What Happened in Portland

[Comatose]

Quota's grin did nothing to improve Upgrade's opinion of the epic.  At least Upgrading his powers won't leave me naked.  Unfortunately, being incredibly useful didn't have the same effect on snickering underlings as raw power did, and the debacle with Timeport had done quite a number on Upgrade's reputation.   Let's just get this over with.

Not bothering to reply, Upgrade reached out and placed his hand on Quota's shoulder.  His powers did not require skin to skin contact in order to work, but they did require physical contact of some kind.  As his palm connected with the fabric of Quota's sleeve, Upgrade let his power flow, and at first, nothing happened.  Using his power did not make him feel anydifferent, and he usually had to rely on external clues to tell if his powers were working.  He'd never amplified mental abilities like Quota's before, and usually the results he produced were less anticlimactic.  

Then, he felt it.  A feeling of overwhelming dread and sorrow.  Upgrade felt his pulse begin to quicken, and it soon became difficult to breathe.   I can't stay here.  I need to leave.  I need to get away...

As suddenly as it arrived, the feeling vanished, like the shadow of a passing cloud.  Upgrade belatedly realized that he had almost let go of Quota's shoulder, and firmed up his grip.  Thinking back on what he had felt, Upgrade couldn't help but shiver.  I definitely don't like this guy.  Though he still felt a little hollow and shaky, Upgrade felt his feelings bouncing back.  To his view, Quota remained unchanged, and the room remained quiet and undisturbed.

"Well," Upgrade broke the silence, more to distract himself from darker thoughts than to connect with his current company.  "Is it working?"

[Edgedancer]

 

 

It was good to be home again. Granted, it was a bit rough, what with the holes all over the place but that’s what they’re here to fix and even in this battered state, the white walls still gave her a sense of security. Soon it would be her own little castle again… and maybe Voidgaze could even get some friends to stay over. She was making some of them lately after all.

Voidgaze explained the basics of the needed repairs, trying her best not linger on how the damage actually happened, to Funtimes, who listened intently. The way she tilted her head in thought actually made Voidgaze think of the pug that was running around her bedroom and excitedly sniffing everything. She looked eyes with the animal and was just about to try and coo it over, when Funtimes asked her if she wanted polka dots on her walls.

“No thank you,” Voidgaze answered. “I like my house white. It just feels right to me that way. And why would you just turn parts of my walls into polka dots? Although they are dots, so I guess only having them in some places would make sense. Still, that seems like a weird design decision, breaking up a pattern like that. Not that it really matters; I mean I want it to stay white anyway. Um, can I maybe do something for you while you work, like preparing some food or watch a movie… no you couldn’t really do that while working, unless we maybe pull the television behind you, no that wouldn’t work with the cables, so… maybe I can keep you entertained?”

[Kobold King]

     

 

Outside the museum... was safe. Striding out onto the shattered concrete of the Museum front filled Backtrack with a feeling of contentment. It was good to be out of the tangled jungle of the building, out of the presence of dinosaurs that were sparking everywhere and wanting to eat you, away from those two maniacs who might or might not be real scientists. (But probably weren't.)

Here, he was away from all the things that could kill him on an effortless stray whim. Or... well, except technically MV, but she probably wasn't prone to those kinds of whims. At the moment. Probably best not to put too much thought into that.

The thing that he needed to focus on was that it was safe out here. The Museum filled with ravenous dinosaurs and insane Epics was at his back, and ahead of him was the comforting sight of the lifeless gray demilitarized zone that was Portland, Oregon. For the moment he could stop worrying and just enjoy a moment of not fearing his sudden horrific death at the paws of marauding panda hordes or swarms of psychically controlled silverfish! To just bask in the knowledge that he, Backtrack, was not going to die here in this God-forsaken--

“You’re not safe here, Backtrack.”

