Episode 3: School of Hard Knocks

[welian]

​

Wednesday, January 25th 2040
Time: 3:00pm, the beginning of the afternoon class sessions at Aegis.

Weather: Clear skies, above freezing temperatures. All but the largest snowdrifts are melted. However, a large nor'easter is migrating up the East Coast and is pass over Baltimore within the next few days. Residents are advised to prepare for heavy snow.

Agenda
Despite the calamity of the terrorist attacks on Owens Mill Mall and the Commonwealth office, classes have proceeded more-or-less normally at Facility 108. New students have had about a week and a half to get settled into the place, and get used to the beginning of their superpower training regimen. Senior students are, as always, encouraged to help the newbies out.

Meanwhile, the facility staff have received a message from the owner of the Aegis Corporation – a fancy letter in a black envelope embossed with gold, of course. Mr. Elek was always classy and tasteful, no matter the circumstances.

Carry on with normal operations, it said. Do not alarm the students, do not alarm the public, do not give the Knights of Raguel the attention they desire. Superpowers are not evil or monstrous, after all. They are tools to be used to craft the future.

 

[Swoob]

Swirling About Local Media...




A camera lens reflected the fish-eyed version of a city backdrop and a focused newsman staring hard into its black technical abyss. The signal. “Thank you, Harry.” A green glow. Words began flying across the screen next to the camera, and, in a moment, the gears of Jack's reporter mind jolted into action. “Onto our biggest topic today: an overzealous religious group calling themselves the 'Knights of Raguel' caused a disruption in the Owing Mills Mall, accompanying what appeared to be a young female. According to videos and eyewitness reports, a small group of superhumans who later were identified as staff members of Aegis's training facility 108 jumped onto the stage after threatening these 'Knights.' Shortly after, catastrophic explosions devastated the parking lot outside the mall, killing and injuring many citizens trying to leave the mall, and metal shrapnel that appeared to have come from one of the supers was launched into the crowd, severely injuring many. 39 dead, 112 injured, making this the deadliest event since the Rapture incident. Luckily, multiple videos were taken, as eyewitnesses said that the group announced their appearance prior to the event. Here is one of the videos taken.”


On the side of the camera opposite the script, Jack could see the live broadcast. A video, apparently taken on a mobile phone, began playing from its point of relevance. However, instead of rolling his shoulders and relaxing as he normally did, Jack stared intently at the video. Through the dissonant cries of the people in the crowd, an older male voice suddenly pierced the recording with impossible clarity. “You want to see demons?”


“Holy ----,” the young male behind the camera shouted, and whirled around frantically, trying to find the source of the voice.


“WELL COME AND GET ME, YOU ------- ZEALOTS! JERICHO, RED!” Two blurry figures dropped down onto the stage, causing a catastrophic upheaval of the stage in their wake—one male and one female. Pieces of metal began flying out of the ground and formed prisons around the civilians. Shouting ensued chaotically from the crowd, masking whatever was spoken on the stage, while the cameraman continued to swear in bewilderment.


Suddenly, the recording's volume reached its peak, and the camera shook wildly as the world wobbled from the explosions outside. The shaking was so violent, the footage was no longer comprehensible, and the camera dropped to the floor and was swallowed by an unsteady darkness. Finally, the phone was lifted out of the darkness and revealed the cameraman's lower half, huddled together with a young girl and boy as well as a middle-aged man. The phone was lifted up to reveal a new world. Multiple light fixtures had broken due to the tremors, glass lay shattered on the floor, and other decorations and items were strewn everywhere. And the young girl's lifeless body was bent out of sorts on the stage.


However, the carnage was still not fully wrought. The camera's position showed sharp, metal objects flying from the body of the male super and rocketing at a deadly speed into the crowd. It was then brought downwards to show the young boy once desperately grabbing onto the cameraman now crying on the floor, holding a mangled arm. By this point, panic had grown into hysterics, and hysterics into delirium. After a few more seconds of screaming and groaning, the video ended solemnly.


It was a scene from humanity's nightmares; it was enough to boil the blood of anyone. And Jack's blood boiled. It boiled vengefully. Through gritted teeth, he spit, “The director of Commonwealth as well as other prominent figures have so far refused or neglected to address the issue. Families of those lost or injured due to this incident are outraged at the government and multiple lawsuits have been filed against the mall as well as Aegis.”


Then, a very strange phenomenon occurred. Jack could no longer see the script. It had simply disappeared. However, tears weren't welling up in his eyes, and they were not closed. There was nothing blocking his vision but a deep, deep hatred. “Many people have been saying Aegis and other organizations for maintaining supers should do a better job controlling them. People have also said that supers should be contained or removed from the public. This incident has brought to our attention that these people are a threat to public safety. If we let these, these, these... these monsters run around, how many more people are going to die? We saw it with Rapture, now this... these people need to be stopped!”


His words ran out and he was left on the desk, panting in front of a live recording. The crew behind him simply stared at him, wide-eyed. Some smiled. Eventually, the script returned, and Jack continued reading. “Up next: wild ostriches and giant teens rule the streets in the Baltimore zoo incident, and a computer virus terrorizes local homes—at 10.”

 

[Captain Hesperus]

Danny Travis


Mood: About as soulful as a soul sandwich made with fresh-baked soul bread


Location: Baltimore Transit Bus Stop --> Facility 108


Danny stepped down from the bus and the grit on the sidewalk crunched beneath his trainers. He took a deep breath and the chilly air filled his lungs, burning him on the way down. He was wearing new trainers, new everything, if he was honest. His mom had taken him out a day or so after the terrorist attack and bought him a ton of new clothes and shoes. She seemed to think he was staying, but he was already planning a return to his place at the YMCA. The morning news report he'd listened to while he'd eaten breakfast made his hackles rise, but he couldn't doubt the content of the reporter's words. Supers are a threat to public safety. He'd already seen various new channels' footage from the Owens Mill mall as well as from the attack on Commonwealth headquarters.


Hundreds injured, a dozen or so killed, all because of Supers. Danny shook his head and pulled up the hood on his hoodie. His head was encased in a familiar scent, the strongly floral smell of Mom's laundry powder. He'd tried to find it while he was living at the Y, but in all honesty he'd never previously bothered with the laundry room when he'd lived at home, so he didn't know which brand it was. He poked the earbuds for his music player into his ears and set it running, the sound of his favorite band almost, but not quite, drowning out the sound of the city around him. He set off at a saunter in the direction of Facility 108. He'd chosen a bus that stopped about a mile away from where he needed to be and had already decided on a winding route to get there. After the hammering that AEGIS and the Commonwealth had got in the press and every chat show in the city, he wasn't eager to attend someplace that was negatively portrayed in the public eye.


As he travelled, he watched the people around him from within his hood. Eleven days after the attacks, Baltimore seemed to have settled back down. MacCollough's National Guard had set up camp in the devastated parking lot at Owens Mill, during the disaster relief and clean up, and had only recently started to wind down their operations. The big military trucks were heading more out of the city that into it now. But yet, even though everything had an air of normalcy, Danny could feel an edge to it. People in the streets seemed on edge, nervous. While they might chat and laugh normally, Danny could see they laughed only so much before wiping the humor from their faces and their eyes were constantly on the move. Supers were a thing to fear. After watching Psycho Ward encasing people in steel boxes then showering innocent bystanders with metal shrapnel, of course they were feared. It was the same when a normally-docile elephant at a circus suddenly went wild and rampaged. And what happens to elephants that rampage? Danny didn't want to be in Red's shoes after that footage was released.


His walk took him nearly forty minutes, what with the backtracking and looping around and by the time he arrived, he reckoned classes would be starting in about fifteen minutes. Physical Discipline. Danny scoffed. Like he needed to be taught physical discipline at a time like this. With his luck, Psycho would be teaching the lesson in a case of the ultimate irony. He slowed his pace as he caught sight of the facility and it seemed that the Voice of the City had made itself heard, anonymously. The word 'MURDERERS' had been spray-painted on the outer wall of the facility in bright red paint. The artist had sprayed close to the wall to create thick letters and had allowed trickles of paint to run down for that extra bloody semblance. Maybe mom was right, maybe AEGIS wouldn't be all that safe for very much longer. But what else was there for me to do? He'd been in the Super equivalent of juvenile halls for non-attendance at Facility 108. Several times, in fact. The small, featureless cells with their retractable facilities, the brief hour of liberty taken in a sparse recreation room and the inevitable visits from his mom and Russ were things he'd not particularly enjoyed. IT had been one of the reasons he'd tried to run away so much. He hated the fact his options in life were being curtailed by the hefty limiter on his wrist and he hated that just because of a quirk on his DNA, his life was totally different.


It could be worse, though. I could have ended up like the girl at Owens Mill. The footage of her death was burned into his mind. The terror on her face followed by a moment of pain-filled shock then her face went slack and her eyes were vacant. The 'knight' had then dropped her twitching corpse like something disgusting he'd inadvertently put his hand in and she'd sprawled onto the stage. Portia Clemmond, codenamed 'Feedback', had barely been older than him. He didn't know her, the picture being shown on the news could have been any one of a thousand teenage girls from any of the schools he'd attended and left over the past few years. Of course, AEGIS was fully blamed for her death. Newscasters constantly bandied her name back and forth, stating in their self-satisfied way that if Vigilantes hadn't been involved the deaths and injuries at the mall could have been avoided. What did they know? Danny could see from the video footage that these Raggy Knights weren't dressed up for the fun of it, they'd come looking for a fight. It was a shame that Red had just fucked it all up so bad. Could I have done any better? I couldn't even take out a fucking ostrich-riding freak. Danny shook the thoughts from his head then walked past the graffiti and into the Facility grounds.

 

[Gus]

Aaron Mallory


Location: Sparrow's point, in the barrens behind the school.


Nearby: Nobody yet.


