Dawn

Joan · Jul 24, 2017

Archer and Archer Inc.
Collab with @CloudyBlueDay

Joan's face broke out in a relieved smile as the brown-haired boy assured her he was fine. Part of her brain clocked his unusual calm and the fact that he hadn't really budged at all, but the rest of her was too busy dealing with his apparent friendliness to really notice.

"Hm? Oh, no, I was just getting rid of this one, or, well, what's left of it." She flinched slightly when he brushed her off but, for some reason, didn't pull away, instead just shaking her head slightly and holding up the sandwich. She had been about to say she was just leaving when the girl over at Big Belly's shouted in their direction.

Archer turned back her way, saying he would see her in a minute. "Wait, what's that supposed to-" Then his eyes glowed, and she felt herself go numb just before he vanished in a gust of wind. As he vanished, she felt something on her hand, and she looked down at the number Archer had left her just before the world exploded.

She hit the ground again, this time on her back, and she let out a small yelp from the shock more than anything. Her sandwich was gone again, but that hardly seemed relevant since something had just exploded and now everything was burning and she needed to move or she was going to die. As she rolled over onto her belly and began to push herself to her feet, every screen she could see or hear lit up. She should have been getting to her feet and running out of there, finding an exit, but the broadcast caught her attention and stopped her in her tracks. She stayed there until the broadcast was over, mesmerized by L30's message.

When the broadcast cut off, she sat there for another moment before forcing herself to move, scrambling to her feet and moving for an exit. The way she had come previously, however, was blocked by fire, and she felt her breathing speeding up, her chest tightening…

Nonono, not the time to panic. She stumbled back the other way, doing her best to take deep breaths. However, breathing of any sort is a lot more difficult when the air is filled with smoke, and she found herself coughing more often than not. She barely registered the calm teenager talking about which exit to use or the girl on the floor, but something about the boy got to her. How the hell is he so calm? That was an explosion! An actual explosion, and he's just so...calm! Not to mention that broadcast talking about the meteor shower and...powers?

Powers. Glowing eyes. Her mind flashed back to the moments before the explosion. That boy, Archer, his eyes had glowed yellow just before he...vanished. Her eyes glowed too, she'd seen it in the mirror. Except hers glowed green. And he seemed to know something about what was happening, given he had vanished right before the explosion.

Her eyes went to the number on her hand again, and before she knew what she was doing, her phone was in her hand and she was dialing. Then it was by her ear, and she was speaking into it, her fear coming out in her voice.

"What the fuck is happening here?!?"

Archer ran to the center of the chaos, quite pleased with himself. There was always a stupid grin on his face when he pulled shit like that. Flirt, smile, run. Always left 'em stunned. He skidded to a halt when he reached a wall of flame - ah, fuck. Fumbling in his pocket he pulled out an earpiece and clipped it on.

"Hey, uh, Sapphire? Yeah. Place is a mess. I'm gonna have to go around."

"Fucking hell, Archer, you had one jo--"

Incoming call from: Unknown number.

"Oooooooh. She called! That was fast. Hold that thought."

"Archer, are you fucking hanging up on me? The place is literally on fire! I swear to --"

Archer snorted and shamelessly picked up the call from the other number. He sped back up to the secound floor food cart and did a few twirls around Joan, of course, all she'd feel was a light breeze. She seemed okay. Nothing more than bruised. So no worries there. Girl on the floor with a buncha teeth was undoubtedly Makoa's job. However, the sneaky kid wolfing down the fries -- oh damn, did he just take a pic of teeth girl? Can't have that!

"Hello hello! Archer & Archer Inc. This is Archer speaking. How can I help you?"

He skidded to a halt in front of Alex and suddenly, somehow, had a hold of the boy's phone. "Ah ah ah," He tutted, wagging the phone in front of the boy. "Taking pictures of other people without their permission is real rude, man." He was of course still on the phone with Joan, but it didn't seem to matter much to him. With that, he pocketed Alex's phone and zoomed by him.

Right after she placed the call, Joan could have sworn she felt a breeze, of all things. What the—how is that— Just then, Archer's voice rang over the line, and she found herself laughing. Sure, this wasn't the time, but his response was somehow calming in the sea of madness, and at least she knew for sure he had left the number and it wasn't some unknown person who had somehow written on her hand. Her laughter quickly faded, however, and her fear took hold again.

"Archer, what the hell is--" She paused when she saw him appear in front of the kid who had been talking about exits just a moment ago and swipe his phone. She could hear what he was saying, of course, but that didn't make things any less confusing. What is he doing?! she thought just before he disappeared again.

"What the hell is going on?!?" she yelled into the phone as she began hunting for an exit again. "Why is the mall on fire, and where the hell do you keep disappearing to, and how come you disappeared just before the explosion, and what was that broadcast just a moment ago??"

"Ah, my all time favorite question. 'What the hell is going on.'" Archer stated leisurely. "Well, the mall's on fire because someone got pissy. I'm not disappearing anywhere. I'm running. And as for the broadcast, uh, I dunno. Some guy had a lotta guts and a lotta tech. Lab coats probably got to 'im. Can't say we're very far off."

By now he had weaved and dodged his way to the other side of the mall, where he entered through the east entrance and headed for the center. The fire grew with every moment and Archer found it increasingly harder to breathe the deeper he went.

"Woah-- wha -- oh, shit---"

Archer shouted into the phone before the line crackled and fizzed, blurring out any other sound coming from Archer. Then, the line went dead.

Please leave your message after the beep!

"Someone got pissy? Like who?" Joan kept moving, her voice becoming just a little steadier now that she had somebody to talk to. "You're...running? I...I suppose that makes sense? Sort of?" As much sense as anything can make right now, anyway... Before she could follow that train of thought any further, something else caught her attention.

"Wait wait wait, lab coats? What do you mean, lab coats??" She found herself quickening her pace, and she found herself beside Alex, looking at the map to find a fire exit. "Are we talking scientists, doctors, what?" The way Archer had said that they had 'gotten to' L30 and that they probably weren't far off implied something bad, but what, specifically, she didn't know. And that was more terrifying, in some ways, than the very obvious and known threat of fire.

Then Archer started yelling, and she shouted back, "Archer, what's happening?!?" There was no response except the static and that quiet voice telling her to leave a message. Her grip tightened on the phone, and she shouted again, her voice growing higher and more panicked. "Archer?? Archer!!"

It was only after she was absolutely certain the line was dead that she put the phone back in her pocket and tried to focus on the map. She didn't know where Archer was or why the line had gone dead. What she did know was that she needed to get out of here before she burned to death, or, if she had heard and understood Archer correctly, something else came for her. Worrying about what was happening would have to wait until later, especially since now she apparently didn't have anybody to answer her questions anymore.

She took a few deep, shaky breaths to stabilize herself before marking an exit and a route in her mind. Taking another breath, she turned and began walking rapidly in what she believed was the right direction, hoping desperately she would make it out in time.

Radio Jelly · Jul 28, 2017

Though he had hoped she'd cut in sooner, Austin managed to prattle off an entire awkward conversation in and of itself before the cashier of Big Belly's Porkstew decided to respond. In the silent interim, he mentally chastised himself, before wondering how many more times he was going to be an embrassment before he'd fit in again. He didn't have to stew on that thought for too long, thankfully. The cashier piped up eventually--her tone as flat as her expression.

"Yeah. I'll get you a Belly Burger. Four bucks good for you?" Austin nodded wordlessly in agreement. It had been a good while since he'd had a decent burger, and four bucks was a steal given the circumstances. Austin yanked the singles free from his paperclip before her voice drew his attention once more. "By the way, I have a boyfriend. Just thought you should know. Anything else?" Austin opened his mouth to protest, his eyes suddenly wide. "I-I wasn't..? Wait wh-"

Just as soon as he began to speak, the girl's attention snapped to her wristwatch, "Fuck. Archer. ARCHER!" With an energy he hadn't seen previously, the girl jerked forward over the counter, all the while shouting at some fellow across the court. "IT'S 2:51! ARCHER!" As if somehow it mattered, Austin checked his own wristwatch to confirm the time.