 

AAAAAAAAGH--

All thoughts and mental processes broke down as Backtrack whipped around on the spot, his heart just about jumping out of his chest. There was a man standing in front of the Museum. A man he didn't recognize but knew his name, and thus, logically, wanted to murder him dead where he stood. He had dark skin, dark clothing, and steely dark brown eyes that drilled into Backtrack's soul and proclaimed in a harsh whisper "I want you to be dead right now."

And if Backtrack had any reason to doubt his pessimistic first impression--oh, who was he kidding, he was obviously right dead on the money there--it took only a second's glance for his powers to lock on and tell him where this man came from. The series of steps he'd taken in his life had taken him far, but recently, they'd taken him right from The Dalles.

The Dalles. Current contender for People-Who-Want-To-Murder-Backtrack Capital of the World.

A light squeal erupted from Backtrack's lips before he could stop himself. He tried his best to stiffen himself, giving a formidible face for his own protection... but he only felt his knees lock and his head start to feel faint.

"I..." he gulped. "I have no idea what you're talking about. I'm safe. I'm the spitting image of safe! If you think I'm not safe you're probably just projecting, pal, 'cause... ah sparks he's from The Dalles do something MV!"

Edited July 10, 2016 by Kobold King

[TwiLyghtSansSparkles]

Blueberry's house was full of holes. Not like Swiss cheese and not like a tree full of termites, but like someone had run through and punched all the walls. Maybe for funsies. Sometimes the thought of punching walls seemed fun to her, but then she thought about how it would hurt her knuckles and it didn't seem so fun anymore. But Blueberry didn't talk about how the holes appeared, so Funtimes guessed that it wasn't fun that made them. 

And putting it back wouldn't be as fun as she'd hoped. 

Blueberry wanted it back the way it was. No polka dots. Thoughts of a house with neon plaid walls and polka dot floors were dashed from Funtimes' mind as Blueberry told her what she wanted. "I like my house white. It just feels right to me that way. And why would you just turn parts of my walls into polka dots? Although they are dots, so I guess only having them in some places would make sense."

Phooey. She didn't know what she was missing out on. 

"Still, that seems like a weird design decision, breaking up a pattern like that."

It wouldn't be weird! Funtimes nearly spoke up. It wouldn't be weird at all, it'd be amazing and exciting because every wall would be different and no matter where you looked you'd have something new to look at. 

"Not that it really matters; I mean I want it to stay white anyway. Um, can I maybe do something for you while you work, like preparing some food or watch a movie… no you couldn’t really do that while working, unless we maybe pull the television behind you, no that wouldn’t work with the cables, so… maybe I can keep you entertained?”

Entertained. Now that was a word Funtimes liked. She found herself hopping up and down, clapping her hands. "Ooh ooh ooh we could all sing campfire songs! No—Disney songs! Like this!" 

She pranced over to the nearest wall, knitting the hole together with a wave of her hand. "It's a whole new waaaaaallllll, a fantastic place to hang your keeeeyyyyyys….." 

Upgrade's hand hit his arm, and Quota felt nothing. 

Not at first. 

Then it surged through him, an energy pouring through his veins. Power. Pure, raw power, itching at his skin almost to the point of pain, begging, pleading him to do something with it. To let it amplify Calamity's gift, send it as far as it would go. He couldn't hold back. Couldn't keep it in. 

A grin spread across his face as he let loose. 

He didn't direct it, not at first. He simply let it out, savoring the feeling of courage dampening, happiness bleeding away. He didn't know who they belonged to, and he didn't care.

But there was a city out there, a whole city filled with people that he could reach. All of them, he could reach every single one of them from where he stood, and if he couldn't, then he had to see how many he could hit before the power faded away. 

So he reached out. 

He poured out his power. 

And he felt it, flowing toward him in waves: Despair. Hopelessness. Defeat. Rippling toward him, responding to him. He demanded despair, and they complied. 

"Well?" Upgrade's voice broke through his giddiness. "Is it working?" 

Quota couldn't speak. He threw his head back and laughed. 

[Edgedancer]

Voidgaze had apparently managed to stumble across the right thing to say. At the very least Funtimes seemed overjoyed about them sticking together, cheerfully bouncing and singing over through the room.