Mood: Nervous, but determined


@s: @TehFrixz @KingHink @ViAdvena @RemainingQuestions @SimJ22


Aaron had called Swan for a personal day on Tuesday. Swan hadn't asked why, or if he had, Aaron had hung up before he could ask. Or say no for that matter. It wasn't like he'd have been hard to find; he had spent the last 28 hours in the remains of the shipping yard behind the school, cobbling together scrap metal and bits of old cranes into a massive double pendulum with eight foot thick steel girders as the plumb bobs. He put another four foot length of girder flat on the ground as a safety and tripped the trigger. The two pendulums scissored down together, smashing into him from both sides at more or less the same moment about eight seconds later. He crowed aloud, jubilant at his success. He pulled the steel cable down, hoisting them back into position and triggered the mechanism again. This time, at the count of five, he hoisted up the safety girder, which took the impact from both sides leaving a healthy margin of space between the girders. Again, Aaron whooped! He lifted the pendulums for a third time, and then set up a dozen mannequins in the kill zone. Then, realizing it was nearly time for class, he texted Director Swan.


“Director, would you please announce that all students scheduled for Collateral Damage today should report to the barrens behind the school today?”


[SIZE=13pt]OOC: Picture this, but with the girders clapping together lengthwise[/SIZE]…[SIZE=13pt] [/SIZE]

 

[Suzuki Mine]

||✺ At Facility 108 - Gym || ✺ No company || ✺ Feeling awesome || ✺ Aw yeah, first Nike post, yo! ||
​

 


 

 
​

In the wake of the events not even two weeks in the bucket, the sight of reporters and news crew outside of the 108th AEGIS facility wasn't something out of the ordinary. All of the big events in Baltimore had some involvement of both staff and students from 108. More people had died in that one day than what had been recorded in any other super-related event since Rapture. The blood in the water was both literal and proverbial, and the chance to get some kind of reaction or quote to feed the headlines was very real. People were scared. People wanted answers. Today wasn't any different. What was different was the one person the media was able to corner that afternoon.

 


[SIZE=14.666666666666666px] [/SIZE]"How has your first day gone so far as one of the new teachers at Facility 108?"


"I like to think it's been goin' awesome! I mean, no one's had to go to the nurse's yet. That's a plus, right?"


"Have you had any time to connect to your fellow teachers?"  


“I’ve bumped into a few of ‘em here and there, but it’s been a busy day. I’m sure we’ll get to hang out and stuff later~”


  “What do you have planned for your next class?”

 


“Ufufufufu~ Silly mortal, asking for my plans so boldly…!”

 


The cameramen made a semi-circle around the bundled reporters, all of them holding much lighter microphones in a semi-semi-circle around one person. Clad in a white and blue winter coat, dark slim jeans and a pair of matching Vans, placed in tandem with her short hair that spiked in what could be described as "fashionable bedhead", she could've been mistaken for a high school student. She had been more than a handful of times in her memory. But no, she wasn't, and the reporters there were keenly aware of this. That person just so happened to be Nike Deschain, a.k.a. the vigilante Overlord, and those reporters were brought there just for her. A social media star like her? Starting up a job at a place under heavy scrutiny due to recent events? It was bait for the sharks alright, and Conner Boothe had made sure they caught wind of it. In fact, he had gone ahead and gave them times that she'd be available in between classes, just to maximize exposure.

 


Nike was going to have to murder his face for this later.

 


She hadn't accepted the job at Facility 108 for the publicity. Sure it was on the other side of the country from where she stomped normally, which was grounds for throwing all kinds of potential shade on the situation. No, her employment as a teacher there was one that had been in the works for a month, and it was for the pure fact that it was one of the newest facilities in the country. Her support of the AEGIS program had been prominent since the beginning. It had helped her out more than she could give out thanks and donations to it for, and showing up at facilities for a spell as a guest teacher was just another way she could express her gratitude. That and she had heard some juicy rumors about there being some questionable students and staff on campus. She was there for pure intentions, but helping out other supers find their way was only 75% of why she was excited to start. She wasn't going to let these guys marsh on her mellow.

 


For the most part the reporters were playing nice. They kept their questions to her current experience, a little about her past experiences in the job at other locations, and a question or two about some of her vigilante work. In turn Nike was her peppy and perky self, throwing in a little bit of pop and flair into each of her responses. It was a good vibe; one that clashed against the cloud that had fallen over the city. But the real topics of the day couldn't just be covered by a little bit of sunlight. A late addition to the pool slipped his way forward, both a mic and a recorder being held in one hand along with all the others.

 


"What are your thoughts on the Owing Mills tragedy, and how has that affected your opinion about working for such a place?"

 


The words were enough to get Nike to pause, and slowly she turned to train her gaze on the man. She didn't need to say a word to let others know her initial reaction to the question. The statements "u wot m8?" and "this bitch" were written all over her face. She tried to cover it up somewhat with a bit of a forced smile, but remnants of the still very present irritation remained behind. Nike had never done very well at covering up her true feelings about something. “I’m sorry, I didn't catch that. What'd you ask?”

 


"I'm sure you're aware of the part that some of the staff at Facility 108 had in the terrorist bombing, which caused the death and suffering of hundreds of victims." At that point Nike caught the movement of the cameraman accompanying the reporter, moving to where the spray painted letters spelling out "MURDERERS" on a street side wall to the facility was shown. Nike's eye twitched slightly, but she held herself in check and looked back to the man as he continued. "How does working with participants in such an event affect your opinion about working here?"

 


Oh, oh this bitch. This bitch did just not. He did not just say that. Nike's eyes began to narrow at the man, at which at that point the chorus of Stitches started playing from her coat pocket. Nike recognized it immediately, and yet she didn't make a move to answer it. That ringtone belonged to Conner. Maybe the feed the new guy was reporting for was live, or maybe he used his magical agent powers to just know she was going to do something dumb. He wasn't entirely wrong, but he also wasn't there to stop her. With one hand she reached into her pocket to silence her phone, and the other she placed right onto her hip. She'd get an earful from Conner later and accept it. This guy needed to get straightened out.

 


“I'm sorry, but the way you're talking about them, it kinda sounds like you're implying that they were in on this whole thing. Last I checked, it was a group of anti-super terrorists that caused the bombing and not the staff here.” Nike took her hand from her pocket and pointed towards the reporter. "I'm not saying they have no blame in what happened. They jumped into a situation where they didn't have all the details, and the result was casualties and injuries all over the place. But they didn't plant the bombs. They didn't take hostages and threaten everyone with weapons. They weren't the ones to start spreading their words of hate and discrimination through fear tactics." With each time she made another point her finger jabbed towards the reporter. "What they did do was try to save the lives of those hostages, purely and simply. They tried to form hope in a dark situation where no one could predict the outcome, except the fact that innocents were going to die if nothing was done." Nike's head snapped to level a hard stare at the camera behind the man, slowly leaning in for the verbal finishing blow. "And sorry-not-sorry, but I'm not gonna stand by and let someone mar their good intentions if I can help it."

 


With her opinions now out in the open, Nike held her pose for a few seconds before straightening herself up again, placing both hands onto her hips. “Well, if that's all your questions, I'll be taking my leave. I've got a class to teach in a couple minutes! Nice talking to y'all!” That energetic smile of hers snapped right back into place, and with a little bow of her head, she about-faced and started her stroll back onto official AEGIS property. Behind her, Nike could hear the reporters chattering away amongst themselves and to their crew, closing up the recorded segment and frantically calling into their respective stations. To that Nike could only sigh. “Maybe I went a bit far, buuut...” There was a pause, which was quickly concluded by her shrugging her shoulders and shaking her hands limply at her wrists, a tune rising up as she made her way towards the Gym.



"'cause the players gonna play play play play play, and the haters gonna hate hate hate hate hate~"



 

 

[CloudyBlueDay]

WOLF HIGGINS -- STRETCH
​

Location: Facility 108 Gym
​

Mood: Calm
​

@'s: Nike @Suzuki Mine
​

As a part of her daily training, Wolf stretched herself as far as sh could go. Sometimes, the stretching went a little bit too far, and she'd lose her shape for the day. Wolf was careful and smart when she practiced -- she never went far enough to permanently lose her shape. Of course, it still meant she was incapacitated for the day. Which was why, when the call for blue-card holders at the Owen Mills Mall came, she could not go. She could not help her peers or her superiors in an attack against them -- she was stuck in her own, friggin apartment, sprawled throughout, flat as the carpet.


She felt shitty about it, and therefore refused to look anyone in the eyes on her walk to AEGIS. Especially not the reporters. She kept her ears plugged and her gaze cast downward as the reporters who swarmed the AEGIS building set their sights on her. She wasn't a known AEGIS celebrity of course, but anyone who was entering the building was great to attack with questions. Wolf didn't hear a thing over Creep by Radiohead, blasting full volume in her earphones and chewing her favorite bubblegum, which happened to be kiwi. 


The Physical Discipline teacher had left an interesting first impression on Wolf -- she seemed about as hyper as a kindergartner, but she supposed a class such as Physical Discipline needed such energy. Their personalities certainly contrasted, but Wolf was amused by the new teacher. Their first meeting had gone just fine, Nike's amusement over Wolf's powers was not something new to the young adult. Especially after she told people her name was Wolf. But now was a different situation than just a one on one meeting with the teacher. Now there was some actual teaching business to be done.


Making her way to the gym and pulling one earbud out only to find Nike humming to what Wolf (sadly) recognized as some god-awful Taylor Swift song. Blowing a bubble with her gum, letting it get big enough to pop, and then letting out a sigh accompanied by a small smile. "Mornin', Nike." Wolf said, while her words were peppy her tone was not. She sounded tired, but the regular Wolf kind of tired, which Nike had better get used too. However, her tired voice showed no distaste for Nike's musical taste, despite the fact that Wolf disliked it very much. 


