4783 replies to this topic

[Lord of Adders Black]

Huh. Initially I had vied for a character like the teleporter mentioned in place of Ivan, but TPTI shot it down

OOC: Yeah, I'm not really a fan of teleporters who can just poof anywhere they like. This guy may have an unlimited range but he does appear to need photos of the place he's going, which is something I suppose

IC: "If you can find him anywhere it'll be at the Sinful Saloon," Captain Code explained, "That was always our meeting point, maybe he'll be expecting me to check in with this whole thing a failure."

He looked a bit baffled at some of Ivan's, "He wore a coat. One of them big ones. How he walked...on two legs?"

[Dallas Winston]

IC: Saosin (Manchester Airport, Manchester, England)

"Sinful Saloon..." Tilian muttered. "That's a Coalition meeting place, isn't it?"

He turned towards Ember.

-Teezy

[Toa Korkoa: Toa of plasma]

IC: Ember looked at Saosin and sighed, shrugging after a moment. "Yes. It is. I can take us there if that's where the trail leads." He said, considering his options. "However, if the guy after me has spread the word of my defection... It could get messy."

[Dallas Winston]

IC: Saosin (Manchester Airport, Manchester, England)

He looked towards Captain Code, then back towards Ember.

"Would anyone know you've been captured by now?"

-Teezy

[The Writer]

IC:
Madness using his knowledge of physics let his legs swing and caused him and the now dense being to roll into a bookcase. Jocasta, however slammed into a bookshelf and pressed a false book, activating the alarm for everyone to evacuate.

OOC: Now anyone can view the fight and join in, I hope.

[Transairion]

IC: Mastermind faltered midstep, his foot hitting the sand awkwardly before he regained his composure. He looked almost confused, as if he didn't quite understand what she meant, or that perhaps no-one had ever bothered to ask the question she had before.

"Knowledge is power. This rings true for all psychic beings, regardless of their type of abilities. I took his power from him, and as a result part of his conciousness came with it. It's then a simple, if unpleasant matter to quash the remainants that enter your mind, a lengthy process. But make no mistake, I remain fully in control of my body even if multiple minds have existed within... none are strong enough to ever dominate my will" Mastermind explained, resuming his pace after a shorty delay. His tail seemed to shift around in a manner displaying confusion or aggresion, the latter trait starting to be shared by the crowd who was getting bored of all the chit-chat. They wanted to see the group smash each other, or at the very least Mastermind to spaz out again.

OOC: I would presume that you'll try that thing you mentioned about now, KN. Then I'll do that thing I mentioned. And then stuff will happen (just try and get any spoilers from this statement, I dare you! XD).

[Kumata]

OOC: You are perfectly correct, Trans.

IC - Gadgeteer @ Manchester Airport

Viktor mulled on Lone's offer. The Animus strip was an invention completely of his own design; whilst others had managed to build armour that worked in similar ways the strip itself was a unique build. It was one of the few material things Viktor saw value in, and not something he was prepared to give away easily. On the other hand, a nanoforge existed more of less on the same level of tech; it was both rare and advanced. He could certainly do with one, especially in this primitive armour. He considered the situation carefully - in particular he tried to think of any possible downsides, or ways in which Lone might be trying to swindle him - but, looking at the offer objectively, he had to admit that it would be an even trade.

"Agreed," he answered after two full minutes of deliberation. "I will transmit the appropriate schematics to you via our communications link. Do the same with yours." He handed Lone the cable too, sicne he had no idea where exactly to plug it into the cyborg's body.

IC - Sluice @ Superbeing Smackdown!

Sluice found it difficult to suppress her reaction to Mastermind's answer. So he had taken Silver's consciousness - and crushed it. Just like the hope that had started to fill her mind.

No, she said to herself, Silver's mind was - is - strong. He freed me from the hold of Ikusen Sakeme... his consciousness must have survived, it has to have...

Swallowing, Sluice stared at Mastermind for a moment. Then, grabbing her goggles, she pulled back the hood of her supersuit, revealing her face in full. All concern about the value of a false alias in their current environment was completely washed away by emotion and desperation.

"Tim, it's me! Sarah Winters!" She cried. "I know you're in there! Please, fight him! You can do it! I know you can..!"

Edited by Kumata, May 24 2012 - 07:33 AM.