“Oh, I know that song!” Voidgaze exclaimed. “Just give me a second."

With that she skipped over to her bed and grabbed her blanket, just as white as everything else, and spread them across the floor. Oh Calamity, please let the movie impersonation work. Voidgaze herself sat down on the blanket and invited Funtimes to sit down with her.                                                                           

Funtimes, how had just finished repairing the room with the exception of the big hole in the floor, happily jumped on the blanket, “Ooh are we going to have a picnic? I love picnics. Should I make some blueberry muffins? Uh or maybe-“
“I wasn’t thinking of a picnic actually,” Voidgaze panicked a little bit as she noticed a mix of confusion and disappointment wash over Funtimes face. “No, um, just trust me, alright?”

The sleeves of Voidgaze’s cloak pushed against the ground, lifting Voidgaze up. She used her powers to have the blanket raise up with her and support Funtimes until both of them were sitting a good distance above the ground. With her sleeves acting as support Voidgaze moved them towards the hole and down into the bath.

“It’s a whole new waaaaaallllll, a dazzling house I never knew!” Voidgaze made her best attempt at singing.

[Kobold King]

     

 

Despite all odds and evidence to the contrary, the man from The Dalles didn't immediately whip out a gun and murder Backtrack where he stood. Instead, for a second he looked almost... amused.

“I’m not going to hurt you," the man said in a comforting tone. "I just want you to come back with me to the Dalles, where it’s safe. You’ll be protected from all the dinosaurs and crazy Epics that can get you here in Portland — that sounds nice, doesn’t it?”

...that did kind of sound nice when he put it like that. The Dalles didn't have dinosaurs or crazy murderers, except for the army of sparking pandas that had been ransacking the place when he-

It hit him like a sack of bricks. Sudden, unrelenting terror. Countless memories flashed through his mind all at once, all the deaths he'd seen before his eyes, even the ones where he'd stood centuries removed.

Lightwards killing and un-killing, killing and un-killing, keeping the cycle of bodies going.

Koschei the Deathless slitting a toddler's throat, his mind rotten from reveling in the power.

Buildings collapsing into hordes of silverfish, devouring humans and Epics alike.

Pandas rampaging through the streets, flying pigs and evil squirrels dropping out of the sky like bombs.

Scalpings, genocides, slavery, murders...he tried to comfort himself by looking into the past, but all his mind could be drawn to was all the violence, which there was way too much of since he was standing right outside the fortress of the craziest crazy Epics of them all, and it kept hammering the same awful thought into his head no matter what he tried to take solace in...

The world wasn't safe. It had never been safe. It was never gonna be safe! He was doomed! There was nowhere he could go! Anywhere he could go he'd just find more life-threatening insanity coming out of the woodwork to end the tiny terrified fragile ball of helplessness that was Steve Lawrence!

He took more steps backwards, backing into a wall. He opened his mouth but it was dry. He wanted to speak but no words came out. He looked to MV, but her face was scrunched up and her fists were balled up tight, like she was feeling the same rush of fear and helplessness as he was. The man from The Dalles... sparks, but he was actually on the ground, tears on his face from whatever the Calamity he was seeing. Backtrack, in spite of all his efforts at resistance, felt a mostly dead emotion trembling somewhere inside himself... sympathy.

This man, like Backtrack himself, had seen things.

And yet, he stood up.

And stranger still, he smiled.

"See what I mean?" he asked, voice casual and his smile steady. "Not safe."

Backtrack stood still. This guy... was he an Epic? He had to be, right? Whatever just hit them had to be the work of some horrible mind Epic, and there was no sparking way a regular old vanilla who could get killed in a second was gonna smile through something like that. Calamity, Backtrack was an Epic and there was no way he'd be smiling through it!

But still the guy was smiling. Not giving off any of the other Epic-vibes Backtrack had steadily learned to pick up on. This guy... was a smiling vanilla. The Dalles... was a place where smiling vanillas still roamed free. Where people who weren't gods were still strong and happy.

