Superhero RPG

[HayesAJones]

The transformed cat stared intently at Viola, her dark, twinkling eyes difficult to read for a time, but then a smirk spread across her face.

“Well, I believe that,” she said, taking a seat besides her ward with an effortless hop backwards. She wrinkled her nose. “You don’t smell like him. He’s a foul thing, stinking of sickly sweet flowers and incense trying to mask brimstone.”

The girl’s guardian crossed her legs. “But that doesn’t make you trustworthy. We have no love for demons, you see. Thanks to one of their marquises, we’re had to say goodbye to my master and her mother. Besides, whatever you think you see in her isn’t there. The only demon part of her is blood, and only half of it at that. It was her mother and I who raised her, so she’s just as much cat as demon by now.”

[Demon Lord Gira]

"I... I see."

Viola stepped back, and before both the stranger and her guardian's eyes, her attire and form changed back to how she had been before. "I just thought.. I had found someone like myself in this city ruled by fear and paranoia. Someone who didn't quite fit in. But, if you do not trust me because I am a demon, then I will leave you be. I... I'm sorry for wasting your time."

[MinorBone Good]

Cider just grunted as she was brought inside. Poor Cider was practically shifting all of her body weight onto this girl she didn't know. Made her feel worse than she already did. Cider's vision was starting to blur but she still stayed strong. Elodie looked over at the girl carrying her, then towards the operating table.

Cider's ears bent downwards a bit as she listened in on what the person was saying. After she was finished, Cider flashed the lady with a big toothy grin, blood dibbling out from the corner of her mouth. She weakly raised her free arm, giving her a thumbs up. "S-Surreee!" Elodie tried to say in a cocky tone. But even she knew it sounded broken and weak. Shit. It really was that bad, huh? Well, at least she got there in the end. Hopefully this would make her day at least a tiny bit better..

[Breakdown]

Away from the chaos going on in the industrial sector of the city, in the heart of Los Diamantes the nightlife was still alive and well despite the happenings elsewhere. Perhaps people simply wanted to go out and forget about all the terrible things going on in the world right now; seeking an escape through alcohol and music. One such establishment was a nightclub that was made out of an old grocery store dating back to the city's early history. Now, it had been revamped and renamed "Studio 44" in glowing blue neon lettering. Even without entering the establishment, one could feel the pounding of the music within through the ground, to where it almost felt like an earthquake. The interior was very dimly lit, with only strobing, multi-colored lights briefly illuminating the patrons within. This was no ordinary nightclub however; there was one particular guest who visited frequently who set this establishment apart from the rest. This was the lair on Roadrunner.

He stood behind the DJ's console, dressed in his iconic metallic blue jumpsuit with glowing neon blue accents. His goggles with glowing blue lenses rest on his forehead, revealing the geometric face paint he often wore both in battle and on the dance floor. He bobbed his head to the beat of the music, adjusting different sound levels and effects to get the crowd riled up. That is, the crowd that wasn't preoccupied with watching talking heads on the TV discuss the GenTech bombing and Supercell's rematch with the unknown villain. Matthew Kingsbury, as he was referred to by those close to him, was able to focus his attention on both the music and the happenings on TV thanks to his superhuman speed and reflexes. In particular, the bit about Supercell turning tail and running from this new adversary concerned him. It was unlike his friend to just bow out like that without putting up a fight.

Waiting until the current song he was playing was over, Roadrunner picked up the microphone next to his station and cleared his throat.

"Aaaaaalright ladies and gents! We're going to take a wee bit of a break but don't you worry, Roadrunner will be back, and when I am, I wanna see every one of you sexy lot get down and DIRTY, BAY-BEE!"

