Drama Marvel Heroes: A New Breed - ~Summer 2020 Best RPG~

Shelly VanKasser
Phoenix, Arizona, Alhambra

The cheering was getting louder and louder as was the laughter, and with good reason:

Dr. Strange was doing ‘The Robot’ while making funny facial expressions, Spider-Clone 99 was doing some impressive Capoeira moves, while Kit Kat danced like a gymnastic ballerina, all the while whipping her two competitors with her tail. It was quite the spectacle!

The judges were besides themselves cheering and laughing!

“We have a Three-way TIE!!” They announced triumphantly! and everyone seemed to agree by their reactions of absolute cheer! The contestants hugged each other and shook hands with the judges as they were handed their Amex Gift Cards.

“Yay!! We all win!” Black Widow beamed with glee, giving Shelly a quick hug.

“I didn’t get a gift card.” Power Man chimed in, in mocking disappointment.

“Next time show them your moves big guy.” Widow teased.

“Uhhm…I’ll pass.” Power Man added, followed by a dramatic pause which he could not hold, before laughing out loud.

“Thank you all for coming to our Halloween Celebration. Please collect your things and deposit all unwanted materials inside a trash bin. Thank you all and have a safe trip home.”

Came the announcement by way of a judge.

“Say, Shade, there’s a big ‘After Party’ at Tony’s Place and we are all invited. You’re coming with us right?"

Widow made big ‘puppy eyes’ at Shelly and batted her eyelashes in comedic playfulness. Power Man tried to do the same, which probably ended looking more comical than he actually intended.


Tag: @Ktala

---

Blueline, Casey & Zephyr
Midtown, New York City

What should have been a night of costumes, revelry and jubilation, was marred by the actions of a single individual- or two, depending on who you asked. These actions that had a wide range of effect, which spanned the city entire and quite likely beyond. But all was not lost.

Blueline, Aegis and Psion successfully made it past the cordoned area without incident, for it was a simple matter to join the evacuees- or seemingly do so, blend with the crowd and make it to safety. Once out if the area, the three could compare notes and catch their collective breaths.

Casey no longer needed feel afraid. Blueline could reconcile the fact that no one got hurt, and that Casey could only learn ‘control’ with actual experience. Zephyr was indeed part of something…bigger, and was not alone in his quest to make the world a better place.

But more importantly, they could also make good on their promise to Ernesto. There was little doubt that he and his daughter were likely worried about him and were probably expecting him as well.

As chance would have it, there were just enough rental bikes docked near the trio, if they chose to head downtown the same way they had arrived to their present location. Of course, Zephyr was also perfectly capable of hiring an Uber, except that traffic was snarled to a near stand-still in the area.

As they conversed to decide on a course of action, Blue, being savvy and street smart, would catch a respectful nod from a passing stranger, dressed in black jeans , boots and an leather vest. Truth be told, he was probably used to being recognized in this manner for very long time now.

Blue could allow himself to feel satisfied that tonight, he was at the right place at the right time. That indeed, he helped his fellow man in a time of peril and need. For the same reasons, some personal time was not completely out of the question for a dedicated samaritan like him.


Tag: @Ameteth, @galactic-vagabond422

---

SGC, Tenzin & Larry Stone
Midtown, New York

For a brief moment, the time-space distortion associated with a Kamartaj Sling Ring became visible, as a familiar whooshing sound of emergence was heard. SGC and Tenzin both beheld as the ‘Winged Man’ came through the portal and crashed to the hard ground.

Tenzin’s expression of triumph was immediately replaced with one of anxious concern. The ‘Winged Man’ was hurt and bleeding. The Monk shook his head in disbelief.

“What the hell just happened?” Larry stated as he struggled to his feet.

Before anyone could answer, voices from the lower level could be heard.

[“There’s someone up there.”]

[“Let’s go. Cover me.”]

Tenzin looked to SGC then back at the Winged Man. “Sorry about this.” He said apologetically.

Without waiting another second, the Monk employed the Sling Ring once again, clearly inspired by his Pupil’s suggestion. This time the Ring portal was formed right under their feet.

In an instant, all three would suddenly fall ‘through’ the roof, only to find themselves drifting down slowly, after Tenzin cast ‘feather fall’ on the small group. SGC would immediately recognize the foyer of the Mystic Master’s New York Sanctum Sanctorum, after all, it was the very same spot he was in, before beginning the night's adventure.

Landing onto the tiled floor ‘light as a feather’ under someone else’s ‘power’, Larry now found himself inside what appeared to be some kind of Monastery, or at least the front room of one.

“Apologies Pupil, but I had to move us quickly before we were discovered.” The bald monk spoke to the one in the ‘insect costume’, before turning back to Larry.

“You are in need of healing, friend.” The young monk stated simply, then gestured for him to sit on a nearby chair.



Tag: @Mitth_Fisto, @Master Vo'Un'Var

---

Daken
Weehawken, NJ, Mission HQ

The changing room was definitely spacious enough, furnished with a wall covered in floor length mirrors and a walk-in closet.

Daken, Moonstone, Stain and Reaper prepared to depart. Each one of them very dangerous in their own right as individuals, even more so as a group. Needless to say, they were all professionals. They were all changing into the current ’SHIELD’ standard uniform in relative silence.

Of course, relative being the operative words.

Moonstone had been stealing furtive glances at Daken, though she seems to have something in mind.

As everyone was beginning to zip-up and the like, she briefly paused and simply said what was on her mind.

“So, how are you even alive, dear? That…thing vaporized your chest clean. I mean, flesh, bones, lungs, heart, name it.” Moonstone shook her head in disbelief. Clearly this was Daken before them in the flesh, but still…

“Crazy, huh?”

Still waiting for an answer, she clicked her tongue and finished zipping up.



Tag: @darthbernael

---

OOC: Busy week. Hope everyone is doing well

 

IC: SGC/ Darwin
Midtown, New York

Tenzin responded by using his sling ring, the tell-tale distortion visible in the air ahead of him. SGC and Tenzin both beheld as the ‘Winged Man’ came through the portal and crashed to the hard ground. It felt good to see the being come through, to have accepted their invitation of salvation from his immediate attackers.

“What the hell just happened?” 'Winged Man' stated as he struggled to his feet. The bleeding becoming evident, painfully so as a trickle of worry briefly made him wonder if the other was dangerously wounded. He was going to speak up with an answer when he heard something that gave him pause.

Voices, voices from the below could be heard.

[“There’s someone up there.”]

[“Let’s go. Cover me.”]

Tenzin looked to SGC then back at the Winged Man. “Sorry about this.” He said apologetically. SGC merely gestured at the Monk in a hurry up manner. Apologies could wait until after they had finished getting the man out of danger as he stepped closer.

Without waiting another second, the Monk employed the Sling Ring once again. This time the Ring portal was formed right under their feet. Perfect.

In an instant, all three had suddenly fallen down through the portals sparking edges. SGC tensed and bent his knees, preparing for a hard shock that never came as Tenzin employed 'feather fall'. SGC was surprised that Tenzin had chosen to take them all here, the foyer of the Mystic Master’s New York Sanctum Sanctorum. Saving a stranger being shot at believably unfairly by law enforcement was one thing, bringing him into your hidden home and sanctuary was another.

“Apologies Pupil, but I had to move us quickly before we were discovered.” The bald monk spoke to SGC, who merely nodded. He didn't like it, but he could appreciate it was familiar and probably the easiest place to rapidly conjure a path to.

“You are in need of healing, friend.” The young monk stated simply, then gestured for him to sit on a nearby chair.

Stepping forward SGC held out his hand to the man. "If you require assistance I can move you. I am SGC’s 28.57 to the 3rd, SGC or Darwin for short." He offered with a simple nod of his head.

Tag: @greyjedi125 , @Master Vo'Un'Var

 

Shelly VanKasser
Phoenix, Arizona, Alhambra

Shelly's attention was steered back to the judges area, and as laughter sprang up around her, she began to grin at the reason. The three finalist were doing their best to be picked, with dance moves from all of them. It was hilarious, and Shelly also began to laugh.

