly in anger "I don't think s-" but he stopped short when he felt his hand wrap around the correct arrow. He smiled and quickly knocked it, firing the arrow where he thought was the center of the horde. The arrow exploded and oil went everywhere, covering the bugs. "Fire away" he shouted.
Akemi took aim at the swarm of bugs, shaping her hand like a pistol.
"BANG!" she called, firing a burst of light energy into the swarm.
Draculad looked at Leon again.
"Very well then. I'd advise you to stay here, you should be protected from...most things." He said. "I'll be back soon after I check out what I'm dealing with. If you'd like to make yourself useful...you can try looking up some information on these critters." Draculad eyed the thousands of old books lining his walls. There was bound to be something about these insects in their ancient texts.
"But if you're going to do that, you'll want to start now." he finished as he headed down the stairs again, his sword still in his hand.
He walked out the door and put his shades on. The sunlight usually started to burn his skin after a while, due to his skin condition. That was perhaps his most obvious characteristic apart from his ears, his skin was almost as white as paper.
Keeping in the shade as much as possible, he began exploring near the statue of Atlas. He had always viewed him as an idol of sorts, and he longed for a chance to save the city all by himself, agaisnt impossible odds. As he drew under the shadow of the stone globe, however, he actually began to worry that his chance may come too soon...
Target Lad nodded, once, as the oil splashed over the swarm. "T'isnae quite wha' I had in mind, but t'will do." he commented. He let fly the blazing arrow, and a minor fireball erupted from the termites with a satisfying *FWOOMP!*.
"I'm guessin' tha' neither o' ye c'n fly?" he called down to Matrix and Richard. "I cannae carry either o' ye, so i' may prove problematic gettin' away fro' this area. 'm thinkin' tha' gettin' to a base might be th' safest, seein' as how th'only ones we're needin' to save a' th'moment is us." Having rested a little while he talked, the air around him blazed with electricity once more, and he repeated his bug-zapper-arrow trick from earlier, picking away at the edges of the swarm, then firing a storm of arrows into the air, to come down as a crackling blue rain of pointed death.
"A soft answer turneth away wrath. Once wrath is looking the other way, shoot it in the head." Seven Habits of Highly Effective Pirates
MA Arcs: #12285, "Small Fears", #106553, "Trollbane", #12669, "How to Survive a Robot Uprising"
((I'll leap into this if none of you mind :3 If, on the off chance you do, I'll just be on my merry way.))
((btw, Character is a Tech. Scrapper - Claws/Willpower/Leaping))
The termite-like creatures were becoming a nuisance, to say the least. At points they littered the streets in such density as to appear a seething mass of insect bodies. Several of them looked up and around as the pavement began to pulse with a rythmic pounding. The vibrations grew stronger and stronger, soon accompanied by the 'whang-whang-whang' sound of metal-against-stone. A shadow appeared on the pavement, and several of the termites disappeared quite suddenly under a pair of enormous metal feet. They slammed into the ground, shaking the pavement with a force not unlike the Fist of God itself crashing earthwards. Attached to those enormous metal feet was a figure, clad in a green tank top style t-shirt, and brown cargo pants, held up by a large, leather weight-lifter's belt. The figure turned, his mechanical feet singing a chorus of mechanical whines, pnuematic hisses, and the crunch of termites being trodden underfoot. Crossing a pair of metal, piston-driven arms across his chest, the figure sized up the motley little band that had assembled in the streets, his identity obscured by a pair of blast goggles, with green-tinted lenses as opposed to the usual black.
"Here... these your little monstrosities?" he asked, crushing several more underfoot as he spoke. "Cuz I can tell you, they're becoming a right pain in the [censored]." he said as some of the termites managed to grab hold of his foot and attempt to proceed further up his leg. "Oi, you... You'd best cut that out, me lads..." He twisted one of his metal wrists just so, and a set of metal talons sprung forth, which he then proceeded to swipe away the termites with. "Right... as I was saying... I followed these things here all the way from Atlas Park. Just where in the blazes are they all comin' from?"
The man/machine examined the crew briefly; Akemi, Matrix, and TargetLad, a few yards overhead. Then he noticed the barrier of burning oil surrounding them, and keeping the termites away. "I'm gonna step out on a limb here and say these aren't your bugs then?" He offered, shaking several more free of his metal feet. "Then perhaps I can offer some assistance in finding the source of these creatures?" He crouched slightly, and leapt over the barrier of flames that had been hastily erected moments before. Metal feet thumping against the paved street, the newcomer approached the unlikely allies and extended a metal hand to Matrix. "Name's Mr. Fix-It." He said, smiling slightly. After a brief pause, Mr. Fix-It tilted his head inquiringly, then looked down at his metal hand, reaching out to him. "Oh go on then! It's just a hand, like any other hand. It isn't going to bite you..."
