Ask to Join The Paragons - Act II

[RexOli]

Kobey cleared the window without a hitch, leaving no trace behind other than perhaps the dust off their joints.

Their body's reaction to the outside was immediate, the plates on their back sliding into position side-by-side before they even fully touched the ground. They clicked into each other with the perfection of handcrafted puzzle and the tines stood just a little straighter, lapping up sunlight like starved. No wonder Kobolt was so eager to leave, Kobey figures. Can't blame it that much.

Kobey freely lets its frame stretch to compensate. The sudden illusion of true warmth would be enough of payment, but getting to dance away from the gaps in the ground like a twirling ribbon dancer was a welcomed bonus.

Kobolt's movement was a flowing, mesmerizing thing. Kobey wasn't in a body of barreling steel- Really, they were merely a goldfish guiding a water-filled plastic bag down a steep skateboard ramp.

To Kobey, it always began as trying to walk on ballpoint pens. For every intended step, this body managed four and each of them so weightless Kobey was sure they just hoofed it into a hole. That scare ricocheted them onward, feet not willing to stand still till they find something tangible on what was so rapidly sliding away with every move.

But then Kobey's panic settled into a lulling hum and it all felt like... ice skating, almost. Probably?
They couldn't grasp the moment enough to give it a name. Keeping to shades and crannies, only to
leap onto rickety lamps and cross the street from above at jackrabbit speed- All the while they did not think much at all, other than it all felt right.

Later, Kobey would imagine this is because they held the crown for most skipped P.E classes in their grade- maybe in life as a whole. They have been missing out and oh, they were making up for it triple now.

For a series of long, clear eternities, Kobeys focus was solely on the run. If anything of Kobolt's creation was ever clear, it was that it's frame was cauterized beyond any feeling that general feedback- but in the suddenly so minuscule gaps between Kobolt's processor and their consciousness, they thought they could feel the press of gravel into the tendons between Kobolt's taloned fingers. The racing wind between it's animated tines. The teacup slowly but surely slipping away from their loosening grasp.

The processor just barely manages to aim them towards the nearest hiding place before the reverie's end. They awakened with a jolt, banking off-course both from their one-track mind and from the route they couldn't exactly remember choosing before they bolted.

Their body has flattened against a mound of black shrapnel opposite a kiosk of broken glass, and Kobey gets to take a first true look at their surrounding. An instinstual part of them wills their subspace to open and it responds with untangling of Kobolt's crest and squelch of new, delicate membrane tearing to pieces. But Kobey cant help but to keep their gaze on the lifelessness all around them.

Kobey admits they wouldn't recognize this place for what it once was. Then again, Kobey of better days wouldn't recognize a picture of New York unless there was broadway front and center and alligator peeking out of the sewers in the back.

These streets look like they were run over by a blunt cheese grater, chunks of pathways - everything- missing and giving to the underground. The buildings don't fare any better- without the colorful screen advertisements plastered over their side, they're black talons full of cracks, barely-hanging structures, and tart hollowness.

For a weak moment, Kobey wonders if they still call it 'New York'. Maybe it's the trademark Czech pessimism and disinterest of supposed western grandeur sinking into them at last, but their mind helpfully supplies them with rebranding it to 'Buried York'. Kobey doesn't get to pull the brakes on that train of thought themselves- this was someone's home, people must mourn it still. Instead, Kobolt's voice is back, putting halt to everything else. Nothing can ever really be detected from their tone, but Kobey notes that it sounds a little bit more unmoved than usual.

.:SUGGESTION: Continue movement. Standstill heavily discouraged under current circumstances:.

Another intervention. Kobey lets a flinch slip out as Kobolts ears suddenly make their best attempt at strengthening. A wall of filters drops and Kobey braces-

Buildings wheezing
No voices detected
No nearby heartbeats
Except
Underground movement
Small, light, so small-
Buildings coming apart
Too loud

WARNING: Audio processors 6-18 failed
WARNING: Unable to retract audio sensors

Distant sound of battle
C r a c k s

WARNING!: Unable to contact S-S--

crying out
crying out-

A shrill whinny rings out across the street, bouncing off the shattered glass like a chipped bullet. It's piercing and the sudden auditory spike colors Kobeys HUD in vivid blue. Kobey's unpracticed vocalizer cant hold the wail for long before it disperses into garbled static.

Kobey's body slides against the shrapnel before they can get their legs to respond in kind. The subspace hastily stitches itself closed, taking some shrapnel with it. It lodges itself between the seams. Kobey can't feel a thing.

They're on a run again, seeking the pacifying hum from before, but the noises force them into focus. The filters are up again, but the noises still aren't gone. Their processor split into three and is compartmentalizing them while Kobolt talks, unmoved.

Kobey runs. They don't get to pick the directions and their previously graceful gait feels like a distant memory. There's no rhythm to it anymore, only a desperation of something pushed along.

.:Requested location, 'Paragon Tower'. GOAL: Reallightment and update on current developments. After, further follow through with Task 'Get Us Home':.

Kobolt promised. Kobolt doesn't lie. It knows more than them, and Kobey trusts it. They must.

Kobey wishes it didn't stop talking so fast. Without anything else there to fill the silence of the dead city and body that doesn't breathe, the voices echo as they please.

 

[OmnipotentOnion]

Shuzo

The nighttime breeze blew quietly, as it began to seem that the city was finally drifting to sleep.

Of course, that usually had to mean Shuzo's own mind had never been more awake, as the former hero stood on the sidewalk in front of the hotel. The calm and cool disposition with which he'd last left Yin Li at the bar had now faded, leaving only silent bewilderment as Shuzo grasped at any sort of quiet that could possibly be found in his head.

Momentarily disregarding that exchange, the obvious elephant in the room, Shuzo attempted to navigate the swirling thoughts and ponder what exactly had led up to this point. Clearly there was a lot to unpack, but for now, he convinced himself that stressing over some high school-esque encounter could wait. Shuzo had obtained this time to get fresh air under the guise of standing guard while Li remained in the hotel room, and hopefully, this brief moment in the nighttime silence that fell upon the city would offer some much needed clarity.

There was a multitude of issues currently plaguing Shuzo's every waking moment, some a little larger than others, others on an incomparable, cosmic scale; as the once-Paragon entered a time of self-reflection, he found himself a bit more contemplative than his usual, straightforward self. It felt.. strange... but considering the twists and turns his life had taken after ten years of stagnation, maybe such changes in his mentality could be welcomed. He'd never once asked himself such corny questions as "Who am I, really?" or "What kind of person do I want to become?" since Shuzo'd first stepped into the heroics of fighting crime and evil, but now... he couldn't help but admit that the sudden complexity brought into his life within the span of a few days may call for some sort of introspection.

What he'd told Raikos time and time again. The ideals to which he'd vowed he would adhere. Had they changed? His recollection of his encounter with the Silverbolt Herald brought old memories to his mind, memories from his vigilante life before the Reaping.

Shuzo knew his past all too well: a brooding vigilante driven by vengeance, using blood to satisfy his form of justice. A violent assassin who found it normal to claim what he wanted for himself, using whatever means at his disposal to acquire it. Looking back on himself more than ten years ago, Shuzo recalled thinking of his past with disapproval, not thinking twice on seeing himself as a better individual now. Yet..... was he really all that different?

Why had he come all the way here to Japan? For what reason exactly did Shuzo come to seek answers? Had he once again come to take what he wanted, regardless of circumstance? Was he still the same, selfish vigilante, shackled to his violent past? Did he offer his help to Li, purely for the childish purpose of spending time with her again?

Of course you did. It's what you've always done. It's who you'll always be.

A sudden chill crawled down his spine, familiar words from a familiar voice seemingly breathed upon the back of his neck. A prickling sensation coursed through his fingertips, and Shuzo sharply inhaled in recoil, whipping his head around to locate the source of the voice he'd so quickly come to fear. This was something he'd do, after all. Ruin Shuzo's peace at any possible point in time. Resting a shaky hand on his new hilt, the former Paragon continued to look around him, his breaths gradually faster and shorter, his vision more clouded. The memories were back. The voices. Him.

You'll do perfectly.
Where is he? The repeated pounding of his heart, nearly loud enough to drown out his thoughts.

Just take my deal.
Where is he? The quiet crackle of electricity, a brighter red than before, sporadically coming to life around his hands.

You're no better than me.
Where is he?

The sound of a silenced pistol, falling on unknowing ears.

"Urk--"

A sudden, penetrating pain digging into his left shoulder quickly roused Shuzo from his panicked state as the bullet found its mark and went clear through his flesh. With a grunt of shock and pain, the former Paragon turned to face where the projectile had come from, and he quickly identified its source in the form of a group of individuals, their figures only barely revealed by the dim streetlamps as they approached. It only took Shuzo a brief moment to make out their murmured Japanese and put two and two together: these people were likely related to those in the warehouse he and Yin Li had hit earlier.

Still in a considerable amount of pain from the bullet wound, Shuzo glared at the yakuza assailants, gripping the handle of the weapon hanging at his side as he waited. However, in his waiting for them to get close enough, he made out another gangster's words that immediately alerted him to another concern.

"Remember the captain's orders; keep the super pinned."

Li was still in the room. Captain's orders? Did this faction serve directly under one of the Golden Lion's lieutenants? They needed him kept here...

~ ~ ~

"...I will make you whimper."

As Okubo knocked Li aside with a heavy swing, cracking his knuckles after such a show of strength. However, as he now towered over the vigilante with his larger figure, he would soon find his advances brought to heel by a sharp touch upon the back of his neck. Before he could even turn to identify the newcomer, the Serpent of Takeshi would hear a voice, dripping with as much malice as the human tongue could ever hope to conjure.

"You so much as step in her direction, I'll give you more than enough to whimper about."

Shuzo, standing behind Okubo, stared daggers into the back of his head as he spoke, holding a deep black, blood-stained, carbon steel ninjato blade to his neck with near disconcerting stability. Visible in the doorway behind him laid the bodies of the gangsters who'd attacked him, strewn across the concrete. Any uncertainty that had been plaguing his mind was gone, shoved away and replaced by the only thing that mattered at this moment. The gunshot wound in his shoulder continued to bleed, one of many other wounds marring his body, but Shuzo remained unfazed as he spoke once more. The venom in his voice remained unwavering so as to make his point completely comprehensible, crimson lightning dancing in his eyes with the rage of a wildfire.

"Better yet, maybe I don't allow you a throat with which to whimper at all."

 

[Void_Nugget]

Malekai & Rebecca
As they walked through the streets Kai had been nattering on about the fight they had seen and how they should have got involved and some other nonsense, Bex had decided to politely stop listening to her friend as they walked. All of a sudden her ears pricked up pointing straight in the air and twitching side to side searching for the sound she had just heard, it sounded like a strange cry or maybe a shout, she eventually managed to pinpoint a point of origin for the sound. She turned to Kai for a second "Kai, head to Paragon Tower" she blurted out "I'll meet you there in a bit" then she was gone, she had dashed off, sprinting full on towards the intriguing sound.

Malekai
Standing stunned in the middle of the road, Kai stared at the air in front of him where Bex had been about 3 seconds ago, "what the hell was that about, god damn rabbit tendencies" he muttered before, having mistaken her hurriedness for a declaration of a race, deciding that if he was gonna beat her to Paragon Tower he would have to resort to drastic measures, he looked around for a few moments then with a grin he shifted, fully and completely shifted. The process was surprisingly fast but still relatively slow as he appeared to expand for a moment the the gargantuan form burst from his body, his legs growing thicker and his heads splitting into the multiple heads of his hydra form with his tail forming and he dropped onto all fours. Now finished with his transformation he stood at his intimidating 50 foot height and started to march himself towards Paragon Tower, moving slow but due to his large stride covering large amounts of ground in moments. Internally pleased that he might beat Bex to the tower not considering she didn't actually intend to race.

Rebecca
Bex came to a sudden stop and took a stealthy stance as she neared the origin of the sound and she noticed the occasional flash of movement and opted to follow what she assumed was a person, keeping to cover and hiding in the shade to avoid detection, keeping down wind of her target to avoid detection making as little noise as possible, barely even breathing to keep her stealthy disposition as she dashed along after the figure.