[Half-Dragon]

OOC: To clarify: The teleporter needs comprehensive photography, accurate three-dimensional models, holograms - something to get a good idea of the general vicinity. Memory will do if it's clear enough, which usually means recent, but if it's vague and he messes up he might end up in the wrong place entirely. He also needs coordinates, or at least a general idea of relative location (ex. 'fifty miles thataway').

In addition, while Ivan might still notice him with his abilities, it's worth noting that the teleporter is essentially a teenager dressed like a teenager with a camera phone. Essentially unremarkable in any visual manner. It is somewhat troubling that Ivan is seriously considering shooting a sixteen-year-old kid in the leg

{H-D}

[Jean Valjean]

OOC: I noted it, but that's Ivan for you. It would make a little more sense if I was willing to reveal more about his background, but I care too much about my storytelling credibility to do that right away. For now you're just going to understand that it's part of his character.

Your Honor,
Emperor Kraggh

[thelonewander]

IC: (Lone)

"I can give you the specs, but you'll have to come to my workshop to get some of the parts for the forge, and i'll take that cable." Lone grabed the cable, puling it into one of his power ports.

(Tragedy)

"The league base isn't far from here,right?" Alex asked this, not sure how far it was from the Empire State to the League HQ.

[Kumata]

IC - Gadgeteer @ Manchester Airport

"Where exactly is your workshop?" Asked Gadgeteer as he watched his armour's power levels rise. "I am... somewhat limited in my ability to travel. I cannot call upon jets as easily as the League."

IC - Gap @ The Coalition's Arctic HQ

The young villainess' search for another Coalition member to team up with was not going well. After nobody entered the small vending area where she had waited, she took to wandering the corridors of the group's vast headquarters. She'd encountered a good number of other supervillains all right, but none whom she could help - they were all returning from missions or already in the middle of things that she couldn't possibly join in on. Gap couldn't ignore the disdainful way in which some of the other villains addressed her, either. The good mood her father's praise had brought on was starting to wane.

Presently she noticed another villainess - a middle-eastern woman clad in a red and silver supersuit - coming up the corridor towards her.

"Hey!" Called the villainess. Gap stopped. As the other woman came close, Gap recognised from the design of her supersuit that she was the Coalition member known as Metallurge. They'd never met in person but Gap knew her all the same... she couldn't remember how right now, but that was irrelevant. "You're what's-her-name aren't you, Grand Cross' daughter?" Asked Metallurge.

"Yes, my name is Gap." She assumed her default emotionless expression and stood with arms crossed, staring at Metallurge.

"You're the girl who makes wormholes?"

"I can create wormholes, yes."

"Good, great! Well you're just the person who can help me. I'm in dire need of assistance and you're the perfect villain for the job!"

This statement broke through Gap's defenses and a smile crept onto her features. "Oh, uh... really?"

"Yep." Metallurge clapped Gap on the shoulder and grinned. "I'm dying of thirst and alcohol's the only remedy. Fancy making a wormhole so I can get to the Sinful Saloon?"

Gap frowned. So. Metallurge had been mocking her. Gap had half a mind to make a wormhole for the villainess leading straight into the heart of a volcano - but her good mood prevented the prank from stinging too deeply. Anyway, thought Gap, the Sinful Saloon was bound to contain other villains. Maybe she could find someone there whose mission she could tag along with.

"... all right," said Gap, playing up her unamused tone as a warning not to prank her again. Metallurge either didn't notice or didn't care. Gap concentrated, the air in the corridor rippled, and then a tear in spacetime about six feet wide formed in front of the pair. The two women hopped into the portal at the Coalition HQ, were treated to a rushing journey through swirling blackness, and emerged (Gap landed on her feet, Metallurge tripped) onto a thin, dingy carpet. The stench of stale beer, cigarette smoke and marijuana fumes immediately assaulted them. Gap looked around - the Sinful Saloon looked as seedy as ever...

Edited by Kumata, May 24 2012 - 03:17 PM.

[thelonewander]

IC: (Lone)

"it's in Hollywood. i'll give you the coordinates and specs now." And with that Lone started to send the needed info over the channel to Victor's armor.

[Lord of Adders Black]

IC: "I was supposed to check in every hour on the hour," said Captain Code, "So...depends on how long I was out."