The judges had joined in as well, and after a few moments, decided that they could not pick a winner, so they decided with a three way tie. The crowd went wild with cheering, as the winners hugged and shook hands with each other.

“Yay!! We all win!” Black Widow beamed with glee, giving Shelly a quick hug. Shelly was surprised by the hug, and didnt know how to respond, but she simply grinned good naturedly.

Ooookay. Power Man tried to strike a post, but broke down in laughter instead. Shelly simply shook her head. But far too soon, the judges called the end of the Halloween celebrations, and bid everyone a good night. Shelly felt a bit sad, and wished it had lasted longer, but she had enjoyed herself, and really had a good time. She started to say good-bye to her new companions, when Black Window turned to her.

“Say, Shade, there’s a big ‘After Party’ at Tony’s Place and we are all invited. You’re coming with us right?"

Widow made big ‘puppy eyes’ at Shelly and batted her eyelashes in comedic playfulness. Power Man tried to do the same, and it took Shelly all she could not to break out into laughter.

Shelly became serious again. Shelly frowned slightly. "Tony's place?" she echoed questionably. She did not know where the girl meant. Besides, she had promised to go back 'home' to help with the clean-up. And she wasnt sure how comfortable she would be in someone's home she didnt know.

"Well..." Shelly began, looking back towards the house, and then back at Widow. "I dont really know. I had promised to help with cleaning up after the trick or treaters. Besides, I dont know Tony..or where Tony's place is." Shelly shifted her weight, feeling slightly uncomfortable.


TAG: @greyjedi125

 

IC: Zephyr Vaillancourt

Midtown, NYC


The evening air was chill and crisp and invigorating, dusk had claimed the firmament painting the city in hues of saturnine beauty.

Zephyr walked alongside his friends, mostly in silence as he sorted out his thoughts; his heart filled with a deep gratitude that they all made it out safely and no worse for wear.
All things considered, even Blue’s admonition was par for the course; there was no doubt that the objection was due to caring and caution, but Casey needed the experience and a rescue operation seemed like the best time for it.
It was clear that a general guideline was needed, but that conversation would have to wait for a new day.

Looking around, Zephyr realized that they had walked a good distance; they were far away enough that people seemed completely oblivious to the near chaos of the ruined parade.

He slowed down as they came to a nearby bank of Citibikes, after a pensive second or two he turned to his teammates.

“So that turned out well…” he said casually as a preamble.

“…very intense and all, but I’m kinda glad that we can squeeze in an honest to goodness social occasion.”

Waving one hand over the bikes as a presenter might, he continued.

“We could ride these to Ernesto’s, and pedal away any lingering anxieties, or I could call us a ride if you guys just want to relax on the way, up to you…unless there is a third alternative?”

Zephyr realized that not going was also an option, perhaps an unlikely one but an option nonetheless. One had to be either very seasoned or have that crazy Tony Stark gene were partying right after saving the world was normal as brushing one’s teeth.

“I’ll make sure that we don’t smell like smoke, if you’re worried about that, hehe!”

As he waited for a consensus as to where to go next, the young metahuman’s eyebrow raised slightly under his Cloak costume.
It looked as if a passing stranger had just nodded at Blueline, perhaps in salute and recognition? The motion was brief but distinct enough.

Zephyr smiled as he wondered if their ‘fearless leader’ was growing in reputation with the local ‘groups’ in the city, Blue did keep himself very busy come to think of it and any good rep couldn’t hurt.
With his gaze safely concealed by his costume, Zephyr studied what he could about the passing stranger, there was still so much to learn about superheroing and knowing how to spot a potential ally or enemy seemed like necessary basics.

An inaudible sigh escaped him as he wondered if the night was still young.


TAG: @greyjedi125 , @galactic-vagabond422

 

Blueline & Casey
Midtown

Blue kept a watchful eye out as the trio moved away from the scene. The smoke still bellowed up into the sky, the orange glow still somewhat visible but he was sure the firefighters had it under control, also that he had done something to keep the casualties to a minimum. He felt good, had a feeling of accomplishment, that he had done something good. Though his gaze fell on Casey, she looked back at him with a smile, a nervous one, but a smile nonetheless. He did his best to return it, but underneath there was still that queasy unease he felt. No one got hurt, this time, but the building took some serious damage, it could have come tumbling down around them. It wasn't Casey's fault it was her power. The blame fell on Zephyr though Blue had already made his feelings known.

Casey could feel the fear leaving her, the last bits of terror she used to save her friend. No matter what Blue says she knows in her heart that Blue didn't have another way out. If she didn't act he could and would have died. She had to turn into her monster she had no choice. Looking to their friend Zephyr, he'd let her come, he understood. Or at least she hoped he did. Blue was in danger she had to do something.

As they pushed deeper into the crowd they came to a stop at the bikes. Looking at them and then looking at the traffic around them. It seemed an easy choice.

"We should take the bikes," Blue said, "We've left Ernesto waiting for long enough. Traffic looks snarled up here."

"I'm...I'm good." Even though Casey felt a little light headed from the ride up, and using her powers left her drained. "I don't want to keep our friends waiting."

Looking over his shoulder, feeling a gaze falling on him, he caught sight of the man in jeans and leather vest, a reminder of a uniform he'd seen before. He recalled a protest during the SRA mess, one where men and women dressed in dark leather protecting those that stood against registration. With a nod Blue understood, his actions were noticed. He didn't do it for the recognition, but it helped, let him know that he wasn't making things worse at least.

He looked back towards the city, towards the trio's home, towards Ernesto's.

"It'll be a good way to end the day…" He said to no one in particular.

"Yeah really good." Casey agreed

TAG: @Ameteth @greyjedi125

 

IC: Bryan Dale (npc), Liz Merrick, Veolia Apartments, New York

"Are we able to give orders to the Pentagon?" Bryan mused from the sofa, gazing across at Liz, who had turned her stool from their table, so that she could see him.

"We could check with Redstone. What's the order?"

"Knock off sending your marines to train at 29 Palms; there is something weird there, flipping your APCs and hurting your people." He had listened to a ghost story told from the perspective of a serving marine, and then the narrator had suggested that if listeners checked online, there were news reports corroborating major parts of the story.

Dale had tapped this '29 Palms' into a search engine, and yes, personnel had been in spookily similar personnel carrier accidents across multiple years. In his view, there was something up.

Liz nodded her understanding. "Oh, so policy-related rather than operational. We're the equivalent of their 'People Who Talk To Goats' program, so I cannot imagine some four star marine general is going to take a blind bit of notice of us. Besides, what do you mean, something weird?"

"APCs are blasted heavy things. You shouldn't be able to roll the things."

She made a face. "The thing is, the command level is such big picture, I doubt these incidents even land on his desk." She gave the matter further thought. "What is '29 Palms', anyway? Sounds like a big horse."

Bryan peered at her.

Merrick explained that the height of a horse was measured in 'hands'.

Bryan looked at her.

"Hands? Palms?"

"Oh, it was a joke." Her boyfriend bobbed his head as the penny dropped.

"That would have killed in equestrian circles." She silently conceded that horse-related humour was probably going to get more traction among girls than guys.

Tag: @greyjedi125

 

Larry Stone
Midtown, New York

Larry fell into the nearby chair that the monk had offered him. He stared at the two in silence. He thought about what had just happened. Green Goblin shows up, Larry apprehended him, then he wasn't Green Goblin, the police shoot at Larry, and now he's teleported into some hideout? He looked down at his wounds, and looked back up.

"Don't have anything to dull the pain, do you?"

@greyjedi125 @Mitth_Fisto

 

Not Green Goblin
En Route to New York General

The sirens blared and the lights flashed with all their strength and intensity, as the emergency vehicle raced through the streets, chasing both time and distance, in order to save a life, even while the paramedics inside did all they could to save a life they felt they were losing.

“Stabilize the bleeding, why is he still bleeding like that?”

“Too many critical shots. He has multiple entry wounds to his abdomen and at least two to the head.”

“Here. Look at the exit wound, what kind of bullet would do that?”

“Keep applying pressure and stim him again.”

