Superhero RPG

[Demon Lord Gira]

"If the clinic you're thinking of is Heng's clinic, we were actually on our way there." Alice told Dhriti. "But, everything that just happened has complicated things from how we wanted them to go..."

"wait." Now it was Vinnie who spoke up. "That girl, Marina, we should probably go get her. I-I'll go get her so we can all head to the clinic together. I think I saw the medical ward when I was looking for my sister."

Alice furrowed her eyebrows. So many things had been weighing on her mind, she had almost forgotten they were about to head off to there without Marina in tow. She twitched one of her fingers, and one of the dolls that floated around her moved over to Vinnie. "Use this doll as a means of tracking back to me. I have so much line wire in these gauntlets to cover three miles before it cannot go any further. I can't control the doll where I can't see it, but you can use it to help you and Marina catch back up to us, Vincent."

Vinnie nodded as he took the doll in his hands. "I'll be right back!" He told them before he ran off with the doll toward the medical ward. Celine looked over to Alice.

"You know, I could have gone to grab her, but seeing that kid run with a doll like that, it's almost kind of cute. But, I assume there's another reason you did that?"

"If he's looking for his sister, and she's still on campus, maybe he'll run into her." Alice said. "Just a hope, of course."

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

It didn't take long for Vinnie to reach the medical ward, and as he entered in Seisshia's eyes locked onto him with a curious gaze. "Well well, fancy seeing you here so soon. Looking for your sister? I'm afraid she's not here."

Vinnie shook his head. "I- I uh, I'm here to get Marina." He pointed over to the woman in question. "We're heading off to Heng's clinic, and we didn't want to leave her behind."

"I see." Seisshia closed her eyes and clasped her hands together. "It seems you are needed after all, Marina. Going to see someone so multifaceted as Heng, perhaps I should pay a visit to her one of these days since I've heard so much about the dear Doctor Helper. Stay safe now, and I hope you find your sister, child."

"Okay..." Vinnie began to walk to Marina, but stopped at Seisshia's words. "I was hoping that Kala would be here, but if you say she isn't..."

Seisshia shook her head. "I'm sorry, but she isn't. I haven't seen her since you and her walked out of the chapel dorm. With any luck, you'll run into her soon."

"O-okay." Vinnie said.

[Corzak The Mighty]

"Clever trick there, Alice!" Dhriti said with a smirk. "Hopefully the little guy is able to catch back up with us."

As Dhriti head the way to the clinic, sneaking past the security guards and darting behind the cover of anything they could come across, Dhriti paused for a moment, before she looked back toward Celine and Alice.

"So that boy.... you guys aren't his sisters? Who is his sister then, and why isn't she with you?" She paused again for a moment. "oh no... don't tell me she's that girl in the infirmary..."

[HayesAJones]

"That was... fast. Uh, then... I'm going to get going," Blind- Emily at the moment- said, nodding to Marina. She was glad the woman had acted so decisively, but she hoped it was out of trust, not a desire for revenge.

She had seen what the latter could do to good women.

Before she ducked out of the infirmary, she paused, and looked back to Marina, adding, "Sorry about... everything, today. Stay safe."

[Breakdown]

Marina sniffled and nodded as Emily offered her condolences.

"Yeah. Thanks" she said.

She narrowed her eyes at "Emily" as she left the room, right as Vinnie came in. Something was suspicious about her, and it wasn't just her distrustful nature that was making her think this. Something was...off. Of course, she had no evidence to back this up aside from just a hunch. Before she could continue her speculation, Vinnie's mention of her name caused her to quickly snap her attention to him. She quickly identified Vinnie as the boy she'd seen with the others on their way here, the one who had a sister who he'd lost track of in all the chaos. She felt empathy towards Vinnie's plight, having lost a sibling herself, and she hoped that the kid would find her safe and sound. She sighed and stood up, taking a moment to stretch before walking over to Vinnie and gently placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Okay, let's get going. I don't want to be here when the weirdos show up and start asking questions" she signed before taking her hand off of Vinnie and allowing the boy to lead the way.

Though hesitant at first, Marina was becoming ever more eager to get some answers about all this; about Franklin, GenTech, these mystery texters, everything. From here on out, it seemed like there was no going back. Before she left the room, she cast a glare over at Seisshia, one so split-second that it was almost imperceptible.

[Demon Lord Gira]

As Vinnie lead Marina out of the medical ward, the last Marina saw of Seisshia was her eyes closed and a smile and a wave sent her way. "I hope your little endeavor goes well." The teacher told Marina.

Once they were gone, Seisshia leaned back in her seat and exhaled. Who knew how the day or the rest of the week was to unfold. So many things happening, and so little time to adapt. Though, if there were going to be reporters flooding in to look for Marina, they would be disappointed. All that was here was a girl who desperately needed to regain her strength, and a teacher with nothing else to do at the moment. Anyone who wanted the girl would have to get past her, and she had no interest in letting anyone slip past.

