Aberrant: Quantum Zero - Quantum Zero

[ProfPotts]

Zanzibar Knights:

Hovering under his own power, high above night-shrouded New York City, James Brightstar glanced once more at the map on his Utopia-issue PDA: that was something they never showed guys like Superman doing - but New York was a big place, & it wouldn't do to go charging into the wrong building... Confirming his location the Native American Tomorrowite known as Tomahawk slipped the PDA back into the pouch on his belt, looked down, & narrowed his eyes - for a moment his vision blurred at the edges as it 'zoomed in' to the target building - abandoned & boarded up, just like he'd been led to believe. He descended &, with a moment more's concentration, the layers of roof 'peeled away' to his sight as he adjusted his perception to see higher frequencies... at least that's what they'd taught him in T2M training - to James it'd always be 'X-ray vision', no matter how scientifically inaccurate he knew that to be.

James had been prepared to take the anonymous tip phoned in to the New York Rashoud facility with a large pinch of salt - high-tech Satanists, drug dealers, & mafioso? It all sounded like so much paranoid delusion... But the scene inside the old theatre seemed to be just that! Some sort of stand-off, or negotiation, appeared to be taking place between the guy with all the guns & the guy on stage who looked like he was running the show... were those 'devil women' Novas, or surgically altered? The guys in hi-tech body armour appeared to be using some sort of cloaking technology - nothing which he couldn't see through, of course - maybe something akin to those suits DeVries made? But... what was that weird 'zone' on the stage which he couldn't see through? Any way you looked at it, there were serious breeches of the UN Science & Technology regulations going on which, at least, gave him a legal reason to intervene.

For a moment longer James weighed up his options: technically, after the Equatorial Wars, T2Mers weren't meant to engage other Novas unless they had a two-to-one advantage or more... but he couldn't say for cetain if any of these guys were Novas or not... Okay, so he probably should call it in & wait for backup - but these guys looked professional - chances are they wouldn't hang around forever...

Tapping his earpiece radio to life James called the incident in then, before anyone could tell him otherwise, flew straight up, turned at the apex of his climb, & dove towards the abandoned building, fists first...

*****

The Gothic Knight leapt down the building in two stages, pushing off the window sill halfway down, then landing in a crouch in front of the startled police officers - cape swirling in just the right dramatic fashion.

'Why are you officers here?' he asked pointedly as he stood & walked over to the Captain who seemed to be in charge of the two-dozen strong group of SWAT-equiped officers - the municipal defender was pretty sure he already knew the answer, but liked to keep things simple when it came to dealing with the police.

Recovering from the Nova's unexpected appearance Captain Crowler offered his hand,

'Glad to have you here, Knight,' he said, with genuine feeling - the Gothic Knight was a hero to him & most of the police force, & having Nova back-up in something like this was bound to be a good thing. The Knight shook his hand but, even under the mask, Crowler felt that the Nova was impatient for an answer.

'We got a call from Project Utopia,' he explained quickly, 'they had a tip about an illegal drugs / black-tech deal going down in a building near here - so called us as the local authorities: standard procedure.'

'I know what the procedure is,' replied the Knight, turning to gaze down the road which led to the Zanzibar, '& I did have the situation well in hand - before you arrived. I've been working on this for quiet some time, so I suggest that you keep your men well back... in reserve... while I deal with...'

The Gothic Knight's sentence trailed off as a blue-white-gold meteor shot down from the heavens & blasted through the roof of the old Zanzibar theatre! Exclaimations of shock rippled through the assembled officers - Crowler turned to restore calm: when he turned back, the Gothic Knight had vanished...

'Typical...' muttered the baseline police Captain...

*****

The tense negotiations within the Zanzibar are brought to a sudden end as the tall, T2M uniformed, muscular, Native American figure of Tomahawk comes crashing through the ceiling, bringing a large portion of the roof with him!

Warned a moment before the ceiling comes crashing down Vinnie hurls himself (& Dee) back out of the way. The Stranger is thrown from his vantage point in the rafters but easily manages to land safely on his feet (on the stage). Slither is far enough away to feel, but be uneffected by, the blast.

Rubble & debris effectively block the centre of the room - seperating Vinnie & several of the Templars from those on the stage. Tomahawk bursts out of the collapsed remains of the roof, to hover imperiously just above the rubble, & casts his gaze around,

'By the authority of the United Nations you are all under arrest for suspected breeches of the Science & Technology regulation act. I suggest you surrender quietly...'

On the stage The Stranger notes Vaughn's reaction: for a moment dark vapours appear to swirl around him, quickly forming into a rather baroque suit of black plate armour with silver highlights. Now dressed the part Vaughn cast forth his hand: a ring of mystical symbols formed of green light dances in the air, swirling black vapour forms inside it... rapidly coalescing into a huge demonic creature!

Vaughn's 'demon' would stand a good twenty-five feet tall, if it wasn't hunched over, has rippling muscles, black reptilian legs & ridged skin, glowing red eyes, & is surrounded by swirling black vapours. It opens its massive, fang-filled, jaws & bellows before shifting its position to better stand between Vaughn, his devil-women (who scurry behind him), & any potential attackers... ::devil

Around the room a dozen or so Templars appear, with the others from backstage rushing to join them, each igniting the rod-like device he carries into a sword with a blade of fire...

Peering up at the newly 'summoned' demonic giant Tomahawk sighs & mutters,

'This was supposed to be my night off...'

[ProfPotts]

Ancient Revelations:

[OOC:

... argent shining swords materializing in his hands...

- nice manifestation of the Claws power, I like it! ::thumbup1 ]

Blaze Akhenaten proves his incredibly godly might, ripping his way easily through the enemies arrayed before him, soon joined by his Great Royal Wife fighting at his side. The Royal soldiers almost seem unnecessary next to the Royal couple empowered by the invisible power of the mighty Aten: little more than witnesses to their incredible power.

Floating unseen nearby Mike watches as Blaze storms the cave - & the 'threshold' of white haze retreats, revealing the cavern's interior & the rebel troops within - all swiftly cut down by the Nova powers of Blaze & Emma... or whoever they are in this little pantomime.

The 'fight' is short & brutal - the Pharoah showing little mercy for those who would attack his beloved. Soon Nathan finds himself with Nefertiti in his arms, golden solar fires dancing across their intwined forms, surrounded by fanatically cheering Royal troops. Is this what it feels like to be a god?

... fade to white...

...

...

...

Pain! Agonizing pain!

Blaze finds himself lying in the abandoned streets of 'his' once mighty capital city, staring up at the night sky, his body feeling as if every bone is broken, every muscle torn, every nerve shredded, his strength gone, barely able to move... All around him Akhetaten lies in ruins, smashed & burning, here & there the corpse of a Royal soldier lies bleeding into the street.

Taking a moment to reorient himself after the 'shift' Mike spots Blaze, lying broken & bloody in the street, his body a mass of wounds which would have killed a normal man many times over. Next to him stands a robed figure - the same figure from the 'Royal audience' - the one who challenged the Pharoah. Strangely, in one hand the man holds what appears to be a Japanese-style katana sword with glowing etchings along the blade - patterns almost like circuitry; in the other he holds what appears to be a high-tech dart gun... both items seems completely out of place in the ancient Egyptian setting...

Akhenaten's enemy kneels next to him, leaning close so that the dying Pharoah can see him, face concealed - as always - by the desert robes he wears. Glancing at the gun in his hand he says - in English, with a slight upper-class American accent,

'The effects won't last long - your system will eliminate the nanites soon - but it'll be time enough to finish this. I didn't want this, you know - I tried to warn you. But it has to be this way. For that I'm sorry.'

The robed man raises the glowing sword high... then pauses... lowering the blade again he says,

'You once asked me who I am... consider this a request granted a condemned man...' reaching up he pulls the folds of cloth away from his face - the handsome face of a man in, perhaps, his thirties, with weather-worn tanned skin, close-cropped black hair, & a thin black moustache. For some reason the face rings a vague bell with both Nathan & the nearby, unseen, Mike... Leaning close once more the man says, '... if you ever do really visit the future then look me up...' raising the sword high once more he adds, '... the name's Maxwell Anderson Mercer: & I do this terrible deed for the future of the human race.'

The sword descends...

*****

Nathan awakes with a jolt - still able to feel the cold, energized, steel plunging through 'his' chest. On the next bed Mike wakes in a similar fashion, driven from the dreamscape by the violent conclusion to the psychodrama. Sitting up Nate barely recognises that he's 'back' in Masters' medical facility as he gasps for breath - a moment later his biosuit, responding to his unconscious request for freedom, opens up, allowing him to pull himself free.

On the other side of Nathan from Mike, Emma also stirs, her own biosuit opening. Pushing the thing off she rushes to Nate's side, hands (still coated in biosuit slime) running quickly over his chest & body in search of fatal wounds - finding none she half-laughs, half-cries, & hugs Nathan tightly to her nude body.

Off to one side Doctor Chen checks some readings, then whispers something into Masters' ear. Nodding, the old man steps across to Mike & asks quietly,

'What happened?'

[archer]

Zanzibar Knights:

The tense negotiations within the Zanzibar are brought to a sudden end as the tall, T2M uniformed, muscular, Native American figure of Tomahawk comes crashing through the ceiling, bringing a large portion of the roof with him!

The Stranger is thrown from his vantage point in the rafters but easily manages to land safely on his feet (on the stage).

Landing in a crouch, The Stranger is thankful for the mask concealing his expression. Of everything that could happen, this was certainly the last thing he'd expected.

Rubble & debris effectively block the centre of the room - seperating Vinnie & several of the Templars from those on the stage. Tomahawk bursts out of the collapsed remains of the roof, to hover imperiously just above the rubble, & casts his gaze around,

'By the authority of the United Nations you are all under arrest for suspected breeches of the Science & Technology regulation act. I suggest you surrender quietly...'

Unbidden, the vigilante turns his attention to the powerfully charismatic nova Templar, and is surprised for the second time. Expecting a smooth attack of conversation from Vaughn, he's suddenly glad they'd managed to avoid a direct confrontation before this.