“We’re losing him, he’s going into cardiac arrest.”

“Why are we slowing down, tell the driver we need to get to the hospital now!”

“Get me the defibrillator. We can run his print after we save him.”

“Seen that type of wound before. Someone fired an illegal round.”

“Not now. Is it charged?”

“We have a flatline.”

“Good, we’re moving again.”

“HIT him!”

*BZZZZZZZZZZZZT!!!*

“Nothing.”

“Again.”

*BZZZZZZZZZZZTTT!!!*

“AGAIN.”

---

Shelly VanKasser
Phoenix, Arizona, Alhambra

Black Widow smiled softly at Shelly, completely understanding her hesitation. They had all just met, and even though they were having a good time, they were still basically strangers. Deftly, Widow reached somewhere in her ‘costume’ and pulled out her cell phone.

“I can vouch for Tony, he can be a bit arrogant, but he’s a good guy. Here, I’ll google map his house.”

Widow moved next to Shelly so she could see better.

“This is where we are, this is where he lives. It’s walking distance from here…and..I guess you’re staying somewhere in that direction?” Widow guesstimated, as she looked back at where Shelly had glanced.

“Hey, I totally get it. We just met, and I think it’s great. Here….” Widow proceed to hand Shelly her phone. “You can type-in your contact info and we can stay in touch. Whatever you decide is fine, really.”

“I’m Marla by the way…” Widow added, smiling at Shelly as she held out her phone.

Power Man was a bit distracted, looking at the rest of the crowd as they gathered around before making their way to the After Party.


Tag: @Ktala

---

Blueline, Casey & Zephyr
Ernesto’s Bodega

The trio had taken the citibikes as suggested and made their way back downtown. The traffic quickly became a lot more bearable, almost as soon as they left Midtown. An evening breeze washed over them as they rode, soothing them and bringing on a sense of peace and continuity.

It did not take them long to reach Ernesto’s, who just happened to have a bike station a bit over a block away.

As expected, the lights were still on and Halloween decorations adorned the windows and the Bodega entrance. Cut-outs of Pumpkins, skeletons, black cats, ghosts and witches abounded-a-plenty. Ernesto was not one to waste actual produce, he much preferred cut-out images over the actual ‘sellable’ items.

“They’re here!!”

A girl’s voice announced excitedly before swinging the doors open, bells jingling as she did so.

“You made it!!”

It was Lourdes, running out to greet them. She smile broadly at seeing them all, but especially Blue, relief and joy plain on her face. Her ‘Belle’ costumed flowed as she moved closer, looking like a ‘latina’ Emma Watson, since she did resemble the actress.

“Trick or Treat!!” She announced, holding out a small pumpkin bucket filled with candy.

Behind her, the door to the Bodega remained opened. Ernesto, who was dressed as Pinocchio’s father, ‘Geppetto’, waved them over.

“Ey, Azulito. Come in.” He called out greeting Blue. The shop owner was visibly really happy to see him as well. Not two steps behind the man, was a dark haired young man dressed as ‘Gaston’. He eyed Blue and his friends carefully as he observed the scene unfold.

Inside, there would be fresh ‘theme’ food of all kinds on the table.The room would be well lit, the space comfortably furnished and popular music would be playing. The jumbo screen would be turned-off however. Several guests would still be in attendance, many whom Blue would at least find familiar, as they were either shop workers or a few friendly locals.

Food and refreshments would be offered, as befitting of a host to his guests.


Tag: @Ameteth, @galactic-vagabond422

---

SGC, Tenzin, Larry Stone
Mystic Masters Sanctum

Tenzin watched the winged stranger as he sat himself then speak.

"Don't have anything to dull the pain, do you?"

He imagined the winged man to be in some kind of shock, as it appeared that he’d not heard his Pupil politely introducing himself.

Obligingly, the monk moved closer and keenly observed where the man had been wounded as he knelt next to him.

The world was filled with so much violence, and for what purpose?

“I am Tenzin, and this is my pupil, SGC.” He said, gesturing to ‘Darwin’.

“I can dull the pain, but you may still need medical attention. We employ ‘traditional’ methods here.” Tenzin informed, before closing his eyes for a moment. The Monk spoke mystic words as he made signs with his hands, which caused them glow green for several heartbeats before fading.

“You will need to rest.” he continued, opening his eyes. Tenzin gracefully moved his cupped hands over Larry’s wounds, to which the Winged Man would feel pain suddenly retreat from his being and vanish.

“We can offer you food and a room for the night, should you wish to stay.”

After a beat, Tenzin looked over his shoulder to gaze at his silent Pupil, wondering what his thoughts were on the matter, since they involved him as well.


Tag: @Mitth_Fisto, @Master Vo'Un'Var

---

Daken
Weehawken, New Jersey


The Five had boarded the SHIELD SUV, which was auto-piloted to the front of the brownstone. It was a comfortable six-passenger vehicle, now accommodating five. Taskmaster was the driver, while Moonstone sat next to him on the passenger side. Behind the driver sat Daken and behind Moonstone, sat Stain. Reaper had the backseat all to himself, though he did not seat directly behind Wolverine’s son.

The ride to Skye Lumber Company was one made in relative silence, as everyone was on ‘mission mode’. While they drove, they were making good time, which prompted Taskmaster speak.

“We haven’t hit a single red light. That you Stain?”

“Guilty, sir.” The young hacker stated with a grin. “I’m just warming up for the main event.”

“Good going.” Not-Rogers conceded with a nod.

“Which reminds me…” Moonstone put in as she turned around in her seat in order to face her fellow ‘agents’.

“Our contact is Chester Cartwright. He is a SHIELD technician who will be providing us with our named ID tags and passage inside the complex. He is twice divorced with no children. His Father served in World War II and allegedly fought alongside Captain America, so expect to hear a lot about that. He is a lonely and well meaning soul, one that will help our Captain in his secret mission. So play nice once you meet him, ya hear?”

Moonstone didn’t try to hide the conspiratorial glint shining in her eyes, or the slick smile gracing her lips.


Tag: @darthbernael

---

OOC: TBC; Must go attend to RL business... meh.

 

The Control Room
Midnight Session, Washington D.C.

“So, what do we have here?”

“His name is Benjamin Bronson. 21 years of age. Hails from a conservative family in Charlotte, North Carolina. Got himself a scholarship with the Baxter Foundation in New York, but was picked up by Oscorp. Looks like he admired engineering villains, like Dr. Octavius and Norman. Preliminary exams haven’t revealed a meta-gene, but the process is ongoing. He seems to have been at the wrong place, at the wrong time. He was shot five times, sir. Four of the shots were critical.”

“Has your team recovered his wrecked glider?”

“Yes, sir. There were no signs of any explosive devices. His make-shift ‘grenades’ were simply non-lethal smoke. There is no conclusive evidence that he was in anyway a terrorist or a supervillain, or had any relations or contact to any such groups. He was simply dressed as one, sir.”

“During a Halloween Parade no less.”

“What of the bullet wound?”

“We are investigating all the officers at the scene and all the firearms involved. There’s also a possibility that the shooter could have been simply someone ‘dressed’ as an officer. A ‘hater’, sir.”

“You mean a ’supremacist’.”

“Yes, sir.”

“The Media is already all over this. The story is likely to break first thing in the morning.”

“Should we suppress news of the bullet wound, sir?”

“No. This can work in our favor. The Sentinel program can also be perceived to protect Metahumans from extremist groups. We’ll allow it.”

“Yes, sir.”

“One more thing. Make sure the President is updated first, then contact the subject’s family. We want to be the ones to tell them, before the Press turns this into a Media Circus.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Dismissed.”



TBC: No Tags. ( @HanSolo29 *mentioned )

 

Shelly VanKasser
Phoenix, Arizona, Alhambra


Shelly watched as the girl dressed as Black Widow pulled a cell phone from somewhere within her costume.

“I can vouch for Tony, he can be a bit arrogant, but he’s a good guy. Here, I’ll google map his house.” The girl moved next to Shelly so she could see better. “This is where we are, this is where he lives. It’s walking distance from here…and..I guess you’re staying somewhere in that direction?” Widow guesstimated, as she looked back at where Shelly had glanced. Shelly looked down at the google map and then grinned. That didnt look too far. And she mulled it over, Black Widow spoke up again.