[Dallas Winston]

IC: Saosin (Manchester Airport, Manchester, England)

Tilian glanced to his iPhone out of habit: surprisingly, it turned on, which meant the EMP Blackout had sent out was no longer an issue. He pulled up the countdown he'd had on the firing sequence of the Perun.

8 hours, 3 minutes, 52 seconds...

Current time EST was 4:57 P.M, which meant it was about 9:57 here...wow, the time had flown.

"You're supposed to check in in just under four minutes," he said. "What are you going to say to him?"

-Teezy

[Transairion]

IC: Mastermind froze in place, caught completely off gaurd. Sarah Winters? Sarah Winters.... Sarah Winters. The mutant's aura began to flare a familar blue, spreading out as to form afterimages of memories. Manchine's desert base, a duel with Saskeme, the Gaurdians hurling assaults this way and that... finally it settled upon a snowy scene, Sarah recognising herself in her old supersuit. It was Silver's first trip to the League HQ, and the first time he'd touched snow.... how he had enjoyed messing around then.

"Sarah Jane Winters..." he mused quietly, glancing down at his mishapen hand. The mutant shuddered then fell to his knees, overcome by sudden pain, and as he did so the memory-image began to fracture and disappate. "Sarah Winters would not be so.... foolish. Sarah Winters is not a villianess. Sarah Winters would not leave me to die" Mastermind croaked, pushing himself back to his feet as the memory-image of the pleasant snowy scene shattered completely. Silver was in there, somewhere, but Mastermind was in control.... or had shattered the hero's memories beyond recognition. "

"Sarah Winters gave up on him, so you are NOT Sarah Winters" Mastermind snarled, flaring his aura brightly as he lashed out mentally into Sarah's mind. He met with resistance that should not be there, a psychic barrier... so her ugly friend was psychic! A psychic beyond his detection no less, and one who knew far too much about Silver and Sluice to pull off this kind of cherade to manipulate Mastermind so. He would deal with that one later, increasing the power of his mental assault. The poor, unmaintained psychic barrier Silver had placed one month previous stood no chance against this kind of power, overwhelmed and shattering into non-existance: with it removed there should be nothing to prevent the mental pain Mastermind was trying to inflict.

[Ymper Trymon]

OOC: If this contradicts established plans for this scenario's unfolding, let me know and I will alter my post accordingly.

IC(Fellwyd): The alien had watched with growing impatience - and, he had to admit, a sliver of curiosity - as the scene had unfolded before him. When Mastermind - their opponent, and the target of this impromptu interrogation - proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that he had no intention of cooperating, the alien soldier decided it was his turn to act.

Without speaking, or uttering any sort of ostentatious battle cry, Fellwyd lowered his head and charged forward, aiming to drive his bone-plated head into Mastermind's abdomen, driving the air from his lungs and, hopefully, precluding any sort of damage the psychic might be able to cause - though, having no real experience dealing with psychics, he had no idea how long it would take Mastermind to cause some damage, or even what it would feel like if he tried.

[Kumata]

OOC: Nope, what we have planned shouldn't stop you from having Fellwyd react in whatever way you like.

IC - Sluice @ Superbeing Smackdown!

The blue-hued projections of Silver's memories surrounded Sluice, filling her with mixtures of hope and sadness.

"Sarah Winters would not be so.... foolish. Sarah Winters is not a villianess. Sarah Winters would not leave me to die"

The words stalled her. She couldn't think of a rebuttal or justification in the heat of the moment. No matter which way you looked at it, Sluice had left Silver to die - at his own request and for the fate of billions, yes, but still, Sluice had never seen it in quite that light before. It was a hard pill to swallow. Her eyes welled up with tears; she was going to apologize; to admit the shame and torment she'd felt ever since the day she'd seen Silver last.

But then Mastermind made his attack.

As the psychic assault bore down upon her mind Sluice staggered back. It was intense, furious and burning - like having a white-hot knife pressed deep into the back of her skull whilst an elephant sat on top of her head. It was unlike anything she'd ever experienced - far too fast and fierce for her mind to mount any kind of defense; all her surface thoughts were scattered, screaming. All of her anxiety was forgotten. The attack pushed past that - then on through doubt, sadness, fear, desperation, misery...

