--From the offices of Crey Industries International--
Dear <Villain>
By this time, Im certain youve become aware of the disappearances of several up-can-coming regenerating heroes. You and your compatriots are also probably drawing conclusions that we here at Crey Industries may have something to do with this.
This is an absolute falsehood. We here at Crey Industries are staunch supporters of liberty in all its forms, and abductions and kidnapping are not a part of our business policies.
However, while you easily see through the lies slung at our corporation by your counterparts in Paragon City, the public does not. This is why we are extending an invitation to you to help investigate this matter and help clear our names.
Obviously, you are wondering whats in this for you. Well, were offering a generous contract of one ten thousand dollars for the duration of this contract, as well as negotiable boons for any extra work you may do in our favor. Were also willing to provide medical and dental services, up to, and including, any cosmetic procedures you may require. Exceptional work may yield stock options and a place in the Crey Industries family.
Please respond as soon as possible. Because of recent legal troubles involving our CEO, we dont have the leeway to leave this as an open deal for very long.
Sincerely,
Gregory Manning
Unspecified Resources Office
----------
--From the Offices of Hero Corps
Dear <Hero>
Its been a long time since Ive seen you at work. Thats not to say that youre not working, mind you, but its a sign that youve been a rising star in this city. For that, I offer my heartfelt congratulations, which is something I rarely get the chance to do.
Now, after the recent disappearance of Oakhammer, the scrapper who had only just joined the ranks of the heroes who defend Brickstown from criminals, authorities have determined that theres some kind of pattern going on in which Regenerator heroes are disappearing at an alarming rate. Freedom Corps and police are waging their own investigations, some of which are aimed strongly at Crey Industries, others at enigmatic groups like the Council, the Nemesis Army and even the mysterious Malta Group, which are all known for abducting heroes for various reasons.
However, the investigations are undermanned. In an attempt to help wherever we can, Hero Corps is sending open invitations to individuals such as yourself. Youre a capable hero who has proven time and again that you know what youre doing. Youve faced trials and tribulations that have plagued this city as well as investigated some of the most tenacious criminals that tried to undermine the civil liberties of your fellow citizens.
We need as many heroes investigating this issue as possible. This threat affects us all, for if they go after one brand of hero they will go after others, and we have to stand up to their threats! I hope you agree to assist, for whatever reason. For your trouble, we here at Hero Corps are willing to offer a per diem stipend as well as a negotiable salary (not to exceed five hundred dollars a week) and medical benefits.
I hope to see you soon.
Henry Peter Wong
((And there you have it. That's the invitation. Your villains have been contacted by Crey (in some fashion or another) or your heroes have been contacted by Hero Corps (funny that...) to investigate the mysterious disappearances of regenerating heroes (and villains/rogues, though nobody publicly cares about them...).
Now, my brain's on fire, I hope you join in on the adventure, but please be gentle. I'm not a rapid poster, and I've only thought this thing partway through (a part I'm worried may be very small), so it will take time for me to respond sometimes.
My Stories
Look at that. A full-grown woman pulling off pigtails. Her crazy is off the charts.
Most of the people she knew didn't like Nerva Archepeligo. It took forever to get anywhere, Longbow hassled everyone, and you couldn't go out to buy a pack of smokes without stepping over a mutant freak or demon begging favors.
Rose O'Grady snorted as she passed by a group of mobsters blatantly tossing one of their ilk into the salty waters. The Capo of the group looked up and stared at her, probably wondering if she was carrying anything valuable enough to kill her over. The redhead turned to face the Capo, hoping he would recognize the distinctive faceplate that covered one half of her face. She had no mind to let some Marcone scum try and take anything from her.
All the gangsters stopped what they were doing to see what was up. A simple bio electric pulse activated her armor, sending thousands of volts of angry red electricity dancing over her body. Clenching her fist, the heavy multilayered gauntlets on her hands drew excess energy from her body, forming bright red balls of power.
They turned back to their work.
Several blocks down the street, Rose stepped into a small diner, immediately spotting the Nightwidow sitting in the back of the place drinking tea. Walking over to the Arachnos Agent, Rose sat down opposite the assassin.
"Operative Jameson."
"Dynamo Rose."
"The files?" Rose asked.
Handing over a thumbdrive, the Nightwidow shrugged, "Not much. GW or Scicc didn't have anything to do with it. It'll take more care to access The Capn's kill list. Its more risky."
She narrowed her eyes, this was a familiar song and dance, "How risky Jameson?"
The Nightwidow sipped her tea, "100,000 risky."
It was an outrageous sum, especially for information that might not even pan out. But, it was hard to find an honest Spider. Operative Rosemary Anne-Magdelene Jameson was the closest she'd found.
"You only get half until I get results."
"I can live with that. The usual account, eh Red?"
The Nightwidow tossed some change onto the table and left. Dynamo Rose pulled a letter from her pocket and stared at the name. Well, she'd need money again, and if this Gregory Manning was offering Medical and Dental, it might be worth her time.
It was a short trip to Crey's Nerva building and signing the contract took even less. They handed over an access pass to the Medical facility and laboratory, and Rose made an appointment with Manning to get real details.
Hopefully it would be more interesting than robbing Paragon's 1st National Bank Peregrine Branch again.
((Dynamo Rose, Technology Energy Melee/Electric Armor/Leaping/Fitness/Medicine/Mu Brute))
Infinity
Sam Varden 50 MA/Reg Scrap
Doomtastic 50 SS/Inv Brute
Ceus 50 Eng/Kin Corr
Cinderstorm 50 Fire/Fire Blaster
--From the Offices of Crey Industries International: Superhuman Affairs--
To: Gregory Manning
Regarding the recent dispatch of certain offers of employment to certain freelance individuals. We here at the Superhuman Affairs branch have decided it would be a fitting form of field exercise if agent 00916 was deployed as one of your ongoing project's assets. As an employee of Crey Industries, remuneration of agent 00916 for his work will not be of any due consequence to your or your associated branch. You will find that all paperwork regarding agent 00916's is in order pertaining his participation of your ongoing project.
If agent 00916 must be contacted for any reason, his private communication code is *****************.
Sincerely,
Vivian Tucker
Office of Superhuman Affairs, Crey Industries International
***
[u]Port Oaks[u]
A lone boy, looking to be in his late teens wandered down the streets of Port Oaks. This was odd because of the unspoken 'Hide your children' rule that seemed to pervade throughout both the Isles and Paragon city, but also because he was completely unsupervized and therefore a prime target for victimization by...well...anybody, really.
A group of Family actually took notice of him as he approached, and a few of them put hands into their pockets to rest upon unseen weapons. They were all grinning mischievous grins of people who were about to commit a felony.
"Hey, kid!" The foremost button man shouted.