And the crowd roared with cheers. Both women and men extatically jumped up and down wearing glow-stick attire. Roadrunner bowed and seemingly vanished into thin air. In truth, he had simply run to the back alley entrance of the club and pulled out his phone. His lock screen was a chibi, anime-style drawing of him given to him by a fan, which he of course autographed. He tapped on his messages and went to the group chat that had Johnathan and Supecell. With his fingers moving so fast as to be nearly imperceptible, Kingsbury typed up a message addressing his old friend Isaac.

"Isaac bay-bee! I saw the whole mess on the teli, bad business that. Tell you what, darling, swing by the 'ole studio and have a few drinks to take your mind off the whole thing? Maybe you can describe that wanker in black in better detail and I'll see if anyone knows him. You know, for a good 'ole fashion crumping?"

Kingsbury hit the send arrow and let the message and zoomed back inside to an eagerly waiting crowd.

[HayesAJones]

A small, low voice interrupted Viola's exit.

"A- Adra..."

The giant, now squatting down next to her guardian- who looked at her sharply in concern, but soon relented with a sigh- glanced up shyly at the woman.

"U- Uh, my name... it's Adra."

[Demon Lord Gira]

The woman in the nurse outfit lowered Cider down onto the table and turned toward a side desk.

"That is just what I wanted to hear." She told her. She turned back around with a large needle in hand that was empty, and in her other hand was a second needle filled with a clear light purple fluid. The desk she had turned away from was decorated with photos and figurines on the top, The photos were all of Heng in different types of attire from swimsuits to business suits to casual summer wear and heavy winter clothing, but in all the photos she had her massive sunglasses obscuring her eyes. The figurines were more what one might expect from a tabletop game, of various creatures and monsters like harpies and serpentine worms and spiders.

"Now, let us begin. I'll just need a quick blood sample before I administer the pain killer. This will only take a moment." The nurse said...

-------------------

Viola let a small smile return to her face.

"Adra... that's a nice name. I'll remember it if we meet again. Thank you."

She turned back around, and began to run off into the darkness, away from the half demon and her cat guardian. Viola couldn't help but giggle to herself. Adra... she definitely seemed like a good girl, but even a good girl needed to get into a little bit of trouble every now and them to have a fulfilling life...

[JAGzilla]

The cool night air blasted Supercell's face as he hurtled at breakneck speed over the rooftops, but the roar of the wind couldn't obscure the rapid-fire pounding of his own heart, or the screams of those bystanders echoing in his mind. He approached the highway that served as a rough dividing line between the tech district and a middle-class residential zone beyond. Hundreds of cars crowded the road, the tail end of the evening rush hour traffic, hundreds of streetlights glowing above them. In the dark, it appeared as a river of light, or a blade of light, and the face of that madman flashed before him again. "Shit!" he cried, pressing his hands to his head to try and block out the terrifying image. The movement and fear threw off his trajectory, causing him to dip lower toward the highway, and suddenly an overhanging 'San Diego Freeway 3 Miles' sign was right in his face-

He swerved hard to avoid a collision, managing to dive under the sign and skimming literally inches above the cars; horns blared but miraculously no one crashed. A semi truck barreled toward him and he pulled up at the last possible instant, forced to run along the top of the trailer, and dove away over the edge of the highway, landing on a quiet street below, lined with cheap, shoddy apartment complexes. He doubled over, hands on his knees, gasping for breath, then sank down and sat on the sidewalk, leaning against a grimy brick wall. Three near-death experiences in less than five minutes. Holy God. He couldn't keep doing that, his heart couldn't take it. What the hell was going on today. Where had a villain so overwhelmingly powerful come from? How could the people on the road above, and in the buildings around him, just go about their business like nothing was wrong? It was the end of the city, of the world! They should be evacuating, should be panicking in the streets, should be- should... be...

Oh no.

The villain... he'd been the same guy from the speech, right? The same bottom feeding trash that Supercell had sent running like a common pickpocket. What the shit? He wasn't afraid of that punk! Why... how....?