Just as soon as he did, the all-to-familiar scent of smoke assailed his nose, and the sound of a great fiery explosion followed a millisecond later. Like a rag-doll in a g-force simulator, Austin jerked forward off his feet with a surprising lack of resistance. He only tumbled forward a couple feet or so, but was thoroughly shaken by the surprise. For a moment or two he stammered unintelligibly under his breath; his voice was drowned out by the ensuing mania. Around him, the denizens of the food court seemed to have also been chocked into motion. As soon as he dusted himself off, Austin was once again floored--this time by a wild-eyed woman, mouth still full of fries and daughter in tow. Once again lifted off his feet, Austin had barely the time to shout a quick "Wait!" before he found himself staring up at the ceiling. As pathetic as he felt, he might've stayed there. Luckily, the human battering ram had reminded him of something pertinent.

With a start, Austin pushed himself into a seated position, his eyes looking for the girl behind the counter. When he realized she was long gone (as he should've expected, given the circumstances) Austin felt a small pang of disappointment, followed by a much larger pang of self-loathing when he realized it bothered him. As he got to his feet in preparation to head for the opposite side of the complex, his eyes caught the fixed screen at the corner of the food-stand.

"... The meteors did more than wreck our city… it changed us. Turned us into something more."

Without realizing he was doing it, Austin began to almost imperceptibly shake his head. It couldn't be possible that whatever he was watching was about what had happened to him. It was all too soon. Suddenly--and for the first time all day--Austin wished he could speak to the face in front of him. Tell him to stop talking, to stop broadcasting before he stood out.

You don't want to stand out.

You don't want to stand out!

Please don't stand out.

"There are things we can do… Things that shouldn't be possible. But now they are and there's no going back to the lives we once had. To those who recognize my name, I ask you again for your help. There are men and women, at this very moment, hunting us down one by one."

At that, Austin stopped moving and his yes began to glaze over. The increasing temperature of the air, coupled with the fact that he was wearing several layers, elicited a the first beads of sweat upon his brow. More than either the heat, or the smoke, Austin began to sweat from the man's words. As though he had already died, Austin's whole form locked into place with the firmness of onset rigor mortis. Similarly, his mind began to wonder as if chasing the memory of a dream. Though he kept his eyes locked on the screen for the entirety of the broadcast, he didn't hear anymore of it. He could have stayed that way if not for a familiar cry.

"Archer?? Archer!!"

Austin shook his head--his pupils constricting and skin clamming up as a result of the increasingly-dangerous air. Austin hacked once or twice into the crook of his arm, and pulled himself to his feet to scan the area. Most of the food-court denizens had run off in separate directions, and the sounds of panic and cries of fear continued to drift upwards and over the second floor balcony. His eyes moved in the direction of the call, expecting to see the blue haired girl where instead he saw another.

He wanted to move towards her--to ask her who this Archer character was, and whether or not the blue-haired woman was a friend of hers. Just so soon as he took a step towards her, he stopped. Once again, he was beset by an all-to-familiar worry.

There are a million Archers. They may not be friends. Even if she does know her, why do you care if she's alright?

Austin had to agree with himself there, but all the same he hoped the girl had made it out OK. Austin watched the blonde-haired lady dart off, and was about to follow when he noticed an individual still on the floor of the cafeteria. Once again, he paused, his legs awkwardly trying to move both in her direction and away from it. A decision had to be made, and though there was a fire, Austin knew he would be fine for the most part if he could avoid the flames. He could leave with relative ease, but the girl...?

Like an annoying cell-phone reminder, a very familiar tidbit of oddly-relevant information popped into the forefront of his conscious:

Between 50 and 80 percent of fire-related deaths are a result of smoke inhalation.

Austin swore under his breath, and though his survival instinct implored him to keep moving, he couldn't bear the thought of leaving someone to suffocate on the floor. Austin quickly strode over to the girl and lowered his hand for her to grasp. If there was one benefit to his abilities, it was that Austin was never going to be a part of the 50 to 80 percent--parting the smoke in front of him was an easy enough task, and especially if all he needed to do was keep his mouth clear. He couldn't say the same for the woman, though.

The air was already thick, and though it hadn't become impossible to see, the smoke had begun to blur his vision around the edges. It was for this reason--and because they were in a burning building--that Austin didn't pay much attention to the teeth on the floor. In fact, he barely noticed them at all. If things turned out the way he hoped, he wouldn't have to part the smoke at all and instead would keep his secret a secret. He hoped the girl would move as quickly as he planned to, otherwise it wouldn't be an option.

"Ma'am, d-do you need help getting up? Air's not gonna be breathable in here in a few minutes. We need to go?" It was a definitive statement, and yet despite the circumstances, Austin still felt weird about demanding anything of this stranger. Instead he ended up sounding about as sure of his escape as he looked dashingly brave.

Which, is to say, he didn't sound sure at all.

Typical

@CloudyBlueDay @Doctor Jax

Tyrannosaurus Rekt · Jul 29, 2017

★ LISAH KHOURY-SMITH ★
PLACE San Antonio WITH A Lot of Fire/Hang&Austin MOOD OHSHITOHSHITOHSHIT

Lisah was hunkered down in one of the awkward, plastic chairs in the food court. It was made for some with an inhumanly compacted ass. She shifted in her seat as she drew some possible outfits for the bolts she just bought. She also tried to include those sneakers.

"Maybe another pleat—" her sentence was cut short by heat and then a blazing shockwave knocking her from her seat and onto the ground. She landed on her back, the air sucked out of lungs. Her vision blurred, and her consciousness darkened hard. A few rattled coughs left her lungs. The ceiling above her began to turn gray. Shit. How hard did she hit her head? Wait. She pulled in a long breath only to cough. It wasn't too bad, but there was the unmistakable tinge of ash, like she'd inhale when she would attend bonfires and the like. The mall was on fire.

Pulling herself up was not easy. It was not helped by the phone in her pocket vibrating and voice reverberating from it. She ignored it mostly because she couldn't hear it. The shock from the noise and being thrown six-feet from her chair was enough to rattle her. Not to mention, her head was swimming. Something inside her, deep inside, was smart enough to grab the bandana on her head and pull it over her mouth. Yet, she couldn't collect her thoughts. Her body moved against logical thought. She slapped her hand on top one of the aluminum tables in the food court. It was hot. Instead of drawing her palm away, her body reacted in an odd way. Gold pulsed across the table, quickly. It was cool against her flesh. When she managed to fully stand and pull her hand away, half the tabletop was pure gold.

The food court had a fire exit. All food courts had a fire exit, or at least they should. To make food they used fire—or at least hot things. Lisah looked up. The ash stung her eyes, but it wasn't so bad that she couldn't see the overhead signs pointing towards the exit.

In an odd, sort of second-nature, way, she looked back towards where she had been sitting. The bolts of fabric were more akin to medieval torches than anything else. The snow of cinders and turned them in a fashionable bonfire. RIP beautiful clothing of the future.

Those thoughts made her snap back. Her movements were becoming less sluggish, but they were still bad. She might have a concussion. The sparkles on the edges of her vision told her that. Did she have her purse? Was it over there? Her phone was in her pocket. She knew that. It wouldn't stop talking to her. Shut up, phone. Shut up, televisions. Shut up, brain. Go. Survive.

She ran towards the exit, pausing at two individuals. One was a woman on the ground and the other was a male, asking her if she needed help. "Of course, she needs help, dimwit. The mall is burning down," Lisah said. She laid eyes on the woman. "Hello, tooth face. Okay. Well. This, weirdly enough, is not the strangest thing I've seen." It was then she looked at the man. "You help Creepypasta out, and I'm going to go towards the fire exit and move any debris."

She ran towards the indicated fire exit, intent on turning any road blocks into gold and having them shift to the side, maybe reinforce the structure. She wasn't the best at using her ability yet, but she could make things turn to gold and have that gold slap itself against something. Then again, gold was malleable to heat. Then again, death was not fun.

Today was not the day Lisah would die. The day Lisah would die should be covered in hot men and asses for days.

HerziQuerzi · Jul 30, 2017

Hedieh Redding // Millennium City

Hedieh was starting to doubt it was a scam.

Even if it is, she thought, them knocking on my door makes it one of those 'potential kidnapping' kind of scams. Either way, better to be anywhere else. She briefly considered calling out -- vocally stalling so they wouldn't decide to just knock down the door -- but internal instincts kicked in and told her the less interaction the better. Ideal outcome was they came in and assumed she was just out.

Which only worked if she was gone by the time they came in. If her rising paranoia was right and they were planning on coming in one way or another.

Stepping out of her slippers, Hedieh padded across her small apartment and grabbed her hiking boots. Boots that had not once been taken out anywhere near what one could call a hike. In the name of time, Hedieh only bothered lacing up one boot, the other gripped in her teeth. Ensuring the laces were done up tightly all the way up, Hedieh got to her feet, took a single step forward, and let her entire body wink out of existence.

