[Other FULL] Titans: A Superhero RP (T) (IC)

[GreyBidoof]

Titans
A Superhero Roleplay

Welcome to the city of Hyperia. In some ways, it's just your ordinary metropolis: Busy people, lots of traffic, a healthy mix of urban-suburban life.

In other ways, it's anything but normal. Hyperia is protected by a team of five superheroes, the Champions, led by the charismatic Titan. This band of gifted indivduals have worked tirelessly for nearly a decade to keep their city safe from the clutches of evil. And evil there is indeed. From the sinister Blood Ravens, to the dastardly Mr. Malicious, to the destructive Blowtorch, Hyperia is teeming with mischief makers of all shapes, sizes, and powers. However, that is all about to change...

Introduction:

It was beautiful day in Hyperia. The sun was shining, spring was in the air, and the everything was peaceful. Well, almost everything...

"Watch your six!" TItan managed to fly out of the way just in time, as minivan sailed over his head. The vehicle smashed into a nearby storefront, shattering the glass display window.

He glanced over at the cloaked man who had shouted the warning, who was occupied with keeping an angry mob held back with careful blasts from his staff.

"Thanks, Sorcerer. Remember, don't hurt them, they're just civilians. Animatus is the real threat."

Sorcerer replied in his usual fashion. "Yeah, whatever. Let's just get this over with already."

Leaving the mage to deal with the mind-controlled citizens, Titan flew over to center of the conflict, further downtown. There he found the rest of his team, each busy combating Animatus' assault.

Bulwark was trying his best to catch the various vehicles that were being flung into the air by the incoming shockwaves of mental energy. It wasn't easy for the big guy, as his agility wasn't quite on par with his brute strength.

"Need a hand?" Titan asked his massive friend, who was trying to juggle both a pickup and a convertible simultaneously.

"I'm fine, just get to Animatus!" he bellowed, leaping toward more hurtling traffic.

Down the street, Magnetrix was using chunks of metallic debris to shield herself and Binary from a large crowd of brainwashed policemen. Every so often, one of the officers would get off a lucky shot between the cracks of the makeshift shield, causing the heroine to have to focus on deflecting the projectiles as well. Binary, as always, was fiddling with some kind of tech.

Titan swooped downwards, flying directly in front of the mob of controlled law enforcers. Their bullets and blows didn't harm him in the least. He then clapped his hands forcefully, knocking them over like dominoes. However, a few were already getting back up, others taking cover behind nearby wreckage.

"Thanks for the assist, but you need to get to Animatus before he wrecks any more of the city!" Magnetrix called to Titan. "Binary has some kind of device he says that will take him out."

Binary was still tinkering on what looked to be a fancy metal halo of sorts. As Titan flew over, the inventor tossed the device up to him.

"It's a remote subliminal image feed." Binary explained. "It feeds the wearer's mind thousands of mental images per second, overwhelming any current thought processes. It should be enough to nullify Animatus' powers, at least for a while."

Titan nodded. So I just have to get it on his head, and he's out of commission?" Binary nodded.

"Alright then. Hold on, this shouldn't take long." Titan flew into the air once more, heading for the epicenter of the chaos.

There, in the middle of a storm of green-hued mental energy, was Animatus himself. He was simply sitting there, in his long black trench coat, dark sunglasses, and black fedora, not moving at all.All of his concentration was being devoted to his attack on Hyperia.

As the hero approached his target, it became harder to progress. The man in black was holding him back by sheer force of will. Pushing harder, Titan slowly struggled forward.

It was clear that Animatus was actively resisting now, sending tendrils of energy out to defend himself. This was not enough to deter the Champion, who continued to wade forward, almost within reach of the villain.

Making a last surge forward, Titan reached out, Binary's device in hand. He slammed the ring down over the hat of the sitting man. Animatus immediately swooned, clearly disoriented but still conscious.

A swift uppercut fixed that.

Titan grinned, exhausted but relieved. All that was left to do was to take the man in black over to the meta wing of Blackrock Prison. Then he and his team could rest easy, for the time being. Speaking of which, here they are.

Aware that the fight had ended, the three remaining Champions regrouped near Titan and the fallen Animatus. "Where's Binary?" Titan asked, not seeing their last companion.

"He was complaining about some 'strange energy readings', so he went back to HQ" Magnetrix explained.

"Figures he would skip out when it came time to clean up," grumbled Sorcerer. Titan shot a stern look at the cloaked man.

"I'm sure he had his reasons. Let's get 'sleepy' over here to to Blackrock before he comes ... !"

At that moment, the air in front of the group spil open, forming a swirling black abyss. The heroes were unable to hold their ground , and one by one were sucked in to the vortex. A manical laugh echoed through the streets, before the portal vanished, leaving no trace of the incident.

Back at Champions headqurters, Binary couldn't believe his eyes. He replayed the monitor feed for the umpteenth time in a row. One minute his team was standing there talking, the next, they were gone, as if spirited away by some mysterious force.

He had noticed the strange spikes in radioactive energy near the end of the battle, and had made haste to get back to his equipment in order to investigate. He never would have quessed though, even in his wildest dreams, that even dangerous radiation levels could vaporise beings as hardy as his teammates. He simply did not know what to think.

One thing was for sure. As knowledge of the Champions' disappearance spread, there was going to be an increase in criminal activity around the city. There was no way he was going to be able to take care of this predicament himself.

Reluctantly, he recognized that it was time to use the contingency plan he had created many years ago. Stepping over to the mainframe computer, he accessed the neccessary file, hidden deep within his secure files.

A prompt flashed on the screen. Voice Confirmation Needed.

Now wasn't the time to hesitate. "Confirmation Code Alpha-Theta-Epsilon-1-0-0-1-0."

The screen flashed green. Confirmation code accepted. Beginning search for targets meeting specified requirements.

Binary stood there, pondering what he had just done. He had just decided to leave the fate of Hyperia up to a few gifted strangers. He hoped it was the right choice.


All throughout the city, the phones, computers, and electronic devices of those "select few" received an anonymous message.

"You have been selected, because of your special abilities, to assist the Champions with a mission of utmost importance. If you choose to accept this task, report to 1102 Washington Avenue within 24 hours."

Back to the Present:

As word of the Champions' disappearance spreads, villains of all kind begin to rally throughout the city. Who will stop them now?

You are one of the gifted few that Binary, the last remaining Champion, has reached out to to come defend the city from the approaching onslaught of crime. Will you accept the call, and become the new defenders of Hyperia?


How this all works:

This roleplay is classified as a hybrid sandbox/chapter-based. There is an overarching plot, introduced at the beginning of each chapter, that should somewhat inform the characters' actions. These chapters will introduce new storylines, quests, characters, and possibly locations and features. However, players are free to roam the city, doing as they please so long as plausibility and the rules allow.

Even though the some of the major plot is relatively static, the actions of player characters WILL affect parts as well. If a player incarcerates a villain, they won't be around to cause more trouble (unless something happens to change the situation), whereas if the villain is ignored or succeed in their dealings, they will become more powerful and perhaps make life harder for the heroes later.

For instance, the RP will begin in Chapter One, where the events detailed in the introduction have just happened, and players receive their initial call to action. Chapter Two will introduce a new part of the story that will be affected by the actions and completed/uncompleted quests of the participating players.

Objectives: (quests)

Objectives are quests or task that characters receive on their transceiver, which is given to them at the beginning of the first chapter. There are two types of Objectives: Story and Optional.

Story Objectives are mandatory events that each player must participate in when they arise. These quests serve to advance the specific plot that the GM has planned.

Optional Objectives, on the other hand, are completely... well, optional. These quests can vary widely, but most will entail preventing some kind of crime in around the city. These quests are "sent" to players via a tranciever post like the one below:

Incoming Objective:
Blowtorch is robbing the 1st national bank, in the financial district.
​

Locations:

- Downtown: The heart of Hyperia. Skyscrapers and city buildings line the busy streets, along with the Champions headquarters, which occupies a spot just off of main street. Downtown Hyperia closely resembles your stereotypical urban center.
- Suburbia: Home to rows and rows of middle-class homes, Suburbia is full of residential neighborhoods. Families and middle-class citizens live here, making this one of the most populated regions of Hyperia.
- Financial District: The bread-winner of the city, the financial district is home to numerous banks, the stock exchange, and other wealthy businesses. Unfortunately, this has also made it a common target for heists and robberies.
- Cape Royale: Cape Royale is a collection of private villas and resorts, owned by wealthy magnets and tycoons who reside in Hyperia. Only the elite can afford to live here, and the atmosphere drips with luxury. High-profile theft runs rampant throughout the area.
- Bayside: A haven for blue collar working folk, Bayside's claim to fame is their trade indutry. Fishing, carpentry, metalworking, etc, all can be found within this large district. Bayside is still a modern, well-off town, but contains a larger number of immigrants and laborers than other parts of Hyperia.
- Mount Cedar: Built at the top of a mountain of the same name, Mount Cedar is a quiet, relaxed farmer's residence. THe area is famous for its agriculture, and giving off a rural, ranch-style feel at times. The district's center is more urban than the edges, balancing out the community.
- Old Town: Old Town was the first part of Hyperia to be developed, many years before it would come to harbor superheroes. It is a small, dusty community that seems to be stuck in the past, not having evolved with the rest of the city. Small time criminals often start off their career in Old Town, since any kind of modern police force doesn't exist there.
- Outlands: Barren and undeveloped, the Outlands sit just beyond Old Town, as the only part of the city with no official inhabitants. Located here is Zephyr forest, a favorite spot for outdoor-folk and hikers. It is also rumored that a famous supervillain might have once had a base in the Outlands.

Rules:

- Follow all PC and RPC rules and guidelines
- Whatever the GM says goes.
- Respect your fellow players, no bunnying, god-modding, etc (you know the drill)
- Take into consideration your current commitments before joining this RP. Try to be in a position where you can post at a minimum of once every two weeks.
- Joint posts are encouraged.
- This RP is rated T. No excessive swearing or gore.
- Be creative, and have fun!

Accepted Players:

- GreyBidoof (Burst)
- Gimmepie (Giron)
- MorallyIncorrect (Smiley)
- Foxrally (Nerites)
- Aquataris (Sea Champion)
- WestsideConnection (Proto)
- Godzil (Star Gazer)
- Adventure (Enzyme)
- Churaka (Shade)
- Sir Bastian (Quantum)
- Arx (Axel)
- Sonata (Deuseas)
- The Canceler (Reverb)
- Deceptio (Renegade)
- DreamOrDestruction (Spirit)
- Magic (Kariyai)

​

 

[GreyBidoof]

Chapter One
Summons

Recap: The Champions, Hyperia's team of superhero guardians have gone missing. Binary, in a state of desperation has called upon sixteen strangers to combat the eventual wave of crime that will engulf the city once news of the the Champion's disappearance spreads.

Incoming Story Objectives:
- Meet with Binary at Champions Headquarters within 24 hours.
- Receive transceiver from Binary

Notes:
- All characters must start out in Hyperia, although details of how they had gotten there may be included.
- You may choose to complete these objectives alone, or as a group.
​

General Note: If you wish for your character to have dialogue with Binary, contact me and I will be more than happy to oblige.

​

 

[Jay]

"This World... it isn't meant for people like you and I."


Hero Material​

The city was falling apart faster than Edward could keep up with. He was good, but he was only one man and while he planned to take care of the heroes eventually he at the very least wanted them around to deal with the villains first.

To be honest, he supposed it served him right for relying on the champions in the first place. They did a good job at keeping the villains occupied but they were typical good guys. "Lock the bad guys up, make them learn their lesson." People with power don't learn lessons, they try to give lessons because they think that that is what their powers entitle them to. Locking up criminals did nothing but put them away for a little while and as a result most "heroes" were only offering temporary solutions.

Renegade wasn't exactly making the best reputation, but at least his methods were permanent.

His knife made it quick at least, getting fried was similar to how they killed criminals in certain prisons. Of course, the specialized machinery was sure to be quicker and much more painless than a sharpened tactical blade. But it was more humane then snapping their necks right?

Sure, they were super-powered abomination scum, but they still had feelings. Might as well kill them with dignity.

He had been keeping a close eye on the Champions in all of their activities. It was necessary to watch them for weaknesses for his eventual plan to get rid of them and as a result he was one of the first to notice that they were gone. The news hadn't spread throughout the city yet however, so it was pretty obvious as to why he had gotten the text that still sat on his locked phone screen.

"You have been selected, because of your special abilities, to assist the Champions with a mission of utmost importance. If you choose to accept this task, report to 1102 Washington Avenue within 24 hours."

He had been selected had he? What? Was he part of the Champions secret reserves now?

He wasn't exactly hero material by their standards. Not in the conventional sense anyway.

The message had arrived shortly after the hoard of idiots that took this job before him were sucked into some sort of dark vortex or something. He had to admit it was pretty mysterious.

He just couldn't understand how it had taken that long for someone to deal with a group of people as downright worthless and pathetic as the self proclaimed "champions".

Oh and the random vortex of darkness also perplexed him somewhat.

He was alone in an alleyway across the street from the building he had been so graciously "invited" to. His costume was covering him from head to toe apart from the mask he held in his hand. He had wanted to at least see what the building looked like before blinding himself. He could tell the shape and general appearance of things thanks to his echolocation. A quick snap of his fingers to send sound waves bouncing and suddenly everything around him was illuminated. Still, that didn't show him color or any other sort of vibrancy and light, so as a matter of curiosity he wanted to take a look.

His dagger was holstered in a small scabbard attached to his left leg. Did they still call those things scabbards? He wasn't really sure actually. He didn't really care either. It was there and that was all that mattered, if he needed to kill anything then he would. There was still a chance that this whole summons was a trap after all.

Alright, it was time.