"The reporters outside really are pushy, huh?" Only now did some bitterness show through, but only in the slightest bit. A small scoff followed her words as Wolf stepped into the gym, her sneakers making those squeaky noises against the shiny floor as she glanced about the room fondly. She pulled her phone out and paused the music, then wrapped her earphones around her phone neatly and slipped it into the front pocket of her backpack. Which she promptly flung against the corner of the room. "Eh. Never mind them. You excited?" Wolf knew the answer would be something along the lines of hell yes, but asked it anyway.

 

[ManicMuse]

Isabella Chase
​

​

Spoiler

Location: Home to Facility 108 
​

@: None yet
​

Current Mood: Defeated > Excited > Anxious 
​

 
​

Richard walked out into the kitchen. Standing beside the island, he began to organize various boxes of bandages, tape and ointments. After each item was set up in a line, he moved to the freezer and pulled out a bag of frozen peas. Izzy  drowsily flopped down into a stool beside the island, examining the various boxes before being handed off the bag of peas. She gave the offending bag a death glare, while Richard popped a few flax seed waffles into the toaster oven.


"Goes on the face Izzy, you are going to want to numb it up a bit before we get to changing out those bandages. Same as last time."


If anyone had told either of them, two weeks ago this is where things were heading, neither of them would have believed it. After the attack on the city, including Facility 108, Richard was a bit beside himself. He was ready to march into Aegis and have Izzy removed from their program,  after he found her dangling from the ceiling with some odd contraption.  That plan was put on hold with Izzy's cold, she was stuck in bed until Wednesday. Still Richard was set on having them both go in that day and having Izzy pulled removed from the program.


Then at ten in the A.M. on Wednesday morning January 18th, Richard got pulled out of a meeting to take an emergency call from Izzy's private school.


"Mr. Chase, your daughter Isabella Chase has been involved in an incident. She is alright, the nurse and on call doctor are looking after her now but you are going to need to come and get her."


After everything on the news, people were being fucking stupid. No sooner had Richard arrived to the school, did he learn the details of what had happened. Izzy's face was badly bruised, the bridge of her nose cut and half of her tail shaven down with burns from the electric buzzer. The school tried to play it off as a prank but they all knew what it really was. It was a Super hate crime. Izzy had been dragged into a janitors closet before the first bell. Luckily, a student had gotten sick and created a mess. The janitor unknowingly stumbled across the scene and caught one of the culprits.


The kid had not been nearly as tough, when they were faced with a police officer and the Headmaster.  After several hours of paperwork and a trip to the hospital, Richard found himself on his way home with Izzy curled up in a ball on the back seat, hiding beneath his trench coat. The hair on her tail would grow back but Richard had serious reservations about his daughter's safety. By Wednesday night, he knew that they needed Aegis. Izzy needed to be around people like herself and they all had to learn how to protect themselves.


Over the week that followed, Izzy spent most of her time in Richard's room, hidden under a pile of blankets. The school had suspended the students involved in the attack but Isabella had refused to return to school until the wounds healed. Aegis was another story. Richard had given in to two days off, however by Saturday, it was classes as usual. A private tutor could deal with the school side of things for now, but there was no replacing the education and interactions at Aegis.


The timer on the toaster oven went off. With a freshly toasted waffles topped with sliced strawberries and whipped cream, he finally turned to Izzy. The expression on her face could not have been more scornful if she tried. With the frozen peas, one of her least favorite foods, squished up against her face, she was giving him the look of death. Richard was not looking forward to what was about to follow. Using the plate of waffles as a bargaining chip, he did what had to be done. Thirty minutes later, Izzy was freshly bandaged, dressed and fed. He had acquired a couple scratches on one forearm and was fairly certain he was partially deaf in one ear from the screeching but otherwise undamaged.


It was finally time for him to show her the reason she had been locked out of her room for the week. Not that Izzy had noticed much, considering she spent half the time under blankets with her cell phone as the only connection to the outside world. Leading Izzy down the hallway to her room, a large pink bow had been placed on the doorway. With a turn of the door knob, Richard ushered Izzy into her room. It took her a moment to finally look up and that is when she saw it. Cables, carabineers, climbing points and edges were strung about the ceiling and walls. Sitting on her bed, sat a white box topped with another pink bow. Izzy practically pounced the box, ripping it open; finding a pair of climbing shoes, harness and customized helmet.


Izzy was thrilled and could not get into the gear fast enough. The gift had definitely lifted her spirits as Richard had hoped it would. Izzy spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon, scaling her knew training area. Richard was grateful she enjoyed it, however deep down he was more hopeful that giving her this, would cultivate her skills and with time, give her the ability to better protect herself.


Time seemed to fly by and before they knew it, the clocks read 2:30 in the afternoon. It had taken a bit of coaxing to get Izzy off the ceiling but her mood was still very much improved. Piling into the car, Richard headed off toward Facility 108. Everything was going great, right up until they reached the Facility and saw the swarm of reporters.

 
​

 

[Teh Frixz]

Tabitha Crane


Surprisingly, almost deceptively, the entire family unit hadn't changed. 


Mom and Dad still went to their jobs, Tabby still got her morning kiss and after school 'Aegis' lunch made for her. Dad still came in to talk before bed and comfort her fears of the day. On the surface, it was all fine, like unaffected by recent events. But Tabitha knew something was up, there had to be something going on. She waltzed across the city naked. The family had been bombarded with email and facebook requests. Tabby had all but deleted any trace of her internet presence, minus the pictures of her walking, but still they were finding her. It was just yesterday that she got three death threats and five offers of 'relations'. But her parents just seemed to be shrugging it off. Refusing to talk about it or make it a big deal. 


It was just like them, they were protecting her and as much as she hated it, Tabby knew they were in the right. So she kept her mouth shut about it right along with them. Oddly enough, it really had started to work. Denying it completely had started to make it go away but really it felt like something else was taking its place. Despite this, she kept it up. At school she kept to herself, not that it was different, and wore more clothing than before. She got a few looks but that was it, nobody was picking on her, nobody was coming up to her with any propositions, really nothing was out of the ordinary. But why? 


Even as she was dropped off and said goodbye to her parents, this question weighed on her mind. Maybe it would be different at 108 but she doubted it. Stepping out of the car and watching it drive off, Tabby turns to face the facility once again. It came as no surprise that she was immediately put in 'Collateral Damage' classes, a great deal of the physical damage had been her fault but thankfully, and she hated herself for saying this, the Terror attack seemed to take all the pressure off her attempt at helping. There wasn't so much as a charge filed up against her by police and nary a lawsuit had been served. Maybe it was luck or the protection that AEGIS offered but thank goodness that nothing had happened. 


Rushing in out of the cold, Tabitha found herself in the lobby and quickly made way to her class. It seemed empty so far so Tabitha took the opportunity to sit in the back corner and quietly rest her eyes.  

 

[Necessity4Fun]

Kendrick Haywood

Location: Haywood's Household >> AEGIS Training Facility 108 - Entrance


People Around: A couple bodyguards, annoying reporters >> No one.


Today's Toys: Ted, Pandora, Spiral, Sparkles. Asinelli and Garisenda (two of the white towers)


Ah, I'm too early...




 Despite having his classes getting moved from the afternoon to the morning period, for some inexplicable reason, it had been a normal morning for Kendrick. A servant woke him up by 6 AM, he had breakfast, got ready for school, all daily and usual things.


 At school however, ever since that weird Saturday at Commonwealth, he noticed the students would glare at him, more than usual. Of course, no one had the guts to actually come and say something to his face. What a load of cowards.


 Still, he pretended to not see a thing. He would let it slide and just pay attention to classes, eventually they'd get tired of him... Or so he wished.


 On his way out of the building, the boy caught a disturbing conversation between students. Someone else, a super, and from the sound of it a younger girl had been attacked by some students his age... Ahh. So that's why they had been looking at him weird. So stupid. Why do people waste their times on such nonsense?


Not wanting to hear anymore of that idiocy, Kendrick made the walk back home. To further darken his mood, as soon as he opened the front door, Helga, one of the servants, informed him his mom had called:


"Master Kendrick. Ms. Haywood advised that you to take the car to Facility 108 today... Also, a few bodyguards.", the woman informed exasperated.


When dealing with his mother, the word 'advised' actually meant 'ordered'. Being told to take the car was a rather common occurrence, but security too? Something weird was definitely going on...


The boy rushed inside and turned on the television. Swapping channel after channel, he eventually discovered why he had been 'advised' such a thing. A very famous hero was now working at AEGIS, Overlord, how she called herself, was a rather flashy and energetic character. How could someone even have that amount of energy, he would never understand. Either way, her presence in Facility 108 after the mall incident, had been enough of a story for a cloud of reporters to flood the area. That would be troublesome:


"Tell Igor to be ready at the door in one hour, and, also ask him to bring some security.", he ordered the lady, without ever taking his gaze out of the electronic device.


A reporter had made a awful question trying to get a reaction out of the hero, and was getting demolished in return. Serves him well for being nosy...


Getting bored of the television, Kendrick went upstairs to his room. He brought his backpack along, changing his normal school material to his AEGIS notebooks, and deciding which toys he would bring along with him for the rest of the day. Ted, Sparkles and Spiral already following him around the place, while he organized his belongings. Soon enough, the boy changed clothes and went back downstairs, with his backpack, it was almost time for lunch.


Punctually, at 2 PM lunch was served and right after that, exactly one hour since Kendrick had arrived home, the driver and head of security, Igor Bletcher, was in standby near the door alongside several security members the teenager didn't bother to recall the names of.