His fear melted away as easily as it had appeared, replaced by terrible guilt and shame that came boiling up within him. He took his helmet off and ran his fingers through his sweat-drenched hair, trying and failing to understand what had just happened. He had completely dropped the ball. It was impossible to overstate the depth of that fact. People were dead because of him, and for no reason. There had been nothing to stop him from wrecking that smirking bastard and casually setting everything right, and he just... got scared. Ran away.

All of his energy was drained now, conflict swirling in his battered brain. What did he do now? Go back? Try to make up for what he'd done? He hesitated a moment, listening. Even above the rumble of traffic above him, he was close enough that he'd hear any gunshots or explosions, if any fighting was still going on back there. Nothing. One way or another, the crisis sounded over, and part of him had no interest in learning the details. He couldn't face it right now, didn't dare to show his face back there, regardless of who was left standing.

His phone vibrated in his pocket. A notification. There were a lot of things it could be, and he didn't want to read most of them. Still, a distraction from his own unhelpful thoughts was welcome, so he pulled out the device and took a look. It was Matt, offering consolation and help. He was a good guy, Roadrunner, and Isaac felt too low to associate with him right now. He just wanted to crawl into bed, sleep, and wake up from this nightmare. But he knew he wouldn't be able to. Not yet.

"Yeah. I could use a drink. Be right over." he replied. Heaving himself up from the dirty sidewalk, he sluggishly called in the wind and took off for Studio 44.

[HayesAJones]

As Viola was swallowed by the night, her parting giggled consumed by the cold, Agatha turned to Adra, brow crooked.

"I hope you're sure about this, dove," the transfigured cat says. "You know we have to be careful. Your father may be gone from this world, but there are still plenty of monsters in it."

"I know," the giant mumbles, "but she looked... sad."

Agatha slipped her hand into Adra's. "Well, it's a sad world, dove. A big one too. Who's to say we'll meet again? Maybe it's best we don't."

The half-demon averted her eyes. "Goodbyes are also sad."

The transformed cat- who was quickly growing untransformed, brown eyes filling with yellow-green light and curly hair enshrouding her as a pelt- sighed. "Yes, yes, they are, dove."

The girl's guardian, wholly feline now, leapt off the dumpster with nary a sound. Her ward jumped off with a much heartier thump, then threw its lid open.

Whoever they had met here tonight, they had still come for food, and it wouldn't find itself.

[MinorBone Good]

Cider felt a lump growing in her chest once she saw the needles in the nurse's hands. She always despised needles. She remembered one time she went screaming out of her doctors office when she was supposed to get her yearly shot when she was six. She's never truly recovered to this day. But... Well, she couldn't run away even if she forced herself. Sucking in a deep breath and pushing some of the vomit (and blood) down her throat that were creeping up.

Cider leaned her head fully back, looking over at the various trinkets on the desk, smiling a bit. Place was sure decorative in the right areas. She slowly moved her head back towards the nurse and began to answer her question. "B-Blood... Like from my veins... Or you just can collect from by shoulders that are cut up to shit." Cider let out a snort at her own joke, trying to cope with the pain just a bit longer. "Y-Yeaaaah.. Can you just do it now? I'm just feeling really woozy now."
___________________________________

Jonathan slammed his boots on the table. A disappointing night, to say the least. It was rare for a hero to escape his clutches when he truly wanted to kill them. In his defense, how the fuck was he supposed to deal with a damn dragon!?

"Fuckin' bullshit." He took off his helmet, placing it carefully next to the boots. He raised one of the boots to get a better view of it. Yeah, fuel holders had been hit. It was lucky he got back before they ran out. He had spares though. Still, it rendered these variants now useless. Jonathan tapped the table out of annoyance, pondering what further upgrades he could manage. Perhaps he could have alternate modes to it. Such as a turbo boost or something of the sort. He started to take off the rest off his armor when he saw his phone light up. After fulling taking off his costume, Jonathan walked over and checked his phone.