The heroine fell to the ground limply. Such was the strength of Mastermind's mental attack that her brain could simply not afford the effort to keep her body standing upright. Her eyes didn't even close. She might have died on the spot and it wouldn't have looked any different.

IC - Gadgeteer @ Manchester Airport

Hollywood. Tricky for Viktor to get to given that he was currently a wanted fugitive within the United States, but he wasn't about to reject the offer. He saved the coordinates that had been given to him and, seeing that his armoured battle suit was once again at maximum power levels, he detached the cable from Lone.

"The restoration of my armour is complete. We should join the others," Gadgeteer suggested...

Edited by Kumata, May 25 2012 - 07:42 AM.

[Transairion]

OOC: Kumata speaks the truth, I'll try and make it really clear I don't want you to interrupt in such a situation. Possibly by throwing you the length of a building

IC: Mastermind was so focused on his mental assault that he didn't sense the alien's approach until it was too late, taking the primitive-battering ram of an attack to the chest and sending him sprawling. The crowd throughly enjoyed seeing him knocked on his rump and cheered, especially since it was rare to see anyone get the jump on him at all. Snarling the mutant struggled back to his feet, panting and releasing an animalistic hiss in Fellwyd's direction... having drawn Mastermind's full attention, the mental attack harming Sarah ceased completely.

"One free hit is all you'll get" Mastermind snarled, forming an orb of blue-hued energy in the palm of his tri-fingered hand. It was one Sarah herself would recognise as one of Silver's "newbie" powers, a result of Omega Radiation exposure back in the Saskeme conflict. Unfortunatly, she was a bit preoccupied being sprawled on the floor to really explain that and what it'd do. Mastermind for one clearly wouldn't help there, as the mutant launched the pulsating sphere of psychic energy towards Fellwyd, and it rather likely to hurt.

OOC: Just a quick-reference guide for the powers Mastermind has stolen from Silver (and thus will use):

Psychic Blast - Like a Force push, represented by a launched 'wall' of psychic energy
Psychic Shield/Barrier - Usually a dome of energy that sheilds the user, and eventually cracks and breaks if too much stress is placed on the user. Stress on the shield itself = mental stress on the user, and can lead to unconciousness trying to keep such a shield up
Mental Assault - It basically makes your head hurt really really bad. And/or how KN described, with the elephant on her head
Psychic Orb - Similar to a blast, but orb-shaped that explodes upon impact
Psychic Nova - An exceedingly damaging, 360 degree version of the orb. Incredibly stressful on the mind.
Psychic Wristblade - A blade of psychic energy extending from part of the arm/wrist. It burns/cuts through a lot of materials on contact, so no touchy!
Psychic Buzzsaw - Like the blade, but shaped like a saw that is directed/sent flying through the air
General telekinesis/telepathy - Normal psychic stuff, lifting stuff and some ability to read minds. Gets kind of hard to do so when they don't want you in there, though.

Silver additionaly had dual-powers in that he could also turn invisible (to the eye + a lot of visual systems, but not all), but Mastermind does not have this ability. You have to see his ugly mug 24/7

[Lord of Adders Black]

IC: "Er, nothing?" Captain Code said, "You smashed up my link to him, remember. In four minutes he's going to know something's wrong because the 'Connection Lost' error message should tell him."

[Dallas Winston]

IC: Saosin (Manchester Airport, Manchester, Airport)

"Take mine," he said, tossing it to him. "Say that yours was smashed in our fight and that you had to take one off my unconscious body."

-Teezy

[Lord of Adders Black]

IC: Codes eyes glowed green as he took the communicator. He was using his technopathic powers to tune in to the right frequency.

"You know they're going to figure it out when the satellite doesn't fire, right?" he said, still hacking the communicator, "I assume I get protective custody since I'm co-operating?"

[Dallas Winston]

IC: Saosin (Manchester Airport, Manchester, England)

"Nice cushy cell away from the general population in the League Penitentiary of your choice," he said with a shrug. "San Fran is nice this time of year, if I can make a recommendation."

-Teezy

[Toa Korkoa: Toa of plasma]

IC: Ember stepped up to Tillian, clearing his throat. "If we're going to the Saloon, we should maybe go now. Also, since I'm the one who knows where it is, can I fly the jet? Yeah yeah, I may not be the most trustworthy one here, but I /can/ fly it, and I know how to get there."