 

[comic]

Might Girl, Vanessa Everest

Her tackle succeeded, and she bowled Vibratus over in a near-repeat of Vanessa's original attack against the Dilophassassin. "WOOO!" the girl cheered, pumping her fist in the air, before she bursted toward Vibratus once again, confidence filling her at Percy's comment about Paragons. Sure, it wasn't an official revival, but she was inspiring! She was sure of it!

Before Vibratus had a chance to land (his recovery time was still up for debate), Vanessa began to throw a few punches at him as she reached him, making sure to pull her punches, not aiming to hurt him too much, though she could have been underestimating his durability.​

Hush, Yin Li

"HAH!"

Okubo's eyes lit up with excitement. "Shuzo Takeshi, the Sparkblade! Party I threw for you wasn't good enough? I thought not... so come on, anyway. You want to get kinky? I want you to try."

The captain grinned widely as he took a fighting position, hands held straight before him, his veins bulging, pulsing blue.

Yin Li grit her teeth, feeling a warm liquid running down the back of her head. This guy had to be a super, or something. That hit was far too strong. Or... well, perhaps he was just that strong.​

 

[OmnipotentOnion]

Shuzo

Narrowing his eyes, Shuzo glared at the man before him, who'd now turned around and entered a fighting stance with a smug, wide grin. This man, whoever he was, also knew his identity, and he claimed to be the one who'd sent the yakuza footsoldiers to him moments ago. Shuzo's gaze then traveled past Okubo and rested on Li, who now held a hand to the back of her head, barely making out the slightest flow of blood running down.

Meeting her eyes to give her as reassuring and determined a glance as he could, Shuzo then returned his attention to Okubo, taking note of the blue coloration pulsing in his veins. Previously maintaining a tight grip on his new blade, his eyes narrowed once more as his grasp loosened, and he slowly brought it down from its position aimed at Okubo's face and placed it in its sheathe. With a deep breath, Shuzo tightened both hands into fists as he entered his own stance, and in contrast to the blue light coursing through his body, his crimson lightning slowly breathed with life around him, crackling with growing intensity.

Despite the entrance he'd made and the stance into which he'd now lowered, Shuzo's mind was still in a swirling haze, and even the slightest slip-up would declare it to the other two people in the room. Though he knew his undying resolve to protect one of the people who mattered most to him, the urge to do so burning in his eyes, he also knew the heavy pit of uncertainty weighing down his core. It was a multitude of things: the stagnation that'd filled his life for the past ten years, his own brother, who he didn't even recognize, and the slow burning realization and dread that someday..... he'd lose everything anyway.

Suddenly, with a grunt to forcibly bring himself back to reality, Shuzo lashed forward with an electric fist, aiming a right hook to Okubo's jaw; right now, his main focus needed to be protecting Li from a clearly dangerous man.... he just hoped he could remain focused at all, and that whoever this was wouldn't be able to call his bluff.

 

[comic]

Okubo Shogo, the Serpent of Takeshi

The man shot a hand up--and Shuzo's fist slammed into Okubo's. The scarlet electricity dispersed, visually racing up the captain's arm, before it faded, the man's grin widening. He quickly followed up, taking advantage of Shuzo's (assumed) confusion, with a jab straight at Sparkblade's sternum, Okubo's fist cracking forward, striking almost like a cobra, a testament to Okubo's namesake.

He was quick to follow up this attempting punch with an uppercut directly into Shuzo's armpit, aiming for a weak spot, and then a third strike as Okubo turned to the side, and thrust his elbow out, intending on slamming his elbow point-blank directly between the super's eyes, all while Okubo laughed, his rotten teeth shining. "Your powers are useless against me," he taunted, finishing his attempted attack with a thrust of his leg, aiming to bash his heel into Sparkblade's gut and send him flying across the room.

"You can't do shit without 'em!"​

 

[OmnipotentOnion]

Shuzo

As soon as Okubo's fist had reached out to block Shuzo's hook, the vigilante's fierce glare suddenly changed to that of confused surprise when the electricity he'd conjured was seemingly absorbed into Okubo's originally blue veins. Amidst his confusion upon seeing his ability countered in such a way, Shuzo barely managed to notice an incoming fist aimed at his chest and used his free arm to knock Okubo's punch aside. However, as soon as he'd avoided the attack, Okubo had followed up with an uppercut to the arm Shuzo had just raised, further throwing him off balance. It was all he could do to maintain his already weak defensive, but as he struggled to keep his footing, Shuzo also feared what would happen if his even weaker mental state slipped out at any moment.

However, as Shuzo was unsuccessful in avoiding Okubo's last two attacks and was sent flying into a wall, his troubles were given voice at the worst possible time; as he sat crumpled against the cracked drywall and felt blood trickle down his head, he heard it again, a faint but tangible whisper in his mind amidst Okubo's taunts.

He's right. You can't do a thing with your powers.... at their current level.

With an sudden roar of exasperation (albeit it likely sudden only to the other two), Shuzo's lightning once again surged to life with newfound intensity, and as he rose to his feet, he pressed a clenched fist against his temple and muttered under his breath, caring little whether or not it was audible.

"Get out of my head."

In a burst of unexpected speed and a flash of red light, Shuzo then lunged at Okubo once again, hoping to reach speeds near incomprehensible in his approach. Okubo still stood, smug as ever, but as soon as Shuzo seemed to be within attacking reach, he disappeared right before his eyes. Within milliseconds, the vigilante was in the air right behind the Golden Lion syndicate captain, seemingly preparing for another attack, but this time, his usual crimson lightning was nowhere to be seen around his body. With a quiet grunt, Shuzo then swung his leg, aiming a brutal kick at the back of Okubo's head. If his lightning seemed to have no visible effect, he had little other choice than to play the crime lord's game and fight brute force with brute force; the sword sheathed upon his back would be a last resort option.

 

[comic]

Okubo Shogo, the Serpent of Takeshi

"Quick learner," Okubo commented about Shuzo dissipating his electricity before making contact, Okubo's body moving fluidly as he brought up an arm, moving in sync with Shuzo. Almost as though he'd anticipated it, Shogo's forearm stopped Shuzo's kick in a dead-stop, before his hand snapped to grip Sparkblade's leg, and the older man pulled, using his other hand as it came up to swing Shuzo through the air, the movement violent and hefty. "But I've studied you both for over a decade!"

Shuzo was slammed against the wall, which cracked under the weight of the hit, before Okubo swung Shuzo again, pulling now in the other direction as the inertia was dispelled from the first, bringing Shuzo about to swing into the same wall, back-first, which also cracked. It was here that Okubo let go, allowing Sparkblade to fall to the ground. "You're weaker than I expected."

Yin Li, meanwhile, had been regaining her bearings. That hit had jostled her brain around, and left her pretty dizzy for a moment, leaning against the bed. As she restored her prowess, she turned to see the Japanese man in the hawaiian shirt was in the process of flinging Shuzo about. Needless to say she was initially shocked, unused to seeing somebody capable of going toe-to-toe with ex-Paragon. Conjuring out her katana, Yin Li moved in as Okubo let go of Shuzo, and the man turned around--her katana was stopped. Okubo had caught the blade between his hands as he clapped them, stopping the sword mid-slashed.

Just as she was processing this, Okubo pulled a hand back, and chopped, slamming his hand into the flat end of her sword--which shattered, and was followed up by a sudden boot in her gut. She felt fury build in the gut where she'd been kicked as she slammed against the far wall, growing frustrated at this dude's continued resistance. Where was a gun when you needed one...

 

[RexOli]

Analyzed, tagged and sorted, the noises dwindled out and Kobey was left to seep in the emptiness of the street. Oh, they tried to get Kobolt to quip, but Kobey figured out that questions about it's favorite color got stale by now. It was such an obvious go-to that they clearly asked one too many times between the stasises. If only this place was a little corroborative in figuring out new, AI-appropriate material...

A whole lifetime ago, when their gym teacher was too preoccupied with boy's rowdiness and girl's steadily accumulating murder intent, Kobey sneaked their way onto the only treadmill- They lasted all 4 minutes and every single one of them was a completely wexing experience.
Not for the fact that their heart made their legs buckle the moment they stepped down- The sensations connected to that memory slipped away like an oiled carp, not that they particularly missed the childish certainty of oncoming death from back then.

No, it was just because it was so dreadfully boring. Unlike most, the concept of someone willingly jogging doesn't sound like a complete blasphemy to them. Actually, add a lovely woodland route and it sounds downright jolly! But having to exercise and stare down an off-white wall at the same time? Well, that's just like being stuck in an opaque hamster ball with none of the natural joviality that comes from being a hamster.

This is why this adds another notch to the long list of recent Not-Kobey feelings, since they might have actually preferred the wall. Kobey feels fairly confident they could run and paint it at the same time, but as for this place... Well, they half-heartedly admit they could never stuff enough supplies into their subspace to force the scenery to change.

Another towering building with its guts spilled onto the street below. Like before, they weaseled through the debris- underneath them, if Kobolt nudged them just enough to know they could. Their mind was spinning as fast and loose as their footing, although now that Kobolt passed them some additional control, they could tell they lost speed. Their paws landed too heavy, too unsteady in their placement, and something in them always shielded Kobolts body from bending like it was supposed to.

Kobey was quite amazed that Kobolt let them maintain their movement while being locked in their thoughts so far. It was... on edge today, wasn't it? Well, really, If Kobey always has a silly hissy fit and gets themselves tanged in thoughts of P.E of all things first-thing after waking up, then they can't be surprised they didn't make it that far- probably. Maybe? Where had they ever started all of this...?

They couldn't tell that Kobolt was tilting their ears while they moved, sharply focused on something beyond what they let Kobey hear. It took too long and Kobolt would never compromise on such delay, but there. There! All at once, Kobolt knew, locking onto the sound of living like a bloodhound. Steady, silent, and nearly flawless in all their form allowed them control of- A hunter class, Kobolt theorized. The first living creature they've seen in so long... knowing that it was near wasn't adequate. After so long, It never was.

It opened a very minuscule pathway through the filters and just like that, halfway out from underneath a fridge door, Kobey snapped to attention. The sudden loss of pull forward was startling in its own right, but it was coupled with the most thrilling and simultaneously most ominous sound Kobolt could ever impart.

Heartbeat.

Kobey knew they could still get out of this- with Kobolt, there were always at least 3 additional escape routes on their processor, excluding the one that Kobolt tended to twitch towards when on the pinfall of being cornered and Kobey maintains a hopeful life-long ban on.

But for now, Kobolt lost all interest in the Paragon Tower. Instead, it was waiting, examining and analyzing some more, deciding what it would do if Kobey didn't take the step first. It all boiled down to if the introductions will be done in Kobeys or Kobolts way. Eighter that or that, they were approaching fast and Kobolt wouldn't have it any other way.

Kobey knows what Kobolt's way entailed, and they tried to convince themselves that the biggest fault of it was a lack of foresight on Kobolt's part. Kobey couldn't let it come to pass, even if this is always where things tended to get... complex.

Never with children- For them, Kobolt was a misplaced imaginary friend. An under-the-bed spirit looking for a more honest job. For the older, they spun a wilder story or simple were honest outright- unlike adults, children didn't raise much fuss about body-switching and alien/cyborg zombies. Then there was the youngest- they pinched no salt when Kobey claimed to be simply an ordinary stoat. Quite a rare animal now apparently, rest their little souls.

If adults sometimes chalked things up to magic and didn't poke further, plenty of things would suddenly become much less complicated- for Kobey and the world both. Kobolt being a piece of machinery didn't often click. Unlike what half-smudged drafts Kobey could recall, its metallic plates were on full display- but one could take that as armor or a natural feature of something already alien. The exposed musculature was artificial but so very there. On a robotic scale, Kobolt was planted somewhere between Cheetor and a xenomorph, and Kobey didn't yet figure out the perfect way to ease others into that.

And with Kobolt on the prowl, they had no more time to spare. As for easing then, they didn't quite elected as to pushed themselves to simply not.