The boy, who had been walking with his head down, broke the number one taboo of the Rogue Isles between normal residents and villains: He looked up and made direct eye contact. The Button Man froze, his smile fading almost instantly into a look of confusion. Behind him, the rest of the mob shifted around uncomfortably as the boy continued to approach.
There was a vague feeling of extreme hostility emanating from him, and suddenly none of them could think about much except for the odd thought that messing with this kid would be a SUPREMELY bad idea. Why they thought this, not even they truely knew. It may have had something to do with his appearance.
He wore light khaki pants, a dark grey, plain t-shirt covered by a particularly long fleece jacket, (even though it was in the upper 70s) and had unusually long and black, curly hair. If anything though, the most prominent feature about him was his brilliant and startling eyes. They were a sharp, cold Turquoise, and they seemed to gleam with something the thugs could not pin down.
The boy stopped three feet away from the Button Man who had called him, whose mouth was now slightly ajar. He had a slightly stunned expression about him.
"Move." The boy said simply.
And the Family member did just that. The boy walked past him, and the Family thugs moved out of his way as he walked right down the center of their group, stopping at the edge of the crosswalk that led across the street. Even though there was no traffic at all, he waited patiently for 30 seconds until the light signaled that he could cross the street. All the while, the Family goons watched him, confused and bewildered.
After walking a further two blocks, the boy suddenly bent down and picked up a rock lying on the sidewalk before turning around and casually chucking it back down the way he had come.
Two blocks away, the Button Man who had blocked his way felt something hard smash into his head at high speed right before he blacked out.
***
[u]Port Oaks Medical Center[u]
"What do you want." A rather grumpy nurse asked.
"Er. I'm reallysorry to...uh...Bother you." The same boy stood at the front desk, looking rather sheepish. He was hunched over now, and was not making direct eye contact. Thus, the nurse mistook him for just another Rogue Isles citizen. "Err. I'm looking for Harbinger Daemon. I think he is still here after being hospitalized a few days ago..." He risked a glance at the nurse.
She put her ciggerette out on the desk. "Look, kid." She said. "I've never heard of this guy before. It could take years to sort through all the files to work out if he is here, and it is against regulations to just let anyone in. You have to make it worth my...that is, you have to make it worth the Hospital's time to allow you to come and go as you please. And you're just a kid. Come back when you're earning minimum wage and we'll work something out." She then blew a smoke ring in his face.
The smoke obscured his face, but they failed to obscure the boy's brilliant, peaceful and serene green eyes. 'Huh. Nice eyes.' The nurse thought absently. And the deeper she stared into them, the more guilty she began to feel...
But the boy turned away before she could change her mind and walked back to the waiting area. He was struggling not to cry. 'Stay calm. Don't panic. Don't be weak.' He thought as he sat down in one of the cheap chairs. 'I'll find a way. There has to be somebody who can help me...'
--Nerva Archipelago: Crey Industries Building--
Gregory Manning didn't relish his position. He was a diligent man, a competent paper pusher, and he found himself in the unenviable Nerva Archipelago "Unspecified Resources" office because he accidentally learned of the corporation's "quasilegal" activities and made no fuss about it. He'd asked no questions, made no threats, he even made sure the information he'd come across got to where it was supposed to go.
Apparently, for his loyalty, the company decided he deserved a promotion and a change of scenery. He didn't dislike the tropical climate, but the Etoile "Rogue" Isles were not what he'd expected to be dealing with. Out here, he ran across the worst individuals, from the various "villains" of the world to Arachnos to Kelly Uqua. It made his home life something of an aggravation.
Still, his position in Unspecified Resources yielded him excellent opportunities to make friends among those criminals. He hated to admit it, but they were, for the most part, just unscrupulous individuals who were attempting to claim their own piece of the Pie of Life.
He reviewed the e-mail that the Office of Superhuman Affairs had sent him. The profile of the individual made him snort a little, but he sent back an e-mail requesting the individual to get in touch with him as soon as possible.
Upon sending the message, he found that his in-box had a new appointment from his secretary. He looked over the information, and sighed. The young woman was already on her way in, so he informed his secretary to admit her immediately.
He reviewed his funds for a moment and narrowed his eyes. Somebody had funneled some of them to one of Uqua's projects. Regardless of the rumors and their implications about the woman, Manning simply didn't have the leeway to allow such embezzlement to continue, so he raised a flag on the activity for the bean counters to see and mentally prepared himself to have to deal with her later.
A moment later, Dynamo Rose entered his office, and Gregory stood to greet her. Gripping her hand firmly, he gave her a solid shake and a greeting, then asked her to sit down.
"I've been informed you're here for the investigation contract. I suppose there's information you'd like to know. Well, where would you like to begin?"
----------
--Port Oakes: Medical Center--
"Excuse me," a doctor muttered to the receptionist nurse, "I need to conduct some blood tests on Harbinger Daemon."
"Sir, I-" she looked up at the doctor and noted the glowing orange gaze staring back at her, "I understand, sir."
"Get me his file."
"Yes sir," she replied and started rifling through the folders on her desk.
"You there," the man with glowing eyes called to the boy, "You want to see an interesting case?"
The young man nodded and walked over to the doctor's side. The nurse looked at the child, then back to the doctor, who just glared back at her.
"The file?" he asked, his voice conveying none of the contempt his posture clearly indicated.
She handed it over quickly and gulped. The doctor looked through it, muttering the demon's blood type (unknown) and known allergies (none) before walking away from the desk with the boy in tow.
"Oh yes," he called over his shoulder, "Clean out your locker. You're fired."
They walked past the Arachnos Reclaimators and entered an elevator nobody normally used outside of Hospital personnel. On the way down, the doctor explained.
"Your bosses called and told me to expect you, sir. I'll take you to Harbinger, but the other individual, Chillblaze, is burying his brother."
The elevator stopped and they walked out into a partitioned hallway resplendent with medical beds and equipment. There were few meta humans in the beds, most of them linked up to the Arachnos Reclaimators and able to head right back out into the heat of battle upon teleporting (the machines wreaked havoc on the medical center's power supply, but Marshall Brass didn't seem to care). Most of the people in the beds were the normal citizens of the Rogue Isles, people who were often the victims of the rampant criminal organizations that called the Isles home.
"Here he is," the doctor explained as he brought the teenager to the red-skinned demon.
Harbinger was sitting in an inclined position and reading, of all things, a Bible. He glanced up at the doctor as they approached, then turned his attention to the boy. Arching an eyebrow, he looked back to the doctor.
"The weird thing is, I know I'm supposed to talk to him."
"Yes," the doctor replied.
"Well, doc, if there's nothing for you, I guess you should go."
"Very well."
"So," Harbinger paused to slide the marker into place and close the book before focusing his full attention on the young man, "What can I help you with?"