Leaving only the sole of her boot tangible, she swung down and forward like a pendulum. With even light passing through her, the world was dark and silent. And where her legs intercepted with the floor of her apartment and the ceiling of the one below, there was a noticeable tingling sensation. A helpful guide to tell when coming back into reality was safe, and when it'd result in some painful matter mixing. With no tingling in her head, she let it come back into reality in order to take a look around.

As far as Hedieh could tell, there was no one around. And in addition to that, whatever missing occupant lived there had some life choices to sort out. Cat pictures swarmed every spare stretch of wall; every bare surface on desks and dressers and tables. Yet, due to the building's no pets policy, not a single curious mwroel greeted Hedieh's sudden appearance.

Satisfied, Hedieh swung herself forward until she was able to get her hands in the empty space between floors and make them tangible, grabbing hold as she let her other foot fall through at last, and then dropping carefully down to the ground. Spitting out the extra boot, she laced it up just as tight as the first, quietly shuffled her way to the front door, unlocked it, and took a peek into the hallway beyond.

Red Thunder · Jul 30, 2017

Patrick O'Malley
~the old rugby lot~
~Millennium City~

There was an odd ringing in Patrick's ears. No, no it was in his head, in his whole body. As if he were made of tin, and someone had struck his leg with a large hammer. Or maybe they had struck his brain. That was certainly where the vibrating seemed to be the worst, and any semblance of equilibrium natural to man was as absent to the him as light was to the pit of his stoma-

A mixture of bile and water spewed from Paddy's mouth with vehemence, the composure he'd managed to retain when they'd first come through the portal gone. A numbness replaced it, filling his mind; it hurt. His...his mind hurt. It hurt badly, like he'd been doing calculus all day. But this was different. Calculus had been trained up to; his mind had been given the chance to expand with time, stretching in small increments. This felt like he'd gone from nothing to full execution of high school's hardest maths problem in an instant, his mind capable but thoroughly not prepared for being capable. Comics had never shown that. Superheroes always took to their powers with ease and finesse, as if it were perfectly natural to be gifted with abilities suddenly. Was...was that what he had become? A superhero? It was a ridiculous thought, particularly to have as one emptied one's stomach onto the ground, yet he couldn't push it away.

Blessedly he vomiting stopped, and coughing and spitting the remaining bile from his mouth, Paddy smiled weakly and apologetically to his companion.

"Sorry, Cass. Ne'er done tha' before. Seems like it-"

As if it were suddenly aware of the impossibility of the achievement it had just accomplished, Patrick's mind shut off, trying to find some stable point of status quo. His legs went limp, his eyes went blank, and Patrick collapsed in a heap, missing somehow the puddle of puke between him and Cassia.

@Shizuochan @CloudyBlueDay

Elle Joyner · Jul 30, 2017

.

Dakota jumped with a small squeak, as Mason's hands smacked down on the table, and like a flickering bulb or a fork of lightning, heliotrope flashed across blue. Over the bar, the small square television sparked to life and her gaze shifted as the words poured through the diner, which had fallen eerily quiet since the outburst of the two strangers. She hadn't meant to cause a scene, and she certainly hadn't intended to scare anyone, but the fear in Mason and Crow's eyes…

Eyes… Their eyes.

Her own widened, and she stood as Mason announced what Dakota had just surmised in her own head. They had it too. Whatever had happened to her, they were the same. Impulsively, her hand shot out and grabbed London's, her heart racing as her eyes moved swiftly back to the television screen.

"Oh no…" She gasped in whisper, her grip turning vice like as the shadowy figure before the camera collapsed, "Oh no, no, no…"

A baby's shrieking laughter exploded from her jeans pocket and nearly jumping out of her skin, Dakota pulled her phone out, focusing on peeling her heart from the wall of her chest as she clicked on the text sent from her mother's cell.

·

Don't come home. Not safe. Stay with London. He'll watch over you <3.

Her eyes flicker to London and with a misty wetness behind the shimmering blue, she shook her head, holding the phone face his way, "...W...what do we do?"

Magical? The four of them? What kind of twisted Disney shit was that? Whatever relief Levi might've felt after learning he wasn't alone in gaining inhuman powers was quickly overtaken by a sudden sense of urgency--a sudden sense of imminent danger. The TV's outburst, Dakota's horrid ringtone and the flicker in Mason's eyes only made the feeling all the more overwhelming.

London swallowed hard. He wanted to run, to just cut his losses and make a break for it. It wouldn't have been the first time. The tug on his arm was enough to derail that train of thought, at least for the moment, and everything in his head went blank when he looked down to see Dakota on his arm.

"Fuck this is wild..." London cursed under his breath, concerned eyes looking back up to meet Mason's as his hand tightened the girl's vice grip even further. His brow furrowed,his next words a worried hiss. "If that's the case you better have a plan and a car because I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that none of us have powers that'll get us the hell out of here."

Mason cleared his throat, stepping back from the table and tugging at the color of his shirt. He looked sweaty and nervous, but his thankfully his eyes had stopped their flickering. "I -- have a car," He said shakily. "And I think my powers c-could.. Help." He ran his hand through his hair and took a deep breath. "I'm -- I guess I'm kinda like a GPS? I'm really good at finding stuff. Places. And it's kinda.. General. So if I wanted to find a way 'out', I …probably could. But we really need to leave now." He glanced at Crow, asking her approval while also trying to make sure she was still alright. "You ready to go, Crow?"

"Yes."

Crow stood, every limb trembling. Her eyes still flickered, though not as consistently, and she nodded to Mason and beckoned the pair to their feet. "We must hurry…" Crow whispered, her voice catching in her throat. "I know what these people do… and trust me when I tell you it's nothing you want to experience. We need to leave now!"

Blinking, Dakota shook her head, "I… I don't understand. We didn't do anything wrong. Why would anybody want…" Looking to Crow, however, seeing the expression on her face, she closed her mouth, her fingers lacing tighter through London's. Her mother's text… the warnings… the video. There was no point in arguing.

"Let's go."

Mason swallowed, looking behind them. This was it. He wasn't running by himself anymore; he was running away with three strangers. Behind the counter was a door that lead through the kitchen to the back exit. His eyes flickered blue momentarily and he looked back at the people in the booth.

"We'll leave through the back -- my car is in the lot. Quickly. We'll… try to explain more once we're on our way out of here." Mason looked at Crow, because he wasn't sure he was capable of explaining. She, on the other hand… looked to have some experience with the lab coats. Not for the better.

TAGS: collab with @rissa, @CloudyBlueDay
@BearEnthusiast

Artorias · Jul 30, 2017

Leon Rojay | Millennium City, New York

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

No place in mind, just a walk was all he needed to get his mind of this stupid L30 messages. Stuck inside of his own mind he didn't notice the suspicious white van drive past him and park in front of his apartment complex, even when the clean shaven man exited the van. It was only until the man spoke, asking about if someone with his name lived inside of that building. Leon had locked up with his back to the man since he had been walking away from where they had parked. He wanted to turn to get a look at the man, but he fought every urge in his body and kept his back to him.

Rolling his shoulders into a shrug, he felt the phone buzz in his pocket. Reaching inside of his pocket he began to move forward once more "I don't know everybody in this city, go ask the residents who live inside." He kept his voice from shaking and his body from breaking out into a run. The message on his phone was from L30 again telling him to run, and it wasn't hard to put two and two together of who Leon was suppose to be running away from.

Continuing to walk away from the man with his picture, he made sure to not look behind him as adrenaline pumped through him. All his senses felt heightened, and even the smallest movements out of the corners of his eyes had him ready to start running, to look for a way to defend himself.

Once Leon was around the corner and out of sight of the van, he didn't care if there was more posted around the block in search of him. Leon started at a light jog before almost a sprint on the sidewalks of Millennium City. His eyes dashing past the faces of the people who crossed him with dirty looks on why he was running, like he was a criminal.

Taking a left into an alley to calm himself down he pushed his back against the wall and hands in his pocket as he was catching his breath. He couldn't go back to his apartment tonight or maybe even tomorrow. They might be watching it for him to come back.

Reaching into his pocket he retrieved the brown leather wallet from his jean pockets before opening it up. He had several hundred dollar bills neatly placed inside thanks to him selling all those diamond, emerald, rubies and gold jewelry he just "randomly" had on him and was willing to come off with.