“Hey, I totally get it. We just met, and I think it’s great. Here….” Widow proceed to hand Shelly her phone. “You can type-in your contact info and we can stay in touch. Whatever you decide is fine, really.”“I’m Marla by the way…” Widow added, smiling at Shelly as she held out her phone. Shelly took the phone with a relieved grin. It really did sound like the party would be fun. But she didnt just want to go off to someplace she didnt know, without anyone else knowing. Besides, if it was close by, good chance Mrs. Wesley might know something about them. Shelly entered in her contact info to a new phone she had picked up, after dumping her old stuff.

She then called her phone, so she could add Marla's number to her phone and sent the googled address to her phone as well. Handing the girl back her phone, Shelly smiled. "My name's Shelly." She grinned. "And thanks. I'll let my friend know, and if things are clear, I'll meet you guys up there. Shouldn't take me too long."

Shelly waved at Marla, and looked to see that Power Man was watching the crowd. With a shrug, she turned and took off walking quickly, back towards Mrs. Wesley's house. But for some reason, she didnt take the direct route back. She took a longer route and kept looking around her. She was happy to meet new people, and be invited to a party. But, it felt a bit strange as well. Maybe it was that weird guy she met earlier. Or maybe it was just because she always felt a bit strange when in large groups. She wasnt sure. Maybe just because she had been living on her own, and it made her jumpy. Like someone or something was off. Shelly sighed softly as she walked. Maybe Mrs. Wesley would know more about them, and she could relax, and then simply enjoy the party. But first things first. She promised to help with any clean-up. And that she would do. That made Shelly feel better as she made her way 'home'.



TAG: @greyjedi125

 

Blueline & Casey
Ernesto's

It was a somewhat calming ride from midtown to Ernesto's. It gave the heroes time to sort out things before getting to the party. Gave Blue time to calm down, to put Casey's actions behind him and Zephyr's recklessness. Casey wore out her body more, but this also distracted her. It kept her from thinking too long about what she did, letting her fear overtake her. She had to do it, or at least that was what she told herself at the time. If she thought about it too much it would quickly overwhelm her send her into a thought spiral that would keep her distracted and she wouldn't want that, not at Ernesto's.

They arrive Blue more or less recovered, and Casey more worn out but smiling at the warm glow of the lights from inside the bodega that was becoming the center of their lives. Lordes burst out first, Casey was a little stunned, or star stuck might have been a better word for it. The young woman looked almost exactly like Belle. The dress was gorgeous on her.

Lordes smiled looking to all of them. Casey couldn't miss how the smile deepened as she looked to Blue, her knight in a ratty Blue hoodie...though thanks to Zephyr it looked brand new. It would almost look like Blue got dressed up for this...well as dressed up as he could be, wearing a fresh hoodie.

As Ernesto joined his daughter the theme was apparent, Disney characters. Blue smiled under his bandana looking just a little sheepishly at Lourdes. Even he could tell she was beautiful, that she wore the dress well. He had to remind himself to not get too close...it never ended well. He smiled again.

"You look good," He started clearly looking at the Daughter, he didn't take any candy from the bucket as it was offered. "You all look good." He continued looking to everyone else.

"Yeah really good." Casey added taking a single piece of candy.

The pair of heroes follow the owner's direction entering the store taking in the atmosphere it was calm friendly, warm. Just what they needed. Blue took up a place somewhere in the corner, not food in his hands, still watching looking for trouble. It was a bad habit of his. Focusing on Gaston he narrowed his eyes he didn't recognize the man off the bat, though he was in costume so it could be that the clothes were distracting him.

Casey stood near the food table grabbing some snacks taking a few extra for Blue since it seemed he was still being weird about taking gifts offered by friends. While the young woman felt a little out of place, wrapped in bandages while everyone else looked like they stepped out of Disneyland. It was still comforting to be surrounded by friends, or as near as she could find in this place. Under the wrappings she smiled broadly letting it go all the way up to her eyes.

Her worried, fearful heart could calm, could let go, there was no threat here. Moving next to Blue she put a few snacks into the pocket of his hoodie.

"You know Ernesto would do the same." She told him as he turned to protest. "Blue this is a party, enjoy it."

"Says the woman hiding in the corner."

"They seem like nice people..." She looked almost mournfully at Lourdes and Ernesto as they seemed to be the life of the party. "I don't want to ruin that."

"Then why did you come?"

"Because what else was I supposed to do, rattle around the Sanctum, get left behind...again?"

"Look I had to be here, Ernesto invited me."

"He invited us too…"

"Yeah but not in person…" They continued to chatter between each other, though every now and again they would both look up checking the crowd...keeping an eye on 'Gaston' both of them not exactly trusting him.

A party and they were hold up in a corner just watching everyone have fun...real party people these two.

TAG: @greyjedi125 @Ameteth

 

IC: Zephyr Vaillancourt

Ernesto’s Bodega


The ride downtown had been relatively quick and mostly silent, with the exception of a few warning shouts and passing apologies to pedestrians.

Zephyr couldn’t help but to replay the events of their most recent outing, he considered various angles, going over what could have been done different or better.


The one thing that struck him as most important was the need to ‘officially’ become a team and they needed to agree on some basic guidelines and speak a binding pact or oath that would forge a sort of unbreakable union. This line of work was perilous and often life threatening, it was also voluntary, and they all needed to know that each member was equally and irrevocably committed, no matter what challenges they would face.

Even with all that in mind, he was very glad that they decided to attend Ernesto’s Halloween party - Don Ernesto would be the respectful address - the mission had been quite intense and they really needed to unwind.


As luck would have it the bike station was only a block away, and he could feel the festive mood growing with the anticipation of a good time, unfortunately his smile and happy face were completely obscured by his Cloak costume.

On the walk over he made sure that all three were nice and presentable, no physical hint of their earlier adventure could be found or detected.

The greeting at the entrance felt right out of a Disney movie, if one would allow the flight of fancy; there was ‘Belle’, radiant as smiling -

“Trick or Treat!!” she announced as she held out a bucket of goodies, pretty as ever, welcoming them and ushering them affably towards the enchanted place.

“Thank you Belle”, he replied almost chuckling as he grabbed one of the chocolaty treats.

And there was ‘Geppetto’, the one who made it all possible with the labor of love, and of course there needs be a villain in every story, and it looked like this ‘Gaston’ was doing a good job at staying in character by the looks of his steady gaze.

Upon entry, Zephyr delighted in the sights and sounds of the place, the aroma of foods and drinks and the colors of the decorations and costumes, the very warmth of the venue, it was all a wonderful contrast to the ruination left behind.

From behind his mask and cowl, he looked at Casey and Blue, feeling a sense of satisfaction that they may have helped in some way to prevent things from becoming worse, for someone, anyone, and somehow being in this room of friendly strangers emphasized that point.

Looking around the room, Zephyr tried to see how many costumes he could recognize as he tried to decide which dish to try first, but that would happen after introductions and greetings.

As he listened to the conversation, he noticed that the jumbo screen was turned off, which he thought was probably for the best, the trio had earned a moment of peace, or rather revelry as the party would have it.

There was something about social occasions that Zephyr really enjoyed, it was the fact that people decided to come together to enjoy each other’s company, it was a gathering by choice, not compulsion, or duty, it wasn’t a job and it wasn’t a lab experiment, even though it sometimes felt that way.
Perhaps it was his isolated upbringing that made him so appreciative and accepting of others.
The other thing he always enjoyed was the food; he didn’t fancy himself a gourmet, but he definitely wasn’t a gourmand, but tonight it was probably okay to have a little bit of everything…maybe.

Seeing Blue and Casey in conversation brought a surprising sense of relief, something he didn’t try to over-think, if anything was a green light to ‘relax and enjoy’ that was definitely it.
Thus, armed with a healthy appetite, a decent level of Español and a festive disposition, the Cloak figured moved and seemed to glide towards the Punch Bowl (were those ‘eyes’ in there?), fully intent on having a thrilling close to a most eventful evening.