They bolted towards the highest vantage point they could take without resorting to wall-climbing, scuttling spirals to the top of a bending signpost. It groaned, but barely dipped under Kobolt's meager weight, and that was good enough for Kobey to settle on the firmest looking arrow.
They didn't get a moment to still, giving into a wince as their alarmed talons curled around the metal and Kobolt snapped their head towards the source of the heartbeat- Covered by both shade and walls of rubble. Kobey couldn't see anyone at all, but the heartbeat rang through Kobolts ears in insistent thumps. This wasn't something Kobolt would prank them with, if it ever pranked at all. Kobey learned a long while ago that heartbeats were one certain way to get Kobolt actually invested, and Kobey should really start now before that interest bubbles over.

Their synthesizer should be well-oiled by their little accident a while back, so Kobey didn't worry about their flash-practiced words being lost to static. Kobolt offered them many voices, but Kobey always found a way back to their own. It spoke in a well-worn tone of apartment block's songbird, its accented, domestic sweetness only so-so smothering the dragging edge. Kobolt talked like someone who expected every syllable to hurt, and tripled their chatter thusly in taxing defiance. It was still stronger than Kobey could manage before- more youthful than it should be by now, too, but Kobey can't wallow in that track when there's a company about.

"Ahoj there! No need for the foxcraft, flower- I have neither a white coat nor a pocket watch to my name. Even with those, I'd still barely rig a penny in the market..." Their synthesizer thrummed deep inside their chest with every word, and every thrum came with Kobolt's ping. For someone built for communication, Kobolt second-guessed Kobey most of all. It listened and Kobey had a front view to its internal process all the while. Turns out, it found their speech jumbled at best.
Intention? It pinged, and Kobeys synthesized a chuckle. It was a tiny bit like a child tugging at their parent's sleeve to get them to explain the oh-so-complicated conversation of adults, wasn't it? Well, Kobey never minded putting in a bit of work to meet others halfway.

"Observation: You're eighter heading my way and pursued by a very silent mob, or I'm being followed by a skillfully discreet mob of one. Whatever it is, these roads are empty enough for an honest stroll side-by-side. I promise you, were the leastest of enemies this place seen in a long, long while."

 

[BurbleBurble]

Skade II

Her moves were wild, with a lot of strength put behind them- This wasn't a problem for Herald Skade. The move that Wolfe had just pulled off would've been somewhat ineffective against the real deal. However, this Skade was weaker and shorter, and while she did have some of that superhuman strength, it was dampened by the girl's half-starved state, and the simple fact she was more an unintentional facsimile of a Herald than real.

Needless to say, the vigilante's clothesline maneuver took all the air out of her lungs as she slammed into his arm. She squeaked out a cry as it made contact. This wasn't to say she did not react anywhere near as fast, however- As she fell, her torso began to be covered by a condensed layer of the whitefrost. The intent was to get it onto Wolfe's arm for a nasty bout of frostbite, or tear some skin off as he moved. But maybe she wasn't fast enough to land that, as she fell on her back.

Her rampart of ice cracked as it slammed into the concrete below- It's edges were weakened, being too far from her body and thanks to the natural high temperatures of New York. Many of the spikes on her fist fared similarly, becoming even more jagged than before. Skade groaned as she pulled herself back to her feet, spitting aside, as she looked back to Wolfe. Malice burning in her blue eyes.

"You're dead!" She spat, clearly pissed at the insulting move, and the fact she fell for it...literally. She began to charge towards Wolfe again, seemingly looking to grapple him- An attempt at the clothesline maneuver again would definitely hurt, as the patch of whitefrost 'armor' she had formed had spread to a slight degree. Still, there was a lot of uncovered space on her- Wolfe would just have to act sooner rather than later, lest he became a popsicle.

 

[OmnipotentOnion]

Shuzo

Getting his body broken down piece by piece was... less than pleasant, as Shuzo was quite literally thrown around by the large man, feeling the weight of every impact rattle his bones. Immediately crumpling to the floor when Okubo released him, Shuzo fell with a weak groan, gingerly holding his shoulder as he tried unsuccessfully to pull himself to his feet multiple times. All he could do was watch as Li tried her hand at the aggressive with her katana, though proving unsuccessful as well when Okubo caught and shattered her blade. So much for using his own as a 'last resort'.

It certainly also didn't help that in the midst of the ringing in his head, Shuzo's mind was also filled with the din of whispers once more, crawling their way into any vacancy that wasn't already occupied by the current conflict. It was always the same: the same promises, the same temptations, and despite Shuzo's belief that he could tune it out every time it came, it was impossible to shake the feeling of his inner stability being whittled away.

As he finally struggled to his feet, leaning shakily against the wall, Shuzo looked up just in time to see Okubo slam a foot into Li's gut, sending her careening across the room. Though he could feel a pang of rage tightening in his throat upon the sight, the former Paragon suppressed his desire to immediately launch another attack in order to try and think of a smarter approach that wouldn't result in him getting folded like he'd been in the past few exchanges already. Okubo had proclaimed he'd studied Shuzo and Li for more than ten years, a declaration supported by the evidence of the both of them getting slammed into walls more times than they could count. What exactly did that entail? Was it mere surveillance of the streets Shuzo had prowled under his Sparkblade cowl? Could he have learned anything more through ties to someone with information? In any case, Okubo had studied Shuzo long enough to completely trump both his human and superhuman abilities, and the longer Shuzo thought, the more his options started to dwindle.

....Leaving only one. And Shuzo really hated the realization he'd come to.

The voices seemed to realize as well, suddenly growing in volume, their urges growing in intensity. As Shuzo continued to stare straight at Okubo for what seemed like hours, the conflict and turmoil he'd tried all this time to conceal was now all but laid bare, swirling in his eyes with wilder ferocity than his own lightning. His gaze then rested on Li, whose human frame was clearly starting to cave under the brutality of Okubo's attacks, as hard as she may have tried to hide it with her frustration. Their eyes met, and for a brief second, Shuzo hoped she'd notice his apologetic glance as resignation seemed to glaze over his eyes once again, as it had done when he'd finally told her the truth hours ago.

Shuzo then turned to face Okubo once more, his red lightning crackling to life, though his eyes remained hollow. With a deep breath, he opened his mouth to speak, seemingly to no one in particular, but a sudden surge of lustrous silver arcing around his body rather than his usual red for a brief second wouldn't go unnoticed by anyone watching.

"If we do this...."

~ ~ ~

Wolfe

"You're dead!"

Wolfe watched as 'Skade' got back to her feet, especially irritated after his clothesline maneuver had found its mark and sent her reeling back. It seemed clear to any bystander that Wolfe had the upper hand, having landed more attacks and repelling Skade's own; yet, the seeping, frigid chill quickly setting in within his core told the masked vigilante that whatever advantage he currently had might not soon last. Though his cool and seemingly unwavering stare matched Skade's wild and furious eyes as she stormed toward him, a sense of urgency to finish this fight soon began to follow the cold creeping through his flesh.

Skade had charged at him once again, this time opting to lunge with a grapple-like motion; Wolfe had thought to once again employ some weave and counter that would send her reeling once more, but a dilemma soon arose in his contemplation. Her body, now manifesting jagged clusters of ice, provided a painful retaliation to any physical attacks that might make contact with them, considering the searing cold that seemed to come from a mere graze on his skin. Sure, these patches of Whitefrost were marked sparsely around Skade's person, but the scarcity of the jagged ice surrounding her didn't detract from the danger it posed should it make contact. However, time was of the essence; if this Herald cosplayer.... wasn't a cosplayer, Wolfe also doubted he'd have more stamina than a cosmic deity.

But maybe...

Taking in slow, deep breaths, Wolfe waited as Skade quickly approached, holding his ground until the opportune moment. The wisps of shadowy flame danced with increasing vigor as he breathed, reaching their highest intensity since the fight had began, and finally, when Skade had reached out toward Wolfe to make her next move....

...Her hands grabbed at air.

Wolfe had disappeared without a sound, his footsteps completely silent as he vanished from his original location, and as Skade looked around furiously, the vigilante's voice rang around her from all sides.

"You know, for a 'Herald' who razed my family and city to the ground with a wide-eyed grin ten years ago, you're kinda weak."

Wolfe's words echoed around the otherwise silent street, his voice laced with an eerie tone as it reached Skade's ears from every angle. Shrouded in the night, Wolfe darted through and among shadows without a sound, giving no other indication of his location other than his jeers.

"'Skade, Herald of Whitefrost'? You're either insane, or someone who thinks in their twisted mind that the Heralds were 'right' in any conceivable way and idolizes them. Wait, both of those are the same. But in any case..."

Finally, from behind a small building, Wolfe leapt from the roof, hurtling on a course to attack Skade from behind, aiming a straight lunge to the back of her neck to knock her out and hoping his words had aggravated her to the point of throwing her mental state off balance.

I'll need you secured if I'm going to get any actual answers.

 

[Void_Nugget]

Rebecca
With a graceful leap and an entirely unnecessary airborne somersault and land close to the creature she had been following. Upon landing silently she stood to her fall height and tipped her head slightly, "You make a valid point and I assure you I am no threat for if I had wanted to catch you I would have" she said in a serious tone before casually slipping into her bubbly and joyful self. She held her hands behind her back as she leant forward slightly before addressing the being "My name is Bex, I was on my way somewhere with a friend of mine when you made a rather intriguing sound that I deemed worthy of investigation, I must say you either have very good hearing or some kind of sense or sensor, it is not often that people realise I'm following them" she stated with a grin as she walked along side this person. "Who or what exactly are you, your body makes intriguing sounds and I can't figure out if you are flesh or machine" she added casually.
@RexOli

Malekai
Having finally reached the tower the massive creature that was Kai, glanced around but couldn't see Bex, "ha, I won" he said to himself in a deep gravely voice that boomed out from all of his heads simultaneously giving his voice an echoey sound. He decide to wait for Bex in hydra form as he would be able to see her coming easier.

The Devil (Daniel)
Somewhere in New York there was a sudden thunderous crack and a fiery explosion of smoke and rock. Once the smoke settled a slender man stood with a cunning grin on his face, The Devil had arrived. Standing in a small crater made by his entrance he sighed <now I remember why I don't do that sort of teleportation anymore, it makes such a mess> The Devil thought to himself only to have the voice of his host body butt in <I know you have my powers in my body, so why didn't you just teleport using my magic, if you just gave me control for a moment..> Daniel's voice began before the far louder thoughts of The Devil cut in <You must think me stupid warlock, I will not be giving you control of this body, I am aware that you could easily remove me so you'll just have to sit back and watch> The Devil chuckled to himself before walking along, exiting the alley he had appeared in and was immediately approached by a group of thugs "give up your belongings and we won't have to kill you" they grunted in a vague attempt to be menacing which made The Devil laugh uncontrollably "Oh you poor fools" he said very fond of the British accent he had gained from possessing Daniel's body. The thugs weren't fond of being laughed at and attacked. This did not faze The Devil who set about to killing the thugs in a brutal manner, once he was done there was only one remaining, staring in terror at the mutilated and charred corpses of his fellow thugs before glancing up at tall and slender man, who now had fiery red eyes and a creepy smile "I'll give you the chance to run and spread word of what you saw here, now go before I changed my mind" The Devil said menacingly before standing up straight and waving his hand over himself causing the blood on his hands, face and clothes to melt away leaving him spotless, watching as the terrified man sprinted off as fast as he could.

 

[Grand Master Koop]

Being knocked through the air, Vibratus struggled to regain his posture. The mental attack still fresh in his mind, the man wondered where that psychic shock had come from. However, now was not the time to ponder that as Might Girl was still in front of him. When the self proclaimed heroine stopped in the air and threw her fist up in a pre-matured victory celebration, Vibratus attempted to launch a counter attack. His attempt was foiled however when he found his limbs wrapped up in a layer of garbage, courtesy of a familiar trash manipulating brat. Grunting in annoyance, Vibratus was once again tackled by Might Girl who then proceeded to throw a volley of low powered punches at the man. "Do you think powerless punches like these are going to be able to take me down? You are sorely mistaken, girl!"