Now he just needed a place to go, maybe out of the city.

CloudyBlueDay · Aug 1, 2017

MILLENNIUM CITY, NEW YORK

He who chases two rabbits, catches neither.

It was a good thing they had brought hounds to chase their rabbits.

The scientist who had been speaking to Evan let out a sigh. "Goodbye, then." He said cheerily. The scientist reached within his coat pocket and pulled out a whistle. The silver gleamed in the sunlight as he brought it to his lips.

The whistle omitted a very unpleasant sound. Your gym teacher nightmare except a thousand times worse. It was high pitched and played at such a frequency that was sure to make those in the nearby vicinity cringe.

Appearing in front of both Evan and Leon was a shimmering purple and black portal. Before Leon appeared a girl clad in black workout clothing. Her complexion was pale and white and her hair was the color of snow. She looked angry, and stood menacingly in front of him, blocking his path. Within her palms a blue energy glowed, along with her eyes. Ice blue.

In front of Evan was a girl with striking red hair. She looked young, in her early twenties, perhaps younger. She wore a grim look on her face, one that said she wouldn't be here if she could help it. Her arms were covered in peculiar looking scars, exposed by the tank top she wore.

"Don't make me have to do anything," She said gloomily to Evan. "It'd be easier if you just went with them."

Meanwhile, the scientist outside of Heideh's door waited patiently for her to open. He had heard her moving around inside, and assuming she was coming to let him in, he put himself into a non-threatening stance, planting a smile upon his face. But she never came, and it eventually occurred to the man that she was not coming at all.

"If you attempt to run there will be consequences," He shouted through the door, but those consequences were already on their way. The scientist pulled his phone out of his pocket. A few taps and he seemed to know where to go. The scientist turned and rushed back down the stairs he had come from; he seemed to be tracking Heideh's whereabouts as she apartment-hopped.

As Heideh opened the door to the apartment, she would hear the thundering steps of the scientist as he prepared to chase after his subject.

The only two who were relatively safe, for now at least, were Patrick and Cassia. While the shepherd was tasked with herding the unconscious boy, no scientists would pop out at them yet. Patrick's abilities suddenly coming to light had bought them enough time to perhaps make a getaway and avoid the SPME's watchful eye. But carrying a dead weight in the form of a seventeen year old boy could perhaps mean doom for the both of them.

Does she leave him?

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS

Though Archer's call with Joan had cut out after a very brief moment, he was not gone for long. Skid marks blazed their way across the marble of the mall floor and Archer was suddenly visible. He burst back into the food court at such high speeds that he eventually tripped and rolled the rest of the way until his speed wore out and he ended up, kindly, at Joan's feet.

Letting out a pained groan, the boy struggled to his hands and knees. His clothing was scorched, and his face was black. His nose was singed and red, as was the rest of his open skin. "I look like a fucking burnt piece of toast." He hissed to no one.

Makoa ditched the hat that labeled her as a Potato Corner employee, throwing it off to the side as she hopped over the counter. She slipped an earpiece similar to the one Archer had worn and clicked it on.

"Sapphire, are we clear?"

The blue haired girl had not disappeared from sight. In fact, she walked right by Austin without him even knowing. To everyone else, she was plain and clear, a buttoned up Big Belly's polo shirt and black slacks, the shimmering hair. She hovered around Joan, listening to the conversation, invisible to the girl as well. She wiped a bead of sweat from her brow and her determined expression turned to worry as Joan ended the call on a high-pitched note, and Archer's line dead.

Then, he appeared in front of Joan and her, a good thirty seconds later. Burnt to a fucking crisp.

Sapphire fell to her knees, becoming visible to the two she had blocked herself from. She was on Archer in a minute, grabbing his burnt collar and yanking him up. "You stupid piece of shit." She barked, but it was clear she was filled with concern for him. He cracked a smile. "Aww, so you really do care?"

Growling at him, Sapphire propped him back up on his feet. He seemed not too badly injured, just a little charred. "You'll be fine?" She asked gruffly, all sense of concern majorly gone. He nodded. "Yeah, should be all gone in a couple hours. Saph, listen. I saw --"

An inhuman roar echoed throughout the food court. A hand slammed down on the edge of the balcony, only this was not a human hand, clad in bone and flesh. It was built of fire. Lava seeped from under it's grip and melted the balcony floor into nothing as it hoisted itself onto the second floor.

In the shape of a human, a body of fire raged. With a burning vengeance, it seethed fire as it crawled towards Hang, Austin and Lisah.

"Yeah," Archer gritted his teeth. "I saw that."

Sapphire's eyes widened. "Ayla is always too damn vague." She took a breath and brought a hand to the ear piece. "Koa? We're… very much not clear, but, uh. You know what to do."

ELY, NEVADA

Mason was the first to rush for the back door exit. He weaved his way through the bustling waitresses and rushing cooks, and ignored a shout from the main chef as he pushed forward. As he walked by the wonderful smelling food, Mason remembered he had not eaten a bit.

Damn. He thought regretfully, pushing open the back door as the smells were replaced by the fresh, cool air. He saw his car parked around the bend, the beautiful old chevy dusty and dirty but clearly well loved. That was when Mason realized his car did not have four seats. Only two.

"Er… you guys can ride… back-seat-gun?" He smiled, but it looked quite painful. "S-s...sorry. But I--I don't think we have a choice." He glanced over his shoulder and pulled the keys out of his pocket. The jingling of the keys always, somehow, brought him a little comfort. He unlocked the car and slid into the driver's seat, putting the key into the ignition and hearing the engine hum.

"Okay, uh.. Hope you're holding on tight!" He shouted to those in the bed of the truck, as his eyes began to glow a full on cerulean blue. No flickering; this time he meant it. He pressed down on the gas pedal and left Shelley's Diner, avoiding the two white vans that were parked out front.

"They're running, sir."
"Let them run."

The streets were majorly empty, so Mason wasn't afraid to speed through the small town. His heart beat heavily in his chest, but he stayed silent. Where was he going? Where could he even run? He had no safe place to hide and nowhere to take these people; what was he doing?

A white van passed him. He gripped the wheel tighter.

Another van crossed the street in front of him, making him slam the brakes.

"No." He whispered. "No, no, no, no.." The glow flickered. He took a sharp left turn, frantically trying to avoid the white vans that kept showing up out of thin air. Every time he was about to change course another van blocked his path.

This.. this couldn't be all for Mason. Last time, it was just.. One guy. He turned to Crow, fear in his eyes. "What… what do we do?"

All: :)

Aero Blue · Aug 1, 2017

Cassandra Muninn; the Faux Shepherd
@Red Thunder

It would have been incredibly easy to walk away from the poor boy with the golden eyes - and even easier, certainly, to walk away from the foul-smelling puddle. The boy was unconscious, for starters, which was a poor thing to be less than ten minutes into a manhunt. And as kind as he was, the boy - now without mother, father, or a safe home - was not so much better off than Cassia had been. Patrick's company was a sinking ship, and if Cassia knew anything about sinking ships, it was how to get off of them, lone survivor or otherwise.

Still, she promised. The mother, Marge or whatnot, had rather suicidally ran into the fray to give her son a second chance, and foolishly counted on Cassia of all people to be his guardian. Stupid, stupid, stupid. Stupider still, then, was Cassia had acquiesced - stupidest of all was that Cassia felt bound to her agreeance. They were just words, a flimsy promise given in exchange for a sandwich.

A flimsy promise, but a promise all the same.

"Lord, next time you make me some boy's guardian, I require a much better sandwich." Cassia looked to the skies as she skipped over the vomit-puddle. "Capicola ham, some proscuitto. Green olive with the toothpick..."

And so the Shepherd's hands pulled at the clothing upon Patrick's shoulder, only to find the boy unmoving, his weight far too much for her weak, atrophied arms to bear..

"... because, Lord, malnutrition is making it very hard for me to 'guardian' this one."

Then, through divine means or otherwise, inspiration flared. If he could not be moved, he would have to be awoken. Cassia aimed her index fingers on either side of Patrick's head, pointed at the holes of his ears. Inwardly, she tensed, yearning to bring it out, to summon, to conjure the gift she had been given - something intangible within her pushed - strained outwards into the world.

Water shot from Cassia's fingers into Patrick's ears in a steady stream, the world's most potent wet willy. Just as God intended.