On the stage The Stranger notes Vaughn's reaction: for a moment dark vapours appear to swirl around him, quickly forming into a rather baroque suit of black plate armour with silver highlights. Now dressed the part Vaughn cast forth his hand: a ring of mystical symbols formed of green light dances in the air, swirling black vapour forms inside it... rapidly coalescing into a huge demonic creature!

Vaughn's 'demon' would stand a good twenty-five feet tall, if it wasn't hunched over, has rippling muscles, black reptilian legs & ridged skin, glowing red eyes, & is surrounded by swirling black vapours. It opens its massive, fang-filled, jaws & bellows before shifting its position to better stand between Vaughn, his devil-women (who scurry behind him), & any potential attackers... ::devil

Subvocalizing into his mic, The Stranger gets ready to move as he addresses his erstwhile female ally, who is currently hiding in a vent. "Slither. I'm going to need that distraction, right about..."

Around the room a dozen or so Templars appear, with the others from backstage rushing to join them, each igniting the rod-like device he carries into a sword with a blade of fire...

"Now." Hoping that Slither will at least do something to help, The Stranger darts forward towards Miss Cable, moving as quickly as he can. Subconsciously, he grits his teeth as he passes through the edge of the nullifying field surrounding her, but immediately gets to work on freeing her from the lock and shackles.

[phoenix]

Glacier floats in a state of mixed awareness and relaxation. To him, whose life has been filled with conflict and senseless violence ever since the disaster, this feels like nirvana. He's aware only of the warm, frigid water flowing in little currents around him, and of his serpentine lover cuddled tightly in his strong arms.

* * *

(More later.)

[Heritage]

When the Sh!t Hits the Fan:

The tense negotiations within the Zanzibar are brought to a sudden end as the tall, T2M uniformed, muscular, Native American figure of Tomahawk comes crashing through the ceiling, bringing a large portion of the roof with him!

Warned a moment before the ceiling comes crashing down Vinnie hurls himself (& Dee) back out of the way. The Stranger is thrown from his vantage point in the rafters but easily manages to land safely on his feet (on the stage). Slither is far enough away to feel, but be uneffected by, the blast.

Rubble & debris effectively block the centre of the room - seperating Vinnie & several of the Templars from those on the stage. Tomahawk bursts out of the collapsed remains of the roof, to hover imperiously just above the rubble, & casts his gaze around,

'By the authority of the United Nations you are all under arrest for suspected breeches of the Science & Technology regulation act. I suggest you surrender quietly...'

From her concealed hiding space backstage, Carla watches aghast as the T2Mer busts up the party.

"What the f@ck..."

"Slither. I'm going to need that distraction, right about..."

Slither nods grimly.

"On it, boss; I'm gonna try something crazy, so wish me luck."

She takes a deep breath, then shakes herself loose...really loose, like an overstretched rubber band, her arms and legs as floppy as possibly while still allowing actual forward movement.

(OOC: Activating Flexibility)

*This is either going to work, or get me killed; well, at least I'll go out with a bang.*

Grinning to herself, Slither quickly sculpts her eufiber into a bizarre semi-liquid fabric that sticks and stretches like glittering black tar, ropey dark masses dripping from long ropey arms. For the final effect, she just lets all her fears and anxieties, her fear of death, her fear of being alone, come oozing out through her skin, twisting her face into a hideous drooping mask.

"Now."

Staggering out from the shadows, she does her best to flop about as she imagines a dark soul released from the pits of hell might, bloodshot eyes wild as she slowly lurches towards Vaughn while screeching like a cat on fire.

"BLASPHEMERS! DEFILERS! YOU KNOW NOTHING OF THE WORLD BEYOND! LITTLE MEN WHO APE THE WAYS OF THE DARK LORD, BE GONE FROM HIS SIGHT!"

(OOC: Activating...Face of Terror!)

[phoenix]

'Glad to help,' she says, adding with a wink ::wink , 'I think even Officer Nathanson there enjoyed it in the end, & I know my man had a good time...' she slips another coil of tail around Glacier & kisses him once more.

Glacier separates, after enjoying the kiss, to smile politely at Fauna.

"Hey, next time you need some muscle, look me up. It was a good time, and I approve of your cause."

"Good thing Glacier came along, impressive to say the least. Glad I could help..."

Glacier beams. He decides not to take the risk of an "aw, shucks" comment -- after all, he's pretty damn impressed himself and it might sound insincere... ::blush

[Asbjørn]

Sometimes they come back

Akhenaten's enemy kneels next to him, leaning close so that the dying Pharoah can see him, face concealed - as always - by the desert robes he wears. Glancing at the gun in his hand he says - in English, with a slight upper-class American accent,

'The effects won't last long - your system will eliminate the nanites soon - but it'll be time enough to finish this. I didn't want this, you know - I tried to warn you. But it has to be this way. For that I'm sorry.'

Akhenaten coughs blood, torn and exhausted muscles straining to raise his head to see his executioner fully. The world seems blurry as he faces him, and somewhere in the back of his mind - where modern day Nathan Wade is about to die - jumbled thoughts pile up until the mountain of details that aren't right about this man is big enough to kick his brain into action. A broken jaw almost makes him scream in pain as he tries to speak, but he sees that his time is up...

The robed man raises the glowing sword high... then pauses... lowering the blade again he says,

'You once asked me who I am... consider this a request granted a condemned man...' reaching up he pulls the folds of cloth away from his face - the handsome face of a man in, perhaps, his thirties, with weather-worn tanned skin, close-cropped black hair, & a thin black moustache. For some reason the face rings a vague bell with both Nathan & the nearby, unseen, Mike... Leaning close once more the man says, '... if you ever do really visit the future then look me up...' raising the sword high once more he adds, '... the name's Maxwell Anderson Mercer: & I do this terrible deed for the future of the human race.'

Seeing that fate has awarded him a few more seconds, Nate again tries to raise his head, or at least turn it to face his executioner.

"I... I knew..." he whispers. The fading light in the nova's eyes flickers as he bites down on the pain and croaks out his dying words.

"Everybody knows.. but she.. didn't..."

Gritting his teeth the pharaoh draws one last breath. blood flooding his lungs as he does. It's hard to think straight, and the words won't come easily as the young, dying man tries to speak his own native tongue, the american english words so foreign to the pharaoh

"My name....is Nathan.. Wade."

The sword descends...

*****

Nathan awakes with a jolt - still able to feel the cold, energized, steel plunging through 'his' chest. On the next bed Mike wakes in a similar fashion, driven from the dreamscape by the violent conclusion to the psychodrama. Sitting up Nate barely recognises that he's 'back' in Masters' medical facility as he gasps for breath - a moment later his biosuit, responding to his unconscious request for freedom, opens up, allowing him to pull himself free.

On the other side of Nathan from Mike, Emma also stirs, her own biosuit opening. Pushing the thing off she rushes to Nate's side, hands (still coated in biosuit slime) running quickly over his chest & body in search of fatal wounds - finding none she half-laughs, half-cries, & hugs Nathan tightly to her nude body.

Nathan shivers, still gasping for breath as if he can't feel the air when Emma embraces him. One hand is clenched in a fist at his chest, feeling where the bleeding, lethal hole should be, for a few seconds not believing he's even alive. Despite the adrenaline raging through his body and the naked woman holding him, it takes a few seconds before the feeling of death fades.

"I... he.. he died.. Oh shit, I died..I mean he..."

His voice is hoarse and weak, whispering as his breathing slows down and his arms instinctively close around Emma, hugging her close to his chest. He doesn't care who's watching, doesn't care that they're both naked. All that's on his mind is the growing realization that he's not dead, and neither is she...

"I didn't see you..." he whispers in her ear, "I thought you were dead..."

Pulling a little back from the hug, Nate holds her face in his hands, ignoring the biosuit slime covering them both. For a second he looks into her eyes, her beautiful face lit up by his own brightly shining ones, and then he does the most natural thing in the world and pulls her close for a big kiss, his arms wrapping around her again as their lips meet.

[Prince of Boredom]

Dazed and Confused:

Off to one side Doctor Chen checks some readings, then whispers something into Masters' ear. Nodding, the old man steps across to Mike & asks quietly,

'What happened?'

"I... I'm not quite sure; I think I need some time to process it all. But the gist of it is that Emma seemed to be replaying memories of Nefertiti, with Blaze filling in as Akhenaten. It was difficult to follow as the memories skipped through time, but Maxwell Mercer appeared twice. Once to warn her, them actually, on a course they had taken, and then finally to kill Blaze/Ahenaten."

Mike shakes his head,

"Oh, and I have a splitting headache..."

[Asbjørn]

The tense negotiations within the Zanzibar are brought to a sudden end as the tall, T2M uniformed, muscular, Native American figure of Tomahawk comes crashing through the ceiling, bringing a large portion of the roof with him!

Warned a moment before the ceiling comes crashing down Vinnie hurls himself (& Dee) back out of the way.

*F*ucking perfect....* ::rolleyes

Vinnie mentally rolls his eyes as he throws the two of them out of harm's way. Turning quickly to take stock of the situation, rifle at the ready, he decides there's at least a chance the Templars won't be gunning for him straight away, and quickly glances around the room to take in the changes Tomahawk's arrival brought about.

Rubble & debris effectively block the centre of the room - seperating Vinnie & several of the Templars from those on the stage. Tomahawk bursts out of the collapsed remains of the roof, to hover imperiously just above the rubble, & casts his gaze around,

'By the authority of the United Nations you are all under arrest for suspected breeches of the Science & Technology regulation act. I suggest you surrender quietly...'

*And I suggest you keep talking...*

The Ghost's train of thought is interrupted by the demon rising above the heap of rubble, and for a moment all he can do is stare... ::blink

Vaughn's 'demon' would stand a good twenty-five feet tall, if it wasn't hunched over, has rippling muscles, black reptilian legs & ridged skin, glowing red eyes, & is surrounded by swirling black vapours. It opens its massive, fang-filled, jaws & bellows before shifting its position to better stand between Vaughn, his devil-women (who scurry behind him), & any potential attackers... ::devil

Around the room a dozen or so Templars appear, with the others from backstage rushing to join them, each igniting the rod-like device he carries into a sword with a blade of fire...