OOC: By the way, where /is/ the Sinful Saloon?

[Kumata]

OOC: All I've ever said about its location is that it's in 'central USA'. I honestly don't mind so pick a place.

IC - Gap @ The Sinful Saloon

"Ah, that's what I need," grinned Metallurge, straightening up and heading towards the bar. Gap stayed put, surveying the place. There were a number of villains dotted about, some in costume, others not. Beyond the smell there was also noise; music from a jukebox mingled with the sounds of a wall-mounted television, and within that the sharp clack of snooker cues hitting balls could be heard from a table in one corner. Every so often the face of a high-ranking Coalition member would interrupt the TV in a burst of static, barking orders at one of the seated villains who would promptly leave on a new mission.

Gap sat down at an empty table, looking around. She was eager to join one of those missions, but didn't want to get in over her head by embarking on one that required skills she didn't have. So for now she was going to sit here, keeping her eyes and ears open for any interesting assignments...

Edited by Kumata, May 26 2012 - 06:39 PM.

[A billion cats]

IC: Skyra - League Mansion -

"Alright, I'll see you all in the hanger." Skyra replied as he walked out the door and headed straight for the hanger. While he was at it he began to practice his sword-fighting techniques, swinging his katana skillfully through the hallway.

[Ymper Trymon]

IC(Fellwyd): The sphere hit the alien in the chest and exploded rather promptly, sending him flying backwards. The alien executed a quite involuntary backflip, but, with some effort, managed to land in a crouch, sliding back several feet before he ran out of momentum.

[Chronicler of Ko-Koro]

IC:
Five minutes, thirty-eight seconds. Fade counted off the numbers in his head as he ventured further into the tower. He couldn’t carry a timer on his person without risking Frigid’s suspicion - heck, just carrying the patched-together League comm he’d borrowed from the resistance was dangerous enough, but he’d need it to coordinate his efforts later - so the only way Fade could keep track of how much time he had left was with his own mental countdown.

This was probably for the best; all things considered. He desperately needed something to calm his nerves, and forcing himself to keep time was certainly helping. It was a probably a rare thing for a ticking timer on an explosive to calm someone down, but at the moment the bombs were pretty low on Fade’s list of concerns. Not only was he attempting to bluff someone who could shatter him into a billion icy shards on a whim, but that someone was her, of all people.

The tunnel opened up into a massive cavern, leaving Fade standing atop a thin platform of ice overlooking it all. He glanced upwards; the walls of the cavern stretched far up into the tower, like massive crisscrossing ravines cutting their way through the entire interior of the fortress. Suddenly the platform lurched, drawn up the side of the icy walls like an elevator. Fade had more than a sneaking suspcion it was taking him all the way to the top.

Come on, get a hold of yourself. It’s nothing to worry ‘bout, Fade told himself. You’ve fought her before. For the love of god, by the last count you’ve killed her at least twice. You can handle this. No, it doesn’t matter if you can handle it. You have to. A lot of people are counting on you, so your feelings shouldn’t even enter into it. It's just a mission, same as any other.

The lift rose up for what might have seemed like an eternity if Fade hadn’t tasked himself with counting the seconds. Finally, with a bit less than five minutes left on his count, the elevator slowed to a halt, reaching what had to be the top of the tower. Fade didn’t even want to consider how high up he was; he’d had more than his share of high-altitude incidents, none of which he was particularly eager to relive.

Eh, what the heck, he thought to himself as he stepped through the tunnel opening in the ice. Not like I haven’t relived enough today, anyway...

---

I don’t suppose you could watch where you’re swinging that? a voice echoed in Skyra’s mind. I’m having a hard enough time focusing without worrying you’ll take someone’s head off by accident, you know.

A short distance down the hall, Mystic was resting cross-legged on a bench. Her eyes were shut and she had a hand raised to her temple; it would appear she was attempting to focus her psychic powers. Attempting was probably the operative word, her tone suggesting she was less than successful in this endeavor.

OOC: Still not quite up to date on current events, but I figure I might as well try throwing one of my characters back into the fray and try catching up on the fly.

[For Science!]

Edited by Chronicler of Ko-Koro, May 27 2012 - 02:14 AM.