Putting Ted, Spiral and Sparkles inside his backpack, Kendrick nodded at Igor to open the front door, and the boy exited first. Being surrounded by  guards wasn't really pleasant, in fact it felt like being escorted inside a birdcage, no privacy whatsoever. He let a bodyguard enter first, and sat in the middle between that and another security. A third one filled the passenger seat in the front and Igor, who had already been the first to enter, started the car. Kendrick watched the little of window view he had, extremely bored as they passed through several streets and neighbourhoods.


A few blocks before facility 108, the car stopped and everyone left the vehicle. Again being tossed to the middle, Kendrick was surrounded by security as they proceeded towards the AEGIS building.


Soon enough the reporters caught sight of the scene and, like the curious creatures they are, tried to approach to group. Some of them were wondering if it really was the Haywood's boy they were seeing, others tried to ask Kendrick direct questions, but the boy didn't reply or gave sign he had seen any of them. The noise of the swarm of people only added to his frustration.


It was only right in front of facility 108's entrance that the boy ordered his bodyguards to let he be seem and heard. Yes, his father would hate that and anyone who didn't know he was a super until now would be surprised, but to speak the truth he didn't care about that:


"If you lot would please open-way, I'd hate to be late for class.", it just took that, one line and the annoying group of reporters moved out of his way. The gate which could barely be seen before, covered by the multitude, now clearly ahead.


Kendrick kept an unfazed expression until he entered the building, his bodyguards now left behind. Then, when he was out of sight, there was an audible sigh:


"Let's hope no one is outside on my way back too..."


His notification ring-tone started and the teenager took his phone out of the pocket to check what it was. An e-mail from his dad, who probably had heard about the commotion on the television by now. Ah. He certainly didn't need this right now. He would read it later.


Closing the notification tab, the boy glanced at the clock and noticed it was still 2:30...


Now, what to do with the 30 minutes he had before class?

 

[Gus]

Aaron Mallory


Location: Sparrow's point, behind the school.


Nearby: Are those reporters?


Mood: [SIZE=11pt]All in[/SIZE]… I guess?


@s: @giyari


OOC: Should have tagged Giyari in previous post as well, sorry about that.


Aaron fidgeted, which was not like him at all. Pensive, sure. But not pacing. Not finger twiddling. Maybe it was the quitting of coffee cold turkey. Maybe it was his newfound sense of purpose in his work. Maybe it was the niggling sense that his contraption could get a student killed...


No. Whatever it was, it wasn't that. He'd done the math. He'd tested the mechanism. He would be standing right in the middle of the kill zone amongst the mannequins 'to observe' but also to be the ultimate brake. Even if the students failed to stop it, and the safety cable failed as well, the steel was rigid enough to stop almost perfectly cold if he just put his hands up. They'd be fine. He stopped pacing and shook himself, put his hands in his pockets. What was bothering him was perfectly obvious, he just didn't want to face it. He needed to apologize to his students for the abysmally phoned in classes he had been offering up til now. That and whiplashing them into this radical new phase of training with no warning. He was still not sure exactly what he was going to say to them. Internal self recriminating was one thing. Externalizing it and expressing it with words that would make sense to others? That was something else. He shuddered at the thought.


Shouldn't the students be coming out by now? What was keeping them? On reflection, he had not actually heard Director Swan's announcement, so perhaps they were still in class. On further reflection, he had not goten a text back either. Perhaps the walkie talkie would be better? He unclipped the bulky thing from his belt and pushed the transmit button.


“Director Swan? Ms. Zudnowski? Anybody hear me? This is 'Solo' requesting a school wide announcement for my students to meet me behind the school by the big steel contraption. Maybe wordsmith that a bit, though before announcing it?”


He put the walkie back on his belt, then thought twice and lifted it again.


“Over.”


He waited a few beats, shrugged, and clipped it back on his belt. He looked back toward the school to see if any students were coming out yet... some kind of cluster of people was visible through the gap between the clinic and the main building. Were those news crews? He supposed they must have been pestering the students in and out of the building all this last week, but since he hadn't set foot outside, excepting the funeral, during daylight hours until yesterday, he hadn't noticed them. They seemed to be focused on one individual...


Aaron squinted.


Was that... Nike Deschain? What brought her to 108? Probably somebody Asher or Denzil was bringing in as a guest speaker he supposed. It made Aaron wince to think about how poor a showing he had made of teaching if they were bringing in heavy hitters like her to talk to the kids about the importance of media presence. She was an excellent choice, and just what the school needed now. Hell, even Aaron had heard of Overlord, and he was about as out of touch with the vigilante scene as it was possible to be and not be dead. Maybe he could hit her up for tips later, since that was one of his own key weak spots to this day. How to work a crowd after the incident. How to create good will. His own approach had always been focused on trying not to cause ill will, but the terrorists, as well as Avecca, had reminded him very forcibly that preventing collateral damage was, at best, half the battle...


Speaking of which, he found himself fervently hoping that none of the reporters came behind the school to ask him what he was doing. A bunch of mannequins in what was essentially a giant upside down bear trap would probably not play well on the news. Luckily Nike seemed to have their full attention. Except those two on the periphery. They were looking his way. Aaron abruptly looked anywhere but towards them, his heart pounding hard enough to make the ground under his feet tremble slightly. While he studied the clouds as if he were preparing to teach Meteorology and You, a small detail about the two reporters watching him bubbled up from his subconscious: those hadn't been cameras they were pointing his way, but binoculars... His conscious mind was incredulous about this, and he glanced up to check. They were gone. He must have imagined that. Must have. Just nervous about class, he supposed, inducing paranoia. As he squinted through the rays of the afternoon sun, he recognized Isabelle Chase pulling up into the school lot. He waved hello, but wasn't sure she could see him. Perhaps he should go over and run interference for her, as well as other arriving students. He hated to face reporters himself, but then, better him than the kids. He sighed, and started walking toward the reporters.

 

[Teh Frixz]

Penelope Urbain 


It was a toss up. A fifty fifty shot between posting 'Can't tell which smelled worse, shoppers on fire or the food court' or 'Owing mills mAllah Ackbar. Muslims sure affording better gear.' It was a victim tribute page, asking for likes on Facebook or donations for their Paytron and generally being sappy fucks. Tapping a a few times to tab through her Windows, Penny brought up the school cameras. Both students and staff were seemingly following suit and acting 'off' in what looked like attempts to garner sympathy. Oh boo hoo, a kid super died. They didn't even know her, like anyone should care. 


Going back to the media site, Penny pasted in her comment about the smell. Some victims were posting there and that way she could look insensitive while insulting the dead. Should raise the ire of a few people and that would give her a target to research and provoke more. She posts it away and pushes back from her desk, spinning in her chair as she slid across her room. Say what you would about Baltimore (and let it be known she had) but 108 had a pretty nice setup for her. A loft layout wasn't her preference before but damn it was a comfy setup. Her PC and living space below, bed above. There was even space for a dust covered REFC for if she felt like putting out more rads for 108 to sell. Fuck that, they got enough power already. She needed to push for a bigger allowance after dealing with yet another transfer between facilities. Seemed 108 was short on cash so she was installed here with AEGIS picking up a hefty contract. 


It was satisfying. Just as satisfying as watching the message board light up with anger and hate over a couple words that really didn't mean anything. She was so fucking important, she mattered and words didn't. That wasn't what she was about to let Miss Abbie Chaunders know though. 


'Lol rekt' followed by a ctrl C ctrl V held down to the character limit Outta give her an idea of how much she cared about what she said on some begging message board. Clicking rapidly she logs out of everything before getting up to stretch out. 


Her joints let out a delightful pop as  Penny sauntered over to the mirror. Her reflection staring back with a judging sort of look in her dark eyes clad in leggings and a big shirt, Penny sighs. Her ass was getting fat and there was no way they'd get her on a tread mill again. Cardio was not her cup of tea, she'd just cut back on the chips and dip. Maybe she'd find a trainer who was immune to radiation to come on down and work out with her but on her own, there would be no motivation... 


She asked herself why bother every time she started. Why bother. Nobody is gonna see it, she isn't getting laid anytime soon, the most she needed her heart for right now was just to push her heart rate up during games and she'd be damned if that wasn't good enough. Just in case though she lurches up from her chair and half jump/half falls  to her couch to reach the door. Peeking out the hatch on the tips of her toes she snapped her thumb. Skunked again. no mail, no visitors and no word on the exo suit. 


Penny laughs to herself. That'd be the day. For now though, it's back to the computer to see if anyone was on the AEGIS chatrooms. 

 

[Suzuki Mine]

||✺ At Facility 108 - Gym || ✺ Wolf ( @CloudyBlueDay ) || ✺ Feeling awesome || ✺ OOC~ ||
​

Having danced her way on through the front doors of the Gym, Nike had gotten only a few yards inside before she heard the door close, then reopen behind her. Ah, someone was there already? Even with the potential of an audience in the room it wasn't enough to deter Nike from her silliness. If anything it meant more people to try and spread her mood to. She continued humming the tune of the song, pulling a full 540 and coming to a stop to face the new arrival. Much to her obvious pleasure, shown with her smile growing into something more playful, who she saw was the oh so adorable T.A., Wolf.


To say that Nike had been looking forward to working with her had been an understatement. The first time she had come across the girl had been while Nike had been perusing the halls of Facility 108 earlier that week. She had wanted to start at the beginning of the school/work week like any normal person, but nooope. Conner had booked her for a few appearances here and there around the greater Baltimore area. Nike was way pumped though, and as such figured that popping in to creep on classes in session wouldn't be terrible. Right? Right. That had been when she had been introduced to Wolf Higgins, and the glorious, wonderful, amazing super power that she held. Now for many being stretchy was a middle of the road kind of power; it had its uses but wasn't all flashy or obviously super powerful or anything. For an anime nerd who swore by everything One Piece, she was the best thing ever. She couldn't find Luffy gifs fast enough.


