The Challengers UK: (New chapter link on last page)

[dogcat101]

xxxxxxJason Jackson
xxxxxxxxxxxWith Iron Will Comes An Iron Fist

Jason nodded and lead Will to the holding cell that once held an alien predator, but now should have held a cyborg woman. That is unless someone let her leave. Jason would be incredibly angry if someone let her go. Mostly because of what she did to Will's insides. He couldn't stand the thought that someone like that would be set free, especially after such a short time. A regular prison would have given her at least fifteen years for what she did. Plus the fact that getting her in there was quite a hard task in the first place. He'd just let Will take it from here.

Current Location:Challengers' HQ - Holding Cell
((More or less filler))

[Tegian]

Tina had been about to lead Amanda out of the medbay when her sister turned and wrapped her arms about her, trying desperately not to get to overwhelmed with the news she had just been given. Tina wrapped her arms about her sister and rested her cheek on Amanda's head as she soothingly rubbed her back. Amanda mumbled quietly into Tina's neck, and tina managed to catch most of the trailing end of what had been whispered before Amanda roughly pushed her away and shot to her feet, yelling, asking how and why tank could do what he had done.

Tina hardly noticed the shattered glass as the beaker of water exploded from Amanda's rage. All she saw was the betrayal tank had done to the team, and especially to Amanda. Her own anger was rising at the thought of that a*****e, she too hadn't seen the signs of his selling them out and she had always kept as close an eye as she could on everyone. Had she looked the other way because of Amanda's relationship with Tank? It was certainly possible, the sort of trust Mand showed in Tank could have easily rubbed off onto her but...

"Yes Mand, he betrayed us. He betrayed you especially and for that i'm glad he's gone but there is nothing that can be done now. He's hurt you, I know, but you need to go rest right now. We can work through this later, after you've taken some down time." She had placed her hands on Amanda's shoulders gently and smiled, silently telling her it was going to be okay and they would deal with everything in time.

[Location: Medbay] [Mood: Angry / worried] [Thoughts: It's going to be okay Mand.]

[Tegian]

As to be expected from the friendly Alien, Novik smiled brightly at the offer of Celeste's company through London when she was done with her two remaining classes. Sure, he had been planning to take it in alone, get lost in the sights but, "I would love for you to join me for a day in the city, I can't say no to company such as yours dear Celeste." He spoke as he went in and gave her an excited hug. He was likely to be stuck on this planet for quite some time, so he would have plenty more opportunities to go it alone for a day and take a look around.

The class of teenagers went by pretty quick, and Novik enjoyed meeting most of the teenagers, all of whom were female. He found it strange that no young males wished to learn but didn't think to ask why that would be, he had the feeling it may have had something to do with the completely foreign gender roles placed on the humans by their society. The childrens class went by amusingly. They all tried so hard to produce the same poses Celeste showed them but none could quite get it. It eventually turned into a game for the kids and most seemed almost upset when the class ended but were quickly over it when promised they would be coming back again in a week.

"That was all quite fun." Novik said happily as he helped Celeste clean up everything and get the place ready for the closing of the studio. "I'm curious as to why there were very few male's present though.." He commented as he headed towards the back rooms to change back into the clothes he had worn to the studio.. where he clearly forgot the human custom of hiding oneself from view when changing ones clothes. He simply stripped down to the boxers he wore, in full view of the studio and the outside if anyone were looking in, then got dressed back into his street clothes. After a few moments of confusion about what to do with the clothes he had borrowed, he simply left them in what he was fairly certain was a laundry basket. It was empty but it was sitting near a tiny clothes washing machine.

"Is there anywhere particular you think we should visit?" He asked as he stepped back into the studio proper, still doing up his pants. "I hear there is a palace with changing guards which is fun to watch.. or something called a zoo."

Location: Celeste's StudioThoughts: I wonder where we'll go?

OoC: I tried and that's all that matters ;u;

[Demonic_Werewolf94]

◆As she had suspected, she managed to knock Jr over - she would need to speak to him about being aware of his surroundings at all times - and he seemed a bit dazed for a second. The Russian took that moment to draw her arm back and then slam it forward, shadows arching from her hand, prepared to pin the teenager to the ground. However, Jr slid backwards, out of the way just as the shadow-hand slammed into the ground where he had been and he climbed to his feet. "Nice one, but i'm not holding back anymore Sheera. Sorry..." His eyes began to glow a light red and Sheera smirked; now it was about to get interesting. "Time for a real fight." Good. She could tell that he really wanted to prove that he could handle himself in a fight, that he really wanted to be able to be considered a true Challenger even if he was still young and inexperienced. The Russian watched as a spinning metal top began to whir over Jr, surrounding itself in a bubble shield as the teenager put distance between them. What was he up to? "Jai, Copy sequence activate." A light whirring sound could be heard coming from the metal tops and then a brighter, cloned version of Jr appeared. In the end, there was a total of 5 of them. Sheera narrowed her eyes. If she had to guess, she would say that they were created by force field projection, color manipulation, and a holographic projection of Jr as well. However, they seemed to have physical properties. Smart kid. "Alright, get ready! Go!" called Jr, the multiple clones running forward to attack her. They sent kicks and punches her way but Sheera was fast and cunning, fluent in dodging the attacks sent at her by the clones; she had to give Jr credit for an attack such as this but could tell that it was draining for him, which wasn't good. No matter how well protected the little metal tops were or how well constructed the holograms were, one by one, they each shattered and disappeared. Sheera grabbed the last one by the throat, squeezing until it shattered into nothing, which left her with the real copy of Jr. Before she knew it, he had already begun moving again, shooting a grappling hook past her, sliding forward with the momentum from the hook and using his own body to unbalance her. As Sheera fell, she twisted her body and turned the fall into a tumble, coming up in a crouch just as Jr's clones were upon her. Silly boy. She was quickly obscured by the clones as Jr climbed to his feet and took a deep breath, murmuring, "Did I get her?" The clones were suddenly swallowed whole by thick tendrils of shadow but Sheera was nowhere to be seen. " 'zilly boy." Thick ropes of darkness reared from the floor like over-sized python's, wrapping around his arms, legs and torso, picking him up and holding him in the air. Every time he struggled, they tightened their hold on him. Sheera materialized near the center of the training room, eyes focused solely on the teenager being held aloft. "You 'muzt 'alvayz be 'avare of opponentz abilitiez. 'zometimez... No matter 'ow prepared you are... 'zhey are 'ztill 'ztep a'ead." She raised her arm up and the shadows reacted, holding Jr up higher until she flung her arm down. The darkness slammed the teenager into the ground - not hard enough to really hurt him but hard enough to make him feel sore in the morning - and before he could react, she was on him. The Russian used slammed her foot into the teens chest and shadows shot from her extended hand, the dark spikes coming within centimeter's of breaking the delicate skin of his neck. Silence reigned for several seconds until she said, "You 'loze." Sheera had used very little apparent effort in the last move. She stood upright and the shadows retracted as she stepped off his chest, offering a hand to help him up. "You did 'vell. Go get drink of 'vater." Hydration was important, after all. " 'vhen you return... 've train 'zome, yes?" What she was doing was offering to teach him some of what she knew, so that he wasn't just going into fights hoping that his tech could save him.