[Half-Dragon]

NPC: Ultionis nodded silently and left down the hall toward the hangar, though he did take a different route from Skyra. Mostly just to avoid another incident. He'd already restocked, reloaded, cleaned and performed maintainance on all his equipment and grabbed a rebreather for his mask. Just in case. All that was left was for the others to get ready and they could take off, the sooner the better.

(H-D)

[stargatestaticTH]

IC:(ozo)"yes,the base is pretty close...we could probably make it there before sundown."ozo jumps off the building,hoverboard at his feet.

[Lord of Adders Black]

IC: Captain Code finally found what he was looking for and put the communicator by his ear.

"R-Alpha this is Twin-C Beta reporting in. Position is secure."

There was a buzz from the other side in reply, and Captain Code switched off. "There? Happy?"

* * * * * * *

Over in the Sinful Saloon, if Gap and Metallurge had cast their eye over to one corner they might have seen a lone figure drinking with a Roman style helmet resting on his table next to a glass of something dark. Something in the pocket of his overcoat beeped at him. He pulled out some sort of phone and held it to his ear.

"Receiving you Twin-C Beta. Awaiting next check-in."

[A billion cats]

IC: Skyra - League Mansion -

If I took someone's head off, it wouldn't be by accident. He couldn't help but think back, he wasn't sure if she had 'heard' that or not, but he decided not to worry about it as he put his katana back in it's sheathe. He walked up to the bench and sat down next to her, figuring he wasn't in a rush to get to the hanger anyway. "Hi Mystic."

[Dallas Winston]

IC: Saosin (Manchester Airport, Manchester, England)

"I'm getting there," he replied stoically, motioning for Geoffrey Pryce, the League Court executive, to walk over. Pryce nodded, and Tilian moved over towards the other man and began to whisper to him. Seconds later, he returned to the group with a briefcase. He opened it up, revealing five communicators. He gave one to Ember, one to Whistler, and then put one in his own ear.

"There. We're not in the dark any more," he said. "Now, Ember. Where to?"

-Teezy

[Toa Korkoa: Toa of plasma]

IC: N-Ber looked at the communicator in his hand for a moment before grinning and sticking it in his ear. "Oh-ho, a League communicator... Let me tell you, coming from the other end, these communicators are the /best/!" By this point, the ex-villain had begun heading for the replacement jet. "Now, the Saloon is in Kansas, just inside of the Nebraska/Kansas border. We can set down, cloaked, in a field a few minutes walk away, they'll never see us coming. While we're in there, remember, act like villains. Play your parts. Just... Try not to make conversation, because someone might ask an innocent question that any Coalition member should know, but you guys wouldn't. So, be careful, and be on the lookout for Romulus." With that, Ember Gunn slid into the jets cockpit and started up the ignition sequence, using knowledge he'd borrowed from his communal memory with Plasmfire.

[Chronicler of Ko-Koro]

[IC - Mystic] "Hello, again."

Mystic relaxed her posture slightly and opened her eyes, although she didn't turn to Skyra as he sat down. No use trying to meditate anymore, not with him hanging about. Of course, it wasn't like she'd had much success in that regard to begin with, anyway...

"...Just for the record, I... I'm not quite sure if I should find that comforting or not..." she replied, making it clear whether or not she'd picked up on Skyra's thoughts.

---

[IC - Hivemind] In another corner of the Sinful Saloon, a man in a navy blue three-piece suit and white balaclava sat alone at his table. Dare lounged casually in his chair, watching the other members of the Coalition present. A few gave him dirty glances, others evaded eye contact; for the most part, nearly everyone kept their distance from him.

With a group like the Coalition of Corruption, there were plenty of reasons to be wary of a man who acted like a human lie detector. But Dare liked it that way. He loved the wary, hushed tones others used when they had to talk to him, relished the quickened, flustered beating of their hearts. His power might not win him many friends in the Coalition, but it was also a power that made people afraid to be his enemy. Everyone had secrets they’d rather keep hidden, and it was best not to anger a man who could reveal them at the most inopportune time.

Without taking his eyes off the other patrons of the Saloon, Dare reached across the table, placing a gloved hand on his martini. His hands clasped around his drink... and instantly recoiled, red-hot pain shooting up his arm as if someone had driven a dagger through his palm. His vision was a blur, images occasionally bubbling through the haze: a reddish stain on his white velvet glove, an insect crawling on the rim of his glass. Through the tears, he saw the blurry figure of a woman take a seat next to him, orange-red hair catching the dim light of the seedy bar.

