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Post by Ginz ❤ on Oct 11, 2016 11:39:44 GMT -5
Last round was really exciting, wasn't it? But what was with that weird powerout? <_< >_> Anyway, here is the DOCTOR ESPIN VS TABITHA AND ZENITH SHOWDOWN!! (as seen through infrared glasses)
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Post by ♥ Azzie on Oct 11, 2016 14:27:18 GMT -5
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Post by Pixie on Oct 14, 2016 22:25:36 GMT -5
This is a Shakespearean sonnet, in iambic pentameter: I’m Scaletta, but Felicita too. Lightning Rod has become only Greenwood. In part for his fam’ly that life is through, So what is the price of my making good? Nyx threatened Bill, who knows both of my lives. I know what I heard in her booming voice. I don’t want my parents to meet Tim’s knives! It hangs upon Sinclair’s horrible choice. But in his place could anything be right? Each choice means that someone suffers greatly-- The innocents who did not choose this fight. The evilness has overgrown lately. It’s too late for me to leave this cruel war. This city needs heroes more than before!
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Post by Celestial on Oct 15, 2016 4:23:07 GMT -5
Wrote a collab where Tabitha goes to have a chat with a villain. Starring Tiger as the one and only Tripwire! On the day of his disappearance, searching for Ossie proved fruitless. With the lair abandoned and the villains appearing as though they had practically vanished into the earth, there were no leads to even point in the direction that he had gone. Nobody who lived around him or had seen him before the kidnapping had any useful leads either. All that had led to increasing frustration on Tabitha’s part. What was even more annoying was that the villains had left no clue as to what they were hoping to achieve via the kidnapping. Of course, with Ossie being Sinclair’s son, there were a number of possible motives, from ransom to getting him to resign to even using Ossie as leverage to get the heroes to do what they wanted. It might have even been something else, some part of a bigger plan the heroes had no idea of. Eventually, Tabitha had gotten frustrated with the search and instead, decided to approach things from another angle. She took the train to the outskirts of Heraclia, though in the opposite direction to the mihtium lab. Instead, she got off at the closest stop to the prison specially for metahumans, though they kept other villians apprehended by HCN there too. After showing her identification, the guard asked her who she was here to see. “Tripwire,” Tabitha replied, remembering the woman who had attacked Ossie the day before they met. “I have some questions for her.” The warden confirmed her request and Tabitha was taken to a meeting room divided by plexiglass, where she waited for Tripwire to make her entrance. The hunter was brought in with her hands cuffed behind her back and her short-cropped hair in some disarray, but a satisfied smirk on her face. Her hunting attire was gone, even her boots - she was relegated to socks. A guard led her to the empty chair on the prison side of the glass; once Tripwire had sat down, leaning back in her seat, the guard retreated a few paces, keeping a wary eye on the villain. If Tripwire was uneasy with the scrutiny, she didn’t show it, just smirking at the glass. “Well well, Mary Poppins herself! You come to talk trade, or is this gonna be one of the boring interrogations?” “Oh, I certainly hope not. I would hardly want to bore you, Miss Tripwire, if I may call you that,” Tabitha replied with a cheerful smile, not fazed by the comments. “I came here to ask about your friends who are still at large. Do you remember a young man named Oswald Sinclair? William Sinclair’s son. Apparently, he had been kidnapped by your group.” “Has he? Well, I’ll bet that sours Sinclair’s day somethin’ fierce.” She didn’t look especially perturbed or sympathetic. “Did those clowns use one of my traps to do it? I really thought they’d have stopped messing with my toys after that whole incident with Blue Bandit and the lost finger.” “I wish I could tell you but I am afraid we do not know. Nobody saw him be kidnapped and if there were any of your traps there, we did not find them,” came the very frank reply from Tabitha. “What I am curious about is why Ossie was targeted, aside from the obvious, I mean. There are a thousand things one could achieve with that but so far, they have not given us any indicator of what they want,” Tabitha smiled at Tripwire. “Any chance you can enlighten us, Miss Tripwire?” “Hey, like you said - there’s a thousand reasons.” Tripwire smirked back. “It might not even have been the cape and cowl crowd this time around, y’know. Not everybody goes in for the full supervillain experience when they go bushranger.” She raised an eyebrow. “Sure sounds like there’s a lot of heroes falling off the wagon, doesn’t it?” “Just because it sounds that way does not necessarily mean it is true,” Tabitha rested her head in her hand. “And in this case we know it was one of your group: a piece of Nyx Nightshadow’s cloak was found at the scene,” she paused, allowing Tripwire to take in the information. “I have to give it to your friends; everything they do feels calculated, deliberate. Like there is a plan behind it. I am very intrigued to find out what Ossie’s kidnapping has to do with it all.” Tripwire laughed, a noise that sounded a little like a dog’s bark. “She really lost a piece of her cape? Oh, man - I’m gonna have to tell her that next time I see her. Girl’s got a flair for drama , but she’s not the greatest at reining it in.” She snickered. “I can just picture her tryin’ to jimmy a window open in full regalia. You can tell Nyx used to be one of you lot.” Nodding at Tabitha’s attire, the hunter added, “How often do the coat-tails get in your way, eh?” “Oh, never, in fact,” Tabitha shrugged. “You will be welcome to speak to Nyx Nightshadow when you see her but I make no promises as to when that will be, I’m afraid. The point is, however, Ossie was kidnapped by one of your friends, and I know for a fact that you were harassing him earlier. Would you care to explain why?” “Oh, that,” Tripwire said with a shrug of her shoulders that was probably supposed to substitute for a dismissive wave of her hand. “I didn’t realize Gatekeeper had a kid who looked so much like him - I thought he seemed a bit short, but hey, he’s getting long in the tooth, right? Could’ve been slouching. He was even wearing his dear ol’ dad’s superhero colors. Imagine my embarrassment when he turned out to just be a skipper. So, yeah - I hit him with a bolt. It’s no secret me and ‘Keeper aren’t real fond of each other.” Tabitha frowned. “So that was simply an accident? It had nothing to do with the plan regarding the mihtium theft and the hypnosis of the hero known as Glitch? Or anything else the villains are plotting?” “Well, I did mean to hit him with a bolt - but nah, wasn’t part of any grand scheme, aside from paying Sinclair back. And definitely nothing to do with that hypnosis bit, you don’t let a lion into your blind no matter what leash you have on it.” “Nevertheless, Miss Tripwire, your friends have done just that. So if it’s such a terrible idea, in your opinion, why would they engage in such an action?” she chuckled. “They must think it is worth it.” “Sure, or they wouldn’t be doing it - not the smartest move to make on a lark.” She shrugged. “Or maybe it is for kicks. I’m not on that hunting party.” “No, I do not think so,” Tabitha shook her head. “Everything they have done so far has been carefully planned, as I said. Given his powers, Glitch would be an asset to them and he has been. They would not have been able to acquire the mihtium information without him, at least not as easily,” she looked up. “Have you had any encounters with the metal mihtium, Miss Tripwire? Given it’s properties, I am sure you would have gained some use from it.” “You think so, huh?” Tripwire said, leaning back in her chair a little more, bracing herself with a knee against the bottom of the table. “I’m sure the others can find some fun things to turn it into, but that stuff ain’t for me. Where’s the skill in a trap that just reads brainwaves? Might as well put little rockets and steering programs in my crossbow bolts and bullets so they can go find whatever I’m shooting at.” She snorted disdainfully, though still smirking. Tabitha looked at her curiously from the other side of the plexiglass. “You are an interesting lady, Miss Tripwire. It does not seem that there is anything that this group has done that matches your agenda. Perhaps you might have been better off on your own, instead of running with whatever plan they had concocted,” she placed her hands back on the table. “It seems to me like they only used you as a pawn anyway.” “Thought you said they didn’t use any of my traps,” Tripwire replied with a grin. “How do you figure they used me, exactly?” “By sending you after all the small prey and then letting you stay here while they continue on with their plan,” Tabitha stated. “It does not seem to me that they care about you at all, Miss Tripwire. They got what they needed from you and threw you away.” “It’s called ‘taking a bounty,’” Tripwire retorted, “and I work alone. The lair’s just a nice place to crash and drum up some work between things. Or was, before you and your mates barged in, from what I’ve seen on the news. But that’s a mighty big accusation coming from you - or were you planning on letting me out of here if you got what information you wanted?” Tripwire added mockingly. “I was, in fact, considering arranging a deal with you and the prosecution in exchange for information. I do try to reward a favour in kind,” Tabitha stated with a sincere smile. “But that all depends on what you tell me. I only want to know what those who are currently free are trying to accomplish,” she shrugged. “The way I see it, Miss Tripwire, you have nothing to lose and something to gain by telling me.” Tripwire scoffed. “The best a deal can do is drop a couple years off. And I doubt that chat would last more than five minutes. Besides, I don’t aim to be in here much longer.” The guard tensed, and Tripwire rolled her eyes. “Relax, I’m not about to bust through the glass. There’d be no point to it - Miss Poppins here would have me back in a jiffy.” “A few years can make a difference, as can five minutes. It does not have to be an all-or-nothing gamble,” Tabitha smiled, folding her fingers together. “If you wish, you can even give me what you know in the form of a puzzle. That way you can even claim that you told me nothing and I figured it all out myself.” “Still don’t aim to be here long enough for a few years to change anything,” Tripwire said, rolling her shoulders - but she seemed to consider something, eyeing Tabitha the way she might have looked over one of her traps. “Although I’ll say the idea of you struggling over some riddle and half-truth is pretty ace. Especially with it coming from me - it’s not puzzles I do, you know.” She grinned toothily. “Let’s see…” After a moment, the hunter shrugged and said, “When you’re tracking prey, you start at the last place you saw it and look for clues. Sometimes you can track it to a favorite spot. Or its den - and from there, you can find all sorts of little things to tell you what your quarry’s been up to.” Leaning forward, Tripwire added, “Just watch out - I hear some of the rooms are rigged with traps.” Her grin curled into a cruel smirk. Tabitha tapped a finger against her temple, considering her words carefully. A broad smile suddenly blossomed across her face. “I see. Well, thank you, Miss Tripwire. I would say you have been very helpful but we shall yet see,” she pushed herself up off her chair. “Nevertheless, I shall speak with the prosecutors. Whether you intend to serve the time or not, I am a woman of my word.” “I’d say I guess we’ll see, but I’ll be out on the trail by then.” Tripwire got to her feet, stretching her arms as best she could. With a smirk, she added almost mockingly, “Happy hunting.” “Thank you,” Tabitha tipped her hat. “Good day, Miss Tripwire.”