Location: Training roomxxxxThoughts: 'zmart kidxxxxMood: Focused

Sanokun711

[siris99]

Location: MedRoom

Mist had been called away by JC while Amanda cried into her sister's shoulder, thankfully missing that sad moment. He did return in time however for her to explode the beaker, making him jump in surprise. He very nearly reflexively commented on it, before his mind stepped in and decided such a thing could get him hurt, and would be quite stupid to do.

Tina quickly stepped in, talking to her sister and placing a hand on her shoulder. Mist let her finish before speaking up again. His idea had already been shot down as dangerous by Shaundi, but he figured now might be a good time to bring it up again. See, he found it very odd that the one person the OWC killed in Detroit was the traitor. Why? Was it accidental? Had the OWC simply not known? Or had they known? Because if they did know Tank was a traitor and decided to kill them, it meant the OWC had helped the team. This was akin to Al Qaeda delivering humanitarian relief; it did not add up.

As he was going to open his mouth though, his heart stepped in and silenced his mind, not wanting to pile it on top of Amanda. Tina might not break under the stress, but she would hurt people for her sister. What Mist was thinking needed to be said, it simply didn't need to be voiced at this moment.

"Tina's right... go, relax, get something to eat... something. I'll even go pick up sushi from that place in Detroit you like if you want." he offered Amanda with a small smile. Hopefully they could get her back into a good place.

[Demonic_Werewolf94]

ＣＥＬＥＳＴＥ ＳＯＬＳＴＩＣＥ
XX↳xa.k.a. Luxx

Celeste smiled brightly as Novik said, "I would love for you to join me for a day in the city, I can't say no to company such as yours dear Celeste." He gave her an excited hug as he spoke and she returned it whole-heartedly; he was quite a sweetheart and she greatly enjoyed his company. Not only did he seem to understand philosophical conversations but he also had so much to teach and learn and she was one of few who loved to learn from other people. Not long after that, the teenagers for her second class arrived and Novik seemed to enjoy meeting yet more new faces who weren't Challenger or hero related; the teens seemed to find the man with the exotic accent fascinating as well but they focused fairly well on the lesson she was giving. They were a lot more limber than most of the adults and seemed to catch on quickly - there were ten students in the teenagers class - and by the time class ended, she had already began to choreograph a dance for them in her head. Approximately fifteen minutes or so after all of the teenager's had left, the children for her final class of the day arrived, escorted by their parents. Celeste gave each parent extensive details about how things would be run in her class and promised that each one would be looked after very well; no harm would come to the little angels while she was watching them. The children's class ended up being fairly amusing, even by Celeste's standards, but all of them gave it their very best to produce the same poses as she showed them and that was what mattered. The children seemed to get upset when they couldn't do it but when she promised that she would see them again in a week to try again, they cheered up immensely. When their parents arrived to pick up the children again, the white-haired female couldn't help but smile at the happy chatter coming from the little ones as they described their dance lesson to their parents. After everyone had left, Celeste began to wipe down the ballet bar and the mirrors and Novik happily jumped in, saying, "That was all quite fun." She smiled and nodded in agreement, "It was. They were a wonderful class and I can't wait to see them all again next week. I've enjoyed myself immensely teaching these classes and I'm glad I decided to do it." It had been an idea she'd been toying with for some time but had just gotten the courage to do; the team needed the money after all. "I'm curious as to why there were very few male's present though.." commented the alien as he headed towards the back room to change again. Celeste untied her toe shoes and placed them into her bag before she pulled her sweater back on and said, "I'm sure you've heard of gender-roles since you've been here. Ballet is seen as a very feminine form of dance and very few men will ever learn it because they don't want to be seen as being unmanly. It is very rare to see young male teenagers learning how to dance but, like in your class, more mature men may realize that it is an excellent way to get into shape and meet people." She glanced towards the back room only to find that Novik was standing in his boxers, in full view of the studio and the street outside, and she realized that he had probably forgotten the very human custom of hiding from view as you changed. Celeste shook her head and then shimmering golden drapes manifested in front of the windows, hiding the inside of the studio from eyes that might pry inside, and then not long after that, Novik returned to her side, wearing his street clothing, still doing up his pants as he asked, "Is there anywhere particular you think we should visit?" Celeste had to resist the urge to chuckle and shake her head; she'd need to further educate him on the ways of humans. "I hear there is a palace with changing guards which is fun to watch.. or something called a zoo." Well, that was an excellent question now wasn't it? "Why don't we go to the London Zoo? I think you'll see many interesting animals there." And she could perhaps give him a little lesson the animals from different places and educate him on the ways of humans at the same time... Not that she'd make the whole thing a school lesson. After all, they were going to have fun! Not long after that, they stepped back out to the street and Celeste locked up the studio, jiggling the door to make sure that it was locked, before linking her arm through Novik's. "So, to the zoo then?"