As the whole situation descends into chaos, Vinnie grabs Dee by the hand and ports them both to the other side of the room. As he arrives at the back of the stage he levels his rifle on the quantum blocking device surrounding Ms Cable, and tries to disable it with a well placed shot. ::getsome

[ProfPotts]

Hitting the Fan:

"What the f@ck..."

"Slither. I'm going to need that distraction, right about... Now."

"On it, boss; I'm gonna try something crazy, so wish me luck."

The Stranger dives forwards, well-concealed lock picks of the exact type required for the shackles already slipped fluidly into his skilled fingers...

The Ghost grabs Dee & vanishes... :warp:

Tomahawk rolls his shoulders, then launches himself full-tilt at the giant demon, slamming his fist into the thing's chest with an impact which shakes the room...

Dark Templars charge the spot where The Ghost vanished, while others level 'fireball' launching gauntlets at Tomahawk & The Stranger...

Then...

"BLASPHEMERS! DEFILERS! YOU KNOW NOTHING OF THE WORLD BEYOND! LITTLE MEN WHO APE THE WAYS OF THE DARK LORD, BE GONE FROM HIS SIGHT!"

... The hi-tech armoured Templars stop &, although it's hard to tell under the helmets, it's a fair bet that they're staring stupidly at the approaching horror which is Slither... ::ohmy

... The Stranger makes it through the Quantum dampning barrier &, with a swift flick of the wrist, has the shackles popped, & catches Ms Cable as she collapses, still unconscious, into his arms.

... Simultaneuously, The Ghost & Dee appear at the back of the stage & Vinnie's gun barks, once, causing a responding shower of sparks & tendril of smoke from the Nova-tech power-blocker: all the Novas in the room can feel the thing's effects turn off.

... While his summoned giant goes toe-to-toe with the Native American Tomorrowite, the armour-plated Vaughn turns towards Slither, his voice sounding hollow & metallic,

'Theatrics?' he exclaims, sounding somewhere between annoyed & offended, 'Look around you, my dear, do you think I don't know something about such arts? Really...' ::rolleyes

Vaugh casts forth his gauntlet-clad hand - a swirling circle of glowing mystical symbols appears on the stage in front of Slither in answer to his call: for a moment wisps of black mist spiral out of the centre of the circle... then suddenly it's ringing a vortex of black energy, from which bursts a myriad of glistening, slick, animate tentacles - tentacles which enwrap Slither's limbs, holding her fast! ::devil

'... Much better...' declares Vaughn; it's only after he's dealt with Slither that the 'demonologist' takes the time to notice what The Ghost & The Stranger are doing, '... Damn it!' is the rather less than theatrical comment he manages... ::angry

Tainted Love:

"Hey, next time you need some muscle, look me up. It was a good time, and I approve of your cause."

Fauna smiles, then winks at Eel,

'Keep hold of this one,' she comments, 'I like him.' ::wink

Eel beams back,

'Not a problem,' she replies, coils squeezing just a little tighter around Glacier... ::biggrin

*Let me correct that last thought...I like smooth unhairy legs.*

PathFinder's thoughts drift through Terry's mind,

*I guess I should comment that you're still thinking like a baseline to reject Fauna out of hand due to her appearance... but I'll be honest & admit that I'd rather not spoil a good thing... I'll leave that particular lecture to Harvesters like Eel... besides, I think I better get you out of here before you learn that Fauna's actually a shapeshifter...* ::sly

Holding out her hand, PathFinder opens a warp...

*I know this great beach where we can be all alone for a while...* ::wub

Glancing at the others in the room the pale Terat smiles & explains...

'Private time.'

... before she & Terry vanish through the warp which rapidly closes behind them...

'That,' declares Fauna, watching the warp fade from existance, 'is such a handy talent: you guys have really helped the cause - the authorities have no idea how we get into the places we do. It's so much easier than sneaking in the hard way...'

Glancing at the entwined Glacier & Eel the Greenwar eco-warrior arches her back & stretches her arms above her head in a rather feline manner... more than just in 'manner', but in fact: as she stretches soft black fur grows across her skin, her eyes become bright green with verticle-slit pupils, her ears take on a pointed aspect, a cat-like tail sprouts from the base of her spine, & her cloven-hooves become clawed feline legs... The now feline Fauna yawns,

'I'm guessing you two want some "private time" too... & well deserved it is. Thanks again for the help - you did good. Now, I'm off to find somewhere high so I can take a nap...'

... with that the Greenwar Nova's transformation continues until in her place is a lithe black housecat wearing a bead collar - a cat which pads off out of the bar...

'Probably off to lick herself...' murmurs Eel mischeviously once the feline Fauna has exited, '... did you see the way she was eyeing Officer Teratson? No wonder P spirited him away like that... That Fauna's an animal in more ways than one...' ::sly

'... Now,' the aquatic Terat continues, sending a ripple undulating through her length & across Glacier's body, '... I do believe we were exploring our Nova potential by seeing just how far we could stretch our tongues down each other's throats...' ::devil

Eel begins to demonstrate the theory...

'You!'

Once more Glacier & Eel are interrupted, this time by the bellowing voice of the figure who stomps into the room: muscles upon corded muscles the Terat who walks in looks like a grotesque mockery of a bodybuilder, yet his comparatively small head remains human sized in contrast to the hulking body, & his face is actually quite handsome. As he points at Glacier & Eel the figure's five fingers merge into two powerful massive clawed digits & a thumb, while his skin ripples as it shifts into ridged leathery armoured plates. Reluctantly removing herself from Glacier's face Eel frowns at the intruder,

'Come on, Geryon,' she whines, 'we're trying to have a little fun here!'

The infamous Terat strongman's mouth splits into a wide grin,

'Fun you say? I'll show you fun...' pausing for dramatic effect he alternates his stare between Glacier & Eel, before concluding, '... how'd you like to exterminate a president?' ::sly

Shock to the System:

"I... he.. he died.. Oh shit, I died..I mean he... I didn't see you... I thought you were dead..."

Emma passionately... desperately... returns Nathan's kiss... then, nuzzling her cheek into his neck, whispers into his ear,

'We found you... took you to the Golden Pyramid... It was the only way. Your body was gone, but your soul could live on... you'd already proven that. I... I tried to follow you, but our reincarnations happened generations apart... I've been searching for you for so long, my husband, my love...'

... It takes a moment for Nathan to realise that she's speaking in Ancient Egyptian, & that he can still understand it like he was born to the language... ::unsure ::blink

Across the room...

"I... I'm not quite sure; I think I need some time to process it all. But the gist of it is that Emma seemed to be replaying memories of Nefertiti, with Blaze filling in as Akhenaten. It was difficult to follow as the memories skipped through time, but Maxwell Mercer appeared twice. Once to warn her, them actually, on a course they had taken, and then finally to kill Blaze/Ahenaten."

'Mercer...' Masters mutters as he shakes his head, '... that arogant son of a...' ::angry

"Oh, and I have a splitting headache..."

'Right.' Masters nods, keeping further thoughts on Max Mercer to himself as he waves Doctor Chen across to examine Mike. After a few moments, seemingly in deep thought, the old man addresses the room,

'Well, this has been quite the adventure all round. I suggest that you all take some time to get cleaned up & rested while Doctor Chen finishes going over the data. I'm sure there's no lasting harm done... although we'll need to run a few more tests before we let you loose with the biosuits again. When you're ready, I'd still like you all to join Will in Japan... if you feel up to it.'

[archer]

Hitting the Fan:

The Stranger dives forwards, well-concealed lock picks of the exact type required for the shackles already slipped fluidly into his skilled fingers...

Dark Templars charge the spot where The Ghost vanished, while others level 'fireball' launching gauntlets at Tomahawk & The Stranger...

... The Stranger makes it through the Quantum dampning barrier &, with a swift flick of the wrist, has the shackles popped, & catches Ms Cable as she collapses, still unconscious, into his arms.

... Simultaneuously, The Ghost & Dee appear at the back of the stage & Vinnie's gun barks, once, causing a responding shower of sparks & tendril of smoke from the Nova-tech power-blocker: all the Novas in the room can feel the thing's effects turn off.

Cradling Miss Cable in his arms, The Stranger arches his body around her protectively and activates his radio. "Ghost! Get over here and 'port her out! I've only got a few seconds before they start firing."

[phoenix]

'Fun you say? I'll show you fun...' pausing for dramatic effect he alternates his stare between Glacier & Eel, before concluding, '... how'd you like to exterminate a president?'

Glacier stares.

"What? Who? Why?"

[Considering its content, that post took much longer than it should have... ::wacko Apologies.]

[ProfPotts]

Rhetoric:

"What? Who? Why?"

Stomping over to one of the leather armchairs dotted around the Nightingale Room - the private bar of the Blackburn Hotel - Geryon sits, his bulky form shifting & shrinking slightly to allow the chair to accomodate him. Gesturing for Eel & Glacier to join him he says to empty space, his accent placing him as British,

'Synapse, mate, send one of your zips up to mix some bevies, okay?'

'Sure thing,' comes the disembodied response from the Terat host.

Glancing out of the one-way mirrored-glass bay windows which overlook the Blackburn's main ballroom (& public club area) below Geryon takes a few moments to watch the 'trendy' baseline clubbers pressed together & gyrating to pounding music which is little more than a muffled 'thud, thud' in the soundproofed private bar. Steepling his fingers (once more morphed into five relatively normal digits per hand) in his best 'Orzaiz' impression he leans back in his chair & turns towards his two fellow Terats,

'Okay, I'll answer those one at a time: "What?" - Nova Vigillance needs to exterminate a monkey who's got the rest of the monkeys all riled up against Novas - it's what we do, we defend our corner, protect our people. "Who?" - well, okay, the president thing was a slight exaggeration... actually it's Mark Anthony Green, presidential candidate for the American Eagle party in the upcoming U.S. elections. "Why?" - because he's preaching anti-Nova rhetoric, is backed by the anti-Nova "Church of Michael Archangel", is trying his damndest to ruin the life of Randel "The Fireman" Portman, his Democratic party Nova opponent & is, we believe, also exploiting one Corinna Gilbert - a young mentally disturbed Nova - for his own political ends & deviant sexual practices.'