Ah, it was Matthew. Inviting Supercell to come and join him and talking about the mysterious villain that showed up. So they had a rematch. Interesting. He could gain more info on this newcomer from Isaac. That'll make his job easier both as Jonathan and Ectoparasite. He could have found himself a new partner. He stared at his phone for a moment, seeing that Isaac was typing. He looked at the message and smirked. Jonathan looked over at the equipment laying around. Repairs could wait. He can think of ways to improve his stuff on the drive to the club. He fingers tapped away at the screen.

"Now don't think I won't join in too! Will be there soon, can't be as fast you heros though! Especially you Runners! Haha." With the deed done, he quickly sped walked back home, taking a quick shower and started to drive off to the club.

[Breakdown]

Roadrunner felt his phone vibrate in his pocket and quickly pulled it out, his fingers swiping across the screen at blinding speed to unlock it. Matthew smirked at the news that Jonathan would be joining him and Isaac for drinks. Matthew quickly began typing up a reply

"Smashing! I'll have the VIP lounge cleared out and the drinks ready" he wrote before hitting send. At once, he dashed over to the VIP lounge and clapped his hands once, addressing the startled patrons within.

"Cheerio! I've got me mates coming to have a wee chat. If you'd be so kind as to leg it on out to the dance floor, that'd be lovely. As compensation, drinks are on me!" Roadrunner said, placing his hands together and watching the response from the occupants of the lounge. Most nodded and left, but there were one or two who let out annoyed grumbles as they snatched their drinks off the glass tables in front of each of the 4 luxury couches in the lounge. One of the waitresses walked by, a tall, blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl who'd started working here around three months ago. Roadrunner quickly noticed her and called out her name.

"Alyssa darling, can you fetch me that big bottle of Brandy from the back and a few jars? I've got guests coming and one of them is going to need something strong, I wager" He asked as he arranged some furniture around the room.

The waitress smiled and nodded, briskly heading to the cocktail lounge to fetch the spirit Matthew requested. Alyssa was a good lass, and unfortunately the target of many drunk men's attempts at flirtation. Matthew tried his best to turn the rabble's attention away from her as to make her more comfortable, something she really appreciated. Sometimes, being a hero wasn't about stopping a heist or some rowdy Super; sometimes it was the little things that counted too.

[Spuro]

Foxtrot ran.

She ran as fast and as hard as she could.

Her boots slammed against the asphalt of the rooftops as her muscles, enhanced with nanofiber implants, propelled her body faster and further than any ordinary human could dream of. She vaulted over skylights, raced across balconies, dove in and out of open windows and leaped between buildings as easily as a squirrel might navigate a forest canopy. The city's rooftops was her own personal highway, and she had memorized the hidden pathways to navigate this district.

But though she was superhumanly fast, Foxtrot was still ultimately on-foot. And by the time GenTech entered her line of sight it was too late. She watched, still a block away, as debris fired by a black armored figure careened towards the path of civilian onlookers.

"Fuck, shit!" she cursed, and she willed herself to run even harder, using whatever strength she had left in her legs to fly across the rooftops. Foxtrot watched as Supercell and the black armored figure fled the scene, as the black figure's associate with the wide hat began to leave the premises, as a strange armored figure rose up among the rubble.

When she cleared the final alleyway, her left hand reached for a flare gun, which she fired into the sky above the scene of the carnage. The flare exploded in the sky with fireworks of white and red, signalling to the city's emergency medical services the location of the incident.

Her right hand drew a revolver holstered against her left-hip, which she aimed towards the pavement in front of the fleeing woman. When Foxtrot reached the rooftop's edge she skidded to a stop and paused to adjust her aim. After ensuring the bullets wouldn't ricochet into the woman or any bystanders, she made her calculations and fired three times.

Each bullet struck the pavement in front of Aileen's feet, kicking up dust in front of her.

"That's far enough!" shouted Foxtrot from the roof across the street. The blazing green lenses of her goggles glared down in Aileen's direction like a bird of prey.