She felt her phone vibrate, and she reached into her pocket to pull it out. She flipped the screen, and saw it was a text. She rested her head on her left hand as she typed a quick response with her right.

"Well well, If that is what is requested..." She mused to herself...

-----------------------
Alice shook her head. "No, she isn't the girl who was brought into the infirmary. I haven't seen who Vincent's sister is, but she goes by the name of Kala and he was separated from her when everything began to happen." She crossed her arms around her chest. "Hopefully, he finds her in the Infirmary safe and sound. If she got caught up in the crossfire, or became a victim of Bloodless..." She began to shift her gaze down to the floor.

"I-I doubt that's the case." Celine began to say. "She's likely to be safe outside of the campus. I think I saw her in the stampede heading out of the campus gates. So, it's likely she'll be waiting for him either when we are out of here or when we're done at Heng's clinic. I mean, it's the most likely place for someone to go in an incident like this, if you think they got hurt and all..."

Alice raised an eyebrow. "I suppose you are right there. With any luck, we'll be able to reunite the kid with- Did you meet his sister before?"

Celine nods. "I-I saw them walk into campus with Sister Seisshia leading them. They came to talk to me and Damien about something, but-"

"We're back!" Vinnie's voice called out, as he rounded the corner with Marina in tow and the doll held tight. "Miss Puppeteer, you can have this back. Thank you."

Alice twitched a finger, and the doll returned to its floating position alongside the others she had. "Just call me Alice. And... did you find your sister in the infirmary?"

Vinnie shook his head. "She wasn't there." He said. "Only Sierra was, and that tall Seisshia lady."

"Well, with any luck, we'll find her on our way out to the clinic." Celine said. "It's not too far from the campus, if what you said is right, Alice."

"It isn't far at all. I work at the daycare that is joined to it. Of course I know where it is." She then looked over to Marina. "We'll get answers, and a cure for whatever happened to Franklin. I promise."

[Corzak The Mighty]

Dhriti clenched her fist a bit at Alice's comment regarding Bloodless. That vigilante... she was something else entirely. Unpredictable, monstrous even. She had to hope that Vincent's sister wasn't caught in the crossfire of one of her rampages... unfortunately, from what Dhriti had heard, it wouldn't be the first time something like that occurred during one of their escapades. Snapping back into reality, Dhriti looked to Vincent and Marina, offering both a wave and a smile.

"Hopefully your sister's okay, little guy," Dhriti added on with a weariness. She looked back down to the burner phone given to her, along with the ominous text sent to her through it. After a few moments, Dhriti made her final decision and replied to the person.

Ok. I'll see you tonight then.

with a sniff, Dhriti resumed her travels, leading the group farther and farther away from the madness that was the university's grounds...
----
Thankfully, it seemed that the chaos at the campus had scared the majority of people off of the roads, whether out of fear of getting caught in traffic or in the crossfire if the situation managed to get hot again. What could have easily been a long and obnoxious trip across the city dealing with tons of foot traffic and traffic signals was expedited quite a bit - in fact, it was barely 3 pm, so there was still plenty of time in the day to keep things moving forward.

Despite this, Dhriti was still extremely anxious. She sincerely hoped that the friend of Marina would survive this ordeal, though from what the others had said, things weren't exactly looking good for her. Adding onto this was Vincent's missing sister; hopefully she hadn't been hurt in the fight that had occurred, but given that there was no sign of her anywhere, Dhriti feared the worst. If only there was more that she could have done... if only...

Dhriti sighed, before stepping up to the glass doors of the clinic, white marble exterior nearly blinding in the midday sun, and looking inside into the quaint lobby. "Alright guys, looks like it isn't too busy right now." She looks back towards the others, offering them a weary smile. "If you want, I can escort you guys inside, though I get you guys might want some privacy." She looked over to Marina. "I'm sorry about your friend... I wish there was more I could do..."

[HayesAJones]

Lupastra's jaws stretched wide in an enormous, breathy yawn as she pushed back her computer chair and stood up, arms arced over her head. A few hollow pops came from her shoulders. It had taken half the day, but she had decrypted Viola's card. Her next auction would be in three days, at the docks: essentially her backyard. She wouldn't need to go far, at least.

What should would need, however, was a nap. She was exhausted. The great wolf-headed woman scratched her hairy chin. Then again, Miles was out grabbing them coffees. Maybe napping could wait.