Geryon pauses for a moment to let what he's just said sink in a little, then adds,

'That answer your questions?' ::sly

As Geryon waits for a reaction the door to the private bar gingerly opens & in scurries one of the baseline waitresses from down below: clad in torturous high-heels, fishnet tights, a tight black bodice, white gloves, & with collor, cuffs, & black bowtie 'bunnygirl' style, she's an attractive white girl of no more than twenty or so, dark hair cut in a pageboy style which wouldn't be out of place in the jazz age. Breathing heavily she nervously appraoches the Terats, keeping her eyes downcast, with three large cocktail glasses on the small round tray she balances on fingertips. Eel & Geryon both take & sip one of the bright green cocktails, & the waitress offers the third to Glacier (keeping well back from his chill anima, but shivering all the same).

'Try it,' suggests Eel, 'it's pretty good stuff - got a kick to it even you'll feel, lover. Don't worry about the glass - they're vitrium.'

Once Glacier takes (or declines) the drink the waitress backs out of the room as quickly as possible. Fixing Glacier with a steady gaze Geryon asks,

'So are you in or not, Terat? In my mind you two both have a ways to go to make up for killing our own - helping in this will go a long way towards that.'

[Heritage]

A Girl's Guide to Surviving Hentai:

As terrifying and just plain annoying as it is to be trapped by Vaughn's creepy tentacles, Slither can't help but smile at how well her distraction worked; the Templar's annoyed 'Damn it!' would give her warm fuzzy feelings for years to come...assuming she actually survived tonight.

Cradling Miss Cable in his arms, The Stranger arches his body around her protectively and activates his radio. "Ghost! Get over here and 'port her out! I've only got a few seconds before they start firing."

The gibbering floppy thing she's become gently clears its throat and calls across to the Stranger.

"Uh, I know you're very busy right now, boss, but the minute you get a chance, I could use some help over here - no rush, though."

Meanwhile she focuses her attention on any possible way she can wriggle free.

[phoenix]

Glacier stands in front of Geryon's chair. His legs aren't baseline legs; Glacier is so structurally reinforced that there's really no difference between standing and sitting for him, and this way he doesn't have to ruin a chair.

As Geryon waits for a reaction the door to the private bar gingerly opens & in scurries one of the baseline waitresses from down below: clad in torturous high-heels, fishnet tights, a tight black bodice, white gloves, & with collor, cuffs, & black bowtie 'bunnygirl' style, she's an attractive white girl of no more than twenty or so, dark hair cut in a pageboy style which wouldn't be out of place in the jazz age. Breathing heavily she nervously appraoches the Terats, keeping her eyes downcast, with three large cocktail glasses on the small round tray she balances on fingertips. Eel & Geryon both take & sip one of the bright green cocktails, & the waitress offers the third to Glacier (keeping well back from his chill anima, but shivering all the same).

Glacier ignores the girl's provocative outfit and mundane beauty entirely, barely even noticing her until she offers him his drink. "Here," he says, motioning for her to put it down on the counter and step back, to avoid losing her hand to the anima bear. "Sorry about the draft."

'So are you in or not, Terat? In my mind you two both have a ways to go to make up for killing our own - helping in this will go a long way towards that.'

Glacier frowns.

"I didn't kill Matador; my friend Will threw him into my chill field. And from what I know of Teragen philosophy, why should your opinion of me be on my list of priorities at all, Geryon? Or is Nova Vigilance more into practice than theory these days?"

He sips his drink.

"Besides, these whacko fringe groups never win power in American politics. They make themselves look dumber all by themselves than if you martyr their leader."

He takes another sip. What a strong drink!

"I'm not interested in 'proving myself' to you or anyone. And I'm not concerned that Green might actually win. But the part about Corinna Gilbert bothers me."

One more sip.

"A lot."

[ProfPotts]

Passing Muster:

"I didn't kill Matador; my friend Will threw him into my chill field. And from what I know of Teragen philosophy, why should your opinion of me be on my list of priorities at all, Geryon? Or is Nova Vigilance more into practice than theory these days?"

Geryon frowns slightly, but lets Glacier continue...

"Besides, these whacko fringe groups never win power in American politics. They make themselves look dumber all by themselves than if you martyr their leader."

The muscle-bound leader of Nova Vigillance raises an eyebrow, but still says nothing...

"I'm not interested in 'proving myself' to you or anyone. And I'm not concerned that Green might actually win. But the part about Corinna Gilbert bothers me... A lot."

After a rather long pause Geryon's expression cracks into a smile,

'Good for you, Terat,' he says, with genuine respect in his tone, 'well said. You're right - Teras is an individual path: if you'd have bowed down just 'cos I said so, then you wouldn't be the sort of Nova I'd want to help with this anyway. You're learning, you're exploring your own way - that's what it's all about. Proves you're a Terat & not some wannabe...' he glances at Eel, then back at Glacier & adds, '... PathFinder was right on the money about you.'

Taking another sip of his own cocktail Geryon takes a moment to gather his thoughts, then continues,

'I'm also glad that your primary concern is Corinna - it's mine too. The thought of that filthy old monkey & what he's using her for...' he shakes his head, as if to try to dislodge the image - it takes a moment more before the look of disgust fades from his face & he once again speaks, 'Unfortunately your assessment of U.S. politics is a little twentieth century: The American Eagle party have a genuine chance of winning here, no matter how stupid it seems to we evolved. The Mathematician ran the projections - if Green lives, & his plans go ahead without serious opposition, there's a thirty-five to forty percent chance that we'll end up with that Nazi in the White House. Since the Libertarians gained power, & the monkeys got Lauren Pendleton as president, the whole "two horse race" system of the past has collapsed. Thing is Pendleton & the Republican guy, Morrison, aren't actively anti-Nova, so who cares if the monkeys elect them? Portman is the Democratic candidate, & a Nova president may well show that the zips are facing up to the realities of the Nova age but, to be honest, the guy's a bit of a dick... but, again, not our problem if he's in the oval office, & dick or not, he's a Nova, & I'd rather not see him driven to suicide by a slime like Green using pathetic bullyboy smear tactics. That whole "quantum bomb" thing in Chad is what's turned the tide, of course - monkeys are so short-term in their thinking: it'll still be fresh in their minds come election day, & Green's the guy who's been telling all & sundry just how dangerous we Novas are. Well I say we show him how right he is....' ::sly

Settling back to pause once more & sip his drink Geryon then shrugs his massively oversized shoulders,

'... but you're right about the whole "martyr" thing too. We don't need to just exterminate the bug - hey, if it was that simple I'd have done it by now. We need to expose him, let the monkeys see just how stupid they nearly were to even think about electing an anti-Nova bigot like Green. Primarily we need to rescue Corinna from his clutches, but I'm told he's got his psychological claws into her pretty deep, so it won't be an easy task. We also need to block his attempts to screw-over Portman. Finally we need to air all Green's dirty laundry in such a manner that our fellow Novas world-wide see what a threat these baseline bastards can be. After that... then we get to gut him.' ::devil

[Ayre el KaBeer]

'I... I'm sorry, Henessie-kun, I... I presumed you'd be in the bath...'

... as if that explained everything... ::unsure

Will's expression is one of clear confusion ::huh "Ahh... Who are you and what are you doing here?"

[OOC: sorry about the late reply, my usual excuse, work sucks.]

[Asbjørn]

... The Stranger makes it through the Quantum dampning barrier &, with a swift flick of the wrist, has the shackles popped, & catches Ms Cable as she collapses, still unconscious, into his arms.

... Simultaneuously, The Ghost & Dee appear at the back of the stage & Vinnie's gun barks, once, causing a responding shower of sparks & tendril of smoke from the Nova-tech power-blocker: all the Novas in the room can feel the thing's effects turn off.

Cradling Miss Cable in his arms, The Stranger arches his body around her protectively and activates his radio. "Ghost! Get over here and 'port her out! I've only got a few seconds before they start firing."

As the dampening field dies, Ghost squeezes Dee's hand once, looking into her eyes as he says "I'll be back, kid...", then covers the distance over to the stranger in a sprint, building quantum energies for a teleport as fast as he possibly can. In the split second as the elite and the vigilante's eyes meet, the Stranger gets a brief nod of gratitude from the faceless mercenary. Then he grabs the bikini clad woman in his arms and proceeds to port Ms Cable to the DeVries Namibian base's ER room as quickly as (super)humanly possible, making a short distance speed port first if his instinct tells him that would be a good idea..

[Asbjørn]

Shock to the System:

Emma passionately... desperately... returns Nathan's kiss... then, nuzzling her cheek into his neck, whispers into his ear,

'We found you... took you to the Golden Pyramid... It was the only way. Your body was gone, but your soul could live on... you'd already proven that. I... I tried to follow you, but our reincarnations happened generations apart... I've been searching for you for so long, my husband, my love...'

... It takes a moment for Nathan to realise that she's speaking in Ancient Egyptian, & that he can still understand it like he was born to the language... ::unsure ::blink

Overcome with the shock of being alive, the endorphine rush of finally having the woman of his dreams in his arms like this, Nathan has no thought at all for the rest of the room. As the language he's listening too filters through, a shiver runs down his spine. Holding her close to his chest he replies in her ear, whispering like her... "Em.. Emma...? It is you, right...?" ::unsure

After a few moments, seemingly in deep thought, the old man addresses the room,

'Well, this has been quite the adventure all round. I suggest that you all take some time to get cleaned up & rested while Doctor Chen finishes going over the data. I'm sure there's no lasting harm done... although we'll need to run a few more tests before we let you loose with the biosuits again. When you're ready, I'd still like you all to join Will in Japan... if you feel up to it.'

Their private moment interrupted, Nathan's naked skin shines brighter in his own signature kind of blush. He squeezes Emma's (?) hand and whispers, almost scared she'll disappear again. "I'm not letting you out of my sight now..."

Responding to Masters, Nathan raises his voice and nods. "I feel okay, Sir. I'm sure I'll be up for that, but not right now, right..?"

He smiles a bit sheepishly as he realizes Masters probably knows exactly what he's thinking at the moment, and he hopes his boss - of all people - won't object toomuch to his need for some quality time...