My Stories
Look at that. A full-grown woman pulling off pigtails. Her crazy is off the charts.
The boy gaped at Harbinger, obviously shocked at his appearance, as if he didn't actually live in the Rogue Isles. Either he was incredibly short-sighted or he didn't get out much.
"Er." He said. "Well. Uh. My name is Millions and, uh...I work with Crey, and uh...We're concerned about the disappearance of several regenerative heroes..."
That should have raised some flags. In the Rogue Isles, the correct term was "vigilantes." And why wasn't the boy making eye contact? He was staring at his feet for crying out loud.
"...And er, we heard that you, a private contractor..." The boy risked a glance. It was obvious he was having trouble believing his own words. "...Were involved with the abduction of another private contractor, who had regenerative powers. I was hoping you could tell me what happened that day. Er. If you don't mind. It would be really helpful.....Please?"
'This guy doesn't look very nice.' The boy thought to himself.
The Crey office in Nerva wasn't her favorite place, and any number of corpses and near-corpses would stand testament to the people who worked here not being her favorite people. But Cassie was nothing if not opportunistic, and the email she'd got had just happened to arrive at a time when she found herself in need of some funds. All in all, despite her dislike of Crey it was simply too good to pass up. Though, that didn't stop the big assault bot following her from casually blowing away a couple of guards that got too close - she'd 'neglected' to tell him not to. They'd be mostly fine anyway, just a few plasma burns and one hell of a headache when they woke up.
Leaving the Bot to stand guard at the door, the black-haired Mastermind walked up to the reception and dropped the printed email on the counter. "I'm here to see Gregory Manning, is he busy?"
The girl behind the counter picked up and read the letter before responding. "Ahh, you're another one coming for this", she muttered before checking if Mr Manning was busy, which he was. "I'm sorry, he's in an appointment right now. Would you mind waiting?"
Patience was a thing Cassie never quite had enough of. Though, the fact that she needed that cash and the fact that if she just barged in she'd likely see none of it combined to give her a little more than she usually had. "Sure, I'll wait", she said, the look in her eyes easily giving the impression that she wouldn't likely wait very long as she went to sit on one of the benches at the side of the room. Without even being told her Assault Bot came and stood beside her, directing a look that would have been a glare had his features not been unchanging metal at anyone who came close.
Absently, she scratched an arm while she waited for Manning to finish whatever it was he was doing.
(( She's a bots/forcefield/mace mastermind, if you were wondering.
Edit: Oh, something I should mention. She owns and fairly skilled at operating a helicopter - heavily armed and as seen previously in Blakmoore equipped with cloaking technology. Since it'll likely show up later, though I should mention it now so it's not such a surprise when she pulls it out. ))
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: STOP!
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: WAIT ONE SECOND!
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: WHAT IS A SEAGULL DOING ON MY THRONE!?!?
((Ah, my bad for having a scene with two similarily named characters. totally escaped me. Rose is just a brute, The Nightwidow was just there to establish a monetary motive and hint at Rose's backstory))
Dynamo Rose took the offered seat. Touching a small keyboard on her gauntlet, she activated a note taking device. "Metas with Regenerative powers are missing. Heroes and Neer'do'wells."
"Any other contractors I should be liasing with?" She offered her communication links.
"Names of the missing persons and known associates, if available. Witnesses to said dissapearances."
"Just regeneration? Magical, Tech, Muties, whatever?"
"When did the pattern start?"
"Who is the competition in this mess, I mean--who else wants to know this and would like us to fail."
"Since Heroes are missing as well, can Crey arrange a cover and transpo to Paragon if needed?"
"What's the deadline and how often will the office want updates?"
"You the primary contact for said updates?"
Infinity
Sam Varden 50 MA/Reg Scrap
Doomtastic 50 SS/Inv Brute
Ceus 50 Eng/Kin Corr
Cinderstorm 50 Fire/Fire Blaster
--Grandville, Recluse's Citadel--
Walking out of the meeting room with a passive hand waived at the sharkman behind her, Dr. Lore moved straight towards the lift for downstairs. Hunched from a long day of work with eyes narrowed in frustration, the doors couldn't close fast enough behind her to take her downstairs. As she felt the platform drop slightly then desend to the ground floor, she counted off on her fingers to three before flinging her hands above her and screaming.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! I HATE YOU I HATE YOU I HATE YOU! STUPID SHARK AND YOUR STUPID FACE AND YOUR STUPID SMART&#$% REMARKS! I HATE YOOOOU!" She silenced her howling before the doors opened to the elevator hall and she lumbered out, drained after releasing her anger. She then proceeded to talk to herself: "Well, I got the rest of the day off..."
Dr. Lore straightened her white trenchcoat on her shoulders in habit as she walked outside the citadel and let her eyes wander to the giant Lord Recluse statue before her. It was hard to believe that it had been two years since she came here to choose her patron, but if she had a way to see how much aggrivation her choice brought her maybe she would have changed her mind. But working for the shark wasn't so bad...
"..."
But she couldn't think of a bright side at the moment, and just headed for the ferry. The letter she recieved from Crey Industries provided a "good laugh" when she first read it, but now that she was off work she started thinking. Disapearing regenerators were a slight concern, esspecially if they were her Lord Recluse's destined ones. If enough of them disapeared, he would get involved in the investigation. It would be nice to have information on-hand for him in that instance.
On the other hand, she didn't want to make it look like she was jumping ship and abandoning her proud organization. There were enough examples of what happened if one abandoned Arachnos. But she was high enough on the Arachnos food chain where the punnishment wouldn't be severe, or by some miracle she wouldn't be punnished at all.
And the reward: ten thousand dollars?! Fish food! There was far more than that sitting in a Swiss bank account for her! Then again, one more upgrade to the humble abode's security system would be nice...
As soon as she reached the ferry docks, she paused to look at the horizon. Where to go? What to do? Oddly enough, there was nothing pressing in her schedule. Except for an "interesting case" at the Port Oakes facility, there were no rounds at any hospitals for her to make. There were no labs for her to take a shift in. There were no "money makers" in the Protector that called out to her.
So this is it, she thought, I'm going to the Crey offices in Nerva because I have nothing else to do...
She tied back her long black hair, showing off more of her cheetah spot tattooes along the sides of her face and boarded the ferry for the Nerva Isles.
"May the Arbiters have a little compassion," she muttered to herself, "I have the feeling I'm jumping the frying pan straight into the fire..."
--Nerva, Crey Industries--
As she walked in the door, she again straightened her jacket and started towards the receptionist desk. The sight of an Assault Bot caught her eye and earned a startled "whoa", as Dr. Lore took a couple steps back for safety. Upon reaching the desk, she presented the letter.
"I'm here to see Gregory Manning."
The girl at the counter skimmed the note before nodding. "Yes, yes, he has an appointment right now. Can you take a seat please?"