In any case, she should let Somsak know, so she fished her phone from her pocket.

got the date. we've got time so butter up e as much as you need to

The giant tapped her feet for a moment, then added an additional line before hitting send.

might as well use your looks for something

_____________________________

As Lupastra left her computer on the edge of the city, deep in its heart, Blind sat down at hers. Unmasked and unclothed aside from some panties and a damp towel draped around her shoulders, the vigilante drew up a number of documents, all regarding her smart suit. There was a number of hours before she would meet Bee and the others, so she might as well do something useful in the meantime. Between the monstrosity she had met in the sewer and the radiation she had detected coming off the creature on campus, advancing her ideas for lead shielding seemed as good an idea as any.

Besides, the crimefighter thought to herself with a blush, it would help distract her. She was nervous about meeting Bee and his other agents face to face.

She could not help but glance at a display case in the corner of her workshop; a blue-and-white suit with a beaked cowl was stood tall and fierce.

It had... been a long time since she had a partner.

[Demon Lord Gira]

Vinnie felt a sigh of relief as they came up to the clinic. It had been a long time since he was last here, an orphan child with nowhere to go, taken in by Heng. After such a chaotic morning, he felt a weight be lifted off his shoulders now they were somewhere safe. Maybe Kala was here as well, but he found it hard to believe this would be where she would go. Most likely she would assume Vinnie was back at the house and be waiting there for him, and if Heng knew Kala was there, hopefully she would tell her to stay put until they got there. It was a long fetched hope, but he had a feeling that was what was the case, that she was otherwise alright.

He felt something, like eyes were watching him from afar. He turned to look, but instead he saw Celine standing back away from the doors of the clinic, a phone in her hand. Alice noticed this as well. "Aren't you coming in with us?" Alice asked. "We should all-"

"I'm sorry." Celine cut her short as she flipped the phone closed. "Father Pius just sent me a message, he needs me back at the campus. He wouldn't say for what exactly, but I'll catch you all later at the meeting. I just, I need to get going." Celine turned and sped back off toward the university. "Marina, stay strong and keep your head up! You too as well, Vincent!"

Alice felt her left eye twitch. Always with the last second calls and messages. Celine really was a busy bee, running errands left and right for Pius and Seisshia. If she needed to leave, that was that. With a deep breath, she opened the doors to the clinic and motioned for Marina and Vinnie to follow her in.

To her relief, it wasn't just slow inside the clinic, it was empty except for who was up at the receptionist desk filing papers. The black haired woman raised an eye up from the paperwork she was sorting through. "Back from your errand?" She said, putting aside the toys of the wyvern and rat that were on the desk. Her golden eyes looked over Vinnie and Marina. "A rather fis-"

"Lind, is Heng here?" Alice cut her off. "We, we need to see her right now. It is important."

Lind nodded, and rose from her seat and walked over to the door leading into the back rooms. She turned the nob and opened it. "Of course. Miss Heng, you have a visitor."

Heng's head poked out from the opened doorway, her sunglasses slanted on her face and a bottle of wine being sucked on in her mouth. "Mrmph? Mrlicm?!" She reached a hand up and took the bottle out. "A-Alice! you're back later than I expected. And you brought a friend! Are you going out with her? What are her sizes? Any movies you watched with her?"

Alice, face turning red at what Heng was saying, stamped her foot down. "HENG!" She all but shouted, only keeping her voice low due to the daycare next door and not wanting Zenogia and the children to barge in and make this situation worse. "Back room, please? We need your help."

Heng's sunglasses nearly slid off her face, and for a moment, Alice and Vinnie could see her vibrant emerald eyes before she put the sunglasses back on. Neither of them had even seen what Heng's eyes actually looked like past her sunglasses or whatever else she had covering her face. " O-oooh. What help is that? And... who actually is this girl? And... Why is Vinnie here without... Kala?" Heng stammered on the last word, something Vinnie realized was her forcing herself to not say Bloodless in her current state...

_________________________

The outskirts of Los Diamantes had little in the way of shade for Kala to hide herself in as she slithered from dark spot to dark spot in her shadowy form. Her head throbbed and ached, and she had no clue as to why. She had gorged on all of that blood from that thing, she should have been feeling better as her body had begun to fix the damage done, so why was she feeling like her head was about to split open and her stomach was flip flopping?

The sounds of barking stopped her. A dog, a white lab from the looks of it was barking at her while tied up on its leash. The barking hurt her ears in her state, and she felt compelled to silence the mutt. Perhaps its blood would make her feel better...

She forced herself away from it. No, Vinnie would know what she had done and hate her for it. Attacking someone's pet was a crime, and as much as she wanted to otherwise, she needed to get back to the house and to the bed. Vinnie no doubt was already there, waiting for her. He was a smart kid, he had to be.

"No, kill the mutt. Silence the heathen." The voice in her mind rasped, louder than it had been before. "Find the mistake, the sinner, and finish him off!"

She forced herself to ignore the voice. That thing was dead. It had to be dead. And even if it wasn't, it wasn't her problem anymore. It had left her broken, and she needed to heal.