Tripwire to English dictionary: Bushranger - Outlaw (Australian) Skipper - Young deer (hunting) Blind - As in a hunter’s blind Ace - Great or excellent (Australian)
If Tiger mucked up any Aussie-slang, give her a shout and she’ll fix it ^^
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Post by Thorn on Oct 15, 2016 4:42:24 GMT -5
So I've been putting this off because it's not my best writing ( The Scrac that Smiles Back if you remember, this was the 'other stuff' I kept running off to do when we were collabing! xP) but I figure it makes sense to share it, especially given that Tabitha was investigating what actually went on. So. Here's a segment from Ossie's kidnapping! “I would love to have a few words with you,” Nyx said, continuing to move towards the occupant- a young man in his late teens or early twenties, with dark blonde hair and bright blue eyes, sitting on a worn sofa. For a former cast member of Hero City, the boy’s resemblance to William Sinclair couldn’t have been missed; but for his age he could’ve been the CEO’s twin. Well, easy to see that I have the right guy.
“Wh-what the-” He stammered, lurching to his feet in surprise. Ossie’s eyes widened as he seemed to recognize Nyx’s outfit, and he sputtered a curse. His hand shot towards his side table, scooping up his smart device and jamming it into his ear before he tried to bolt around the couch. Nyx gave chase, climbing over the couch and swatting the smartdevice out of his grasp, even as she conjured a shield around them both. Ossie fumbled, having managed to smash the call button but not entirely sure which number on his contact list it was connecting to.
“What do you want with me?” He demanded, trying to back away and bumping into the shield. “If this is about Tripwire, I am terribly sorry I didn’t let her mount my head on her wall!”
He looked so much like his father, even looking at him and hearing him mock her was more than Nyx was prepared to deal with. What happened next was not, she realised on reflection, actually in the plan. It did keep him still long enough to give their actual plan a better chance, however.
“Yes, you seem utterly devastated,” she smirked, driving an elbow into his face. Ossie jerked, the blow connecting with the side of his jaw so that cried out in pain, stumbling to the floor as blood filled his mouth. He whimpered in pain, looking up at his tormentor as he spat out something- one of his own teeth.
“My father isn’t going to cave to whatever your demands are, you know,” he snarled, his voice thick around the fluid in his mouth and swelling in his jaw. “This won’t get you anywhere!”
Huh. He’s more resilient than I thought.
Nyx couldn’t decide what would best suit the situation, so she kept her expression as neutral as possible, giving only a small and fleeting smile right before she spoke:
“Trust me. We know what we are doing. This will get us everywhere.”
There was no way Sinclair would let his own family suffer at the hands of villains because of his network’s actions. And if he did? Well, that would just make for good viewing.
She fished around in an inside pocket, opening a small case with the greatest delicacy. Four darts stored inside- a gift, she supposed, from Tripwire, though why she would give her this Nyx really had no idea. She let her shield down to step back and throw two darts in quick succession, one into each of the young man’s legs. When you get back from your little holiday, Tripwire, I’ll be sure to thank you properly.
Caught off guard, Ossie barely had time to register what was happening before the darts hit his legs, making him yip slightly in pain. Almost immediately the limbs in question were overcome by a tingling, numb sensation, the muscles twitching erratically. He glanced over to his phone, vaguely hearing a muffled voice on the other end but unable to tell who it was or what they were saying.
“Call for help!” he snapped desperately as he tried- with very limited success- to drag himself away by his non-paralyzed arms. “Please, call for help, it’s N-”
Nyx had moved as soon as she realised what he was up to. She none too gently took hold of his face and clamped a chloroform-soaked cloth across his mouth and nose, unable to stamp on the phone from this distance but managing to kick it further away from them both- hopefully far enough away to render his muffled protests inaudible.
More gently, mainly on account of not wanting to get his blood all over her sleeve, Nyx lowered the now unconscious Oswald to the ground. Much to her annoyance, the force-field was harder than usual to summon- she dearly hoped that after this they would get at least one day, perhaps two, where there was no fighting or fleeing and she could recover.
She peered out the window. Hmmm. She could probably still manage one shield, dropped onto a weaker one designed to help break that fall. Yes. It would have to do.
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Post by ♥ Azzie on Oct 20, 2016 14:03:54 GMT -5
Dynamic did a press conference the round before last, that I forgot to put up. Whoops! Dynamic was early.
There was still a good ten minutes left until the press conference started, and they'd already done their stretches, fixed their hair and done a mic check. Ordinarily they weren't a nervous person. They loved this life, loved the drama and the thrills of television. They loved the feeling of adrenaline they got from doing a perfect backflip. And even more than that, they loved this city, and they loved helping to keep it safe. And that was a good part of the problem today- because for the first time since they'd been on the show, Heraclia was showing clear signs of an organized attack, and that had people nervous. People who included Dynamic themselves, if they were entirely honest.
At the motion from the lady peeking in the door, Dynamic shook their head. This was still their job, and it was time to do it the best way they could. Running from inside, they cartwheeled out onto the stage and landed with a little spin in front of the podium. They heard some cheers- but noted that even that was quieter now.
"Good morning everyone! My name's Dynamic, and I'm here in response to recent events that have a lot of people a little worried. As you know, there has been an increase in criminal activity in this city, and there have been a couple of incidents where the integrity of certain heroes was brought into question. We've all been taking this very seriously. But I want to assure you that you are safe! All the forces of this city, heroes and police and medical personnel, are working together to solve this. And in the meantime, around the clock me and my fellow heroes are working with police to make sure nobody innocent is hurt!"
There was some applause at this, and Dynamic stepped back with a relieved smile. The reminders had helped their own nerves, too, and when they stepped forward to take questions, they did so with a braver face.
"Are there any theories as to who is perpetrating these crimes? Are they linked?" A reporter held her microphone forward. "They are believed to be linked, yes. As for who is behind them, there are some solid leads, but nothing I can mention at this time until they're confirmed."
"Do you have a statement on the reports that Fireflyman sprung a trap on Nimbus?" hurried another, almost before Dynamic had finished talking. "I have heard that, but I don't know enough about the situation to comment." Dynamic admitted.
"Are the rumors true about Wulfric Weisle singing an opera with Tabitha Kingsley?" Dynamic thought they could safely ignore that one, especially as there was another reporter edging his way toward them.
"Dynamic, people are saying you were yourself a victim of one such crime. What can you say about that?" Dynamic paused. "It's true. I returned home the other evening to find Tripwire, and a number of her signature traps. Along with one of my colleagues, Chlorolad, we subdued her, and she was arrested."