Every moment of ＬＩＧＨＴ and ＤＡＲＫ is a miracle

Tegian

[Demonic_Werewolf94]

The angry hydrokinetic hadn't seemed to realize that Mist had disappeared for about thirty seconds to answer a distress call from JC but she did notice how he jumped at the popping of the beaker; she silently dared him to say something about it. Dared him to make a comment about it. Her anger had sky-rocketed exponentially and now she just wanted to take it out on someone. Tank was dead, so she couldn't very well take it out on him, and since Mist was the one who had delivered the news... He was as good a substitute as anyone. But Manuel didn't say anything; it seemed his heart, mind, and mouth were all cooperating with one another for once, stopping him from saying anything that could possibly hurt her more or get him injured by her. Instead, it was Tina who spoke. She said, "Yes Mand, he betrayed us. He betrayed you especially and for that i'm glad he's gone but there is nothing that can be done now. He's hurt you, I know, but you need to go rest right now. We can work through this later, after you've taken some down time" and placed her hands on Amanda's shoulders, smiling gently, as though silently telling her twin that everything was going to be okay and that they would deal with everything in time. Manuel offered, with that smile of his, "Tina's right... go, relax, get something to eat... something. I'll even go pick up sushi from that place in Detroit you like if you want." He was trying to comfort her. They both were. But Amanda didn't want to be comforted. She wanted to rampage and break something and cry and be left alone and be with others... But as fast as the anger and the energy that came from it had come... It was gone and she slumped back down into the chair and put her face in her hands. "I'm sorry," she mumbled; her voice sounded hollow. "I shouldn't have snapped like that. Manuel... That sushi sounds really great. I'll pay you back. Tina... I'm going to my room." Amanda stood up again and took a few steps, only to stumble - it appeared she was till numb from the news that had been delivered to her - and Tina wrapped her arm around her sister, stabilizing her. It was only because her twin was by her side that she was able to get to her room at all; her mind and body were not operating on the same speed and it seemed that even with the anger and the sadness and the disbelief... She was still having a hard time coming to terms with what Tank had done to the team and how he had betrayed them... How he'd betrayed her. His death had been hard enough to deal with but she had come to terms with that, at least, but this... This was so much harder to process. How could you possibly come to terms with something as heartrending as the betrayal of someone you had loved and who you thought loved you back? When she got to her room, Amanda simply collapsed on the bed, eyes staring blankly at the wall, hair sprawled across the bedspread in a messy sort of halo; it was as though she didn't even notice. When her stomach growled loudly, it was only then did Amanda move again but only to curl herself up in a ball; after that, she didn't move again. Tears threatened to spill from her eyes and she didn't want that to happen. Already she had demonstrated weakness by allowing her rage to take over her abilities and shatter that beaker of water. She wouldn't allow herself to cry... Not even in front of her sister.




siris99

Tegian

ooc: ugh. sorry about the crap post.

[Roskuel]

............

"Something you need to learn... no matter how personal the fight.. we are all family. So, even when you want to be alone... we are there whether you like it or not. Best take advantage of that.. you're going to need it."

Location: Home
Thoughts: ......


Darren's body shook ever so slightly. Otherwise, his body was stiff, almost as if it had seized into a comatose state. Still, his eyes darted around. Was this home? How did he get here? What was happening to him? The sounds around him were muffled. All he could hear was a ringing, like someone had set off an explosion. His vision had blurred.. shapes.. colors. His surroundings were nothing but a splash of pastel. Some kind of fury boiled in him. It wasn't his own. He was not angry. He was scared. It took a few minutes before he saw JC right in front of him. His friend had taken Darren's face in his hands. What was going on? He didn't know. How could he answer a question he didn't know the answer to? The shaking increased. It was as if he was choking... he was. A harsh cough, and a lurch later, fluid dripped from his mouth. His hand came up, touching his lips. When his fingers pulled away he saw... black. It was like tar. There was no taste. Had he been poisoned? No. He would have felt it before now. There was nothing he drank. No needle had pierced his skin. He hadn't detected any airborne chemicals. So.. what was this? Feeling came back to his nerves. Darren shakily pushed JC away from him. It was light, no real force applied. Just enough to let his friend know that he needed to get up. Darren stood, trying to keep his balance as he walked over to the counter in the kitchen. He pulled out a drawer and removed the bottom board, revealing a hidden cubby hole filled with test tubes and microscope slides. Reaching in, he grabbed a slide and placed it on the counter. Then, wiped the black liquid from his finger onto it. Afterward, Darren stepped over, keeping a grip on whatever surface he could, before coming to the sink. He turned the water on and splashed water onto his face, sipping up some of the water, and spitting it into the drain. Darren's chest rose up and down as his breathing regulated.