[Voyager]

Callous walked away with glee, the screams of the crowd drowned out by his self congratulatory thoughts. I mean, he’d just made the biggest hero in the city look like a coward who can’t save anyone. He had a right to celebrate.

Callous felt something in the back of his head, and he turned around. He could see a woman on a rooftop shouting something. Can’t make it out from here. She wore some kind of getup that looked rather… peculiar, but surely not that of a threat.

Aileen can handle it, I’m sure. He thought, turning back around, skipping to his car.

“Time to advance the plan to stage… Two.”

[Demon Lord Gira]

Roadrunner didn't have to wait long for Supercell's arrival. Isaac slumped into the VIP lounge, and far from the pillar of security and safety that Supercell was normally seen as. Gone was the friendly cocky smile, the tall held together posture, the icon of Los Diamantes itself. Instead, his face was a mixture of exhaustion and worry, of a man who had just witnessed his entire life crumple before his very eyes. He was hunched forward, and his feet all but dragged across the floor as he made his way in toward Roadrunner.

"Alyssa, looking fine as always." He managed to force a smile as he looked over at the waitress. She was a nice soul, and someone he felt could keep a secret. He had seen someone like her once before, a lovely blonde haired lass who had run a cafe on the outskirts of the city with her friends. It was a nice place for him to hang out when not as Supercell, but a few of those maids at that cafe creeped him out. "Hey Matt, thanks for inviting me... I need it."

He took a seat down beside Roadrunner, and asked Alyssa for a Shirly Temple. He turned back to Roadrunner. "H-how have you been lately, Matt?" He asked...

_________________________________


"You failed to protect the innocent. You, who drowns yourself in the blood of others, can never protect, and only destroy."

"That's not true!" Kala shouted into the void. All around her was darkness, yet she could hear it, voices that echoed back at her and around her. "I am a hero! I do good things because-"

"You are a murderer. That is what you are." The voices drowned her out. They spoke as one, and overwhelmed the woman. "Is this what you call 'justice?' The taking of lives from others?"

Before Kala, three pillars of blackened mud rose up from the ground. They took shape, into the forms of the boys from the aquarium that she had killed. One was completely flattened and severed in half, while the other two were merely walking sacks of skin and bone.

"Is this what you call justice?" The severed boy spoke out at her.

"Is this what a hero does?" the two drained boys spoke in unison. "Does a hero murder for the smallest of crimes?"

"Y-you broke the law!" Kala shouted at the three boys. "I told you to surrender, and you didn't! If criminals like you were to just die, nothing bad would happen ever again!"

A new voice spoke out from behind Kala, one far louder than the others. "Yes, this is correct. All who have sinned must perish. Only those without sin shall be left alive."

The three boys melted away, and Kala turned to see a massive blackened form that towered above her. It was humanoid, and its arms and hands dug into the ground she stood on and held her up to its face. The voice was strangely familiar to her, and the eyes glowed with a harsh green hue. All along the form's arms and body sprouted eyes, dozens of them that stared at the girl.

"Killing others who have sinned is not a sin. It is justice, the only justice. Is this not what you believe?"

"Y-yes..." Kala admitted. "B-but... Vinnie and Heng will hate me-"

"And who cares of the opinions of others?!" The voice roared down at Kala, and she felt the hands of the form tighten around the earth she was on. "If they think what you do is evil, then they are the enemy and must be killed! All who stand against you must face true judgement! It is the law you abide by!"

The hands further tightened, and Kala felt herself fall as the ground was crushed beneath the hands, before they completely engulfed and crushed her as well...

Kala sat up straight in her bed. She was shaking , her own nails digging deep into her arms. She leaned forward and watched as sweat dripped down her face onto the blanket.

A nightmare... Yet again. Just like before. It was always the same kind of nightmare. Always that voice... Always those eyes, always the latest person she had kllled...