Feeling rather offended by the lack of force behind Vanessa's fist, Vibratus felt his annoyance rise with every second he was pushed through the air. His vibrations began violently welling up inside him before suddenly exploding outward, covering his entire body in a layer of these tremors. Unlike the barrier that he would usually expand out around him, this new layer was generated directly over his body, resulting in a much more focused armor. The already weak punches would feel their impact weaken even more, the force being dispersed by the shaking and some of it even being reflected back towards the fist making these attacks.

 

[comic]

Okubo Shogo, the Serpent of Takeshi

Vague, ominous, and angsty as ever, Shuzo was back on his feet, facing Okubo, who was eyeing him with a notable weariness. It wasn't the fact that Shuzo had returned to his feet that was putting the Serpent on edge--it was the crimson lightning being violently replaced by silver in a flash. In all the years the man had prepared for an encounter like this, he hadn't seen this before.

"If we do this..."

Okubo got the impression Shuzo wasn't talking to him. In fact, Okubo got the impression most of Shuzo's reactions this entire fight had nothing to do with their conflict. He was aware that Takeshi-sama had been withholding information from Okubo, usually not an issue since the older man would find out himself later, but now was later and he was suddenly wishing he'd been informed of whatever this was.

Shuzo's own powers still coursed through Okubo's now crimson veins, a sign of the power he'd absorbed, and he could feel it spike inside of his body with each flash of silver his opponent emitted. Having studied Sparkblade for so long, the Serpent had a vague understanding of his powers worked, and how they were utilized, and now he was feeling as though he'd need to get it down pat sooner rather than later.

This was never a fight Okubo entered expecting to win, but damnit if he was going to get tossed around by this pouty man-child getting a power buff.​

Vanessa Everest, Might Girl

Her pupils seemed to tighten as she registered the odd, seemingly liquid armor that pulsed around her opponent's body, shimmering over his form like some kind of magic almost, though she understood this was probably part of his vibration-induced abilities. Vanessa could quite literally feel each of her strikes seemingly disperse over his body, expelling over the platitudes of the armor, absorbing her attacks blow for blow.

Oh man, she really didn't want to seriously hurt this guy, and she had no idea what her power limit was (according to Warren, she had "limitless potential", which was vague as heck). So, for a final strike, Vanessa reeled her right fist back, tightened her knuckles, and struck forward with an exerted grunt, her arm seeming to disappear in a split millisecond as one moment, it was reeled back, and the very next it was already extended into a punch with quite a bit of oomph and effort put behind it, aiming to not just shatter the man's armor, but to slug him into the ground in one fell swoop.

If that didn't work, well, Vanessa felt that'd be a good indication to perform a tactical retreat, get the putrid prince to safety (whether he wanted to or not) and devise a game plan from there.​

 

[OmnipotentOnion]

Shuzo

As soon as he'd said those words, time seemed to slow around Shuzo, gradually coming to a halt even as brief sparks of silver continued to crackle with life around him. His surroundings fell noticeably, eerily silent, as he looked around.... maybe it had actually worked.

And then he heard it.

"Yes, you called?"

A voice that had haunted Shuzo's every waking moment now pierced the tense quiet filling the room, ringing in his ears and reverberating through his skull. Finally, a flash of silver light struck the ground where Okubo first stood with his leering gaze, its luster causing Shuzo to momentarily recoil and cover his eyes, but when it subsided, Okubo was no longer anywhere to be seen. Upon lowering his hand, the former Paragon now found himself face-to-face with the man burned into the back of his eyelids every time he closed them, standing with his arms folded across his chest and a grin from ear-to-ear. The Silverbolt.

"Did I hear that correctly? You finally saw reason, and now you're accepting your true identity?"

"Not quite," Shuzo was quick to cut Raikos off this time, meeting his smug demeanor with a steely gaze. "I'm not giving way to you just yet--get that through your skull first. I haven't accepted a thing from you, and you will never be my first option in any situation. The only reason I'm even speaking with you is because you're only of very slight use."

Raikos' grin remained unwavering, clearly aware of the "tough guy" facade Shuzo always put up in every instance. The shaky hands, the uncertainty and turmoil that had been brewing in his eyes for as long as Raikos had known him. How long did he really intend to go on like this? With a quiet chuckle, the Herald's cool stare continued to bore through Shuzo's soul, holding the gaze for a few more tense seconds after Shuzo spoke, and suddenly, Raikos then lunged forward, reaching the mortal's position faster than the blink of an eye.

Even with the brighter, stronger bolts of silver lightning coursing sporadically through Shuzo's body, he wasn't permitted time to think before Raikos drew an arm back and nailed the vigilante with a right hook, instantaneously slamming him to the ground. Shuzo attempted to push himself back onto his feet but immediately found himself pinned down, as Raikos crouched down beside him and pressed his head down with a hand. The Herald continued to grin as he kept Shuzo restrained and opened his mouth to respond.

"Well, look at you! One touch from a woman, and you get all confident, huh? I respect it, truly. You struggle quite admirably. But... you seem to forget who exactly is in control here. I'm not the one getting used to wipe the walls clean by some yakuza lapdog, super or not. Maybe if you weren't so intent on defying me, this fight would already be over, and you'd have more time to spend with your woman.

You think I don't know what you're asking of me? And you have the gall to pretend you'll ever have the authority in these situations? In case you haven't noticed, I've still yet to just make you my vessel with the snap of my finger, without asking even once. I'm nice like that. You know how many times I've been tempted to? I could take control before you birth your next thought, kill everyone you love, especially Yin Li, and force you to watch.

Everything about me that you fear, everything you want to keep away from this worthless planet still licking its ten-year old wounds? I could use a fraction of that to raze this world down. You're right to hate me, to loathe me with all your being and try to bury me as deep as you can...but you need me just as much, and you know it, so why don't you just drop the useless bravado?"

Still struggling to wrest himself from Raikos' hold, Shuzo could do nothing but listen as his energy quickly began to peter out; the Herald had a continuous history of getting into the farthest depths of his head, and as Raikos' words relentlessly tore through his spirit, he felt his body begin to weaken. After a few more moments of silent struggling, Shuzo sighed, swallowed his pride, and succumbed with a reluctant request murmured under his breath. Raikos wasn't satisfied, however, grabbing Shuzo's hair and slamming him into the ground yet again as he reiterated his demand. "What was that? I couldn't quite hear you."

With a seething growl, Shuzo internally directed some choice words toward the Herald and coughed before repeating his request.

"Help me put down this yakuza head. I can't do anything against him, not even with my current abilities."

"Hm, you still seem to be above saying 'please', but I'll allow it this time," Raikos responded, his demeanor still nonchalant as he kept Shuzo pinned. "You sure are getting folded by this guy, huh? Though, my Silverbolt isn't exactly a 'free trial' you can just cancel at any moment; you more than anyone understand the toll it extracts."

"If what you've been saying is true, I'll pay it eventually anyway," Shuzo retorted, no longer trying to break free of Raikos' grip. "It's inevitable, right? I'm just struggling on to the very end? You and everyone else in my head have had way too much presence in my present over something in my future. I'll worry about the now and pay my dues when the time comes. Just help me keep her safe."

The Herald had finally stopped talking for once, falling silent as he seemed to think to himself. His grasp on Shuzo's head had also slightly relaxed, allowing the mortal to finally pull himself back to his feet and stand before Raikos. A few more seconds of tense silence passed, and with a mere sniff, Raikos rose to stare at Shuzo, his eyes peering into the vigilante's own before finally, he began to walk toward him, his figure slowly filling with a bright, silver light. The lustrous grey then began to seep into Shuzo's body, coursing through his veins and filling his core as his vision went white.

- - -

As time continued to flow normally before Okubo's eyes, Shuzo's person was suddenly struck with a bolt of argent electricity, emitting a bright flash of lustrous light that filled the room, and before the Serpent of Takeshi could even bring his hand up to cover his eyes, he felt an abrupt impact crash into him and send him flying into a wall. As soon as the light faded, Okubo would find himself held up against the drywall about a foot above the floor, his throat held in the grip of a man who both resembled Shuzo Takeshi yet carried an authoritative air in stark contrast to his earlier disquietude.

Shuzo's eyes were filled with an intense silver, bolts of brilliant lightning arcing and dancing around his body with more ferocity than that of his usual red electricity. As he drew back a hand, lustrous energy pulsing through the veins in his arms and hands, a fleeting whisper creeped into his head, its message soft but clear.

It won't be for long, but run wild. Don't forget, though... the bill comes due.

The voice momentarily paused Shuzo's motion, but after a few more seconds of silence, he returned his attention and hollow gaze to Okubo and launched his fist without a word, set on a course to leave a mark not only on the yakuza head's face, but mainly the wall behind it.

 

[Grand Master Koop]

As the blows kept coming, Vibratus felt his whole body shake with each impact. He felt the force being carried away from their initial point of impact and dispersing as they did. A smug grin grew on the man's face as he looked down upon Might Girl. "Heh, as I thought, these fools are nothing compared to my illustrious strength. Its only a matter of time before I come out on top. But for now, I guess I'll humor them seeing as they managed to keep me entertained for this long." He thought.

The man's grin didn't last long however. When Vanessa reeled her arm back for one final punch, Vibratus' body went on high alert. It was as if his instincts were yelling at him that if this next attack connects, it won't be just another hit he can simply shrug off. Before his mind could catch up to what he was doing, Vibratus' body began moving. He first blasted away the filth restraining his arms with a sudden burst of force before moving them towards where he predicted Vanessa's fist will hit.

Closing his hands in on where the his attacker's fist will connect with his body, Vibratus began condensing a massive amount of vibration into the shape of an sphere as Vanessa's punch closed in. The Orb of Force would emit a massive amount of pressure against Might Girl's fist, aiming to halt the mighty punch's advance and stop it from reaching its target. After a short while, the orb would explode, sending powerful shockwaves towards both sides and potentially knocking the two combatants away from each other.

 

[BurbleBurble]

Skade II

He was gone. He was mocking her. He was frustrating.

How dare he accuse her of insanity. He knew nothing. So what if his family got razed over? Hundreds of others had also been. It was never anything personal. It was inevitable, and if Skade hadn't done it, it would've been by Ignizio's or the Void Father's hands. And if they had survived? Would they lurk in the hollowed shell of a world puppeteered by Warren? As if his lost meant anything to her.

The bitter chill of her whitefrost seeped around in the now empty street, as her wild gaze looked around for the assailant. He wasn't retreating, that was for certain- The vigilante's voice echoing around the street. She had to think. Think, what could she do to stop his advance...And where he could be coming from.

She reflected, briefly, on some encounters over the years. It had been an uphill battle at first to fight the various gangs and bullyboys paid from up high- Originally she had started by picking them off one by one, freezing and silencing them when they didn't expect it. But once she had been on the receiving end, when they were well aware of some odd girl going around striking at groups. At first, she was overwhelmed- Their strikes bruising and scarring, words venomous. Until she lashed out, with an icy slam in the ground. Shards of ice, frozen concrete, and...

Wait, that was it! She was thinking about this entire circumstance wrong.

She couldn't treat him like a single target. Instead, she needed to act like he was coming at all sides at all times.

"GRAAAH!" So she repeated that attack, shattering asphalt and her whitefrost coated arms and makeshift weaponry as she slammed into the street under her. A splattering of shrapnel, rubble, dust, and frost. "BACK OFF!!"

This fight was going to turn in her favor, even if she had to wrest that from Wolfe's cold heh dead hands.

 

[comic]

Okubo Shogo, the Serpent of Takeshi​

A sudden jolt of energy, and the Serpent found himself slammed against the wall, the drywall cracking beneath the pressure, a grip upon the old man's throat, who choked, glaring down at the ex-Paragon, noticing the silver flitting about, arcing across Shuzo's body, the way it seemed to resist Shogo's attempts to absorb it. It wasn't natural, that was certain. Then, Sparkblade paused, even for a moment, his sparking silver eyes growing distant for the briefest period.

He wasn't acting alone.

Putting forth an intense amount of effort, Shogo's hands pried at Shuzo's own, and the silver energy began to shudder from Okubo as he forcibly seeped the energy into himself, and time seemed to slow with each ounce of silverbolt he absorbed, a difference in strength seeming to lessen as Okubo put himself onto equal footing with his opponent, enough to catch Shuzo's fist as it sailed for him.