She saw it, the house up ahead. Home. She didn't smell Vinnie as she slithered beneath the door, but her panic was only there for a moment. He would be here soon, he would. She slithered back to her bedroom and into the covers, where she remanifested in her human form. Rest was needed... Rest...

[Breakdown]

Marina looked over to Dhiriti as she offered her condolences. Marina nodded and gave a half-hearted smile of gratitude. She appreciated people offering their sympathies, but right now she needed answers more than pity. She eyed the exterior of the clinic as they came up to the building; it wasn't quite what she was expecting, she thought it would be much bigger like an actual hospital. Then again, she supposed that "clinic" did imply something fairly small-scale. As she stepped into the lobby, the interior of the clinic didn't match the exterior at all. It was rather quaint, whereas viewing it from the outside would give the impression that it would be state-of-the-art given the specialized care meta-humans would presumably require. She supposed that Heng might be on a tight budget or something, and no sooner had the doctor's name popped into her head, did Heng appear in the flesh, clearly in an alcoholic stupor.

"Great" She thought, her one ticket to fixing this nightmare lay in the hands of a drunk.

She sighed and was about to introduce herself when Heng's comment about whether or not her and Alice were dating caught her off guard. She facepalmed and was about to say something when Alice spoke up instead, scolding Heng. This was an impressive level of unprofessionalism, with the clinic open and the only doctor getting wasted and barely coherent. She was amazed that Heng still had a license to practice if this was how she was on the regular. Yet, she heard nothing but positive things through word-of-mouth, which made this all the more baffling. Quickly losing her patience, Marina stepped forward and laid down her situation.

"Doctor, I need you to be a bit more serious here. I...we need a safe place to stay for a bit. There was an incident at my college and some armed gunmen tried to attack me. My boyfriend he...he...god. GenTech did something to him, they turned him into some kind of monster. The military got involved and they..." she stopped, gulping loudly. She felt as though the next few words were stuck in her throat, refusing to come out.

"....killed him." She said painfully as a tear rolled down her cheek.

"So please...it won't be for long. Just until we can figure out just what the hell is going on." she said with her head down. She didn't expect Heng to understand a word she said in her drunken state, but she stepped back and let her words sink in.

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

Meanwhile on the 44th floor of an extravagant penthouse in downtown Los Diamantes, Roadrunner awoke to find himself sprawled out in bed in his Roadrunner-themed underwear. His vision was blurred as he groaned and sat up. Rubbing his eyes, he looked to his left to see a half-naked blonde young man contorted under the bed sheets asleep. To his right was a red-headed woman similarly half naked and cocooned in the lavish sheets of the bed. He rubbed his pounding forehead and slicked back his mohawk before getting out of bed. He narrowed his eyes at the analogue clock based on a cartoon version of himself, and the hour indicated that it was 3PM in the afternoon.

"Another all nighter..." he mumbled.

He could hear that the TV was left on and went into the living room to turn it off when he tripped over a bottle of whiskey on the ground. He looked down at the bottle and picked it up, shaking the last few drops in it before looking around and seeing several other bottles of alcohol strewn about the living room. He looked over at the oval-shaped glass table to see an empty bong as well as several scraps of marijuana sprinkled across its surface. Amidst all the plastic bags once containing marijuana, were also plastic packets containing a handful of remaining dabs of acid. Roadrunner groaned and tossed the empty whisky bottle on the disheveled couch.

"Bloody hell. Pulled out all the stops last night, didn't we Matthew..." he muttered to himself as he shuffled over to the TV to see a news report was playing which quickly caught his attention.

"What's still unknown is where exactly this creature came from, and could there be more of them out there? For now however, the city can rest assured that it has one less problem to worry about thanks to our boys in uniform" said the reporter on the news, followed by footage of the aforementioned monster being gunned down by a helicopter. From the brief glance he had of it, it was pretty goddamn ugly; all misshapen and whatnot. Nevertheless, he was glad the "boys in uniform", as the news lady put it, took care of the fiend before people began asking "Where was Roadunner".

"Which also begs the question, where was Roadunner in all this? Isn't he one of the city's most popular heroes" added the male news anchor. Just as Matthew's attention drifted away from the TV, the mention of his name got his eyes glued back onto the screen.

"FUCKIN' 'ELL" he shouted as the blonde-haired young man entered the living room.

"Hey man, is everything alright? I hear yo-"

"Yes yes darling, everything's swell. Now go back to bed and give Jessica some company" he said, making a gesture like one would shoo away a dog while his eyes remained fixed on the TV screen.