She held a hand against her mouth as she struggled to hold back the vomit and blood that tried to rush into her mouth. Why every night? Why couldn't she sleep? She hadn't even done anything that wrong. They had been criminals, people who would only make life worse for others if they remained alive... So why was she so torn over it? Why was Vinnie so against it?

She forced herself to rise out of the bed, and slowly opened her bedroom door, blanket in hand. She took a peak out into the living room, where the light of Heng's laptop was the only brightness present. She could see Heng was leaned forward and focused on something, what exactly Kala didn't know, but she knew that interrupting her was a bad idea. Heng never responded well to being snuck up on while she worked, so Kala made for the only other place she knew where there was comfort...

[Breakdown]

Roadrunner smiled and nodded at Alyssa as she brought in a large bottle of Brandy and three glasses. Alyssa turned to Supercell as he requested his drink and nodded as she trotted off to go retrieve it. Roadrunner took off his headphones and goggles, placing them on the table in front of the luxury couch and took a long look at his friend. In all his years of knowing Isaac, he'd never seen the great Supercell look so defeated, so humiliated and humbled.

"I've been swell, darling. Just doing my usual DJ gig at my favorite hovel. So, who was the bloke on the tele you got into a scuffle with? Can't say I've seen that dodgy chap 'round here before. I was only able to get a few wee glimpses from the awful phone camera footage. Was he the same one from that speech at the park?"

Matthew asked as he picked up the bottle of Brandy and a glass, slowly pouring the drink in before taking a swing from the glass and gulped down the drink before loudly slamming the glass back down on the table.

"Ah that reminds me, Jonanthan will be joining us shortly. Seems he's just as curious as I am as to what exactly happened at the park and GenTech, as well as who tall, dark and gruesome is."

Matthew took out his phone to see if Jonathan had messaged him, but saw no new texts from the man. Roadrunner cleared his throat and placed his phone on the table next to his goggles and headphones. Without his headphones on, he could hear the sound of the music and the partying crowd on the dance floor. Though the room was much quieter than the outside, the ground still trembled with the sound of the beat.

[MinorBone Good]

Jonathan rushed into the VIP lounge, adjusting his night suit one final time. He usually never got to wear this, due to his adventures as Ectoparasite. Still brightly colored, but more of a flash ready suit with black pants. He smiled brightly as he entered, waving hello to everybody before he finally spotted Isaac and Matthew chatting. Yeesh, Isaac wasn't looking too good. That was very unusual for him. Nonetheless, Jonathan cleared his throat and finger-gunned the two of them. "Sorry that I'm late! Ran into every god dam red light. I think if I ran I would've gotten here faster."

Jonathan took a seat next to Isaac, leaning back comfortable. "Hope I wasn't interrupting! Anyways, yeah. What's up Isaac, you seem down. I'm sure me and Matty can help you out of this situation." Jonathan grabbed the bottle of brandy, starting to pour himself a drink.

[Demon Lord Gira]

Supercell lifted his head to face Jonathan. "That's just the thing... It's not something that can easily be fixed. Not like this."

He took a deep breath, then shifted his gaze over to Roadrunner. "Same guy, but somehow he's... gotten far stronger than I imagined. I thought I had him easy in GenTech, but... something happened. I felt myself freeze in place, every muscle in my body screaming at me to move to save those people... but I couldn't. My emotions ran rampant and... I let those people die, Matt. I failed them. I failed this city when it needed me to step up."

He stared at his own hands. "For as long I have been Supercell, I've never once failed the people. Everyone looked up to me, and held me to the highest of pedestals. I... I strove to be what they imagined me to be. If there was a cat in a tree, I'd stop to bring it down to the ground. If someone was to be hit by a truck, I'd stop the truck. If there was a robbery, I'd apprehend the criminals. And the people would cheer me on. I love the fame, I love their attention, and I bask in it... But, can I keep going like this? Can I keep pretending to be the greatest thing this city has ever seen since the invention of egg nog, and continue to go on while people now know I am not invincible, that there are those that... someway, somehow, can beat me?"