The archer's head arose as his hand grabbed for a dish towel. He dried his face, then set the towel down, looking to the sink again before his eyes darted over to JC, "How did we get here?" he asked calmly. JC replied, explaining that Mist was in town. They had been teleported. Darren nodded as his head shook, looking for information. Anything he could tell his best friend. "I could have killed you. You hardly put up a fight. I was ready to do it. Something.. was willing." JC looked confused. Darren straightened. "It never happened... did it? You never refused to leave. You never threatened me. You didn't fight me." JC shook his head. "Thought so." he mumbled out with a sigh and a smile. It wasn't the happy kind of smile. It was the half smile someone normally gave when they couldn't believe something. His eyes looked to the ceiling, then back again to JC. The bruise across his face. He had hit his friend. That, of all things, was real. "You should get that shiner looked at." he tried to joke. That same confused smile appeared on his face again before it faded away. It was replaced by a frown, his eyes welling up as he tried to hold back the tears. JC came up to him, noticing that he was beginning to get weak again, and embraced him. Brothers. They were brothers through and through. It felt unusual.. JC was trying to comfort him. It was usually the other way around. Darren was the stronger of the two mentally and emotionally, so he tended to stay clear in the worst of JC's moments. Now, it was Darren breaking. The archer buried his head into his brother's shoulder, letting a few tears fall... it hurt too much to hold them back.

Minutes later, they were seated on the couch. "... and that's when I saw you." he finished. Darren had been telling JC everything that had happened. How it was supposed to be a simple 'Hey we need to talk' that turned into a nightmare. They were quiet for a second before JC asked what they should do from this point, "Well.. we need to figure out what we are going to do about Montoro, but first..." Darren lifted himself from the couch, wincing. JC was about to jump up, but the archer held up a hand to let him know he was fine. He walked back into the kitchen to look at the slide he had set up. His eyes widened when he realized.. the black liquid.. it was gone. The slide was there... but the substance had vanished. How could this be? He zoomed in, trying to find any trace. Even a single molecule would do. There.. he found one. It was moving. Twisting violently, before it vanished like the rest. He hadn't even had time to examine the structure, pinpoint any elements.. nothing. He picked up the slide and put it back into the drawer, replacing the bottom. He stood silently for a moment before walking back toward the living room. He stopped. What was that smell? It was.. different.. male.. not JC, not Mist... not himself.. Someone had been here. A piece of paper caught his eye. He picked it up. It was a note from Aria.. the same message he had received in text form. She was leaving the house... but she never said where. Aria's scent was stronger than that of the male, so she hadn't left with him. That was a relief.. still.. His eyes darted around.. black fibers.. particularly expensive material, well crafted... flaked skin, Caucasian... tanned... hair strands.. short.. greased.. the smell had a slight flower bud smell, with a warm musk after-scent... American made cologne. Darren snapped out of it. He guessed he had been standing like this for at least a minute or two. This was confirmed when JC asked him what was wrong. Darren tensed, "A CIA agent has been in my house.. and Aria left me a note 'and' texted me, letting me know she was leaving the house.. but never said where." Darren knew she was still connected to them, but why would they show up here? Why hadn't Aria let him know what the hell was going on? Was she afraid of something? She had literally left him with a thousand outcomes and no answers. He looked out the window for a moment to see a flock of birds, piling up on a wire outside. Nothing unusual.. except.. they were all looking at him... and in the middle of them all.. was an owl. He shook his head, looking away from the window, only after closing the blinds. He didn't need to feel like he had eyes on him right now.. it was.. distracting. He looked back to JC, "What should I do?"

[siris99]

Location: Darren and Chiara's Apartment

Darren started to shake and choke, coughing harshly... what the ******** was that? JC turned to grab a tissue or something, but Darren beat him to it, wiping away the black substance with his hand. It couldn't have been poison. Darren had to be the world's hardest person to poison, what with his ability to smell and taste poison in food or drink, or his ability with his sense of touch to know if a needle had pricked him. If this was poison, the deliverer was scary good.

JC gave his friend room to go do what he needed, figuring his buddy was going to throw up. Rather than that, Darren pulled out a microscope slide, putting the black stuff on said slide before splashing water into his face. It would be good to look at this stuff, as it had to be at the root of whatever caused Darren to experience... whatever the hell had happened. The near instantaneous change of personality was proof enough of that. As Darren dried his face, JC tried to think of substances that would produce the changes he had seen, as well as stop the instant it was removed. Nothing he had ever come across would do this, and JC knew a lot of chemicals. With his ability, it was a necessity.

A question brought JC back to the present; how did they get here? “Mist. I'm thinking he and Shaundi are here to talk to me. Wiz didn't discuss specifics.” JC explained. Wiz had contacted JC, sending him a message that the duo were coming. JC didn't mention it, and neither Shaundi nor Mist knew Wiz had said anything. To them, JC would look as all knowing as ever, but it was simply an effect of listening more than speaking. Darren pulled this off quite well, especially around newbies.

A confused look climbed on JC's face as Darren mentioned that he could have ended JC. The truth was JC wouldn't be able to fight back against Darren wholeheartedly, he would hold back in a real fight. Darren was the closest family JC had left, and he would not have a hand in ending Darren. What confused JC was that he knew Darren felt the same way, so what was this something? This dark, shadowy stuff; did it really give Darren the drive to end his friend?

Meta ability. the answer came to JC in a flash. Only a meta ability could do this: this drastic of an effect on the mind, this fast acting, this quick to stop affecting... no man-made chemical could ever do this. It would take too long to cross the blood brain barrier to stop so suddenly. Even vomited medication had an effect after all. The only answer that made sense was the OWC. They had tried to break JC's mind, and a part of him still thought they had; now they were going after Darren. Anger rose, burning JC's chest as he had to fight down the urge to go break some skulls; Darren was more important right now.