Sairento · Aug 1, 2017

Alexander Summers - San Antonio, Texas

Alexander would've been on his way, to the fire exit and out of the burning mall, but there were now two things stopping him.

One, his phone had been taken, and he hadn't had the opportunity to back things up to the cloud before it was taken from him. Silly mistake, and something that wouldn't happen again. If he'd just uploaded, he could've ignored the fact that his phone had been stolen, and just borrow another's later.

Second, the subject of his blackmail needed to survive. And with what looked like a fire demon following her, he didn't think that it would be easy to escape. At least, not with the fire being as it was. "Probably caused the explosion too…" he thought. If it started throwing fireballs at them…well, that would just be more problems.

"Fire extinguisher," he mumbled to himself rather than anyone else, turning and running off towards the bathroom. Thankfully, the floor plan did mark where the nearest fire extinguisher was, and it was close. Very close.

"I want my phone back," he shouted at the charred boy as he passed by, paying no mind to the fact that the boy had gotten too close to the fire and got the scars to prove it. That was his choice, and to Alex, the ability to give back another person's phone was not very intrinsically tied to almost getting burnt.

Doctor Jax · Aug 2, 2017

h a n g || d a o

Hang could barely process everything that was going on around her. There was smoke -- there was fire -- there was the awful smell of burning, charred tile, fabric, electronics. The world had abruptly turned upside down on her, and nothing made sense.

Worst? She'd been abandoned. She was alone. Her money, her wealth, her uncle's sway -- none of it had been enough to keep her fairweather friends or her so-called nanny, and for some reason that she could not understand, that hurt. It was like realizing that Santa wasn't real. It was like learning that Coach purse you bought was a knock-off from China. It was like someone hacking your hair off in front of a crowd.

They left her to die. Suddenly, Hang took all that hurt and all that pain and all that confusion, and she fueled it into rage.

A kid in a hoodie came up to help her up from the ground as the smoke grew thick, while a fat chick with an attitude problem started bossing them around. Hang would have scoffed, were it not for the fact that she saw, suddenly, a boy appear in thin air before another girl down the way -- and for the sound of something emerging with a roar onto the balcony. One thing after the other, it seemed.

Hang turned around and her eyes widened. She stood -- deer in headlights -- as she saw the humanoid column of fire in front of her. Her knees began to shake, adrenaline coursing through her body, as her heart bumped high into a dangerous 250 beats per minute. Hang could feel the change begin -- deep at first, inside her core tissues, straight down into the middle of her bones as they began to lengthen and grow heavy -- and she panicked. The "Incident" had only been skin deep. It had never gone further than that.

This isn't like the last time. This isn't like last time.

Hang shrieked, high-pitched and keening, with her head in her hands as she doubled over, the bones of her feet lengthening out to push her heels out of her shoes, her fingernails falling out as dark, black, thick claws replaced them. Her forearms were quickly covered in black, thick keratinous scales. Her eyes glowed a noxious, poisonous blue as her face snapped and contorted into a short snout, cat-like thin needle teeth protruding. She heaved in air as she looked out at the thing coming towards her, instinct quickly dashing all conscious thought to pieces.

Danger.

The animal mind within the woman transforming fed on the rage that had fueled her, pupils turning into black holes that nearly engulfed the entirety of the iris.

ENEMY.

She dropped to all fours as her forearms crackled with shifting muscles and sinew, her legs becoming digitigrade, and a guttural growl escaped from what was Hang's chest. The claws and scales clacked on the floor as Hang wound up to pounce.

@CloudyBlueDay @TyranasaurusRekt @radiojelly @Joan

Red Thunder · Aug 5, 2017

Patrick O'Malley
~Millennium City~
~the old rugby lot~

"THE SHITE."

Paddy's eyes snapped open so hard he thought they might go shooting out of his head. At least, he would have thought that, had he not been rather more concerned with the massive hydration his brain was receiving. He sat bold upright, eyes wide in panic as he dug into his ears with his knuckles, desperately trying to clear the moist invasive feeling from them. A shiver danced up his spine before he finally managed to get over everything.

Not perhaps quite everything. As his breathing steadied, Patrick stared at the buildings before him, not really registering their existence. What had happened? Had those...portals really come from him? It felt like they had. But that was ridiculous. Cautiously, his hesitation being overridden by the insatiable foolhardy curiosity of a teenager, Paddy focused, trying to will that golden disc back into existance.

It came as called. More flat than a sheet of paper, the tear in space reemerged, the bright circle somewhat dulled by the fading light of early evening. His eyes flashed to life along with it, irises as golden as the energy into which he stared. And stare he did, forgetting that Cassia even stood nearby. It was...fascinating, the light. Unsure, he shifted his attention, finding a stone of odd shape to focus on. The circle promptly disappeared. Patrick let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding, in awe at the confirmation.

"Huh."

@CloudyBlueDay @Shizuochan

Aero Blue · Aug 8, 2017

Cassandra Muninn; thoroughly troubled.
@Red Thunder

"That's very pretty, Patrick."

Cassia smoothed her fingers alongside the fabric of her pants, drying out the moisture. She had found that as she 'wrung' out water from the nothingness around her, some subconscious aspect of her continued doing it to a degree. Growing pains. She wondered what Patrick's own 'side-effects' would be; crippling migraines, or a gaze as abrasive as high beams in full traffic?

In any case, the more pertinent matter were the pursuing labcoats, whose interest in wet fingers and golden eyes probably came with a side of uncomfortable incisions and brain-probing. She knelt besides Patrick, "So, full disclosure," She said, as she allowed a meek geyser of water to spring upwards from her index finger, "You can do that, and I can do, well, this. It's not quite as flashy, but if we're counting our blessings, it goes on the tally."

Cassia thought better of placing her hand on Patrick's shoulder. Reassurance wasn't her forte. "And it means we're in this together, for the time being. So let's take inventory. I make water, you make pretty golden circles that take us… random places? Places you've been…?"

"Places we can go?"

Where, exactly, did one go in the face of creepy-science?

Eru · Aug 8, 2017

Millenium City, New York「 Evan Rowell 」

Evan looked behind him as he rounded a corner away from the man, expecting to be chased. He made it as far as the end of the next alley before the shriek of the whistle pierced through the air. "Aaghh!" Evan clamped his hands over his ears, grinding his teeth, distracted for a moment. When he next looked up, Evan's feet skidded to a halt, his arms flailing wildly as he tried to keep from falling over. For, before him, a girl was stepping out from something like a tear in the air.

The girl was a redhead, looking to be about Evan's own age. She definitely wasn't dressed for the weather, and Evan's eyes flickered over her visible scars for a second, before she spoke.

"Don't make me have to do anything," She said gloomily to Evan. "It'd be easier if you just went with them."

What the hell?

Evan spun his head to look behind him again, but nobody was there yet. Looking forward again at the terse girl, Evan struggled to think of what to do. If he ran, he might be taken down by this redhead. If he stayed, the man from before would almost certainly catch up to him. Additionally, a quick glance around revealed that no house doors opened into this alley. Evan was stuck between a rock and a hard place, as the saying went.

His mind in tatters, Evan tried to gather himself. It was just one girl; he probably matched her in strength. True, she had just appeared from apparently nowhere, and she did have something of a mysterious air about her. But... even though he had no way of knowing whether to trust L30, the scientist, or the girl, Evan wasn't going to blindly submit himself to anyone trying to capture him.

First tapping one foot on the ground, then the other, Evan prepared himself to sprint.
"I, uh, I think I'll take my chances."
With that, he bolted forward, aiming to rush past the girl and get out of the alley yesterday.

Red Thunder · Aug 8, 2017

Patrick O'Malley
~Millennium City~
~the old rugby lot~

"Places we can go?"

Patrick shook his head in negative reply. Or maybe in an unsure reply. He'd only just seen that he had some kind of wierd power at all; there'd certainly been no time to figure out how it worked. Yet his thought just prior to falling through the portal the first time had been of playing in the rugby field earlier that day, and here they were. He'd seen it so clearly in his mind, too. His eyes closed, and he tried to picture Somewhere Else. But nothing came, or at least, not clearly. So he opened his eyes and looked around.

The lot sat right agin to a street. It was little used, bearing when it was mainly foot traffic. The debris from the meteors had yet to be cleared, so vehicles of any decent size had trouble navigating it. Down one end, some half a mile, lay his apartment complex. Down the other were more high rises, mostly office buildings, and eventually the police station.

The police station.

Paddy stood up, taking hold of Cassia's hand as he did.