"Okay..." It wasn't like the good doctor to get nervous but sharing a waiting room with a mastermind and her "pet" on standby was a little... akward. Still, she took a seat on the other side of the room, looking over the letter again.
So, I'm not the only one... At least I'm not diving into the fire alone...
((Note: Dr. Lore is a Super Strength/Invulnerability Brute. She's also a medical doctor, so she has healing equipment and can rez, but for the sake of the rp I'll only have one rez handy. She's also a degree in genetics, so scientific mumbo-jumbo is easy for her to understand. She's a brute, but she's more brains than brawn. Thought I'd mention it.)
The Freedom Server Wallflower (shhh, sleepy)
Angelfish on DrunkDuck.com
Dr. Lore at HeroCon 2008
Arc 67690: Out For Blood
((Oh nice, Golden's back! 
))
Black Heart Memorial Hospital
Port Oakes, Etoile Isles
"Yes." a neutral, male voice came from the direction of the elevator, "It would be very helpful."
An octet of crimson-hued glowing eyes sat in the twilight where the voice had come from, moving unhurriedly toward the two. The individual attached to them looked to be a rather tall, unusual Wolf Spider Huntsman - unusual because instead of the cape his rank tended to wear, a Crab Spider pack sat upon his back, painted in the same black-and-red scheme as his Wolf Spider uniform, the articulated limbs skimming listlessly about as he walked toward the boy and Harbinger Daemon.
In addition, the lower half of his Arachnos helmet had been enclosed as well, the uniform thus hiding every part of his actual anatomy, but didn't seem to be any obstruction to his tone as he introduced himself in a clear and polite manner, "Senior Operative Drago. I was part of the Arachnos detail that followed up on your incident. We had a few...rather strange occurrences in its aftermath. Any information you could provide would be greatly appreciated..."
"If I had Force powers, vacuum or not my cape/clothes/hair would always be blowing in the Dramatic Wind." - Tenzhi
Characters
((My mistake, Kasoh, I had a headache at the time and I didn't read your post the way I should have. I fixed the statement from earlier.))
--Nerva Archipelago: Crey Industries International: Unspecified Resources--
Gregory Manning looked to his computer and narrowed his eyes. There were new contracts that had just popped up, including one that wasn't so much a contract as a notice as information regarding a man named "Senior Operative Drago" that indicated Arachnos had stuck it's clawed fingers into the investigation.
"Well, I guess that rules out Arachnos," he muttered as he looked to the screen.
Then he focused his attention on Dynamo.
"Okay, first off, yes there are plenty of... Mercenaries... that you can liaise with. One is being shown the way to my office right now, a young woman named Doctor Lore. As for opposition..."
He gritted his teeth and winced a little.
"Crey likes to make it a matter of public fact that they're the driving force behind the existence of Hero Corps, and they've gone on a similar recruitment drive to settle this matter at our behest... However... They're not too reliable when it comes to settling issues discreetly. There have been a number of public relations fiascoes for this company that they not only allowed, but encouraged. As such, if I get word of any vigilantes they've hired, I'll send word to you and your associates."
He considered the rest of her questions carefully.
"The office will want updates whenever you learn something new. The upper echelons are intensely interested in this matter, but haven't informed me as to why. Yes, I'm the primary contact. Again, the upper echelons are covering their own bacon, so I'm the ablative armor should anything go wrong. As for Cover and Transport to Paragon City, we could probably provide such, but with any luck, it won't be necessary."
"Now... As for the details concerning the objective... We came across this unusual pattern about a month ago. Certain individuals were getting abducted from their homes, from missions, or even in transit to various locations. At first, we didn't see a discernible pattern, they were all from various backgrounds, mostly lower to middle class, different ethnicities, different claims to the origins of their powers. It wasn't until a few weeks ago that our associates in Hero Corps noticed the pattern, all the missing heroes were 'Regenerative' types, they all took massive amounts of damage and were able to repair themselves at exceptionally rapid paces. Hero Corps, for whatever reason, confronted the Crey Corporation about it, and the case was sent to me from the desk of Hopkins... Which doesn't necessarily mean he ordered me to work on this, but you get the idea of the intensity of Crey's interest, now."
He looked around, knowing full well that his office was bugged. The Unspecified Resources Office was a powerful position from which almost anyone could funnel funds into almost any project and have anyone within the company assume it was all with the Countess' or Hopkins' consent. The previous heads of Unspecified Resources in the Rogue Isles had all died under mysterious circumstances, and it was later found that they'd been embezzling funds for all sorts of personal objectives. It was part of why Manning figured he was here: he had no personal objectives, save to live long enough to retirement and have a decent pension at the time.
"Look," he whispered to the brute, "Between you and me, I'm thinking Crey really doesn't have anything to do with these missing heroes. It's something about the wording and attitude in the orders I've been given... It's not the usual circuitous clap-trap I normally see in my orders. They seem to really want to find out who's behind this and put a stop to them before the meta human vigilantes across the world, not just in Paragon, come after us with a furious vengeance that is completely unwarranted."
He sat back and shuffled a few papers on his desk. Feeling that he'd said what needed to be said, he handed the papers over to Dynamo.
"So far, there have been only two surviving witnesses from all of the abductions. They had both been shot with some sort of strange ammunition... Well, one was shot, the other was shot at. The one who's recovering seems to be a magic-based super strong fiery demon named 'Harbinger.' The other is a dominator... I believe his brother was killed in an abduction that took both a vigilante named Oakhammer and a mercenary named Max Gorgonetti, both regenerators. I believe the others were witnesses to the event. They already gave a report to Arachnos officials, but the report is sparse because Arachnos seemed only interested in the botched robbery at the time, looking for a way to cover their own butts from something they apparently had absolutely no prior knowledge of. Considering the fact that I'm starting to see Arachnos operatives on my contact information for this case, I suppose that's no longer the case."
He gestured to the pages in Dynamo's hands.
"There is all I've got on Harbinger Daemon and Chillblazer. It's got their addresses, both in St. Martial, as well as a list of prior sprees and operations. It seems Chillblazer was rather fond of working for the Cage Consortium and the Marcones, while Harbinger did a lot of freelance work for just about anybody who could get him more magical artifacts, like that lunatic, Darrin Wade, though he's also been known to take on jobs from individuals he feels will offer him a challenge. However, I'm certain he's still recuperating in the Port Oakes medical facility."
((This is all the information Gregory has for any further contractors at this time. I trust this can be used for any further mercenaries who wish to learn the parameters of their contracts.
Oh, and further note for the monetary motivations of the contract: That's $10,000 American or converted to whatever other national currency you require, and it's actual pay, not something that needs excessive laundering or some other disguising behavior to conceal its origin. Considering the nature of this mission, Crey can easily explain that they were just as concerned about missing heroes, and hired anybody they could to investigate (which equates to good PR for them). Mind you, the contract is fluid, it can be negotiated for more, though the medical, dental and possible stock options are nothing to sneeze at either.))