[ QUOTE ]
"I cannae carry either o' ye, so i' may prove problematic gettin' away fro' this area. 'm thinkin' tha' gettin' to a base might be th' safest, seein' as how th'only ones we're needin' to save a' th'moment is us."
[/ QUOTE ]
"Nope, no flight here sorry. Although I might be able to help with the 'getting to a base' part." Richard pulled a small device, similar looking to the Ouroboros portal devices some heroes carried but this one had nothing to do with them. "Supergroup I joined a while back gave me this", he explained. "They disbanded some time later but as far as I know the base is still there. It's in a pocket dimension or something like that so it should be free of these damned bugs too."
Looking around as an unfamiliar voice joined the group, he nodded to Mr. Fix-It as he introduced himself. "Nope not our bugs, we're as annoyed by them as you are. I'm Richard, and this is Matrix, Target Lad and ... actually I don't think I got your name Miss", he gestured to each in turn. "We were just about to be leaving, you're welcome to come with us if you like."
Pressing a sequence of buttons on the device, he pointed it at the ground in front of him and a shimmering blue portal appeared, similar to the standard base portals the city maintained but significantly smaller. Turning to Matrix, Richard handed him the device. "Hold on to this while I make sure it's safe. The portal closes if you take the device through so you come through last, ok?" After waiting a moment to make sure Matrix understood, he stepped through the portal. After just long enough for them to start doubting if he was ok, Richard's voice sounded over their radios. "Ok it's safe enough, come through when you're ready."
-----------------
The base wasn't much as far as supergroup bases went. Three hallways led from the entryway, the ones on the left, middle and right clearly labelled as leading to the workshop, the control room and the teleporters respectively. The whole place looked fairly high-tech, but a thin layer of dust over everything showed that none of it had been used in a while. Everything still worked though, at least for now. It was all just turned off. The base was lit only by the minimal lighting that had come on automatically when Richard had entered, a soft blue glow from somewhere in the ceiling giving light enough to see by but not much more. Richard was in the control room, seated in front of the main console trying to get everything powered up.
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: STOP!
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: WAIT ONE SECOND!
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: WHAT IS A SEAGULL DOING ON MY THRONE!?!?
"I'm Akemi Shido," Akemi introduced herself again, "Peacebringer, and, well, that's pretty much it for now."
Akemi floated into the portal and looked around. Of course, to her 'look around' consisted of flitting around every square inch of the building.
"Pretty nice. Needs light though," she said, clapping her hands and generating about a dozen brightly glowing orbs that flew off in various directions, better illuminating the base, "Always bugs me how dark and gloomy these places can be."
Mr. Fix-It immediately wished he'd built himself some rubber soles or something for his feet, as the sound of his heavy footfalls tended to reverberate around the nearly-empty base. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a device that looked something like portable radio or transmitter of some kind.
"Refit button." he explained. pressing a button or two, his metal legs shimmered slightly, like caught in the haze of hot air coming off a tin roof before evaporating and being replaced by a pair of ordinary, human-looking feet, clad in heavy leather workboots. Pacing around the room, he decided this was infinitely preferable, and put the device back in his pocket. "Much better... So, what's the next plan of action, ladies and gents?"
Danny had floated through the portal close behind Fixit, and shrugged from where he hung in midair- even in these close quarters he didn't come down. "Well, there isnae a lot goin' on oot there- I ha' a request in t'th' D.A.T.A. mainframes, bu' there doesna seem t'be a lot o' responsiveness there- th'scream tha' fair broke th'windows where we were standin', I'm thinkin' t'was another supertype, one o' th'yellin' ones."
He watched Akemi light the place up. "T'would prolly be wise t'be gettin' this place workin' again, else find our way t'a bigger one tha' is still active an' has surveillance drones or summat tha' we c'n use t'scan th'city, find out if'n we're in some sort o' alternate reality, or if'n the rest o' th'city is in an alternate reality, or i' this be yet another plot o' tha' daft sod in th'brass pyjamas."
"A soft answer turneth away wrath. Once wrath is looking the other way, shoot it in the head." Seven Habits of Highly Effective Pirates
MA Arcs: #12285, "Small Fears", #106553, "Trollbane", #12669, "How to Survive a Robot Uprising"
[ QUOTE ]
"Pretty nice. Needs light though."
[/ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
"T'would prolly be wise t'be gettin' this place workin' again, else find our way t'a bigger one tha' is still active an' has surveillance drones or summat tha' we c'n use t'scan th'city, find out if'n we're in some sort o' alternate reality, or if'n the rest o' th'city is in an alternate reality, or i' this be yet another plot o' tha' daft sod in th'brass pyjamas."