[Demon Lord Gira]

Heng opened her mouth to respond to Alice, but when Marina began to talk, she stayed silent. She listened to the girl's plea, of the misfortune that had befallen her and the one she loved and of her current predicament. The bottle of wine in her hand slipped further between her fingers, only held up by the rim still caught in her grasp. She listened, or at least to Vinnie it looked like she was listening. He had never seen Heng drunk before, but as far as he could tell it was a way for people to handle excessive stress. Was something stressing Heng out as well?

When Marina finished, Heng put the bottle onto a table, then reached into her lab coat and pulled out a syringe filled with a pitch black fluid that seemed more like oil than anything else. She pressed the syringe against her wrist and injected part of the fluid into her, and her body tensed for a moment. After several seconds, she visibly relaxed and let out a sigh. "Okay, alcohol burned out of my system..." She said. She then turned to Marina. "If you need a place to hide and lay low, Lind's house is off in the suburbs and she never gets any visitors. Lind, is it okay if-"

"Yes, Miss Heng." Lind never looked up from the paperwork she was filing away. "They can use my house as long as they need to. It is well stocked and isolated."

Alice smiled."Thank you, Heng, and thank you as well, Lind."

Heng shook her head. "I heard on the news what had happened and I was sick to my stomach. I just had no idea the circumstances involved were like this, though. GenTech, though..."

"Heng, what is that thing you just used?" Vinnie asked. Heng took a moment to tap her lower jaw, before she replied with a smile.

"Oh, just something that's still being worked on. Drunk driving is one of the leading causes of accidents and deaths here in the States, so I'm working on a way to burn all the alcohol in a person's body in less than a minute. That way, people who are too impatient to wait a full day for the alcohol to burn away have a faster alternative. It's not quite ready yet, but it's close to being done."

"Whenever you are ready to head to my place, I can drive you there, Marina." Lind said. "Heng can handle the clinic by herself in the ten minutes it will take me to get to my house and back."

[Corzak The Mighty]

As Alice, Vinnie, and Marina went into the clinic, Dhriti offered them aparting wave as her questions went verbally unanswered. Though she was hoping for a confirmation one way or another on if they wanted her to stick around, their focus on the task at hand rather than responding indicated where their heads were. Not that Dhriti really blamed them to be completely honest; they had literally just barely met her after all. Why would you want someone who is functionally a stranger to be around, especially when you're addressing something serious? Dhriti certainly wouldn't want that person to stick around, good intentions or not.

Dhriti's eyes turned to look toward Celine, who was departing back toward the campus. She must really HAVE been a teacher there if she was considering going back after all the crap that had just unfolded... the Indian woman considered asking what exactly she needed to do, but cut back the urge to pry. She'd done the right thing helping these people get out of there; besides, there was more to do in the city.

Dhriti looked down at her phone to check if she'd gotten any new messages since her last one. So far, nothing... still early in the day too, only 3 PM. Guess she could always go for a jog...
----
Aileen felt a lancing pain tthrough her head as this collection of new individuals came in to the clinic. Goddammit... more noise, more people crowding this god forsaken place... this was literally the last thing she needed right now. She needed to keep her mind sharp for-

She was suddenly given pause as she listened into the conversation the others were having. Heng had shown herself, as had the young boy Callous had mentioned to her, and they had begun discussing the situation at GenTech. A monster created by them? Now, that truly was interesting... perhaps even more interesting than learning about Bloodless. But perhaps, given the situation unfolding here, she could kill two birds with one stone...

Aileen used the last of her strength to call forth a small thoughtform - a tiny spider, no bigger than a jumping spider, to spy upon the assembly of people here. Aileen let out a quiet moan, before she closed her eyes, "pretending" to fall asleep...

[Breakdown]

Marina frowned at the news that she'd be going to Lind's house to lay low. She didn't know anything about Lind, and she'd feel much "safer" here with Alice and the others rather than being dumped at the house of a complete stranger. Her father's words began to claw at the back of her mind again, his warning that people are dangerous and that very few can be trusted. She didn't fully trust Alice and the others, but she trusted them a hell of a lot more than she trusted Lind right now.

"I'm really not comfortable crashing at the house of a stranger I literally just met, no offense. Wouldn't it be a lot smarter and safer to stick together?" voiced Marina, stepping forward with a sense of urgency.

Subconsciously, this sense of urgency was amplified by the gradual feeling of her skin beginning to feel dry, and the air subtly becoming harder and harder to take in with each breath. She was running out of water again, and bottled water would only get her so far this time. She needed to submerge, to be surrounded by water and breathe it in. She really hoped Heng had something she could use to submerge herself, otherwise she might have to bite the bullet and go to Lind's, as much as she didn't feel comfortable with the idea. At the very least, she thought, Lind would have a bathtub or shower she could use to rehydrate.

[Demon Lord Gira]

Heng let out a half-hearted chuckle as she pushed her glasses back up to cover her eyes. "Right, right. There is Alice's home that's also attached to this building complex..."