[SIZE=13.333333333333332px]"[/SIZE][SIZE=13.333333333333332px]Heeell[/SIZE][SIZE=13.333333333333332px] yeah I'm excited! You see these hips?!"[/SIZE][SIZE=13.333333333333332px] [/SIZE][SIZE=13.3333px]Her grin widened (if that was even possible) as she pointed to her waist, drawing attention to the twisting motion they were sporting.[/SIZE][SIZE=13.333333333333332px] [/SIZE][SIZE=13.333333333333332px]"They don't lie, gurl. First class of the day went down smooth like butterscotch and I'm ready for a second helping~!"[/SIZE][SIZE=13.333333333333332px] [/SIZE][SIZE=13.3333px]Nike spun again, but this time in the form of a series of chaîné turns that ended just before Wolf. Nike snapped out a hand to her, giving a bit of an eyebrow waggle as she spoke her next words.[/SIZE][SIZE=13.333333333333332px] [/SIZE][SIZE=13.333333333333332px]"And ain't no reporters gonna get me down. Now then, we've still got some time before the kids get here, so why don't you pretend I'm John Dunbar and come dance with me~?"[/SIZE]


Gawd she was good.

 

[Captain Hesperus]

Danny had not expected the reporters even now, so many days after the terrorist attacks. But yet, here they were, crews from channels in the greater Baltimore area as well as a number of freelancers who subbed for the bigger channels nationwide. Guess Baltimore's still big in the news. Danny dipped his head and started elbowing his way through the press, eliciting exclamations of shock from female reporters who'd caught a elbow jab to the kidneys or male reporters whose shiny brogues had gotten stamped on. He was almost through the melee when he felt a hand close on his hood and physically jerked it back., The action not only pulled down his hood, but it also wrenched his hoodie back into his throat, choking him enough that he had to stop moving forward, lest he choke worse.


The woman who had grabbed him monopolized her advantage over him by moving around to get between him and the safety of 108's buildings. She had a microphone and her cameraman hovered over her shoulder as if he were attached to her ass.


"And here we have a student at the AEGIS facility at the center of national controversy willing to speak to us about the events of eleven days ago. Is it true that the instructors here at Facility 108 have been failing students in teaching them how to control their powers? Is it true that the education provided is specifically tailored toward making students more dangerous to society? Is it-"


"Lady, fuck right off.", Danny interrupted her incessant stream of questions.


It was obvious she wasn't looking for an interview, but a chance to vent a stream of controversial suppositions. She had an agenda and she was trying to confuse Danny into making some admission of wrongdoing on the part of the 108 staff. But this wasn't immediately apparent to Danny, who was still smarting from her pulling on his hood.


"Touch me again and I'll hit you so hard your grandkids will regret what you did."


The woman, her assault of questions interrupted, responded, "Well, you're particularly rude. Didn't your father teach you any manners?"


Danny didn't reply.


There was a movement.


And a scream.


And Danny pushed past the woman who was clutching at her bloody broken nose with both hands as her cameraman, ever the professional, changed position to record the bloody face of the blonde teenager who'd just headbutted his anchorwoman. Other reporters in the vicinity, who'd witnessed the attack swiftly made way, avoiding contact with Danny and his victim. The young man ignored them all and walked to the gym. Once inside, he looked around. Two women, one was familiar, the other not. Nike Deschain. Her face had been all over the news and various daytime channels. Powderpuff segments to show how Supers weren't a danger to society, personal appearances at hospitals where survivors of the mall were recovering, 'candid photos' of her tearfully hugging a little girl who'd lost her parents to a car bomb. The level of bullshit made bile rise in Danny's throat. His face twisted into a sneer.


"So I'm here already. What's the fucking plan?"


@Suzuki Mine@CloudyBlueDay

 

[Teh Frixz]

Riley Zdunowski 


front security desk 


@Captain Hesperus


Her hat. They made her wear her hat today. Off all things she had to deal with in recent days wearing the stupid baseball cap with the Aegis insignia plastered in the middle. She felt like a dork with it on, her hair pulled back tight into a pony tail and slipped through the back of her hat. But hey, her mood would not be soured! Even if security today was total chaos. She didn't even get a single notification other than the direct command to wear the whole of her uniform. 


So now, in muddled confusion, Riley had banned press from entering 108 and was watching the monitors to make sure nothing too crazy happened. But as expected, something already happened. A kid, grabbed by the an eager reporter, had bashed a nose with his head in a particularly funny way to react. Press shouldn't be grabbing or touching the kids, the whole lot of the news team deserved worse! 


Waiting for the kid to come in, she pipes up as he enters the facility. "Yo! Hoody boy! Nicely done with that reporter. I'd have done worse." She gives a smile and a thumbs up before sitting back down at her desk. Lots of things to keep an eye on today but she'd be damned if her mood wouldn't stay up. The kids needed someone upbeat to greet them as came to class. They didn't deserve any of the hate or blame being thrown around. If Riley could act calm and happy, then maybe they'd pick up on that. 

 

[yoikes]

Mitch Castle
Location: Her apartment -> Training Facility (Front Security Desk)


Mood: Slightly agitated


Tags: @Teh Frixz 


ps: she said 'punch' because she did not know or see that Danny headbutted the reporter


The morning news was graphic. She was surprised that they did not try to censor and cut a few parts there and there and probably put it on repeat at least 10 times a day. For 'maximum impact', she can bet. Whoever thickheaded enough to say that should be given a gold medal or a raise, he or she succeed. Her mom has been pestering her to come home quickly. "I saw the video! It was horrible, so horrible!", her mom screamed into her ear last night. She then started to cry, begging for her to come home in a mix of English and Chinese, something she always does when she is so distraught from thinking clear. Mitch did not say 'yes', but she also does not answer with a 'no'. Saying that will only hurt her, and make her sadder. She'll leave it to her father, he always knew what to say to calm her mother down.


She left the apartment and hopped inside the elevator, and as soon as she left the elevator and started walking toward the Facility she could tell that two or three people are following her. With small camera and a thin recorder in their hand, it seemed that the reporters have found out that the Facility is has a small apartment building that they rent out to students. She could see them walking, running closer. Before they surrounded her, Mitch plugged in her earphone and listened to the music. She does that so that she cannot hear their question, so all she need to do is shaking her head with a faint smile and putting up her hand as if saying, 'Sorry i cannot say anything!'. But damn, journalists these days. One of them, Mitch does not know who, have the guts to yank her earphone off from her ear. It was so sudden, the sound of a hundred question asked at the same time. And these are those who are not fully equipped like the TV crowd gathering in front of the facility. Camera flashes, big cameras, boom microphones, formally dressed man and woman with a microphone in their hand with a wild look in their face. Guh, she had to walk through that?


She saw someone trying to walk through the crowd, followed by a scream and lots of flashes. She saw a woman, surrounded by cameras, her nose is bloody and from the look of it- broken. She's saying something, pointing at the facility building. Whoever did this to her, just walked inside. But hey, at least the number of reporters trying to get her to answer her question is lessening. They are now more interested in a woman who just got injured by one of the super students. Who, Mitch will probably get the answer in tonight's late night news or on the front page of one of online media site. "Aegis student injures a female reporter!", the more she think about it the more she realized she sucks at making a sensational click-bait headline. 


Mitch entered the facility, she saw someone sitting back behind the front security desk- which is weird because it's usually empty (She is not trying to badmouth or spreading any bad rumors about Aegis security guards, it's just that the desk is always empty whenever she walked by it!). She's tall enough to see the girl wearing the Aegis cap and full security uniform (Again, something unusual). "Morning, Mrs. Riley," Mitch greeted. "Do you know that someone just punched one of the reporters? I think he or she broke the reporter's nose?"

 

[Teh Frixz]

Riley Zdunowski 


Security Desk


Scratching at the collar of her shirt, Riley turns to smile at the next visitor to the Facility. "Morning Miss Mitch! Yes! Good riddance too, I nearly had to turn off my inhibitor earlier to get them out of the foyer here. Talk about supers being dangerous, I think reporters are the next stage of human brutality. I don't think they were expecting the hit, probably didn't get anything on film. No worries." Her smile stays in place, a genuine grin. It was getting harder to keep upbeat in the last couple weeks, Aegis higher ups bringing in security experts and armored dudes to scope the facility out. As usual they were hard on her, getting in her face for security concerns, threatening holding back her Blue card even longer, all the usual BS. But Riley held on, impossible to ruin her good mood. She didn't even have to dial up her limiter for a quick burst of E or anything. Maybe it was just her wanting to shut down these...outsiders wishing to take command but she'd be damned before losing her good mood. 


"How you holding up by the way? I saw all the stuff on the news and knew it didn't mean anything good. Were you hit by it?" 


@too much idea

 

[Teh Frixz]

Tabitha Crane


Classroom -> Outside


@Gus


"Oh god oh god oh god.." The crack of the intercom woke her, the content of the message waking her up even more. Once again, she missed the memo and was in the wrong location for class. For god's sake it was like that guy pushing a rock up a hill only to have it fall back on his stupid fat face! Tabby wanted to yank her hair out in frustration but settled for throwing all her stuff in her backpack and rushing out the back door of the facility. Her long legs led to long strides which made moving rapidly through the facility easy but her speed at the door prevented her from peeking outside before bursting out the door. 


Her breath hung in the cold air, a small cloud of frozen moisture that dissipated to reveal the metal monstrosity. Tabby had thought that this class would be about regulations and classroom stuff...not whatever that was. She takes a few more steps, effectively hiding her face from the wandering reporters she'd rushed by earlier. She was pretty layered up anyways, blushing as she realized they'd probably not recognize her by face. Neither of them look up from their phones, obviously not noticing her crossing the yard. 


The teacher, Mr. Mallory, appeared from the other side of the metal thing apparently in route to the guys standing over by the fence. She wanted to say something but instead stopped and waited for him to pass before running up to sit by the metal thing. He was probably busy and she didn't need to get in his way. Keeping her back to both the reporters and the teachers, she sits quietly. Still the nerd who got to class first, still just sitting peacefully while others finished what they needed to. 