TAG: @greyjedi125 , @galactic-vagabond422

 

Larry Stone
Mystic Masters Sanctum

"Tenzin and SGC... Thank you... but why are you helping me?" He would say, looking down to his wounds as the pain began to retreat his body. He felt tired, but at least the pain had vanished.

"Rest sounds good..." He would murmur, looking around the sanctum. With a person who knew how to grow wings and fly, and living in such a world like this, one wouldn't expect Larry to be too shocked at what had just happened, and yet he was.

"I need to get my bike." he would finally say, looking back to the two.

@Mitth_Fisto @greyjedi125

 

IC: Mary Formal, Nicole "Nikki" Gravely (npc), Amy Gazanian / Nanny (npc), the Gravely Residence
Location: Portland, Oregon

Mary peeled Nikki's bodywarmer off her raised arms and hung it up, then instructed her to kick off her trainers and leave them in the hallway by the front door.

That wasn't standard procedure, but they had been trekking up and down people's driveways in the typical Pacific Northwest environs, so there was a lot to be trekked across their carpets despite Nikki's enthusiastic wiping of feet on the bristly welcome mat.

Formal sat on the pouffe beside the phone stand, and un-zipped her boots whilst Amy, toting a blue stuffed-looking backpack, and a silver thermos flask, trailed Nikki into the kitchen, and listened carefully to try to hear any conversation, overheard her child informing Mrs Gazanian that she had been instructed to call her 'nanny'.

That had changed by time the E-Branch operative had joined them, to find both ladies perched on stools on either side of the black-topped island block in the centre of the room, with Nikki seated at the far end, to the right; and Amy to the left.

Between them, the candy basket, and thermos, were on the island.

Mary found herself smiling at their chocolate-rimmed mouths and distended cheeks, giving them the appearance of gerbils or hamsters.

Amy blushed and covered her mouth with a hand, prompting the Arcan to tell her not to worry.

She fished out her SHIELD smartphone, logged in, and fired up the internet, bringing up Youtube.

Feeling like she was being watched, Mary glanced up to see her child reaching towards her basket, whilst observing her warily. "What's up?"

"Please can I have another?"

"It's your candy, Sweetheart. However, it's way past your bedtime, so just one more and that's your lot for tonight; you won't be able to sleep otherwise." She had no data to support that hypothesis; it just sounded like the sort of advice a concerned parent should tell their little one. She looked at her, speculatively. "Sweetie, say, 'nana'."

"Nana?"

A combination of the word, said in Nikki's soft voice, generated an intense wave of pleasure. Formal gripped the edge of the island, shut her eyes and emited a low, involuntary moan. "Nnnnnn."

"Are you alright?"

She opened her eyes. "Whoa. Alright, forget what I said about calling Amy 'nanny'; now you are calling her, 'nana'."

Nikki made an odd expression. "You realise that Nanny and Nana-"

"Nnnnn."

"-are not the same thing at all, right?" Nikki pulled another Musketeer bar from her basket, and exchanged a concerned look with Amy. "'Nanny' is the term for a person you employ to look after children, or the type of goat that you get milk from."

"Female." Amy clarified, licking the chocolate around her lips, and zipping open her backpack to pull out a compact.

"That's a type." Nikki defended, continuing after a pause. "Whereas 'nana'-"

"Nnnnn."

"-is another term for 'grandmother', not the same thing at all."

"Regardless, that is what you are calling Amy till I say otherwise."

"You're my mother, you shouldn't be having an org-" The redhead hurriedly abandoned the word that she had started, that all too recently, had led to having her mouth washed out with soap. Orally, it was nasty stuff. "...uh, When Harry Met Sally moments over things that I say."

Mary beamed and preened inside at this unforced admission from her child. On some level, she probably figured that it was the Stockholm Syndrome talking, but it was still beautiful to hear.
She would have arranged a basket of sweets much earlier if she knew it would have been that effective.

She gestured to the still wrapped bar in Nikki's hand. "Take your time with that. I have to research how to get your face paint off."

"You don't know?!"

Mummy hasn't got a drokking clue, Sweetheart, Mary thought, relying on a shake of her head to convey the admission.

She took up her phone, and for want of a better query, typed, 'how to wash paint off a child's face'.

There was some scrolling, as like the first thirteen responses were essentially tips and walk-throughs on how to get paint on to a child's face, which was precisely the opposite of what she was after.

Luckily, after those, the search algorithm must have facepalmed, and started giving her what she wanted. She opted for the shorter of the three and five minute videos.

"Do you have any microfibre cloths around here?" Amy piped up.

Formal pointed off to the side, indicating the drawers under the draining board.
"Middle one. Why?"

"You remember me saying Everett used to be a painter?"

Both nodded. Neither of them could see Lieutenant Backstrom as a painter, but there you go.

"He used to work weekend street fares, so has painted his share of childrens' faces, and I got used to advising moms and dads what to do later, if they didn't want to be packing Batgirl off to school on the Monday.
If you have soap foam and olive oil as well, I can clean her face for you, if you want."

"That would be great! Wouldn't that be great, Honey?"

Nikki just nodded, having already unwrapped and inhaled her second chocolate bar.

****
Nikki's bedroom

Mary held Nikki's chin and gave her face a quick once-over, whilst the sound of water thundering into the bath was audible from down the hall, and there was some sort of related sound from the plumbing, in the background.

"Nana does good work. You are back to being my little girl again." Formal leaned down and kissed Nikki on the forehead, then straightened and brought Nikki's arms up so that she could peel the 'bloodstained' (food colouring really) cheerleader top up her arms, and over her head.

"Okay, I have-"

Nikki spun around and grabbed her bath towel of the bottom bunk, and held it around her chest, glaring past Mary at the now open doorway, where Amy was entering. "Jeez, don't you knock?!"

"-run her bath; anything else you would like me to do."

"Well if you go grab an apron, you can help me with Bath Time."

"Whoa-whoa-wa-whoa!" Nikki jabbed a finger at Amy. "She can't see me in the bath!"
This level of overt self-consciousness, verged on what Formal liked to refer to as precociousness, for which she had an extremely low tolerance, outside of massive concessions relating to her job in Special Crimes, but Gravely had to draw a line in the sand.

Mary frowned down at her, clearly confused. "But Honey, she'll be doing that tomorrow night anyway. You don't stop having supervised bath time, just because Mummy is out of town."

"Little girls can drown in six inches of water," Amy chimed in, condescendingly, coming up to Formal's shoulder, and smiling wolfishly down at Nicole. "So you will definitely be having supervised bath time, trust me."

Nikki stared up at Amy, realising that the woman was being serious. They had arranged the exact opposite to happen, even to the extent of planning to go out clubbing.

But she could tell, this had fallen apart once she had slapped Amy's phone out of her hand, for trying to take pictures of her princess castle bunk bed. "Anybody with lungs can drown in six inches of water. Their age doesn't matter." Her back was exposed and getting cold as she hadn't managed to wrap the towel around her, and was actively checking the angle that she presented to the Civilian Oversight head; an ironic job title considering her proximity and height right now. Nicole switched her attention to Formal, imploring. "Mom, if I go with you to New York, then Amy-

"Nana."

"Nana."

"Nnnnn." Mary recovered after a pause, and gazed down at her daughter.

Gravely shuddered, the towel that she clamped tightly to her chest, flapping at her sides. "Uh, that's so creepy."

"What is?"

"Nothing. If I come with you to New York, then she has no reason to see me naked, and doesn't have to help with bath time, right?"

Eventually, a penny of sorts seemed to drop, and Mary interposed herself between the two, and pulled Nikki in so she could take up the sides of the towel, and tie the corners behind her. That done, she stepped back and bent down to face her like she had done on the sofa, earlier in the day. "Are you sure you want to come with Mummy to New York?"

"Well, I don't want to, but it is looking like my best option. I work with her, Mom. She can't see me in the bath. Please?"

"Alright, fine. Away From Home protocols." Which was code for 'prepare a Go Bag, and place Jennifer by the door'.