He watched as the waitress brought him his drink, and he took a sip. Rich, cold sprite tinted with flavoring helped to ease his nerves, but it was only a momentary respite. "I carry the entire burden of this city on my back... and I think, it's becoming too much for me."

[Corzak The Mighty]

The flare of Foxtrot shot high into the sky, illuminating the blackened canvas above with its crimson glow. At the scene of the battle between Callous and Supercell, where Cocytus was working to make sure those that remained were okay, while Dhriti helped people who had been displaced in the chaos find their friends and family, all eyes, including those of the heroes, instinctively shot up towards the sky, watching as the flare's brilliance illuminated the sky and quickly sputtered out. An exhausted smile appeared on Dhriti's face; help was on its way. They'd be able to get these people back home, along with getting medical treatment for those in need. The chaos would finally be -

Suddenly, a pair of gunshots rang out through the darkness, causing increasing panic within the crowd. Cocytus and Dhriti both looked toward each other, eyes locking in silent conversation. With a wordless nod from them both, both of the heroes bolted towards the sounds of conflict. Cocytus, the faster of the two, used his superior speed to close the distance, conjuring his trusted axe in the event of further conflict. Dhriti, meanwhile, did what she could to steady her heart. Taking a deep breath, two pairs of ethereal golden arms manifested upon her shoulders, each of them ready to strike as necessary. She had no idea if this was related to that black armored asshole and the white-hatted woman earlier, but she'd fight her hardest either way!
----
Stopping just short of the bullets striking her, Aileen's gaze shifted up to the rooftops above her, blue eyes locking with the emerald lenses of her unknown assailant's goggles. Her expression turned, brows tightening and nose scrunching in annoyance. Who did this woman think she was to stop her? Was she stupid? Had she forgotten what had transpired mere moments earlier? No matter; she'd just have to learn a lesson, like that Indian moron she'd faced earlier.

An ominous chatter resounded behind Foxtrot, followed by the shuffling of footsteps and the cracking of joints. As Foxtrot turned to face this sudden new threat, she felt a set of fearsome claws slice her across the shoulder with enough force to nearly knock her off the rooftop before pinning her to the ground! At this moment, a monstrous foe made itself apparent - a phantasmal lion, shrouded in a cloak of ebony shadow, snarled at her, paws pinned to her chest, a pair of crimson eyes glaring at her with the intent to kill!

With a chuckle, Aileen turned back to the street she was walking down, and continued sauntering down her way. She could hear others approaching as well; distinctive heavy footsteps echoed down the street in her direction. No matter; they'd meet an unfortunate end soon enough. Now, where had she parked her car?

[Breakdown]

Matthew frowned as Isaac laid bare everything that was weighing on his consciousness. He pitied his friend, as this one poor showing seemed to have totally destroyed his confidence in who he was and what he stood for. Putting a hand on his shoulder, Matthew began to speak.

"Isaac no matter how good we are, we can't always expect to save them all, mate. It's impossible, even for the best of us. I know it sounds harsh, but it's the truth. I respect that you hold yourself to high standards, but we all make mistakes. Under the costumes and glamour, at the end of the day we're as human as anyone else, and to be human is to make mistakes. We all do it, old chap. It's unavoidable."

Matthew poured himself another glass of Brandy and took a swig, gulping it down and letting out a long sigh before continuing to speak.

"Listen, mate. You may think you screwed the pooch here, but there's still plenty of people out there who are your fans and who believe in you. They believe in Supercell. Hanging up your cape for good over a goof-up would be failing them, not this. I'm not saying you have to jump right back on the horse and act like things are hunky-dory, but at least consider sticking around. Maybe take something of a vacation to get your head sorted. I'm sure Jonny boy can cook up some alibi or story as to where you've gone. Right?"