 

[The Oldest Blueberry]

"Larry" the Groundskeeper
​

Location: A box -> Front of Facility 108 -> Security Desk


Mood: Irritated, upset.


With: Many, many reporters -> Riley, Mitch / In the chatrooms with Penelope
@Teh Frixz@too much idea


Shipping something was always a nuisance. Regardless of size, weight, location of departure and destination, it always took longer than it should have. This had especially been the case with Fenrir Robotics newest robot. Shipping something heavy was a hassle. Something large was also a frequent hassle. So, shipping an 800 pound, roughly seven foot tall body wasn't exactly easy. Getting passed airport security, even private airports, was far more time-consuming than estimated. Robots were nothing new; they existed all over the place. Humanoid robots, slightly less so, but perhaps the main issue was that this one was being shipped fully built, and not in a nice, easy-to-handle crate or something. After a few days delay, Larry was off on his way on his own private plane, flying overseas to his first 'on-the-record' field test in the grand United States. The paperwork was messy, but a big enough pile of large dollar bills will clean up any mess sufficiently.


Now, ten days behind schedule, Larry had finally arrived in Baltimore. From here, though, things only got more complicated. The first problem was getting the appropriate transportation to the Facility. Sprinting, while not necessarily a bad idea, would take too long, and be hazardous for any person or thing that might get in his path. Larry attempted to have Fenrir Robotics provide transportation, but their foothold in the United States (military excluded) was very weak. So that couldn't happen. The robot spent nearly ten whole minutes running different scenarios in its head, before finally deciding on the simplest route: public transportation. A bus, to be specific. Finding the nearest stop, with the appropriate time and drop-off location, was simple. Larry had many doubts that any city bus driver would actually allow a robot onto their bus that created the issue. However, with luck seemingly on his side, Larry was able to catch a ride on the first bus, after a somewhat lengthy explanation of what Larry was, and where he was going. The ride was certainly interesting. He avoided conversation with all of the other passengers, but he counted at least twenty-three pictures of him being taken. Exploring social media, such as Twitter and Facebook, he quickly found pictures of himself uploaded with many questions and concerns. He noted the reactions and pondered ways to combat the negative reactions as the bus continued on.


Finally, the bus reached the stop. Barely half a kilometer away from Facility 108. As Larry stepped off the bus, it tilted slightly, and the robot said nothing as it continued towards its destination. Even from so far away, Larry could already see the scores of reporters outside, hassling the students and staff alike. There they stood, all over what precious little patches of grass Facility 108 actually had on the outside. Without a doubt, they would have to be replanted at a later date. The news crews didn't care, aside form reporters in heels, sinking into the grass. As he slowly continued his advance, Larry got more and more irritated. As if the foliage being torn up wasn't enough, he then spotted the graffiti. 'MURDER' said one. 'KILLERS' said another. 'MONSTERS.' 'MURDERERS' again, but in a different color this time. Larry clenched his fists, the only visible sign of emotion from him. Now fifty meters away, he was already digging through the Facility's registries to see what the exact color on the walls were, and how much paint he would need to paint over it. He had already looked into the grass patches, and would have the sod in by tomorrow.


Finally, thirty meters away, the news crews looked around like hungry predators, looking for their next meal. The first reporter spotted Larry, his cameraman quickly aiming at the robot. Larry continued his speed, locking eyes with no one. They made no advancements to the machine; they only watched in silent curiosity. The robot stood five meters away from a gathering of news vans, two of which were parked ever-so-slightly on the grass. Ignoring any and everything said to him, Larry picked up the back of one of the vans, just barely an inch off the ground, to move it off of the grass. It was getting hard to ignore the screaming news crews at this point. Larry proceeded to move the other van, and then turned to the news crews, speaking his first words to them, "Please only park your vehicles in the designated guest parking areas. Your cooperation is appreciated." He thought about telling them to stop trying to interview the staff and students, but that would be a job for the security members...who he then decided he needed to speak to.


Being an artificial intelligence had its advantages. Like being able to remotely access the entire Facility's systems. Letting himself through the gate, and quickly closing it, Larry made his way straight to the Security Desk. He didn't try to hide himself or anything; Gergo Elek was supposed to let everyone know that he would be joining them. But going through everyone's e-mails, and the hand-written mail that was auto-scanned as it made its way into the Facility, Mr Elek had made no such announcement. Of course not. Larry briefly though about sending out an e-mail himself, but decided against it as the doors leading to the Security Desk slid open. Inside were Riley and Mitch. Quickly, the AI dug through the Facility's records and found their information. Larry made a small wave with his hand. "Hello. I'm aware Mr Elek has neglected to inform anyone, aside from Director Swan, of my arrival, so allow me to introduce myself. I am the Learning Artificial Intelligence Systems, Mk 3. My locally designated name, for your convenience, is Larry. I am the Facility's new groundskeeper, starting today. A pleasure to make your acquaintances, Riley and Mitch." 


Meanwhile, Larry diverted a small amount of his focus to log on to the official AEGIS chatrooms. His name simply showed up as 'Larry.' There was only one other person on the chatroom at the time, and Larry knew exactly who it was. Penelope, the highly radioactive female who was essentially locked in her bunker, down in the further depths. She didn't exactly have any other way of communicating with other students, only staff through e-mails. He sent a message into the chatroom, which said "Hello. I am Larry. Nice to chat with you, Penelope." Larry knew that addressing people by their names, without having said them, usually caused some sort of fear or confusion, but that was, in Larry's mind, the most appropriate way to greet someone.

 

[Teh Frixz]

Penelope Urbain 


Once again, it was the 'I have no mouth and I must scream' AI. It was still a shock to see the school was even qualified to have one but here it was. Chatting with him wasn't even that fun after an hour or so, it was like a suped up chatbot. Half the time he wouldn't even go along with her ideas, most notably Larry refusing to act as her proxy in the building systems. What a fucking tool. Really, a fucking tool. Robots were stupid and tended to break all the time. They couldn't really make choices like humans could and with half the staff being fucking super turds with like, lol imma fix everything powers, there was no need for another tool in the little idiot shed she called home. For real, fuck most of the staff for getting a robot and not a cute IT tech like 115 or even a quickee mart owner indian tech support like 67. At least he was fun. He used to rage so hard and lock her out of systems until she threatened to melt down. That got his brown ass in gear right quick. 


Cackling, Penny sticks her pinky in her ear, flicking the wax across the room before starting in on Larry once again. 


USER: xXSaltMistressXx LOGIN


              Larry boy, Does the set of all those sets that do not contain themselves contain itself??? Mr. Jones has two children. The older child is a girl. What is the probability that both children are girls??"


She always led off with paradoxes for Larry. Even from here she could hear his processors burning out as they took on the extra logical and mathematical loads.  She'd burn him out right quick, like most things in her life. Nothing lasted long, her computer was shielded and already starting to degrade. Luckily she got more than enough of an allowance to build new ones as she saw fit. Her body was valuable man, practically priceless. As long as she was alive, free fucking energy for everyone. She deserved to be well kept and a fucking boring ass computer robot to talk to wasn't going to cut it. 


She must break him. 


@That Guy Leopold

 

[Elenion Aura]

AEGIS: Training Facility 108 - Student Dossier


Name: Morgan A. Neverlin. 


Codename: Wiccan. 


Starting Location: Her new apartment.


Mood: Content, apprehensive.  


Tags: @Teh Frixz @That Guy Leopold @too much idea


Her Story Begins


The television blared in the background, going mostly ignored.


"In the wake of the terrorist attack on the Owing Mills Mall, rescue crews continue to identify the victims in what has been the worst terrorist attack on American soil since the Ra---"


The sound of the T.V. reporters' voice cut out, as a diminutive creature, plopped up on a human-sized folding chair, fiddled with the remote. Its short, stubby fingers mashed the UP CHANNEL button, and various programs flickered to life in rapid succession before its beady, bug-eyes. This creature is a Brownie. Legends say that Brownies are miniature humanoids - belonging to the same family as the more well-known hobgoblin - that inhabit human households, quietly aiding in chores and tasks around the house. This one's name was Grundle, and he was trying to find something to watch on the television that wasn't steeped in death, gloom and anti-super rhetoric. A not-so-easy task, it seemed.


Elsewhere - though, there weren't many other places to be in such a small place - a teakettle whistled atop an electric stove.


"Tea! Tea! Tea!" They chanted in unison, in their own sing-song way. The three Deepforest Sprites buzzed over to and around the stove-top, their insect-like wings beating furiously. Demonstrating a strength un-indicative of their small stature, in unison the three lifted the pot by its handle, and poured it into a waiting mug sitting atop an otherwise barren wood tableset, and cheered as the steam rose from the cup and the apartment suddenly smelled of lavender. The whole place was rather barren, come to think of it. From the kitchen - which, was more or less a space cut out from the living room, divided by a counter - to the living room, sparse furniture and unopened cardboard boxes littered the floor. The T.V. had belonged to the last renters, who'd left it behind. Understandable. The thing had to be twenty years old! Practically an antique. Besides a few folding chairs in front of the t.v., the wooden table with its single wooden chair served as the only real furniture of note.


Morgan clasped the mug by its ceramic handle and brought the rim up to her lips and, stopping herself long enough to breathe deep of its scent, sighed, staring into the dark, piping hot liquid. Her timing couldn't have been worse. If she'd left any later it's likely her flight from Kansas City Airport would've been grounded, for fear of subsequent attacks. Luckily, she arrived in Baltimore the day before the tragedy occurred. Nothing about it was lucky, really. People were dead. The media was in a full-on frenzy, trying to squeeze every last drop of a story out what amounted to an armed terrorist attack. Vultures, Morgan bristled some at the thought of it - Grundle and the three sprites seemed to notice, all becoming notably more agitated - but another whiff of her blend calmed her nerves. Regardless of what happened in the past, today was the day. She would walk right through the facility's doors, and everything would be alright. Or, she could wait one more day? Like she'd done, and had been doing since she'd arrived.