"Teh cops oughta protect us, righ'? Ih's their job. We should be safe with'em."

Giving her hand a tug, Patrick began heading in that direction.

@Shizuochan @CloudyBlueDay

Radio Jelly · Aug 12, 2017

"Of course, she needs help, dimwit. The mall is burning down,"

Though he was trapped in a burning building, it took a lot out of Austin just to keep a straight face at the stranger's cutting words. Truthfully, the newcomer had only verbally expressed the same command his internal commentary had already been demanding of him. Nonetheless, it hurt more to hear it come from someone else. Austin opened his mouth to reply, realized it was pointless, and gave a curt nod in the affirmative.

It was only after the woman pointed out the teeth did Austin really see them, and though his eyes widened a bit in surprise, he really had neither the time nor energy to deal with what seemed like a comparatively small incident. However, it became readily apparent that Austin wasn't going to be able to simply ignore the supernatural. With a slightly-wounded sense of pride, Austin assisted the downed girl insofar as she let him, and kept an eye on the other one until something else entirely caught his attention.

Somewhere to his peripheral, a number of individuals materialized from nowhere, including the same blue-haired girl from before. Austin was about to yell that they ought to run like everyone else, but the conversation that unfolded between the lot of them--as well as the unexplained, and (in one case) chaotic nature of their arrival told Austin that either they knew what they were doing, or--at the very least--they had come back for some legitimate reason worth the risk to their lives.

It didn't matter though. Frankly, Austin didn't want to be involved in whatever ulterior mission the lot of them seemed to share, and would've turned and ran for an exit if not for the ear-splitting howl that trailed up from over the rail. The boy had already taken a few steps in the opposite direction away from the group and towards the nearest exit, but his head snapped backwards at the sound, his eyes widening at the realization that perhaps the fire wasn't caused by something, but someone.

As if on cue, the massive, super-heated hand of the human bonfire appeared at the base of the ledge. Slowly, the blazing figure emerged from below, pulling entire sections of heated flooring away like play puddy. Austin met its gaze, and let loose a near-inaudible moan of despair.

I need to run. I need to run.

Austin's eyes flickered over the veritable gathering that had accumulated in the court, and attempted to swallow despite his coarse airways. With the back of his hand, he wiped away the sweat at his brow and attempted to face the creature, but in doing so realized that not only was it advancing, but it was moving towards him and the tooth-chick.

shitshitshitshit

So enraptured with the attacker was he, that it took him a full moment to realize that where the young Asian girl had been, there now stood a monster of comparable danger. Austin's eyes were locked with that of the flaming humanoid, but at the sound of Hang's growl, the boy nearly jumped out of his own shoes. With the desperation one would expect from someone trapped in a burning building full of monsters, Austin dashed backwards, tumbling over several metal mall chairs in the process until he was sufficiently far from the two combatants charging at one another.

Austin's eyes flickered to his watch briefly, before turning back towards the group of former food-service operators. They were comparably calm--more calm than they had a right to be given everything that had happened. The thought crossed his mind to turn and run again, but some deeper motivation compelled him to remain. As the young girl-turned-monster engaged with the creature, Austin jogged over to the edge of their grouping and remained quiet. The air was getting stale, and hotter by the minute. Whatever was going to happen next, the boy resolved himself to try and be of some passing use.

If all these idiots don't start running, at the very least try to be of some use.

He didn't want to use it, but if the group insisted on engaging the creature, Austin made up his mind to--at the very least--subtly use his powers to try and redirect the more acrid clouds from their immediate vicinity. There was simply too much burning for him to have any real control over the billowing smoke, but he could work on localized areas with some degree of proficiency if he tried. The boy stretched out his finger-tips, assumed a wide stance, and waited for the outcome of the clash to determine whether or not it was worth revealing his nature.

I hope its enough. I need to talk to... well... any of them when this is over.

Joan · Aug 13, 2017

To the security room
Collab with @CloudyBlueDay

Joan only noticed Archer just before he tripped and wound up at her feet. Her eyes went wide at first, but then a weak smile appeared on her face. "You're...all right, sort of?" Her smile faded as she realized just how bad he looked. He must have gotten right in the middle of the fire...but why did he go there? She was just moving to try and help him when Sapphire appeared, catching her off guard and causing her to jump to the side with a yelp. She watched the blue-haired girl grabbing Archer and yelling at him, and realization dawned on her. That's the girl who yelled out the time...but she wasn't there a moment ago? ...Well, I mean, we've already established some of us have superpowers...

Before she could complete the thought, a roar reverberated through her eardrums, and she turned to see what she could only think of as a person made of fire. She breathed in sharply, her eyes going wide and her nails digging into her palms as she struggled not to panic. She watched, frozen with fear, as the girl who had been on the ground screamed and began to transform into a beast of some sort and prepared to launch herself at the fire man.

What-what am I supposed to do here? What can I even do?? All I have is plants, and...they're nothing against something like this! They'll burn to ash in moments! And even if they were somehow fireproof, or this guy wasn't made of fire specifically...I can't do enough to stop a normal person, let alone some sort of superpowered...thing!

Archer and Sapphire seemed unable to tear their eyes away from the ghastly scene. Archer gave a soft huff at Alex's words, watching him stalk off, before reaching into his pocket and pulling out what very well used to be a phone, but was now a wonderfully charred brick.

"Uh, oops?" Archer said. Sapphire glared. "Why'd you take his phone?" She said with a glare. "He was taking pictures of teeth-girl." Sapphire let out a sigh, as for all that Archer bothered her, she could not help but agree. "Hmph. Probably for the best."

Archer did not respond. His jaw dropped at the sight of teeth girl slowly morphing into a... a thing, a very big thing, and launch itself at fire guy. "Uh, Sapphire? A plan would be nice?"

He spun on his heels and faced Joan, suddenly remembering her presence. "Hey, your powers do any good here?" He put a hand on his chin. "Maybe I could run really fast around fire guy and sorta suction the air out. Kinda ended up bad for me getting too close though.." He touched his nose and winced. Sapphire brandished a small metal stick that elongated with a press of a button, perhaps some sort of staff. "It's up to Koa to help the others, but may once she does so she can trap the monster. Both monsters." Archer nodded in agreement. "But.. for now?"

Joan blinked as Archer spoke to her, snapping out of the fear-paralysis state she had been in. "Um, all I have is plants, and that's probably one of the least helpful powers for this situation, since they'll just burn up..." She let out a small sigh. "Even if this situation wasn't, well, full of fire, I can't really do a lot yet. So, unless you have some sort of genius idea as to how I can help..."

When Archer suggested running around the fire guy and sucking away the air, she frowned. "How close did you get earlier? You might be able to keep a safe distance away and still pull that off...then again, there really isn't a lot of space here for something like that."

She sighed again, and her frown deepened. She didn't have any other ideas, really, or anything that would help, and furthermore, she didn't know these people or how they operated. These two obviously knew each other, and they seemed to be working with somebody else. She didn't really know them well enough to know what to suggest or what all the factors were, so for now, she was all out of ways to help.

Archer's eyes widened at the mention of her abilities. "Oh, like Silas!" He said with a smile. "Archer, now is not the time." Sapphire hissed. "Right, right, sorry. Should I give the whirly tornado thing a go?" Sapphire paused, considering this option. "No. Not enough space and you'd be risking your ass again. If it's really a person under there.. it's gotta have a head, hm?"

Archer seemed to have a moment of excitement before his brows furrowed and he glared at Sapphire. "I thought you said no risking our asses." He huffed. "It's not risking my ass, because I'm a thousand times more qualified then you are." Archer rolled his eyes. "Just because you're the boss' daughter doesn't mean-" "Bye."

Sapphire intentionally cut him off, and trudged away, towards the struggle of the fire and teeth-girl-gone-wrong. Archer muttered under his breath, "asshole," before turning back to Joan.

"If you've got plant-y powers, it's probably not good for you to be here. Well, not good even if your power wasn't plant-y, heh." He held out of his hand for her to take. "Wanna help me figure out why the sprinklers aren't turning on?"

Silas? Boss' daughter...? Joan was very confused at this point, but she knew now was definitely not the time to be asking questions, especially if it wasn't relevant to the situation directly in front of them. Best to save that for after we get rid of the fire...

Sapphire went off to do...whatever she was going to do, and Archer asked her if she wanted to help him. "Yeah, definitely." As long as I can do something, at least...Besides, he seems like a pretty safe person to be with for now, and he's right about this not being a good place. She reached out and took his hand, bracing herself in case he used his speed to move them both. Aftee all, why else would he be offering her his hand?