[ProfPotts]

Bath Buddy:

"Ahh... Who are you and what are you doing here?"

'Eto...' the towel-clad Japanese girl murmurs, seemingly searching for some reasonable response, '... this is so hazui... I... I heard you were visiting... & ikemen... & wanted to... eto... welcome you in a... traditional manner...' ::unsure

Blushing ::blush , then bowing again, the girl adds,

'My name is Sakura Masters... I believe you met my father?'

The Great Escape:

"Ghost! Get over here and 'port her out! I've only got a few seconds before they start firing."

"I'll be back, kid..."

Burning Quantum energies like they're going out of fashion, The Ghost is next to The Stranger in mere moments: after a second he's attuned Ms Cable's Quantum patterns to match his own, & they both vanish half-an-eye-blink later... :warp: ::blink

... but The Stranger find he has little time to think about the Elite & his impressive vanishing act, as another voice calls his attention...

"Uh, I know you're very busy right now, boss, but the minute you get a chance, I could use some help over here - no rush, though."

Despite her worried tone, Slither proves true to her name &, using her native flexability, aided by the rather slippery coating she's transformed her eufiber into... & a great deal of wriggling... she manages to twist, turn, duck, & dodge her way free from the grasping tentacles & scurry out of their reach: a moment after she does so, the tentacles retreat into their vortex, which itself vanishes along with the 'magic circle' which brought it forth in the first place.

... Appearing on the smashed roof of the building just long enough to concentrate for the few seconds he needs to travel all the way to Namibia, The Ghost gets a brief glimpse of the outside of the theatre: surrounded by what looks like half the riot police in New York! A spotlight is quickly focused on the figure on the roof... wait... there was a guy there... I swear it... ::unsure :warp:

In the auditorium, off the stage, Tomahawk grunts as his massive demonic opponent catches him with a glancing blow, sending him smashing into, & through, several rows of upholstered seating. Rapidly reorganised after the recent surprises, the Templars around the felled T2Mer quickly charge forwards: only to be blasted back as Tomahawk rolls up onto one knee & brings his hands together in an ear-popping thunderclap which sends waves of force radiating outwards clearing the space around him of dust & Templars both...

... Crashing across the stage the wave of force from the Native American Tomorrowite's super-strong hand clap washes over Slither, The Stranger, & the others: Slither finds herself hurled back to smash though the thin prop backdrop at the rear of the stage & end up sprawled across the dressing tables in the back-stage area - she's joined by the Templars from the stage, as well as Dee. The Stranger manages to stand firm in the face of the blast of force. Vaughn is blasted through the air, but as the concussive wave smashes him off his feet a pair of huge black leathery wings sprout from his shoulder-blades (passing through his armour with no impediment) - a stroke of the wings steadies him, mid-air, & he catches his two demonic 'girls', one in each arm. A second beat of the wings carries the demonologist high into the theatre's rafters, where he turns to call back to The Stranger & Slither,

'We will meet again, heroes - & it will spell your doom!' ::angry ::devil

Even The Stranger, experienced as he is in such things, can't help but but be impressed by the sheer amount of melodrama Vaughn manages to squeeze into the statement... Vaughn vanishes through the hole in the ceiling... while his monstrous demon stomps its massive cloven-hoof into the stage, reducing it to splinters & forcing The Stranger to dive out of the way...

... Rolling to his feet The Stranger is just in time to see Vaughn's giant fade into wisps of black smoke, which themselves rapidly disipate.

Backstage Slither rights herself, only to find that she's surrounded by maybe a dozen Templars doing likewise! In the auditorium the Templars also begin to regain their footing; Stepping over to The Stranger, Tomahawk takes a moment to look the masked man up & down, then shrugs & turns so they're back to back, with Templars closing in on all sides,

'I'll take the twelve on the left...' the T2Mer mutters with a certain grim humour...

Suddenly (as if there hadn't been enough surprises yet) the entire area is plunged into inky pitch blackness so dark that even The Stranger's Strangervision™ lenses can't penetrate! The darkness not only impares vision, but feels viscous & oppressive, making it hard to move through too. Another voice booms out, seemingly from everywhere in the darkness at once,

'Now face the wrath of the Gothic Knight,' it delares, adding, 'this is my town - my rules.'

DVNTS:

Starting to feel a little tired, Vinnie arrives safely at the DVNTS medical centre, where the staff (who hardly bat an eyelid at his sudden appearance) quickly rush to tend to the unconscious Ms Cable.

Gods & Men:

"I feel okay, Sir. I'm sure I'll be up for that, but not right now, right..?"

Emma squeezes Nathan's hand in return, but says nothing more for the moment. Masters waves a dismissive hand over his shoulder without turning round,

'No, no,' he confirms, 'as soon as you feel ready will be fine.'

[Asbjørn]

Starting to feel a little tired, Vinnie arrives safely at the DVNTS medical centre, where the staff (who hardly bat an eyelid at his sudden appearance) quickly rush to tend to the unconscious Ms Cable.

Vinnie arrives in a half crouch, half spin, laying Ms Cable down on a bench. He keeps turning, raising his rifle to his shoulder and cocking the grenade launcher on his assault rifle as he turns in preparation for his next teleport. As he pictures the interior of the Zanzibar again - aiming for a structurally and line-of-fire-wise relatively safe part of the room - he calls out to the approaching medics.

"Check for toxins and implants! Hi tech!"

With that he disappears, ignoring the beginning weariness for now, getting ready to scan the combat zone he's porting back into...

[phoenix]

'... PathFinder was right on the money about you.'

Picking up on the slight, Glacier looks at Eel himself, then back at Geryon.

"Thanks," he says, without smiling.

That whole "quantum bomb" thing in Chad is what's turned the tide, of course - monkeys are so short-term in their thinking: it'll still be fresh in their minds come election day, & Green's the guy who's been telling all & sundry just how dangerous we Novas are.

Glacier looks a little surprised.

"I heard about that. You know that one of those novas once threw me out of a damn skyscraper?"

We don't need to just exterminate the bug - hey, if it was that simple I'd have done it by now. We need to expose him, let the monkeys see just how stupid they nearly were to even think about electing an anti-Nova bigot like Green. Primarily we need to rescue Corinna from his clutches, but I'm told he's got his psychological claws into her pretty deep, so it won't be an easy task. We also need to block his attempts to screw-over Portman. Finally we need to air all Green's dirty laundry in such a manner that our fellow Novas world-wide see what a threat these baseline bastards can be. After that... then we get to gut him.'

Glacier blinks.

"Okay, Geryon, I'm in. Except for the last part; you can gut him yourself."

He sips his drink, then looks over at Eel.

"What do you think, baby?"

Back to Geryon.

"So describe what kind of bondage we're talking about. If it was physical, all we'd need to do would be take out a wall of his house and then wait for the human police to do our work for us. But you make it sound like there's some brainwashing involve... Any idea what her powers are, by the way?

"Oh, and does Nova Vigilance have a telepath you like to use, or will we be asking Pathfinder for a hand if that's what we need?

"And finally, what's your source for all this?"

[Another day, another alarming similarity between Glacier and Wikipedia... ::wink ]

[archer]

The Great Escape:

Burning Quantum energies like they're going out of fashion, The Ghost is next to The Stranger in mere moments: after a second he's attuned Ms Cable's Quantum patterns to match his own, & they both vanish half-an-eye-blink later... :warp: ::blink

... but The Stranger find he has little time to think about the Elite & his impressive vanishing act, as another voice calls his attention...

Despite her worried tone, Slither proves true to her name &, using her native flexability, aided by the rather slippery coating she's transformed her eufiber into... & a great deal of wriggling... she manages to twist, turn, duck, & dodge her way free from the grasping tentacles & scurry out of their reach: a moment after she does so, the tentacles retreat into their vortex, which itself vanishes along with the 'magic circle' which brought it forth in the first place.

... Crashing across the stage the wave of force from the Native American Tomorrowite's super-strong hand clap washes over Slither, The Stranger, & the others: Slither finds herself hurled back to smash though the thin prop backdrop at the rear of the stage & end up sprawled across the dressing tables in the back-stage area - she's joined by the Templars from the stage, as well as Dee. The Stranger manages to stand firm in the face of the blast of force. Vaughn is blasted through the air, but as the concussive wave smashes him off his feet a pair of huge black leathery wings sprout from his shoulder-blades (passing through his armour with no impediment) - a stroke of the wings steadies him, mid-air, & he catches his two demonic 'girls', one in each arm. A second beat of the wings carries the demonologist high into the theatre's rafters, where he turns to call back to The Stranger & Slither,

'We will meet again, heroes - & it will spell your doom!' ::angry ::devil

Even The Stranger, experienced as he is in such things, can't help but but be impressed by the sheer amount of melodrama Vaughn manages to squeeze into the statement... Vaughn vanishes through the hole in the ceiling... while his monstrous demon stomps its massive cloven-hoof into the stage, reducing it to splinters & forcing The Stranger to dive out of the way...

... Rolling to his feet The Stranger is just in time to see Vaughn's giant fade into wisps of black smoke, which themselves rapidly disipate.

'I'll take the twelve on the left...' the T2Mer mutters with a certain grim humour...

Suddenly (as if there hadn't been enough surprises yet) the entire area is plunged into inky pitch blackness so dark that even The Stranger's Strangervision™ lenses can't penetrate! The darkness not only impares vision, but feels viscous & oppressive, making it hard to move through too. Another voice booms out, seemingly from everywhere in the darkness at once,

'Now face the wrath of the Gothic Knight,' it delares, adding, 'this is my town - my rules.'

The Stranger activates his subvocal mic as the unnatural darkness closes in. "Slither, grab the demon girl Ghost brought along, and get out of here. The Templars can't see through this, so try going straight up."

Sliding backwards until he's pressed against Tomahawk's back, the vigilante raises his hands in a defensive posture, and addresses the Tomorrowite, matching the other novas dry tone. "Friend of yours?"

[Heritage]

At first, Slither can't believe it - she got herself free! But her joy is short-lived when she suddenly finds herself hurled through the air, and then in rapid succession stunned, recovered, surrounded, blind and given challenging new orders from a man she barely knows.