-----------
--Port Oakes: Black Heart Memorial Hospital--
Harbinger arched his eyebrow at the boy, but visibly shook when the Arachnos Crab Spider showed up.
"I already told Arachnos what I know," he growled, "As far as I'm concerned, you [jerks] are responsible for what happened to Max and hiring that lunatic, Jack, to shoot me and Chill's brother!"
He glared at Millions.
"Look, kid, I wasn't involved in Max's kidnapping. I didn't even know he was kidnapped until the last batch of Arachnos inquisitors started drilling me with questions. All I know is I was having this wonderful dream about tearing through cops and Longbow troops, ripping a security guard captain in half, then I woke up to find out it was all true."
His eyes darted back and forth.
"Wait... I didn't go to sleep before that..." he muttered, "I was... I think I was in the Giza... Or... No..."
He thumbed his chin as he tried to remember what he was doing before he found himself tearing through Brickstown.
"I was in J.W.'s Lounge... Yeah!"
He pointed at Drago, his mind already shifting to typical authority archetypes since the big armored man was older.
"I go there because they've got beer! Good beer! But something went wrong that night... Something..."
He seemed to trail off as he looked to the ceiling. Drago couldn't tell if the demonic-looking man was making a show of searching for a memory or if it was really a mannerism. It was something he cursed the dossiers on the various "Chosen Ones" Arachnos kept. You could know all the numbers about a character, just not how they behaved.
"I got it!" he announced, bringing his focus back to Drago and Millions.
"Good, let's have it," the Senior Operative growled, growing more impatient with the theatrics.
"No, I didn't mean the memory. I mean I know how to get the information you need."
"Let me guess..."
"Take me to J.W.'s. Once there, it'll probably jog my memory..."
((Sorry for the commandeering of your character there, Devious, I just wanted to move this portion along.))
My Stories
Look at that. A full-grown woman pulling off pigtails. Her crazy is off the charts.
((Hope I'm not late. Took a break from RP for a while, but if Rebel or Devious thinks hard, they might remember me ))
Port Oakes
On a stretch of sand and rocks commonly found all around Port Oakes sat a young man on a foldable beach chair, stretched out and relaxed.
He had sneakers that were laying next to him, and black sunglasses that protected his eyes from the harmful sun. A white tee-shirt was crumpled on the sand next to him, and he had khaki shorts that reached just about the knees. A pleasured smile was stamped on his face as he enjoyed the relaxing.
A buzzing interrupted the peaceful scene, but he didn't seem to mind. He lazily reached into his pocket and pulled out a cell phone, flipping it open and shoving it next to his face. "Yello?" he said, idly scratching the side of his leg.
"Daily job listings found. Press one to hear openings. Press two for more options. Pr-" the mechanical voice said, but the man cut it off and pressed one. A storm of jobs came flooding through his phone, from newspaper ads to his personal mail. Finally, he pressed one when he heard something interesting.
"From the offices of Crey Industries, offering ten thousand American dollars to investigate the disappearances of Regenerative heroes and villains. Health and Dental included. Further information can be found at Crey Industries in Nerva Archipelago" the voice continued.
The man shrugged and closed the phone, depositing it back in his pocket and taking a deep breath. "Jack's back, baby" he said, smiling and laughing slightly, a sure sign on insanity.
Nerva Archipelago
Jack strode through the doors of Crey Nerva, seeing two women already seated, one with an Assault Bot at her side. He ignored them for the most part, giving a simple nod to each while walking up to the receptionist's desk.
"I'm looking for, ah..." he started, but the receptionist just nodded, saying "The job, right. Just take a seat, he's with a client right now" Jack nodded and sat down a couple seats away from the lady without the Bot. After a few moments, asking no one in particular "So, you up for the job to?"
[ QUOTE ]
The sight of an Assault Bot caught her eye and earned a startled "whoa", as Dr. Lore took a couple steps back for safety.
[/ QUOTE ]
Cassie suppressed a laugh, she loved the way Mac scared the piss out of people just by being there. Even metas, though most metas could probably take him fairly easily in a straight one on one fight. "Don't worry, he won't bite", she said as the other woman sat down. "You get that letter they sent out too?"
Before the good Doctor could reply however another man strode in the door like he owned the place. Cassie was tempted to order Mac to take his nose off to put him in his place but she really couldn't be bothered to spare the effort for something so minor. Mac looked back at her, and she shook her head almost imperceptibly.
(( And yeah doodaa I remember you. Is this Jack the same one you had in TSS? ))
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: STOP!
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: WAIT ONE SECOND!
[Admin] Emperor Marcus Cole: WHAT IS A SEAGULL DOING ON MY THRONE!?!?
Stahlhund watched from the shadows at the group gathering in the office. The machine stood silently, his stance very similar to a soldier when at ease. A slight hissing noise was emitted as the machine de-cloaked, the red metallic frame standing next to the man who had just arrived. The man would almost certaintly be startled and Stahlhund was quite aware of this.
"Operative Stahlhund reporting for duty. Require breifing." the machine said in a gruff german accent. The silver visor off set the red and black coloring of the rest of it's scheme. The fire-like stripe that ran down it's sides was a shade or two lighter than the dark red overtone. It's gloves and boots were solid black.
Self-Proclaimed Number one Fanboi of the RP Forums and it's writers.
Me: How about "Zeus, The Pimp God"?
A friend: It'd be too hard to dress him up like a bull
"Does this mean we get to ride in a flier?" Millions said hopefully, almost looking Drago fully in the face before suddenly looking down at the floor again.
Dr. Lore raised an eyebrow at the new contractor taking a seat near the mastermind, but nodded. She only had a chance to hold up her letter did what looked like a robot decloak in the room. She felt a brief moment of suprise, and then uncertainy. Was she supposed to say something? Was someone else supposed to say something? The receptionist spoke up first.
"Don't tell me," she sighed slightly, "for Gregory Manning? Take a seat, he'll be with you shortly." Dr. Lore thought that the poor woman muttered "there's so many", but left it alone. But since Operative Stahlhund introduced himself, there was no point in everyone being strangers.
"So it looks like a lot of us are going to be needed for this 'contract.' I'm Dr. Lore."
The Freedom Server Wallflower (shhh, sleepy)
Angelfish on DrunkDuck.com
Dr. Lore at HeroCon 2008
Arc 67690: Out For Blood
((That's cool. By the way, what's J.W.'s? 
Oh, and Drago's not that big - just under 2 meters - and the backpack is the only Crab costume piece he has. The rest is Wolf armor.))