"But if these people managed to track you down, what does this say about the safety of the rest of us?" The first reporter jumped in. "These villains have been causing mayhem, but it isn't random," Dynamic admitted. "We aren't entirely sure what they're after, but we believe they have a plan. What we are sure of is that they aren't a match for us." They looked over the crowd, determination blazing in their eyes. "Tripwire attacked me in my own home, and she was defeated. Screaming Scimitar attempted to rob an ice cream establishment, and he too was arrested. Time and again has shown that those with villainous intent are no match for Heraclia's heroes. But still they try. They think they can take anything they want- well, I assure you, they cannot take our city. This is OUR HOME, and all of us from Hero City are going to work tirelessly to protect it, and to protect all of you. Thank you." They backed up even as more reporters approached; the time limit had passed two minutes ago. Dynamic hadn't exactly meant to filibuster, but...
"Nice job, Dynamic," someone smiled as Dynamic stepped back into the building. They faintly recognized the man as being one of Hero City's network executives, but all thoughts of him were driven out of their head as they picked up their smartdevice and saw the message.
"Oswald Sinclair missing. Report to HCN HQ ASAP."
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Post by The Scrac that Smiles Back on Oct 20, 2016 17:19:11 GMT -5
So stuff from previous missions: ProfileIt was for the orphans. Sometimes you don't know a character has mostly purple hair until you draw them without their helmet.
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Post by Mostly Harmless (flufflepuff) on Oct 25, 2016 19:36:19 GMT -5
I've been waiting to post this! *squeal* Also, special thanks to Twillie for changing up the requirements. If anything, it actually gave me this idea and made it much easier! The mission was to draw your hero in a video game and Twillie tampered it "your hero has to cosplay as someone in that game and it has to look like the game universe". So I did all the sprites the background, the game elements myself. >w< Headcanon: in this universe, Mizshu's still technically a kid in body and spirit, so she speaks in Kristen ITC.
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Post by Twillie on Oct 25, 2016 19:41:41 GMT -5
Mostly Harmless (flufflepuff) Ah, that's adorable X3 At that point, I wasn't looking to make the mission harder, I just wanted to see someone turn their hero into a cosplay XD The Queen's most dastardly crime yet!
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Post by Mostly Harmless (flufflepuff) on Oct 25, 2016 19:52:50 GMT -5
Oh yeah I made a thing--or um, Mizshu made it. With...help. XD from...the university students and mihtium researchers. Yep. Do note that black nightshade ( solanum nigrum) is a close lookalike to these berries and should by no means go into this mixture. And round and round they go~ These little jars look mysterious, but it does need something more... Despite the bubbling and froth, this is absolutely safe to drink. This concoction contains ingredients which improve mental health, general brain function, and lower anxiety. Fictional/difficult to obtain ingredients will have substitutes. - 1/4 teaspoon of lotus tree bark (substitute: mulungu bark (ground) (substitute substitute I suppose acai powder)
- 1 teaspoon coconut oil
- 1 banana
- 1 cup blueberries
- 1 sprig of dittany (substitute: lemon balm)
- 1 cup Essence of Tropics (substitute: coconut milk)
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds
1. Pulse all ingredients save the bark for 30 seconds on HIGH. 2. Add bark. 3. Blend for 30 more seconds on HIGH.
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Post by Moni on Oct 25, 2016 20:49:25 GMT -5
Sometimes, heroes from different disciplines must team up to accomplish something amazing! Here is the story of DUDE BRO, Fireflyman, and Scaletta fighting off the ultimate... well, he's something. (collabed with Jayeee and Pixie) It was an okay day in Heraclia. The sun wasn’t so much shining upon the city as it was a dim yellow disk blurred by the clouds. It wasn’t quite cold enough to don a coat, but it was cold enough for regular clothes to be insufficient for maintaining a perfectly comfortable temperature. The roads were unusually empty for rush hour, but unfortunately, a giant tank managed to bring traffic down to a screeching halt.
Aside from the occasional genius who decided that tailgating a tank was a good idea, a queue of cars slowly followed the tank from a distance like a marching band. Their honks somehow coalesced into a rhythm. Newsboys saw this traffic jam as an opportunity to sell papers, while those who were really late to their destinations lamented the fact that the heroes had not yet come to deal with Dr. Panzer’s latest creation.
Then, as if on cue, a golden trail blazed past the line of cars and stopped near the tank. And, like an amateur actor who didn’t know what a cue was, a winged hero in green came buzzing from a completely different direction. A third hero came marching triumphantly onto the scene with a keyboard strapped to her back and a saxophone in hand.
The golden trail belonged to the one and only DUDE BRO™. Barely even glancing at the hulking tank in front of him, he instead turned around to face the large queue of vehicles and gave them a wave. “Yo, did you all know I was going to be here?” he asked before jumping deftly onto the bonnet of the nearest car. He began to dance on top of it. “You dudes can’t go following me around everywhere, even if I am Heraclia’s crowning glory. What if I had to stop some bad guy? Remember my rule: DUDE BRO™ first, hot chicks second, and safety third.”
Fireflyman plunged into despair at the sight of the golden glint “dancing” on top of a car. He didn’t need to know anything aside from the fact that DUDE BRO™ was here to conclude something extremely irritating had been said within the last minute. He prayed to all the sun-themed deities for safety and good luck, and his prayers seemed to have been answered when he caught sight of Scaletta. He waved weakly to her.
After her theatrical march on the scene, a puzzled frown marked Scaletta as visibly displeased but in no way shocked at DUDE BRO™’s presence, running his mouth in the typical fashion. The sight of Fireflyman was much more reassuring. She grinned and nodded in his direction.
“Glad to see you here, Fireflyman!” she laughed, “Much better than Captain Fratboy over here.”
“That might be an insult to frat boys,” replied Fireflyman, “but only slightly.” Realizing that Salamandy wasn’t quite here yet, he asked, “Is the other serpentine sister not here today?”
Scaletta began, “Well, she--”
“Yo bros, what the heck are you doing here?” In the midst of one of his signature slow-motion body rolls, DUDE BRO™ had noticed two of his fellow heroes. After finishing the move with precision, he pounced from the car and dashed over to them. “Don’t tell me you two are following me like all these groupies back here too?” Scaletta motioned to the giant tank blocking traffic. “I’ll be nice and give you another guess.”
Don’t bother, was what Fireflyman wanted to say, but he was less than comfortable with directly antagonizing DUDE BRO™. “Well, there is a tank rampaging through the city; it’s a bit hard to miss if you’re being… fatuous. It’d be really nice if you spared people from--I mean, if you’d help us with this situation.”
DUDE BRO™ surveyed the tank. “That is a big car,” he confirmed with a nod. “Hey, do you think the driver is overcompensating for something?” He smirked briefly before loosely draping an arm over his Fireflydude’s shoulder. “Yeah, that car is totally being fat. And not in the hip, cool way either!”
Fireflyman thought that might have been possible, but not in the way DUDE BRO™ was implying. He inched away from the golden menace, swiping his arm away before taking a step toward Scaletta. “Yes, that tank is not very hip or cool.”
Scaletta made a noise halfway between a chuckle and a groan, sending a sympathetic glance to Fireflyman. “Sooooo, about that tank over there?” she attempted to redirect their attentions, “I came here to stop it.”
DUDE BRO™ wrinkled his nose. “You know, traffic duty isn’t really my thing. So while you dudes go play warden, I’ll hang out with the fans here.” He pulled a black pen out from his speedos (he always concealed a couple in his costume for emergencies). “A few autographs oughta calm them down.” Flashing a sparkling smile, he sped off into the crowded road.
“Yes, traffic duty is beneath your dignity, I’m sure.” Fireflyman let out a pained sigh and grumbled, “I’m sure people would be perfectly perfunctory about receiving your autographs.” He turned to Scaletta and inclined his head toward the armored tank that was ever so slowly making its way to HCN headquarters.
“Thanks for the help, Hero.” Scaletta rolled her eyes, her voice dripping with sarcasm, and started walking off to the tank’s path.
Fireflyman followed, trying to keep up with Scaletta’s lively pace. His wings fluttered a little as he gave himself a little boost to catch up to her. “Yeah, he’s… I don’t think we can really count on him--but how can we stop this thing?” It wasn’t as though any of them had anything particularly useful against a tank, but perhaps if they were creative enough, they could at least slow it down.
“Would zapping the thing with my baton work? Or do you think the pilot has a particular dislike for jazz?”
He had little to say except for a meek, “maybe?” He didn’t quite know how well a shock would realistically affect an armored tank--if it would affect it at all. On the other hand, Dr. Panzer wasn’t exactly the best engineer in town; for Apollo’s sake, the tank included a window of sorts which allowed a clear view of the villain himself.