Alice let out a long sigh. "Well, I do have Zenogia already living at my place, but... One more in the house won't hurt, and it's not like Zenogia's bound to stay in my home, just not wander out freely in the city, so..." She looked over to Marina, her eyes taking notice of her more labored breathing. Last she sounded like that was back on campus, when she needed... Right, of course. "Yes, it's just down the hall and across the daycare to the door that leads to my house. I'll get a hot bath ready for you if that sounds okay."

Heng glanced over to Vinnie. "Lind, in that case, can you give Vinnie here a ride back to the house? It's too far at this time for him to safely walk alone, and I have a few things I need to wrap up on."

"Of course, Miss Heng."

[Breakdown]

Marina sighed in relief, both from the news that she would be staying with the group, and she'd be treated with a bath; a warm bath at that. A warm bath after all this would be euphoric and would allow her to clear her head in order to make her next move. She couldn't wait to dive in and relax for a little bit until her "appointment" with the stranger from campus and the mystery texter.


"Alright, Alice. Lead the way" Marina asked while gesturing with a hand.

[Demon Lord Gira]

Alice smiled as she prepared to take Marina's hand, but something crept up on her mind. Something she had almost forgotten about in all of this. She turned back to Heng. "Um, I have a request for you, Heng. It's blood from Franklin and... We still don't know what exactly they did to him so..."

"No, I understand." Heng let the doll that contained the sample float over to her, then opened its head up. She took an empty clean bottle and poured the blood sample into the cup, before she put the head back on the doll and let it float back over to Alice. "It will take me some time to look this over, but hopefully whatever GenTech did to him, I can fully understand." She then motioned with her hand to shoo the two of them out, her gaze shifted over to Vinnie.

"Thank you." Alice said, and taking Marina's hand, she left with her out through the side door, into the passageway that connected the clinic to the daycare center. Once the door closed, and Heng was certain the other door had closed as well, she let out a sigh.

"Tenmus is going to have a field day if she finds out GenTech is also behind this." She muttered to herself. "But better to be safe than sorry and not deliver premature findings before I am certain of them." Her gaze shifted to the still form of Aileen. Had she been asleep there all this time? Hopefully that woman would wake up sooner rather than later, because having a person fast asleep in the front lobby was not a good look. Perhaps she could call a taxi or a cab to take her to wherever her home was. It wasn't like she was pinched on money thanks to everything she did... She looked over to Vinnie and smiled. "I know you're worried about Kala, but the home sensors have picked up that she's back in bed and asleep. She's waiting for you."

Vinnie felt a weight lift off his shoulders. Thank goodness she was safe at home. He had hoped that was the case, but to hear Heng herself say it... "I'm ready to head back at any time."

"Then follow me." Lind stood up and prepared to walk out the door, before Heng held up a hand.

"Vinnie, I'll be having a discussion with you later on about what happened at the university. Obviously, things happened up there that I had no way of anticipating, even when I said for you and Kala to stay out of danger and not do any heroics. I'm not mad at what happened, just... It's only the afternoon, and I already want this day to end. You know that feeling?"

Vinnie nodded, and Heng let a weary smile creep on her face. "I saw what happened over the television, but... I'm just glad both of you are safe and sound. I'll be at the house later tonight to ask for the fine details."

With a nod, Vinnie followed Lind out the door and toward her car. Once they had left Heng leaned back into the front desk seat and tilted her head up to the ceiling, the bottle containing the blood sample still in hand. So many things she wasn't expecting, so little time, but everything was working out, somehow. She wasn't going to complain about that.

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

The door to the daycare swung open, and Alice stepped through with Marina in tow. To her relief, though she had been gone for the morning and most of the afternooon, the play area was not in complete turmoil and chaos, only some turmoil and chaos as children crawled all over Zenogia's human form. One child was pulling on her hair, while another was trying to climb up her back, and a third has her head buried in Zenogia's lap while her hands and legs flailed. The woman picked up the child and put her back on the ground, only for another to jump at her. "Timmy, quit cramping on my style. Joana, stop bouncing before your knees get the work done to them. These kids are living rent free in- Alice the GOAT!"

The kids turn to where Zenogia is looking, and they begin to clap their hands at the sight of Alice. The puppetteer waves at them, before she clears her throat. "Zenogia, we have a guest staying with us for the next several days. I'm going to make her a hot bath, then I'll be back to help you with the children."

The woman's eye twitched as she shifted her gaze to Marina, but only for a moment. "Your wish is my command, homie. These rugrats got my knees weak and arms heavy. Calm these collective quacks ASAP, please and thank you."

Alice simply gave Zenogia an acknowledging smile as she continued with Marina to the other side of the daycare. Once she opened the door and closed it, she said to her. "Don't mind Zenogia. She's... She's weird, and not human like you. You're not the first inhuman to be under my care."