A crack resounded as the fist collided with the palm, and Okubo's hand jerked back, but was successful as the old man grit his teeth, silver lightning lighting up in his own eyes. "Neat trick," he grunted, still continuing to sap energy the longer Shuzo held on. "Reminds me of a dead man, now I'm thinking he's not quite as dead."
​

Vanessa Everest, Might Girl​

What followed her punch was a rapid surge of energy that condensed from around her opponents body to form energy at his center, where Vanessa was aiming to hit, a lightspeed maneuver that resulted in a blinding blast as her fist connected before the orb could fully form, but it seemed to do its job as intended anyway.

Feeling gravity suddenly shift, Vanessa found herself sailing backward through the air, dazed and confused as to what had just happened, willing her flight ability to catch her, but just before it kicked in---she crashed through the brick wall of a ruined building off to Percy's right. With a thump and a grunt, Might Girl came to a stop on the cracked cement floor of what appeared to be an old office building, and she'd just reduced an old and crusty table into woodchips on impact.

Beginning to get the impression she'd be best saving the Prince and getting them to safety, Vanessa scrambled to her feet, wincing at the bruise that had formed on her shoulder from the impact. This guy was definitely a Paragons-level threat, and all the more reason she should try and build a new team. It wasn't as though she could solve all the world's problems single-handedly, after all.​

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

Prince Percy - No longer waiting!


"Woah-"

Percy, being a fair distance away from the two whilst he had restrained Vibratus, found his footing shaken as a wave of vibrations broke the bonds he made and sent him clambering to stay stable as Vanessa crashed through a nearby wall. However, the prince grew a smile. An eager, mischievous smile.

"It's alrighty dolly, I got this all figured out." Percy mused. "Ya see, I probed him a bit before ya. He's got some tough tricks- but there's lag time between the big ones. Exactly what I was hoping for!"

Purposely not using any big moves until Vibratus used one of his, Prince Percy pointed down. Below, a swirling quagmire of filth bubbled and sloshed about before pluming up to drench Vibratus in the putrid fluid.

If he were hit by this, Percy would use the stunning attack to his advantage, swirling his wand in his hand. He would attempt to bend the splashed matter, AKA, Vibratus himself! And then he would slam Vibratus directly into the ground below face first.

 

[OmnipotentOnion]

Shuzo

Sinking.

Static coursed through Shuzo's body as he felt his mind sink deeper and deeper into a pit, an endless void.

He felt in control of his body, but he couldn't feel—not the impact as his fist was stopped by the quick-to-adapt Okubo, not what should've been the familiar sensation of his strength being drained. Shuzo could barely make out the muffled words of the yakuza lieutenant, but even then, they fell on deaf ears. He felt numb, but despite the feeling of hollowness that seemed to engulf him, one thing was certain.

He felt powerful.

Immediately wresting his hand away from Okubo's grip, Shuzo's eyes were now empty, save for the lustrous silver filling them, as he darted back, suddenly slamming a palm into the ground. The earth beneath his hand shattered from the impact, only for the sound of roaring thunder to quickly follow, as another bright bolt of lightning crashed down upon the Silverbolt heir. Even as Okubo had slowly absorbed Shuzo's newer, fiercer electricity to even the playing field, the latter had once again widened the gap between them. Silver light surged with even more radiance than before through his veins and in his eyes, but Shuzo's demeanor remained monotonous—without another word, he pressed the offensive once more.

Shuzo couldn't keep Okubo pinned or maintain physical contact for too long, lest he have his electricity drained again. Remaining silent, he then drew his sword, slowly as the shrill sound of metal grated through the tense air of the room. Shuzo'd previously kept his ninjato sheathed to keep some deluded sense of respect in his clash with Okubo, but this new amalgam of the former Paragon and the Herald of the Silverbolt carried no such sentiment.

Stretching out his free hand, Shuzo then emitted a bright flash of silver light from his palm to fill the room and momentarily stun Okubo, and when the flash subsided, the former Paragon was nowhere to be found. As Okubo was hopefully still regaining his footing, Shuzo then appeared behind the yakuza head, drawing his blade back before aiming a deadly slash at his nape. Though his body remained aglow with silver lightning, the ninjato itself carried no trace of electricity in the off chance Okubo would be able to catch it as he had Li's katana. He would also find that shattering the blade would prove to require a bit more effort than it did Li's own.

- - -

Wolfe

"BACK OFF!"

Wolfe's approach was suddenly cut short when the Herald(?) slammed her palms into the ground, and shards of ice and frozen rubble burst from beneath her, protruding outward to cover all angles. Muttering a curse under his breath, the vigilante attempted to weave through the frigid spikes, though he ended up losing his footing and tumbled past Skade after he fell.

As he skidded to a halt, Wolfe met Skade's glare with his own as he pulled himself to his feet, but as soon as he stood, he almost immediately keeled back over, feeling a sharp, searing pain tear through his abdomen anytime he dared straighten up. The same burning cold that had been brought about by a mere scrape on his cheek earlier was now amplified in a more serious wound, a gash in his side most likely from one of the spires of ice that had burst out. Wincing quietly, Wolfe gingerly pressed a hand against the injury as he once again turned his gaze toward Skade; with virtually one attack, this girl had nearly ended the fight, despite Wolfe having maintained a strong offensive for most of it.

"Alright 'Skade', if that really is who you are," Wolfe grunted, still applying pressure to his wound. "What's your play here? The Void Father's dead, the rest of the Heralds dead too. But you survived. For what purpose? What more could you possibly hope to gain from this planet?"

Faces flashed before Wolfe's eyes, memories stirring to life as he recalled the events of the Reaping. Memories that stung more than the gash in his side ever could. He'd hoped to quickly apprehend whoever this seemingly fake Herald was and get any answers or knowledge on why such a cosmic deity could possibly remain after the earth was ravaged, but it seemed now that he'd had the tables turned on him. In the worst case scenario, he'd be nearing his last breath today, so Wolfe decided to take this brief pause to potentially gain the answers he'd been hoping for when he instigated this fight.

 

[comic]

Okubo Shogo, the Serpent of Takeshi​

It was as though a facade had fallen over his opponent. No... more like... a veil had been lifted. And that silver lightning? It make Okubo's mind crank its gears into overdrive, trying to remember the dead man who had once held such power, but the identity escaped him. It shouldn't have, yet it did... that was concerning.

Due to the absorbed power, the Serpent was capable of keeping up with Sparkblade, while they were just two flashes of light in a blink-and-you'll-miss-it fight to Yin Li nearby, who had dragged herself to the corner of the room, wisely electing that she was out of her league now.

the following burst of electricity did indeed momentarily floor Shugo as he raised his arm, some of the power he'd absorbed acting with his mind in a fluid sense that even surprised him, as it acted as a type of electrical barrier, spitting up against the bolt before blasting it wildly away. That tiny loss in power was enough for Okubo's speed to lessen ever so slightly, an advantage given to Shuzo as he darted behind the older individual, slashing for the back of his neck.

Okubo snapped around, his speed impressive even with the boost he had, shifting into place and bringing up a hand to grasp at Shuzo's own, pushing back against the hilt of the blade while its sharpened edge cut into the Serpent's neck, drawing blood, slicing an inch in before Shogo's efforts put it to a halt, and the contact allowed him to even the playing field once again, pushing back against the arm to take the blade away as his leg snapped up with a thrust, and he went for the gut kick again.

However, Okubo wasn't fighting for the sake of fighting. No, now he had a reason beyond his honor to live. He had to inform Keiji-sama of certain... developments. The issue was surviving and escaping.​

 

[Grand Master Koop]

The massive blast that managed to even knock the mighty Might Girl back with tremendous force didn't simply disappear once it stopped its intended target. In the same way as Vanessa, Vibratus was violently sent flying back by the power of his own defense. The man was knocked into the ground and proceeded to slide backwards for quite a distance, kicking gravel, dust and other loose debris on his path. Eventually, the man skid to a halt after colliding with a large piece of rubble imbedded into the ground. Vibratus groaned as the impact stopped him. "What the hell was that? Was it something I did?" He questioned as he stood up.

Before he got to contemplate what had happened any more, putrid sludge suddenly erupted bellow him. "Gah! The damn brat is still not letting up up huh? Well, this is a good opportunity to see if I can replicate what I did earlier." He said out loud. Gathering his vibration energy inside him and spreading it around his body, Vibratus unleashed a small yet forceful burst all around him, knocking away the sludge that the Prince of Trash attempted to snare him with.

Following his demonstration, Vibratus stood there for a moment, looking down at his arms and admiring his work. The man appears to have learned a new way to use his powers. "Heh, it seems I'm even stronger than I thought I was."

 

[| Korutesu |]

Edward Collins, Paragons Tower

The first thing he saw wasn't a tower, but a large dragon, most likely a hydra. At this point, everything was "normal". Almost everything went into chaos, so everything that goes on is just something that happens almost daily.

"Hey! You! Up there! Yeah, you! What are you doing here?" He shouted, it could probably he heard in the area around them, though he wasn't entirely sure.


Edward didn't really know WHY the hydra was there, though he knew it wasn't just some random dragon, it was someone with powers, so he knew he could understand him. He wanted to know why the hydra was there in the first place, and why they thought it would be a smart idea to use their powers, being a hydra, to be in-front of Paragons Tower. To Edward, it actually looks like the hydra was going to destroy Paragons Tower to bits, though, it hadn't done any damage to it other than the current damage it sustained from the tragedy. Unless Edward got more information about what the hydra was doing, he couldn't really do much about it. Attack it, no less. Even then, Edward was outmatched, by a LOT, so a brawl wouldn't be optimal in this situation. Plus, even if they fought, They'd have a large chance to hit the Paragons Tower, making his trip over here a large waste, so Edward just stood there, waiting for the hydra's first move.
@Void_Nugget

 

[BurbleBurble]

Skade II

The counterattack went as planned, a shallow crater left in the street where she slammed. Her attacker forced back, sporting an obvious injury. Skade had a rather smug grin plastered on her face as she rose back up, already reforming the whitefrost that had shattered with her attack. Her new weapon appeared to be forming into something much more blunt and vicious- A large chunk of ice, curving into a solid spike.

She went to approach the vigilante, but paused as he asked his question. What did she have to gain? What was there to gain from remaining on this planet, with the Void Father dead? That was the original Skade's purpose, after all- To assist the Void Father for the ultimate destruction of Earth.

But Skade's smile just widened, as she chuckled. "Oh? What do I stand to gain? That's simple- My work isn't done." She shook her head as she approached Wolfe. "The planet isn't my target, not at the moment. Patriot died fighting the Void Father. The other Paragons met untimely fates as well. You'd think my vengeance is complete, but do you know who only benefitted from this entire situation? Charles Warren.

"He collected them- Us, putting us together. He knew the Void Father was coming, and welcomed it with open arms. Because the Father was the answer. There was only a few obstacles in Warren's way, with the Paragons, and us of course. But he thought we could solve them both." This was assumption, not fact, but probably not far from the truth. "That'd we would destroy one another. But I remain. I am Skade's rage continued, the bitter cold that will freeze over the stupid old man and send him plummeting to his eternal punishment.

"As for what I do after that? The planet's filled with valid combatants. I think I'll just see who tears apart who first. Maybe when it's all said and done, I'll finish the job. But I have centuries to wait!" This was a bald faced lie, entirely. Despite the confidence she spoke with, what remained after Charles Warren was a huge question mark. Even if she had all the abilities the first Skade had, it would still be an uphill battle to put the old man down. For she knew the leagues of superhumans Charles was making before, and continued to make now. Because she was one of them.

"So I have no intention of dying to any passerby who thinks they can bring me down. But I'll continue to entertain you, if that's truly what you want."

She charged at Wolfe with a renewed fury, a clear move displayed- To smash his head in with that heavy icy spike.