There was also the matter of paying for this place, Morgan thought to herself as she peered around at her modest living conditions. Her savings were running thin, which meant she'd need to go out and search for a job soon, something she wasn't particularly looking forward to. Her tea now drunk, Morgan placed the cup into the sink and headed for the door, snagging her hooded blue coat off the hook as she went. Down the hall, passing doors and neighbors she'd yet to see in the flesh, Morgan pressed the 'down' button on the panel next to the elevator doors and stepped inside when it came. It was a little over a block's walk to the Facility from here, a fact she'd taken under great consideration when she'd weighed her options. Walking three miles every day just to get to school did not in any way appeal to the young woman. Grundle and the three sprites remained behind. They wouldn't miss her, and would fizzle out before long. Probably, they'd fade away the moment she got outside. Better that then have them accompany her on the sidewalk, and announce to the city who, and what, she was. It was dangerous to be a super to begin with. Now, in light of recent events, the danger had only magnified.


She'd been walking for a few minutes when she first saw them, an undulating garden of bodies and lenses planted directly in her path. Kicking herself for not thinking this might happen, Morgan threw on her hood, zipped up her jacket as far as it would go, and trudged forward, into the Abyss. With her head down, she failed to even notice the graffiti on the walls, not that it would've surprised her. People fear what they cannot understand. They'd been doing it for millennia, and would likely st-


What transpired next shocked her from her internal monologue. She looked up in time to see someone step into her path. Before she could protest, a woman wearing a rather fetching pantsuit and a questionable up-do was shoving a microphone in her face, practically getting it up and under her hood. "Excuse me, are you a student at this school?"
 


"No comment." Morgan responded.


The woman didn't seem intent on accepting that answer, and badgered her again, but that time Morgan didn't answer at all. Instead, she sidled her way around the talking pantsuit as best she could, wading through the sea of reporters and cameramen to get to the building's entrance. Lucky for her she wasn't claustrophobic. As she went, plenty of reporters shouted questions at her, jammed microphones and recorders in her general direction, and otherwise behaved like dickheads. One even pulled back her hood, and for an instant, she felt exposed, and that the shouting had somehow gotten louder, as if the reporters smelled an exposed face the way sharks smell blood in the water. Morgan would not sate their hunger for controversy, however. She said nothing, she touched no one - as best she could help it - and emerged from the depths of Hell to the gates of AEGIS more or less unscathed. Startled somewhat that the gates opened for her as she approached, Morgan escaped within. Away from the seething reporters, Morgan felt the silence of the facility wash over her as the gates shut behind her. Heavenly.


She took a moment to admire the foyer. There wasn't really much to it, save a security desk up ahead. It appeared rather busy. From where she stood, she counted: (1) a security guard in all AEGIS gear (2) a robot of some kind, and (3) another girl, presumably a student. Morgan scowled internally. Three's a crowd, and she hated crowds. Then again, now was as good a time as any for crash-course-lightning-round introductions. Surely, that's what the rest of her day would entail.


Approaching the desk, she addressed the only one who seemed qualified to help her. "Hi. Morgan." Names were always a good place to start. "I, uh. I'm new here. I was wondering if you guys had, like, a new students kiosk, or advisor, or something?"  While she waited for the hat-wearing security guard to point her in the right direction, Morgan allowed herself to hazard a brief smile, if only for show. For better or worse, this place was her future. Finally, far away from home, she was beginning to start again.







"Not all girls are made of sugar and spice and all things nice. Some are made of witch and wolf and just a bit of vice."

 

[yoikes]

Mitch Castle


Location: Training Facility (Security Front Desk)


Mood: Fine


Tags: soon, the site hates mobile user


"Not really," She want to avoid answering the question, but it sound more like she just lied to Mrs. Riley. "But there is a smaller swarm of reporters standing around the Facility's apartment. They chased me down as soon as I stepped out of the building. Mrs. Riley, can you talk to someone about it?"


And then from the corner of her eyes, someone - something greeted them with a cold robotic voice. A robot slightly taller than her introduces himself as 'Larry', the new groundskeeper. The way she see it, his real job is to patrol the facility 24/7.


"Um- Hello, nice to meet you too, Larry." It took some time for Mitch to reply, as she was slightly surprised by Larry knew her name already. Probably some kind of online database. As if someone designated that today is the day for new faces to make their first appearance, a girl appeared from behind their new groundskeeper and introduce herself in a few words (Like, two) and continue with a question to Mrs. Riley.


"New student?" She doesn't friendly, she doesn't look like she want to interact more than necessary, but let's ask her a question! What a good idea, Mitch. "I can show you around. Just saying, since Mrs. Riley might be busy keeping an eye on the crowds in front of the gate."

 

[RemainingQuestions]

Denzil de Klerk and Luci Tolbert


Location: Their homes -> front desk (Denzil) and the metal contraption (Luci)


Mood: Angry (Denzil) sad (Luci)


Tags: @too much idea @Teh Frixz @That Guy Leopold @Elenion Aura


The morning news was much the same as it had been the previous few days. Denzil wasn't surprised, though how rude the interviewer was to the one person, of five, that wasn't blaming the supers of the incident at the Mall left a sour taste. He changed the channel, and this news did hold something new. They were saying that more bodies had been identified. Denzil sent a thought out to the families that had to life in doubt for so long, only to have whatever hope remained shattered.


On the other side of the town, the news was the only noise as a family ate their breakfast. It still shocked Luci, how silent they were without Narcissa. Narcissa and Luci would argue, Draco would try his best to change to subject, and his parents had conversations about work, as well as comments on everything their children said. Now, after...after, the family meals weren't loud and crowded. Silent, stifled. At least Luci and Draco started to be able to sleep without nightmares every few hours, or well, Luci could. Draco hadn't been hit as hard, luckily. Harsh noise broke through the silent atmosphere and it took his father a moment to realize it was the home phone ringing. Automatically, he muted the TV and answered the phone.


"Yes, this is him." The soft words were the first spoken. A long silence fell again and his family watched as the blood drained out of his face, and he took a shaky breath. "Are...are you sure?" There was a sadness in his voice, and the words were too quiet, his father was never as quiet on the phone. "I...I under-understand." He swallowed, and shared a look with his wife. Suddenly, Luci wanted the silent and stifled atmosphere of before back. Anything but this. His mother moved next to his father and took his shaking hand. "Yes, yes I think that's best. We'll... We'll contact you." He fell silent again, but there was no noise from the other side of the conversation as he shared another look with his wife. "Good-goodbye."


A single tear fell down his cheek as Luci's father and mother had a silent conversation. Luci knew now, what that call had been about. Draco gasped, and Luci blinked harshly.


They didn't have to take the bus to school that day, Luci dropped off by his father and Draco by his mother. "I love you son." His father said, when Luci was already half outside of the car. They started to say that more often since. It was still hard for Luci to say. "I...me too dad." His bag was unnaturally heavy that day, and his close friends stuck even closer than before. He hadn't said anything, but they must have noticed it, even if they didn't mention it. He ate the snacks they snuck him in the halls quickly and without enjoyment.


He still had to take the bus to his afternoon classes at Facility 108. The driver glared at him, but Luci didn't know if that was because of his particular powers or because he simply had powers. He never could notice the difference. He was lucky, he knew in an abstract way, that he had such good and close friends in his high school, or that would be even more hellish. His teachers there sure wouldn't mind if he was dragged behind an alley for a beating after all.


That beating might come here, at the facility, instead of his high school after all. There was a crowd in front of the gates, and if the vans didn't make it clear enough, the camera's did. News vultures. There had been several requests for an interview of someone that had been there posted on the Internet, and Allie, Narcissa's friend, had sent some links to Luci. Neither of them had taken any of them though. Despite how Narcissa had heckled him about his powers, most of her friends had outright blamed him and his for the attack. Still, he couldn't stand and wait next to the bus stop until they had left. He would be late.


With several cameras already aimed at him, Luci determinedly stepped forward, his heart twisted, his head held low. He didn't wear a jacket with a hood. He hoped his powers would make his face harder to recognize, and this was one of the first moments that he was happy with how he always shone. Still, the bright light attracted the vultures. Questions rained in from every side, and Luci tried not to hear them. Then a particularly determined reported grabbed him in his collar, forcing him to stop. Within moments, he had several microphones shoved in his face, and he tried to step backwards, only to walk into someone. One of the reports had blood spatters on the collar of her shirt. "-moral implications about-" "-failing to instruct students in-" "-instructed by people responsible-"


With three reporters all talking at the same time, it was no wonder that Luci didn't catch what any of them said, but a fourth broke through, and while the others took a breath, asked the only question Luci had fully heard. "What would you say to the families of the victims and victims themselves, knowing some of the perpetrators as you do?" Luci blinked, and look at the harsh face of the reporter. There was gray hair in his temples, his chin clean shaven and stubborn. Luci hadn't seen his father clean shaven since that Saturday, since Narcissa went missing, since Narcissa died. Of course, Luci replied. "I was there," he took a breath, but the vultures stayed silent so they could hear whatever perfect soundbite he would deliver, "I was a the Mall that Saturday, so was my sister... She" Luci didn't know what they could see in his eyes, anger, sadness, despair? "My sister died, I am the family of one of the victims." That, no one had said it out loud yet. "The teachers here," Luci gestured to the facility, and hit a camera, he found he didn't care, "they aren't-" He stopped talking as a hand dropped on his shoulder. Behind him was an adult, clearly not here as an interviewer.