"Teleportation will be faster." Drago gave a curt nod to confirm acceptance of Harbinger's request, then turned to a nearby doctor, "I am checking out Patient oh-one-two seven; Harbinger Daemon."
The medical person nodded. She knew better than to question someone from Arachnos - even if, in this case, he wasn't here on their behalf.
"Take a hand." he then told the two indifferently, extending each of them an open palm, "Don't worry, I don't bite. Often."
It was his intention to teleport them directly where Harbinger had requested...
--------------------
Atlas Plaza
A shadow of wings darkened the sky above Henry Peter Wong - which wasn't exactly unusual around here. A good many heroes had wings, many draconic, and even more came to see him every hour of every day to request information on so many topics.
The draconian being that landed no far from him, however, wasn't here for one of those.
Sky Commander Arek, better known here in Paragon under callsign: Spearhead Alpha had come to discuss a different issue entirely. Namely, the email the man before him had recently sent out.
It was an interesting picture, the denim-blue draconian towering more than half a meter over the average-sized human clothed in that blue-and white Freedom Corps uniform, while the scaled creature wore little more than a set of high-tech guards that could've belonged to Vanguard on his shoulders, lower arms, and the shins and 'toes' of his digitigrade feet. Purple, however, was nowhere to be found, replaced by a cool, alien gray.
A necklace with an odd-looking, broken stone of emerald green dangled in front of the draconian's light-auburn keratin chest plating, a natural defense mechanism that extended all the way from the upper throat across chest and abdomen, and along the ventral tail nearly to its slim-ended tip. Surprisingly, said tail was also the limb that held nearly all of the spikes one would have expected to find on such a being, and in the form of a series of small razors to boot. The only other examples sat at the heels of his digitigrade feet, each foot carrying one spike.
Horns, however, he did have, and four to boot - all jutting from the back of his head, one pair rearward straight, the other curling about behind his bony, inhuman cheeks. Aside form the limb guards, however, he did wear one more article of clothing; namely a harness that could've most equivocally been summed up in the term 'stealth', metallic pieces of cool gray connected by slate-gray straps. The 'belt' of said harness also held a pair of what almost appeared to be dark, smaller-scale lightsabers, though in reality they were little more than telecoping staves.
"I assume you are the one who sent this?" a deep tone questioned of Henry Peter Wong as Arek called up a holographic image of the email on his right arm guard, "What did you have in mind...?"
"If I had Force powers, vacuum or not my cape/clothes/hair would always be blowing in the Dramatic Wind." - Tenzhi
Characters
((Ayuh, that's the one. I changed his powers and style a bit, though))
Jack was, in fact, not startled by Stahlhund's sudden appearance. He gave again a slight nod to acknowledge him, introducing himself as simply "Jack" He stretched out slightly and looked around, seeing one woman who was looking at him with a deathly glare.
Jack mentally shrugged it off and went to relaxing in his chair, stretching out and sighing. "This certainly doesn't compare to relaxing on the beach" he muttered smiling slightly.
He thought about checking some minds out, almost did it, actually, but decided not to. The Judge had been on his tail ever since that stupid incident in Spain, and was now watching his every move, and any unneeded power-using was strictly against the rules.
Jack sighed again and scratched the side of his head. As he waited, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a quarter, flipping it absently and mentally calling bets.
Rose thanked Manning for his time, collected the files and made her way back down to the lobby. It had gotten considerably more crowded since she arrived.
Looking at the mixed group she found herself in, Rose nodded to her fellow rogues, "You guys here for Missing peoples contract?"
The redhead pointed her thumb at herself, "Dynamo Rose. If you want to talk to Manning he's free. I'd go as a group though I'm sure he doesn't want to tell the same story a dozen times. I've got the basics of the case, they'll be ready for electronic perusal in a few minutes."
Rose sat down and began to hold each sheet up her eye plate, the microcomputer wired in her armor digitized the sheet into a handy .pdf and she moved through the rest of the file with ease. After she was done, she began to peruse the information, trying to decide on where to start.
Infinity
Sam Varden 50 MA/Reg Scrap
Doomtastic 50 SS/Inv Brute
Ceus 50 Eng/Kin Corr
Cinderstorm 50 Fire/Fire Blaster
((J.W.'s Lounge is one of the various casinos in St. Martial and it actually advertises that it serves beer. It's in the northeast section of Jackpot, and it's not a particularly "flashy" casino.))
--Port Oakes: Black Heart Memorial--
Harbinger Daemon nodded and grasped Drago's hand firmly. His clawed par wrapped around the smaller hand, but it wasn't a crushing grip. Either his strength hadn't returned to him yet, or he was surprisingly gentle for a ruthless mercenary.
----------
--Atlas Park: Behind the Town Hall--
Henry Wong nodded to the dragon-like meta human.
"Yes, I sent that to many prominent heroes I've worked with over the years. We're trying to get the word out, especially to regenerator-type heroes, to be extra careful out there and to bring as many leads to Hero Corps, Freedom Corps, and the F.B.S.A. as possible. Of course... Hero Corps is the only group that's going to compensate you for your time and effort adequately."
----------
--Nerva Archipelago: Crey industries International: Unspecified Resources--
Gregory Manning followed Dynamo Rose into the reception area and nodded to the meta humans. His secretary started informing him of their purpose, but he nodded and let her know he understood.
"Well, I'm pleased to see such an exceptional turnout. I'm Gregory Manning, I fund a lot of Crey's mercenary work here in the Isles. I trust you're all here for the missing persons contracts."
He waited for their nods and various types of agreement before addressing Dynamo.
"I've already conversed with Ms. Rose on some of the parameters for this case, but I'm still willing to assist the rest of you with any questions you have now."
My Stories
Look at that. A full-grown woman pulling off pigtails. Her crazy is off the charts.
Millions reached out a hand, which paused and hovered uncertainly above Drago's hand before falling. If the Arachnos Operative had decent feeling in his hand, he would immediately notice the lack of weight in the appendage, even for a hand. Almost as if there were no bones in it.
"Please keep your hands inside the vehicle at all times." Drago didn't waste any time, warping the three directly to the casino the large red man had spoken of.
"That's an interesting feel you have there." he told the boy after they'd arrived, "Why so light...?"
--------------------
((Gonna wait a little with Arek. Hopefully for more heroes to show. ))
"If I had Force powers, vacuum or not my cape/clothes/hair would always be blowing in the Dramatic Wind." - Tenzhi
Characters
Stahlhund regarde the woman who had identified herself as Dr. Lore with a curt, quick nod. "Nien. I will stand until briefed. Thank you, Doctor." The man he had appeared beside did not react the way Stahlhund had expected. He was very slightly impressed. The machine nodded to Jack as well.