The doctor--it was debatable whether Panzer was actually a doctor in any sense--looked toward HCN headquarters with furrowed brows and lips puckered underneath a large mustache into a spiteful grimace. “I’m coming for you, heroes!” he announced over the megaphones. “Mark my words!”
“Yeah, it’s worth a shot,” Scaletta shifted her saxophone to the other hand and withdrew what resembled a conductor’s baton, “Ready or not, here I come!”
She squeezed the base of the weapon, electricity pulsing to its point, and rushed behind the tank. She jabbed the vehicle with the baton, running to keep momentum with the tank. Electricity slid along the surface of the armor, and Dr. Panzer turned his attention to Scaletta briefly.
But he’d noticed Fireflyman sweeping in from the side, trying to penetrate the transparent material between himself and the outside world. Dr. Panzer flicked a switch, and the tank’s cannon swiveled to swat Fireflyman out of view, then he aimed the cannon directly at Scaletta.
“Ha! You scientific illiterates! Did you really think that would work against me? Ridiculous!” he trilled triumphantly. “Better watch out, because this cannon is going to fire!”
That declaration proved very helpful; Fireflyman shook off the stinging pain resulting from being slammed in the gut with a tank cannon long enough to swipe Scaletta out of the way, albeit with a very insecure grip; he couldn’t quite manage to muster the strength to hold on to her more tightly.
Scaletta felt her stomach drop and her heartbeat dive into a frenzy as she was lifted from the cannon’s range--and into the air. She did not like heights, and while she was happy not to be smashed by a cannon, the ground getting farther and farther from her feet, and Fireflyman’s grip loosening, was more than a little terrifying.
“I totally had that under control! Could you please…. just put me down?” Scaletta squeaked, grasping onto him as hard as she could.
Scaletta’s sudden movement threw Fireflyman off-balance for a few moments before he adjusted himself to the unintentional choke-hold she trapped him in. Trying to breathe, he lowered Scaletta down to the ground, a while away from the tank.
“My bad,” she muttered.
Somewhere a short distance from the chaos, DUDE BRO™ had been making his way from car to car, signing the windscreens as elaborately as he could. He’d even coloured in the entire back window of one vehicle. He eventually took some time to glance behind him at the tank and his compatriots, and just managed to make out the fluttering wings of his could-be sidekick in the air, engaging in what appeared to be a warm embrace with the Music Chick.
DUDE BRO™ almost doubled over with laughter at the sight. “I guess I’m not the only one having a good time,” he called out as loud as he could. The hero himself had procured a couple of lipstick marks on both of his cheeks, but had never expected to see his Fireflydude galavanting with other female heroes without him.
“What--?” Oh no, thought Fireflyman. His face had just begun resembling its normal non-purple complexion when it had suddenly reddened with embarrassment. He distanced himself away from Scaletta as quickly as he could and held up his hands to her. “Please tell me you didn’t hear him say that. I totally didn’t mean--I’m sorry if--”
More importantly, he knew he would not hear the end of this from DUDE BRO™. Ever. DUDE BRO™ had an amazingly bad memory for everything except “chicks.” Fireflyman had never experienced being shipped in person before, or at all, really, but he knew that “Fireletta” was decidedly … non-cannon. (And it was then that Fireflyman had given up all hopes of becoming a standup comedian.)
Scaletta cringed and drew away, “I heard him. He’s farther from the mark than Dr. Panzer.”
“I don’t think that’s saying much,” said Fireflyman. “Dr. Panzer has good aim when he needs it.”
“The point still stands!” she gestured with her baton skywards.
He flinched at the sight of her baton, hoping that she wouldn’t whack him with that thing. “The point still stands, don’t get me wrong. It’s way off the mark. Super off the mark.” He almost wanted to jump back into the fray to distract from this, but he soon realized what a stupid idea that was: “Scaletta, I--I don’t think we can take down Dr. Panzer alone.”
“Then that means…” she cut herself off with a groan, shaking her head in DUDE BRO™‘s direction.
“We need his help. Unfortunately.”
Dr. Panzer, happy with his victory against Scaletta and Fireflyman, continued to press on toward HCN headquarters. In response to a journalist who’d run up to the tank to ask him a question about what he thought of the economy, he said:
“Why I want to destroy HCN? They ruined my life! I used to lead a noble life as a kind war profiteer who sold tanks to third-world warlords! But then, they stole my tank designs--my pride and joy!--and I was forced to lead a life of crime.”
“Whether speedo-brain over here is joining us or not, this guy,” Scaletta pointed at the windshield, “makes no sense. He’s a few notes short of a melody. And he’s got a bad attitude. Maybe we should stop trying to take down an armored tank, and go for the fragile lil’ guy in there piloting the thing!”
It was a good thing, then, that there was an expert on being irritating and annoying within the vicinity. Getting him to join the fight was the main issue; he never took much of anything seriously… except…
Fireflyman got a wonderful, terrible idea. “Well, let’s just take it one at a time. I think I have a plan to snap DUDE BRO™ out of his… ah… ‘performance.’ Can you play a nice jazz melody?”
“Sure thing!” she responded, putting away her baton.
Scaletta tightened her grip on her saxophone, and soon heads were turning to find the source of the improvised jazz vibrating through the air. Fireflyman flew up into the sky so that he was a good distance above the scene, and, sighing, he turned his backside toward the tank and shined a spotlight near it.
DUDE BRO™, who had since returned to signing his name on any visible surface, stopped dead in his tracks. As though the rest of the world had grown dark, his eyes were drawn immediately to the glistening circle of light on the ground. It called to him, imploring a performance that only he could give. And to top it off, he could hear the dulcet sounds of a saxophone too. Somebody wanted dancing - and that was just what they’d get.
In a second flat, he’d sped into the spotlight, and had somehow acquired a rose that he held in his mouth. “A little dubstep wouldn’t have gone amiss, bros. But I can work with this!”
DUDE BRO™ didn’t have much experience with jazz music, but there was nothing like a little challenge to liven up a dance performance. And if nothing else, the sight of Heraclia’s premier superhero gyrating to smooth jazz would give the fans something to talk about.
And talk they did. Before long, the reporters who had been hounding Dr. Panzer had moved to the spotlight to join a growing crowd of girls. Everyone had all but forgotten that they were standing just inches away from a giant tank threatening to annihilate HCN headquarters.
The crowd infuriated Dr. Panzer. Their wild cheers, screams, and declarations of love gave him a massive headache, and not only that--they were cheering for some hero who thought “dancing” was the equivalent of dropping a toaster in a bathtub. Slamming his fists on the tank controls, he had decided that enough was enough: it was time to interrupt this stain on the world of dance.
He fired a shell at a nearby abandoned warehouse and pressed the tank’s horn. It was an airy, light sound worthy of a smiling smartcar. “You! DUDE BRO™! You are an insult to the world of dance!” he yelled, pushing the tank in his direction. Suddenly, the fans began to scatter, and some of them ran under the spotlight, bumping into DUDE BRO™ just as he was about to get to the stunning finale of his performance.
The water bottle he had planned to pour over himself was knocked out of his hand, and with it the rose fell to the ground as he stumbled forwards. He watched it fall as if in slow motion, eyes wide in disbelief that such a first-rate performance had just been ruined. By a man no less.
“HEY,” he called out, snapping back to reality and staring at the man sitting in the tank. “If I’m an insult to anything, it’s for being way too handsome, dude!” He paused for a second before adding, “Wait, you’re not even worthy of the dude name. You’re like… a not-dude!”
Not-dudes had to be stopped, and DUDE BRO™ was just the hero to do it. Charging at the tank, he dashed around it, punching and kicking the vehicle at random spaces, but failing to make any kind of dent in it at all. Not even the transparent section yielded to his onslaught.
But if nothing else, the release of anger did much to calm him down some. Realizing that he just didn’t have the strength to overcome metal, DUDE BRO™ stopped punching and instead shifted his focus to what he did best: passing judgement on lame villains.
“Yo, un-bro, my DUDE BRO™ brand tank playset is way cooler than this thing. The cannon is shaped like my face!” He continued zipping back-and-forth around the tank, stopping to knock against it and wave at the enraged Dr. Panzer.
“I think I’m gonna go meet some of the fans for a bit, this thing is going to take another couple of hours until it gets to HCN anyway, not-dude. I’ll kick your butt tomorrow, when you get there,” he announced to the crowd around them with a snicker.
Spotting the revolving gun turret looming above him, DUDE BRO™ climbed onto the tank at speed, making his way up and managing to sit on top of the cannon. He slouched back. “Yo, wake me up when we arrive!”
Dr. Panzer gripped the controls and moved them wildly to move the main tank gun and knock DUDE BRO™ off, to no avail. “Gunner!” he yelled, turning to the direction of the tank’s turret. “Take out this yellow pest!” A few seconds passed before he realized that his usual gunner had called in sick today.