 

[Void_Nugget]

Malekai
Still glancing around looking for Bex starting to worry that he couldn't yet see her until he heard a voice from below him, it wasn't Bex so he glanced down curiously all his head looking down at the owner of the voice. He eyed him up for a second before speaking "I'm waiting for a friend, why am I in your territory or something" his gravely voice boomed out from all his heads at once, making him sound quite threatening for all of 5 seconds before he realised Bex would be passed if he got in a fight right now so he switched to speaking with the main head and lowered it down to the man's level "if I'm in your way I can move or actually hang on" he said politely before he began shifting down into his smaller reptile form "forgive me for not completely returning to human form to commune with you but to be honest I don't trust you yet, so who are you then?"
@| Korutesu |

 

[RexOli]

Kobey was a bit of an old acquaintance with sudden losses of vision and Kobolt had a special talent of setting the world ablaze with nothing but red, but they never thought that everything could suddenly lit up pink.

They expected a mugger - Who isn't a mugger nowadays, really. Kobey didn't judge then and they weren't about to start now. The definition is absolutely in dire need of polishing now that economy - and most other things- is in shambles.

Kobey wouldn't mind a mugger. Their subspace contains many treasures, but their need for food packed it when everything bodily of theirs did. As such, their definitions of treasures tends to differ from the rest of the population and unless chalk has become the new delicacy, Kobey could at least help with the scavenging effort for how long Kobolt would allow.

At worst, it could be a trophy hunter, expecting to be led directly into some lair and sell the hide of their supposed brethren for chicken bones and ashen bread. Kobey would offer to scavenge again and then probably donate the chalk and glitter gratis. Everything is an improvement from coals and femurs. If they had nothing but that, maybe Kobey could get them to tag along for a while.

The point is, Kobey thought they were ready for whatever and whoever this shaken city still managed to provide for.

Kobolt reacted immediately, kicking its idle gadgets into gear with enough fervor that their innards whirred - From their HUD, Kobey could see them running facial recognition, voice synchronizer, motion tracer and filling out a new profile into the database at once. Kobey only caught the sight of "Tellurian liveform, Humanoid" before Kobolt wooshed it away from their view.

Kobey was completely confident in this Sherlockian assessment. Mostly, definitely- but they couldn't stop staring at the human. She was so, so very human, and yet something in Kobey prodded them to look. They saw baby pink and whoever orchestrated meetings up there had a great sense of humor, long ears that would match Kobolts own except for lack of prongs and abundance of charm.

Before Kobolt and even after had to start avoiding mirrors, they still got to see humans every day. The sight of one shouldn't fill them with much... Joy. Anticipation. Curiosity. This confusing cocktail of those emotions locked Kobey into undivided, stilted attention, even after Bex spoke.

:-attenntion to mirroring. No sharp movements, unless play motion is anticipated. Direct eye contact could be taken as a predatorory, measuring of prey, challenge-":

Kobey dropped their gaze, the glow of their visor now aimed somewhere above Bexes shoulders. With this, they managed to gather themselves enough to click their prongs against each other in the best imitation of a clap Kobey could fashion with their mind still drenched in pink. The motion made the sounds of clinking glasses and grinding sand. "Can't fault your confidence, what a display!"

Still atop their perch, Kobey sagged closer to Bex in an angle that would make the most tightly nailed-down gargoyles sweat, and when that still wasn't enough to get the satisfy whatever the need to look closer aimed at, their neck started to stretch.
It wasn't as grotesque as one would expect- Kobey knew the human limit of grotesque and unconsciously abided by them, only stretching as far as most humans would expect from their body. In the end, Kobey managed to make the motion come off more as a curious giraffe instead of a hungry jungle snake.

The stretch moved the circlets across their neck, revealing more of the thick tubing beneath them- there were slimmer ones too, cables that would be near invisible for their translucence if it weren't for the mar of reddish-brown rust spots. Disregarding the smudges of paint and stray glitter, those were the only blemishes on Kobolts frame, and the thin cables grew taunter and taunter before disappearing behind the stronger tubes, as if aware of their state and deeply self-conscious about it.

"....when you made a rather intriguing sound"

Somewhere inside their head, Kobolt took great pride in its understanding of conversational cues, and replayed the mentioned sound for Kobey's convenience.

Kobey responded by snapping its neck to its original length so fast that if a giraffe tried to replicate it, its spine would shatter into glass marbles.

Oh, did they recognize the noise immediately. How impossible it would be not to do so. Given anything resembling a paper, they could draw the cloven hooves and horned brow of its owner as alive as they were animated so long ago. Kobolts perfect mimicry and Kobeys awful, no-good tendency to slip into kindergarten instincts never mixed well but this-
For the first time, their mask turned away from Bex completely, their taloned paws uncurling to rake across their mask instead, trying and failing to cover the jagged pink sinewave flashing through the holes of their mask.

There was a tiny bit of embarrassment, yes but... Their memories were a leaking bucket and yet, Kobey could use Kobolts body to re-play audio clip from an obscure childhood movie. That-

Oh, that was just comedic gold in making.

"Oh, that was an unicorn's cry, if you'd believe! All because, ah- Well, I took a bit of a tumble and greatly displeased the pavement. It swallowed me to my very ears! Do not imagine the shock, I wouldn't want that for you too. " They waved their ears for emphasis and successfully ignored the reality that they laid on a pole that would cave under a city-fatten pidgeon.

"My designation's Kobey and please, don't start doubting your craftmanship on poor Kobey's account, dear Bex." From Kobey, Bex's name came as less of a name and more of a chirp. "It's just that were colleagues moving in the same fields, two owls accidentally butting heads instead of tracking night-blind robins. I'd fit the sentiment for rabbits but I'll rather spare both you and myself the tired carrot analogies."

Whatever Kobolt was looking for, it had it and the pink was finally allowed to seep out of Kobeys vision. They suddenly found it awfully improper to stare down at Bex. But as they moved their body onto its fours, Bex's words stilled them in their tracks.

"I can't figure out if you are flesh or machine"

Their endoskeleton clamped tight around their internals, cracking the biolight fluid and shifting the tines flat against its back.

How lucky Kobey was, that the first face Kobey saw was one belonging to a person so gloriously open-minded. It wasn't a prodding question, nothing cruel or accusing- just... very direct.

Kobey was the closest to a poet in their little family, but they never were a scientist or a philosopher. If Kobey was a little bit more honest towards cheerful eyes and themselves, the answer would end in a tangle of half words and question marks.

But Bex asked directly, and that only wanted hard facts. Kobey was never a fan of those- they preferred whatever laid between riddles and poeticism. That made their entire situation feel a bit like the middle of an old fairy-tale, and wouldn't jeopardize their careful attempt at not thinking about it all too much.

".... Storkborn and delivered, just like you." Human, they almost said- but no, not yet. That could scramble the situation belly side up, and Bex proved that she isn't one to mince words. She would ask for details, as while curiosity should always be encouraged and applauded for... Bex seemed free despite everything. Cheerful. Testing that would be nothing but cruel.

Kobey took a sudden step into the empty air, and before their body could mindlessly tumble toward the pathway, it contorted all on its for a perfect, feline landing, with Kobey gladly handing off greater control to Kobolt. it immediately used it to attempt to rub against Bex's leg, and Kobey stopped that like one would steer from an incoming car wreck, turning the body around so sharply that its waist folded onto itself for a moment there.
Now, appropriately mortified and truly wishing they had a newspaper to smack their faceplates with, they sprang into a casual trot towards Paragon Tower that was only betrayed by their not-so-casual commitment to not let Kobolt meet Bex's face.

"A-Advantage of this form is that it's harder to ever grow bored- an advantage your other half lacks, I assume! Let's get you back to them so I can properly apologize for splitting you two. Tell me, do you two... reside here still, or you'll be hopping towns?"

@Void_Nugget

 

[Void_Nugget]

Bex
This guy was strange and intriguing but Bex wasn't entirely fussed and happily carried on towards the tower walking beside Kobey. As he asked her whether she still lived in the area she thought for a second about the nest way to answer and then ignored her own thoughts and just started speaking "do we still live in the area? Well sort of, me and Kai work at an underground Warren Industries facility. We'll maybe work isn't right..um..I worked at the facility since a before the Reaping, Kai was technically a prisoner until recently but that's not important, basically yeah we still reside in the area" she said cutting herself off as she realised she had begun to ramble.

 

[OmnipotentOnion]

Shuzo

Okubo's foot found its destination into Shuzo's gut, the impact capable of sending any fully grown human through several walls. However, just as the yakuza captain made contact, Shuzo released his sword from his grip and used an arm to reach out and trap Okubo's leg, pinning his foot to his abdomen with his forearm as he fell back to the floor. As soon as he landed, the former Paragon then stepped back, still holding onto Okubo's foot as the latter's leg was straightened, and with his free hand, Shuzo aimed an electrified fist directly towards the side of Okubo's knee in an attempt to shatter the bone.

...

Sinking still, falling slowly through a void akin to the depths of the deep sea. Shuzo felt nothing, yet still felt the sensation of his stomach turning as he fell deeper--his thoughts swirling madly, but his mind empty. A numbness filling his body, and his movements seemingly sluggish. A palpable hollowness filling his core, but the sheer power surging throughout his veins. Then suddenly...

So, how's it feel?

A voice, slightly muffled yet reverberating through Shuzo's ears rang through the emptiness, bringing his mind back to some semblance of consciousness. Looking around, attempting to peer through the abyss, Shuzo searched for the face to the familiar voice, but to no avail, and without waiting for him to locate the source, the voice continued.

It feels good, doesn't it? The power. Feeling as if you can't even be touched. No longer in a realm of mere 'supers'. Doesn't that knowledge, the security, give you any sort of relief?

"I can't feel at all, so I couldn't say," Shuzo replied--at least, he tried to, as his mouth refused to open, even his thoughts sounding muffled in his ears. "Not this old man shoving his foot into my stomach, not even my own fists making contact. What did this 'Silverbolt' do to me?"

Oh, well, it's quite simple, really: you're just weak. I gave you cosmic lightning, yet this big guy's still able to keep up with you? Hardly seems like my fault, in my humble opinion. But, if you ever wanna start being honest, we both know the real reason you're not closing this out.

Deep down, you still haven't fully accepted what I've given you, even if it was on what you think are your own terms. If you had, you'd pour your entire being into getting rid of this old coot and be done within seconds, instead of acting like this transformation's just the worst acid trip of your life. If you really knew what you wanted, and you really tried to take it, you might actually be in full control. Instead, your body's only acting on instinct, making the necessary moves and nothing else, so it was only a matter of time before your enemy adapted.

You wanna win? Finally stop feeling like a failure for once? You know what you have to do. Swallow your pride once and never again. Throw away the self-righteous crap you keep clinging to and accept your fate, and I won't make it as painful in the end. The choice is yours.

...

Raikos's last words echoed in Shuzo's head as he silently listened, still submerged in the depths of his mind. Suddenly, however, he felt his body rise, as if coming back to the surface of the ocean, and a small, dim light faintly peeked out from the hollow void above him. The light grew larger and brighter as Shuzo rose, even dispersing to slowly reveal his actual surroundings once he was close enough. The face of Okubo grew clearer as he finally arrived back to reality..... and then it hit him.

All of the electricity coursing and surging through Shuzo's body suddenly dissipated without notice, leaving his body vulnerable; in stark contrast to the fierce power he'd displayed just now, the Silverbolt heir was utterly drained of strength as the silver light in his eyes faded, leaving only his hollow grey irises, nearly lifeless.

His incoming attack aimed at Okubo's knee had also completely lost its force as his hold on the yakuza captain's leg also weakened, and without a word, Shuzo collapsed to the ground shortly after, drifting to unconsciousness and prone to attack. As his world slowly faded to black, he barely made out a silhouetted figure standing behind Okubo, coated in a silver aura, before his eyes finally closed.


- - -


Wolfe

Keeping his breathing as steady as possible, Wolfe listened as Skade explained her origin, her hardships... her calling.

Her target was Charles Warren? Even for the Herald she claimed to be--and probably was, considering the pieces from this interaction coming together--the current World Leader was undoubtedly an untouchable individual. A man with Plan Z's and an astounding hold on the entire planet, not even supers had the gall to think of going after Warren even after his recently enacted Superhuman Registration Act. Wolfe hadn't exactly agreed with the public's adulation of Charles Warren, but he had no intention of getting into something so out of his league.