It was quite an accomplishment. It was never easy to stop JC from going out to end those who hurt his friends. Hoffman, Nelson, Echo, Game... even Rotor was in danger over hurting not just Riley, but Amanda because she cared about the Scotsman. JC was quick to anger and action where his friends were concerned, but with Darren, JC just buried the anger and focused on the present.

"I'm sure I can come up with a good story for this. Got into a fight with a gorilla at the zoo for instance." JC quipped in reply to his blackening eye. He would have someone heal it up later. At the moment, he barely felt any pain from it, thanks to his concern. Darren came first. When JC saw the tears forming in Darren's eyes, he hugged his friend close, not saying a word. They didn't need to.

A couple of minutes later, they were on the couch, and Darren finished explaining what he had seen happening. It explained why Darren had acted the way he had, but what made him have these hallucinations and delusions in the first place? A telepath didn't explain the black stuff that Darren had coughed up. The archer got up to go look at the slide he had made, so JC let him go. From the silence, it wasn't good. JC might not have the eagle eyes of Darren, but even he saw the empty slide as Darren cleaned up.

JC's eyebrows rose when Darren took a subtle sniff. Darren would explain it when he was ready to, so JC waited patiently. He had not been expecting a CIA agent, but then again, it should not surprise him. The CIA had to know about Aria's alter ego, so her escapades this morning had to have gotten their attention. Aria's note about leaving seemed to hurt Darren more, as his friend simply asked what he should do.

"Aria is okay, CIA or no. We've all been stressed, and she can't take out her anger as a vigilante any more. She's likely beating the hell out of a gym or something. I know it's hard, but I wouldn't worry about her. Not yet." JC offered with a nod. "We need to figure out what that black thing that disappeared was. Yea I saw that. Has to be meta related, no chemical or substance would act like that naturally." he said, mentioning business first.

"However, that can wait. What needs to happen now is you and me, getting pizza and playing some Halo. Here, back at base, I don't care. We need to relax, even if it's just for an hour." he continued. Normally, the duo tried to have days off where they relaxed and hung out together, but they were harder and harder to find. They could take an hour to relax and recharge at least, nobody could deny them that.

"Personally, if the chatter on the comms is anything to go off of, the mood back at base is not very upbeat, so I recommend not there, but your call man." he smiled.

[Wilhelm3]

╠ ЈΔΣGΣℝ ╣

“Cyborgs are not reverent; they do not re-member the cosmos. They are wary of holism, but needy for connection- they seem to have a natural feel for united front politics, but without the vanguard party. The main trouble with cyborgs, of course, is that they are the illegitimate offspring of militarism and patriarchal capitalism, not to mention state socialism. But illegitimate offspring are often exceedingly unfaithful to their origins.”





"Carol..." Will whispered. He knelt beside her, scanning her up and down. The cyborg agent sat slumped against the wall, eyes closed, unmoving. Red lights pulsing through her mechanical limbs were the only indicator that she was even alive. His mechanical arm clanked as he settled his balance, and she looked up.

Will gasped. Galatea's expression when they'd fought had been awful--full of hatred and bloodlust. She would have killed him and everyone else in her way if she'd been able--and would have, if Jason and Jr hadn't stopped her. She sighed and closed her eyes again.

"What are you gonna do?" She whispered. "Kill me?" Her voice crackled, shot through with static. Her neck whirred as she shook her head. "Go ahead, you son of a b***h. Kill me. It's not like I'm useful anyway."

Gears ground as she lifted her arms. She managed to rotate her shoulders about 15 degrees, then they dropped again. "Your friend over there magnetized most of my circuits. I can barely move...so just kill me. It..." She sighed, exhaling. Her chest sank alarmingly low as she breathed out. "It'd be a mercy."

Will stood, shaking his head, disgusted. His eyebrows scrunched together, and he turned his back. "No more killing. I thought I made that clear when I fought you. I'm done." With that, he stalked out of the cell. His eyes widened as he reached for the door control. Something was triggering his affinity for tech. There was something new...His eyes shot open and he dove for Jason. "GET DOWN!"

A roar shook the bottom level of the base as Galatea exploded. Will flew through the air, just missing Jason's head. Several hundred pounds of cyborg slammed into the opposite wall with a clang, carried by the shockwave. When his vision returned, Will was on the ground. Most of the explosion had been contained within the cell, but the wall'd been blasted with fire and smoke. A few pieces of blood-covered shrapnel coated the wall. Jaeger grimaced.

"She had a self-destruct."

LOCATION:Challenger's Base Prison Cells WITH:Jason/Iron Fist THOUGHTS:

That could have gone...much worse.

dogcat101

[Demonic_Werewolf94]

When you're standing on the battlefield, And all the pain is real...