He really should have postponed his plan. And his day was only going to get worse: something booming cracked through the transparent material of the tank. Scaletta and Fireflyman had managed to procure a sharp metal rod and had rammed it through the window.
“No!” yelled Dr. Panzer. “No, no, no, no, no!”
“Your time’s up, doc.” Scaletta said cheerily, leaping onto the side of the tank and carefully climbing through the broken windshield. She jumped behind the pilot’s chair and sent Dr. Panzer plummeting from the tank with a single well-placed shove.
Dr. Panzer hit the road quite literally. His recently dry-cleaned clothes scraped against the asphalt, and he’d gotten a little burn to the side of his good arm, the one he thought looked the most photogenic. In the distance, he saw a woman in an orange vest and a police badge approaching him.
“Hello, Panzer,” she said in a monotonous tone. It wasn’t the first time something like this had happened; Dr. Panzer was a known traffic hazard. “I must arrest you for obstruction of traffic, and, I suppose, destruction of private property. Please cooperate this time.”
“It’s not a traffic obstruction! It’s a tank!” he protested.
“Just explain that to the jury,” she said, helping Dr. Panzer get on his feet. She clinched a pair of handcuffs around her wrists and turned to the saviors of the day: Fireflyman and Scaletta were nearby, alert in case Dr. Panzer had decided to do anythin, but instead, he seemed to be objecting to his arrest with a bunch of tank-related puns: “Don’t tread on me! I’m warning you!”
DUDE BRO™ had apparently fallen asleep on top of the cannon. Scaletta adjusted the cuff of her jacket with a grin, and lit up her scales in flashing green and gold lights.
The traffic officer sighed and tried to look for a relatively neutral thing to say to the heroes. “Thank you for your help, defenders of Heraclia! That was certainly an… interesting display of teamwork.”
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Post by Mostly Harmless (flufflepuff) on Oct 26, 2016 13:31:48 GMT -5
Oh Liou, Pixie and I wrote this thing in which betrayal, Zenith's amazing muscles, and a potential cure is discussed...
Mizshu had lost the camera people long ago, and she was glad of it. The precious cargo in her pannier had to escape from HCN, it just had to. If it was broadcast, it could very well mean the undoing of the city. So she furiously pedaled, taking a few one-way streets, blazing through red lights, and not even listening to the wind roaring in her ears. Someone directly affected by the cargo’s cause had to see it first. That person was Scaletta--he’d tried to kill her too...it made perfect sense to see her first.
***
The train had almost reached the stop nearest Heraclia General hospital. The stop for HCN headquarters was still further ahead. Zenith stood near the doors, grasping a handle that hung from the ceiling in a position that emphasised their strong build. The public had not shown any hostility towards them; but after so many other heroes had fallen from grace, they felt more cautious.
As they glanced around the train car, their eyes fell on a girl seated in a corner. She looked so withdrawn and discreet that it attracted their attention. She looked familiar. They couldn't put their finger on why; it wasn't her bronze complexion or black bob. It may have been the fresh scar on her face, though.
The next time the train made a stop, Zenith walked up to her. They stood near her for a moment, not meeting her eyes. Then they leaned down. "Is it healing all right?" they asked quietly.
Felicita jolted in her seat as the costumed hero walked beside her. They seemed to loom over her, which wasn’t difficult with their height and her position. She’d been recognized, even inside a crowded train in street clothes. That wasn’t how anyone would ask if a stranger was alright. She couldn’t ignore them, but this wasn’t a conversation to have on a train. Her eyes searched the train car for some sort of answer, finding nothing, as expected.
“It’s, ah, better,” She responded softly, calculated, “Do you want to join me at the club and talk about it?”
Better to get off the train before somebody else realized she was Scaletta. Her voice definitely rang a bell. Zenith was almost certain they remembered her now. They glanced around the train hesitantly. They had been half-meaning to visit Nimbus. It would have been such an awkward visit, though, after she had been hurt by a fellow hero. Zenith had no idea how to introduce themself at the hospital.
"All right," they said, "lead the way."
When the train reached her stop, she motioned for Zenith to follow her. The two left the train.
When the heroes came to a building of modest size, with a sleek, geometric appearance, and the words “The Electric Base” displayed on a sign above the entrance in neon blue script, Scaletta took the keys from her pocket of her hoodie and unlocked the club. She held the door for Zenith.
Scaletta opened the staff room door next once they were inside. She took off her hoodie and adjusted the straps of her shirt so they’d stop rubbing against the burns.
“Mizshu helped me with healing. See, that slice on my face is only a scar now,” she said with a hint of gloominess permeating her voice, her fingers tracing the line of the scar. “The stab wound is closed, too. It would have taken a long time to heal without her help. I kept Glitch’s knife as a memento from that painful incident, but it’s not hurting now.”
Seated in one of the room’s functional chairs, Zenith remembered that Scaletta had also been treated for an upper chest wound, after the raid on the villain lair. Her next words distracted them. "Glitch's knife? So was he the one who...?"
“Yes, Glitch was the one who stabbed me. He also lashed me several times with a whip and got halfway to strangling me to death before I could get him off of me.”
Zenith's eyes trailed over the burn marks on Scaletta's arm and shoulder. Frowning, they automatically ran a hand over the same parts of their body.
“No, that wasn’t his work. That was from my big mistake last night. “ She sighed.
Zenith understood. They had skipped the parts of the video with the bursts of red light. They gazed somberly at the floor. "Yeah, I have a matching one. You've suffered a lot in a few days." Even now, they could still see Tim's dead stare. "It must have been awful. Especially to get all that from him," they mumbled. "I'm sorry you had to see him like that. Well. It’s a good thing you could get healed."
At that moment, a series of rapid knocks sounded from the door of the club.
Scaletta ran promptly to open the door of The Electric Base, and was a little shocked at the unexpected guest before her.
Mizshu sprang in as soon as the door was open, looking behind her immediately to make sure she wasn’t followed or watched.
“Thanks for letting me in--” Mizshu dragged the bike in with her and slammed the door shut behind her. “--Are you feeling better?” Mizshu asked. “I'm being followed a lot more these days since I had that long talk with Mrs. Sinclair but I managed to get here--and I see you've brought Zenith!” Mizshu smiled, although it wavered.
Zenith smiled back. They did not attempt to talk over Mizshu’s chatter; but they were relieved to see her again after everything that had happened. As they were only in the presence of other heroes, they took their flight goggles off.
Scaletta showed the two of them back into the staff room. She locked the door so they could talk about hero problems, without interruption.
Mizshu suddenly noticed burns on Scaletta and tsk-tsk’ed her almost as if she was her mother. “Gotten into another scrape, I see,” she laughed nervously, “But, um, I can take care of that. May I?” Mizshu detached the green pouch on her side and set to work on Scaletta, trailing her lightly dusted gloves onto her burns.
“So did you come here just to pay a house call?” Scaletta laughed uneasily, relieved as the searing pain was lifted from her.
“Actually I brought something important from the university--it’s something we might be able to use but if HCN gets wind of it, so will those who have Timothy with them.” She held up documents filled with words she didn’t even think most adults could understand.
Zenith glanced questioningly at the papers, raising an eyebrow to prompt further explanation.
“Suspension and then becoming a hero parolee hasn’t made it easy…” Mizshu trailed off, her mind evidently somewhere else.
"Have you been all right?" Zenith asked quietly. "I'm so sorry I couldn't do more for that business to clear your name. We just barely escaped after the... the clock tower."
Mizshu snapped back to reality at this. “It actually went pretty well, all things considered--so that's okay, I knew you had to escape. You were face to face with Timothy before I was; I'm just glad he didn't hurt you all that much.” Mizshu looked at her boots. “You weren’t there when--”
“Mizshu, did you know Zen was also wounded during that battle Tim got us,” Scaletta recalled Zen in a sorry state when they both were in the hospital. “I’m not sure if they’ve fully healed yet.”
“Oh, right.” Zenith laid a hand on their left side, just behind their waist. "She did get me in the lair. It's been treated and had a few days to heal, but it still gets pulled when I twist around. That's awkward for flying. But I wouldn't want to inconvenience you," they added hurriedly, their dark eyes avoiding Mizshu's gaze.
“I’d be happy to help,” Mizshu offered, feeling only slightly hesitant. You did leave me stuck in the crowd and worried that I couldn’t help you or Tabitha...this might make up for not healing you before, I guess. “Can you sit down right there?” Zenith complied, and easily at that. Mizshu blinked. Never had she dreamed she’d be giving orders, and having them obeyed so readily. “I just need you to expose it a little bit--can you do that?”