[/ QUOTE ]
"I'm working on it", Richard called over from the console. As he spoke the base computer's main screen came online, displaying a map of Paragon. A secondary screen to the left of the main one also powered up, displaying a number of progress meters for the various secondary system. One by one the four other consoles in the room powered up, a faint hum signalled that the two teleporters were locked on to their assigned coordinates and ready, and finally the lights came on. Richard stood up and turned to the others. "Surveilance is that one, I think", he said to Danny, pointing to one of the secondary consoles, the screen of which was showing the same map as the main screen. "I'm going to go make sure nothing essential is in desperate need of repairs." With that he left the room, heading towards the workshop and from there to the generator room to make sure the essential equipment wasn't damaged.
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: STOP!
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: WAIT ONE SECOND!
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: WHAT IS A SEAGULL DOING ON MY THRONE!?!?
Her high jumping took her straight to the Yellow Line terminal, and wasn't the least bit suprised to see that the trains weren't running at all. Landing on the ground roughly by the entry ramp, she looked behind her to see that she left much of the swarms nearby and took a precious moment to catch her breath. She forgot how easily she tires out after fighting or traveling long distances.
It's because you're out of shape, her patron would have scolded, but Dr. Lore immediately snipped that from her mind. She needed to think. Where could she go? It seemed like these things were everywhere...
What she needed was information. Was it just Paragon City under attack? Could she escape this and head back to the Rogue Isles, or were they in the Rogue Isles too? Where could she go? As she kept thinking, she felt something on her hand and looked. Several of the bugs had crawled from out of the wall and were already biting on her hand.
"@#$%! BACK OFF!" she yelled, brushing the ones off her hand and jumping onto the roof of the station. Trying not to be frantic, she took out her healing device and quickly waved the calm green beams from her machine over her hand, fading away the bite marks. She put the device away to see more swarms coming for her from the inside of the roof. Muttering more swear words, she jumped from the train station to an appartment roof top several yards away.
"From the walls..." she muttered, seeing that her landing caused more swarms. A glance down the street showed that the streets were being covered in moving fields of red. She could even see that some of the bugs made up giant red bodies that moved like humanoids. "They're coming from the walls... Where's a place with no walls..."
Pocket D came to mind, but she couldn't use the Paragon City entrances because of the nightclub's security devices. She wasn't told of any Arachnos spy cells in King's Row though they had to have existed. The closest Arachnos base she could think of was in Siren's Call but it was a very long way there and she didn't have the endurance for the long jump there.
She continued leaping rooftop to rooftop. There had to be somewhere safe she could go...
...or there had to be survivors out here somewhere...
"Somewhere without walls... Atlas..." Atlas Park was a very long shot, but the plaza had only the City Hall and there HAD to have been some heroes keeping it safe. But in the least, if there were survivors or heroes, she'd find them there. With an extra burst of energy, she leapt off the rooftop towards the trainlines. Dr. Lore grabbed onto the tracks when her jump fell short and pulled herself up to stand on them. The swarms were moving towards and under her, but didn't seem to be moving on the tracks themselves.
Here's hoping I get there alive... she silently prayed to herself and ran along the tracks towards Atlas Park, praying again that the tunnels were absent of the bugs...
The Freedom Server Wallflower (shhh, sleepy)
Angelfish on DrunkDuck.com
Dr. Lore at HeroCon 2008
Arc 67690: Out For Blood
"Uh..." Danny looked at the console, then stared helplessly after Richard. He hovered closer, looked at the screens, looked at the controls, shrugged, and poked a button. Then he flinched back violently as the console gave off a shower of sparks and three of the screens went dead.
"Right. Well, tha' puts paid t'that..." he mumbled. The little archer retreated from the bank of displays, looking a bit helpless. "I dinna ha' a clue how t'use thi' junk." he muttered to no-one in particular.
"A soft answer turneth away wrath. Once wrath is looking the other way, shoot it in the head." Seven Habits of Highly Effective Pirates
MA Arcs: #12285, "Small Fears", #106553, "Trollbane", #12669, "How to Survive a Robot Uprising"
"Considering I have an alien living inside me, I'm surprisingly inept at technology," Akemi shrugged, "Good at magic, though. Dunno why."
(OOC: If you're wondering why there's a story arc detailing her origin in the Time/Space Shenanigans thread...shameless plug 
)
"But what I wanna know is...if Jack's still alive."