It was... bizarre. Just flat-out bizarre. Like finding an island where dodo birds still roamed free, squawking happily as they sang dodo songs and broke open coconuts or whatever it was dodos did with their time. The Dalles shouldn't have existed. But it did, and there was something almost... almost very comforting about that fact.

And yet...

Backtrack found himself beginning to speak, shakily and with fear and despair still cracking in his voice. "I..."

He swallowed.

"...I can't. Lightwards... he'd know. I don't know how, but he'd know. He'd send someone. I'd die. You don't just walk out on someone like him."

 

   

 

Chimera seemed to be of two minds, considering Lightwards' generous proposal with both suspicion and temptation. His various vanilla minions watched him stoically, clearly prepared to follow their leader to the ends of the earth. Such loyalty. He must treat them well.

"What of the humans out there?" Chimera asked finally. His face was neutral as he asked the absurd question.

"The humans?" Lightwards repeated, raising a quizzical eyebrow in confusion. "You do know of me? To whom you are speaking? The citizens of this city and others are my highest concern."

He smiled, and gave a nod to one of his few human Warriors, who stood dully behind one of the allosaur's legs. He was a broad-bodied one, young but already with lines of stress etched across his blank face. The Warrior somehow took the full cue of what was expected of him and trod out into Chimera's view, showing not the faintest trace of emotion.

Lightwards calmly stepped forward, pacing a small circle around his Warrior as the suspicious eyes of Chimera's guards looked on. "What was your name?" he asked softly.

"Herbert Peters," the Warrior replied in a listless tone.

"What was your life before I raised you?" Lightwards pressed.

"I lived from street to street, doing work for food," the man responded, still showing no emotion. "My wife was named Sarah. My children were two daughters, Abbie and Kaitlin. We moved frequently to steer clear of Epics."

A long pause.

"...you killed all three this morning."

There was no accusation in the man's tone. No anger. No grief. Only tranquil obedience. Chimera seemed to stiffen, his minions revealing various degrees of anger or disgust at the Warrior's emotionless testimony. Lightwards' smile widened.

"And what is your life now, Herbert Peters?"

The Warrior responded in a single word. A single, perfect word. "Yours."

Lightwards slowly, carefully and in full sight of Chimera's guards, pulled up his jacket and carefully passed his only pistol to the Warrior on display. "Show me," he commanded, and took a few steps back.

The Warrior took the pistol, slowly but without a moment's hesitation pressing it to his lower jaw...

...and before Chimera or anyone else could say a word, he blew his brains out.

Blood splattered far and the body fell straight to the ground with a dull thud. Lightwards beamed in satisfaction, striding out over the pool of blood and gore spreading out over the concrete. The guards had been startled and now faced guns straight for him, but he paid them no mind.

"The humans of this city, and all others, are mine," he proclaimed loudly, meeting Chimera's icy stare. "The animals shall be yours, but Man himself shall bow to me and only me. This is how the future will unfurl. This is how humanity shall move forward. Life and death shall be in my hands, to give or to take, to treasure or to throw away. I alone shall--"

 

Then it hit him like a bullet to the head. He gasped, toppling and physically falling to the ground, crouched on all fours as a wave of memories came forcibly raging through his head.

A gunshot straight through his chest...

...falling, endlessly falling, a wicked laugh taunting his powerlessness as he crashed into the ground in a bloody heap.

...eleven bullets, and he slid against a wall and into the darkness of death...

And before any of them, haunting only his deepest nightmares, the ones that had plagued him from the start...

...a noose...

He let out an involuntary cry, struggling to blot out the images. Never had they all come rushing back to him so suddenly, so without warning. The nightmares, the past, the deaths...

He was kneeling in front of Chimera, sprawled out on his hands and knees in the gore of the man he'd just murdered. He was in a vulnerable position, a demeaning one, a weak one...

And yet he didn't care.

His hands gripped the bloody concrete until his own fingers began to bleed, his dinosaurs letting out low growls all around, agitated by his condition. His body was in a sweat, the world spun around him, and his breath came raggedly.