The door to the apartment was unlocked and opened and Aria stepped inside, closing the door with a sigh. At first, she didn't seem to notice that Darren and JC were there, which might have been for the best. She was still wearing the sweater but not the hood and her hair, which had been in a ponytail upon leaving, was down and hanging down her back; sweat still dotted her face, which indicated she had been at a work-out of some kind, and as she toed off her shoes, she looked up and saw the boys standing there. "Darren!" she exclaimed, "You're home!" Then she saw JC and gave a little wave, "Hi, JC. Jesus, what happened to your eye?" She was one to talk; Aria was sporting a black eye of her own and her lip was split as well, which meant she had been hit pretty hard but both appeared to be fast healing. It would certainly be odd to anyone who knew her to see the injuries there, as Darren at least would know that she hadn't had those injuries when he'd seen her last, but it would be even stranger because the black eye and split lip seemed to be healing at an advanced rate even though she didn't have healing abilities. Aria stepped across the living room to meet up with Darren, saying, "I'm tired; I'm going to go take a shower and then a nap, alright?" She cupped his cheek in her palm and gave him a kiss. "I love you. Carry on with... Whatever you guys were doing." Aria smiled a little tiredly before giving JC another one of those little waves with her fingers before heading towards the room she shared with Darren. To him, she would smell like sweat, smoke, dirt, and blood, as well as whatever of her natural scent remained, but there would also be another smell, one that was a mixture of spices, wood, and fire, and that was specifically coming from what appeared to be a small amulet hanging from her neck, tucked under the hoodie she was wearing. Aria disappeared into their bedroom, closing the door behind her so that they guys could continue doing whatever it was they had been planning on and she wouldn't be disturbed by it. A few minutes later, there was the sound of the shower running. The red-head stepped beneath the spray of the showerhead, wincing as the warm water hit her split lip and the bruising around her eye; the amulet was sitting on the counter, as she didn't want to get it wet. The fighting ring had been rough but it was an excellent place to go blow off some steam as her alternate ego of Vixen. Usually she came home without any kind of injuries but today one of her opponents had gotten a lot closer than usual and she hadn't been prepared for it; he'd hit her and she'd hit the wall of flesh that made up the ring but, in the end, she had come out as the winner. Aria had taken on two more opponents after that, just so that no one would think that Vixen was weakened by the hit she'd taken, and then she'd left with her winnings. She had taken a bit of a detour through some side-streets, just to let the breeze cool her skin a little, and had come across this quaint little shop that had all kinds of things hanging in the window. When she'd gone in, the woman who ran the shop had made a comment about her injuries and asked if she wanted something to help heal it all faster. Aria had only paid five bucks for the amulet and so far it was paying off. Her shower lasted all of five to ten minutes and then she took her long red hair and wrapped it into a thick rope of a braid before changing into a loose shirt and fabric shorts, sliding the amulet over her head before collapsing onto her side of the bed and closing her eyes. She was asleep within minutes, the amulet glowing softly in the gloom of the bedroom, the only sound that of her breathing as she slept.

That's when you realize That you must've done something right, Cause you've never felt so alive

Location: Homex Mood: Tiredx Thoughts: ...

siris99

Roskuel

[Roskuel]

............

"Something you need to learn... no matter how personal the fight.. we are all family. So, even when you want to be alone... we are there whether you like it or not. Best take advantage of that.. you're going to need it."

Location: Home
Thoughts: ...


A couple hours of just him and JC going at it on Halo sounded like fun. Still... there seemed to be more important matters at hand. What could it hurt? To be honest.. he couldn't think of a better way to relax his mind than to beat the living hell out of anyone and everyone online. A half smile appeared on his face. Even those who had found a way to beat the system with aim bots and the like didn't stand a chance. Darren was just too quick. He opened his mouth to agree... but the sound of footsteps and the door handle turning drew his attention. Aria stepped thorough the door.. almost oblivious to the scene before her. When she finally realized the two figures were present, she called out his name, exclaiming the obvious. Darren was so happy to see that she was ok. At least, for the most part. She was bruised.. a busted lip hardly complimenting the blueish black circle around her eye. She had been out fighting and he didn't blame her. Seeing the CIA appearing at her door was probably just as much a surprise to her as it had been for him to see the aftermath of it. So, it made since that she would try to cope with it in the only way she knew how. She handed out a remark to JC about his shiner. Yeah... at least he didn't have a busted lip. As she walked toward him, he noticed something about her injuries. They were.. healing? It was slow enough for the human eye to bypass it, but too fast for it to be normal. Also, since when did she have a necklace like that? It was hidden quite well, but she knew better. Darren's sight was good enough to make out any anomaly. He tried to get a better look, enhancing his eyes to look through the microscopic holes in the fabric. It was more like an amulet than anything. It was giving off it's own scent. It wasn't odd that any object would hold aroma, but it was the specific scents that drifted off this thing that made it somewhat unique. Spices.. wood... almost like it had been cooked rather than simply forged.. which was ridiculous. As he looked, he realized it wasn't just the amulet he was staring at. Now was not the time... maybe later. His head shook. Not literally, but mentally. He didn't want anyone to notice he was using his ability. She finally moved close enough to cup his face in her hand. A soft kiss followed, which he returned lovingly. When they parted, his features melted into a worried mess, "I love you too." he replied, just before she lagged her way to the room. He turned to JC with a cocked brow. He would talk to Aria later. For now, he would let her rest. After a minute of silence, Darren spoke, "Well we can't play here.. and the base is too packed.. I've got an idea." Darren walked to the door and motioned for JC to follow.