"Ja. I require as much knowledge as you can give, Manning." The stalker replied. He listened, never moving from his spot, and nodded as the Crey man finished. "Thank you, Manning. Will Dynamo Rose be our team leader?" The machine asked, still in the same stance.
Self-Proclaimed Number one Fanboi of the RP Forums and it's writers.
Me: How about "Zeus, The Pimp God"?
A friend: It'd be too hard to dress him up like a bull
Presumptious little teapot, isn't he? Dr. Lore kept her thought to herself as she stood from her seat. There was no need yet for a leader, she felt, just facts.
"Mr. Manning, we'll need numbers and names to get started. Exactly how many regeneraters have gone missing, and are there any names of note?"
The Freedom Server Wallflower (shhh, sleepy)
Angelfish on DrunkDuck.com
Dr. Lore at HeroCon 2008
Arc 67690: Out For Blood
"My hand is light?" Millions said. "It feels about right...Um, that is, not to say you're wrong or anything sir. Sorry."
The criminals tore through the Longbow blockade and smashed into the bank doors. Nothing could stop them. They were pumped on drugs, experimental cybernetics and powerful mystical accessories that boosted their combat attributes through the roof. They could barely stand still, but they were shredding their way through the opposition.
The banks guards fared little better than the Longbow blockade. The guard captain would have probably given them the pass key to get into the vault, but they were roaring and jabbering incoherently and they sought only death and destruction. The captain was sent to the hospital by his Med-Com transponder in two pieces; he would never be the same again.
It was when they got to the vault that they stopped to consider that something was seriously wrong with them. They didnt know each other, never met before that day.
Harbinger Daemons mind cleared first and he stopped at the vault entrance to watch his compatriots flailing wildly at the heavy door to the treasure of unmarked bills beyond. The problem, he realized, was that he had been hired by a man named Jaeger to steal a retinal scan device of some kind and he should have been busy doing that instead of this bizarre bank assault.
He vaguely remembered one of the people, Max Gorgonetti, a man whose special ability was to alter his physical appearance to mimic the walls and floor behind him like some sort of demented chameleon. He was also a regenerator, Daemon had seen him lose fingers and an ear which he grew back in a matter of hours. Afterward, they parted ways, the contact didnt have much work for them, but Daemon had acquired a new respect for stalkers after watching Max tear his claws into a Nullifiers spine just before the Longbow soldier could put a slug through Daemons skull.
The strange thing, he remarked, was that Max wasnt using his claws. None of the criminals were using their respective weapons, they were just tearing away at the vault with their bare hands. For someone like Harbinger, that was easy; he was super strong and could punch through steel. For people like Gorgonetti, it wasnt so easy, as punching an armored vault door could quickly reduce a mans hands to hamburger, regardless of whatever bizarre enhancement they were currently under the influence of.
Guys! he shouted, Guys!
They continued pounding away at the door. Despite the efforts, it didnt look to be budging.
Max! Harbinger pulled the stalker away and slapped him across the face, Max! Snap out of it!
The stalker gripped the brute on a nerve on his collar bone. Despite a television shows advertisement of the nerve pinch, all it really did was aggravate the big crimson-skinned man. Daemon jammed two fingers into the palm Max was using to pinch him, his thumb against the back of it between two bones (it didnt really matter which two, but he aimed for the center of the hand) and wrenched his hand back to the side, twisting Maxs hand and wrist around in a way that would hurt anyone severely.
Max screamed. It was a shriek that pierced the resounding booms in the room and caused the other criminals to stop. He went to attack Harbinger again, but the big brute backhanded him across the face with his free hand and yanked him aside. The other criminals glared at him for a moment, but one by one, their eyes started to clear.
Must have been something about the pain, Daemon grumbled, So long as you wailed away at that thing, you guys were pretty much braindead.
What are you talking about? a corrupter with an assault rifle asked as he rubbed his hands, Oh God, what were we doing?
They heard the sound of a hero at the entrance shouting some sort of nonsense about stopping them. Soon enough, theyd be getting assaulted by another Longbow contingent and have to fight their way out.
Whats going on? another rogue shouted.
Shut up! Shut up and listen to me! Harbinger roared, Look, I know youre disoriented, but I need you guys to stick together so we can get through this! Somebodys [messing] with us, and if we cant get back to the Isles, we wont be able to find out who or why!
The Longbow troops arrived with their hero hot on their trail. He was some sort of weird, plant-based hero. He didnt have spikes or vines or anything, though. Instead, he just assaulted the rogues with some sort of blended martial arts and let the Longbow troops work on withering the villains.
Harbingers skin burst into flames and he railed against the little green man with bright blue hair. He could hear the rest of his team throwing ice and fire, and the assault rifle of the corrupter. After slamming the scrapper into the far wall and watching him slump motionless to the floor, the brute turned his attention to the rest of the Longbow troops. A moment later, he was kicked in the back of the knee and crumpled to the ground.
It seemed the scrapper had gotten back up from his near-fatal encounter with the wall. Harbinger tried to push himself back up, but a hard chop to the side of his head jarred him and he suddenly couldnt control his muscles anymore. He vaguely felt some kicks to his ribs and rolled over from the impact to look up and see that the scrapper was about to finish him off by stomping on his head.
Oh well, he thought, I guess I wont get to find out whats going on.
Suddenly, a set of claws poked out of the scrappers chest and he stopped. Another set popped through a little lower and as the hero turned, Harbinger could see Max Gorgonetti holding his weapons in the heros back. As his mind cleared, Harbinger was about to cheer with triumph about their success when there was a bright flash and he couldnt see anything.
He was vaguely aware that he was being dragged, so he was certain it wasnt a hero taking him (they tended to just zap villains to the nearest jail house or to the Zig). He felt broken glass scraping across his back and it must have done something to bring him back to focus because his vision started clearing and he looked up to see the guy who threw ice dragging him. The one who threw fire was dragging the man with the assault rifle.
What happened? he asked groggily.
Dont know, the ice thrower whispered, There was an explosion and everything went dark. Barry and I grabbed whoever we could find Couldnt find that other guy.
Max?
Was that his name? Well, we couldnt find him, or the cape. Can you walk?
Harbinger nodded and picked himself back up. Looking about, he saw it was night time and that most of the buildings nearby were blacked out. He could barely recognize the place, but he thought they were in Brickstown, just outside the First National.
Everythings shut down, he whispered, then pointed at a Nemesis Warhulk lying facedown on the pavement, Holy I guess we can rule this out as a Nemesis plot!
The other two chuckled and the fire thrower hefted the corrupter on his shoulders in a military carry. Harbinger offered to help, but the other man said he was fine.
Ive got something of an adrenalin rush going, he rasped, If I remember correctly, were supposed to go down that street and get out of here through the sewers
Yeah, there should be a submersible waiting for us, the brute agreed.