“Hello again, Dare,” Hivemind said with a smirk as she took her seat. “Now, what seems to be the problem?”

“H-Hivemind...” Dare stammered, words struggling to form. “I... I see y-you recovered after y-your last mission...”

“Surprised, are we?”

The mad scientist paused, picking up the bug from Dare’s martini and examining it as it ran along her arm.

“Oooh... what a specimen have we got here, huh? Paraponera clavata, better known as the bullet ant. Has one of the most painful stings in the insect kingdom; the cool name is just a nifty bonus,” she said. “Oh, don’t worry, it’s not fatal... most of the time, anyway. You’ll just spend the next twenty-four hours wishing you were dead, is all. Funny getting stung by one here, of all places... I mean, they’re usually native to Nicaragua...”

“You...” gasped Dare, “why... w-why are you doing this?”

“Me? You think I did this?” Hivemind asked, feigning indignity. “I can’t be expected to be held responsible for what every bug in the world is doing, now can I?”

Dare cried out in pain; a few patrons looked up for a moment or two, but for the most part no one was paying much mind to this corner of the bar. Neither Dare nor Hivemind were likely to win any Coalition popularity contests, so there was little reason to fret over their disagreements.

“Tell me, which was hurting you there: the sting, or the lying?” Hivemind asked, smug satisfaction hidden underneath a veil of clinical detachment. “Can you even distinguish the two at the moment? Your arm must feel like it’s on fire right now..."

Hivemind leaned in close, whispering in Dare's ear.

"Now, let's get down to business. We both know what this is about. The Tornado affair. When you sent me after him, were you really expecting me to make it back alive?" she hissed. "You couldn't just kill me, could you? You already make half the Coalition nervous; bump me off, and they'll start wondering whether they'll need to do the same to you first. But if the silly little bug girl goes and gets herself killed taking on a dangerous and deranged ex-operative? Who'd even think twice? You didn't count on me having backup; after all, why on earth would I ask for help?"

"I... I j-just told you that y-y-you had a m-mission..." Dare wheezed. "If you... c-couldn't handle it... on y-your own... t-that's your problem. i-isn't it?"

"So, that's how you're gonna play it?" said Hivemind. "Try and weasel your way out of this on technicalities?"

Dare let loose a weak, pained chuckle as he glared at Hivemind. Anger was probably just about the only thing keeping him from passing out right now.

"Well... when the entire world k-knows when you're l-l-lying... learning to twist t-the truth is a useful skill," he said. "Besides... s-suppose you are right... what then? Who... who'd b-believe you? The word of a disobedient, loudmouth lab rat... against a man who c-can only tell the truth? Good luck. These folks might h-hate us both, but do you know the d-difference between the two of us? They don't have any reason to be afraid of you."

"I dunno... my own army of poisonous and deadly insects seems scary enough," said Hivemind with a shrug, reclining in her chair.

"Really? Let's... j-just see... how f-f-far that gets y-you..." said Dare, drops of sweat dripping off his mask. "T-t-trust me... it'll b-be f-f-fun to w-watch... fun t-to watch you... y-y-you... GAH!"

"Yeah... you should probably get that looked at, and soon," Hivemind muttered. "Enjoy the next twenty-four hours, by the way."

Cursing under his breath, Dare left the table as quickly as he could. Clutching his hand, he crashed through the nearest door and staggered out of the Saloon. Hivemind shrugged, reaching over and pilfering his abandoned martini. She took a sip as she glanced about the saloon's other patrons, taking mental notes and making snap judgments. Buncha weirdos in tonight, as usual; who the heck thought the Roman Legionnaire look was gonna make a comeback, anyway?

[For Science!]

Edited by Chronicler of Ko-Koro, May 28 2012 - 01:16 AM.

[Kumata]

IC - Gadgeteer @ Manchester Airport

Gadgeteer and Lone re-joined the others just as they were about to embark on the League Jet.