Darren took him to the nearest entrance to the tunnels. From there, he summoned their bikes. No chance of getting ambushed down here. No chance of a pedestrian trying to cross their path. The archer mounted his bike, revving the engine. He looked over to JC, "Ready for a race?" He asked where they were going, "We're headed to my private sanctuary about two miles from here. How 'bout this.." Darren place his tablet on the holster, pressing it a few times before swiping across the screen. A hologram GPS appeared in front of JC, showing him the coordinates. "I'll give you a second to look that over.... Seconds up. Let's roll." Darren peeled his tires, JC following his lead. In moments, they were riding full speed through the tunnels. For most of the first mile they were neck and neck.. but that was the straight away. Now came the fun part. They came up on a two way split... either way would lead to their destination. JC was on his right.. and so was the turn he wanted to take. Darren turned hard, nearly clipping JC as he swerved in front of him, straightening out to head down the right hand tunnel. The tunnel narrowed out, leaving room for barely himself. He ducked into it, then emerged on the other side, ready for for the ten foot drop followed by a nearly collapsed section of the tunnels. He was quick to throw a micro sphere into the rubble, blowing a hole in it to clear a path. They were only a half mile away from his sanctuary. It was time to make it more interesting. A micro sphere connected with a wall to his left causing it to crumble. It was another passage? He turned into it. On the other side he was greeted by a corridor filled with jagged walls going down at a forty five degree angle. The ground was a mixture of gravel and sand. Why was all this in the tunnels... Darren. Had he set this up? The corridor opened up into a room as big as a small theater. Before he reached the opening, he cut a line that was streaked across the wall. As he exited he accelerated and pulled back, popping a wheelie as a large boulder hanging from a steel frame swung in front of him. The wheel hit the ground once more, sending him out of the way of the return swing. Straight ahead was another corridor which led to the normal tunnels of London. When he would even find time to do all of this, was anybody's guess. Maybe he didn't do it alone. Maybe, Ros would help him, or even Aria. They were coming up to the sanctuary. Somehow.. JC had caught up. It didn't really surprise him. Home stretch... Neck and neck once again... just a few more.. Drop off.... a forty foot drop... with a pool of water at the bottom. Darren slid sideways and jumped off his bike. His bike continued sliding until it hit a mechanism which locked it in place and pulled it upright to sit at the edge of the cliff. Flying through the air, Darren grabbed hold of a rope that was dangling just off the edge, swung, flipped off, and dove flawlessly into the five meter deep pool below.

Once he surfaced it took JC a couple seconds to do the same. "Looks like I won." Darren said, before swimming to the edge of the pool. He stepped out, walking to a nearby wardrobe. He grabbed some clothes and tossed them to JC. His friend mentioned that it really hadn't been fair, jokingly of course. "Ha, fair shmair. It was plenty fair. I've never gone that way before." Wait, so.. Darren hadn't built those contraptions? Those hidden corridors? No.. he had gone the whole way using nothing but his senses. The cliff, he knew about. It was his personal waterfall/swimming pool. He had followed the normal tunnels all the way to Aria's place from the top of the cliff before, but ninety percent of everything they had run into was new to Darren. "This place is filled with all kinds of secrets. Changing room is over near kitchen." As JC actually looked around, his eyes widened. This place was huge. Like a two story bachelor pad... except... one big room. "Once you get changed we can play some gamage."

When JC walked out of the locker room, Darren tossed him a Gatorade, then stepped over to two eighty inch televisions. He sat on the large sectional couch and turned on the XBOX. Handing a controller to JC he smiled, "I'm glad we can finally just..... y'know...."

[siris99]

Location: The Red Arrow Apartment > Darren's ManCave

JC nodded at Aria as she came in, but she seemed to be in her own little world at first. She snapped out of it with an enthusiastic greeting to Darren, and a comment about JC's eye. She was one to talk though, the injuries on her confirming JC's little theory about needing to go blow off some steam. However, JC wasn't going to reply like a smartass for the simple reason that Aria and Darren were already in conversation, with her saying she was going to take a shower and then a nap before they kissed.

Some day, hopefully soon, JC could do this with Chiara. Not have to hide injuries from her, be able to be open and honest with her. He knew it was for a good reason, but having to hide a part of himself was eating away at him. The lying was an unfortunate part of superhero life that he would dearly love to do without. Aria gave JC a little wave which snapped him out of reverie, then she left to go take a shower. However, her leaving triggered a worried mess of a look on Darren's face. The archer had noticed something, JC was sure of it. However, JC was not going to ask; Darren would say if he wanted his friend to know. It was as simple as that.

Finally, after a minute of silence, Darren spoke up, suggesting a third option or them to relax. Darren led the way to the tunnels. The tunnels were a great boon to the team, enabling quick and hidden transport across the city. JC used them when he left for or returned from patrol, but otherwise took city streets so he'd be seen. If he was out in the public eye traveling during patrols, people were less likely to look for hidden tunnels. It was sort of like a comic JC used to read as a kid: the main character didn't wear a mask to fight crime, so everyone just assumed he didn't have a secret identity.

JC raised an eyebrow and smiled as Darren suggested a race to his private sanctuary. It shouldn't have surprised him that Darren had a special place set up, because after all, JC had a place too. However, JC's hidden place was simple, just a place with a couple of supplies and a bed. There was no TV or anything one could play Halo on, so his curiosity was piqued about Darren's set-up.

Darren let him see that map for exactly one second before taking off, earning an eyeroll from JC. The Hawk followed suit, knowing he would be forced to either follow Darren or simply react as they went. Seeing as Darren had taken off first, it looked like he was stuck in reaction mode for now. They raced along, JC wondering just where in the hell they were going, and what the hell was going on with these tunnels. They approached a split, with JC heading towards the right, only to have Darren cut him off and take the lead. It was too late for JC to switch to the other side, so he had to keep following his friend. The tunnels were taking on insane features... who in the ******** had built these? Had Darren built these tunnels or had he gotten help? There was no way these would have existed before, there were traps all along it!

Darren had to avoid a swinging boulder, and JC nearly crashed into it, nearly avoiding death by braking hard and swerving. This sent him up the tunnel wall, where he nearly crashed again; this was insane. JC opened the throttle on his bike, closing the gap and getting right on Darren's tail once more. They were neck and neck, right up until JC saw a cliff approaching and braked to let Darren go ahead, to see what his friend was about to do. JC saw Darren let his bike slide out, then jump off the cliff; some sort of mechanism caught the bike, so JC said a prayer and followed suit. While Darren dove into the pool, JC landed feet first like a Navy sailor abandoning ship.

When the blonde surfaced, he saw Darren already waiting, crooning about how he had won. “Sure, real fair winning the track you selected.” JC joked, swimming to the edge. Darren retorted that he'd never gone that way before.

Really?