"Thanks, Mom." Nicole nodded with genuine relief.

"After you've been tucked in, I need to pop out for an hour or two; do you think you can be a brave little girl for Mummy and cope with Nana staying to look after you?"

"Yeah, I'm fine with that."

Mary was relieved. There were four clean-up crews that hadn't been required tonight, that needed paying off with gold sovereigns. It wasn't just the combat that the John Wick' films had gotten right.
"That's great. Good girl."

Mary thanked Amy for cleaning off the face paint and running the bath; then took Nikki to the bathroom, discussing with her what movie or television media she wanted adding to the rather sparse Clifford the Big Red Dog lore, to spice up Story Time.

"Can't we continue with Clifford, King of the Monsters, Mom? I'm intrigued to hear how Clifford doesn't get owned by Mothra."


Tag: no-one

 

The Day after Halloween:

---

Good Morning everyone, this is Amber Huges for Metropolitan Morning News. Today’s Breaking News follows last night’s incident at the Halloween Parade in Midtown, where what appears to be an attack by the infamous villain Green Goblin on unsuspecting costumed revelers, may turn out to be a bizarre series of events.

Benjamin Bronson, a 21 year old engineering maverick who worked for Oscorp, joined the Halloween celebration costumed in a very realistic and near indistinguishable likeness of the Green Goblin. It is not clear why he used smoke bombs on the crowd, but with the city on alert, his actions posed a security risk and local law enforcement responded in kind.

As you can see in the footage behind me, an unidentified Winged mutant becomes suddenly involved in an altercation with young Bronson. Was this an enemy of the Green Goblin, an enemy of Bronson, or something else? Those questions still remain unanswered. Here we see the Winged mutant emerging with the unconscious engineer before the police. Reports of what exactly occurred at the scene are unclear as the investigation is ongoing, but what we do know is, that shots were fired by the police, who believed that Bronson was in fact, the Green Goblin and acted in a threatening manner.

The Winged mutant escaped and remains at large, while Bronson was pronounced D.O.A at New York General Hospital.

We will have more news as we continue to receive reports on this developing story.

---

President Thomas J. Gilchrist
The White House, Washington D.C.

The evening had gone as planned, a quiet Halloween Party at home with the family. Every effort had been made for this to happen, and so, it did. The following day was a new day, filled with its own challenges- all in a day’s work.

Today’s morning report was filled with updates on the controversial proposal regarding a new, government operated, Sentinel Program, which tacked-on what ostensibly would be a Federally run Superhuman Registration Act. A task that would fall on the lap of the DHS Secretary, the notoriously ’humorless’ Mr. Chadwick Burns. Most States, or rather their respective Senators, were against taking-on the added responsibility, after seeing the backlash suffered by S.H.I.E.L.D. who were still digging themselves out of a proverbial hole.

The update on the events surrounding the previous night’s tragic Halloween Parade in New York were also on the report. It was noted that the entire Bronson family had voted for the President, who still enjoyed a favorable standing in the most recent polls.

Not necessarily last or least on the report, was a query from the State Department, regarding whether the United States should or should not send ‘aid’ to belegured Latveria, who had been at one point, placed on the ‘enemy’ list.

This was going to be a long morning, and perhaps and even longer day.

Tag: @HanSolo29

---

Interim S.H.I.E.L.D Director Daisy Johnson, Deputy Director Cameron Giles
Triskelion, Under reconstruction, Director’s Office

From within her office, Daisy looked out the 15th floor window, down at the construction site, her mind filled with many thoughts and her hands clasped behind her back. Past events fiercely defined their present, specifically the Second Latverian Cataclysm. Enemy agents had been well positioned by Doom, in a well thought out and coordinated attack that nearly succeeded in wiping them out. Thankfully, the good guys persevered, just bearly and at a great cost. However, everything they did now, in the present, would help define their future. She was the youngest agent ever to have risen to the rank of Director and Nick had groomed her well, but this task - it was her greatest challenge yet.

To rebuild S.H.I.E.L.D.

“Thanks Nick.”

Daisy said, a wan smile coming to her face. She was fully aware that she needed to do things differently-better than Maria and better than Nick, if they were going to get through their current crisis. To that end, she was glad to have the aid of the current Deputy Director, Cameron Giles. A man who was not only an exemplary agent, but also someone who made it up through the ranks, like her, a fellow metahuman who wished the best for ALL beings, both great and small.

The morning meeting was soon to start and much was on the agenda. Reports were needed from all over the field, but first things first. She would speak with Cameron, who would be arriving at any moment, and their Washington D.C. liason, Agent Edith Du Bois was scheduled to joined them via hologram-link.

With that in mind, Daisy turned to face her desk and moved towards it. She sat down upon the leather chair and began to make preparations.


Tag: @Darth_Elu

---

Dr. Redstone, Agent Liz Merrick
East 72nd Street Apartment, NYC

It was a fine morning, all things considered, except for the breaking news. Shootings were by default tragic events, given their inherent violent natures, but this case seemed especially so, due to the emerging details. Dr. Redstone honored the fallen young man with a solemn moment of silence, and wished for a world were peace and co-existence were the order of the day; but wishing alone was not going to make society’s problems go away.

Upon finishing his breakfast, the man looked around to see if anything needed to be made presentable in his 5th floor apartment. All his curios wall decorations and statuettes, which were mostly rare or occult pieces from around the world, seemed well in place.

There had been no news from his various contacts regarding ‘supernatural’ activities during Halloween, which was in itself somewhat strange. Perhaps nothing was revealed as of yet, seeing how All Hallows Eve was a ‘prime’ occasion for such activity. He hadn’t heard from Blade either, then again, that came as no surprise, as the ‘Daywalker’ was a notorious lone wolf.

Still, being informed was as good as being forearmed.

To that end, he though it best to check on his E-Branch contemporary who was still in New York, from what he understood. He had a nagging feeling that something might be afoot, but such things revealed themselves in due course.

Without wasting another moment, Dr. Redstone moved to his desk and dialed Liz Merrick.

He listened to the ring tone as he waited for her to pick-up.

Indeed, checking-in felt like the right thing to do.


Tag: @Sith-I-5

---

The Five
Weehawken, New Jersey
Skye Lumber Company

“Hey, guys… take a listen.”

Stain turned on the SUV radio just as the vehicle was making a turn to the general parking lot of the Skye Lumber Company, rather than the official employee area. The news about the Halloween Parade incident was on, which caught the group’s momentary attention. Taskmaster simply nodded at Daken, but said nothing else. He then turned to Moonstone and issued an query after surveying the parking lot and seeing several workers moving about.

“Do you see him?” he asked in a neutral, but serious tone.

“I do” She answered lightly, gesturing to a man standing no more than 20 meters from them. “Let me get out first and make contact. I’ll walk him over to us.” She said, before she opened the passenger door and stepped out of the vehicle in a graceful manner.

“Very well.” Taskmaster added after a beat, then looked to the rear view mirror at Reaper.

“You can get out and stretch your legs big guy, but don’t wander-off. I parked us just outside the angle of their cameras, let’s not give them reason to reposition them. At least not yet.”

Reaper simply nodded and grunted as he opened the door and got out.

“I expected their security cameras to be off-grid, but so is their power supply. This is a self-sustained facility.” Stain announced.

“Can’t say I’m surprised to hear that.” Not-Rogers remarked as he eyed Moonstone engage in conversation with their ‘guide’. He watched the man relax in her presence, which was a good sign.

“We should wait until your assigned ID tag is activated before leaving the vehicle.” The young hacker stated with certainty. “You too Daken.” He added with some emphasis.

Taskmaster simply nodded, still watching the pair.

“Alright, here they come.” He said after several moments had passed. “Time to be Steve Rogers.”

He closed his eyes for a moment and seemed to be getting into character, when suddenly, he opened one eye, to look at Daken.

“You’re a SHIELD agent now, so no funny business.”

Taskmaster closed his eyes once again and wiped the smirk off his face. Stain was having a bit of trouble doing the same- the not smirking that is.