Archer smiled pleasantly at Joan; despite the enourmous chaos behind them, he seemed strangely casual about all his efforts. "Maybe there's a "Turn on all sprinklers" button in a security room or something," He mused, holding her hand as he glanced around, surveying his options, clearly taking advantage of the fact that Joan had accepted his hand. His cheeks were red; or maybe those were just his burns. "Or maybe -- OHFUCK --"

Archer's voice broke as he suddenly tugged Joan out of the way, speeding them both a good teen feet away from where they had both stood moments ago. A column from the wall behind them had caught fire and fallen. If Archer had not pulled them both out of the way, it would not have ended well. Archer let out a squeak, letting go of Joan's hand as he moved to pat out a spark of fire on his shoulder.

When Archer didn't bolt off right away but instead started thinking about where they should go, Joan relaxed somewhat. She figured that once they knew where to go, she would know, and she would be prepared for any super-speed running. "It would probably make sense for the security room to have something like that...Wait..." She frowned slightly, tilting her head to one side. "The fire alarm hasn't even gone off yet, has it?"

As she was thinking about this, she noticed that Archer's cheeks seemed a little redder than before. That and his smile and relaxed air...Her eyes narrowed slightly, but before she could say or do anything, Archer cursed and suddenly they were moving, moving faster than she had ever gone before. She yelped and instinctively tightened her grip on Archer's hand, not letting go until they had stopped and he let go. She glanced back at where they had been, and she grew pale at the sight of the pillar on the ground.

"Oh fuck indeed," she murmured, her voice shaky. "That was way too close..." She looked back at Archer, eyes wide. "Th-thanks."

He nodded gently after extinguishing the fire on his shoulder. "Of... of course." He seemed unsure about his words but quickly replaced his uneasiness with another smile. "Okay -- we --" He turned and looked sharply in the direction of the fire monster and his friends. Sapphire charged in with a straight look on her face, like she always did. Archer sighed. "We need to get out of here."

He held out his hand to her once more, this time looking a little sheepish about it. "Or I could just hold your shoulder," He said awkwardly.

Joan hesitated briefly when he offered her his hand again. She still remembered how he had been earlier when he was holding her hand...Then again, his attitude now was more apologetic, and he was offering her an alternative if she wanted.

Ah, fuck it. She reached out and took his hand. "Let's go and turn those sprinklers on, hm?" Her frown returned as she concentrated on the idea she had had before. "I don't think the fire alarm has actually gone off yet, so we should just be able to pull it, right? Unless that isn't how it works..." She shrugged slightly. "I can't really say I've actually been in a burning building before, so I could be wrong."

Archer's smile was tugged into a frown. "Er, I'm not so worried about the fire alarm. Even if I knew how it worked. I--" Archer paused to cough into the crook of his arm. "Grr.. smokes getting bad."

"Okay. Security room. You studied the blueprints, Arch, you got this." He offered Joan a reassuring look.

"Alright, here we go." And with that they took off.

Artorias · Aug 14, 2017

Leon Rojay | Millennium City New York

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

After tucking his wallet away he pulled out the pack of cigarettes from his front pocket along with a lighter. Shaking a cigarette out from the package and placing it between his lips, he was ready to light it before a shimmering portal of dark colors appeared before him. Eyes closing for a brief second before his face going slack with disappointment. "Of fucking course, nothing is ever easy..." He commented, the cigarette still between his lips as he spoke. The angry faced woman stepped out of the portal, almost trying to stare Leon down who had his back against the wall, literally.

"Before you do whatever it is you are about to do, can I have a smoke first? No point in running..you guys can apparently appear out of thin air." Leon asked while his mind raced on ways to get out of this and keep on running. His powers that he received from that night were strong, but it took time to transmute things. He needed a weapon but nothing in sight was good enough, but he would have to make due.

The cigarette package that was still clutched in his hand was slowly starting to turn into iron. Keeping his hand secure around the package, he kept his eyes on the woman for a brief moment. Lighting the cigarette and taking a slow drag from the stick, his eyes fluttered closed for a moment as he concentrated on the package in his hands for the remaining seconds until it was solid.

"That's enough for me..." Leon said, sounding defeated before flicking the cigarette to the ground and stomping it out.

Standing up straight he adjusted himself before throwing the solid pack of iron at the strange woman's face. He was hoping it would disorient her by hitting her in the eye or nose, something to stun her for a quick second as he bolted out of the alley he was hiding in, now just running. Anywhere really.

HerziQuerzi · Aug 15, 2017

Hedieh Redding // Millennium City

As she heard the brief shouting from above, muffled by the ceiling between her and whoever was at her door, followed by equally muffled footsteps, Hedieh ducked back in the apartment. Shutting the door, she locked herself back in with the hordes of cat pictures. Not the ideal atmosphere to hide from mysterious stalkers, but then again, she wasn't sure there was an ideal atmosphere for that kind of situation. Perhaps an armoured bunker.

Hedieh wasn't sure what had convinced the man that she wasn't in her room, but wherever he was racing off to try and find her, he shouldn't have any reason to suspect a random suite in an apartment building full of suites. So she crouched down, forcing her to take slow, quiet breaths. Surprisingly, it wasn't as hard as she had been expecting. Maybe it was the unbelievable nature of the situation; maybe it was so far outside her familiar comfort zones that her brain had run full speed into panic and then kept on going back to calm.

Either way, the calm was appreciated. In Hedieh's opinion, being able to think through the situation was far superior to relying on adrenaline and instincts to brute force one's way out of tough spots.

CloudyBlueDay · Aug 19, 2017

MILLENNIUM CITY, NEW YORK

The red-haired girl did not move a muscle as Evan sprinted past her. She watched him rush, a tired look in her eye. Once he had gotten a nice head start, she flicked her wrist. Another portal appeared in front of her, which she promptly stepped into. It's brother burst forth in front of Evan, and she was suddenly in front of him. Grabbing the collar of his shirt, she held his face inches away from the glowing purple and black tear in time. It was as if Evan would be staring into the void.

"See this?" She spoke loud and confident, a sudden betrayal of her unhappy exterior. It was as if she were putting on a show for someone. "This is a void portal. If I threw you in, you would find yourself floating in space. You would last about fifteen seconds before falling unconscious and meeting your inevitable death. Or," she continued, jostling Evan, bringing him closer to the portal that stood before him. Her grip was firm, holding tight while also keeping him from falling on his face. "I could close it on your neck and decapitate you. No sights to see, but certainly quick."

As she spoke, she leaned closer. Her breath was on his neck, and any past resilience she had shown before was gone. Her presence was terrifyingly confident and cool, but her next words would throw Evan for a loop once again. "Punch me in the face." She whispered, desperately. "Punch me in the face and I'll hold them off as long as I can. Then you run, like hell."

The icy girl seemed taken aback by Leon's request for a smoke. While she flinched, ready to pounce, at his move to grab the pack, but ultimately let him do so. She said nothing, only watched him with her cold blue eyes.

And then he threw the pack. It hit her square in the forehead, a nasty blow, and she fell on her back in a disoriented daze, giving Leon a perfect opportunity to grab a head start. She let out a string of cuss words and struggled to her feet.

"I hope you enjoyed your last fucking smoke," She shouted after him, and shot her hands forward. From them a blast of ice erupted, coating the distance between them and threatening to catch Leon as he ran and encase his legs and the rest of him in ice.

The scientist who pursued Heideh's footsteps were quick and hardy. He was fast, but it was easy to hear where from he was coming. He huffed as he ran down the stairs, taking short peeks at his phone, seeming to be able to track her.

Standing outside her new habitance, he pounded on the wall, the only thing separating the two from where she had wedged herself.

"Step out now and you will not be harmed!" Came the strident voice.

Cassia and Patrick were frankly alone. While Evan, Leon, and Heideh were intently pursued, the rugby patch was quiet. The wind rustled the grass gently. Crickets chirped. Something small scattered in the brush. The empty air seemed too good to be true.

A white van sped by. Disappeared behind a street corner; and then slowly backed up.

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS

The fire beast advanced menacingly. For some reason, it seemed strangely transfixed on the group that consisted of Austin, Hang, and Lisah. Lava dripped like drool from it's open mouth and it seemed to have fangs on fire. It watched, still and transfixed, and Hang began to transform. A smile crept up on its face. How a smile was visible in a body made of fire was unclear, but it was there. And when Hang's new form pounced, a tongue of fire licked nonexistent lips.