Edward slowly placed the mask upon his face and just like that everything went dark, he closed his eyes gently on instinct and took a breath of the air flowing in from the left and right of his face. The mask was fitted exactly to the measurements of his cranium and it took him only a few seconds to tightly and completely secure it with two straps going along the back of his head.

And just like that Edward went away and The Renegade was prepared for the upcoming mission.

Renegade quickly clicked his fingers and the sharp noise reverberated around the alley and street beyond it, quickly bouncing lightly off the building that was to be his location. The area illuminated with sound and Edward found himself aware once more of his surroundings, in fact he was even more aware than before.

The small rat hiding behind the garbage bin to his right, for example, was now in full view, its shallow and small breaths making it easily found by Renegades echolocation.

Edward took a moment then and began to breathe gently and slowly, he channeled all of his chi out of his body and into his hearing. Just like that the city opened up, a mile around him Renegade could hear everything. It was hard to pick out words from common sounds, but Renegade could definitely pinpoint several other entities in the general area. They sounded... different to regular civilians, but he couldn't be sure.

He made the assumption that he wasn't the only one heading to this address.

There was nobody immediately nearby, so Renegade decided that he would wait, continuing to focus his echolocation he would watch the general vicinity of the district he was in from the alley.

He would not be the first to enter this place, it was too risky. Once somebody else was inside he'd listen intently and then decide as to wether or not he would bother to follow and inquire further about the situation at hand. He was pretty well hidden from sight until then, his dark outfit would surely blend well with the shadows and he saw no need to move too quickly.

So Rengade waited patiently, vaguely interested in the beings that would arrive and the events of the the day to come.

 

[JukeboxTheGhoul]

​

SEA CHAMPION
Πρωταθλητής Θάλασσα
Pro̱tathli̱tí̱s Thálassa
​

The water. He felt a ripple in the water, rumbling over his skin. He remembered,

"The dying breath of the salty sea,
To avoid disgrace throughout eternity,
So Neries in thousands shan't never be.
To save the essence of thine deity,
I ask, brave warrior, believe in me,
And in doing so I shall set thee free,
And with grave futures that you shall see,
You gain the burdens of Gods,
So a God thou shalt be".
He closed his eyes, the fading images of the young that are the oldest of all. He opened his eyes, the reflection of the surface above made an azure honeycomb. Entwined along the lake floor. He slid his figures through the water, feeling his throat. His fingers glided across his Prominentia laryngea, The Adam's Apple to those who speak not of ancient script.Gingerly, he followed his chin around, and there on his neck he felt them. On his neck he felt four parallel slits along his neck, as he breathed they expanded and then contracted. He pulled himself in to an upwards position. The water encasing him invigorated him, yet felt so homely. The song of a thousand souls sung a sweet tune as the water rippled. He felt as if he was snuggled up inside the womb. Relaxed and new. He looked down, his heavily built body from his extensive exercise was enough to impress himself. While seemingly easy in theory, Alex was hard to please, in his mind the only thing to be impressed by was a product of a divine being, and this certainly was. His eyes followed his abdomen down, but where his hips should have been, below he saw a long majestic blue tail, with scales the colour of Sapphires. The tail had two fins that thinned out like one might expect on a dolphin. The thin flins were almost transparent. He brought his tail up to his eyes, admiring the tail. Such an elegant form, the bone stretched out like a leaf.​

Suddenly, a huge cascade of vibrations echoed through the water. Alex sighed. He whipped his merman tail down, and lunged upwards. As he broke the water he did not gasp for he could breath below the surface. He lifted himself upwards, his dolphin tail pulsated a blue aura, shining with the vigor of a newborn Star. His tail split apart, it reformed in to human legs. The human legs were hairy and well defined. He placed his legs on the edge of the pool and stood up. He had successfully mastered the Mermaid form. The name slightly irritated him. Why was popular culture so cruel to those who were bestowed with the opportunity to combine their body with that of a fish? They assumed all such as these were female. A correct term was merman but seem much like a bastardisation of the mermaid concept. Although in ancient culture, they did have mermen, born of Poseidon and Amphitrite was Merman named Triton. Though they were expected to have a beard and a trident, which neither really suited him, nor the shaggy seaweed hair. Other cultures were not so nice to people such as he.
​

He brushed away the thought, droplets of water ran down his body. The smartphone left on the rock nearby vibrated, in the cove, the conical nature of the cave amplified the sound. He held up his hand, which was soaked with water yet surprisingly not wrinkled, his eyes illuminated, the white iris glowed turquoise, the water that slid down his skin receded immediately, being absorbed into his skin, simultaneously his ear drums also absorbed the water. It picked up his phone and slid it across, and the image of the white cliffs of dover dissipated, revealing the text behind. "PRIORITY: You have been called to Hyperia Champion HQ."
Yeah, right, first they have enough heroes, now they want me back? Forget it. He thought as he put down the phone. He prepared to go back in to meditation when something caught his eye, his scroll, the one uncovered near Mount Olympus. The scroll was bound together ever since it was found, no one has successfully opened it. He walked up to it and picked it up, he felt his spirit, begin to ebb with power. He pulled the two sticks that the scroll was wrapped around, as expected they resisted. He sighed and put it down again, and then Alex was about to enter back into the water when the scroll began to roll. It tumbled down the side slipping sideways, the mud had marked the paper before it made a plop. It entered the water. Alex's heart skipped a beat, How could I be so careless with something so sacred... He dived in, his leg meshed together into the tail, he swam like mad, the paper was sodden. He clutched the scroll, bringing it to the surface, when it came to the surface something miraculous happened...

It wasn't wet. The scroll had went a metre deep and came out with no evidence. The leather straps loosened, and fell away. He couldn't believe it. He could finally open it... He carefully pulled it open, the scroll displayed a strange language unlike latin or greek, but he could read the first few sentences. They glowed with an intoxicating aurora. The golden glow that entranced him aligned the strange script into greek, he read it out loud as the words formulated.

"The dying breath of the salty sea,
To avoid disgrace throughout eternity,"
​

His heart pounded. Could it be? He didn't wait for anymore to reveal, he closed it and ran outside.
​

It was a hot april day, the wind blew gently through the leaves. The sun pierced the canopy above. Alex hurried to his boot and lifted it open, taking out a backpack, a set of folded up clothes, including some trousers that looked like denim but was actually a variant to make it more compatible with water, and his powers, and his jumper. He shook them out and slid his trousers on, he jogged in and grabbed his smartphone and put it in a waterproof case. He put his head through the entangling mess of an orange hooded jumper with a big black "Ω" on it, the greek letter Omega. He pulled the hoodie down and slung his backpack around one arm, rustling in to the bag and bringing out a key in which he pressed the button and opened the car locking system. He opened the door throwing his bag at the other side of the car, it hit the passenger door and then bounced down on to the floor. He sat in the driver seat and started the car. The car was a relatively new dull brown Ford Crown Victoria. Which he drove through the slightly bumpy forest, dodging the trees casually, week old tire tracks were imprinted into the dirt in front of him. He skidded on to the relatively unused road, it was riddled with potholes. The lane was quite worn, mainly because it was blocked on one end by a boulder, nudging the mayor to build a better road in to Hyperia. He drove in to the metropolis, gazing at the tower on the horizon.

He parked his car outside, ignoring the 'Do Not Park' sign. He gets out taking his backpack of essentials. Entering the building through the glass doors, and sat down on a chair without asking the secretary, he saw all the others doing it, it was obvious what he needed to do. He awaiting to see, this assembly of the most gifted and most powerful beings in Hyperia...
​

 

[The Canceler]

Richard Renner aka Reverb
-------------
Preliminary Tremors

Richard started at the sound of his phone vibrating against his table. He looked up from his physics textbook to see that he had received a text message, an email, and a voicemail, all at the same time. Is this some kind of prank or something...? He ignored his phone and went back to reading his book. He couldn't afford any stupid distractions when he had a test in two days, not to mention a paper to write, as well as someone he'd promised to help study, and on top of all of that this recent business with -- BZZZZ BZZZZ. Richard jumped a little in his seat again. He looked back down at his phone. Two new text messages, two new emails, two new voicemails. Richard sighed. He picked up his phone, and before he could unlock it, it happened again. His hand felt weird again and his phone fell right through his hand.

"Dammit, not again." Richard reached down to pick it up, tossed it onto his table, and sat down in his chair. Except he didn't; this time, his whole body was overcome by that strange feeling and he fell straight through the chair. Richard angrily pushed the chair off of him and got up. BZZZZ BZZZZ. I can't stand this! What's happening to me?! This was the worst incident. Before this, it was putting his foot through a shoe.

Richard picked up his phone again and checked the text messages. "You have been selected, because of your special abilities, to assist the Champions with a mission of utmost importance. If you choose to accept this task, report to 1102 Washington Avenue within 24 hours."

"...what?" Everyone knew who the Champions were. The greatest heroes of all time. Titan, Sorcerer, Bulwark, Magnetrix. When superpowered people started showing up seemingly out of nowhere a few decades back, they were the ones who selflessly used their powers for good. They weren't policemen; rather, they protected Hyperia from the people who used their powers for evil. But what do they want with me? is what Richard wanted to know. What's going on in this world? First my... condition, now the Champions need me? What could they possibly do with me? I'm just a college student. I don't know anything about fighting villains... or fighting anything. After fifteen more minutes of sitting and thinking, Richard got up. There were too many questions, and only one way to answer them.

Richard slipped his phone into his pocket, grabbed his hat, grabbed his keys, picked up his keys from the floor, and walked out to his car. Before he got in, he stood for about a minute staring at it. If I fall through the car... I don't even want to think about it. Richard got in anyway and made his way to the address. As he drove, he began thinking to himself. Now that I think about it, the message mentioned my "special abilities." First of all, I don't know how my "ability" can be helpful or constructive in any way... all it's been is a hindrance. Second, how did the Champions know I had any special abilities in the first place? The only record of anything happening to me is probably with the hospital. Do they have access to my medical records? Richard's head was swimming with questions at this point. He became more and more distracted until all of a sudden, one of his hands went straight through the steering wheel. Richard gave a small shout and put his hand back on the wheel. This is getting ridiculous. If the Champions know anything about this or how to deal with it, I suppose it's worth my time to talk to them.

Richard finally arrived at the address. He parked on the side of the road and got out of his car. 1102 Washington Avenue was a large skyscraper, but it didn't stand out at all. It was almost intentionally unassuming. Richard walked through the front door, not knowing what to expect.

What he found was a well-furnished lobby with comfortable lighting and a pleasant atmosphere. A young secretary woman, maybe five years older than Richard, was sitting at the desk. Richard was a little confused, but he didn't really know what to expect. This is the craziest his life has ever been, so he was taking it a step at a time.

"Hi, um... I got a message telling me to come here. Oh, my name is Richard. Richard Renner?"

"Oh! Yes, we've been expecting you," the secretary replied. "You and a few other people. Why don't you have a seat here in the lobby and wait for the rest to show up?"

"Uhh, yeah. Sure thing." Richard walked over to the couch and took a seat. He began pondering what the secretary told him. 'A few other people?' Meaning there's more on their way? What's going on here? There's just something not right about this. But for now, all Richard could do was sit and wait. And, so, he did.

 

[Lucifer-san]

~Spirit~

---

Episode 01-1: We Want You to Enlist!

---

It had been quite some time since he had been in Hyperia. He had been traveling all around the world for the past six years and going along with the hero gig for just about 4 years or so. It was a pretty simple thing, but just as it was simple it was also pretty taxing sometimes. Well, someone had to do it he thought to himself as he walked around the Outlands. If no one had the courage to make the world a better place than those that were truly evil would've already sunk the world into complete chaos. That's just how things worked, well if comics were to be believed anyways.

Though the whole situation with how heroes had to deal with villains for the most part was kind of tedious in a way as there was no permanent way to take away a super villains powers it was only inevitable that they got free once more. They would eventually cause more havoc and this time they'd be just a bit more dangerous and have just a tad bit more knowledge to work with now, it kind of interrupted the path to peace but he knew eventually the world would figure out how to attain true peace.

Cain himself was of course one of the heroes, Spirit to be exactly, and was currently in Hyperia to see his family. That is, if they had decided to finally settle down somewhere instead of constantly moving around or something. He doubted it a bit, but Cain had already decided that there was no harm in him trying at the least. Besides that, he also had to get a bit of money out of his personal account. He had used up a majority of his money and didn't have much left so he had decided it'd probably be in his best interest to get a bit more.

Walking around some more as he slowly made his way into the actual city itself instead of the outskirts where he was currently located a song began to play. It was the notification sound that was on his phone, it was a Japanese song that he had heard once. Smile Bomb or something like that anyway. He didn't know where it came from, but since he had it in English he had to admit it was really good. It was one of the reasons why he bothered to get a phone, that and the fact that it was really convenient.

Though, if he had to admit to himself he kind of wanted to own a PC again. He had been really into a couple of games before he went on his trip and hadn't really gotten a chance to play them again after well…traveling worldwide and stuff. Pulling his phone from the little strap connecting it to his shorts he looked at what the message was about.

"You have been selected, because of your special abilities, to assist the Champions with a mission of utmost importance. If you choose to accept this task, report to 1102 Washington Avenue within 24 hours."

"Huh…wonder how they got my number." He shrugged his shoulders after a few minutes of thought before deciding that he should probably go and see what's up. Cain really didn't want to have to abandon his stuff somewhere but it'd be easy enough to find them if he really wanted to. His power flowed through his veins as he reached out and felt how the wind hit everything around him; there was no one else nearby for at least 75 feet. Good, that would let him get changed in peace otherwise he'd probably have to do something so that things would run smoothly.