[ QUOTE ]
Then he flinched back violently as the console gave off a shower of sparks and three of the screens went dead. "Right. Well, tha' puts paid t'that..." he mumbled. The little archer retreated from the bank of displays, looking a bit helpless. "I dinna ha' a clue how t'use thi' junk." he muttered to no-one in particular.
[/ QUOTE ]
"What the hell did you do?!", Richard yelled as he came running back into the room. "I leave you alone for five seconds..." He dropped Areu beside the console and inspected the damage. "Admittedly I'm not great with this stuff either." He kicked the console and it flickered back to life for a second before dying again. "Hey Fix-it, you actually any good at fixing stuff or is it just a name?"
[ QUOTE ]
"But what I wanna know is...if Jack's still alive."
[/ QUOTE ]
Richard doubted her boyfriend was still alive, but couldn't bring himself to tell her that. Instead he said, "Don't worry, we'll find him." He didn't mention that Jack might not be alive when they found him.
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: STOP!
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: WAIT ONE SECOND!
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: WHAT IS A SEAGULL DOING ON MY THRONE!?!?
[ QUOTE ]
"What the hell did you do?!", Richard yelled as he came running back into the room. "I leave you alone for five seconds..."
[/ QUOTE ]
"I didna do anythin'!" Danny yelped. "Well, 'cept touch one o' th'buttons, but tha' shouldna make thin's explode, less'n y'r base wa' wired by some explosion-happy nutcase!" At Akemi's comment, he gave her a look, then Richard.
Then he shook his head. "T'isnae likely tha' we'll be findin' much o' anyone- less'n th'bugs ha' eaten e'eryone... an' i' doesnae seem likely tha' they'd be quite this thorough, we'd a'least be findin' bones an suchlike... either we've been moved or th'rest o' th'folks ha' been moved." That was the boy's best guess, at least- he'd only been super-ing for about a year, after all, if even that. Granted, a lot can happen to a hero in a year, but still... "Wish m'uncle E was here... he knows thi' kind o' stuff better'n I do." Danny muttered, referring both to the console and to the situation in general.
"A soft answer turneth away wrath. Once wrath is looking the other way, shoot it in the head." Seven Habits of Highly Effective Pirates
MA Arcs: #12285, "Small Fears", #106553, "Trollbane", #12669, "How to Survive a Robot Uprising"
"Okay, so they don't like the warwalls..." Dr. Lore theorized as to why she went through the railway tunnels with no incident. "Heh... for once, they kept something out." However, there were still swarms coming for her next to the railways, keeping her moving. Now in Atlas Park, there was only one logical place to go: to the Atlus Statue. If there was anyone still alive, it would be the best marker to congrigate at, and it was possible that some heroes would still be there to protect the civilians. With a push of her legs she lept off the tracks and started several long leaps towards Atlas Plaza.
***
Arriving at the plaza outside city hall, where many heroes gathered to train or show off costumes or civilians came to work or look for heroes, Dr. Lore's hopes fell to see that it was deserted. She stood on the platform where Ms. Liberty would typically be, feeling something stur at the oddity. Fear. She was afraid. Was there anyone here? Anyone at all?
Dr. Lore's head lifted to see that swarms were still heading towards her. The trek here left her near breathless and the desolate city was starting to eat at her sanity, but the will to live was still strong. Reganing whatever energy was left, Dr. Lore knelt slightly and sprang up at the statue above. Feeling the lift leave and gravity about to pull her back to the ground, she grabbed the nearest ledge, Atlus's shoulder, and held on as she got back some breath.
Against any logic, she dared to look down, and saw the swarm was slowly creeping up the statue's legs. She grimmaced, a growl rumbled in her throat, was there no end to these things? Did they really polish off everyone in Paragon City?
Something other than the will to live fueled her as she pulled herself over Atlus's shoulder and look for other footing up the globe to the top. Fear. She was afraid. She was afraid she was the only living thing in the city. She was afraid of the impossible.
She slowly climbed up the globe as she tried to catch her breath. She tried to plan out an escape route should the swarm catch up to her, but thinking was becoming hard. Was this it? It couldn't be it. Someone had to come here. Someone's scanners would pick her up. Right...?
"...Right? Someone..." her thoughts wandered to her voice, and her voice was shaky and quiet. "...Someone..." She came to rest at the top on her hands and knees, breathing to gain back even a little endurence for another jump. "...Someone..."
The Freedom Server Wallflower (shhh, sleepy)
Angelfish on DrunkDuck.com
Dr. Lore at HeroCon 2008
Arc 67690: Out For Blood
((Probably. A shame really, since I kinda liked the idea.))
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: STOP!
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: WAIT ONE SECOND!
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: WHAT IS A SEAGULL DOING ON MY THRONE!?!?