Tag: @darthbernael

---

Shelly VanKasser
Phoenix, Arizona, Alhambra
Halloween Night

Shelly parted ways with her new friends and made her way back home on her own. The sun had set and night had fallen; being new to the area, it was prudent to take care as she traveled. Thankfully, her walk back to Mrs. Wesley’s place was completely uneventful. Only memories of the night’s activities were her companions.

Once she arrived, Shelly would find the door unlocked, as expected, for it was that kind of neighborhood, where everyone knew each other. Once inside, Shelly would find that the place was quiet, but also already cleaned. Only the light in the kitchen was on. Tacked to the refrigerator door was a note:

Dear Shelly,

I went ahead and cleaned-up, so don’t fret about that. I needed to keep busy. Dinner is in the oven, so please enjoy. Thank you for a wonderful day my dear, get some rest and I’ll see you in the morning.

Mrs W

The note was written in Mrs. Wesley’s wonderful script, which reflected her candor and warmth.

Shelly now had the evening to herself, which she could spend in peace and filled with her own company, or perhaps, if she felt adventurous, she could join Marla at Tony’s After Party.

Tag: @Ktala

---

Blue, Casey & Zephyr
Ernesto’s Bodega
Halloween Night

Lourdes watched Blue and his friends as they formed a small group and kept mostly to themselves. They smiled at all the right times, nodded and ate, except for Blue, who she already knew would not, for reasons she did not understand, but accepted. However, Blue had yet to introduced the Mummy Girl and the Cloak Boy to her.

So she hatched a plan.

Ignoring Gaston, who had been trying to talk to her at length, she approached the entertainment center, chose a song and played the corresponding video on the big screen. As soon as the first notes began, those in the room started smiling and rushed to the space designated as the dance floor, some with drinks or food still in hand.

Everyone knew the lyrics to the song and began singing along.

Lourdes made her way to Blue and his friends and pulled them up, not necessarily to the dance floor, but at least up on their feet so they could enjoy the music, but more importantly, so they could hear her when she introduced herself.

“Hi, I’m Lourdes! Glad to meet you and thank you for coming!”

She said smilingly, raising her voice a little, so she could be heard over the music.





Tag: @Ameteth, @galactic-vagabond422

---

Larry, SGC, Tenzin
Mystic Masters Sanctum
Halloween Night

“We are helping you because you were in need of help.” Tenzin answered the question posed by Larry, though he was a bit puzzled as to why Larry would find their assistance strange.

“Come, let me show you the guest room.”

Tenzin glanced back at his silent Pupil, then proceeded to lead the Winged Man to the aforementioned guest room. It was not very far from the entrance hall in fact, though it was small, yet cozy. The small room had a single lamp, white walls, a simple bed, a wooden desk and chair, a closet and no windows.

“There is no lock on the door.” Tenzin informed.

“You should focus your concern on your well-being, your bike is a material possession you can always replace.” The young Monk counseled. “…But I’m sure it will still be where you left it come morning.” He added as a way of reassurance.

“Let us know if there’s anything else you need before we depart. Otherwise, we will see you again in the morning.”

The end to an unusual and unexpected day was upon them. No doubt the light of a new day would bring clarity and better tidings.


Tag: @Mitth_Fisto, @Master Vo'Un'Var

---

The Watcher
Lunar Citadel

He who is called Uatu The Watcher, did watch and witness, both things seen and unseen, perceivable and imperceivable. Among the many, many things Uatu monitored: There; a familiar energy signature, a pulse. It flared from the edge of the Valley of Kings in Egypt, from a place formerly known as Akkaba. Perhaps it was nothing, that is, nothing more, than the first signs of a beginning.

Tag: @Sinrebirth

 

IC: Liz Merrick, Veolia Apartments, NYC

Liz was asleep in bed, nuzzled into Bryan's sculpted bare chest - he had been working on his physique since she had gotten involved in his life, both because he felt she deserved the best version of him, but because knowing her had overnight, gotten him out of being just a limo driver, and into Section 23.
Her, Sec 23, the A-Team, and what that Second Latverian Cataclysm had done to SHIELD, it all contributed.

Her mobile, sounding off from the bedside drawers on her side of the bed, roused her and she rolled off him, and turned to her phone, picking it up, and settling back onto her pillow, holding the phone above her to see that Sebastian R was calling.

Doctor Redstone, she automatically thought, swiping the finger of her free hand across the screen to accept the call, then bringing the phone down to her ear.

"Hey Boss." She greeted, then smiled, as Mary had taught her, as somehow it could be sensed down a phone line, and followed it with a bright, "Good morning!"

Tag: @greyjedi125

 

IC: SGC / Darwin
Mystic Masters Sanctum
Halloween Night

“We are helping you because you were in need of help.” Tenzin answered the question posed by Larry. SGC simply nodded at this.

“Come, let me show you the guest room.” Tenzin glanced back at his silent Pupil, then proceeded to lead the Winged Man to the aforementioned guest room. SGC took up a rear following position, more to be in a good spot to catch the Winged Man whose name they still did not know. It was somewhat troubling, not the walk, the room was not too far, just the notion that he did not seem to know to give a name when given a name. The small room had a single lamp, white walls, a simple bed, a wooden desk and chair, a closet and no windows. Very luxurious in SGC's opinion. Although considering his own life style of living as a lab subject, then a dug out hole in the ground, followed by a tent and then what might be modern medieval elegance, SGC assumed he had a very unique view of what was luxury. Part of why he was living here now.

“There is no lock on the door.” Tenzin informed. Luxury, locks in SGC's experience tended to be used to lock one in. Not nice things in a home.

“You should focus your concern on your well-being, your bike is a material possession you can always replace.” The young Monk counseled. SGC had hardly anything that was truly his own, and this did give him pause to wonder. How much did Wing-Man have? “…But I’m sure it will still be where you left it come morning.” He added as a way of reassurance.

SGC clacked his mandibles and nodded at that. Without knowing how much the man had, a bike might be a very important thing, possibly a way to earn a living like a horse could be he supposed.

“Let us know if there’s anything else you need before we depart. Otherwise, we will see you again in the morning.”

"It was a pleasure to meet you Wing-Man, and anything is a wide granting. Do not feel wrong for asking something now." SGC added with a nod as he adjusted his hanging back legs into a more relaxed curl now that he was less concerned with needing to catch their guest.

Tag: @greyjedi125 , @Master Vo'Un'Var

 

Shelly VanKasser
Phoenix, Arizona, Alhambra


It did not take long for Shelly to get back to Mrs. Wesley's place. Her nervousness faded as she saw the familiar structure of the place she was calling home at the moment. The door was unlocked.

Shelly never understood that. This was a nice neighborhood, but still...

Anyway, once inside, shelly found a note on the refrigerator, telling her that Mrs. Wesley had already cleaned up. Not only that, but that the kind woman had left her dinner in the oven, and that she would see her in the morning. Shelly could not help but smile, as she grabbed some oven mitts, and took the dinner out of the oven. Mrs. Wesley was so kind. A nice soul, when Shelly needed one the most. why couldnt her own parents....

With a sigh, Shelly sat down and began to eat. No need to go down THAT road. She was in a good mood from the Halloween events. As a matter of fact, she was feeling good enough to muster up a bit of courage to go to that party.

Marla. That was the girl's name. Shelly gave her real first name. But she used another last name, for obvious reasons. Maybe she would meet some more possible friends. Hmmm. As she ate, Shelly looked around and located some paper. As she munched on her food, she wrote down a small note of her own.

[Thank you for the great dinner, Mrs. Wesley. It was delish! I was invited to a Halloween party, so I decided to go see what that is like. Here is the address. I will see you later.

Good night,

Shelly]

After she finished eating, Shelly carefully washed the dish and placed it back where it belonged. She went to her room, after giving herself a once over, went back to the kitchen to tag the note to the refrigerator. After making sure that everything was alright, she quietly closed the door behind her. Pulling out her phone, she used the maps feature to get her bearings and then headed off for 'Tony's house.' Depending on the time when she would get back, she could always use a taxi. She didnt really like using the other way. Not unless she had a good reason. But just in case, she made sure her taser was close at hand, as she made her way to the party. It should be easy to find if a large group of kids were heading that way.