All of that was new? Who the hell made that tunnel then? A death course underneath London? Something was off, and JC was tempted to dive into the mystery, but they were supposed to be taking an hour off. His buddy gave him a fresh change of clothes, and pointed out the changing room as they entered Darren's giant man cave. It was bigger than the apartment Darren shared with Aria? What the hell? Where had Darren gotten the money for this? Perhaps this was a back-up base? The team had yet to need to abandon the London base, but they did never know when the fateful day would come. Back in LA they had gone through too many bases to keep track of, due to being tracked down mostly.

His head was spinning. First Chiara, then Darren freaking out, then these tunnels... no. He was taking the hour off damnit. Speaking of that, he hit the button on his communicator, glad it was waterproofed. “Everyone, this is Redhawk. Drift and I will be unavailable for the next hour. Hawk out.”

A gatorade was tossed at the hero as he exited the changing room, quickly followed by a controller. They settled down to play, with Darren smiling and commenting that it was good to finally... relax.

“Lord knows we deserve it. I doubt the city will fall apart if we get to relax for an hour. If it does, why would we bother even having a team?” JC joked as the game started up. That was the last mention of work they would have for awhile. The duo jumped into deathmatch, taking on some random people online before being accused of cheating and having to find a new room. “I forgot how mature everyone is online.” JC muttered, earning a chuckle from his buddy. Eventually the shifted to the story mode.

“You know, I heard they are making a video game of us... not sure about that. We play it once and the jokes never stop about us playing with ourselves.” JC noted as the game loaded.

This was just... God had they needed this. They were the backbone of the team, always doing their best to appear invulnerable. Admittedly, it had been much harder to do so lately. The one upside of the day before this break was that being so busy was keeping JC from dwelling on what had happened. He hadn't had a flashback in the last hour or so. It was nice.

[Tegian]

Finally, they managed to get Amanda to agree to go to her room for some rest. As she and Amanda left the medbay, Tina gave a thankful nod back t Manuel before they disappeared into the halls. As soon as they arrived at Amanda's room, she simply collapsed onto the bed, hair and body splayed over the covers. Tina wore a somewhat worried look on her face as she moved about helping Amanda get more comfortable, mostly that consisted of trying to get the blanket out from under her so that she could get properly covered. It helped that moments later Amanda's stomach growled causing her to shift and curl, letting the blanket free enough for it to be draped over her.

"Manuel should have some food for you any minute." Tina spoke quietly as she brushed the arrant hair from Amanda's face. "Sleep if you can though." She added once the hair was moved out of Amanda's face and she was nicely tucked in under the blanket. Tina then left with a promise to be back shortly. She went off to firstly, find something more for Amanda to drink as well as find Kayleb to tell him to go fix up Riley. She didn't care one bit that his healing hurt him, it was the only thing he was useful for so he might as well do it. She knew it left no lasting damage beyond a few scars if the wounds he took were bad enough, so she really didn't see why everyone pussyfooted around making him do it.

She found him just leaving Sheera's room, closing the door behind himself carefully. She gave him an odd look before he noticed her and half jumped in surprise. "Riley is hurt in case you didn't get the hint from your comm. Go do your damned job and fix him up. He's in the medbay and I better not hear that you took your sweet a** time getting there." Kayleb mumbled something that was likely some sort of apology before scurrying off towards the medbay. Tina looked at Sheera's room door thoughtfully before shrugging and heading back to Amanda's room with water and juice in hand.

[Location: Heading to Amanda's room] [Mood: worried / angry] [Thoughts: It'll be okay Mand]

[Tegian]

Some time after Sheera had left the room, Kayleb woke up from the short nap he had fallen into. At first, he didn't really remember that he was not in his own room so he stretched out on his stomach and let his wings stretch open before he shook them a few good times to get any loose feathers off. As soon as the few loose feathers started drifting to the bed and floor did he remember he was not in his room, but rather, in Sheera's. He jolted up onto his hands and knees, his wings snapping closed to his back. Quickly and half frantically he seized the feathers that had fallen, well, the ones he could find, and with no where to put them, simply thew them into the small trash bin by Sheera's night stand. It was at that point he noticed the note that had been left for him. After a quick read, he shoved it in his pocket.

Kayleb took a few moments tidying up Sheera's bed before he left Sheeras room. Only after he closed the door behind himself did he realize Tina was standing in the hall, watching him, which gave him quite a startling fright. He gasped audibly and put a strained smile on his face as he started to comment about how she startled him, but she spoke before he had the chance.

Kayleb cringed at her tone of voice but it was nothing compared to the worry he felt fr Riley when told he was hurt enough to be in the medbay. He managed to mumble out, "I'm sorry, I didn't hear.." But stopped short when he realized Tina honestly didn't care what excuse he used. Instead, he just hurried off to the Medbay, which was then empty besides Riley laying in a bed. There was broken glass strewn about and no evidence of who had done that. Strange.. but Riley was more important. Kayleb headed straight over to him and pressed his palm to Riley's arm. Riley's wounds vanished quickly as they opened then slowly closed upon Kayleb's body. As per usual, red stained into his clothes in a few spots, but Kayleb was so used to it he didn't really care. All his clothes were starting to get the same blood stains, almost looking tie dyed.

Before Riley even awoke fully from his unconsciousness, Kayleb headed out of the medbay with a twinge to his step. After a quick stop off at his room to change out of his street clothes and into his uniform, he headed to the training room, sure Sheera was still there. He was proven right, Sheera was indeed there and seemed in much a better mood than before. She was still training with Jr, though she had just sent him off to get some water, so he stood against one of the walls, watching and waiting.

Location: training room Thoughts:Hope patrol wont be too long, Riley was pretty messed up...