Unzipping the bag he had currently he pulled out his gear and began to suit up. He really didn't know how his reputation held up around people seeing as he generally was more a travelling hero than a local one that would have much more recognition, at least that's how it worked in his head. He didn't really expect much fame or anything though, knowing how people worked he wouldn't be surprised if he met at least a few that knew of him. Clenching his gauntlet clad fists he gained a much more serious look, as a hero he had to treat things seriously else it'd be a pretty sorry example. Throwing his poncho on he decided it was time to make his way to the city. Deciding to carry his bag with him for the time being it was time for him to go.

Jumping high into the air he created a bubble of air around himself while simultaneously creating a vacuum that sucked him and the bubble towards it. It was sort of like flying, but really it was more of taking steps through air. He had to make a sort of "Tunnel" that guided where he went, "Portals" that acted as corners sort of and allowed him to control which direction he went, and then an "Exit"( which there could be multiples of) that would stop his forward momentum and act as a destination point. All together it allowed him to move extremely fast, and if he pushed he could possibly break the sound barrier but then he'd probably suffer from tunnel vision and crash into a building or something, which hurt. A lot. He'd done it before, and had regretted it immediately.

The one where he was launched like a bullet pretty much was only good in close range where he could generally control where he wanted to land as it was pretty much one-directional. While Wind wasn't his best element to use Cain had practiced this particular move to the point that it was something that he could do with a simple thought. So as he began to travel he practically became a blur to the eye as he traveled to his destination as nothing but a blur to the common human's eye. It was in under 2 minutes that he reached his destination and slowed himself as landed without a sound on a building he vaguely remembered being in the downtown area.

"Hmm, I think this is near Washington Avenue…" Pulling the phone out from his bag he went to his GPS app and looked around he was only a block it seemed and looking over to his right from where he was standing he would assume it was going to be the large skyscraper. "Ugh, why couldn't I have just landed near the place instead…?" He let out a bit of a whine as he decided that he should probably use some sort of distraction before going into the building, but then a better idea came to him. Why do that when he could just where his normal clothes, Gust Step his way into a nearby alley-way and walk in?

"That'd probably work better, good thing I decided to carry my bag with me else I would have had to go all the way back and by then I probably would've been too tired to come here." He chuckled lamely as he went through the tedious process of throwing his normal clothes back on and losing the serious air around him. In a couple of minutes he was currently in front of the building after "Stepping" back onto the ground. With his hands in his pockets he whistled a merry tune as he walked in through the sliding glass door casually with a small simple smile on his face.

The interior was pretty chill he thought, it had nice furniture, decent lighting and an overall calm atmosphere. All in all he liked the lobby so far. His eyes spotted a couple other people currently waiting in the lobby, they must be here because of the message he thought to himself. Walking up to the receptionist desk in the front he spoke.

"I'm here because of the message I got, is it cool if I wait in the lobby till whoever else got it comes?" Cain asked politely with a relaxed posture. He was supposed to be here after all, the worst thing she could say was no and that was cool too. That meant he wouldn't have to put up with any stress or whatever he was called here for, so it was a win either way.

"Yes go right ahead sir. That'll be just fine." The receptionist said kindly with a sweet smile. Returning the smile with a nod he walked over to one of the chairs and plopped down into it before promptly going to sleep, or at least looking like he was. His eyes were closed and his posture was relaxed, breathing was steady and he didn't seem aware. Those were the basic steps of meditation that he pretty much had mastered by this point if he were to be honest. Now he just had to wait, hopefully whoever else needed to show would come soon else he might actually fall asleep or something.​

 

[Groc]

Luna Greenwood, Star Gazer
Jumping at the Call

Luna lounges on her couch, a book in one hand, an apple in the other, enjoying her day off. She didn't have another shift for three days, and her last patrol had gone very well for her, managing to prevent two muggings and save the victim of a hit and run. In her mind, she's earned a day to recharge her batteries. She lets her head fall back, music pumping softly from her portable speaker. Freddie was singing about how he was having such a good time, and he didn't want to stop at all. Luna hums along, but is jolted out of her good mood when the music is interrupted by the loud chirping of a text message.

She jumps in surprise, dropping her book and grabbing her phone. The message is short and simple, but not at all what she expected:

"You have been selected, because of your special abilities, to assist the Champions with a mission of utmost importance. If you choose to accept this task, report to 1102 Washington Avenue within 24 hours."

"The Champions? What could they want with me? How do they know about me? What kind of mission could this be?"

Luna is so surprised, she's talking to herself. She stops in front of a mirror, actually replying to her reflection.

"They're the guardians of the entire city. You think they don't realize when a girl in blue armor starts flying around trying to save people?"

She nods, conceding that she has a point. "Okay, so either they want my help with something, or they want me to hang up my helmet and leave the hero work to professionals. Either way, I should go see what they want. You don't just ignore the Champions!"

Satisfied with that chain of logic, she runs to her room, throwing open her closet doors. Behind the false wall stands a life-sized mannequin holding her armor, which she quickly slips into a gym bag. It wouldn't do to leave her little Bayside apartment in full costume, after all. She had a secret identity to protect. She heads outside, hops onto her motorcycle and heads to the docks. She'll park by the shipyard and change in the cover of the shipping containers.

*Later, after suiting up...*

Star Gazer moves through Downtown, running and jumping from roof to roof when applicable, flying when necessary. She eventually finds herself at the Champions' headquarters, according to the text. A fairly unassuming office building, by all accounts. But then, what did she expect? A skyscraper with a giant "C" on the front?

She hovers in front of the building, taking a deep breath to calm her nerves. She slowly descends, landing on the sidewalk in front of the building and quickly slipping inside. No sense attracting more attention than she has to, right?

Inside is a rathet cozy foyer, complete with couches and potted plants. Inside is a receptionist in a business outfit and a couple young men in street clothes. Star Gazer glances down at her leather and spandex outfit and suddenly feels a little overdressed. She clears her throat as she approaches the desk, earning an amused glance from the receptionist. "I'm here to see the Champions. I... I have an appointment." She blushes slightly, realizing how silly she must look and sound.

"Of course, ma'am. We're expecting you, along with quite a few others. Why don't you take a seat while you wait?"

"Oh. Um... thank you. I'll... do that." She bows her head to the receptionist, heading over to the water cooler and quickly filling and subsequently draining a cup of water. After a few more cups, she feels a little better about the whole situation, even giving the young man a smile and wave. She leans against the wall by the cooler, occasionally refilling her cup, and offering a smile and wave to anyone who comes in.

 

[Ice1]

James 'Smiley' Abney
Self-duplication​

Sunday Roast​

James was cooking when he received the message. Well, one of him was cooking. He was also mowing the grass, doing taxes, and getting some tools to repair his broken car. The one cooking was closest to his tablet, so he was the one to get the message. The screen lit up, and a blue text box had appeared in the middle of it:

You have been selected, because of your special abilities, to assist the Champions with a mission of utmost importance. If you choose to accept this task, report to 1102 Washington Avenue within 24 hours.
​

He had a suspicion that the Champions new about him already, and this confirmed it. He was impressed. Both the British and the American government hadn't figured out he lived here, and lived here for a while now. He wondered if the files about him would be able to obtain online. He had seen the Champions work, and he had always admired what they did. He had never thought about joining them, as he felt his days of crime fighting were over, but apparently they had different ideas. If they needed him, they needed him, and he planned to accept their invitation. His body blurred and were moments before had stood one James Abney, now there were two. One went back to the kitchen, and continued making dinner, while the other went upstairs, and got dressed. He grabbed a suit and bowler hat, and was ready to leave the house.

James left the store. He had one of himself walking towards the address from the message, but it wasn't this body. He had to bring these tools home, and get to working on his car. Damn, the chicken is getting overcooked, he thought, as he entered another store. It was a sports store, and he picked up a hockey mask. It was Yellow, and had a smiley that you would see in text drawn on it. It reminded him of a book he had read a couple of years back. You will fit me, he thought, and he smiled. Now where did I put the curry powder?

He waited for himself two streets away from Washington Avenue. His two bodies walked up to each other, and he received the yellow mask. One of him went home from that point while the other put on the mask, and walked up to the building. It was a huge skyscraper, but it didn't stand out in the Hyperia skyline, between the numerous of other skyscrapers. He entered the glass door. People had already arrived, as the lobby had a couple of young adults scattered around it. A girl in a blue latex suit that stood by the water cooler waved at him. He nodded back at her. He walked up to the receptionist.
"Are you Mister William Cole?" She said, "We've been expecting you."
So they haven't got a recent file, he thought. "Yes, I am," he said, "I assume we're supposed to wait here?"
"Yes, Binary is coming down at any moment, just take a seat and he'll be right with you." Answered the receptionist. James went over to a seat, and sat down. At home, he grabbed the chicken from the oven and started dinner.

 

[Sir Bastian]

[CSS-DIV="background-color: #35B5E8; padding: 15px; border: solid; border-color: #000000; border-width: 1px; text-align: left; width: 552px;"]

Quantum and Giron | A Meeting of Heroes(?)!

​

Giron was lost in thought as he leapt from roof to roof, high above the pedestrians and traffic so none would see him. "You have been selected, because of your special abilities, to assist the Champions with a mission of utmost importance. If you choose to accept this task, report to 1102 Washington Avenue within 24 hours." is what the message had said and when the Champions called you, then you went to see them.

I wonder what they want me for though? What could I possibly do to help them? I'm just a normal guy. he thought to himself, not even considering the fact that he was in his natural state of being a seven foot tall alien lizard and that he had a "natural state" to begin with because he spent a lot of his time shapeshifting. How exciting!

Meanwhile, somewhere in the skies above the city, Quantum was soaring towards the center of town, arms resting by her sides as she did. Doctor Mengsk had given her specific instructions about where the address she was going to was and had spent almost an hour telling her to stay well above the skyline, in order to stay out of most peoples' sight. He figured it was better to stay off the radar for as long as she possibly could.

All of that was behind her now, and her insides were fluttering with anticipation as she was finally, -properly- outside. She'd been out of the lab before, but only for brief flight-tests and the like. For the first time since she woke up, she felt truly free. Smiling to herself at this train of thought, she rose upwards, doing a quick loop with a little laugh emerging from her, followed by a quiet sigh.

This is everything I wanted. I could just keep flying like this forever...

She looked down, staring at the buildings slowly whizzing past below. She wasn't going at top speed, since she was planning to enjoy every single second of her freedom. The Doctor wasn't mean or evil, keeping her in the lab. She knew he meant well. But to her, this was still a once in a lifetime thing.

Realizing that she should be coming up to the address soon, Quantum glanced down, scanning over the buildings for the one Mengsk had described and showed her a picture of. That's when she spotted something odd.

She squinted, seeing a green figure leaping from rooftop to rooftop. On closer inspection, it looked like... a hulking, green, humanoid lizard. Widening her eyes, Quantum kept watching the figure making a beeline straight for the Champions' HQ.

This... this must be why they called me! There's an attack on the city, and one of these monsters is headed straight for the tower! She took a deep breath (Or at least what sounded like one), shaking her head lightly. Come on Q, now's not the time to freeze up! This is your time to shine! If you can take out this alligator-thing, then the Champions are gonna love you! Come on, focus now. Deep breaths, deep breaths.Right... let's do this!

She moved around mid-air, changing direction from going straight to moving diagonally downwards, aimed straight at the lizard-man, slowly picking up speed, her arms locked to her sides, a million thoughts moving through her head in an adrenaline-rush.

Okay, here we go! I just need to get a good knock in first and he'll go flying! I should shout something when I do it. Oh, I didn't think of a catchphrase! Uhm... uh... come on, think... what's a good battlecry...

Suddenly, she snapped back to reality, the buildings and the lizard zooming closer way quicker than she was expecting, her eyes widening as she stretched out her arms in front of her, metallic hands clenched into fists as she attempted to pull up again to avoid crashing into the building below, all the while shouting the first thing that came to her head.

"WOLVERIIIIINES!"

Wolverines? Giron thought, picturing the aggressive animals in his head as he heard the adrenaline-fuelled shout from above him. It took the alien less than a second to react after processing that information.
"WOLVERIIIIINES!" he screamed loudly "OH MY GOD WHERE ARE THEY?!"

Giron proceeded to run around the rooftop in circles, completely missing the point that the strange cry had somehow come from above him and constantly changing into random animals in his mad panic. Only the sound of something crashing into the roof, launching a horrendous cloud of cement dust into the air, shook Giron from his sudden psychosis - the alien now in the form of a wolverine himself.
"Huh? Where are the wolverines?"

Letting out a groan, Quantum managed to slowly stand up from the pile of rubble she'd made out of the roof, pushing aside a couple of bits of roof. Not very concerned with the slight hole into someone's living room, she turned to face her enemy, only to blink in surprise at his new form.

... Wait, where did- is he a shapeshifter? She stared at him silently for a few moments before clenching her fists, the purple, glowing parts of her suit shining ever so slightly brighter. He's making fun of me!

"Alright buddy, I was going to go light on you, but no chance now!" Without wasting any more time, she pulled her arms backwards and took half a running step forwards before shooting ahead of her, throwing both of her arms and hands forwards, aiming to slam straight into the shapeshifter in what would be both a hit as well as a little trip skywards.

"AAAAAHHHHHHHHH" Giron screamed as from among the debris and dust a feminine figure clad from head to toe in some sort of cybernetic suit launched at him. Slamming into him and grabbing him as she continued on her upwards trajectory. Giron, still freaking out, proceeded to once again rapidly cycle through forms hoping something would help. A goat, a salamander, a bat, a hedgehog, a squid - that shot ink into the face of the woman(?) - before he finally settled on a turtle and withdrew his body into his shell.

"What th-" Quantum stuttered as she struggled to hold onto his rapidly changing form, none of them really doing much to deter her from her upwards-angled rise. However, as he turned into a squid, and while she was busy fending off all of his flailing arms, a shot of ink covered up her visor, causing her to let out a yelp of surprise. Instantly, she felt his form shrinking, managing to grip onto him with one arm while lifting her right hand to try and wipe the ink off of her helmet.