"What information did you get out of Captain Code, and where do you plan on taking this jet?" Gadgeteer kept an authoritative tone in his voice. He still wanted to exercise some level of control over this mission; not that he particularly liked trying to get these people to follow orders, but he felt a small concern that if he became superfluous then the group might not be interested in having him accompany them further. And he needed to stay with the group. Being able to prove he'd played a vital role in preventing the destruction of a city and taking down a superhuman terrorist would go a long way to perfecting his masquerade as a hero.

IC - Gap @ The Sinful Saloon

Gap pulled off her grid-patterned facemask and leaned back in her chair, massaging her nose. The thing dug into the bridge of her nose uncomfortably sometimes; as she put it back on she idly thought about having it re-designed. As she moved her gaze back and forth across the saloon she tried to identify everyone she set eyes on and work out whether they could do with her help. There was Dragonmouth playing snooker against Malleable-Man; if they had time to play then they likely had no mission to embark on. Invis-O was sat at a table amongst some other villains she didn't know; they were laughing and appeared to be joking at Invis-O's expense. A few had minor wounds and tears in their supersuits; they had probably just returned from a mission. Cobrahood was sat alone, drinking (fittingly) from a bottle of snake wine and looking thoroughly depressed. Mission or not, he didn't look to be pleasant company. Gap noticed a villain in streamlined black armour studying a set of blueprints - he looked promising - but before she could go over to him he had already gotten up and walked out the door. In the corner a Roman-themed villain was talking into a communicator; maybe-

"Can I get you a drink?"

Gap looked up, annoyed to be interrupted mid-thought, and surprised to see Metallurge looking down at her. The villainess' Bindi glinted as it caught the light.

"What?"

"I said d'you want a drink. You brought me here; least I can do is buy you a drink in return."

"But drinks here are free for Coalition members anyway."

"Well... there goes my paper-thin pretense at generosity. Still, want me to get you one while I'm up there?"

"I don't like to drink before a mission."

Metallurge raised an eyebrow. "You're on a mission?"

"I'm looking for one."

"In that case, I'll have a chat with some people while I'm up there, see what's available."

Gap stared at Metallurge for a moment. "Why are you... being helpful?"

"Honestly? You're the boss' daughter. I'm just doing my bit of brown-nosing for the day." Metallurge walked away with a grin. Gap mulled on that comment for a moment. She was glad for the help, certainly, but it also bugged her. The way others treated her was always because of who her father was...

Edited by Kumata, May 28 2012 - 05:49 AM.

[Dallas Winston]

IC: Saosin (Manchester Airport, Manchester, England)

"Hexas has a man inside the Sinful Saloon back Stateside," Tilian said, heading onboard the jet with his hand on Captain Code's shoulder: the technopath had been rehandcuffed as a precautionary measure. "We have about an hour to get there before the Captain has to check in again. I want him captured before that."

He turned back to Ember.

"And if I catch you trying to tip off any of your ex-comrades in the Coalition, I won't be afraid to toss you off this team in a heartbeat and into a cell with Neo over here."

-Teezy

Edited by #firstworldtyler, May 28 2012 - 12:12 PM.

[Ymper Trymon]

IC(Whistler): The businessman stuck the communicator in his ear, and turned to Gadgeteer.
"So, I suppose I'll be waiting in the jet again, while everyone else takes care of business? Can't have me getting recognized, and as I'm the only one without a proper disguise, well... don't want the operation getting blown on account of a well-known businessman."

[Kumata]

IC - Gadgeteer @ Manchester Airport

"It would be useful to have at least one person remain in the jet," said Gadgeteer to The Whistler. "You can keep it ready for a quick take-off, should we require it..."

[Toa of Dancing]

Dieter Geist, Grau/Jocasta's Library\IC:

That was quite likely a fair sight more detrimental to Madness then it was to Grau. After all, it was the back of Madness's skull that slammed into the bookcase. On the flip side, Grau wasn't able to phase fast enough to avoid multiple books slamming down upon him from above. With a grunt, he ignored the pain and kept squeezing his target's throat. Now that they were under a pile of books, Jocasta was cut off - at least for a moment.

[A billion cats]

IC: Skyra - League Mansion -

Skyra raised an eyebrow, somewhat amused at this. "So you did hear that, I guess I tend to think err....loudly, if that makes sense." Skyra replied. "Though for the record, I'm not planning on beheading anyone if I can help it, even if it was somewhat tempting."