[Corzak The Mighty]

Having gathered quite substantial amount of intel at this point, Aileen suddenly "jolted" back awake, acting as if she had lost track of of how much time had passed. Her eyes glanced about the lobby, reflexively grasping her head. The thoughtform spider vanished from sight shortly after, fading into ectoplasm.

Staggering to her feet, Aileen muttered, "Oh... how long have I been asleep...?" before she stumbled out of the clinic. Making her way to her car, Aileen offered the departing Vinnie and Lind a faux confused look, before she opened the door to her car and sat inside. Using the smallest bit of her admittedly little remaining strength, Aileen conjured a tiny thoughtform - that of a gnat - to hide inside of Lind's car and keep track of the boy's whereabouts...

"Callous, it's Aileen," the woman said, dialing her superior. "You're going to to love what i've just learned..."

[Breakdown]

Marina cringed as Alice took her hand to guide her to their destination, feeling as though she was being treated like a lost child. Soon, this discomfort turned to anger; how dare this fraud lay a hand on her? The same one who allied herself with Martin's murderers. Marina was about to forcefully yank her hand free when she finally re-asserted control over her emotions. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath.

"No. Alice and the others promised to help me. They've been good to me, and they probably had nothing to do with Martin's death" she repeated to herself in her head.

Before the intrusive thoughts could launch their counterattack, her attention was grabbed by the sounds of children laughing and playing; they were coming up on the entrance to the daycare where Alice worked when she wasn't doing hero stuff. Marina had almost forgot that Alice was a school teacher, as she mainly knew her as the Puppeteer. As Alice opened the doors, the daycare was alive with activity: children playing with toys, scribbling on paper with crayons, and some simply reading books. The sight warmed her heart and she couldn't help but smile. She'd always wanted to be a mother herself, and her and Franklin had discussed the topic many times to the point were they were ready to make the leap. However, with what's happened to Franklin...that dream was crushed. She sniffled and a tear rolled down her cheek. She quickly fluttered her eyes and wiped the tear away before focusing her attention on an individual Alice was leading her to.

Alice introduced the individual as Zenogia, to which Marina simply waved. She would have smiled as well, but her current mood combined with Zenogia's way of speaking made that impossible. Every time she opened her mouth, Marina felt the urge to cunt-punt her.

"Relax, Mari. Get a hold of yourself" she thought as Alice explained what she was doing here. She really needed that hot bath, not just to re-hydrate, but also to get her head back together. As they departed further into the building and Alice explained Zenogia's deal, she had some questions of her own to ask.

"So, are the kids here normal or do they have "gifts" as well?" Marina inquired.

[Demon Lord Gira]

"They're all normal." Alice told Marina. "Some have parents who are too busy to be a part of their lives, others have parents who either realized that parenthood was too much for them or had it thrust upon them without any way in the matter, and some..."

Alice looked away from Marina. "Some lost their parents and older siblings to the evils of this city, to its villains and to its more bloodthirsty monsters like Bloodless. So, they come here, where either I or Zenogia care for them and provide them with the nurture and care that they need and crave. Many of the heroes of this city fight to preserve the current generation, but the next generation is just as important, if not moreso.They will be the ones who will have to shoulder what we leave behind, and deal with the consequences of our actions. I cannot fix every problem they will face, but I can try to prepare them for what their adult life will bring and to ease their current problems. Seeing the next generation thriving, smiles on their faces and eager to learn... There is no greater joy that I find."

She stopped at the door that lead into her house, and opened it. The inside of the home was rather spacious, with little in the way of decorations. The walls were plain and white, and a pair of stairs lead upward. The room ahead looked to be a kitchen and living room with only a small refrigerator and microwave in the former, and a wood carved table in the latter. Across from the stairs was a door that Alice opened, and within was the bathroom, with an unusually large tub that looked better suited for soaking a giant python than for a person to use. On the sink countertop was a glass framed image, one that showed Alice alongside three other people, one a blue haired mermaid like woman, another a much shorter woman with light brown hair, and a pale skinned woman in black tattered clothes, standing before the remains of a town. Alice's eyes gazed to the picture for a moment, and lingered on it. When her story truly began, that incident that took away the world she knew...

Quickly shaking her head, she leaned forward to turn on the hot water and adjust the tub settings so the water wouldn't flush down the drain until the bath was done. "Feel free to take any of my clothes from my bedroom upstairs. I have more than I know what to do with. I'll leave you alone so you can bathe and relax by yourself."