It could be fun.


TAG: @greyjedi125

 

OOC: Good to be back.

Cameron Giles IC:
~Director’s Office, Triskelion~

To say a lot had been happening would be an understatement. In the running for understatement of the year, or even decade for that matter. Ever since that day he had been put on the undercover mission to infiltrate the Morlocks, it had been nonstop. Actually, scratch that.

It had been nonstop before even that day. That day he had already been feeling it, but when you were Deputy Director of SHIELD…you do what you had to. And lately, there was a lot of ‘have to’s’ to take care of. At that time, Maria Hill had still been helming things on behalf of Nick Fury.

With the events of the Second Latverian Cataclysm and everything else tied up with it, he had been pulled off his mission and instead was running around with all the others trying to patch things up from the machinations of Doom, the Shadow King, and other villains. It was brilliantly done, but thankfully, foiled. If barely.

And now. Now he worked with Daisy Johnson as Director. Quake herself. She had been groomed for a while, Fury had always taken a liking to her he knew; but it was still a little surprising she was in the big chair already despite it. But he was happy for her all the same…plus the responsibilities she was now overseeing…It definitely balanced out the perks for now.

Sorry, Daisy. You can have it. he thought bemused.

Granted, he was only a step away himself. After Maria left, he had briefly been paralyzed with fear at the realization there was a chance he might have to take over. But that didn’t come to pass. Maybe one day, but not yet.

There was also the matter of leaving things left half-done, his mind lingered on the voice of Brihk, the Morlock woman whom was his ‘in’ with the secretive group. He kept in touch with her over the phone, occasionally in person, to keep up his previous guise just in the event that avenue needed to be explored again. He would do so until it was obvious that it was no longer important or someone else was assigned the job.

With all this swirling in his head, he finally came to the Director’s door. And it stopped. Time to clear for what lay ahead. What came before could be ruminated even further when time allowed once more.

Giving a knock, then entering when allowed, he offered his new boss a warm smile.

“Nothing like that fifteenth floor view, hm Johnson?”

Observing all the subtle protocol, something Daisy often hated, he waited until she gave permission of some sort for him to sit down. Knowing her, she’d wish he just sit down casually and assume the ‘professional face’ when the meeting truly began. The gleam in his eyes and some past history between the two, if not a lot per se but enough, should alert her to his wordless teasing. One small way of keeping her loose now and again, and most importantly…keeping her true to herself.

He did this with Maria. Daisy would be no different.

Tag: Director Quake, Agent du Bois, & technically...The Watcher @greyjedi125 @Sinrebirth

 

IC: Zephyr Vaillancourt
Ernesto’s Bodega


Zephyr admired the assortment of delicious food he had gathered before digging in.

He did his best not to crowd the side table with his trove of goodies, but he felt a little guilty since one could get the impression that he was commandeering the limited space.

Luckily, Blue and Casey were next to him so it probably didn’t look as bad as he imagined.

As he took a quick glance about the room, he noticed that people were just enjoying themselves and no one was intent on their little corner (maybe with the exception of ‘Gaston’).

Ok, stop being a fuddy-duddy and relax. He thought to himself almost blushing with embarrassment under his cowl.

As he started to remove his gloves, the room came alive as the big screen lit up showing a video and music started playing.

It was immediately evident that the song was popular; almost everyone was singing along and the dance area became packed with guests dancing merrily.

The vibe was contagious and Zephyr couldn’t help but smile broadly, he removed his cowl (and instantly fixed his hair) to have a better look at the festive scene.

He tried to understand the lyrics and chuckled as he only caught a few words, he was going to need a refresher course for sure.

“Des-pah-seetoh”, he intoned, imitating the sounds he heard from the crowd and video; he was feeling really happy that they decided to come to the party.

With excitement clear on his face, Zephyr looked over at Blue and Casey hoping to see that they too had been uplifted by the festive vibe.
He wanted to walk over and hug them, to share in the feeling.

“Hi, I’m Lourdes! Glad to meet you and thank you for coming!”

'Belle’…Lourdes, had come over, smiling and introducing herself, she was the very image of a lovely hostess.

Zephyr would wait to speak after Casey, ‘ladies first’ was a rule that gentlemen practiced.

“Hi Lourdes, I’m Zephyr! Pleasure to meet you, this is a wonderful party, thank you for the invitation, so glad we came!”

His words didn’t appropriately convey what he was feeling, yes, there was happiness and also gratitude, but there was also a reinforcement of conviction.

It was moments like these that reminded him of why they risked their lives out there, in a thankless and often hostile and fearful world.

This was one of the reasons why they chased after dangerous evildoers that would rob the good people of their peace and joy, and being able to see everyone free to simply live happily was reward enough.

Fighting the urge to hug everyone in the room he asked Lourdes after a few beasts_ “So what’s he saying, ‘Des-pah-seeto’”?


This was reward enough indeed.



TAG: @greyjedi125 , @galactic-vagabond422

 

Blueline & Casey
Ernesto's

Blue and Casey were keeping to themselves, again Casey had a drink and some snacks. She offered some to Blue and he still refused. She furrowed her brow from underneath her bandages. Though she wasn't much better watching everyone move around the space just an observer. She was still awkward, not sure if she should introduce herself as Aegis, or as Casey? She wasn't in her uniform...well not really. Though she was standing next to Mr. 'I don't have a Secret Identity' it was hard to know what was right in this situation. She was at a party, and it was a local institution. Her ears perk up hearing that familiar sound, the song no one could escape. She didn't know if she had any sense of rhythm, but the music was easy to move to. She looked to Blue then to Lourdes that seemed to be avoiding 'Gaston'.

Casey had met Lourdes before, though it was only a look, and in the guise of Aegis. So in reality they had not met, not like this. Though they likely wouldn't meet, as long as Casey's anxiety continued to rule her. She kept her distance always afraid of getting too close to people, she didn't want to hurt them.

Blue remained stoic watching over the party, though he did notice the interaction of Lourdes with the other man...something in him stirred though only a little. Out of care of the woman, he'd saved her life once, twice depending on how you counted things. He was protective of everyone around him, it was what he did. Though as the song started playing he couldn't help but start to move a little. Not like some of the others who seemed to have the beat, but it was there.

As Lourdes approached him and Casey with Zephyr hanging near by he gave a smile nodding his head.

Casey was a little caught...she didn't know what to say. Was she a civilian? Did she give her real name, or her superhero name. While she tried to think of what to say Zephyr seemed to just slip right into conversation like nothing was going on. It wasn't like she was in her supersuit...well she was but, no one could see it, and she wasn't wearing her distinctive orange hoodie or blackwatch scarf. So she wasn't here 'in uniform' as it was so...maybe? But Blue always went by blue, because he was Blue. That was who he was...who was she? Was she Aegis, or Casey? Was she both, and when was she one or the other?

As the quiet, well not too much quiet given the music, settled she could feel the gaze on her.

"Casey…" She blurted out feeling her heart pounding in her ears. "I'm Casey." She thought about extending her hand for a shake or something but they were full with a drink and a plate of snacks. "I'm hi…" She could feel herself move closer to Blue not quite hiding behind him, but leaning on him as he seemed to be calm in the face of all this. Blue turned to Casey with a slight smile before returning his attention to Lourdes.

"I..Um..You look good." He said doing some weak small talk. Casey had to stifle a laugh. As he turned to her she turned away her shoulder bumping into his back. He was unprepared for this and it had him stumbling forward. Thankfully he was able to catch himself before he crashed into Lourdes. Though now he found himself close to her. He forced a smile on his face standing up a little. "I'm...I'm sorry I...I lost my balance." He reached out his hand stopping short of touching her. "You alright?" He asked more out of habit than anything.

Casey was bright red with embarrassment...both for herself and for Blue, it almost hurt to watch him stumble through this.

"Ummm...I think." She said in half answer to Zephyr his question getting lost somewhere in the confusion.

TAG: @Ameteth @greyjedi125