They fled. Harbinger took up the rear of the formation. He told the others it was so he could take the brunt of anything chasing them. What he really was doing, however, was figuring out which of these two elemental-type villains were screwing him over. He didnt know why they were making a show of helping him now, but he was certain it had nothing to do with any kind of altruism. Heck, if he were in their situation, hed have grabbed the loot and left the others; but then he wouldnt have anybody to help him figure out why he was robbing Brickstown in the first place.
They passed through the sewer without incident, and as they reached the exit, the assault rifle-wielding corrupter roused himself. He looked like a normal person, brown hair, green eyes, and dressed in simple military fatigues. Apparently, he was also supposed to have a complement of gadgets and traps, but they must have been lost during their maddened dash to the bank. He introduced himself as Jack Solomon, the elemental dominator-class villains introduced themselves as Barry Chillblazer and Hank Timbercaust Redden, brothers who mutated in high school to have ice and fire powers respectively.
Harbinger introduced himself as well and wondered if maybe he was now looking at a two on one and a half fight, as Jack didnt have half of his repertoire. Hed seen corrupters do some fine work, but it usually required help from skills they employed to wither the enemy or boost the team, and assault rifles by themselves were pretty weak in comparison to hurling fire or using the power of the Netherworld itself to tear an enemys very soul out of his body.
So, any clue why we were here? the demon-looking man asked.
I dont know, man, Chillblazer replied, I thought I was dreaming at first, and everything was cool. We were punching through cops, smashing down Longbow But then Then I dont know, that scream hurt my ears and I looked to see what caused it, and thats when I realized I wasnt dreaming.
Same here, his brother agreed, I seriously thought that we were this close to breaking open that vault when you woke us up! Did you know that guy you smacked around?
I didnt do it because I liked doing it, Harbinger muttered, Though I did like doing it, dont get me wrong, but I had a purpose to what I was doing. So We were asleep?
I guess, Jack grumbled, Can we get a move on? I want to get back to St. Martial and get my stuff. Ive got a couple contracts Im working on.
They started leaving, but Harbinger kept between Solomon and the Redden Brothers. He didnt want them taking out his only partner if they turned out to be the guys responsible for his being in Brickstown.
The utility grate opened for them and the meta humans crawled out into the drainage ditch. There wasnt a submersible waiting for them, and the Reddens turned to Daemon.
What do we do now? Timbercausts face conveyed actual terror, Harbinger had seen it enough to know the difference.
That gave him a moment to wonder just who was messing with them, then. However, just as he realized that maybe Jack had been the one, there was another bright flash. His back had been to the explosion, so his vision wasnt lost. He saw Chillblazer go rocketing backwards into the ocean while his brother tumbled head over heels across the beach. The brute himself tumbled forward and felt his face drag against the sand. However, he was still conscious; he just couldnt move.
What the Hell was that?
Neutralizing witnesses. Ready for pickup, he heard Solomon say into a communicator as he walked past, lazily resting his assault rifle on his shoulder.
What are you doing?
The corrupter(?) casually approached Timbercaust and aimed his rifle at the mans back. The Dominator was struggling to push himself off the ground when he was shot. He slumped to the ground, never to move again. Jack did the same to Harbinger, and the brute didnt know what the ammunition was, but it tore right through him. He felt salt burning into the exit wound, but it only lasted long enough for his bleeding out to overwhelm the salty sand. The assassin finished off Chillblazer by firing into the ocean, which caused a small explosion of flash-frozen ice.
I cant believe this Harbinger Daemon thought desperately, Im dying Really dying
As his vision started to black out, he saw a patch of darkness move across the fading night sky. It seemed odd to him that the night sky could get darker, but then, he never really did take a moment to appreciate the natural wonders of the world. He never realized he was able to see well in the dark, never thought to wonder why. Now, his life was ending, and he had a moment to reflect on such a simple-
No, he gurgled as the vehicle descended to the beach to admit Solomon, You [jerk], if I ever See you again Ill Kill you
Whats he talking about? a male voice inside the vehicle asked.
The last gasps of a dying waste, Solomon replied, I got him with a Meta Killer, the other two, also. They wont survive the next five minutes.
Good. And the objective?
Bonus. One of the rogues we brought with us was a regenerator as well.
Excellent.
There was a strange rasping sound before the vessels door closed and Harbinger closed his eyes.
----------
--Port Oakes
Hey, youre awake.
Daemon had never been happy to hear anybodys voice before. Hed always figured that if he ever did feel happy about it, the voice would be a womans. Of course, when you looked like something out of Dantes Inferno, friendly female companionship was usually of the crazy kind, too.
Hey, Barry, he croaked from the hospital bed, Where are we?
Port Oakes, the Dominator replied, You okay?
I guess
Jack missed me, and I made some show of my powers losing control Not my best moment, I admit; I still feel the cold, you know. Well, after he got in this weird black something and flew off, I made my way to you and Hank. Shortly after that, an Arachnos submersible showed up because it was bringing in a real robbery crew.
Hows your brother?
Chillblazer looked glumly to the floor. His brother was in critical condition. Something about the ammunition used against them, it intoxicated the body with a venom that systematically damaged or killed the internal organs. It worked on a range of creatures, because most of the things that existed in the world or came to exist in the world had organs that were susceptible to the venom. The few that werent, well, there were other ways to kill them.
Dont know what the stuff is, the dominator sighed as he lit up a cigarette, I just know its killing my brother. Almost killed you, but the bullet shot clean through you, so not as much venom got into your system. Youve been out for almost a week.
I lack a rib right there, the demonic-looking man replied, Its probably why the round went through.
They sat there quietly. Shortly, they were going to have to talk to Arachnos officials about what happened. It was going to be a strange conversation because Harbinger didnt even know how hed gotten to Paragon City, nor what had happened to Max.
Oh crap! he suddenly sat upright, felt nauseous and lied back down, Ugh They kidnapped Max!
Who? Chillblazer asked, Oh Oh yeah. What does that have to do with anything?
I dont know I dont know
((This is just an introductory adventure for the setting. Give me a moment to set up the invitation...
Also, for ground rules...
No God Mode (I can do anything and everything! I know everything! I can't be hit! I can lift buildings and stab the moon! I kicked Statesman so hard in the crotch his gonads scrambled his brain. ETC.)
No One-Shots
No "Sneak-in and Attack" moments (Villain Antagonist: "And now, you will know my wra-AAUGH!" New Guy: "Ha-HA! I figured NOW would be the best time to show up out of the blue!")
Essentially, don't infringe on the enjoyment of the players. If you want to do something, work it out with the GM (me) and the individuals involved (the players you intend to meet).
It's actually simpler than I'm laying out here, but we've had problems in the past, so this disclaimer has to be made.))
My Stories
Look at that. A full-grown woman pulling off pigtails. Her crazy is off the charts.