And Thomas Cardinal trembled.

[Mailliw73]

The display was . . . extreme. Chimera had the feeling that Lightwards didn't do anything partway. Teeth grit, Chi found himself furious at the murder, for that's what it was. It was no suicide, for there was no choice. "His life was Lightwards's"? It may be so, but not of any choice. Not of any personal sacrifice. But mind control. 

Chi sent a falcon to shoot forward to divebomb the necromancer, interrupting the melodramatic speech of destruction. The bird missed as Lightwards collapsed. It suddenly dropped out of the air as well. Then it hit. 

Like a saber through the gut, Chimera felt devastation like never before. Drawing his sabers, he used them as canes. Death. Gore. His father. Being rammed over and over and over. The cowardice in Cadmus as he failed to lift his rifle and shoot. The failure. Oh, Calamity, Cadmus had been a failure. 

Chi looked up, seeing the concern in Argo's bear eyes. Fool. This is fake. Chi didn't know what it was, but this depression had to be an Epic. It wasn't right. Chimera stood up straight, sheathed a saber, and sent his birds to distract the Epics in the necromancer's group. A cloud of feathers engulfed them for a moment. That was all Chi needed to lean forward over Lightwards's prostrate body  

With his single unsheathed saber, he gave Lightwards, "Emperor" of Portland his answer to the offer. It closely resembled severing his head. 

Edited July 21, 2016 by Mailliw73

[RippleGylf]

Candyflame jolted awake as a wave of pure terror washed over her. Frantic, she jumped to her feet, unsuccessfully searching the room for the source. After a moment’s hesitation, she went into overdrive. Rushing back and forth, she connected branches with molten sugar, adding thorns for good measure. When her pouch of sugar ran out, she picked up the crystalline shards that littered the floor. She was a panicked hummingbird, flying across the room to add more defenses to her impromptu fort. The whole room quickly became sugar-coated, bright blues and pinks showering multi-colored reflections across the work of a maddened Epic.

Out of sugar, Candyflame stood in the middle of her brightly colored mess. The tangled webs had only distracted her briefly from the terror that still loomed over her. It would not let her sit down and rest, for what if it came? She could not push away the nightmares, as she used to. Being an emotionless lump had its perks. Oh yes, she knew how the others regarded her, but apathy was what protected her. After all, hadn’t Nighthound forgotten her? Left her behind, due to her utter blandness? Who wanted a pet that wouldn’t yelp if you kicked it? She was far better off without those emotions to drag her down.

But this vice-like grip of fear would not let go. The emotion was back, and it wanted to stay.

[Blackhoof]

 

Corpsemaker and his convoy trundled down the road, which rapidly cleared in his wake. Scared, dirty faces peered from broken windows and torn curtains, while other buildings looked completely abandoned. The Lord of Portland surveyed his domain, his subjects and his army. His ears rung with his own voice, recorded and blaring his proclamation of dominance over the city. Within a few hours, the citizenry would know who their ruler was. 

Corpsemaker smiled smugly to himself, but gnawing doubts assailed his mind. He was a gamer, a massive fan of strategy games in particular. By seizing the majority of the map, he was making an aggressive and offensive play. In any strategy game that was a risk, but one that could pay off dividends and assure victory if he was not stretched too thinly. Was he straining his forces? The Armory was guarded, but only by a few dozen soldiers and Epics. A concerted attack there could lose him his most tactically valuable Epics, his headquarters, and his only means of replenishing his forces. But who would dare? His troops and spies were everywhere and his enemies were on the defensive. Were he in their position, he wouldn't do something so rash. But when one was in such a position of strength as Corpsemaker was- invincible, with land forces and air superiority on his side- one could afford to take risks.

Hopefully, they paid off.

None of these doubts were voiced, nor did any trace of them show on his face. Corpsemaker projected nothing if not smug arrogance, a confidence that he was not just winning this war- he had already won.