Regardless, Wolfe said nothing as he continued to listen to Skade, taking note of the hefty ice spike she now brandished. The determination she carried certainly did have the air of a Herald's ambition to it, further solidifying his confidence that she was indeed who she said she was. Such determination further helped to exacerbate his uncertainty as to whether or not he could actually win this fight, but the revelation of Skade's objective offered him some unexpected clarity, as well as a reason to fight other than his own personal vendetta.

If this Herald of Whitefrost could actually reach the superpower that was Charles Warren, not only would she likely fail in achieving her goal, but Warren's response to such an offense would likely lead to the detriment of the super population, further quashing any hopes of improvement that hadn't yet been dashed out.

"...I have no intention of dying to any passerby who thinks they can bring me down. But I'll continue to entertain you, if that's truly what you want."

It then seemed that Skade had concluded her monologue, and shortly after, she lunged at Wolfe, ice spike at the ready. the vigilante had still been gingerly feeling around his wound, reeling from the searing cold that had so quickly spread through his body from one direct hit. However, as the Herald approached, he sharply inhaled as much air as he could manage, and upon reaching his location, Skade would notice the same wisps of black and purple emitted from his breath for a split second before she swung with her spike, reaching empty air.

Wolfe now stood several meters behind her, smoke emanating around his entire body as he coldly stared down the Herald when she turned around. He then pulled his scarf off his face, revealing his nose and mouth as he then tied the fabric tightly around his abdomen to apply pressure to the gash in his side. A sigh escaped his lips as he continued to face Skade, opening his mouth to respond.

"Y'know, I actually don't want to entertain you; fighting a Herald's terribly exhausting."

Despite his blunt remark, Wolfe then lowered into a fighting stance, the wisps around him unwavering in intensity as he breathed.

"...But I will."

With his intentions decided, Wolfe dashed forward, kicking off the concrete without a sound as he reached Skade's location with astounding speed. He wasted no time in launching a subsequent attack, as he then aimed a quick jab at the Herald's wrist in an attempt to disarm her of the spike she wielded. Should the maneuver succeed, Wolfe would then follow up with a kick to Skade's side; he just had to hope that this eventual battle of attrition wouldn't last too long.

 

[comic]

Vanessa Everest, Might Girl​

A blonde head poked up from the hole made moments ago to peer through and glimpse at how the battle was unfolding. She witnessed as Percy's next attack was foiled as Vibrator utilized that same move again, but quicker and more effectively than before. "Oh shit, he's a quick study," Vanessa muttered to herself, before she tilted her head to look at Percy. Together they'd been able to stand a chance, but it didn't feel like this battle would have them as victors. She needed to get herself as well as him to safety.

They needed a little more help in order to defeat this threat. How the hell would she expect to beat Warren and his arsenal if this guy was stopping her? Bursting from the rubble she'd been blasted into, Vanessa zipped toward Percy, trying to be careful with the force of wind as she came to a stop, not wanting to blast the dude off his feet. "Hey, I just wanted to say 'sorry' for this," said Might Girl, before she quickly scooped the boy up and took off into the air, regardless of his wishes, though she took care with handling him, not exactly wishing to give him whiplash as the scene of the battle disappeared in seconds, Vanessa headed directly for Rose's place... again again.
​

Okubo Shogo, the Serpent of Takeshi​

Unexpectedly, the fight was... over? Okubo's limb was released before anything could be done to it. For a split second, he'd been at the mercy of Sparkblade, but that man had just collapsed before him. A prime opportunity lingered here, of course, but Okubo was aware of something deeper occurring here. Electing to tap into his reserves of power he'd absorbed, there was a flash of silver light before it was revealed in the next second that Okubo Shogo had fled.

By the time his absorbed power had depleted, he had already returned to his home base. Wincing at some pain in her sternum, Okubo took a moment to straighten his collar, flatten his thin and balding head, then sniffed before he proceeded to knock on the door into Takeshi-sama's office.
​

Yin Li, Hush​

The lieutenant had disappeared, and Yin Li blinked, staring at her seemingly defeated companion. In truth, that fight had lasted for only a couple seconds from her point of view. Mostly crimson, a flash of silver, and now Okubo was gone. She could only assume he'd won, but seeing as Sparkblade fully collapsed, beginning to fall unconscious, Yin Li realized he wasn't dead. For some reason, their attacker hadn't finished the job. For some reason... he'd fled. Was there a third party involved there?

Whatever the case was, the ex-cop pushed herself to her feet, ignoring the pain in the back of her head as she fell to her knees beside Shuzo and pulled him closer, lightly slapping at his face, her face hard and set. "You don't get to pass out on me, not right now," she barked, but his dull eyes notably rolled back as the sleepless world claimed him.

"God fucking damnit," Li spat, shaking her head as she unceremoniously dropped the man and rose to her feet, proceeding to pace about for a moment. That was just one lieutenant, but they had at least a few more. At the moment, the both of them were entirely unprepared for a second confrontation so soon... they needed some extra muscle. Jogging her memory, Yin Li recalled she'd briefly made contact with the bounty hunter known as Wrath.

...

He wouldn't work for free, and she doubted he'd do such a job that didn't require any upfront payments, but Li felt she could pull it off. The only issue was getting him aboard. Glancing at Shuzo, she shook her head again, then proceeded to spring into action, snagging one of the throwaway phones found in her bag. She tossed it back in to dig out another, the first not being her intended phone.

Flipping it open, Yin Li proceeded to punch in a selection of words.

"Wrath. Similar targets. Work together. Okinawa Hotel. -Hush"
​

Facility Alpha Prime​

"Subject: Trevor T. Jenkins."

Miles beneath the surface of the White House sat Facility Alpha Prime. The terrestrial home base of one Charles P. Warren. Sleek walls of a custom steel alloy, designed for optimal efficiency, maximum durability, and mass production. Deep this far down, the facility was at the brink of breaking through the Earth's crust into the mantle. One would expect it to be burning hot down here, but Warren had his means of keeping things comfortably tempered.

"Alias: Cretecon."

Within this particular room of sleek and organic-like metal stood a prison. A rectangular box, cyan in color, where a man was trapped inside. Or rather, a super. His body was composed of rock, but this prison held him in place, beams of white energy locking him down as his limbs were held in place by rings of hard light. Not only did it keep him in place, but if he so much as budged an inch, it would scorch him to within an inch of his life. Escape wasn't just impossible, it was suicide.

"Birth: January 13, 1998."

This large and empty prison of a room had two doors. One directly in front of Cretecon, which led into the observation facility, and a second door that branched to the east side of the room, which led to the processing facility. The individual speaking was situated behind a console, standing with a clipboard in-hand. A blonde woman with streaks of grey along her scalp, a tablet in-hand as the men seated at the console before her performed a basic diagnostics check. A name tag on her lab coat displayed "Jackson L."

"Mutation: Igneous rock multi-cellular replacement."

Laura Jackson lifted her gaze from her tablet, peering through her glasses toward Cretecon, who was motionless in his prison. The expression his face carried only had one description: hopeless. Her eyes fell back upon her tablet as she scanned over a few more bits of data, her voice having been amplified through a speaker toward Cretecon himself, the question having been "is this information correct?"

"Trevor, do you know why you're here?"

Her eyes once again lifted to the prisoner, whose rock eyelids blinked, temporarily covering his rock eyes. How his body functioned, she didn't know the details. Tests on that had already been conducted by the Inhuman Science Division, specifically their anatomy department. After a few more moments, Laura pushed the question again when Cretecon didn't answer. Upon her repeat, the man spoke, his gravelly voice somewaht faint.

"No..." he stated hoarsely.

"You are here for your condition, Trevor. Do you know what we intend to do?"

"No..."

"We will cure you. You will be human again, Trevor. Please don't move."

No response. Laura dropped her eyes to her tablet, doing a once-over, before she gave a nod toward one of the scientists at the console, who'd turned to look at her. At her signal, he turned back around and the two began to flip switches, turn dials, and monitor reading layouts. "Isolating Herald Gene," one said.

"Powering Isotropic Cellular Converter," the second announced as the prison began to turn shades. Once cyan, it now appeared emerald. Cretecon's tired eyes widened as he looked about as best as he could without turning his head.

"Beginning conversion in 3..."

Cretecon's hopelessness was replaced by fear, the man entirely uncertain of what would be done to him. The green light around him began to glow brighter and brighter, eventually becoming a white light.

"2..."

Laura turned her gaze away from the light. Even with the customized windows of the observation room, it was still far too bright for her to directly look at.

"1..."

She could feel the ground beneath her feet rumble slightly with the power pulsing from the prison.

"Conversion begun. Monitoring vitals."

Laura peered over the shoulders of her subordinates, noting how Cretecon's vitals indicated he was still alive. The only issue would be him moving. The hard-light cuffs were in-place to ensure minimal movement to avoid self-inflicted harm. After a few seconds, several screens began to flash red.

"Vitals fading! We're losing him!"

"Dammit, did the fool turn his head?" Laura snapped.

"He's not suffering from plasma scoring, ma'am. His body isn't reacting well to the Gene Conversion."

"Shut it off, Warren wants him alive!"

Switches, dials, and knobs went about their process of being manipulated, the bright light within the room beginning to dim. After several seconds that felt much longer, the light finally died down as the green within was replaced with cyan. Within the prison, it was revealed that Cretecon had been reduced into... nothing. The conversion had vaporized him on the atomic level.

There was a moment of silence, before one scientist turned his head to look at Laura. "...M-ma'am?"

"I'll handle Warren," she sighed, brushing a strand of hair from her face, and swiping a finger across her tablet toward another profile. "Send in the next prisoner. This time, use Process 3X39. Process 4V82 is too potent."

"Yes ma'am."

And so it continued.​

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

Percy


Well DAYUM. This guy was just dumb. I mean COME ON, there must be SOME cooldown to all that stuff. I call shenanigans. Oh well, it's not like I'm on deaths door. Looks like I just gotta use to bombardment to-

Thats when Might Girl came down behind him, snapping him out of this thoughts.

"Hey, I just wanted to say 'sorry' for this,"

"Sorry for wha-AAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

He yelled as he was plucked from the ground like a ripe tomato, clutching onto her as he was taken outside of his control and into the sky.

"Easy...EASY THERE! I was just about to win! GEEZ you heroes are so thick sometimes! this is nonconsensual!! Nonconsensual!!"

 

[waluigipinball]

Seeing the man recoil from her mental assail, Finley felt a great pride surge in her chest- though, she found it could not break through the gaunt neutrality of her features. Her powers were double-edged; though they were hard to resist and stealthy in their methods, too much effort on her own end tended to end in tears. From where she crouched, hidden and separate, she watched the flying girl and princely man with the junk match fist to fist with the 'villain'. Quakes rang out, expulsions of force that surely gave Vibratus his name; terrified and unfocused by brewing cowardice within, the scruffy woman began to back away from the battle while they were all distracted, her attention only rumbled from her escape by the crack of a sonic boom. Just like the one that had brought her into this mess, it surely came from the blonde girl; and as Finley fled the battlefield, slinking toward a hiding place (of which there were few, but her lily-shaped heart knew how to find cover) the adrenaline of the situation began to die down. Reaching her mind out, she focused to a metre or so away to aid her escape- as quick as a blink, she was there. A pin felt as if it was being pressed into her brain, though the pain of it only lasted a moment.

Silently- as always- she cursed herself. All she had done was hinder that man for a few seconds while a brave duo had unleashed an assault upon him, despite her vow to help from the sidelines- and she had no one to thank for their efforts. There was surely some way she could reach out to them, right? She had never tried reaching out to a stranger with her telepathy- only her own mother when she had been alive. She doubted she even knew the girl's face well enough to give her thanks.

Coward- there it was, that inner voice cursing her again. Could she not bear to even be grateful? Back flattened against brick as soon as she felt she was comfortably far enough away from where she had seen that man, Finley let free a sigh, wispy and weak as it pushed through sore lips. Within her mind she focused upon the face of that girl- for how briefly she had seen it, she was thankful for her good memory. Toward her she reached out with the words, You were very brave. I'm sorry I didn't help you much.

Even with so few words said, the distance her powers would have to go to reach the girl would surely give her a headache. Sure enough, as soon as she sent away the thought she was met with blinding, intense pain- enough that the brick scraping down her back as she slid to a seat upon concrete barely bothered her.