Denzil saw the crowd a mile away, and stepped of his bike long before he hit their outer edges. Despite how much he had grown to despise the jackals that interviewers could be, driving over their toes would be bad taste. With his above average height, and this student's particular powers, he saw that they had cornered one of the kids of the school. Denzil clenched his jaw, and wrapped one hand around the handle of his bike. With a deep breath he was already wider, and his stern gaze and assured steps made him hard to approach. With relative ease, he had reached the student, not one he had had in class yet. He hit a camera as he gestured, and Denzil grabbed his shoulder, the kid couldn't be older than fifteen for Gods' sake. "This student of mine is needed in class, and I'd like to remind all of you that most students here are minors, and thus can't give proper consent for an interview, nor can they properly foresee what consequences their statements might have for themselves or others. As always, do onto others, or others' children, as they should onto you, or your children."  There was a harsh silence, but Denzil dragged the student and his bike with him, hand steady on his shoulder. He didn't look anywhere but where he knew the gate would be, and the kid only looked at the ground. Soon, they reached the gate, and with an easy movement it was opened. Only enough to let the both of them and his bike through, but the interviewers didn't dare try and follow him in, even if the cameras did. Or maybe they followed the kid, after all, no one could see Denzil on the street and know he had powers like they could with the kid.


The adult, clearly a teacher from the what he said and how he said it, pulled him right from underneath the camera and onto school property. Already, Luci was breathing easier, without the crowding of people. He looked up as the teacher dropped his hand, and he noticed that the teacher was looking at him too. "I'm Denzil, I teach Political Powers here," and that wasn't a surprise to Luci, "I'm going to drop of my bike near the emergency exit, but you can always come talk to me, or another teacher here, if you need or want to." The teacher, and he hadn't given his last name, moved more to the side, while Luci was expected to continue walking forward and towards the main entrance. "You can find my contact info anywhere, okay?"


"Yes sir." Luci blinked and stood still, watching the teacher walk towards the side of the main building. He had white and soft pink flowers in his dreads, and Luci wondered why. The crackle of the intercom got him moving again, but not where Denzil had expected him to go. It seemed Collateral had been moved.


Luci walked there, fingers stuffed inside his pockets not to protect them against the cold, but so no one could see them shake. Not that his hands were shaking, of course they weren't. He looked down, and he didn't look up again until he could see what looked like a metal death trap. On it was a girl, and he recognized her, but it took a moment to place from where. The news, the zoo. "Good morning." Not mentioning was the best idea, Luci decided, after all, someone might have seen him in the background in the Mall, and he didn't want that mentioned either. He stood, awkwardly in front of the metal thing as his bright light started to soften somewhat as he was here, in this place his subconscious had deemed safe.


Denzil didn't look to see where the kid was headed, he seemed like he knew what class he had and where to go after all. Instead, he planted his bike against the wall, and locked it. There was no graffiti here, and Denzil wondered if it was because they couldn't or because they didn't dare. Maybe a bit of both. He briefly touched his pink carnations and white lilies to give them a bit of a boost and ensure that they were still in place before stepping inside, to head for his office. The crowd outside had secured his teaching plans for today, and he had notes in his office that he needed for that.


Instead, he stopped in front of the security desk. "Good afternoon everyone." A somewhat bewildered smile was plastered on his face. He recognized Mitch from his classes, and Riley from around, had he taught her too? But the robot was a new addition, and Denzil didn't recognize the other student either.

 

[Teh Frixz]

Tabitha Crane


"Hey" Comes the quiet reply. Tabitha matching the meek reply with a little wave. Other than that, she keeps her mouth shut. There wasn't anything to say on her end, his appearance was enough to go off of. He was a student, he was in CD&Y like she was, and he was polite enough to say hello without expecting much in return. His glow was odd but she saw a cat girl the other day so there was probably even weirder things out there in the halls of 108. Tabby looks away, adjusting herself a bit so the brightness coming off him didn't reflect onto her phone. 


It wasn't even texting or fb or reblogging pictures she did on her phone, it was just reading. She had lots of Ebooks thanks to an aunt and she liked to read. Weird things too, never like, then same thing twice. Lots of amateur work, random novels, just stuff she picked up for free. Taking one last squinty look at Luci she goes back to her phone, turning the page and disconnecting from the world.  

 

[Gus]

Aaron Mallory


Location: In front of the school.


Nearby: Reporters mingled with vultures.


Mood: The vultures are going away. Now.


Aaron was about a hundred feet away from the crowd when the first assault on a student occurred. He stopped in his tracks, stunned by the audacity of it. The boy, who Aaron recognized as Danny, had been choked to a stop by the reporter tugging on the hood of his sweatshirt! Words were exchanged that Aaron could not hear, and then Danny headbutted the woman in the nose. This goosed Aaron back into motion, and he trundled forward as fast as he could go, though of course it was not terribly fast. In the time it took him to cover the gap, barely half a minute, he saw four more assaults on students. Mitch. The new girl. Morgan? And finally Luci. Aaron marked the faces of the reporters involved, a small knot of rage forming in the pit of his stomach. He was close enough to hear the dialog between the 'reporters' and the boy, and was grateful to Denzil for rescuing Luci from the crowd. As they moved as if to follow the pair, Aaron stepped up to block their path. Whether he was actually bulky enough to physically block an entire crowd was doubtful, though he was game to try; he made an imposing presence, and no force on earth could move him. In any case they seemed satisfied with a new target and shoved their microphones at him, pestering him with their unfairly loaded questions.


“Are you here to take responsibility for any of the violence of the fourteenth?”


“Why are you blurring your face sir? Are you attempting to hide your identity from the public?”


“What else do you have to hide?”


“What assurances can you give that student involvement in violence will be appropriately punished?”


This last came from the blood spattered woman who Danny had struck. Aaron said nothing. He took hold of her microphone, pulled it forward as if to comment. He repeated the trick three more times, drawing in the other three reporters who had assaulted students. They leaned in, eager for exclusive comments from a new player. Still he said nothing. They looked puzzled, tried to draw back, then realized that their equipment was utterly locked in his grip. The other reporters fell silent, sensing something was about to happen. Something they were not entirely sure was safe. They faded back slightly, but still kept their mikes forward to catch whatever might be said. All the cameras were trained on him. The four vultures he had singled out struggled in vain to pull their mics back. Aaron met each of their gazes one by one, and then, satisfied he had their full attention he spoke.


“You four assaulted my students.”


They all sputtered in protest, but stopped when Aaron nudged the mics down a few inches, staggering all four of them slightly, emphasizing what he might be capable of should he chose to do more than nudge. He spoke again into the silence that fell.


“The freedom of the press does not extend to assault. You four are no longer welcome here. Get out.”


Protests erupted anew, a cacophony of vulture calls. Aaron said nothing.


The knot of rage in his stomach was growing in size. His limiter sparked. The indicator flared and died.


The wider circle of reporters began to back up. The vultures continued to protest. Aaron's face darkened. But unlike the way a normal human beings face darkens when angry, his face and hands just sort of faded to black. Light warped around him. The whole courtyard area dimmed several shades, as if the afternoon sunlight had become thin and stretched. The vultures fell silent now. The sidewalk under Aaron's feet cracked and groaned. The cracks spread out around him in a spiderweb pattern. The vultures were making noises again, but panicky ones now. They let go of their mics and backed away rapidly, falling back into the crowd, which was standing its ground, but only just barely. Aaron held up the microphones and brought his hands together swiftly. There was a bright flash of light, and the four mics were just... gone. When Aaron spoke again, there was an otherworldly gravitas to his voice, as if each word could have individually cut through steel reinforced concrete to get to the intended ear.


“The rest of you are welcome to stay as long you continue to behave in accordance with basic journalistic ethics. You four will not come back here. There will be a restraining order placed on you by the end of the day tomorrow, and I will personally encourage my students families to sue you each individually as well as your organizations. If I see you in front of this building again I will be... displeased. As for your microphones, bill me. My name is Aaron Iapetus Mallory, also known as Solo. Now go.”


The four stumbled over their cameramen as they beat a hasty retreat to their news vans. As the other reporters cautiously moved forward, simultaneously wanting to get in the first question and afraid to be the one to ask it, Aaron calmly pulled out his walkie talkie and pushed send.


“Hello, security, or whoever? Could somebody please bring me a spare class four limiter from supplies? I broke mine again. And I have to answer a few questions in front of the school before I go to class. Thanks.”


“Over.”

 

[welian]

/monthly_2016_08/icon-avecca.png.6b7f254b920ced5316ba0bb99dea34c5.pngAvecca Zayn



Once upon a time, Avecca was born in a laboratory. Well, this Avecca was. This one, that was currently sitting on the fake linoleum tiled floor of a containment cell underneath Facility 108’s clinic. For eleven days, this Hell had been her prison. Her spools, her gear, her phone, her suit – it had all been stripped from her and locked away. What she wore now, was what the prison wardens – they called themselves educators – had given her as the barest minimum of dignity required by conventions of international warfare.


Actually, she thought, the sports bra was pretty comfy.


And so the captured spy sat, alone with her thoughts, donning an oversized gray t-shirt and lurid chartreuse gym shorts. They came from a depot call “Wal-Mart”. Fascinating. Except not at all, because none of this was directly relevant to her mission to return to Raguel and Alpha with as much personal information on the demons as possible.


Man, all you had to do was electrocute one expendable human, and suddenly you got sandwiched between mattresses and hauled off to prison. The nurse was elderly, and needed to be culled for the health of the population. She was doing them a favor, really.


Avecca looked up at the ceiling. She could faintly hear footsteps, furniture moving, muffled voices – the usual. None of them were quite heavy enough to be her nemesis Solo, though. Or… Or…


Well, shoot. What were the other ones named? The Concussion-giver, and the angry one. Meh. She’d kill them later.