Zenith pivoted on their seat and leaned against the back of the chair. They unzipped the top part of their suit and pulled off the left sleeve, revealing their sports bra and the sculpted muscles of their upper body.
Mizshu examined the wound. It was quite a scrape, long past its bleeding point, but she could still see how it would give Zenith trouble.
“Don’t worry, it's no trouble,” she reiterated, “I just have to be careful and make it look like I didn't use any powder. They'll know I snuck off somewhere.” Mizshu took a pinch of healing powder and rubbed it into the muscle, trying hard not to stare. Even as someone who cycled day in and day out, Mizshu had only a child’s body, and could never hope to accomplish tone like that. Mizshu was painfully aware of her private jealousy. She kept talking to hide this fact, and hoped no one noticed.
“It was quite a risk getting it--I couldn’t even contact Tabitha properly through my phone--maybe someone else could have seen it. Last time I tried to do big things I got in trouble because I was suspended at the time. But the villain lair wasn’t going to infiltrate itself, you know!” Mizshu pouted, unwittingly pressing her powder-filled thumb on the wound, “I didn’t expect to see Fireflyman dressed as a fly, or the Queen, or Timothy, or the black cat that was with him--”
Here Mizshu paused, only just coming to terms with the fact that the black cat being with him might have been strange in and of itself. “The cat could talk and nearly leveled a wall on us,” she said.
Zenith blinked, puzzled. They could not picture it. "That doesn't sound like the strangest thing that's happened around Tim..." They shivered under her touch. "Sorry. It's not unpleasant, it just tingles a little. And there's a kind of pressure."
Mizshu was aware of how hard she was pressing on Zenith’s wound and gave it an apologetic stroke. “Sorry about that. I’m not sure you understand, the cat was really strong and called himself Timothy’s friend, but he’s never mentioned the cat to me before. I just...can’t quite shake the feeling that the concert’s results have something to do with all of this. Even Ms. Kingsley investigated and came to these conclusions but I think it should have been...looked at more,” she finished feebly, evidently not wanting to give something away. “Something that could eventually help Timothy...and other potential victims,” she added quickly.
Zenith was still not sure what to think about Timothy's strapping new feline friend. "It is obvious that they did something in order to change him. His involvement with the Queen makes it clear, and that means he can be changed back," they said in a firm tone. "It has to be possible."
Scaletta shrugged. “There’s likely a big difference between the hour-long spell that worked at the concert and what happened with Tim. That’s an hour, versus over a week. I don’t know if two different trances could be fixed the same way.”
“Well,” Mizshu smoothed her work over, “We don’t know that for sure…”
”Either way, It will be very, very dangerous doing anything to turn him back to our side. He’s incredibly powerful, and he’s ruthless. He tried to kill Mizshu before. He tried to kill Tabitha, and tried to kill me. Full-out homicidal intent, you know?” Scaletta’s hands covered her throat, almost instinctively, “He’s not messing around. And if we mess around, one of us might die for it. He can stop time. Fighting him off is almost impossible when he can do so much damage before you can even move an inch. It’s too much of a risk. ”
Tim's powers could be incredibly dangerous. Zenith was quite aware of that; yet they could only focus on the first things Scaletta had said. Their fist clenched so hard that their arm muscles grew taut under their skin.
Looking her coldly in the eye, they said: "He had no more choice in all of that than the people who attacked their friends at the concert."
Scaletta grimaced and shook her head, squeezing her eyes shut. She went to say something to counter that, but ended up wordlessly mouthing “...no.”
"If you don't want to release him from the villains' control,” Zenith snapped defiantly, “what would you rather do with him, then? Go on, tell us, if you have a better plan."
“Well. I’m not sure,” Scaletta said measuredly, “How would you treat a dangerous traitor?”
Zenith faltered for a moment before retorting: "By making them responsible for their choices!"
Scaletta was not sure if they were saying that Tim should not be blamed for actions that he had been manipulated into making, or if they were saying she was a traitor because she had chosen of her own free will to spy on Sinclair and take decisive action against the villains.
“Are you defending him,” she blinked, “or are you just attacking me?”
Mizshu was silent as she watched the two argue, remembering what she didn't want to see again. She squeezed her eyes shut, willing the image of her parents fighting away.
Mizshu ran a hand across her throat. “Wait…” she said just quietly enough for them to listen.
“You're both right,” she said, an expression on her face so grave it made her childish features appear disturbing. “Zenith, I know you don't want to hear this but--” Mizshu swallowed, her throat suddenly very tight. “Timothy wasn't himself, yes--he had a knife to my throat. But there's one thing that tells me we shouldn't give up all hope just yet.”
“Oh, what?” Scaletta asked vacantly.
“He called me Shoemaker.” Mizshu hastily explained this. “It's, uh, a nickname he's had for me. Before...everything, I guess.”
Zenith had opened their mouth to ask a question, then closed it. They could see Tim nicknaming this girl as if he was in the room with them. "Yeah. That's him all right," they said, a tiny smile on their lips.
“That might be that case, but if it’s still him in there, he’s... changed. Something bad woke up inside him and I don’t know if it can be put to rest again or not,” Scaletta said grimly, her hazel eyes glancing at the scar on Mizshu’s neck, “Reasoning with him did not work before, and I don’t think it would work now. From his behavior, from his sadism-- he definitely seems to enjoy being evil.”
Zenith banged their fist against the back of the chair. If they hadn't been sitting still for Mizshu, they would already have jumped to their feet, the better to tower over Scaletta. "Enjoy?” they spluttered. “Do you have any idea of what he enjoys, or how to tell when he does? How could you just decide that for him? In his place, I would have to try and enjoy it, otherwise it would feel like torture! He's just not himself, how hard is that to understand?"
“From what I know, he enjoys a good race, mischief, nothing too serious but at the same time…” Mizshu stared at her hands, taking off her gloves first. Always covered in dusty powder, permanently guilty of bloodshed. “You were both at the concert, yes? What did you feel then? It was nothing short of bloodlust, was it not?” Mizshu’s questions were edged.
“I felt hurt and vengeful,” Scaletta responded shakily, her eyes wide, “Violent… endlessly violent. After it broke, I felt only pain and guilt.”
Mizshu stood up from Zenith’s side, standing as tall as she could--which wasn’t very high at all. “Exactly,” her voice was flat as a stone, but suddenly her expression changed at the sight of her hands. “Oh, are you feeling better, Zenith?”
They immediately calmed down and ran a hand over their side. It was almost completely healed. "Much better. That's such a relief. I feel like I can move again. Thank you so much, really."
“Really, it was no trouble at all.” Mizshu smiled as they stretched sideways cautiously, an arm arched over their head. The girl looked away immediately.
“ Listen… I know you really, really, don’t want to hear this… But healing him; it would be cruel!” Scaletta’s hands covered her eyes like a mask, the tears welling up in them slipping from the crude concealment and down her face.
In the middle of zipping their suit back up, Zenith glanced at Scaletta, startled by her reaction.
Mizshu gritted her teeth into powder. “Oh?” She’d wanted to shout, “You don’t mean that, you’re lying!” but had enough sense in her rage not to.
“But if he gets lucid again, he'll be filled with so much regret and suffering that he'll… well, he’ll wish he were dead! Knowing everything he’s done would destroy him, in the worst way possible.” Her face was red, and turned away from the other heroes.
Zenith gazed at Scaletta’s back for a moment, their frown softening. "He's wished that countless times before, you know,” they told her gently. “I can't even imagine how many times. He could have been wishing that for what felt like an eternity, when he'd get frozen in time. But he's still here. It's been horrible, but he pulled through. And I will make sure that he pulls through every time. I’d do it for anyone in the same state. No one deserves to feel that way.”
“Don't you wish for that long sleep yourself once in a while?” Mizshu cut in. “I'd have been an ice lolly had it not been for Dr. Faust for the very reason you state. I...I don't know about you but we've got regrets.” Not even Mizshu was sure who she meant by that. “And...we live around them. Somehow. If the weeks before the premiere are anything to go by, he will too.”
Scaletta stepped back. “I regret almost everything I’ve done since this season started,” she confessed, her shaking hands clasped loosely by her heart.
Zenith chuckled darkly, looking down. "You could say I hit bottom once in a while, yeah. Every time feels like the worst. But then I keep going, because someone needs me to."
“Anyways, that's why I'm here. If we're going to get him back,” Mizshu said, her voice tremulous, “We're going to need this.”
She held up a small flask, scarcely enough to contain half a drink. “This,” she began, “Is something I couldn’t have gotten without Tabitha. She got me the lab reports for the hypnosis potion the Queen used, I took it to Dr. Faust and the chemistry students, threw in my own healing powder and a banana and some blueberries, and this thing, as a result, can probably reverse hypnosis.” Mizshu held up her phone, which, at first, held text that looked like nothing more than the recipe to a smoothie, but upon closer inspection there were large chemical words. “See how I wrote it down here?”