 

[DevVoid]

Wrath - Japan
There, right in his pocket. Another message. Hush, the one that he was gonna battle but was unable to due to Mortis' lies. Telling him to meet by Okinawa Hotel to work together on a hit. Strange, but doable. Luckily for Mason, his arrival was sooner there as he had found out that he was somewhat close-by to his destination. With his mask already set on, his shadowy figure emerged from the darkness as he popped out from seemingly nowhere but the shadows themselves, a hand clutching the handle of his sentient dagger, his face concealed by the mask. Giving a glance at the man at the ground, then at Li, he had quickly made the connection of what prompted Hush to contact him.

" No time for discussion, I assume. "

His mask actively distorted his voice, though his words remained clear to hear, albeit him keeping his voice rather quiet.

" What's the plan? "
@comic @OmnipotentOnion

Mr. Miracle - Paragons Tower
Though exploration proved exciting, what more grabbed his attention was a loud sound soaring across the skies, like that of a jet plane zipping through the clouds. Deciding to leave the ruin behind and follow this sound, Terry formed back into his human form and promptly tossed a smoke grenade under himself, using rapid teleporting to keep up with the sound via transporting the smoke cloud itself with him, thus staying constantly concealed. He had always made sure to stay out of view, so even his cloud would remain out of the sight of whoever, or whatever was making that noise. For the moment, he simply followed along and remained hidden, keeping a watchful eye out as he trailed after to investigate.

 

[| Korutesu |]

Edward Collins
"Oh, no, not my territory at all, I just wanted to know what you were doing. Actually, i was just about to go inside."

He was about to move around before the hydra, reptile, whatever it was started taking again. To be honest, Edward thought this could be a quick in-and-out, just to see any documents he could find, more than anything, about the Phantom Rouge. But since the man started talking, there was no way he could just walk away, it would be bad-mannered.

"I'm Edward Collins, a journalist. What about you? Can't have a one-sided introduction, can you?"
@Void_Nugget

 

[RexOli]

Kobey couldn't be sure they were going the right way, and strongly suspected that with a living being by their side now, Kobolt itself didn't really care eighter way. This was something the two of them could very much agree on, but Kobey still busied Kobolt by twining their small body through, out and again through the underland labyrinths inside the never-ending cascade of rubble.

The distance between them and Bex was fairly negligible and would still come across as Bex taking an adventurous ferret out for a walk, but Kobey almost ramming visor-first into something that looked too much like meat skewers gave Kobolt something else to focus on than trying to jump onto Bex's shoulders. If Kobey had the mind space, they'll begin putting together a fairytale to impart the importance of personal space, one suitable for an artificial intelligence- all the while patiently listening to the answer of the question they themselves asked, like the kindly, brief companion they were.

But they gave their everything into listening, and that's precisely why their mind was now reined over by an echoing static.

A more lucid part of them through of a side story about oversharing during an post-apocalyptic regime, with a rabbit talking about its warren warmed by pelts to a deer, only for it to be hunted through all seven woods when the kindly deer turns out to be a wolf robbed of its hide.

The rest was seized by the ice-cold ache of their mainframe reaching for something only to find it misplaced and torn. So clearly missing, like a page suddenly clipped, that both their own head and Kobeys portion of Kobolt's noticed and would tear its fingernails off reaching if Kobolt didn't freeze them in their tracks.

A telltale sight that this, Kobolt kept for itself. Warren Industries became a hollow word before it could find its meaning, other than the bone-deep sense that it was not a name, but more of an omen.

But an underground facility... Kobolt could wilt all experiences and ice over the neural pathways, but Kobey knew their past. Maybe more akin to how one would recite a poem but they couldn't forget. Kobeys own time in a hidden facility was early enough for Kobolt to touch, but just that.

Could it be...? No, Bex was human- a happy, colorful one. Kobey wasn't allowed to stay alive as one. They'll never let her walk out. And if by some miracle, she got out before that place ripped her to pieces, she would be much further from it than Kobolt ever took them.

But they kept Kai. Repurposed, lifted from the death row but just by an inch. Someone had to come back every night to loosen the noose, over and over again. Kobey knew that, they knew-

Kobolt cut off their thoughts with a ping, and Kobey awoke into the sensation of their frame coated in oil and roasting directly above a firepit. Somehow, Kobolts suddenly-rumbling core brought them the closest they could ever again get to sweating. The words tumbled out of them before Kobolt could tuck the heat away as it has always done so.

"Bex, I-.... Not many would know to follow to my homeland... It's a place forgotten by most, and we even tricked time itself once or twice." Kobey tried for a chuckle, but its pronounced reverb would put the oldest of recorders to shame. It sounded burned and when they poked their head out of the rubble, their eyes were lit aquamarine. An understanding, pitying color if there ever was one.

"Prague itself might be watched by more than its hundreds of spires, but Moravia always stood unyielding to a fault. Before, it was a bit of an ongoing issue but... You and your Kai could find refugee in its stubbornness now, if you'll run with me."

 

[Void_Nugget]

Malekai
Looking at Edward Kai gave a small shrug "Yeah guess I can tell you who I am, the names Malekai Park, but most people call me Kai. I've never had a job but I was a test subject for awhile I guess that could be seen as a job, but anyway I've been out of touch with people since long before The Reaping so it's good to meet someone who isn't looking for a fight" he said with a grin as he held out his hand for a handshake.

Rebecca
Listening idly to her new friend talk Bex walked along happily before noticing the dampen on the current mood, "well I mean we haven't had much reason to not trust the employees, I haven't been treated to bad and Kai was just kept in containment while his mental health and control were being monitored. Of course I know about all the stuff with Warren but the facility we're from became isolated from him after The Reaping so I'm sure there not as bad as him" she said holding her hands behind her and tilting her head slightly as the walked.

The Devil
On the top floor, in the luxury penthouse of a barely intact hotel in New York, sat in a throne of bone and brimstone was The Devil. He had been relatively busy killing his way around the city and had managed to make a nice following. From those that he had left alive they had spread out and some had started to create groups of followers. These weak willed people now did as he told and would die for him. He was currently listening to his first proper follower, a man by the name of Jensen Baker, who he had assigned as a sort of steward or adviser. "Another group of around 7 or 8 just arrived at the lobby and are being sorted for how useful they can be to you" Jensen stated as The Devil sat there drawing a pentagram on a skull barely listening to the droning voice of his adviser "very good Jensen, make sure the strong are sent to be infused with demon blood for my army, I need them strong and fast" he said casually before he heard a muffled cry as he glanced down to see the three gagged men in front of him "oh yeah, you three, what did they do again", "they were here snooping for information" The Devil sighed and waved his hand, this beckoned a behemoth of a man forward, he had once been some sort of builder but the demon blood had worked wonders on him making him many times larger and also making his appearance mutate into that of a minotaur. He loomed forward and began to massacre the prisoners who had been cut loose and allowed to try and flee but to no avail as they were picked off, the last being sent flying through the window and plummeting to the ground.

 

[Grand Master Koop]

Having been caught up reveling in his newfound power, Vibratus did not notice his opponents exit the scene, leaving him behind to bask in his own glory. "Heh, now this is quite interesting. If you would so foolishly wish to continue challenging me, then please do continue to waste your breath." The man taunted. When no response came from his opposition, Vibratus took at peak at where he last saw Might Girl and the Prince of putridity. "Oh, have they finally turned tail an ran? Well, can't say I blame them. I suppose they finally came to realize my superiority." The man spoke out loud.

With the distractions out of the way, the vibration man's mind drifted back to his burst of power earlier. "Hmm, while I don't doubt myself, it was still quite strange. I've never done something quite like that before. Does this mean there are aspect of my powers that even I don't understand yet?" He questioned. A look of deep thought covered Vibratus' visage for a moment, this was the first time he'd started questioning himself? However, it was soon wiped away in favor of a smirk. "Well it doesn't really matter, this is still my powers after all. So what if I discover a brand new aspect? It just means I'm even stronger than what I thought. It'll only be a matter of time before find out all that I have to offer. After all, the one who will stand at the top of the new world shall be me." He reaffirmed, brushing away any doubts in his mind.

After strengthening his resolve, the man suddenly remembered what he was doing in the first place. "Oh right, I got caught up teaching some fools to know their places I forgot I was looking for individuals worthy enough to serve under me. Well, since the distractions have been taken care of, I should get back on that." With that said, Vibratus also left the scene.

 

[comic]

Vanessa​

"Sorry!"

"EASY THERE!"​

"Sorry!"

"I was just about to win!"​

"Sorry!"

"GEEZ you heroes are so thick sometimes!"​

"Sorry!"

"This is non-consensual!!"​

"Sorry!"

"Non-consensual!!"​

"Sorry!"

She might have sounded like a broken record at this point, but it was genuine, and truly the only thing she could say in respond as they soared through the sky, the boy clutching onto her as he stared wide-eyed below them. Only once they were a considerable distance away did Vanessa slow and begin to descend, the wind whipping at them dying in its roar to a gentle breeze. With more grace than she had with Flow-Flou-Flora, Vanessa set Percival down on solid ground, muttering sorry a few more times as she did so.

"Sorry," she repeated... again. "We weren't winning that one, I- we need more people. You know, like a team?" her embarrassment and shame was quick to shift to excitement. "You know, like... the Paragons?" she bounced her eyebrows suggestively, as though implying Percy should just immediately join her on such an endeavor, and drop everything else he was doing.​

Hush​

"No time for discussion I assume."

Li glanced back at the individual she'd summoned with the prospect of mutual teamwork. Wrath, who had emerged without her knowing it. She'd been in the process of applying her own alter ego after tending briefly to Shuzo's wounds. They would heal, of course, but he wasn't in great shape.

"What's the plan?"

She slid her mask over her face, her chin tapping against a pad inside of it, activating her own voice modulator as she pulled the hood over her head, which was still throbbing from before.

"Lay low," she answered simply, reaching down to heft the larger man onto her shoulders like one might carry a fallen soldier on the battlefield. Despite her short stature and frail appearance, Yin Li was clearly stronger than meets the eye. "We devise a plan once he wakes. Do you have a hideout?"​

 

[DevVoid]

The Shadow Assassin
" We devise a plan once he wakes. Do you have a hideout? "

" Naturally. After me. "

While Japan wasn't exactly the prime spot of hit opportunities, a good amount still had come from all over this country in the past. So, Wrath really had no choice but to make a few pitstops, even if he had to keep them pretty small to keep anyone from finding them. Heading away from the Hotel, the sprinting shade took a turn into a nearby alley and opened a sewer grate, heading on down.

Soon as his feet could reach solid ground again, Wrath had waited for his allies to come on down with him, planning to help where he could. When they did eventually get down, Wrath had planned to go on down the sewer tunnels, take a right, cross the makeshift bridge and keep heading down, then taking another right and aiming to head to a metal door to hold open to his allies for. Behind it, he knew there was a small bunker he had built there, more of a checkpoint than a safehouse but still able to be used for either purpose. Still, it would do. For now.

Master of Magics
"We weren't winning that one, I- we need more people. You know, like a team?"

A team, eh? What an intriguing thought. The entertainer gave it a thought. He guessed this would've been a hero-related squad. And working within a team doesn't sound too bad, he wouldn't mind teaching some folk a few tricks or two. And then, her next line hit him like a truck does to a deer in the midst of the night.

"You know, like... the Paragons?"

Well, that most definitely confirms that this was to be a band of vigilantes. Or at least, that this was the plan of this girl ahead of him. Well, what an interesting idea, indeed! A squad of heroes, old and new, setting out against the crimedoers and villains of the world! This sounded as if ripped straight from a comic book - the perfect thing that his alter ego, Mr. Miracle, would have wanted.

Assuring he had remained hidden, Miracle had spun on the spot to use his cape to warp a few meters in front of the girl and the boy, now floating mid-air, twirling his magic wand to strategically make a poster of his times as a hero, one that he had teleported alongside him, fly beside himself and unfold itself like a scroll, declaring his identity then and there right on time with the pun in his following announcement.

" Looking for people to build a team of heroes, eh? Sounds like hard work! Sounds like you need.. a miracle! "