The monster let Hang come; and when she hit they wrestled on the ground of the second floor, leaving black skid marks in their wake. Despite being made up of fire, there was a strangely tangible element to the beast. It flipped Hang over, burning claws into its shoulders, pinning it down. Fire bristled on it's back and rose up to the ceiling. A chunk of flaming ceiling tile threatened to fall on Austin.

Makoa rushed forward. She skidded in front of Austin and brought her palm to the sky; what looked like a translucent and sheer panel of glass appeared above the two of them. It glimmered purple and blue, as did her glowing eyes, and the flaming ceiling tile bounced harmlessly off and landed to the side. The panel disappeared as she lowered her arm and turned back to Austin.

"You okay?" She asked.

"Koa!"

The girl's head turned to find Sapphire charging in. Immediately a worried expression came upon her face.

"Sapphire.."

"Don't give me that look! I don't even have to get in that close for it."

"Yet you still want my cover."

"Well, goddamn, do you want me to be burned to a crisp?"

"No, Sapphire. But I'm not letting you get in the middle of that." Makoa retorted, gesturing at the wrestling Hang and fire monster. Sapphire narrowed her eyes. "Fine. We'll wait. But the smoke's gonna get bad and we haven't got much time left. I'm going after the guy who's phone Archer broke." Makoa snickered as Sapphire marched off, and tried to stifle a cough shortly after.

"So, my earlier question," She said, facing Austin once more, "Are you okay, and are you prepared to get out of here before the monsters just about kill each other?"

The security room was quite small. There sat a desk fit for one person, the swiveling desk chair seemed abandoned in a hurry. The wall the desk sat in front of was covered top to bottom in television screens depicting every corner of the mall. A large majority of the screens were black or on error screens.The door whirled closed behind them as Archer rushed Joan and himself in.

"Uhokayso," His words were slurred, and sounded like utter gibberish.. "Oh, sorry. Too fast. Okay. So." To the side of the desk was a panel with an abundance of buttons and levers.
"Er.. yikes. Which turns on the sprinklers?"

ELY, NEVADA
a collab between @Bears @rissa @Elle Joyner

"We have to keep trying," Crow whispered, her eyes flickering with both glow and anxiety. "We have to keep trying."

She glanced behind her, into the bed of the truck where Dakota and London were holding on as best they could.

"They won't ever give up," Crow shouted to her three fellow metas. "They must already know... They want us all, that's why there's so many."

Dakota knew every verse, every line to just about every Disney movie ever written, even those live action classics everyone had a tendency to forget existed. She hummed them, when she cleaned or in the shower, and she had no qualms about whether or not she was overheard. This was largely because while others enjoyed movies of a more complex or adult nature, Dakota preferred the innocence of her youth.

So actually living an action thriller was certainly not something she considered a favorable experience. It was a situation so far removed from reality, however that Dakota couldn't help but make the comparison. As she climbed up into the back of the truck, it was all she could do not to burst into tears.

Crow shouted back to them, but Dakota barely heard the words from the rush of wind. The brakes slammed on and off, the truck bed bouncing with each truncated movement. Their every escape seemed cut off, and Mason was driving like a desperate man...

She wasn't worried about herself… not really. She had been pinned between a minivan and the wall of a Kohl's and she had walked away without a scratch. Whoever these people were, her sole concern lay in what they might do to London… and Mason and Crow.

She clung to London's arm, her eyes red from holding back the emotional explosion, as she buried her face in his shoulder, "I'm scared, London…"

London looked down at the young woman clutching onto him and uncharacteristically the brit found himself with no words. During times of trouble he usually had no problem thinking of some smartass comment but this… this was far more than just an argument in a dive bar gone wrong.

He was fully convinced that the moment the vans trapped them he'd never see the light of day again. Realizing he had yet to comfort the girl, London did his best to speak over the wind whipping past them. "Just try to stay calm Dakota! We gotta try and see if we can do some good out here... can't let the two of them pull all the slack! "

His breathing was heavy, his eyes wide and alert. Not a soul moved from the cars but he could see their silhouettes. Mason could imagine their eyes. He had seen them back in Portland. They craved a fate worse than death for those they chased. Crow was proof. Whatever those people did.. it broke a person.

Crow. Hands gripping the steering wheel, he turned to her, chest heaving. "Can you do a big forcefield?" Mason revved the engine, as if he were growling at the other cars, warning them of his plan. His decision. "I'm going to drive on the count of three." It was clear what his intentions were as he stared straight ahead - he was going to smash into the two vans blocking his path in hopes of breaking through them.

A loud, desperate sound emanated from Crow. Distraught didn't begin to cover how she felt in that moment, but as Mason spoke to her, maddeningly calm to her turbulent anxiety, she forced herself to inhale, exhale. Everything will be okay, Crow.

Her eyes no longer flickered, they glowed steadily. "I-I-I don't know! I've never really done it on command!"

Oh. Shit. She'd never done it on command. Fuck. No, no. She could do it. This was their only shot and it was going to happen. It was going to work. He didn't want to break. He didn't want it to end here.

"Doesn't matter. You'll do it now." He was amazed at how smooth his voice was; his eyes glowed bright again and he could see; he could see their escape. He could almost touch it, as if it were tangible. It was right in front of him.

"Three...two..." and skipping the number one, Mason slammed his foot on the gas.

Life was cruel. Unfair. And worse, completely indifferent.

Crow had witnessed and endured that fact firsthand, for years. She struggled, fought tooth and nail every day for so long... For what? To get caught and forced back into a life of enslavement?

She glanced up and over at Mason, then shifted slightly to glance out the back windshield. Dakota and London... They were strangers, even the boy in the driver's seat was a stranger... And yet she hadn't felt closer to anyone in her life. At least not in her second one, the one that began when her metahuman status was revealed.

The engine growled and with a burst of speed, the truck lurched forward. Quite a few things happened simultaneously; a sharp pain bolted through Crow's left temple, the truck grew ever near the parked pair of vans, and Crow's eyes glowed pure amethyst. She felt the tug at the edge of her psyche just before the moment of impact.

Her forcefield, almost invisible to the naked eye, exploded around and outside the cab, cocooning all it's occupants. The impact could still be felt between the ricochet of unprotected truck, barrier, and SPME vans. However injury seemed to be minimal, for the time being.

Dakota opened her mouth to speak, to tell London he was right… that they all had to stay calm and stick together when with a jolt, the truck suddenly shot forward. With a squeal, she gripped London's arm tighter, her eyes flashing that brilliant hue again as something like an electric pulse traveled the length of her arm, rolling through her and into London.

The impact caught London off guard but the sudden wave of electricity even more so. He had no time to wonder if they had somehow ran into a powerline as he felt his body get thrown backwards and into the truck. London quickly found himself confused however, as he felt no pain as his body made contact with metal.

Crow's barrier shielded the four escapees at Mason's daring choice. They broke through the two vans that blocked their path like a bull charging their matador. He felt like time slowed in that moment; he could see the shrapnel flying across the windshield of his beloved chevy truck, the two vans crumpling beneath the force. He never let go of the steering wheel. He wasn't sure if he was screaming or not. Probably not? Hopefully not.

Time sped up again for Mason. The wheels of his truck bounced before planting themselves steadily on the road again. Well, not too steady, but steady enough. His foot was all the way down on the gas pedal and he never let up.

"ARE THEY TAILING US?" He shouted, hoping to reach those who sat in the bed of his truck, if they had managed to hang on. Indeed, two white vans had leapt into action just as soon as Mason had attempted a getaway, gaining speed with every second. Mason was hardly able to tear his eyes away from the road, which was thankfully majorly abandoned, and in wonderful condition for a high speed road chase.

All: i dont really have anything to say here but for the sake of continuity im going to put it here and make you click it every single time suck it

Dawn

"You'll never be alone."

Galactic Gadabout

Tyrannosaurus Rekt

Guest

Failures don't get into paradise

A Warrior in a Garden

Moop.

Highlord of the Tal'Darim

consistently inconsistent

he hears his master's voice

Sairento

Guest

Disease Empress

A Warrior in a Garden

he hears his master's voice

Eru

Guest

A Warrior in a Garden

Galactic Gadabout

"You'll never be alone."

Highlord of the Tal'Darim

Failures don't get into paradise

consistently inconsistent