___________________

Callous had left the campus building a few hours prior. Now he was on his way back to the penthouse, enjoying the scenic walk there. The lowly peasants that indulged themselves in the doldrums of their existence... Were they pigs or humans? They were so pathetic and abymal to look at, he couldn't tell. They all looked the same to him, the man who had brought this city to its knees with so little effort. And all it costed him was this godforsaken blow in his ribcage-

He felt his phone go off. He looked around, and pulled it out of his pocket. It was Aileen. Perfect, just what he was hoping for. He sidestepped into the nearest alley, before jerking his foot back. A rat nearly a foot long clamped down on his shoe then bolted off, its tail hanging limply at the base. Worthless vermin, he was tempted to eviscerate it on the spot, but that would make a scene, and he didn't need that. He carefully edged his way deeper into the alleyway, then pressed the talk button. What Aileen had to say was indeed music to his ears.

"Do you now?" He asked her. "Surprise me with what you've gleamed. Surprise me enough, and I might get you a little gift."

[Corzak The Mighty]

Aileen felt a warmth at her cheeks at Callous' words. A... a gift for her? Lord Callous was always so thoughtful, always caring so much about what she did and how committed she was to his cause... it was why Aileen had remained loyal after all this time. After enduring this shithole of a city, with all its ignorant, disgusting beasts who called themselves humans, pretending to be better than they were and hiding behind a mask of civility, Callous' honesty was refreshing, as was his respect for Aileen's craft. Praise from him was something she yearned more than anything...

Breaking from her brief daze, Aileen regained lucidity and answered Callous. "Yeah. I've got a hunch there's a good lead on Bloodless. Doctor Helper was discussing rather suspiciously about a "Kala" with a young boy named Vinnie. He's on his way to their home now with a woman named Lind. I've got one of my thoughtforms watching them right now. Also, get this... GenTech? they're hiding something big... some girl walked in talking about a blood sample from her boyfriend, saying he'd been turned into some sort of monster... might be worthwhile for you to throw some money at. Didn't catch the girl's name, but I suspect she'll be at the clinic for a long while. We should keep an eye on Doctor Helper's activities for the foreseeable future."

[Breakdown]

Marina listened intently as Alice explained the various situations the children at the daycare were in. She expected the usual, like the parents needing someone to take care of their child while they worked, however the ones where the parents died or were unable to care for them struck a particular chord with her. Her biological parents had given her up, not out of malicious intent or because they didn't want her, but for her own safety. She'd long since re-united with them after her changes began to intensify, and they explained the whole situation to her. Land Striders like her were feared and reviled among Merfolk, being seen as having been "corrupted" by their human blood. It didn't help that most Land Striders also possessed some form of extraordinary abilities, furthering the discrimination they faced. Eventually, this discrimination culminated in a genocide, and many Land Striders who couldn't go into hiding were killed. She learned that her mother had just given birth to her and her brother before they were forced to give them away in order to protect them; so brief was the ordeal that her parents didn't even have time to name them. After being placed on the boat of a human who would "accidentally" find them, the rest was history.

Despite being separated from her real parents, Marina didn't hate or resent them. If anything, she was very curious to uncover her origins and meet them. This was affirmed when they told her the circumstances surrounding her and Martin's birth; they did it purely out of a desire to protect them from the ongoing genocide. They assured her that despite what happened, her parents loved them very much. Not a day went by where they weren't sorely missed, always hoping and praying that they were being given the best life possible on land. They expressed regret that they never got to watch her and her brother grow, but if they had to do it again they would. She often wondered what her life would be like if things were different, if she was raised as a mermaid rather than a human. These "what if" scenarios would come to her while daydreaming in the bath or at night. While it would have certainly been nice, it would also mean she would never have met some of the most amazing people she ever knew: Franklin, Sierra, her father, and so on. She agreed with her parents that given the circumstances, this was the best possible outcome for her and her brother Well, maybe not for Martin. She quickly stopped this line of thinking dead in its tracks and focused on the now as they entered Alice's home.

"Minimalist" or "Spartan" was how she would describe the inside of the Puppeteer's home. Very little in terms of decoration, which was the complete opposite of what she was expecting. She was expecting baroque carpets and furniture, not this rather bleak and empty-looking living space. And puppets. Lots of puppets. As Alice led her to the bathroom, she quickly noticed the massive tub and grinned.

"Hell yes!" she thought to herself. This was exactly what she needed right now. She stood in the doorway as Alice prepared everything, and noticed Alice holding a glance at a framed picture on the sink countertop. She raised a brow, looking at the picture, then at Alice, then back to the picture. With her naturally acute vision, she saw the individuals in the photo in detail, and the mermaid-like woman stood out to her immediately. Was this another one like her? Another Land Strider? She supposed it wouldn't hurt to ask.

"Hey, uh, Alice? Who's the woman in the picture there? If you don't mind me asking" she sheepishly asked while pointing directly at the mermaid-like woman. She hoped she wasn't getting into personal territory, as the photo clearly had some kind of sentimental value to Alice give how long she held the gaze on it for.