Zenith could only stare at the two items. From what they remembered of basic chemistry classes, that could be no ordinary smoothie. Especially if trained chemists had helped Mizshu by reading the lab reports.
"I hope you didn't tell them exactly what it was for. But that sounds incredible, Mizshu,” they said tentatively. “That's a very good effort. Has it been tested at all? Maybe we should bring it to our labs, if the sample is large enough..."
“Don’t worry, there’s nothing dangerous in there, I made sure of that myself. It was tested on me...but...but after what I might have done at the concert, I deserved it.” Mizshu looked at her boots.
Unsure what to say, Zenith patted her on the head wordlessly.
Mizshu almost smiled at this comforting gesture but thought better of this and suddenly glared at them both, determined to stamp out any uncertainty with it. “Look, I've given up trying to bring back my Mutti and Vati a long time ago. But if there's a chance we can bring back our friend…”
Her mask grew dark beneath her eyes. “Then we've got to try.”
Zenith nodded. "It’s better than no chance at all. At worst, it'll just be tasty," they murmured.
Scaletta frowned. “This is still likely to be a bad idea. He’s dangerous. Mizshu, I couldn’t bear it if Tim hurt you again, or worse...”
“Would he bail on us if we were hypnotized?!” Mizshu screamed, not caring who could possibly hear.
“That’s not what…” she tried to interject, but her voice faltered in her throat.
"Can it really be worse than what Tim's powers can do under the villains' control?" Zenith asked her gently. "You remember the train, don’t you. We can't leave him in that state. That remedy is all we've got for now."
“Alright. I’m in.” Scaletta answered, her gaze steady.
Zenith let out a heavy sigh. Their eyes went back and forth between the two tearful girls. They ran a hand over the back of their neck, hesitating, then opened their arms and raised them timidly.
Mizshu wasted no time and rushed right in, her shoulders heaving like a child's. Scaletta swiftly joined her, hugging Zenith back securely, head buried into them.
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Post by Celestial on Oct 27, 2016 12:10:32 GMT -5
So in using my ability, I decided to try stealing points off the Queen, specifically her mission "Stealing the Show". So these were my mission parameters: I got blocked, as I am sure everyone I whined to knows, but this is what I did for it: I made this far more complex for myself than I really should have done. xD I decided to make an origami vase using this guide right here. I used an A3 sheet of card so it would be sturdy enough and decorated it with a makeshift logo for Gyro City as well as Greek columns (ionian, if you're a geek like me who is wondering) and heroes from Greek mythology. Then once that was done, I made chicken gyros using this recipe right here. I made enough for my entire family, so that's three people. I followed the recipe to the letter (minus tomatoes because I hate them), which in retrospect did not turn out so hot. My advice, if you're going to try it is: 1) Remove the seeds from the cucumber. 2) Actually, halve the tzatziki mix. 3) Grill the chicken instead of baking it in the oven. Otherwise, it was definitely tasty. Family ate it at least. Bringing it all together (with some greaseproof paper to line the box), here are my terrible phone camera photos of the whole thing: The white stuff is the leftover tzatziki. See what I mean about halving it? xD And this is a closeup of one of the panels: That's supposed to represent Perseus. The other image that you can see in the last photo is Heracles (or Hercules, if you follow the Roman naming scheme). The box stood the test of being carried to the table, by the way. Origami is tough. And so, that is how I spent an entire Saturday. xP *is a nerd*
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Post by Coaster on Oct 27, 2016 12:21:01 GMT -5
So in using my ability, I decided to try stealing points off the Queen, specifically her mission "Stealing the Show". So these were my mission parameters: I got blocked, as I am sure everyone I whined to knows, but this is what I did for it: I made this far more complex for myself than I really should have done. xD I decided to make an origami vase using this guide right here. I used an A3 sheet of card so it would be sturdy enough and decorated it with a makeshift logo for Gyro City as well as Greek columns and heroes from Greek mythology. Then once that was done, I made chicken gyros using this recipe right here. I made enough for my entire family, so that's three people. I followed the recipe to the letter (minus tomatoes because I hate them), which in retrospect did not turn out so hot. My advice, if you're going to try it is: 1) Remove the seeds from the cucumber. 2) Actually, halve the tzatziki mix. 3) Grill the chicken instead of baking it in the oven. Otherwise, it was definitely tasty. Family ate it at least. Bringing it all together (with some greaseproof paper to line the box), here are my terrible phone camera photos of the whole thing: The white stuff is the leftover tzatziki. See what I mean about halving it? xD And this is a closeup of one of the panels: That's supposed to represent Perseus. The other image that you can see in the last photo is Heracles (or Hercules, if you follow the Roman naming scheme). The box stood the test of being carried to the table, by the way. Origami is tough. And so, that is how I spent an entire Saturday. xP *is a nerd* OMG GYROS YESSSS AMAZING <3 (seriously though, that is super impressive random contest stuff and it is a right shame you got blocked)
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Post by Liou on Oct 27, 2016 15:38:53 GMT -5
Oh hey, I unearthed these dusty old things! (plz be nice to them, they are low-quality and might crumble at any moment) Here is the Scenic Route. It needed to be somewhere in Heraclia, but... it didn't have to be a plot-relevant location! >_> Zenith walked around the hipster coffee shop at the corner of the street, then stopped at the foot of a building, glancing around. They pulled off their hood, went in and headed for the stairs instead of the shop on the ground floor. It had been a good move - they were halfway up when they heard the elevator stop downstairs and a gaggle of children stampede out of it.
On the top floor, they hurried through a cozy reception area and into a wide, open room decorated in warm tones. They made a beeline for a large rectangle in the middle of the room, their heart already beating a little faster. The rectangle was carpeted in a fuzzy green material and enclosed by a fence.
Inside the pen gambolled a flock of small, rotund shapes, like particularly bouncy clouds. Zenith's eyes followed them as they hopped over tiny hurdles and squeezed into little houses. The corners of their mouth rose higher and higher until they had been standing in the same spot for fifteen minutes with an utterly goofy grin on their face.
Rabbits. Rabbits in Heraclia.
Still feeling warm and fuzzy inside, Zenith settled on an equally warm and fuzzy seat, right next to a rabbit plush toy almost as tall as them. They sipped leasurely at a rabbit-shaped mug of hot chocolate, watching the little marshmallows with rabbit ears bobbing up and down in their foamy cocoa bath.
After enjoying their snack, they stood up with a businesslike expression on their face. They headed towards a different area of the cafe hidden behind a partition. At the entrance, they washed their hands carefully with sanitiser and took a large sheet of tissue paper to spread over their lap. There was more equipment to grab. Carrot sticks. Lettuce leaves. They even found some radish greens.
On the other side of the partition, the seats were not quite as clean as the ones in the cafe area. A large heap of straw had already been spread on the floor in front of a wall of little crates. On the straw hopped a whole flock of bunnies of all sizes, shapes and colours, sniffing at the treats with their wee noses.
Zenith let out an audible squeal before crouching on all fours to mingle. Lol I don't know what this is The sun shone brightly over the starting line and the audience's seats; flags flapped in the breeze and a medley of music drifted from different tents and stands.
"Finally! Good afternoon, old sports, young sports and sports of all ages! It's an honour to properly welcome you to Heraclia's Fitness Fest," called Wulfric Weisle's younger, less famous brother from an elevated booth. "Our runners are all ready to blast off for the marathon. Here to send them off is MyPipe's favourite cover dancer. Give a warm welcome to miss Ayva, folks!"
A doll-like woman in a tiny tank top and shorts appeared at the door of the booth, waving at the audience with a bright smile. She took a step down the temporary staircase that connected to the platform. It immediately swung away, leaving her to stumble at the edge. She gave a dramatic gasp that spread through the audience and made quite a show of tottering on her platform shoes.
A tall figure leapt out of one of the front seats, tossed their hat aside and pulled off their suit jacket to reveal toned arms. They pushed off the ground and flew straight up to the dancer, a pale yellow light appearing around their body. The audience cheered again as they understood what was going on.
"Crisis averted, folks!" said the host. "Miss Ayva is safe and sound in the arms of none other than... Hero City's own Zenith!"
Meanwhile, the damsel and hero fumbled with the buckle of Ayva's belt to release her from the thin, almost invisible safety line.
Zenith flew in a circle over the audience, just as planned. Beneath the designer sunglasses that concealed their eyes instead of their usual goggles, they glanced down at the lady in their arms.