Matthew looked over to Jonathan smiling, as if urging Jonathan to agree.

=====================================================================

After some time, Blind would receive another text message on her phone from the same mystery sender who ended his messages with a wasp-like character.

"Not new for them. They have a history of unethical human experiments. As for the creature? Not sure. Can't pull up anything on it from their servers. Likely unaffiliated with GenTech. Need more info on it. <>8<>"

After a few more moments, Blind would receive another text message. This one was an image file that contained the photo and basic information of a young man named Franklin Ferri. He had pale skin, short stubble, hazel-green eyes and styled black hair. He was fairly handsome, all things considered. A follow-up text was sent by the mystery sender.

"Franklin Ferri. From what I could gather, GenTech offered him a cure for his terminal illness. They lied. They used him as a guinea pig for Project Hades. The explosion was caused by him. Whatever they gave him worked a little too well. He's still alive and extremely dangerous, whether he realizes it or not. I've intercepted some fragmented communications indicating that GenTech intends to kill him and cover the incident up. He's at the top of the kill list. Second is Marina Griffin, his significant other. She's the only other person who knows about Franklin's involvement at the lab. If she dies, GenTech gets away with everything. <>8<>"

[Voyager]

Callous threw open his car’s door, jumping in with glee, smashing a CD into the car’s player. Octavian drove off into the inconspicuous streets as Queen’s ‘We Are The Champions’ came on. It was perfect. First time coming up against a hero that could feasibly end his life, it went pretty well.

The villain sung along, thinking non-stop about his surprising victory. It really was picture-perfect. The hero unable to save the innocents, the villain making the hero flee without so much as raising a finger, and… the real cause of it being hidden. Octavian thought about Aileen. God, did she help out today, didn’t she? He thought for a little more, before spinning the car around driving back. It’d be nice to show some gratitude, and maybe even help her out.

———


Callous’s car came to a screeching halt, the villain making no time to lounge around and wait. Octavian ran towards the ruined GenTech building, and he saw… Aileen! That figure from earlier was nowhere to be seen.

“Tulpa!” He called, her head twisting around to meet eyes. “Are you okay, where’s that other guy?” Aileen chuckled, pointing back to the rooftop with her thumb. Callous looked to where she pointed, gunshots blared and the unholy roar of a Thoughtform.

Callous gave a thumbs up, and started to walk with Aileen. “Do you need a ride?”

[MinorBone Good]

Jonathan just sat in silence as Isaac laid out his situation. Shit, that was bad. Jonathan's face filled with empathy for his dear friend. Jonathan felt bad for him. He's never seen him this broken before. He let out a long sigh, putting a hand against his face. He already knew he would have to give a explanation to the people of LD, that was for certain. Various thoughts ran though his head, trying to come up with an explanation the would please the majority of both sides. For and against him.

As Matthew continued to talk, Jonathan poured himself another drink, now thankful he had something to null the pain from this horrible night. He leaned back, taking another sip. He nodded at Matthew's statements of still being human. "Agreed." Jonathan went back into his thoughts. After another long sip, he felt an idea flow into his head like a morning fog. Yes, pieces. He could work of that. It was slowly coming together.

When Matthew looked over to Jonathan, he smiled and looked back at Isaac, patting him on the shoulder, a light chuckle escaping his lips. "Don't worry, I got your back." He set his drink down on the table, slapping both of his hands together and leaned in, now staring down at the table. "What you've done, I can't ignore that. However, I can probably explain to the population of a.. short retirement, yes. I would suggest spending more time as Isaac now, no longer Supercell. Be more of a people person around here. That said, you can still do good. Help fund charities around here and whatnot. I'll also help try to repair the relations of those affected."

Jonathan let out a short sigh. "What I'm trying to say is, just lay low from being Supercell. You still got this." He sat straight up, smiling at Isaac. "How does that sound, friend?"