"Ack, you little-!" she growled while clearing away a good amount of the ink from her helmet, but she was halted in her tracks as the ledge of a building suddenly came into view, the two figures slamming into it, crashing through it and tumbling onto a rooftop, sending rocks and debris scattering across it, the turtle slipping out of her arms and skidding along the rooftop.

Slowly staggering to her feet, her metallic feet 'tinging' lightly against the concrete beneath her, Quantum raised her hands to wipe the remaining ink off of her, taking a few deep breaths, before locating the turtle lying a few metres off to the side of her. "That is -it-! You're done now, buster!"

Giron staggered to his feet, returning to his true form.
"What is going on here?! All I did was answer a text message and now scary aliens are trying to kill me!"

"Don't try to play dumb with me! The Champions called me here to help take you out, and that's exactly what I'm gonna do!" she replied, raising her right hand to aim her palm at him, the purple-glowing rings lighting up intensely.

Giron flexed his legs in preperation to leap out of the way of whatever the alien was about to do. He hadn't the slighted clue what was going on, but he didn't have any intention of dying on some dirty old rooftop before he ever even got to the Champions' building. Giron, who actually is an alien, flexed his claws in preparation of what was about to come.

As Quantum prepared to blast the living daylights out of the crouched lizard-man, a door opened on the other side of the roof. A man in a white lab coat stepped out, and upon seeing the impending duel, he spoke.

"Quantum, Giron. Stop. The others are waiting for you downstairs. Let's not keep them waiting."

With that, the man promptly walked down the stairs, leaving the two figures wondering what had just happened.

Blinking several times, Quantum stared at the door that had just closed, her arm still outstretched, but the lights having died down. After a few moments of speechlessness, she looked back to Giron. "... Wait. So you're... not a bad guy?"

"Why would you think I'm a bad guy?"

"I dunno! You see a giant lizard-man jumping around the rooftops and you just kind of... assume! I guess!" She shifted a little from one foot to the other, lifting her hand to rub against the back of her neck, looking extremely sheepish. "Uhm... I, uh... sorry I punched you. Or, just... attacked you, in general. Uhm..."

"I'm sorry I inked on your face."

"It... happens. H-heh." A long couple of seconds went by before Quantum cleared her throat (which, due to her voice already having a weird echo/vibration thing going on, sounded like a giant bee buzzing around nearby) and gestured towards where Binary had disappeared into. "So, uh. Downstairs?"

"Wait! This is the place? Oh, well okay then!" Giron chimed happily, trotting down the stairs and into the lobby seemingly having forgotten that he'd nearly been turned into a pile of green goo on the roof.
[/div]
​

 

[Jay]

"Is this really what they expect me to work with?"


Amoeba on a Test Slide​

It was far, far worse than he could have ever expected.

The beginning of his complete disgust in the beings he would be meeting came in the form of a very excited cry coming from the sky above. "Wolverines...?" He repeated the overly enthusiastic cry over in his own droll tone and couldn't help but cringe in anger and annoyance over what happened next. The oddest and most incredibly strange combination of sounds. Animal snarls and the gentle humming of energy... that same vibrant voice crying out other things as something sounded like it was... squirting? What?!

Renegade was feeling rather dejected, it sounded like some two bit comedy act but he was aware from what was being said that it was supposed to be a fight. On rooftops. Meaning super heroes. Was he to believe that this was what he would be dealing with? Was the World so desperate that it would call on such obviously incompetent and blithering fools as what he was now hearing? He turned his ears away in disgust, leaving the two to fight as he listened to others arriving.

First up was some buff guy, with a car and pretty normal attire if the sounds ways from his foot steps were providing an accurate depiction. His car was parked where Renegade was almost certain that there was a sign to say not to. Well it wasn't a very good damned sign to see one of the "heroes" was already breaking the law.

Then again, he himself was the first hero to show up technically... and he killed people. Still, it wasn't like he wasn't willing to accept himself as a bad example of things to come.

Next up was... some kid? Really? The sound of his footsteps sent waves that bounced off of his body and Renegade could see the boy quite clearly. His face was young, late teens, nervous expression. Why the hell was he here? Did he have powers? Was he worthwhile? Renegade hoped beyond hope that this kid was just an intern at the building or something.

His discussion with the receptionist dashed any hope of this.

Two idiots fighting on rooftops, some fool who needed driving lessons and a kid in his late teens. Wonderful start.

Next up was... what the Hell? Was that wind rushing or something? A little bit away Renegade heard the man that was the source of this strange power talk about changing clothes or something and after a few more moments he sensed it as the man walked up to and entered the building. That had been some powerful control over wind, it would have had to have been to create such a rushing sound. Elemental powers perhaps? Something similar? Renegade wasn't sure.

But God damn that guy needed to learn a thing or two about fashion. He legitimately looked like a hobo.

Still, this one seemed somewhat more valuable than those he had seen so far. He didn't think anybody could possibly do worse than them.

And then the next one showed up.

He had heard a few leaps across buildings and a few moments of silence between, so he assumed that this girl could fly. But he could have never made any assumption as to the appearance she had as she got closer. What the Hell was she wearing? Some sort of gladiator armor? Were heroes still that cliché? Sighing he slowly ran his hand down his mask in exasperation. He supposed if nothing else she looked like the type that would be right at home with the champions.

Just as she entered the building Renegade lifted his mask momentarily to see her suit better and-

Vibrant blue.

He should have just left the area completely then and there.

With the mask down and his hearing focused once more. Renegade waited for the next individual to arrive.

Slow... normal footsteps. A girl was approaching. She seemed incredibly nervous from her body language and expression. Another damned mistake of an invite. It pissed him off, the Champions were summoning these people whom had no idea what they were getting into. What the Hell was this? A game to them?

He sighed for a moment and reminded himself that all those present had powers of some sort, they had to, why else would they be here? That meant that they were a potential danger. Renegade would watch them, keep an eye on them. These were people he would eventually have to kill. He had to remember that. It was easier for him if he could get to know them now to deal with them later.

Maybe that would give some meaning to this pathetic grouping of "heroes".

The girl walked into the building and her speaking to the receptionist confirmed like it did for all the others, that the Champions (or more, Binary, since he had been the only one not present during their vanishing) had summoned her.

Finally came the old man with the hockey mask.

Wait... what? The old man with the hockey mask?

Renegade literally had no idea what to say about that one. What kind of worthless assortment of heroes was he receiving as allies? What the actual hell was going on?

It was then that he decided to tune back in to the two fighting fools above. They seemed to have calmed down, being on the roof of the building now and it seemed that a third voice was speaking to them, though it was difficult to make out from so far down, even for him.

"Q...tum, G...on. Stop. The............ ing for .....st...... Let's not............ waiting."

Even if it was only patches, Renegade knew that voice from his surveillance of the Champions. It was Binary. This entire operation was actually legitimate. Considering the others he had been watching, Renegade wasn't sure if that was actually good news or not. Still, if nothing else it made him pretty confident that he could now proceed to walk inside.

Oh goodie.

***​

More than a little annoyed at the severely lacking quality of those whom he had seen so far. Renegade pushed on through the front doors of the building. He walked rather plainly, but there was incredible confidence and purpose in his stride, almost arrogance one might say.

The receptionist was a little shocked and flustered by his sudden appearance, she clearly recognized him... as he had expected. Still, her shock was understandable as he was more than a little imposing. Black jacket and outfit, strong muscular build, shoulder length black hair and his mask prevented any part of his actual flesh from being seen and almost made him look inhuman. The dagger was painfully visible in his leg holster and anyone whom bothered to pay attention would be able to see that it was very, VERY well maintained. The reflection of all those in the room visible upon its surface.

"A-Ah... you must be Mister Rene-"

"Quiet."

"O-Oh... I-"

"I know exactly why I'm here. I know exactly what I'm supposed to do. I know exactly whom I'm waiting for. I know the situation better than any single person to walk through this door and presumably better than any person who will. In fact I probably know the situation better than you do."

"B-but you-"

"Secretaries are meant to be good at taking orders right? Do your job then. Be quiet. You're irrelevant to me. Just wait for the next person and tell them what they're supposed to be doing, because it isn't necessary for me. Is that understood?"

"Y-yes sir, thank you for your time."

"How polite, that's better. You're welcome."

He didn't bother taking a seat, he instead leaned against a nearby pillar. He didn't plan on getting too comfortable with all of the literally worthless specimens around him. He looked around at them again... noticing the woman wearing some metallic exo-suit, humming with the sound of energy and the large lizard man alongside her whom had just come down from upstairs.

He could tell that they were genuine by the sounds that the sound waves reverberated as they bounced off these individuals. The sounds of metal and scales were unique and easy to pick out.

He admitted these two looked decently powerful compared to the rest, but he was also painfully aware that they had been the idiots fighting on the roof-top. Pretty faces didn't hide missing brains.

One by one he examined them all one more time, just to be sure he wasn't hallucinating about how amusingly, yet worryingly terrible this bunch of individuals was;

Muscle bound, empty headed loser who couldn't park a car.

Scrawny college kid who looked like he was about to soil himself over a missing assignment.

Wind riding hippie who changed clothes on city streets.

Bad cosplay kid.

Some girl.

Old man with a mask, looking ready to commit an axe murder.

Some lizard... thing. Damned creepy looking really, but "creepy" was pretty standard in his line of work.

Finally, a weird, robotic lizard hater whom sounded like a ****ing generator.

...he sighed as he realized that he would have been better off with amoeba on a test slide.

Renegade sighed and leaned his head back against the cold stone pillar. Why did he suddenly have this horrible feeling that he had just made one of the biggest mistakes of his life?

 

[moon]

Hilda
outfitting & entering

The long day at Café Chester's had only just started when Hilda received the fateful text. Their morning customers and regulars had begun to drop in, but it was still relatively calm in the quaint and roomy locale. Hilda put her dishcloth away and picked up the phone from her jeans pocket. Mum didn't like it when she texted while at work, but right now it prrrooobably wouldn't hurt as nobody was even looking her way.

"You have been selected, because of your special abilities, to assist the Champions with a mission of utmost importance. If you choose to accept this task, report to 1102 Washington Avenue within 24 hours."​

Hilda had to stare at the message for several long seconds and blink quite a few times before she allowed herself to believe what it said. Her special abilities? The Champions? Selected??

"What are you hanging about for!" mum's agitated voice came from the other side of the counter. She gave her daughter an annoyed look.

Hilda looked up guiltily but had difficulty forcing her thoughts away from the message. "I was just, I'm just... Um, I think I'm not feeling alright, mum."

She put a hand up to her forehead and grimaced. If she faked feeling sick today, at least she could ponder the message alone somewhere else for a while. Buy herself some time.

Mrs Gard's face immediately turned from annoyed to worried. "Oh no, what's wrong dear?"

"Maybe those cakes I ate yesterday..."

"You ate too much!"

"Nah, I just, I shouldn't have touched them. I knew they might have been too old but, yeah, wanted to make sure. Didn't realize that they were until I had eaten them all. And today it's starting to feel. I think... Ugh..."

She bent over, faking stomach pain, and her mother sighed. "Well, don't loiter here, then! You'll contaminate all the pastry! Go on and get some rest at home, and I'll give you a call in a while, alright?"

"I'll do that, ugh..." Hilda said, quickly removing her apron and scuttling out from the café through the backdoor, snatching her jacket in the process. Mrs Gard shook her head before picking up Hilda's discarded dishcloth and tossing it into the garbage.


They lived only a couple of quarters away from the café, so Hilda ran. By the time she entered their flat and threw herself down in the living room sofa, she was all out panting. If she was going to be a super hero, she needed to get some cardio training in.

Super hero. Where did that thought come from? She picked up the phone again and stared at the message for what must have been minutes.

The Champions... Her father had never believed that they were real. Hilda had never given them much thought. Even though she had had super strength for all her life, she had never really thought about using it in some way. Dad had made it clear early on that she shouldn't. In any way. So it was mostly just there and useful now and then, but nothing she made a big deal out of. Could that be what the mysterious sender of this text meant? But she had had that power for all her life, so maybe it was rather her more recent "cooking" skills they wanted to know more about?

Either way, she had to decide what to do. Go there or ignore the message.

It only took a second after she had posed herself that question, before she jumped up from the sofa and ran to her room, giggling. If she was going to meet with super heroes and show her powers off, she needed to look the part! Rummaging through her wardrobe, she pulled out a pair of slimmer jeans and a pink canvas jacket. Hm, a jumpsuit of these would look hella good but wouldn't really be much of a superhero costume, would it?

She put the pink jacket back and pulled out a black leather jacket instead. Ooh. Stylish. Sort of dark. Not really her style to wear this as an overall. But they didn't need to know that she was a silly little girl who liked pink and painted her nails every day. She could pretend to be a dark badass heroine with super strength at the ready. Not giving herself more time to contemplate her choice of clothes to wreck for the day, she held up the jeans in one hand and the black leather jacket in the other.

The alchemy took mere seconds. The items fused together in a soft glowing light in front of her, and suddenly she held a snazzy jumpsuit with long sleeves instead. The texture was a strange black denim, but slightly more leathery to the touch. The jeans pockets were still there, as were the front pockets from the jacket. She clicked her tongue in approval. Alchemizing clothes was easy by now, as she had learned how to think in order to not completely ruin her targets.

But the black really made her mood darken as soon as she put it on. This was so not her, a dark leathery guardian in the night? She needed a color splash. And something to hide snacks in. Yep, this was an absolute requirement. She would not go out there and alchemize stuff without being able to make sure that she could grab some food when she felt her muscles weakening. Thus, next stop was her mum's room and wardrobe. The bags and accessories that woman had collected over the years... Pretty quickly, she found a tacky, white shoulder bag that she knew her mum never used. She wouldn't miss it. It had a silvery glimmer to it, and its front was littered with fake, plastic gems of mostly blue colors. In her other hand, Hilda already held a belt she had fetched from her own room.

"Dinner's served!" Hilda laughed as she fused the items together. The handbag merged with the belt and became like an utility pouch that could hang from her hip. It remained white and silvery, but the tacky fake gems became littered all over the belt instead. "Oh well. There's that color splash at least," Hilda said with a laugh and put the belt on quickly.

That's when she froze, seeing herself in the full body mirror next to her bed. It was still her, of course. But with this attire, she actually looked like someone who could do something. It frightened her, for some reason. She was never frightened, why now?

For a weak second, her hands flew to the zipper near her throat, about to get out of the jumpsuit again. But she calmed down.

"No, Hilda," she told herself. "You have to do this. It's who you really are. Right?"

Her mirror image stared back at her, taking deep breaths, and nodded.

"Right."

She picked up a pair of fingerless gloves from a drawer also. She had been using them during winter when outside and wanting to practice her alchemy without needing to take some mittens off. But they were gray and boring. The pink jacket still peeked at her from the opened wardrobe. With a smile, Hilda reached for it and used her alchemy once again.

The girl who left the apartment building now was a shapely figure in a leathery black suit, a glittering utility belt on her hip and pink canvas gloves with a couple of buttons on them, on her hands. It might look a bit odd. But maybe whatever people she was about to face now wouldn't think she was just some anonymous girl, at least.


The not so anonymous girl jumped out from a cab just outside 1102 Washington Avenue. She had brushed up on her make up before she left and put her hair up into a messy but stylish knot. Now, she put on a bright smile and, hoping this unassuming building was indeed the right one, walked through the front doors.

Inside was a grand lobby with a clean feel to it. Several people already seemed to be waiting there and some of them looked up when she entered. She halted momentarily, but quickly started walking again. The outfits of some of the others were at least as atrocious as hers, if not worse. Maybe these people thought they were already super heroes with outfits like in the comic books? Or like the Champions of Hyperia themselves. She almost snickered a bit to herself at that thought. Silly people.

Closing in on the reception, Hilda overheard the person who got there before her, talking to the receptionist. Or more like, acting like a complete jackass towards her.

"Be quiet. You're irrelevant to me. Just wait for the next person and tell them what they're supposed to be doing, because it isn't necessary for me. Is that understood?"

"Y-yes sir, thank you for your time."

"How polite, that's better. You're welcome."

As he moved away without as much as a glance in Hilda's direction, she apprehensively approached the poor receptionist woman.

"Hello?" she said softly with a big smile.

The receptionist looked up at her, regaining her composure quickly. "Hello! Miss Gard, is it? Welcome, if you would be so kind as to wait in the lobby, Binary will be here shortly and explain everything to you."

"Right. Thanks!" Hilda said, nodding slowly and leaning in over the counter. "You alright?"

"Me?" The receptionist looked confused.

"Yeah, you know." Hilda nudged her head in the rude boy's direction.

"Oh, I've dealt with worse. Don't you worry about me, miss! Let me know if there's anything you need, okay?"

"I will, thanks again!" Hilda said appreciatively and stood up straight.

She immediately turned towards the gloomy looking dude who was now leaning against a nearby pillar while shooting everybody dark looks, and walked up to stand a few meters away from him with her hands on her hips. Her hazel eyes were sharp.

"Hey you," she said, trying to keep somewhat quiet so that not the entire room would hear the ordeal. "What was that for? That was rude, you know?"

 

[Nathan]

>> Alex Smith [Axel]
>> I'm a Champion?

Nothing was better than spending a lazy day after a whole period of crunch in a video game. Being the game designer meant he had all the pressure on his shoulders. But now that the game's production had ended and that the editors were satisfied of their performance, he could afford to relax at home and do nothing but eat pizzas and hang out with friends. Because that was the extent of his life nowadays. At moments, he'd remember the times where he would constantly play pranks on his friends and be a general social butterfly. Something no longer possible because of his job. His doorbell rang, interrupting his thoughts. The pizza was finally here! He ran off to the door, got his pizza without forgetting to tip the delivery guy and returned to his bed. The smell out of the box was intoxicating almost as if the pizza was screaming to be eaten. And soon, he'd answer this calling.

Jumping on his bed with a large goofy grin on his face, he prepared himself for a nice TV session. But his phone wouldn't have it so. He heard the sound of an incoming text message, to which he didn't pay attention. After all, whoever it was could totally wait. Pizza, on the other, couldn't wait. That was until he received a second text message, then a third, a fifth, a tenth and so on. It reached a point where the sound almost made him mad and his mood swung. Reaching out for the phone, he dropped it on the ground and repeatedly smashed with his feet. Now that should give him some damn peace already. But no, these people never give up. So eventually messages began piling up on his answering machine. There was no hope whoever he was would stop so he got up and listened to his messages.

"You have been selected, because of your special abilities, to assist the Champions with a mission of utmost importance. If you choose to accept this task, report to 1102 Washington Avenue within 24 hours."​

His heart skipped a beat and questions immediately started running in his head. Did they know about me? What exactly did they know? And how did they know it? He had made sure that no one seen him, trained in very secluded areas. No one could possibly know about his abilities. All those questions needed answers. To hell the lazy days! Something much more important needed his attention. He put on decent clothes as fast as he could and exited the apartment he lived in. Thankfully he didn't have to struggle much before finding a decent cab to take him to his destination. Once there, he couldn't help but notice that the place wasn't like anything he imagined. In fact it looked plain and dull. Almost as plain looking as he was anyway but one had to seem normal he guessed. Entering the building, he quickly spotted a secretary on a counter and approached her.
"Hm excuse me miss... I was called here and I believe it was a badly-played prank..." Or so he hoped.

The woman smiled gently. "No it was not Mr Smith. Please wait in the lobby, Binary will come and explain things in a moment."

How did she know his name? Maybe they knew everything after all. Whatever, they would not take him for their "experiences", he would even kill them if he had to. All of them. He went to lean on the wall, in a isolated side of the piece, waiting for this Binary guy to show up.

 

[Sonata]

Deuseas

Samuel was walking down the street and reading the newspaper on his way to work. The headlines were buzzing with news of the disapperance of the supheros.

"Heh, looks like it might be time for me to shine." He crunched up the paper and put it in his pocket when he felt a vibrating sensation. He reached into his other pocket and pulled out his phone. As he went to flip it open someone bumped into it and knocked it out of his hand.

"Hey watch it! I'm walkin' here!" Sam exclaimed as he picked his phone back up.

The man who had bumped into him simply grunted and continued on his way.

"So help me god, sometimes I get why the villains want to kill these people. So rude." He wiped the screen of his phone off and looked at the message that was now frozen on it.

You have been selected, because of your special abilities, to assist the Champions with a mission of utmost importance. If you choose to accept this task, report to 1102 Washington Avenue within 24 hours.​

Samuel's jaw dropped and then slowly curled up into a smile. "Yes!" he whispered to himself excitedly. "I knew this day would come! But wait, how did they know I have powers? I could have swore that I'd been careful about it. I guess I'll just have to go and see what this is all about. Looks like I'll be calling in to work today."

Samuel started walking off towards the place he was supposed to be going. He ducked into the first alleyway he found and started getting changed. There was a dumpster nearby which he jumped into before making the magic happen. He touched the bottom of the dumpster and it warped, wrapping around his finger and traveling up his arm before settling on his face in the shape of a mask. He did the same thing to the rest of the dumpster, but this time instead of making a mask, the metal stayed around his hands. He started pulling and stretching the blob of metal in front of him until he had finally settled on the shape of a bicycle. It wasn't flashy so it wouldn't draw any attention onto him, and it also was about the quickest thing he could make for transportation.

"Better safe than sorry." He pressed his hand against one of the buildings around him and pulled a ten inch chunk out of the wall so that he could have something to use for later. He started riding out of the alleyway and towards his destination. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and went to call his work when he realized that it was still frozen on the message about the champions. "Oh well, guess missing one day can't hurt. This is much more important anyway." He put the phone back in his pocket and headed off to his destiny.

He pulled up to the building and got off of his bike. He looked around and saw a couple cars, though not much else was going on. He could hear some kind of commotion coming from inside but he hesitated. What if it's a trap? he thought. He was standing there with his hand on his chin - the only visible part of his face now that he had his mask on - and stroked his chin hairs. A little boy came by while Deuseas was lost in thought and started to admire his bike.

"Woah mister, that's really cool! I've never seen a bike like that! Where'd you get it?"

Deuseas broke out of his trance when he heard the kid's voice. "Ah, I made it," he said. He looked around before settling his eyes back on the child. He kneeled down, putting himself on the same level as the boy. "Tell you what, I'll let you have this bike. I won't be needing it after this, so it's yours. How about that?" He smiled.

"Really? Oh wow, thank you! I don't think I've ever had a bike before. Mom works all the time just to get us food and then I work on the cape during the day. I appreciate it! It'll really help me get there faster." The kid got up on the seat and started pedaling. "Bye mister! Thanks again!"

Sam chuckled. "At least the kids still like me." He started heading up the stairs into the building. He passed through the glass doors and glossed over the faces of the various people that were there. Mostly guys, a few girls... a few girls. Hot damn, maybe he did have a use for the chunk of wall in his pocket. He could totally change it to a flower and try to woo the ladies. He was sure they hadn't ever seen anything like that before.

"Sir?" Deuseas had just started to head over towards where one of the girls were sitting when he heard the secretary call out to him. "Sir? Your name would be...?" She cocked her head and motioned for him to speak.

"Uh, well." He looked around the room, slightly embarassed and realizing that some of them were staring right at him. "It's uh, Deuseas." He shifted his weight to his right foot and tapped the heel of his left shoe on his right.

"You're on the list. Come right in and take a seat. There's still a few left, just sit anywhere. It really doesn't matter."

"Uh, yeah sure. Could I get something to drink?" He coughed a little. "Throat's kinda dry."

"It shouldn't be too much longer, I'm sure you'll be fine." She smiled and went back to doing whatever it was that she was doing on her computer.

"Ugh, whatever. Just keep typing away." He mumbled under his breath. He walked over towards one of the girls who was getting comfy in a chair and almost seemed to be nervous. He reached into his pocket and changed part of the wall into a rose. "A flower for the lady?" He smiled as he sat down near her, holding the flower out for her to take.

 

[Foxrally]

Nerites Ekitai
Child of The Ocean​

Nerites let out a long, deep sigh, tossing another handful of breadcrumbs into the sea. To any normal onlooker, she was just a regular tourist sitting on the dockside feeding fish at the port. Every morning, when the water was most clear and translucent, she would come and throw handfuls of food at the large crowds of fish that would gather where she was, awaiting her arrival.

Big fish in the back, small ones in the front. No, sardines, you count as adults - no pushing! Please remember to leave some for the others! she thought, communicating the message to the hungry mass in the water underneath her. I could not bring much today, so you will have to-

Her train of thought was interrupted by the voice of a man yelling and a screech of metal against metal. Nerites winced and covered her ears as the shoal dispersed in a panic.

"Bloody old rig, get- movin'- will ya?" she heard the man grunt as he attempted to pull a rusty lever, which seemed to be stuck. The sailor kept kicking the side of his boat in between curses.

If there is one thing I admire about humans, it is their extensive vocabulary when they are in a state of displeasure. Nerites thought to herself, chuckling. Putting down the bag of food, she fished out a small notebook and a pencil from her pocket, and quickly flicked to the page marked 'North American English'. She listened intently to the sailor's words of wisdom, jotting down anything she thought she thought would be useful. After a few more moments of enraged swearing and kicking, the man finally gave up, crossing his arms.

"Well, damn. Guess she doesn't have any more life in her. Gonna be a pain to pay for a new one, too." the man grumbled, and began to walk away.

Nerites looked up from her book, almost disappointed at the sailor giving up so soon. She breathed heavily out of her nose and pocketed it. With a flick of her hand, the boat's engine sputtered to a start and a large clump of seaweed which had been clogging the gears spewed out of its exhaust pipe, almost hitting the astonished sailor in the face.

Seeing that the group of fish had been scared away by the sounds earlier, Nerites decided to go back to her hotel early. Putting her shoes back on, she walked along the dockside, amicably waving at sailors and port workers she met on the way.

It only took her fifteen minutes to get back to her hotel, "The Minnow". It was a humble accommodation, no 5-star establishment, and Nerites used the place mostly to try new foods or when she had nothing to do - which was a lot of the time, these days.

She entered the lobby though the front door, and was greeted by the receptionist (who was also the cook, dishwasher and janitor), a burly, large elderly woman who had given birth to more than an entire ship's crew - a story easily proven by the sheer size of her hips. She was always good company to Nerites however, and she loved listening to stories of her sons going to sea in the navy or abroad.

"Well, you're back early from your little walk! What brought you back here so soon, hun?" the woman asked as she wiped a glass clean with her apron and poured water into it.

"The fish weren't very happy today. Someone made them run away." Nerites mumbled in a low voice.

The secretary, being used to this, gave no reaction and shrugged. Nerites smiled and headed for the staircase which led to the rooms.

Suddenly the woman behind the counter snapped her fingers as if remembering something. "Oh yeah, wait, I got something for you." she called, and Nerites turned her head. "Got it today from the mailman - I was almost gonna rip it thinking it was them early bills - but looks like it's got no sender."

Coming back down the stairs, Nerites took a small, white envelope from the woman. She chuckled. "I know this ain't the richest place in town, but damn, snail mail! Who even uses that thing anymore? As I told my kids, telegrams are the future!"

Nerites stared for a while at the envelope. Despite her curiosity, she didn't want to open it in front of anyone else.

"Come on, open it up! Must be someone real important to you if they're sending this with paper, hmm?" the receptionist raised an eyebrow and smirked. However, seeing her customer's discomfort, she shooed her away, gesturing towards the staircase. The latter quickly ran up the stairs, putting the envelope in her pocket.

"Don't forget to tell me his name!" the woman called.

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

Once alone in her room, Nerites took a moment to look at the envelope. It was unlike the scrolls the greeks used. It seemed to be some sort of casing for an inner message, rectangular and sealed.

After a few moments of tugging at the sides, Nerites finally managed to tear off the envelope. The paper with the message slowly floated to the ground. She picked it up, and attempted to read the message.

Y ...... cted, ...... ilities.... assi... sion ... u ......nce. If...... 110 .....e wit..... s.

Nerites shook her head. Having spent the past 2 years in Russia had severely weakened her English. Pulling out her book, she attempted to see if any of the words in there matched the ones in the message.

After flicking through a few pages, she raised an eyebrow, confused.

"A**?" she mumbled, checking back and forth between the book and message, before realizing there were three more letters next to the word on the message, 'ist'.

Sighing in exasperation, Nerites closed the book and stared at the piece of paper. Her eyes began glowing white as her irises disappeared. Now she could see the message clearly.

You have been selected, because of your special abilities, to assist the Champions with a mission of utmost importance. If you choose to accept this task, report to 1102 Washington Avenue within 24 hours.

For a while, Nerites kept looking at the message, confused about what it was asking. She had heard of the Champions in her travels across the world - fearless, selfless individuals who used their superhuman abilities to help other beings. She had never met or seen them in person, but she was confident they were good people.

I believe it would not hurt to pay them a little visit... she thought.

------

This city must clean its underground reservoirs. Fish could get ill down there!

A thin, transparent tendril of water emerged from a pothole in an alleyway. As more of it appeared, the watery substance began forming into a more humanoid shape. Once all of the water had come out, the water slowly morphed and changed into something more human - skin, hair, clothes.

Nerites angrily dusted herself off, despite there being no signs of dirt. This is worse than the rivers of China!

She pulled out the piece of paper she had received. It was soaking wet now, and the ink was dripping off the paper. Let us hope we are in the correct location, then. Nerites thought to herself, crumpling the paper into a wet ball and putting it back into her pocket. The building she saw didn't seem too impressive to be the prime location of the Champions. Still curious, however, she stepped through the automatically opening glass doors.

The lobby was a comfortably furnished room with a calm atmosphere. Straight ahead was a desk where a young woman sat typing away at a computer. In the sofas lined against the walls were individuals who seemed stranger one after the other. One of them who appeared to be a middle-aged man in a traditional suit and bowler hat, wore a peculiar yellow mask. Nerites made a mental note to herself to draw it later.

She slowly walked up to the desk in the middle, still eyeing every person in the room with curiosity. She stopped with a jolt as she hit the desk. The secretary looked up, smiling.

"May I do anything for you?"

Nerites smiled back. "I believe I have received a message requesting me to be here." she whispered, leaning over to the secretary.

The latter seemed confused. "I don't think we have you on our database, miss. Are you sure you-" she began, before stopping and clearing her throat as if coming to realize something. "I mean - yes, we have been expecting you. You can take a.... excuse me? Miss?"

Nerites had not been listening to her. She was staring at a young man who was leaning agaisnt the wall. This person... His energy...

The secretary snapped her back to real life with a light tap on the arm. "I'm sorry. Yes, you are meant to be here. Just take a seat among the others and as soon as Mr. Binary feels it is time to come down he will speak to all of you."

Nerites nodded robotically, still staring at the young man with the mask, before shaking her head vigorously and taking a seat on the closest armchair.

 

[GreyBidoof]

It was almost 5:00 PM, and Green's Grocery was nearly empty. A single old woman hobbled around the store, stopping to peer into each crate of fresh fruits and vegetables. The only other person in the room was the young man sitting behind the counter, waiting for his customer to make up her mind.

Soon enough, the clock on the wall chimed the new hour, and the elderly woman shuffled out, not bothering to buy anything after all. Oh well. Maybe she'll figure out what she wants tomorrow. the cashier thought, hanging up his apron and locking the doors. He was just happy to be going home.

He walked to his car, ready to head back to his apartment. He was exhausted, having been working overtime lately, and it was beginning to catch up with him.

As he he fumbled with his keys, his phone buzzed. He didn't want to answer it, but it might be from his mom, in which case he probably should.

The man opened the door to his car, sat down, and read the incoming text. It wasn't from his mother. In fact, he didn't know who it was from, since the number seemed to be blocked. Even more strange were it's contents:

You have been selected, because of your special abilities, to assist the Champions with a mission of utmost importance. If you choose to accept this task, report to 1102 Washington Avenue within 24 hours.
​

He read the message over and over, trying to process the flood of emotion that were washing over him. He was surprised, excited, doubtful, fearful, and amazed all at once; it was overwhelming, to say the least.

Finally, he spoke to himself. "I don't know what the Champions want with me, but I should go see what it is." Deep down, he hoped it might have something to do with his powers, but he didn't know for sure. After all, this could be very well the same way they hire their janitors too.

Shaking his head in attempt to clear his thoughts, the young man started his car, and drove further downtown, towards the provided address. "Ah, what am I worrying about?" He asked himself, easing up a little. "I don't care what it is, if I get to meet with the Champions, then this is gonna be worth it!"

Minutes later he arrived at 1102 Washington Avenue. The building itself was a tall skyscraper, indistinguishable from all of the others surrounding it. Parking in a nearby lot, the man approached his destination on foot. A few cars were lined up near the edge of the sidewalk, blatantly in disregard of the sign labelled "No Parking" posted above. "Man, what is with some people?" the he wondered.

The glass doors on the building were unlocked, so he walked inside,not knowing what to expect. Inside was a nicely-furnished lobby of sorts, with a seating area on one side of the room, and a receptionist desk on the other. In the center of the room, near the back wall, was an elevator.

There was a surprising amount of people present, most occupying the former half of the room. It honestly looked like a sort of goofy comic convention, since everyone appeared to be dressed up in costumes. There was even what looked to be a robot and a lizard-man standing by the stairs. Not sure what to do next, he walked over to the waiting secretary, who seemed to be motioning him over.

"Can I help you, sir?" she queried politely.

"Ah, maybe. I'm here because of this." He showed the woman behind the desk the text message on his phone screen.

"Ah yes, you're at the right place. Could I get your name?"

"Chris Coleman. Nice to meet you."

"It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Coleman. My name is Amanda. Let me know if you need anything, but it won't be long until Binary arrives."

Chris' jaw almost dropped. "Binary's coming here? To meet with me?"

Amanda smiled. "Well, to see all of you, really. Don't worry, he'll explain everything. For now, feel free to sit down with the others if you'd like."

So all of these people are here to see Binary.... I wonder if they got the message too? Do they know what's going on here?

Only one way to find out, I guess! he thought, heading toward the group to his left.

The most normal of the bunch was a woman standing fairly close to the entrance, who looked to be in her twenties, having shoulder-length black hair and tanned skin. Chris walked up to her, hoping to make sense of what was going on.

"Excuse me miss, but are you waiting for Binary too?"

 

[Mana1]

Kariyai
Power: Soul of Fire

The streets of old town Hyperia were bustling and busy as normal. The young girl, twenty or so, picked up the least-rotten apple from a street vendor's stall, smiling at the old woman as she had been taught.

"What a pretty necklace..." the lady murmured, reaching out towards Kariyai's hanging, silver pendant. The ruby gemstone, Firis, shimmered in the morning sun; an orange glow trailing across the deep red surface of the crystal.

"It was my grandmother's," Kariyai briefly explained, not wanting to say much more. The lie had been used for decades now, it tripped off the tounge with ease. She hastily tucked the pendant into her shirt - It was best off hidden, where it wouldn't garner any attention. It wouldn't take an expert to realise Firis was more than just a pretty piece of jewelry; the gem was warm to the touch, even in his resting state.

The phone in her jacket pocket vibrated suddenly. Her hand instinctively jumped to the slender mobile and cradling it. Paying the woman, Kariyai retreated off the main street and ducked into a nearby alleyway.

The last time the device buzzed it had been Benjamin checking in, it had been weeks since it had last gone off. Kariyai only held on to the device in the hope that he would get back in contact soon, last she heard he was travelling around the coast, searching for signs of kinsmen on the continent. Earth was one of many escape routes from their home planet - the Elders carefully selected habitable, inhabited planets to journey to. Earth had been a suitable choice afterall, Benjamin and Kariyai were able to fit in with humans with relative ease.

Clawing the phone from her pocket, Kari eagerly opened the text message.

'You have been selected, because of your special abilities, to assist the Champions with a mission of utmost importance. If you choose to accept this task, report to 1102 Washington Avenue within 24 hours,' it read.

Her dark eyes flared to life, the mention of the champions awakening a deep-seated fear. Rather than contact from a comrade, it was a message from a potential enemy. Benjamin had always been fearful of Earth's heroes; revealing oneself so freely is a sure indication of power and power leads individuals to do terrible things. Their ways of living were completely different, as the Akansu refugees favoured a life of secrecy and safety.

Breaking protocol, Kariyai looked up the number hidden in the depths of her phone - the emergency contact number, only to be used if she absolutely must contact the wandering Elder. Entered into her mobile, the line rang. Agitated, Kari's fingers tapped against the hard, plastic casing. Firis felt warm against her skin, unusually warm. Something was wrong.

"Hello, little one. What's your situation?" A man's voice answered.

Immediately, Kariyai ripped the phone apart.

That wasn't the voice of her comrade. The time for secrecy was over, they had been found. Gripping the remains of the cell phone in her hand, Kariyai focused her power - a fierce heat surrounded her fist, burning the crushed device to smoke and dust.

Quickly exiting the alleyway, Kariyai looked for the road sign and then headed west. Her goal was to move towards the downtown area - it was too late to go back to her quarters now, it might not be safe. The best move would be to adhere to the text message, The Champions could offer assistance, shelter, or at least have useful knowledge. Of course, it could be a trap. Kariyai was ready for either possibility.

Kariyai assumed the worse. Her comrade had often warned of assailants, trackers, Nemuth splinter cells or the like. Someone, something had found Benjamin. Benjamin was dead. With him dead, she would be next. Firis whispered to her, all but confirming the urgency, hurry.

Considering how cautious the old Akansu was made the situation even more terrifying. The elder had never been one to make enemies, looking down on Kari's odd jobs and bounty services. He lived a peaceful life - he wouldn't have brought it upon himself.

The glass doors of 1102 Washington Avenue, an enormous skyscraper, soon stood in front of her, a possible sanctuary or final resting place - she was to soon find out. With a deep breath, and hiking Firis back into the open, Kariyai entered.

The receptionist didn't seem at all surprised when a brash woman stormed up to the desk. Kariyai went straight to the point, not risking any signs of weakness in this precarious situation. Her eyes flared bright orange,

"I'm here to see The Champions."

 

[GreyBidoof]

Chapter One
A meeting with Binary

It was time.

Binary, looking up from his computer screen for the first time in hours, realized that the sun was setting, and the day was almost over. He got up from his desk, pulling out the USB drive containing all of the data and plans he would need for the upcoming briefing. Even knowing that he was now prepared to lead this band of ragtag strangers, the idea still unnerved him. Bringing civilians into this line of work would never have been his first choice, but it seemed- at the time- to be the only good one. There was no going back now.

He had watched as fifteen of the sixteen he called had approached the tower, each with different reactions, but each apprehensive. Clearly they didn't know what to expect, which was probably a good sign.

It wouldn't be long before news of the Champions' disappearance spread far and wide across the city, morphing from harmless rumors to a dangerous fact. Unless he acted quickly, Hyperia would be an enormous bullseye for any criminal willing to make the drive. The police force wasn't going to cut it, either, he knew that much for sure.

Putting the drive into one of the pockets in his coat, he strode over to the elevator on the other side of the room. It was time to see whether the team he had formed accepted his offer, or was a complete waste of time.

The elevator dinged softly as it came to rest upon the ground floor. Binary stepped out, and all other heads in the room immediately turned his way.

"Come this way, please. I shall explain more once we are in a more secure location."

With that, the man in the lab coat turned back around, heading back from whence he came. The fifteen began to follow, some piling into the elevator, others choosing to take the stairs.

"Floor 5, room 507," Binary called out to the ones who choose the stairs, hoping they had the common sense not to wander off." Champions headquarters was not a place for outsiders to roam freely.

Soon enough, they had reached the conference room. The fifteen each took a seat, some more begrudgingly than others, around the large ovular table in the center of the room. Binary himself stood at the center, occupying himself with pulling up the necessary files from his USB on the laptop that sat close by.

Upon finishing, he looked up at his audience, and began his prepared speech.

"You are probably wondering why I've called you here today. The answer is simple. The Champions are gone, and nobody knows where or why. When word of this spreads, Hyperia will be suffer a wave of crime like no other place or time has yet seen."

He looked around, analyzing the reactions around the table. A few seemed surprised, while others seemed to already know the information he had given. Some had no reaction at all, simply continuing to listen, while one just seemed annoyed.

"You all have special abilities, and the potential to use them to do great things. I am proposing a course of action that would require all of you to collaborate, using your powers to defend your city from the forces that may threaten it's well-being. None of you, no matter how powerful or skilled, could do this alone. That is why I have called you here today."

The idea was finally sinking in. The mixed reactions continued, and some of the attendees began murmuring to themselves, voicing opinions on what they had heard.

"I will give you some time to make your decision afterwards. For now, let us make some introductions, shall we?" What that, a large screen flashed on in front of the table, behind Binary, the feed connected to his computer. Images, data, and other information about the fifteen began to appear on the screen, as the man in the lab coat spoke.


"Basil Deleon, as known as 'Giron', a reptilian alien who can shapeshift into any object he can think of."

"James Abney, also known as 'Smiley, a former TEA agent who can create copies of himself at will."

"Nerites Ekitai, also known as Torrent, an ancient Greek Goddess with mastery over water."

"Alex Forestveil, also known as Sea Champion, another water user, with limited shapeshifting as well."

"Selune Greenwood, also known as Star Gazer. She gained the powers to manipulate starlight, heal herself, and flight from a a chunk of radioactive space rock.

"Hilda Gard, also known as Enzyme. She possess the ability to combine separate objects at a molecular level, along with enhanced strength.

"Akira Dyer, also known as Shade, who can manipulate shadows.

"Quantum, who goes by just that, a being made of pure energy contained within a protective suit. She has enhanced strength, can fly, and can emit energy blasts."

"Alexander Smith, also known as Axel, a man who can transform into and communicate with animals."

"Samuel Lehry, also known as Deuseas, who can telekinetically create objects from metal."

"Richard Renner, also known as Reverb. He can create and control vibrations, such as sound waves."

"Edward Trayton, also known as Renegade, who controls chi to enhance combat abilites and use echolocation."

"Cain Thompson, also known as Spirit, a nomad who can manipulate the natural elements."

"Kari Brown, also known as Kariyai, an Akansu who possesses the ability to control fire."

"Chris Coleman, also, known as Burst. He can create and manipulate tangible fields of energy."


Binary stopped for a minute to take a drink fro ma bottle of water from one of his pockets. There were quite a few names to be read, and not everyone had even appeared yet. It was quite clear that his audience seemed uncomfortable having their sensitive personal information made public.

"For those of you who may be wondering, I took the liberty of creating callsigns for those of you who didn't currently have one. They relate to your powers, in some way or another, and makes quick communication slightly easier."

The man pulled a small rectangular object out of another pocket. It looked akin to a watch, but the face was a blank blue screen.

"This is a transceiver." He explained, showing it to the fifteen. "This will be how I will communicate to you on the field if you choose to accept my offer. You will be out preventing crime across Hyperia, and I will remain here coordinating our efforts. Do not lose this."

Putting the transceiver back into a pocket, Binary surveyed his potential recruits once more. "Now is the time to choose. Should you want nothing more to do with this offer, that is perfectly fine, but I will need to perform a quick... operation to remove all memory of the events that have just transpired. On the other hand, if you would like to join with me in protecting Hyperia, then talk to Amanda downstairs to receive your transceiver, and I will be in contact soon. If you have any other questions, you are free to ask me. You are dismissed."

Completing his spiel, Binary walked to the door of the conference room, and motioned for the others to follow. After another brief elevator ride, they were all back in the lobby.

All he could do now was hope.
​

 

[Jay]

"In the end, I guess I can milk some benefit."


Long Term Investment​

Renegade didn't even turn his head. He could sense the new arrival perfectly fine with his hearing. Especially with her being so obnoxiously loud and confrontational. In order to let her know she did have his attention, he very slowly angled his head so that his mask lined up with her face. That tone of voice... accusation but with no profanities. Renegade could only assume that she was one of those "nice girl" types. Standing up for the innocent receptionist, but not letting her little heroics push her to say anything she'd really regret. She even kept her voice fairly quiet to avoid a scene.

Her costume was pretty stupid aswell, he sensed the gloves and jumpsuit easily enough, he wasn't bothered to look at their colour but he assumed it wasn't that bad. But was that a studded utility built? The "gems" embedded within reverberated a hollow sound as he proceeded to snap his fingers in the girls face, still without a word. Were they cheap plastic? What was this? A little kids dress up parlor?

What had she even said again?

"Hey you, What was that for? That was rude, you know?"

Ahh yes, rude. Yes, he supposed it was. But he didn't have the time to play niceties with these people. He wasn't even sure if they were worth his time. To be honest if anything this girl was only showing him that they indeed, probably were not. He continued to aim his mask at her without saying much, though in reality he was "hearing" in another direction entirely. Particularly at the now rapid intake of new arrivals. They all bored him to be honest, except for one.

Some girl was staring at him, if only briefly. She had a look of wonder... some sort of awe in her eyes. Being a Super Being meant he got this look often, but there was something different about this. It was as if she was trying to look into him. As if the object of her interest wasn't obviously on display on his person and-

Oh whatever. It didn't matter. Some creepy fangirl wasn't his concern right now.

It was about time he spoke to the little miss superhero dress up pageant winner. Sure, his suit was a little cliché as well. But his was built for functionality, not fashion, and something told him that the little heroine's suit wasn't designed with combat specialization in mind.

"Listen, runt." There wasn't any malice in his voice, just a cold and uncaring lack of effort and emotion. As if even opening his mouth to speak to this person was unnecessary and boring to him.

"I'm not here to be polite. I don't need your little questioning words... nor do I want to have to look at that gaudy a** belt you have wrapped around your babies first jumpsuit up close like this. I can already tell you're like your little desk buddy, as well as pretty much everybody else in this room. You're an insect, irrelevant, not worth my time, so buzz off before I decide to test exactly what it is that makes a little smear like you worth the message that brought you here. In fact I-"

*Ding*

Renegade turned his head out of force of habit, despite not technically being required to do so. The elevator was here... a man with a lab coat was approaching. He knew that face well enough.

"Binary... you're lucky kid, looks like I won't have the time to say more. Now then, if you'd kindly get out of my way." He shoved past the girl casually and proceeded onwards.

***​

"Floor 5, room 507,"

Renegade trudged up the stairs at a decent pace, not in any mood to take an elevator ride with a bunch of maggots that would grime up his suit on contact. He heard a few others following behind, but he really didn't care to bother checking whom it was. Nor did he bother to respond to anything they might have said, should they have said anything to him at all.

Eventually he had reached the fifth floor and managed to see the last of the stragglers from the elevator stagger into one of the rooms along the hall. That must have been number 507 then.

He proceeded inside, the other stair goers most likely behind him since he had been the first to set foot on the metallic steps and nobody had passed him out from his understanding. Renegade looked at the conference table and took a seat before anybody else had bothered. He assumed they were probably waiting to be told or something, still the others began to sit down momentarily after that. He didn't pay attention to whom was sitting beside him.

"You are probably wondering why I've called you here today. The answer is simple. The Champions are gone, and nobody knows where or why. When word of this spreads, Hyperia will be suffer a wave of crime like no other place or time has yet seen."

No s***. He had known that from the beginning. Still he supposed it was important to inform the other louts of the situation at hand.

"You all have special abilities, and the potential to use them to do great things. I am proposing a course of action that would require all of you to collaborate, using your powers to defend your city from the forces that may threaten it's well-being. None of you, no matter how powerful or skilled, could do this alone. That is why I have called you here today."

Renegade sighed loudly enough for it to be heard by anyone still listening. God, this was dull. Binary didn't understand the extents to which Renegade could go. Binary underestimated him, though Renegade didn't blame him. After all, this idiot had been in full belief that his little team of Champions was the be all end all. Then they all disappeared in a single instant.

Ha. Yes, that was right. You can't judge an idiot for being stupid, it was in their damnable nature.

Renegade didn't bother to look at the groups reactions to any of Binary's words. He honestly didn't care, not that that was surprising by this point. He instead payed especially close attention to Binary, who began giving information on the other heroes.

"I will give you some time to make your decision afterwards. For now, let us make some introductions, shall we?"

Renegade listened intently, eager to learn the identities and powers of the others. Pressing a small button on the side of his mask, two eye slits for vision opened on the front of it. He very rarely used these as he felt they were unnecessary most of the time. But you can't "hear" images on a screen. So he did what he had to. His grey eyes peaked outwards to watch the images roll on by.

"Basil Deleon, as known as 'Giron', a reptilian alien who can shapeshift into any object he can think of."

The Lizard thing, the ability to change into different animals would explain the strange noises Renegade had heard earlier. How underwhelming, he didn't sound that difficult to kill at all.

"James Abney, also known as 'Smiley, a former TEA agent who can create copies of himself at will."

So that was the old mans power? Interesting. That could make him difficult to take out depending on the exact nature of that ability. Renegade could now also see that the old coots mask had a smiley face painted on. How unnerving.

"Nerites Ekitai, also known as Torrent, an ancient Greek Goddess with mastery over water."

He had electricity. That certainly made things... wait a moment. Wasn't that the creepy fangirl? She was a Greek Goddess? He supposed that even with his advantage, she should not be underestimated.

"Alex Forestveil, also known as Sea Champion, another water user, with limited shapeshifting as well."

Oh hey, it was the dude who ignored parking signs. Shape shifting and water? What was he? A Dolphin in human form? Still. He didn't seem like too much of a threat. He didn't know wether or not the guy was trained in actual hand to hand combat, but even if he was Renegade knew that he himself would be better.

"Selune Greenwood, also known as Star Gazer. She gained the powers to manipulate starlight, heal herself, and flight from a a chunk of radioactive space rock."

Cosplay girl had space powers? He supposed that was somewhat interesting. The healing and flight might make her a pain to take out quickly. But apart from that he didn't feel in any way threatened. A little curious as to what "starlight control" meant, but not threatened.

"Hilda Gard, also known as Enzyme. She possess the ability to combine separate objects at a molecular level, along with enhanced strength."

Oh look, the insect. Some blonde girl. Strength and molecular bonding of objects? Even with that she didn't seem like she'd be at all capable in a fight. When all of the villains of the World were dealt with, she'd probably be an easy first kill on the side of the heroes.

"Akira Dyer, also known as Shade, who can manipulate shadows."

That was the average girl he'd watched coming in. Hmm. She had a pretty face but he didn't see much else to her. The ability to manipulate shadows might have been dangerous to him however... he'd have to watch her closely.

"Quantum, who goes by just that, a being made of pure energy contained within a protective suit. She has enhanced strength, can fly, and can emit energy blasts."

...hmm. This was a problem. The woman in the metal suit wasn't a woman at all, she was a mass of energy. No wonder she made that constant humming sound. Renegade would have to be very, very careful. Further study of this being was required.

"Alexander Smith, also known as Axel, a man who can transform into and communicate with animals."

Ew. That sounded disgusting. He got the feeling that this one probably stank rather badly. Renegade suddenly found himself very thankful that he had honed his sense of hearing and not his sense of smell. Apart from that, animals were killable, meaning regardless of his form, so was Axel.

"Samuel Lehry, also known as Deuseas, who can telekinetically create objects from metal."

Sounds useful... but not altogether dangerous. If this guy really didn't have any other powers apart from metal crafting then Renegade did not see much difficulty in killing him. The best he could probably do was make a gun. In other words, he'd be no more difficult to kill than the common mugger or street thug... and Renegade had killed a lot of those.

"Richard Renner, also known as Reverb. He can create and control vibrations, such as sound waves."

It was the intern. The ability to control sound waves. That wasn't so much a major threat as it was an annoyance. When it came down to it Renegade realized he would have to use his eyes rather than his ears. Doable, but difficult depending on how skilled the college boy was with his abilities.

"Edward Trayton, also known as Renegade, who controls chi to enhance combat abilites and use echolocation."

That was him. Or so they thought. In his everyday life he no longer went by his true name, he used an alias. They had managed to find his original identity, but not his new one. He had murdered his father after all, so the name Edward Trayton was an inconvenience. Renegade smiled to himself as he realized that none of the pictures actually showed his face. He was wearing the mask in all of them. In other words, his anonymity was untouched. They hadn't even gotten a proper picture, most of them were from news articles or CCTV cameras that he hadn't cared enough to avoid. The only impressive part of their sleuthing was the fact that they had found his WORK mobile number.

Damn, he really was dealing with a bunch of idiots, wasn't he?

"Cain Thompson, also known as Spirit, a nomad who can manipulate the natural elements."

Hobo wind guy. He could control all the elements then? That was dangerous, Renegade had to admit that. He didn't seem to have any major defenses naturally however, so Renegade was confident he could kill him. But still, it wouldn't be easy, he was certain of that.

"Kari Brown, also known as Kariyai, an Akansu who possesses the ability to control fire."

Pyrokinesis was never fun to deal with. Also what the Hell was an Akansu? Some other alien life form? Oh well, at least this one was a pleasure to look at. Unlike the Lizard man. He'd probably have to use stealth to kill her, his suit resisted fire very well, but his hair and head didn't. He didn't even know how good a pyrokinetic this woman was, she could have been anything from sparks to firestorms. No stupid risks could be taken.

"Chris Coleman, also, known as Burst. He can create and manipulate tangible fields of energy."

This looked like another average college dude. Tangible energy fields did he say? That was annoying. But surely they had some form of weakness? He'd have to examine this Burst fellow properly before trying anything.

Binary started saying something irrelevant about callsigns then and Renegade sighed gently. So this was the line-up that Binary had made to replace the Champions? He had always thought that the Champions were pretty terrible, but most of the individuals here were somehow even worse than they were.

Still... Renegade realized that this would be a long term investment. If he worked alongside the "New Champions" then he could gather valuable intel on villains and these so called "heroes". There were still one or two here whom could pose a threat, he realized, so he would do whatever was necessary to prepare a valid way of removing them.

Even if that meant... joining a team. Though he shuddered just thinking about it.

Renegade knew what the tranceivers were. He had seen the old champions use them before any of them had disappeared. They were basically comm units disguised as average watches. He didn't need the explanation so he zoned out gently and considered, on a deeper level, the situation at hand.

He was going along with all of this rather complacently, well, complacently for him anyway. But was any of this really okay? These people had powers yes, but apart from that most of them were just civilians, normal lives, normal people. Was it really okay for them to be working to fight against criminals like this?

Was it really okay...

For him to already be plotting to kill them?

Renegade shook his head gently and expelled those poison thoughts. Hesitation would lead to defeat in every circumstance. He had to remember that he had made a choice to protect the true innocents, those with normal lives. Like his Mother, his siblings. Super Powered beings, did not deserve to exist. Even if these people looked nervous and innocent they were just targets. If he could kill his own Father without remorse? Then he could kill them. All of them. Eventually he would, he knew he would, because he was the only one whom could truly save Hyperia city and the rest of the World beyond that.

"...talk to Amanda downstairs to receive your transceiver, and I will be in contact soon. If you have any other questions, you are free to-"

Renegade stood up and walked casually towards the door. He didn't bother waiting. The meeting was over, that was obvious. He'd go home for that night and think about everything while he slept... if he slept at all.

***​

"O-oh... is the meeting already-"

"Tranceiver please." Renegade held his hand out expectantly towards the receptionist, ignoring the womans words.

"Y-yes sir... my apologies... here you are." She held out the small wrist mounted device and Renegade took it from her hand. Renegade felt a twang of guilt at her intimidated response, he was scaring her. His touch was strangely gentle as he took the device from her hand.

He frowned under his mask as he attached it to his wrist and turned to leave.

"...thank you... and sorry for before, Amanda."

The receptionist blinked in surprise, the mans gruff and aggressive voice seemed somewhat softer, almost melancholy and apologetic. It hadn't been much, a passing remark if anything, but had he just said something nice?

"T-that's alri... oh."

He was already out the door.

Renegade wasn't an evil man. He was just filled with duty for his cause and even he realized that sometimes that blinded him to things. But it was that blindness that gave him more strength to get things done. If the World came to hate him then he didn't care. He was an abomination, Super Powered like the rest of them. He deserved to be hated, even if he fought to save everything.

Still... that didn't mean that in the private company of a normal, no power civilian, that he couldn't at least give a sorry for one or two of the callous acts that he preformed by his nature.

It was slowly starting to get dark. Once Renegade was clear of the tower by a few blocks and once he was certain that he had not been followed, he took off his mask and headed home.

***​

Edward let out a deep sigh as he let himself return to his normal state. The little part of him that was still a normal human. Unlocking his apartment door he gently stepped inside and hung his coat upon the wall. He changed his bullet proof clothing in for a normal black tracksuit and a comfortable t-shirt... and he sat down in front of his computer. Browsing the web like any normal person would.

A few hours of time wasted and a plain cheese sandwich later, Edward turned off the light and lay down on his empty double bed. Was it... lonely? Bah, what was he saying? At least it was comfortable!

He closed his eyes and his face formed into a scowl. It annoyed him, to think that his work had only just begun.

 

[Mana1]

Kariyai
Power: Soul of Fire

With exquisite timing, the elevator announced its arrival with a gentle 'ping'. A man stepped out, looking around the busy lobby.

Kariyai had largely ignored the others as she stormed in, her focus being directed at getting to The Champions as quickly as possible. She had no reason to look at those waiting around the spacious hall, until now.

"Come this way, please. I shall explain more once we are in a more secure location." The man announced, before retreating back into the elevator. Kariyai hesitantly followed, soon others gathered in the list and it ascended.

The conference hall was already set up. Distancing herself from the door, with her back to a solid wall, Kariyai chose a seat and awaited the others. Her eyes darted from person to person, avoiding direct eye contact.

The host drew Kariyai's attention to the centre of the room.

"You are probably wondering why I've called you here today. The answer is simple. The Champions are gone, and nobody knows where or why," Kari's brow furrowed, The Champions were gone? If so, her situation was evermore compromised. "When word of this spreads, Hyperia will be suffer a wave of crime like no other place or time has yet seen."

"You all have special abilities, and the potential to use them to do great things," Binary's knowledge of her special abilities did not shock her, it made sense that that was the reason she was summoned, but she was curious as to how much he knew - how much anyone knew. "I am proposing a course of action that would require all of you to collaborate, using your powers to defend your city from the forces that may threaten it's well-being. None of you, no matter how powerful or skilled, could do this alone. That is why I have called you here today."

"I will give you some time to make your decision afterwards. For now, let us make some introductions, shall we?"

Behind Binary, a large digital screen flashed to life. It cycled through images and details of each of the people sat around the desk. Kariyai took in as much as she could; information is rarely given so freely.

Immediately, Kariyai's attention was caught. Another non-human being. He wasn't hard to miss in the room, the reptilian 'Giron' was clearly an alien. Shape-shifting was impossible using Akansu magic, but the ability was often attributed to that of evil - just as humans may relate it to their gods and demons.

Several humans with specialist powers rattled past - an older man, capable of making copies of himself; a strange girl capable of manipulating cosmic energies and another who could alter matter itself.

Three further characters caught her eye - those with elemental powers. They seemed human, from their appearance - although one was supposedly a god. Kariyai had read much of Earth's gods, for one to walk among the people seemed out of place. Still, Kari could not afford to trifle with those who command water. Gently caressing Firis, a soothing gesture, the young alien looked back at the screen.

"Kari Brown, also known as Kariyai, an Akansu who possesses the ability to control fire."

Kariyai resisted her urge to react. He knew exactly who she was. How could someone find out so much, with her and Benjamin's existence on Earth being so secretive? Forcing a smile, she played along with the display, not showing any form of hesitation. Firis grew unsettled.

Binary displayed some communications device; Kari was far too distracted to listen. This journey was likely a mistake, an error in her calculations, but which was the best path now? These people knew her identity. Each and every one of them was a potential threat - as well as the unknown assailant who had already cut her off from the Elder.

"If you have any other questions, you are free to ask me. You are dismissed."

At first, Kari sat waiting. Casually observing the others in the room, waiting to see how they would react to the speech. Immediately, one man stood up and left, sweeping out of the conference room in quite a hurry.

Wishing to speak to Binary, Kariyai held back. Awaiting an opportunity for a more private conversation.

 

[Sir Bastian]

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Quantum | Meeting the Man with the Plan

​

After having stood around rather awkwardly off to the side of the lobby, with some of the people already there and the ones newly arriving giving odd looks towards her and the lizard-man named Giron staying somewhat nearby her, Binary finally showed up, inviting everyone to join him in a room upstairs.

Thank god. I don't think it could get much more awkward here. She thought as she followed behind majority of the group as they moved to the elevator and the stairs. Not long after, she was sitting at the table, her hands resting on top of them, gingerly tapping her metal-covered fingers together to try and prevent herself from tapping her foot against the floor, which would definitely have gathered more attention than what she was currently doing.

As Binary began going through all of the different profiles, Quantum's eyes widened. How much did he know about –her-? And was he just going to tell everyone else about her? Alright Q, just take a deep breath, calm down. Let's just... wait and see.

"Basil Deleon, as known as 'Giron', a reptilian alien who can shapeshift into any object he can think of."

Oh, good. He decided to start with the guy Quantum began beating up when she arrived. She sunk slightly further down her chair, trying to not look at anyone else.

"James Abney, also known as 'Smiley, a former TEA agent who can create copies of himself at will."

Quantum's head tilted a little to the side, looking from the projector screen, to the man in question, with the mask having a painted-on smiley face. ... Surely he could've thought up a better name than that. He's named smiley because there was one on his mask? Come on, you should call yourself something like... Multiple-Man. She smirked to herself, happy with her new name for him. She'd have to suggest it to him.

"Nerites Ekitai, also known as Torrent, an ancient Greek Goddess with mastery over water."

Quantum's eyes widened a little. A -godess-? She knew there'd probably be a couple powerhouses around, but a god? That was just way beyond her expectations. She looked pretty normal, though. Appearances were apprently decieving.

"Alex Forestveil, also known as Sea Champion, another water user, with limited shapeshifting as well."

Huh. He looked fairly normal too. And he was the only black guy in the room. Quantum squinted a little and shifted in her chair. A lightshaft had created a shadow across his face, and it turns out he was just slightly tanned. Water-manipulation and shapeshifting could be useful though.

"Selune Greenwood, also known as Star Gazer. She gained the powers to manipulate starlight, heal herself, and flight from a a chunk of radioactive space rock.

Okay, first off, that was a -really- cool outfit. The blue was really pretty and reminded Quantum of looking up into the sky during twilight. It was pretty practical too, the helmet especially. Heroes never protected their heads well enough, she felt.

"Hilda Gard, also known as Enzyme. She possess the ability to combine separate objects at a molecular level, along with enhanced strength.

Another really cool costume! She wasn't really a fan of the belt's studs, but the colours and general look was very cool. Nice and streamlined. But what's with the name 'Enzyme'? Her ability is to combine seperate object- ooooooh. Alright, that's pretty cool. Might've been easier with something simpler. Like... 'Chef'.

"Akira Dyer, also known as Shade, who can manipulate shadows.

Manipulate shadows? Depending on what that means, it could either be very useful, or very... weird. Could she solidify the shadows, or was she forced to have them move along the surfaces? She looked nice enough, though.

"Quantum, who goes by just that, a being made of pure energy contained within a protective suit. She has enhanced strength, can fly, and can emit energy blasts."

Oh boy, here we go. Somehow, he'd gotten info on basically all of her abilities, although the only picture of her was a sort of blurry far-off one, while she was out in the yard, practicing with the doctor. She took a quick breath, pulling her hands back to rest them in her lap, leaning back into the chair, almost sinking into it while trying not to look at anyone, staring directly up at the projector screen. This was hands-down the most embarrassing moment of her life.

"Alexander Smith, also known as Axel, a man who can transform into and communicate with animals."

Right, okay, focus on the new guy. Axel, transforms and talks to animals. She paused, her brow furrowing beneath the helmet. Wait, Alexander, known as Axel? -That- was his superhero name choice? She shook her head briefly. That's not gonna cut it. What about... The Beast Master? Or... Animan? No, that one's stupid. Hmh. I'll have to think about that one.

"Samuel Lehry, also known as Deuseas, who can telekinetically create objects from metal."

Deuseas? She didn't even know what that was referring to. If it even -was- a reference. Telekinetically creating objects from metal sounded pretty sweet, though. Oh, I know! Smith! Or -The- Smith. Or Smithy. Brilliant. She thought to herself, smiling.

"Richard Renner, also known as Reverb. He can create and control vibrations, such as sound waves."

Now -that's- a name that actually works. Pretty cool one too. So basically, he's able to control sound? Man, now I wish I'd listened when Doc told me all that stuff about soundwaves and stuff.

"Edward Trayton, also known as Renegade, who controls chi to enhance combat abilites and use echolocation."

Someone who controls 'chi'? Wasn't chi supposed to be something that monks used for meditation or something like that? She glanced over at the man clad in black with a mask covering his face. So he was basically a sort of super-human, then. He didn't look too bad, although he did have a sort of... brooding bad-boy aura over him.

"Cain Thompson, also known as Spirit, a nomad who can manipulate the natural elements."

Manipulate -all- of the natural elements? Wonder what the sea-godess thinks of someone else controlling her element. His power seemed really cool though, being able to fly around, shooting lightning, icicles and fire from your hands. A brief mental image of herself dressed in a poncho, riding around on a giant water torrent while shooting lightning from her hands snuck into her head, causing her to near-silently snicker.

"Kari Brown, also known as Kariyai, an Akansu who possesses the ability to control fire."

Another elemental-user. If they ever came up against an enemy who used elemental powers, they would be screwed. She didn't really have much of a costume though. -Or- a hero-name. Hmh. Maybe something like... Flame... Princess. Ugh, no. What about 'Fire Storm'? Ooh, I like that one. Archive it for later, I'll make a word pad when I get home.

"Chris Coleman, also, known as Burst. He can create and manipulate tangible fields of energy."

She wasn't entirely sure why he'd called himself Burst, given that he's basically creating energy barriers. She'd have to ask him what his idea with it was. Now that she was looking closer at him, he wasn't wearing a costume. Majority of people in here actually wasn't wearing any sort of costume or even a mask. Maybe they just didn't think to suit up for this and they've got a costume back home? Hmh.

And with that, everyone had been introduced. Binary let them know that he had given callsigns to some of them, which made Quantum inwardly go 'Oooh, I see now', before continuing to show the transciever. With the meeting now over, Quantum got up and headed for the elevator to take the ride down, her head buzzing with information, and a light bit of worry about how everyone knew her secret now.

She blinked as someone suddenly stood in front of her and bent down in front of her. It was a woman with black hair, holding a notepad in her hand, seemingly admiring her metallic stomach and the purple-pulsating ring on her abdomen. "U-uhm, d-" she managed to stutter before the woman had gotten up and walked off. Quantum stood still, staring after the woman, completely baffled at what had just happened. After snapping out of it, she quickly made for the stairs, in case someone else came to take a closer look at her.

A few seconds later, she was one of the first people down in the lobby, not wanting anyone else to take a closer look at her like the woman had. She briefly considered whether she actually wanted to help the Champions, after what she'd just gone through, both in regards to Binary's introduction and one of the others seemingly 'inspecting' her, but she quickly shook her head. Look, it's fine. Binary's a professional, he wouldn't have said what he did, unless he knew that it'd be okay… right? Right. Come on, Q. You can do this.

Nodding her head firmly, she turned on the spot to face the receptionist, smiling behind the helmet, which seemed to show from her energized, purple eyes shining from behind the glass. "Hello! I, uhm… would like to join. Or, uh, help, rather. Transciever. I mean, I'd like one. Binary said-"

The receptionist gave off a small laugh, holding up a hand to pause her flustered speech. "It's alright, I get what you're saying." After reaching underneath the desk, she placed the watch-like object in front of her, smiling warmly. "He'll contact you soon. Feel free to go relax until then."

Quantum didn't know if she was blushing or not. If she even –could- blush, she hadn't given it any thought. But she felt like she was. Quickly taking the transceiver, she nodded at the receptionist and muttered a quick 'Thank you.' Before shuffling off to the side, near the wall next to the door as she turned the device in her hands, admiring it. "Okay… now to figure out how to attach it to my suit." She muttered to herself, glancing down at her metallic wrist, inwardly doubting that it was going to fit.

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