Good heavens. She was ten times prettier up close.
Good heavens. She was ten times heavier than she looked.
Ayva raised a flag just as they flew above the starting line, and the runners were off. Zenith landed back on the stage and tried to stretch their arms discreetly.
"That was some quick thinking there, Zenith!" said the host, who had come down from his platform. "It's lucky you were here at Fitness Fest! Any words for our fitness enthusiasts here?"
"Yes," Zenith answered automatically before taking the offered microphone. "Yes. I'm here to remind you all that everyone's body is precious. No matter how strong you are when you start, every little step matters for your future. I couldn't call myself a superhero if I didn't work out regularly. And..." They had almost forgotten. "And you will see the results of my workout on Hero City's next season. Only on HCN."
"Well thank you for being with us! While we wait for the runners to return, how would you fit folks like an exclusive demonstration of the brand-new Justice Dance Rebellion 3x?" The host waited for a few "yay"s and "woo"s to be heard from the crowd. "And while we have Zenith at hand, why don't we see how a hero dances next to a professional?"
Zenith stepped in front of the game's screen next to Ayva, wearing the bracelets that would track their dance moves. Their avatar had been customised to resemble Sinclair's old hero outfit. Phones popped up from the audience like prairie dogs, ready to record the scene. This was the difficult part. Zenith had to do this as if they were at home, just fighting a dance battle with Tina to decide who would wash the dishes.
The song came on: it was one of the Queen's; they knew the moves by heart. Zenith let their hair down. Next to them, Ayva tried hard not to giggle. Their moves were less polished than the dancer's, but just as fast and intense.
The song ended and they suddenly heard a riot of cheers from the audience again. Breathing fast, Zenith glanced at the scores on the screen. Just a few points below the professional's.
"That was unexpectedly tight!" said the host. "Thank you for this heroic demonstration! Justice Dance Rebellion 3x, available now in stores! If you've caught a lucky token, folks, climb on stage and try it yourself with Ayva!"
It was finally over. Zenith hung around the stage, waving at fans in the audience. But as soon as the next song started, they automatically struck the starting pose of the dance. The audience member who had come up to try the game looked at them in awe, then kept dancing.
None of these songs were new. Zenith still knew them all. Ayva, who was the one supposed to dance with the audience, stepped aside to give them more room, smiling brightly.
And that was how Zenith spent the entire marathon dancing on stage, signing an autograph every now and then.
"When is DUDE BRO getting here?" asked a small girl.
"Prude Slow?"
"No, DUDE BRO!"
"I don't know any rude crows," they replied airily, browsing the playlist to pick the next song.
"You know him, he's my hero!" whined the girl. "He's all blond and handsome and cool!"
"That sounds like my friend Glitch. I could call him over if you want."
"No! I want to dance with DUDE BRO!"
"I don't have any stewed dough, sorry."
A whole group of young women were waiting to try the game, all in tight exercise clothes. And that was probably why, Zenith reflected, they had been sent here instead of DUDE BRO.
"Aaand the front runners are coming closer, folks!" came the announcer's voice. "Listen to this! The winners will get to be flown around by our local superhero Zenith!"
The local superhero dropped their pen.
"What a magnificent and sudden burst of speed, folks! Sounds like we have some fans running in here."
The host leaned in closer to speak to Zenith. "I thought you could carry them one by one instead of all at the same time - not that I doubt your strength, of course, but it would just be more comfortable than a big pile, you know."
They laughed stiffly. "More comfortable, right, yes. Haha. I'll get on it." This is what happens when you give a mission to the wrong character. And when Liou tries to mash everything they can remember about the plot into some sort of outline. Why me?
Why did both Dossier Dame and Miss Kingsley have to be occupied elsewhere and why could no one more suitable give this presentation?
Zenith stood stiffly in front of a slideshow projected onto the wall, dressed in their best shirt and trousers, taking deep breaths and desperately trying not to fidget. Back in school, they had always let more eloquent classmates do most of the talking for group presentations - and for good reason.
The slideshow had been put together by another hero on the team, by organising their findings into a premade template on Minismooth Powderpuff.
The people seated in front of them were all very important members of the board of Hero City; yet Zenith could only recognise a few: those who had been heroes on the show themselves.
"Thank you all for coming," they mumbled with a nervous smile, before raising their voice. "I'm here to speak for my fellow heroes and report our findings on the latest supervillain-related crimes in Heraclia. We have gathered the results of investigations undertaken by Dossier Dame, Tabitha Kingsley, Dynamic and Kizuna, with assistance from Mizshu and myself."
They hesitated a little, quite sure that they had forgotten some other names. The next slide included a full list of the participants. "And here they are," Zenith mumbled.
"We believe that several individuals, at least some of which possess superpowers, have formed a supervillain team. Our suspicions began at the Queen's concert, when she revealed herself to be an unregistered superhuman."
Images of the pop sensation flaunting her luminous wings appeared on the slideshow; there had been no shortage of photos to choose from.
"The events of that day were covered by multiple news sources, so I will only briefly sum them up." If you don't mind. "Halfway through one of the songs, a massive portion of the audience froze as though in a trance. Then they began to attack anyone not in their group with uncharacteristic violence. They continued for hours until they all stopped, not simultaneously, but in the same bracket of time."
A graph appeared with a more specific timeline, as well as more data from the polls answered by those who had attended the concert.
"Not only did they seem to target the heroes present at the scene, but Lady Drake and Ryder were attacked on the same day, by someone who went as far as tampering with Ryder's personal vehicle. All this seemed to hint at a grudge against heroes."
"Further investigation pointed to the concessions sold at the concert as the only plausible explanation for the audience's behaviour. Samples were taken for analysis, and though the full results are not yet available, we do know that unusual components were detected in every sample. Identifying these components will be a more time-consuming process, but it would allow our team and the city's food and environmental safety departments to keep a watch for the same substance."
Next came a much shakier photo of the Queen, with dark masses of humans swarming around the stage. She had turned as though starting to leave; two more people had appeared at her sides.
"The Queen made her exit with a man who was soon to be recognised, and with known ex-hero Nyx Nightshadow, confirmed to have turned to villainy - however petty - after being banned from the show. Witnesses, and... those close to her, are fairly certain that her motivation for joining the team is just sour grapes and needing more storage space for her humongous ego."
One of the board members cleared her throat. Zenith flushed. "By which I mean, revenge."
They changed slides again and, suddenly, the presentation was interrupted by a photo of DUDE BRO performing one of his special dances.
"Er, what is this doing... How... Please ignore that," Zenith stammered. They stared at it for another few seconds before moving to the next slide, which was thankfully unaltered: Dynamic's photo of Espin and Nyx flanking Glitch at the train station.
"These two were also seen together on the day that followed the concert, spotted at a train station with one of our own number, who had..." Everyone called it 'gone rogue'. "Who had done something I will explain shortly. Nightshadow immediately trapped the observer under one of her energy shields, making them even more suspicious."
Zenith focused on the pictures of Espin compared with Gordan Page, summing up the outrage over his identity, and his true background. "No inquiries have revealed the exact details of the experiment that ended his legitimate career, unfortunately. His former university seems very reluctant to share the specifics. That leaves us with few leads as to the villains' intentions, except for an incident that happened before the concert."
Zenith glanced longingly at their water bottle, their throat aching. They could not stop now, or they would not be able to continue.
"The theft of a chip from HCN itself, containing classified information on mihtium research. All evidence -" or rather, the lack thereof "- pointed at our... teammate, the... the timebender known as Glitch." No one even called him a hero anymore.
"Sources close to him agree that he was not acting like himself. It seemed like an isolated incident at the time, but not anymore. Our team's theory is that he was the victim of a process similar to what was used to control the audience at the Queen's concert. A food sample from his home is being analysed. What we can be quite sure of is that the mihtium information is now in the hands of whoever is controlling him."
They let out a heavy sigh, looking down at the carpeted floor. Almost done.
"In our most recent mission, we succeeded in placing a tracker on Nyx Nightshadow. The tracker's signal disappeared very abruptly, without weakening at any point. Which shows that it was purposefully disabled, most likely because Nightshadow was about to enter their safe space. This is not precise enough; however, it is a start, and we may be able to pinpoint their base with enough searching. We have also thought of investigating reports of odd behaviour in the vicinity, anything similar to the concert audience or Glitch's cases."
The thanks page finally appeared on the slideshow; Zenith could have cried out in relief. "We thank you for your attention and hope you will consider helping us with the means to continue this investigation," they finished in one breath before bowing and rushing out.
As soon as they were out of the room, they opened their water bottle with trembling hands and took a huge gulp, wiping sweat from their forehead. They stumbled over to a chair, then curled up on the floor next to it.
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