The Stranger activates his subvocal mic as the unnatural darkness closes in. "Slither, grab the demon girl Ghost brought along, and get out of here. The Templars can't see through this, so try going straight up."

"Uh...okay, boss. No problem. ::unsure I'll see you outside."

It was odd how easily she worked with him, like they'd done this a dozen times before. They were both sneaky prowlers of the night; maybe...?

Focusing her sharp ears as much as possible, Slither tries to pick out Dee's breathing from the chaos, her arms extended to gently pat the ground as she moves.

"Okay, demon girl, where the hell are you..."

[Prince of Boredom]

'Right.' Masters nods, keeping further thoughts on Max Mercer to himself as he waves Doctor Chen across to examine Mike. After a few moments, seemingly in deep thought, the old man addresses the room,

'Well, this has been quite the adventure all round. I suggest that you all take some time to get cleaned up & rested while Doctor Chen finishes going over the data. I'm sure there's no lasting harm done... although we'll need to run a few more tests before we let you loose with the biosuits again. When you're ready, I'd still like you all to join Will in Japan... if you feel up to it.'

Mike stands up and stretches his arms out, then turns to Blaze, "Right, well, whenever you're ready, let me know."

Turning back to Masters and Doctor Chen, he gives a weak smile, "Until then, I'll be in my apartment trying to work out these knots. I haven't been this sore since the last time I played football."

After he makes his way into the less restricted areas of the Masters building, he flips out his cell phone and gives Heather a call, "Hey, it's me. Yeah, I know, I'm sorry. No, you shouldn't have worried. It was one of those last minute team-building retreats, you know the kind where you have to fall back off of a table and everyone else catches you. And, of course, no phones. Anyway, so I was wondering if Masters has a massuese on staff? I could really use a massage right about now."

[ProfPotts]

Plotting:

"Okay, Geryon, I'm in. Except for the last part; you can gut him yourself."

'Cheers!'

Geryon salutes Glacier with his drink in a half-jesting manner... ::sly

"What do you think, baby?"

Eel frowns, then shrugs,

'It's a good cause... Nova Vigilance do good work, despite Geryon's unwillingness to cull the weak from our own herd...' ::wink

Eel's comment is obviously a calculated barb against Geryon, but the British Nova just rolls his eyes & waits for Glacier to comment further...

"So describe what kind of bondage we're talking about. If it was physical, all we'd need to do would be take out a wall of his house and then wait for the human police to do our work for us. But you make it sound like there's some brainwashing involve... Any idea what her powers are, by the way?"

Geryon shakes his head - an almost comical expression considering his massively oversized neck & shoulders - although his stern demeanor belays any actual humour,

'If only it were simple physical restraint... No, Green's a true bastard: Corinna has bi-polar disorder - she's manic depressive, was even before her eruption - he's exploited that to get inside her head & twist things around until she's willing to do anything for him... Not satisfied with screwing up her already delicate mental state, he's also got her hooked on Soma - which he's made sure she knows she can only get from him. Even for a politician Green's lower than most...'

The vitrium glass shatters in Geryon's hand. He glances at the shattered fragments, unseeing, for a moment, then takes a deep breath & brushes them off his hand before turning back to Glacier,

'... As for her powers: she can manipulate time. Not on the scale of someone like that Elite, Decay, but she seems to have a particular talent for reversing the effects of time - handy for an aging politician like Green, but also helpful for reforming "destroyed" evidence which Green can then use to blackmail people. Shredded documents, burnt photographs, even wiped hard-drives - Corinna can recreate all of them.'

"Oh, and does Nova Vigilance have a telepath you like to use, or will we be asking Pathfinder for a hand if that's what we need?"

Geryon blinks,

'Oh,' he replies, 'I thought you knew - PathFinder is a member of Nova Vigilance.'

"And finally, what's your source for all this?"

Geryon laughs,

'You're kidding, right? Between Synapse & PathFinder we have enough talent to find out pretty much anything - not to mention the Mathmatician & a dozen other loyal Terats. Some unearth the crimes, to others falls the duty of dealing with them...' ::devil

Darkness Falls:

"Slither, grab the demon girl Ghost brought along, and get out of here. The Templars can't see through this, so try going straight up."

"Uh...okay, boss. No problem. I'll see you outside."

"Okay, demon girl, where the hell are you..."

Focusing her hearing Slither not only picks up Dee's distinct breathing & heartbeat but, using the various noises around her, builds herself a clear all-round picture of the surrounding environment: the 'darkness' seems to have some substance, roiling around like a really thick cloud, which makes it slightly harder to 'see' through sound, & difficult to move through, but the Templars don't seem able to see at all, leaving Slither with a supreme advantage. Despite their seeming blindness the Templars aren't flailing about like idiots - rather they all crouch low & move slowly, carefully, & quietly - as if trained to a high military standard. Dee, on the other hand, is out cold - although her heartbeat is actually racing a mile a minute, rather than slowing as Slither would expect of someone who was unconscious...

... Slither also has to take a moment to edit out the rather irritating bursts of radiowaves which seem to be constantly transmitted between the Templars: it's all in some sort of clipped, to the point, code language - so she can't understand it in any case.

"Friend of yours?"

'Not exactly,' replies Tomahawk quietly, 'the Gothic Knight is the municipal defender of New York City - he has legal authority here... but then again so do I, thanks to the illegal black-tech. Were both on the same side... but we're on his turf...'

While The Stranger & Tomohawk wait for the worst, Slither makes her way through the viscous darkness to the fallen Dee; as she does so she notices the thicker 'clouds' of dark moving to surround each of the Templars, until all the armoured criminals are incased in near-solid spheres! It seems as though the Gothic Knight has ended the fight single-handed... until...

... Suddenly the sound of rapid & uncontrolled gunfire can be heard from outside the building, peppered with all-too-real screams of fright & pain... & even an explosion!

'Damn!'

Slither's ears alone are sensitive enough to pick up the Gothic Knight's curse from high in the rafters, followed by the almost impossible (even for her) to hear sounds of his footsteps as he heads back outside... & his darkness goes with him... ::unsure

As the darkness receeds - drawn out the front of the building - Slither, The Stranger, & Tomahawk all, for a moment, find themselves once more surrounded by Templars. Then, almost as one, the armoured figures shimmer out of sight...

... Super-hearing still focused, Slither 'watches' as the Templars begin a rapid, & orderly, exit of the building, moving in groups of three to five, each covering the others as they split up & vanish.

Blinking ::blink , Tomahawk glances this way & that, seeming unsure of which way to go ::unsure ,

'For crying out loud!' he exclaims ::angry , 'They're getting away!'

Pointing in the (seemingly empty) direction opposite to the one he finally decides upon the T2Mer yells at The Stranger,

'You get those guys, I'll get these...' before flying off, busting through a wall in his pursuit of the invisible Templars...

A little after that, Vinnie reappears in the rafters above the (apparantly) near-empty confusion which is the Zanzibar theatre... :warp:

Perks of the Job:

"... Anyway, so I was wondering if Masters has a massuese on staff? I could really use a massage right about now."

'Sure,' excalims Heather happily, 'I'll be right up! I... er... I mean, I'll send somene right up...' ::unsure ::blush

[archer]

As the darkness receeds - drawn out the front of the building - Slither, The Stranger, & Tomahawk all, for a moment, find themselves once more surrounded by Templars. Then, almost as one, the armoured figures shimmer out of sight...

Blinking ::blink , Tomahawk glances this way & that, seeming unsure of which way to go ::unsure ,

'For crying out loud!' he exclaims ::angry , 'They're getting away!'

Pointing in the (seemingly empty) direction opposite to the one he finally decides upon the T2Mer yells at The Stranger,

'You get those guys, I'll get these...' before flying off, busting through a wall in his pursuit of the invisible Templars...

Even knowing he has no way of seeing them, The Stranger unconsciously narrows his eyes as he stares towards the direction pointed out by Tomahawk. Hands flicking to his belt, he removes a smoke grenade with one hand and arms it, skipping it across the floorboards of the stage and leaving a trail of smoke to hopefully highlight the escaping Templars. The other hand comes to rest at his belt-line, ready to fetch the next item needed as he watches for any hint of their movement.

[Asbjørn]

A little after that, Vinnie reappears in the rafters above the (apparantly) near-empty confusion which is the Zanzibar theatre... :warp:

Even knowing he has no way of seeing them, The Stranger unconsciously narrows his eyes as he stares towards the direction pointed out by Tomahawk. Hands flicking to his belt, he removes a smoke grenade with one hand and arms it, skipping it across the floorboards of the stage and leaving a trail of smoke to hopefully highlight the escaping Templars. The other hand comes to rest at his belt-line, ready to fetch the next item needed as he watches for any hint of their movement.

His rifle aimed and ready, the Ghost takes just a moment to get an overview of the situation, the Stranger's apparent alertness more than anything reminding him the Templars might still be around. Ears cocked and eyes primed, he takes a look around and scans the room for any kind of hostile movement, subvocalizing through his radio to both Slther and the Stranger:

"What happened? Is the party over already...?"

If he can't see anyone - and his instincts don't alert him otherwise - he quickly drops to the stage floor and moves in the direction of his fallen charge.

[Asbjørn]

Goddess & Woman:

Emma squeezes Nathan's hand in return, but says nothing more for the moment. Masters waves a dismissive hand over his shoulder without turning round,

'No, no,' he confirms, 'as soon as you feel ready will be fine.'

Mike stands up and stretches his arms out, then turns to Blaze, "Right, well, whenever you're ready, let me know."

Nathan nods at both Masters' and Mike's words, then pushes himself off the bed. Grabbing a robe or pulling a sheet around himself, he freezes a second at the memory, his eyes darting to Emma's. "Come with me..?" he asks, stopping for a moment to judge her reaction.

[ooc: Now, if she doesn't come with him, Nate will probably go jerk off in the shower or something, and show up as requested on the plane bound for Japan later... ::biggrin But:]

If she agrees, he gives her a slight smile and hands her something to cover up with before he leads her out of the examination room heading for somewhere more private, preferably with a shower...

As he closes the door behind them - giving at least the illusion of privacy - Nathan turns to face the mysterious woman he's come to love.