Suddenly a wave of fear smashed into him, and his smile turned into a grimace. A smothering cloud of darkness descended onto him, and flashes of his past filled his mind. "GRRR!" He growled in pain and anger, realizing quickly that this is what Quota could do when he was Upgraded. Corpsemaker banished the images, rubbing his temples. Anger slowly gave way to satisfaction, as he considered the sheer power that had just been unleashed upon the city. And that power was his to command.

Looking to his sides, he saw that his toys were, of course, unaffected, but the gangsters, humans and Epics had all been affected to some degree. Many were huddled on the ground, crying or whimpering. The convoy continued unabated, but a gesture from Corpsemaker brought it to a halt. Collaborate and Leech were also on the ground, gasping and struggling to their feet. Corpsemaker gritted his teeth- the fear still pressed down upon him, bringing back memories. Dangerous ones. "Grit your teeth and bare it, weaklings." He spat at his bodyguards. "This convoy will not be halted by your weakness. Get moving!"

The convoy began again, and slowly the Epics and humans riding in the vehicles came back to their senses. Watching how they suffered, and feeling it himself, Corpsemaker smiled grimly. The entire city would be feeling this. It was far stronger than he had expected, but bearable once one recovered from the initial shock. Quota would be well rewarded for this, although he suspected that the mere act was reward enough for the Epic.

[Voidus]

Neverthere finally pulled her face out of Nighthounds shoulder, a mix of sweat tears and blood had dried on it but then now wasn't the time to worry about her appearance. She'd almost missed the moment that they'd finally separated from Timeport but that tendril of diamond was unmistakable. What on earth was Lucentia doing here?

She didn't exactly seem to be on the best terms with Nighthound and he wasn't likely to have asked for her protection, or indeed to have needed it if it was just him. But then she couldn't have been in league with Timeport, she'd separated the two of them after all.

She put the thought to one side, figuring out everyones motivations could come after her body was somewhere safe. But then, where on earth could be safe? They'd found her somehow but if she just moved to another safe house who's to say they wouldn't find her again?

Nighthound slowed down to a more natural speed before finally stopping, letting her catch her breath and calm down for a moment.

"So... uh, nice to see you again?" She tried, panic still seeping into her voice but a moment later she masked it again, adopting the flirtatious smile she had used with the Epic earlier in the day. "And here I thought Prince Charming was an Epic still in northern Europe."

A moment later she realized just how dumb that sounded and her expression faltered for a second again, though due to embarrassment rather than fear this time.

[Edgedancer]

Nighthound looked down at the woman in his arms disheveled, blood smeared, panicked and failing to rebuild her façade. She was an adorable sight. Eventually he’d have to actually lure her in but for now could anyone blame him for wanting to tease her, while she was still vulnerable in front of him without the defense of her projections? Contrary to her, Nighthound loved direct confrontation; nothing made it easier to draw raw emotions from another person. From adoration to terror, what else could one wish for in a relationship?

He responded to her awkward attempt at flirting with a soft chuckle and a warm smile, “I imagine he does but rescuing fair maidens in need is a duty of every able man. Hopefully he won’t be jealous though,” Nighthound said, took Neverthere’s hand and softly brushed it with his lips. “Seeing how I not only trespassed on his domain but also got away with such a lovely princess.”

Making eye contact with his little mouse was a wonderful feeling, making his face just a little bit brighter, hiding all the things he wanted to do to her. As arousing as it was to drive her on, Nighthound shouldn’t press her too far. From the information his sister had shared with him from the meeting with Altermind, they most likely used Streetwise to find her. Frankly, that’s something he should have considered when she wanted to go spying in the Dominion but at least he could figure out a way to use it now.

“Now your Highness, I’m afraid I’m still not all that familiar with the local Epics but is there any Epic Corpsemaker could have hired with the ability to locate you?” Best to have her figure it out herself.

[Voidus]

An Epic Corpsemaker could have used to find her? Well there was the obvious case of Streetwise, the Epic she'd intermittently been watching to steal some of Corpsemakers intel. The best way to see what was happening in the city had always been to spy on other spies. But then how had Streetwise known to try and find her? