Chapter 2: Don't Feed the Animals

Waiting in the drive through certainly wasn't how James imagined getting their burgers. At least it was an In 'N Out and not a McDonalds, the former would be less.....traumatic, for him. Food tasted fine but it went straight to his thighs. And to the can even faster. "What do you want James?" Michael asked from upfront, the menu screen visible from where James sat. "Uh.....just a bacon cheeseburger and fries I guess," James said. Hey, he was health conscious, but it didn't mean James wouldn't splurge a little and pig out.

A few minutes later they were driving off, the bags of food in the car and aroma of fries and burgers filling the interior. On top of the sound of a moving vehicle, there was the sound of drinks being slurped eagerly through straws. It was an average enough moment.....which oddly enough James found himself a stranger in. A month and small change worth of being a hero, running over rooftops and fighting crooks and thieves and short lived supervillains, had somehow become the norm for him. This, this sitting in the car with burgers and fries and soda on the way home.....was foreign to him. An echo of a life not old enough to be a ghost, yet somehow not recent enough to have felt like yesterday.

As the time passed, he finished his meal and noticed that the woman he had been observing had been waiting for someone. Another woman, a bit older than herself joined her. What they discussed could not reach Dean's ears. Most likely, nothing of importance. Just girl talk, but why would they meet in this delicatessen? A very strange meeting place for these women. Going by their attire, they would better belong in upstate than down in Brooklyn. Hell, they would look at home in California than New York in the first place. The woman he had been observing had left towards the facilities, leaving her compatriot at the table. This woman looks very formal and very serious. Sharp eyes that look even sharper with a pair of half rimmed glasses. Her balck hair tied into a bun and she looks as if she is getting ready to go into a business meeting. She looks like it wasn't her idea to meet in this meat shop amongst the lowly serfs. That's the impression Dean gets from her anyway.

He hears the sounds of heels once more and the shapely dame passes by him. Dropping a folded up piece of paper on his desk. She looks back towards him and gives him a smile. As she drops the paper he makes sure to look towards her fingers and sure enough there is a very bizarre looking birthmark right where his informant told him it would be. A small birthmark in the shape of what looked like a diamond. He looks to the paper as she sits back down with her compatriot, picks it up and opens it.

Code:

Dean Faulk, you've been given a false task. Join us.

This has gotta be some kinda trick. How in Sam Hill does she know about my assignment?

He sits there for a second, still processing what just happened. Weighing the pros and cons of his next course of action and finally decides to get up and join the mystery women.

Down in her lab, Rebecca Cohen was ready to give the pack it's first day out in the field. Brutus' recovery was ready, and his siblings were now born and hungry. She wasn't worried though, about them trying to eat her. No, it wasn't because she was their creator and they had a born loyalty, their hunger would have outweighed any sense of that. But the gauntlet she created that released a pheromone mist to control them, now that would do the trick. With a few choice pheromones, Rebecca was able to direct the pack out of the lab....and to the surface. Now, she thought, time for the real test.

Once home, they were eating. Michael did his best to put some enthusiasm into the gathering, trying to strike up a conversation but James' mood made any attempt fall short. Deciding to switch on the TV, the three of them were watching an HBO movie when Gestalt alerted James again.

Found it. Same area as the terminal, it moved to the surface......and it brought friends.

Friends? You've gotta be kidding me. Sadly for him, the AI wasn't. Once more it displayed footage from the terminal, of four monstrosities hauling their way up to the surface. There was the first one from the park, but the others.....one looked like some ungodly mix between a tiger and a wolf, the striped black and orange pattern along its lanky side and flank. The third was even more vicious looking than the first, a canine like snout extended between a pair of large pair of mandibles. As for the fourth.....it looked like a bat, except James never thought bats could crawl on the ground like that, the wings used as forelegs while a snake like head swung at ease from the shoulders. Oh crap......look's like it's gonna be a day at the zoo, he thought.

Zeru waited till everyone left before sending an email to one of his acquaintance's to tell them to bring in the furniture via the usual way to fill up the place before getting his usual winter gear and leaving through the main door and locking it and heading out into the cold.

Indeed. May I make a suggestion? Ask Michael if you could go and visit Amy, bring Chris along with you to ease his worries. Then from there you move to attack these creatures.

Yeah.....yeah that will have to be our best option, James thought. "Hey Michael," he said quickly, "I know it's soon and all.....but would it be okay if Chris and I hung out at Amy's? We all have some school work we need to finish, and I need some help on some math homework." Michael pursed his lips, considering it with great care and looking to Chris, who nodded in agreement. "Okay. Well, I'm going to trust you, both of you. But I expect calls every hour, just to be safe." It was a good deal, as far as things went. Several minutes later when they were all packed up, Chris and James headed out the door.

"Okay, spill," Chris said. "What's going on?" she asked, to which James said "That creature from yesterday is back. And there's more like it all moving up to the streets. I need to get there this time, see if I can stop them." Wide eyed, Chris whispered as they walked down the street "What about the other.....people? Can't you call them for help?" Nodding, James said "Yeah, and that sounds like the smartest choice. I'll send a call out on the way there." As he moved to go, he was stopped by Chris' hand on his wrist, pulling him back....and into her arms for a hug. "Just be careful," she said quietly. "I'm sick and tired of you almost dying."

The words caught him off guard, eyes blinking rapidly. "Yeah," he whispered, "yeah, I hear ya Chris. I promise, I'll be careful." With that, he let go and ran, running down the street. He wasn't sure if it was clear or not.....but this wasn't the time for caution, so he had the nanites cover him in the suit before he fired a cable up to a rooftop to gain some height. Contact Paladin and Shadow, it's gonna be a bloodbath.

Doing as asked, Gestalt sent out a message to both Shadow and Paladin.

Code:

Mount up, we've got trouble and need backup. Coordinates added, come quick.

Marcus, sitting in the Chinese restaurant eating his bowl of rice, felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. Putting the fork down for a moment, he fished it out and read the message right as the tv in the shop finished the commercials and returned to the news. It gave him a very clear idea of what the message was for, as footage played of a pack, of even more of those mutant things tearing up a street. Least I paid for the rice already, he thought sourly, getting up from his seat and making for the door.

He approaches them with questions on his tongue, but before he could get them out, the business woman points to a chair across from herself and to the right of his target and with a clear and concise tone commands him to, "Sit."

Feeling even more off guard, he follows her order. His target gives him a smirk and says, "You already have him trained, good work."

He looks at his target with a serious glare, unfortunately, it does not seem to effect her. So he puts his gaze back on the business woman.

"Alright, I'm gonna cut to the chase here. Who are you two? How do y'all know my name? and How do y'all know I was supposed to kill her?"

She raises her glasses up so they sit perfectly on her face and meets his gaze.

"Information isn't that difficult to gain access to. That's my forte, Mr. Faulk. Not to mention you've a look about you. It isn't hard to identify that you're slightly rattled by something and with my knowing you're a mercenary, two and two make four."

"You've also had your eyes on me since I came into this place." His target interjects, crossing her arms as if trying to cover up her body even more than it currently is.

There must be a finite amount of times one can get taken aback. This amount has so far not been reached by Dean. He's silent for a few minutes. His target snaps her fingers in front of his face in an attempt to wake him up.

"I dunno, hun. I think you went and broke the poor guy."

"Who do y'all work for?" He says, putting hope in that it isn't Nexus.

"I work to protect people like them." She says motioning towards his target. "From the people who come to take their lives. Why would I do this? Because I want peace for those like you and like them." She pauses for a moment. "Nexus always cleans up their messes. Whether they use their own assets, or mercenaries. Those who have escaped will be hunted like animals and killed."

Moving on the rooftops, James could see ahead of him in the distance the small shapes of gunships, though they looked nothing like the police issue gunships. These must have been the gunships used by Draco's task force, though there was something odd about them. Or rather, familiar. Gestalt, can you zoom and enhance? Not my vision, yours since one of is running.

Sure, rub it in.....oh, the AI said.

What?

The frame is different, but those are the same type of propulsion systems used by the UNESD.....and only, the UNESD.

The alien guys? Thought they got scrapped?

Yes but it would seem Nexus managed to get their hands on UNESD assets.

That did not bode well, given that the UNESD made a habit of grabbing alien tech where it could. So there was no telling what else Nexus had their hands on. But he couldn't worry about that now, as James closed in on the target area....and it was already getting hairy.

In the street, several people lay dead in pools of blood, ripped apart by the ravenous beasts. Atop a car, the tiger-wolf hybrid let out a triumphant howl of bloodlust while the bulky, reptilian Brutus flipped a squad car onto its cowering owners. Charging a line of cops, the near saurian like mutant took on a hail of bullets that did little but irritate it, spearing a cop on one of its mandibles and swiping another aside with a sweep of the tail. As for the snake-bat, it swooped up with a hiss towards a police chopper. Claw-tipped wings gripping the sides it stuck its head in, fanged jaws grabbing one of the occupants before it jumped off, victim in its mouth.

Marcus walked out the door, phone in hand and already punching in numbers for Zeru. The ringtone sounded off and upon answer from the other side, he found Bellas voice. "Yes Shadow?" Bella said though the phone.

"Need help. Monster came with a few friends. Sending location." As Marcus finished, he hung the phone and sent a quick message on where to go to Zeru's phone. After that he placed the phone in a pocket and went to hailing a cab. "On my way mate."

"Command we have a positive ID on vigilante designated 'Revenant,' advancing towards the incident. Please advise over," one of the Draco task force gunships said over their radio. On the other end of it, Barnes listened intently. After the press conference he had immediately returned to Draco's barracks on the Governor's Island facility. The command center he stood in was lined with state of the art equipment, communication machines receiving data from the task force gunships in the field. So as he stood there, watching the live thermal imaging shot of Revenant running and cabling along the rooftops, he considered the first move. "Leave him be," he said then into the mic. "Our primary focus is those creatures. Talon's One and Two, deploy your ground teams and keep to the air, I want that area contained. Ground teams, use of lethal force for the creatures is granted but heads up, that vigilante Revenant is headed for you. Do not engage, repeat do not engage. Likely's he's moving to engage the mutant, so you're gonna let him. Best case scenario he takes them down but winds up tired in the process, easy capture. Worst case....they kill him." Either option suited the ground team fine, some even smirking under their helmets. As their transports descended and the bay doors opened, the troops found themselves staring at the edge off a rooftop. Their drop zone.

Filing out, they set foot on the roof in their exoskeleton suits, the newer models much quieter than previous iterations. Each soldier in the two, four man teams carried Nexus' latest weaponry, be it assault rifles, LMG's, or a sniper rifle. Sniper's took position while the rest jumped down from the three story building to the street below, the leggings of their exo-suits equipped with shock absorbers to handle the landing. "Police have fallen back to their perimeter," the lead soldier remarked. "Stick close and aim for their heads, see if that stops them."

At the same time, Revenant finally arrived on sight, looking out at the area; it was a four way intersection, one corner given more space than the others to serve as a small plaza. Apartment buildings, shops and offices, they lined the street. Windows had been shattered with the frameworks of wood and brick splintered or shattered wide open as the creatures had broken through for the prey inside. Two of them, Revenant could see ahead at the end of the street, the first monster and it's more hunched back, pincer jawed sibling. He couldn't see the flier, but judging by the line of carnage leading into the plaza he could guess where the tiger-wolf had gone, and it was closest. So he went for the tiger-wolf.

Ashaara yawned and stretched, standing up off of the couch on which she lay. She had recovered fully the other night and had spent the time since then reattaching a new haft to Avaelli's spear. She stared around their apartment. Avaelli's body was here, in a bin liner next to the armchair. Ashaara hadn't gotten around to sewing it back together yet and it would require Avaelli to truly recover anyway. She wondered what Avaelli was up to...

The other dead girl had been quiet for a long time, watching and listening to James with serious interest. He had a family and very stupidly he had shown her where they lived too. She just needed to get a signal to Ashaara and she'd prefer to do it without opening a Void hole inside of James's head.

There were more bodies along the way. Most of them were dead, clothing and skin torn apart with blood smearing the sidewalk. Some were even alive, feigning death as they curled in a fetal position. Others were.....teetering, knocking on death's door as they bled out with their limbs missing, innards poking hanging out, all of them ready to die. It wasn't something James as a person wanted to see, should ever have to see, and he could all but hear a mocking tone ask if he was saving these people. He knew he wasn't......but he was going to make damned sure the scales were balanced and that the thing that did this died. It looked like it had barged through the glass window of a clothing store, knocking over a mannequin and leaving another in pieces, which made him wonder if that was the target of the creature.

Something stirred inside, past fallen clothing racks and standing mannequins. As his visor switched to thermal, James could see only black and white, shades of gray filling the spaces between......and then the large figure of the cat-like creature, standing at near eight feet tall, came into view. It had been chewing on the corpse of a customer, ivory fangs painted red in blood. Lips curled back in a low snarl as it spotted Revenant standing at the window, sunlight glinting off the suit. "Uhm," Revenant hesitantly said, "here kitty kitty."

With a yowl of fury it launched itself at him, large paws extended with claws reaching out. Crying out in fear, Revenant, or rather James since at that point that was who really reacted, ducked and went flat on the ground as the large creature soared over him and out the store.

You ducked. Like a coward. Really?

Oh I'm sorry, do you want to be the chew-toy here?

I'd stand my ground and fight.

Gestalt. It's a big. Mutant. Cat! What do you expect me to do?

As Chris would say, 'grow a pair.'

He breathes a sigh of relief

"If they're plannin' to get rid of their defects, I assume they've sent someone after me."

"That would be the logical reasoning, yes."

"So, what do ya want me to do? They ain't gonna be usin' the same means to contact me. How am I supposed to know who to go after and who to ignore?"

"You're going to have to take orders from me and only me."

"I think you're mistakin' me for a bad mercenary. I take orders from whoever pays the most. That's kinda my thing. I don't care about the other Nexus rejects. No offense." He directs that last part to his target.

"None taken" She says with a slight laugh and looks at her compatriot who gives an annoyed sigh.

"We aren't necessarily prepared to make negotiations, Mr. Faulk." She gives him a look that suggests that he is joining whether he likes the notion or not. "In fact, we didn't even plan this meeting I came here to discuss business with them. It was either coincidence or divine interference that brought us together."

"You're usin' the Lord to try to get your way? That ain't gonna work. How about you pay me a bit more than what my shady employer was gonna pay me and I'll make believe this conversation never happened."

The business woman and his target nod to each other.

"What amount will suffice?"

"Ten grand. We can do the transaction in Travers Park tonight at around eleven."

His target looks at him. "Ten grand? Figured you'd try to bleed her dry." She says placing her elbows on the table and her right hand on her cheek. "I'll be the one doing the transaction. Alone" She looks at her friend. "Wouldn't want you to get hurt if something goes down.

"Fair enough. Pleasure doin' business with y'all." He says in the most down home tone he has done in a long time.

The other two stand and make their way for the door. The sounds of bells are interrupted by an alert that begins playing over the radio. Apparently, mutants have been attacking Queens for some time now. Draco units have been dispatched and are currently trying to subdue the beasts. The news teams are being held at bay by police who have helped in establishing a perimeter around the area.

They'd better leave my apartment alone. He thinks to himself as he stands and also makes his way for the door.

Marcus stopped the cab when he neared, already. He could hear the sounds of the Hercule nearby and Marcus wondered why him and Rev had to deal with them. Oh you know. Innocent people are helped better by vigilantes and all. Or maybe they are just waiting to capture you again. You know. Make sure you don't wake up next time they do. Marcus shrugged and payed the cab driver before exiting the vehicle and making his way to the noise that could mean life and death.

Hauling himself up as fast as he could, Revenant was barely upright before he was forced to once more duck as a large paw came at him, swung by the tiger-wolf. Leaning forward into the duck, his right arm morphed into a hefty sphere. Letting it fall down Revenant then rose as the arc of the paw ended and left him an opening, back straightening and dragging his cudgel-arm up with it before he backhanded the hybrid below the jaw. It yowled in pain and fury as several teeth were knocked out and sent flying, recoiling from the blow....but as its eyes fixed on its opponent they burned with nothing but a primal hatred.

"Oh great now it's mad...." Revenant muttered, right before the mutant sprung at him. At that distance, he wasn't fast enough to dodge, so the forward paws slammed into him like a train. Driving him back down, he found himself pressed into the hard concrete of the sidewalk as the mutant loomed over him with parted jaws, claw-tips trying to dig into his armor.

We can hold back the claws but if it tries putting pressure on you the epidermis will buckle inward, Gestalt said. It was hardening the armor to keep those claws from slicing through, but that came at the downside of making it a near brittle shell with a weight limit.

"Dammit, this is not how I imagined having a cougar on top of me," Revenant snarled, his cudgel going back into his arm before he reformed his hands into blades. Looks like it's my pointy toys vs your pointy toys, he thought.

"Sir, you need to stay back," a police officer said to Marcus. Determined as the cab driver had been, they weren't gonna get any closer and thus dropped Marcus off outside the perimeter. By the time he had walked to it, the police were already keeping people back, just like the one before him.

"Oh fine." Marcus said as he walked away and made a sharp turn to the right when he passed a building. Out of sight Marcus moved until coming across an alleyway with a fire escape. The ladder unfortunately was up so Marcus backed away from the wall under the base of the fire escape before running at it and jumping.

One foot hitting the wall Marcus propelled himself at the ladder while turning his body to face it, just catching the bottom rung of it and feeling disappointed that it didn't fall and that he would have to heave himself up. "Balls."

His arms weren't pinned, that was the beasts first mistake. It had relied on the one paw and its claws to pierce his suit in an instant, but that failed. Which gave him time to stab into the foreleg that pinned him there and make it scream in pain as crimson blood began trailing down the blade. Leaping back, it favored one leg slightly as the fur became matted with blood. Any suggestions?

Well we were designed to fight a race of genetically engineered mutants, so I feel uniquely qualified in telling you that for this, it's all about wearing it down. Big body like that, it's going to require a lot of energy which was no doubt burned up with all its earlier activity.

Got ya, James thought, before clanging the blades together. "Come on big guy," he taunted. "Let's go!" Yellow eyes narrowing, the mutant made a move to the right as if to flee. James moved to pursue but realized it was a feint as the creature rounded back on him. Ducking down he let it pass over as he aimed a strike up into its belly. Instead of gutting it though, all he did was give it a flesh wound, more blood coming down like hot rain. There was no indication, no sound of pain from the beast as it landed, turning back to glare as Revenant got to his feet.

Good idea, Gestalt said with approval. Bleed it out.

Climbing up the stairs of the multistory apartment's firehouse was one on the things that Marcus didn't have to do but was for some reason still doing it. Finally making it to the top, Marcus allowed his mask to creep on over his face as he looked down on the battle some distance away. Backing away from the edge, Marcus allowed his wings to come to life before sprinting off the buildings roof and gliding towards what seemed like hell taking a vacation on earth. "Hope Bell gets here soon."

While Revenant continued his fight with the tiger-wolf, Draco's soldiers were already hard at work neutralizing the first mutant. "Snipers at the ready, we'll see if we can get you a line for a headshot," the squad leader said. Brutus, the first mutant, turned from the flipped over mini-van it was toying with and eyed the advancing soldiers. Growling in a low warning tone, it faced them with lips pulled back as it bared its teeth. There were six of the soldiers on the ground and two snipers on the roof. Three went one way and the other three another as they moved to coral the mutant, with the squad leaders shouting "Open fire!" when they were in position. The barrels of their weapons strobed as bullets went flying, heavy armor piercing rounds punching into the mutant's flesh.

It screamed in pain before charging at the right-hand squad, head hunched as it went at them like a Gorilla. "Move it!" the leader said, he and his squad jumping to the sides. Brutus went through the wall behind them with a shower of bricks and powder and was still for a moment, vision fuzzy after going headfirst. It gave the soldiers time to resume fire, peppering the back with more bullets. Tearing out of the wall, Brutus stood there, bleeding and angry as it raised its head to roar in defiance......only to have a hole blown into it from one of the high powered sniper-rifles on the roof. Brain gone, the body slumped and fell to the ground, dead.

The tiger-wolf went at Revenant again, rearing up on hind legs to swipe at him, but the motion was sluggish and gave the smaller opponent time to dodge it and get under its reach. With a clear opening, he drove his bladed hand up and into the stomach. That was....well, messy was one word. Blood gushed out of the wound, the gash getting larger as the blade went further down the belly. His armor was painted in red as the blood washed over him, and James had to fight the very strong urge to pull back and throw up. But keeping his hand up was all that was keeping the now dying mutant from collapsing on him.

Within the hour, Urthus arrived at his destination. A series of glowing pink discs in the air marked his trail to anyone looking in the right direction. He slid to a stop amongst a pile of leaves, the abandoned buildings and overgrown trees giving a distinct 'nobody lives here' look. He kicked around a bit of dirt and headed off to begin work. He started with exploring, searching the various empty buildings and maintenance ways. Plant life had grown everywhere, and much of it he needed to rip apart. If he was going to research here, he would need full access to everywhere. Some of it got irradiated along the way, as he had to use portals to get at certain angles for tearing, but not by much. It wasn't very long after he arrived, however, his senses pulsed with a wave of pure revulsion. Not even revulsion, just nausea, like everything around him was wrong. The colors, the lines, the shapes, the angles, everything was off and wrong and needed to be changed. He doubled over in the middle of the hallway he was currently in, retching inside his helmet before it pulled away and he spat upon the ground. He stumbled along, his sense of balance going out along with the rest of his senses. Colors of various intensity swam in his vision, and as he stumbled out into a small courtyard he dry heaved even harder.

He collapsed onto the ground, face down in the dirt and plant life. He tried to inhale and found all of the scents, even the very act of the air filling his lungs caused him to spasm in agony. It wasn't pain, just aversion. He struggled to breathe, to even fight against this familiar and suddenly unfamiliar sense of gravity that pulled on him. Questions that weren't his own blurred his thoughts and he found himself rising, moving with limbs that he barely seemed to move, like he was in control and yet being controlled. He glowed with Void energy, casting light upon all nearby surfaces, and ripped a portal open. It was fair larger than he had ever been able to make before, and pulsed with what almost seemed like life. Arcs of energy spewed out in all directions, some shooting up into the air to look similar to fireworks, while those that impacted the area around him burned the ground and made it turn black from heat and radiation. The sheer amount of energy pouring forth pushed against him like wind.

It was here that he could see something coming, a spot in the Void growing bigger. He had no sense of size, no scale to help him determine how far away it was, but it was growing at a fairly steady rate. As it grew closer he could finally make out some details. It was a person, one of his kind as he soon realized. He had trouble with his elation, however, as all the thoughts about his reality flooded his mind. A fog of radiation vomited forth from the portal, rushing all over the island and stopping just as it crossed over the water.

With a grunt, Revenant shoved the body aside, though that term could be used loosely; with the weight of the body pressing down, the most he could do was shift his arm to the side and let the weight carry the carcass downward as the blade retracted, forming back into his hand. His crimson, blood soaked hand......Dammit James try not to think too much about it, he mentally said. Sure you're covered in mutant blood but don't let that stop you. Looking around, he spotted his reflection in a mirror and for a moment was stunned by what he saw. Indeed, he was covered in blood, some still trickling down his body. Fighting off the wave of nausea, he tore his gaze away from the window and headed back out to the street.

James look out! Gestalt shouted, but it was too late.

From the side, the reptilian mutant with the wicked tusks charged Revenant, the boy turning at the last moment but with no defense planned.....and gored as the tusk broke through his softened armor at the stomach, bursting out the other side. There was no scream, just a surprised 'oof' as he was lifted and carried before the mutant shook its head violently, dislodging him and sending Revenant flying into a car. A large two inch hole was visible on his stomach a few inches from his navel. OWWWW!! was the only thing going through his mind, even as he screamed to high heaven in pain.

And still, the mutant came at him.

Then something dropped in front of the wounded hero, and a loud crack was heard. The mutant was hit head on with Avalon, Paladin's might cannon. It staggered, then Excalibur impaled it's head. The mutant dead fast, Paladin turned.
"I swear, are you always this helpless against huge foes without me?" He growled, looking up. Tracking the flying mutant, he crouched down, preparing for a fast takeoff. "Note to self: Get Aries to install an anti air gatling gun of sorts..."

Unable to say a word, James watched in awe as Paladin saved him. But that was a small thought compared to the pain coursing through him. Ah fuck, Gestalt what's the damage?

Blood loss. Organ damage. You have to hold still or else I won't be able to heal this properly, the AI said, already set on replicating the damaged tissue. A Draco sniper had the fallen hero in their sights though, radioing in "Revenant is down, repeat Revenant is down. But we've got a new contact in the area, looks like a flying robot."

Barnes immediately responded with "Roger that. Talon One, keep an eye on our guest and be ready to open fire. And enact cyberwarfare countermeasures, Hercules reported this one had a hacker friend."

Marcus flew over the police cars or more glided past, the wings were not as strong as they once were, at least that's what Dark said. Now they mostly just kept him afloat until they started to break and then poof. No more wings and hopefully on the ground. Good news was he was close to the ground, his eyes on the new not so much Hercule's and Revanant, being flung into a car.

Then the Giant metal guy appeared and just killed the beast. Marcus landing some point behind metal man. And moved to Revanant. "Mate, you seem injured. And theirs a new kid on the block. Actually lets make that a bunch of new kids on the block stooped up on steroids." Marcus said in his demonic voice while looking around to check nothing was sneaking up on them. "Might want to get up."

Revenant, perhaps not so luckily, was still conscious. Still fully aware of the pain he was in. "Dammit Shadow....can't, need to heal," he groaned, palm now covering the wound. "He's a friend, but we've got one more mutant to worry about."

"Command target Shadow has entered the board, repeat Shadow is on the board," the gunship pilot said. "Understood Talon One, keep him and Revenant in your sight. They are priority Alpha. Talon Two, take out that last mutant, then move in to keep the vigilantes contained."

"I don't mean metal man. I mean the duped on gear humans. We might want to get out before your metal friend finishes with mutant number I don't know. man we should keep a collar on him to just defeat everything that appears." Marcus said as he built a dome of shadows to surround both Marcus and the Car Rev rested in. "This should keep us safe until you heal."

"Dude," Revenant growled as he sat up, still clutching his side....even as the suit sealed up over the breach and nanites sewed him back together. "You really....don't have to. For fucks' sake, people will start talking if they see how protective you are of me," he quipped, before looking around. "And that's not gonna last long. It's daytime, doesn't light beat shadow?"

"Normally but as I found out a few years ago. It doesn't affect me much. Direct light and Uv will most likely but for now I haven't tried ether. As my name, I am shadow. Not the darkness. Also Darkness can overcome the light." Marcus explained as he moved about, his eyes always looking at the doom. "Constructs like this doe will be affected. Might be a small while but until then."

"So instead of killing the other mutant," Revenant groaned as he got out of the wrecked car, "you protect the guy.....that can protect himself. I'm probably gonna slap you after this, just so you know." He wasn't a hundred percent yet. Eighty, maybe. But he was still in pain from the wound, and he could feel the nanites moving around as they repaired his body. "Paladin," he groaned into the mask, contacting his ally over the line, "take out that flier if you can.....and get ready for all hell to break loose."

Because those gunships did not look like they were going away. And add to it, Draco's soldiers were moving in on the dome.

"Well you were injured and and this new army group look." Marcus opened a small hole in the dome and in sight they were. "Yea they are here and I think their intentions are set. So plan?"

Bella had made it over, police forces were all over the area and Bella was a little lost on how to help. She could run though the forces but that would get her face on camera all to much. "Fuck."

It took several agonizing minutes before Urthus would come in contact with whomever was leaving the Void. When they got closer they seemed to slow, drifting around in a slow spiral that gave him a relatively good look at what they were. He could see spikes, angles, similar to his on his back, but more forward protruding, more angled for combat. A weapon was held in their hand, a large weapon, like a weapon from their military. He briefly remembered through the chaos in his mind about the armed forced of his people, brave men and women who trained to fight off the- and it was lost again. A second weapon was on their back, looking similar to a human shotgun, in basic terms.

Then his breath left him as the Void seemed to pucker inwards, the energy that had been pushing against him suddenly sucking in, he leaned heavily, just barely managing to keep himself from falling over, and this person inched ever closer to the event horizon. The feelings of wrongness and unreality grew more intense, wreaking havoc with all of his bodily senses. The fog poured forth faster, pushing out over the water farther and filling in the buildings almost completely until it spewed from the second story windows. As this individual, this soldier got closer, it only got worse, until they finally hit the event horizon, and everything practically exploded. A wave of pure unreality, of pure sensory overload exploded from the island in all directions for a good few miles, and Urthus was knocked onto his back from the force and sudden impact of this new arrival.

A new Asadantsu was placed upon the Earth, amidst a massive, albeit rapidly dissipating, radioactive cloud of exotic particles. One hell of an entrance for anyone who might have bear witness.

With an explosive takeoff, Paladin was airborne. Chasing down the mutant, he drew his mighty blade. Though it kept dodging, he finally faked it out...right into the sight of his cannon.
And missed.
"Dammit..." he growled. He kept at it, but it was annoyingly fast.

Finally, though, he got it...by chasing it into a building. Stuck, he impaled its head...and stayed there.
"...goddammit, why can't it ever be easy?"

It wasn't just at Urthus' position that the.....off, sensation was felt. It stretched out for miles as all manner of animals went bezerk at the sensation, of something fundamentally alien entering the dimension. Waves of nausea overtook people in the city, with even Chris and Amy, currently watching the fight on the news going pale and clutching their stomachs. The Draco soldiers stumbled as the unexpected sensation hit them, and even James, despite the nanites, could feel his stomach performing gymnastics. What the hell? he demanded.

Unknown. Exotic particles and radiation detected.

Oh fucking.....does every Saturday have to be a clusterfuck, or is it just when Shadow and I are working together?

If you'd like I can run the numbers on that, later. For now.....it would seem Paladin managed to take out the flier.....but that leaves Draco free.

To do what? James asked....but then the question was answered. The dome may have been a defensive barrier but it didn't seem to block out sound, as the gunship broadcasted quite clearly over its speakers "ATTENTION REVENANT AND SHADOW, SURRENDER IMMEDIATELY OR WE WILL OPEN FIRE!!" Both gunships hovered over the buildings, nose-turrets aimed down at the dome while the Draco soldiers surrounded it from afar, weapons trained.

Marcus fell to his knee in pain, Bella did too and even Flora felt bad. "What the fuck was that. No Never mind we have much bigger problems in the name of something. Whats the plan?" Marcus asked as best he could, they were surrounded alright.

"Uh....I don't know, I was sorta stuck on the whole 'Holy shit holy shit the mutant impaled me' part of this fight," Revenant said. "Ten seconds!" the pilot said from above. Ten seconds until even more hell broke loose....great. "Best bet? We need to run, in opposite directions," Revenant said. "Split them up and we stand a better chance of losing them."

Meanwhile.....while they had been outside the radius, their instruments had detected the sudden influx of particles. "Sir," one of the agents said from their station, "the Huginn grid is narrowing down the OP of the particle influx......looks like Northern Queens, New York." From behind them, a middle aged looking man in a plain suit looked at the large, wall-sized screen as the results poured in. "Okay.....send in a team to assess the area. Keep it low key though."

Zeru was walking down an street mainly meandering when he was hit by the sensory overload causing him to swagger into a fence fall down recieving a large gash on his arm from it before regaining his composure enough to at least try to start standing up wondering what the hell just hit him.

Urthus lay collapsed on the ground, pinned under the weight of this newcomer. He was panting, his mind suddenly clear from the mass whirlpool of thoughts that had been bombarding him. Now it was just his own, and he could suddenly think again. First, as he regained his strength back and took stock of what happened, he carefully rolled this new arrival off of him, and onto the ground. In front of him, a large section of the ground had been torn apart, dissolved into seemingly nothing. Along with it were potholes, apparently torn out from the arcs of energy spewed around. The fog was still in place, but disappearing as the particles destroyed themselves from this existence and let the air clear. It would take a while for the exotic particles to vanish completely, but it was fading.

Urthus himself, meanwhile, rolled over to get a look at his new companion. They were definitely a soldier, outfitted for war and possibly still in the middle of that last battle. At least, they looked that way what with their grip on their gun and what not. They were seemingly unconscious, although whether that was from the battle or the Void or something else entirely was unknown.

Time ran out. Without further warning, the guns on the gunships opened fire, with medium tier rounds--by vehicle standards at least--raining down and peppering the dome. "Dammit, Shadow when I tell you, drop the shield and run!" Revenant said. Odds of us surviving a hit?

Surviving? Odds are.....well, acceptable by my standards though probably not yours. A direct hit would result in damage sufficient to replace more of your anatomy with nanite-composed structures, and we would be immobilized long enough for capture.

Simple no would have been fine....

"Sounds like a plan. I'm going to send this dome in a force pulse, hopefully knocking down ground forces but how we deal with the gunships. I don't know. Now then. Three, Two, One!" As Marcus said the one he would spread the orb like a pulse. Enough force to a least push and probably knock some out. And began running the way he came.

The pulse would have worked.....had the Draco soldiers been amateurs. Sadly, they weren't, taking cover behind cars and training their weapons on the dome as it exploded. Revenant ran opposite Shadow, dashing down the street. As he moved the nanites formed the usual shields on both arms, the vigilante holding them before him as he ran to block the incoming hail of bullets. Which came at him with a great deal of force, the heavy rounds denting the shields.

Marcus allowed his Armour to grow on his skin, he would move a little slower but at least the hailing bullets that followed him would bruise him if they hit enough. Marcus just had to make it to a building and meld though it. After that he just had to lose the shadow get up and hang in the buildings stars or just around. Cover story would be waiting on a friend, if asked about himself then say he saw a black mist go though the ground. Perfect cover story.

You need to acquire elevation and move to the roof, Gestalt instructed James. Staying on the ground like this and running headlong into fire won't last.

Alright, then I'm gonna need a path, James said. In his visor Gestalt painted just such a path, a glowing line curving ahead of him and arching towards a car, over it and then straight up.

Move to the car then use it as a jumping off point. Retract left hand shield, and fire it as cable to the roof, Gestalt calmly explained.

That worked better than anything James could have thought of, so he followed the path laid out. Bullets continued pinging off and denting his shield, though now a round managed to punch through inches from his head. As he neared the car, his legs fell into the familiar motion he'd always perform when gaining ground and running over cars. The left hand shield shrank as the nanites began to create the cable, knees bending as he readied the jump. The gunfire stopped and for a moment he thought they simply didn't want to damage the car......he was proven wrong several seconds later.

As he jumped up, firing the cable he heard an unfamiliar sound, like the 'puff puff' sounds a paintball gun made when firing. Pulled up by the cable and rising up Revenant saw three other thin cables go shooting past, tips glinting in the daylight before embedding into the brickwork. Don't tell me....he quietly pleaded. As he crossed over onto the roof, landing in a roll before coming to his feet he could hear a new sound. A near high pitched whine like engines and another sound like cords rubbing against cords. He looked back, and was in time to see the three Draco soldiers crest the edge of the roof, landing on the building in their exoskeletons. "Not gonna lose us that easily," one of them said, grinning beneath their helmet. The gunship stayed in its position above, holding fire due to the location of Revenant.

For Shadow's pursuit team, they moved to cordon off the building he fled into and initiate a search, floor by floor.

The tired and weary Asadantsu carefully got up onto his feet, rocking back and forth as he slowly regained his sense of balance. You would think he would be used to this, but perhaps his connection to the Void was playing with him. He didn't have time to test that out. He leaned down, intending to grab his comrade and start carrying him inside, but he fell flat on his face and sprawled out once more. He swore into the dirt and tried again. It took a third try before he was able to grab his new friend without falling over, and slowly started to drag them into one of the buildings.

Leaving behind a massive trail of dirt and torn plants, Urthus did what he could to get this new arrival into someplace comfortable. He didn't want to risk opening their armor. Not yet anyway, as it could be that they have something dangerous inside the suit or that the suit could be fused to the wearer. Stranger things had happened in the Void.

Marcus removed the jumper he had previously warn and ripped it to shreds, until not a speck was left then went to put some holes in his pants. Just enough to distract what he was wearing before. After such he moved into a comfortable sitting position . Sitting against the wall he would wait. He would wait along with the face of a man who had seen something like a ghost. He knew all too well the faces he had seen when they saw him. Time he replicated that face.

"Talon two," Barnes said over the radio, "move to the new target's location. Pin them down and make sure they can't fly away." In response the gunship moved to hover over Paladin's position, gun trained on the armored suit.

"Aww geez, come on guys," Revenant groaned. "Can't you see I'm on your side?" he asked, to which the lead trooper said "We're not the unsanctioned vigilantes here. So get on the ground and put your hands behind your head." Revenant craned his head, looking at his options; behind him was a large air conditioning unit he could vault over and use as an obstacle between him and the troops. But if they had grappling hooks that let them get to a three story rooftop in a second then that unit wouldn't last long.

Just then though, he was pulled back to the present by an high pitched whine coming from the soldiers. Dust got kicked up behind one of them as they broke into a run, crossing the distance between them and Revenant faster than he could have anticipated. As a result he didn't defend himself as the soldier slammed into him like a high-speed linebacker clad in armor, sending him flying back into the AC unit.

James, I ran an analysis on their exoskeletons. According to data from your sisters hard-drive, those soldiers are wearing Nexus Mk. VII Exoskeletons, Mobility class. As James groaned and tried moving, images flashed in his mind courtesy of Gestalt. Rear mounted jet-pack, not enough strength for sustained flight but does provide ample thrust for horizontal movement. Exoskeleton has plating on chest, back, legs and arms. Also comes equipped with those grappling tethers, not hooks.

Save the explanation for later Gestalt, James mentally groaned as he stood up, readying for the next attack. But he realized this wasn't going to be an easy fight; with thugs he had the advantage of speed, strength, and the nanites forming weapon. But these guys were as fast as him, and were strong too. Three of them against him.....was not going to bode well.

Odin's headquarters was rather discreet, considering they were launching a gunship. Outside the city limits, the facility was more underground than anything else with an inconspicuous office building standing as their cover. A response team was still being prepped, their transport already standing by. The particles had died down but the point of origin was now officially marked and the team would need to move fast. What with how things had been going with the vigiantes, exotic radiation was not something the higher ups wanted added to their list of problems.

He could hear the noises of men coming up the stairs now, something he really didn't like the sound of because if they could make him. His normal life would be in real trouble. Whatever he could make of a normal life really. Something he had thought about from time to time but never really wanted but now with what has happening. Marcus would not mind a warm bed in his own place, not at all.

The same trooper charged him, but this time he was ready as he sidestepped the sprint and slammed his palms into the soldiers back, forcing them against the AC unit. It caught them off guard, but not for long as the difference in skill was shown; twisting while pushing back, the soldier reversed their positions and was about to force Revenant against the machine until he raised his legs, kicking off from the side of the unit and sending them both backwards. As the soldier landed on their back, Revenant rolled as he landed and ended in a crouch, quickly standing to intercept the next attack. A second soldier came at him, running forward with fist pulled back to punch. Parrying the blow with his arm, Revenant countered with his own set of blows, punches and kicks aimed to take out the limbs of the exo-armor to cripple it. The problem was that the wearers of the armor were pros, and knew hand to hand.

Trading counters, Revenant and his opponent sparred briefly before he got kicked down and about to be ganged up on by two of them. Rolling away he formed a pair of hammer-fists, deciding to incapacitate them a little more....aggressively. Gestalt, suggestions?

Limited, if you would rather leave them alive. Break their armor and you stand a better chance of escape, though the gunship above us complicated that, Gestalt spoke while James fought, dodging blows before returning uppercuts with the hammers. The use of the hammers was effective, as on one such uppercut he managed to shatter the visor for one of the helmets.

Once the Odin response team was prepped, they boarded their dropship and left the base, flying out of the hangar as the overhead doors parted to let it fly out. It was gonna be a short flight, the team consisting of a few mid-level scientists and their gear....and a half dozen soldiers armed. Every single one of them was all wearing the same hazmat suits, rated for radiation protection. They just had to hope the exotic particles were on the list of things the suits could defend against.

Paladin looked at the gunship aiming at him. With an expressed sigh he flew right up, the Avalon cannon pressed against the gunship's cockpit.
"I do not want blood on my hands. So here is a fantastic idea. Get lost, because I really don't need you idiots on my concious." The White helmet's "eyes' flashed menacingly.

Of course everything changed when HERCULES attacked.

As if Draco wasn't enough, a trio of VTOL fighters appeared, and without warning strafe Revenant's position. They were merely a harbinger, as dropships began to deposit even more trips to the streets...and Paladin was tackled away by...
"Dammit you bitch Mordred!" The armored knight roared, flipping and landing, forming a crater. "Can't you wannabe demigods go chase Batman?"
The black streets it drew it's own blade. "Surrender or be neutralized."
Growling, Paladin extended Excalibur. "This be the night bitches die I guess."

Of course things in the area were getting more.....hectic. First Draco and now Hercules. Their VTOL jets and now what looked like their own Paladin had joined the fray. Revenant's best option at this point was to cut his fight short and flee, change back to his human self and get under the radar.

Easier said than done. The three exo-suit soldiers were proving to be a whole new challenge for Revenant, as the experienced fighters were on even terms with him. His main advantage was his own weapons, which he used to disable one soldier by smashing the servos on their armor with a well placed blow. Another tried using their jetpack for speed in order to tackle him again, but he ran right back at them, jumping at the last instant to roll over and slash at the suits batterypack. Without power, the suit died and froze, its now unsupported weight making the wearer collapse. With one guy left, Revenant went at them in his own tackle, though they ended up grappling together, like MMA fighters trying to gain leverage. Grabbing something, Revenant twisted with his hips and threw the man away, tearing something from his arm--one of their grapple devices apparently. Not bothering to stick around with his opening, Revenant ran and did his best to avoid the gunship.

That bit was easy though, the chaos in the sky causing them to alter position to avoid being hit.

Arriving after a few minutes of flight, the dropship landed in the immediate area of the particles emergence. It hadn't been seen, it's optical camo (at the cost of its own weapons) hiding it from view. The team dismounted with their equipment, setting up by the ship before they would move to investigate.

The dropship that came to visit, and all of it's passengers, would find only a few rare particles left in the area before blinking out of existence. The remains of the immediate area were easily visible. Scorched parts of buildings, a line in the ground that looked as if a massive coin had been inserted and removed, and drag marked in the dirt leading into one of the buildings. Urthus could hear the aircraft land, but didn't give it a second thought. All of his attention was on the new arrival. He needed to make sure they were healthy, they were safe, and they were comfortable. If something was wrong with them, he didn't want them to be injured more by his carelessness.

Vaulting over the AC unit Revenant ran across the rooftop as he aimed to escape. Not focusing on anything else but what was in front of him, he ran with the intent to leap and cable to the next rooftop. Finally at the edge he jumped, firing a cable out and reeling himself in to the next building. Okay, two blocks and then I hit an alley and go normal, he said to himself.

The protocol was simple: four guards remained at the landing zone with the bulk of the scientists while another pair of guards escorted a researcher out with his equipment. All trace of the particles was gone.....but whatever happened had been big, scorching parts of the area and leaving holes in places. "Anything beyond the obvious?" the guard asked. "None.....wait, some energy readings. Something similar but not quite the same."