"Did all that... I mean.. Have you known all that before? Or is it.. her sharing her memories with you? Is this reincarnation thing really real..? Was I really..."

Nathan shakes his head for a moment as he realizes hes rambling, and reaches a finger out to glide over her neck and shoulder. Concern fills his voice as he looks into her eyes - wishing like so many other times he looked more human, that she could see his eyes too.

"How are you feeling, Emma..? And am I going nuts, or did I just learn ancient Egyptian..?" ::smile

[phoenix]

"Not satisfied with screwing up her already delicate mental state, he's also got her hooked on Soma - which he's made sure she knows she can only get from him. Even for a politician Green's lower than most..."

"Hmm... okay, so while busting Corrina, we should keep an eye out for ways to expose his Soma source, which would put him in prison... Although really, just exposing his hypocrisy as a nova-hater should pretty much take care of his Presidential aspirations."

'You're kidding, right? Between Synapse & PathFinder we have enough talent to find out pretty much anything - not to mention the Mathmatician & a dozen other loyal Terats. Some unearth the crimes, to others falls the duty of dealing with them...'

Glacier smiles.

"Cheers..."

He finishes his drink.

[Heritage]

His rifle aimed and ready, the Ghost takes just a moment to get an overview of the situation, the Stranger's apparent alertness more than anything reminding him the Templars might still be around. Ears cocked and eyes primed, he takes a look around and scans the room for any kind of hostile movement, subvocalizing through his radio to both Slther and the Stranger:

"What happened? Is the party over already...?"

If he can't see anyone - and his instincts don't alert him otherwise - he quickly drops to the stage floor and moves in the direction of his fallen charge.

Slither is more than happy to let Ghost look after the weird demon girl; she is also trying to keep herself focused on the trail of the fleeing thugs.

"'Fraid so, boss - the Templars went all shimmery and did their patented fade-out routine; I might be able to track them by ear, but things sound a bit crazy outside, so I might lose them in the wash."

She moves swiftly forward, cocking her head like a dog as she tries to catch their sonic 'scent' before it's too late.

[Prince of Boredom]

Perks of the Job:

'Sure,' exclaims Heather happily, 'I'll be right up! I... er... I mean, I'll send somene right up...' ::unsure ::blush

Mike, raises an eybrow at Heather's slip, a devious smile playing across his lips, "Well, whoever shows, let them know to just come right in... I'll be in the bedroom waiting..."

[ProfPotts]

Tracking Templars:

The Stranger's thinks & acts quickly, his smoke bomb detonating to spread a dark cloud across the theatre... but scanning the swirling smoke intently tells the masked man that there are no Templars there... although the air currents seem to indicate recent movement. With his own smarts & The Ghost's intelligence from earlier The Stranger is pretty sure that there's only one place that the Templars could exit the building the way they've gone - unless they have abilities they've not yet demonstrated, or are willing to blow a hole in the wall...

"What happened? Is the party over already...?"

"'Fraid so, boss - the Templars went all shimmery and did their patented fade-out routine; I might be able to track them by ear, but things sound a bit crazy outside, so I might lose them in the wash."

Sensing no immediate threats The Ghost quickly reaches Dee's side - still unconscious the girl's whole body is covered in sweat, although she appears to be shivering, her eyes under the lids darting back & forth with lightning quickness...

Slither, meanwhile, moves after the fleeing Templars - following the sounds of their heartbeats, light footfalls, & radio static to a side door leading outside: the intelligence from earlier confirms that the door's most likely set up with alarms & the like, but that seems a little moot now... Reaching the door Slither finds it smashed off its hinges & lying in the alley outside - from the front of the building the sounds of intense battle & panicing police officers serve to muffle her attempts to follow the Templar's trail by ear - but the noise can't mask their rather unique radio traffic, which appears to be heading rapidly away from the fighting as well as spliting up: the Templars are going their seperate ways! Then the radios, one by one, start to switch off too...

On the opposite side of the theatre The Stranger reaches the back door he's sure the Templars must be using - his suspicions are confirmed when he finds it smashed off its hinges in the building's back lot. Although not as sensitive as Slither, The Stranger too can't fail to notice the noise of fighting coming from the front of the building... however, his keen eyes pick up a slight rattle of the back lot's chainlink fence, followed by a splash in a puddle the other side, suggesting that he's hot on the trail of at least one 'cloaked' Templar...

Truth or Dare:

"Come with me..?"

Emma nods...

... A few minutes later Nate & Emma are alone, sharing a shower in one of the Masters Building's various luxurious private suites...

"Did all that... I mean.. Have you known all that before? Or is it.. her sharing her memories with you? Is this reincarnation thing really real..? Was I really..."

Emma sighs & closes her eyes as Nathan's finger traces across her skin, her own fingers reaching out to reciprocate by follow the contours of his sculpted chest & abdomen. Opening her eyes again she returns her man's gaze - pin-pricks of light from his eyes reflected in the dark pools of hers...

"How are you feeling, Emma..? And am I going nuts, or did I just learn ancient Egyptian..?"

'I... I'm not sure...' although Emma seems as confused as Nate himself, she also seems much calmer about it than she's previously been when confronted by her 'condition'... she's also still speaking softly in ancient Egyptian... 'Before I've just had flashes... not-quite-remembered memories, like a dream you know you've had, but can't actually recall? The re-incarnation... I know that in this time you all think I'm a "Nova", that somehow Nefertiti isn't real, that she's just an aspect of my personality & that I'm insane or something... to know that people think she comes from me... that the violence she's capable of is part of my mind... do you know how difficult it's been knowing that? Knowing that's what people think when they look at me? Doctor Maxwell... it may have been eighty years ago, but I've not yet met anyone in this time as smart as he was - & he believed that the re-incarnation was real. If "Novas" can truely do "anything" as people keep telling me, why not travel through time in spirit form to be reborn? Is that any less possible than a man who's able to fly under his own power? Or someone with the power to cover the city in flames?'

Resting her head on Nathan's chest Emma sighs again, then continues,

'Now... those memories... It all seems to make more sense. The awful things Nefertiti has done... I... I think I understand her better now - she's not evil, Nathan, not really... she was just searching for her lost love... searching for her soul mate... she needed him to be complete... she needed him, like I need you, Nate...'

Looking up at Nathan again Emma smiles,

'As for the ancient Egyptian... which do you think is more likely: that you spontaneously learnt it, or that you remembered how to speak it..?'

Political Realities:

"Hmm... okay, so while busting Corrina, we should keep an eye out for ways to expose his Soma source, which would put him in prison... Although really, just exposing his hypocrisy as a nova-hater should pretty much take care of his Presidential aspirations."

Geryon nods,

'Agreed - anyone dealing in Soma is killing Novas & is therefore on our list...'

Eel raises an eyebrow & glances at the half-finished drink in her hand; Geryon rolls his eyes,

'Come on, Harvester,' he says, 'you know where that comes from, & it isn't Novas...' ::rolleyes

"Cheers..."

'Great,' Geryon sits forwards, 'the plan is for you to go in dormed down - it'll be easy for Synapse to set you up with an appropriate background so you can pose as a volunteer for Green's political machine: an eager young American Eagle. Learn what you can, see what evidence you can find, try to locate Corinna if possible. We have a few other irons in the fire, so contact us with whatever you find...' the musclebound Terat shrugs his massive shoulders, '... although I'm not suggesting that you don't handle things your way if that looks like the best thing to do - after all, you'll be the Nova on the scene... & we don't play by Team Tomorrow rules in this club...' ::sly

'Dormed?! Are you nuts?!' Eel fairly explodes at the leader of Nova Vigilance, sparks of lightning rolling off her glistening skin in her fury, 'Why'd he want to be weak?! That's a sick thing to even suggest Geryon!' ::angry

Geryon responds with a low, almost animalistic, rumble from the depths of his chest, before snorting & turning to Glacier,

'The Harvesters have a problem with dormancy in Novas,' he explains as calmly as he can in the face of Eel's anger, 'they see it as "wanting to be baseline", while the rest of us recognise that it's just another of the many gifts of Novahood - denying the ability to dorm is as bad as denying any of our other facets, & leads away from the path of Teras. Dormancy is a tool, Glacier - one you possess. While it should never be used as a crutch to hide from your true self, it too is a small part of that true self - use it when it's to your advantage to do so as much as you'd use your claws to rip out the throat of an enemy who stood in your path.'

Eel curses under her breath (John doesn't recognise the language... maybe something Germanic?) & wraps her coils tighter around Glacier, almost as if she were afraid to let him go...

Slips:

"Well, whoever shows, let them know to just come right in... I'll be in the bedroom waiting..."

A while later Mike's in the bedroom of one of the luxurious private suites of the Masters Building (did I mention they were luxurious? One could even say 'plush'... ::wink ) when he hears the door open & someone enter... A moment later a large, muscluar, young man with tanned skin & long blond hair steps into the bedroom, towels & lotions in his hands. Clad in a tight-fitting white T-shirt & shorts the man grins at Mike, his accent when he speaks sounding Scandinavian,

'Heather sent me, sir - my name is Larrs...'

... it strikes Mike that, considering the old man's tendency to surround himself with a staff of beautiful woman to as great an extent as possible, Heather must have really pulled out the stops to locate a masseur amongst the Masters staff of masseuses... ::unsure ::tongue ::biggrin

[phoenix]

'... although I'm not suggesting that you don't handle things your way if that looks like the best thing to do - after all, you'll be the Nova on the scene... & we don't play by Team Tomorrow rules in this club...'

Despite his earlier defiance of the big Terat, Glacier is suddenly touched by the respect with which the infamous Geryon seems to be treating him. He feels his baseline media-created impression of Geryon as a dangerous terrorist be over-written by liking and admiration for the mature and strong Terat... ::blush

'Dormed?! Are you nuts?!' Eel fairly explodes at the leader of Nova Vigilance, sparks of lightning rolling off her glistening skin in her fury, 'Why'd he want to be weak?! That's a sick thing to even suggest Geryon!'

Glacier watches the electric waves roll off of her, and ground themselves harmlessly on the floor and in Glacier's own body. It's painful, but in a mild way -- and Glacier feels pain so rarely that the electricity feels pleasantly novel and erotic against his iron-strong hide. ::wub

Damn, Eel, you are sexy when you're angry... Glacier grins animalistically under his anima. Aaand that's a thought I'll be keeping to myself. ::sly

Eel curses under her breath (John doesn't recognise the language... maybe something Germanic?) & wraps her coils tighter around Glacier, almost as if she were afraid to let him go...

"Hey," Glacier says. His strong, cold hand takes a loose grip on his lover's scaly chin, and pulls it down for an intense and soulful kiss.

"Baby, I've got to do this. This Corinna is out there suffering, novas out there are dying to supply her baseline-enabled drug habit, and this face of Glacier would be like a bull in a mansion in that setting."

He frowns.

"Actually, until you said that I was hoping you'd be willing to come do this with me. Dormancy didn't take me all that long to learn..." ::unsure

[Asbjørn]

Emma sighs & closes her eyes as Nathan's finger traces across her skin, her own fingers reaching out to reciprocate by follow the contours of his sculpted chest & abdomen. Opening her eyes again she returns her man's gaze - pin-pricks of light from his eyes reflected in the dark pools of hers...

Nathan loses himself for a moment in her eyes and the feel of her body as he keeps her close. As the warm water starts washing the biosuit fluids from their skin, he does his best to listen to Emma's voice and not let his own physical desires take over just yet...

'I... I'm not sure...' although Emma seems as confused as Nate himself, she also seems much calmer about it than she's previously been when confronted by her 'condition'... she's also still speaking softly in ancient Egyptian... 'Before I've just had flashes... not-quite-remembered memories, like a dream you know you've had, but can't actually recall? The re-incarnation... I know that in this time you all think I'm a "Nova", that somehow Nefertiti isn't real, that she's just an aspect of my personality & that I'm insane or something... to know that people think she comes from me... that the violence she's capable of is part of my mind... do you know how difficult it's been knowing that? Knowing that's what people think when they look at me?"

Nathan places a finger on Emma's lips to pause her, the faint glow of his skin illuminating her face and reflecting in every drop of water.

"You're not crazy, Emma... I never thought you were..."

Nate's finger glides slowly from her mouth, tracing along her jawline to the back of her neck as he pulls her close and kisses her gently before letting her continue.

" Doctor Maxwell... it may have been eighty years ago, but I've not yet met anyone in this time as smart as he was - & he believed that the re-incarnation was real. If "Novas" can truely do "anything" as people keep telling me, why not travel through time in spirit form to be reborn? Is that any less possible than a man who's able to fly under his own power? Or someone with the power to cover the city in flames?'

"I.. I guess not." Nathan admits, shrugging his shoulders. "It's just.. well, a bit mindboggling, you know..?"

Resting her head on Nathan's chest Emma sighs again, then continues,

'Now... those memories... It all seems to make more sense. The awful things Nefertiti has done... I... I think I understand her better now - she's not evil, Nathan, not really... she was just searching for her lost love... searching for her soul mate... she needed him to be complete... she needed him, like I need you, Nate...'

"After this..." Nathan whispers as he starts to rub and wash Emma's arms and back, carefully holding back not to hurt her, "...I can't exactly hate her either. Even if she ruined my best leather jacket." ::wink

The young nova sighs as he looks into her eyes, his smile and the sound of his voice telling of all the feelings his eyes can't show. "And now she's got him. You both do..."

Looking up at Nathan again Emma smiles,

'As for the ancient Egyptian... which do you think is more likely: that you spontaneously learnt it, or that you remembered how to speak it..?'

"Probably that I'm still dreaming..." Nathan chuckles.

Shaking his head at his own inability to keep from joking, Nathan runs a hand through his wet hair. He's quiet for a moment as his eyes glide over Emma's naked body, for the first time openly admiring her. He doesn't bother to hide his obvious and natural reaction to the sight - *why should I?*, he thinks. *we were married!* - and lets his hands move from her shoulders and arms to caress her chest and lower as he replies, trying to shape the words of the language he's apparently always known.

"I love you, my queen..." he smiles and winks at her as he moves closer to her under the shower. "I always have, I think. Both the all-powerful and awe-inspiring Queen by my side and the warm, kind, slightly shy but incredibly charming girl I've been guarding..."

"It doesn't hurt that you're the hottest girl I've ever met either..." ::wink

As he feels her soapy skin under his hands - palms sliding easily from breasts around her sides to come to rest on her butt - he realizes there aren't any more words to say right now. Effortlessly lifting his queen and charge off the floor and embracing her he kisses her lips hungrily, and enjoys the moment.

*We have a couple of thousand years to make up for, after all...*

[Asbjørn]

Sensing no immediate threats The Ghost quickly reaches Dee's side - still unconscious the girl's whole body is covered in sweat, although she appears to be shivering, her eyes under the lids darting back & forth with lightning quickness...

*Damn...*

The Ghost reaches out to wipe the sweat from her face, feeling her temperature as he hurriedly looks around in the warzone that was the Zanzibar. Staying alert as he - against all odds - scans the wreckage for any items Vaughn and his cronies may have left behind. As his sharp eyes search the room he calls up the others on the radio.

"Slither, Stranger. If you take any templars down, check for vials of dark liquid. My hostage may die if she doesn't get her fix. Barring that, I think pulling out is a good idea. Far too many players on the field right now."

[Heritage]

Tracking Templars:

Slither, meanwhile, moves after the fleeing Templars - following the sounds of their heartbeats, light footfalls, & radio static to a side door leading outside: the intelligence from earlier confirms that the door's most likely set up with alarms & the like, but that seems a little moot now... Reaching the door Slither finds it smashed off its hinges & lying in the alley outside - from the front of the building the sounds of intense battle & panicing police officers serve to muffle her attempts to follow the Templar's trail by ear - but the noise can't mask their rather unique radio traffic, which appears to be heading rapidly away from the fighting as well as spliting up: the Templars are going their seperate ways! Then the radios, one by one, start to switch off too...

"Slither, Stranger. If you take any templars down, check for vials of dark liquid. My hostage may die if she doesn't get her fix. Barring that, I think pulling out is a good idea. Far too many players on the field right now."

Slither shakes her head.

"I've got them bolting in all directions as fast as they can from whatever is going on up front, which sounds a lot like 'New York's Finest' doing what they do best: shooting anything that moves."

She stops and sags in defeat and exhaustion against the shattered doorframe.

"With their radios off, I can't track the Templars anymore - shit!"

She turns and looks forlornly back into what's left of the theater.

"What now, guys?"

[archer]

Tracking Templars:

The Stranger's thinks & acts quickly, his smoke bomb detonating to spread a dark cloud across the theatre... but scanning the swirling smoke intently tells the masked man that there are no Templars there... although the air currents seem to indicate recent movement. With his own smarts & The Ghost's intelligence from earlier The Stranger is pretty sure that there's only one place that the Templars could exit the building the way they've gone - unless they have abilities they've not yet demonstrated, or are willing to blow a hole in the wall...

On the opposite side of the theatre The Stranger reaches the back door he's sure the Templars must be using - his suspicions are confirmed when he finds it smashed off its hinges in the building's back lot. Although not as sensitive as Slither, The Stranger too can't fail to notice the noise of fighting coming from the front of the building... however, his keen eyes pick up a slight rattle of the back lot's chainlink fence, followed by a splash in a puddle the other side, suggesting that he's hot on the trail of at least one 'cloaked' Templar...

Already moving to start the chase, The Stranger hears Ghost and Slither over his earpiece.

"Slither, Stranger. If you take any templars down, check for vials of dark liquid. My hostage may die if she doesn't get her fix. Barring that, I think pulling out is a good idea. Far too many players on the field right now."

"I've got them bolting in all directions as fast as they can from whatever is going on up front, which sounds a lot like 'New York's Finest' doing what they do best: shooting anything that moves."

"With their radios off, I can't track the Templars anymore - shit!"

"What now, guys?"

Running smoothly, the vigilante's voice doesn't register any strain as he replies. "I'm on the trail of one right now, but I can't see him. He's heading east from the back door, just went over the fence and is still moving. Slither, follow my radio signal instead, and hurry. Ghost, if you want to help that girl, get out here and help me catch this one. It may take all three of us to make sure he doesn't get away, and I want him alive."

The menace in that last statement echoes through the radio, prompting Slither, at least, to wonder what could prompt such open hatred.

[Heritage]

Already moving to start the chase, The Stranger hears Ghost and Slither over his earpiece.

Running smoothly, the vigilante's voice doesn't register any strain as he replies. "I'm on the trail of one right now, but I can't see him. He's heading east from the back door, just went over the fence and is still moving. Slither, follow my radio signal instead, and hurry. Ghost, if you want to help that girl, get out here and help me catch this one. It may take all three of us to make sure he doesn't get away, and I want him alive."

The menace in that last statement echoes through the radio, prompting Slither, at least, to wonder what could prompt such open hatred.

Carla slaps her forehead, hard.

*See, this is why he's the good guy and you're the bad guy: good guys don't quit.*

"Right, I'm on it, chief."

As quickly and quietly as possible, Slither follows the Stranger's orders to the letter; if she thinks she can successfully pull off her chameleon stunt, she will do so.

[Prince of Boredom]

Slips:

A while later Mike's in the bedroom of one of the luxurious private suites of the Masters Building (did I mention they were luxurious? One could even say 'plush'... ::wink ) when he hears the door open & someone enter... A moment later a large, muscluar, young man with tanned skin & long blond hair steps into the bedroom, towels & lotions in his hands. Clad in a tight-fitting white T-shirt & shorts the man grins at Mike, his accent when he speaks sounding Scandinavian,

'Heather sent me, sir - my name is Larrs...'

... it strikes Mike that, considering the old man's tendency to surround himself with a staff of beautiful woman to as great an extent as possible, Heather must have really pulled out the stops to locate a masseur amongst the Masters staff of masseuses... ::unsure ::tongue ::biggrin

A dry smile washes across Mike's face, "Of course she did..."

Making a mental note to give Heather more credit in the future, and of course return the favor, Mike shrugs and takes his shirt off and lays face down on the bed, "I hope you have gentle hands..."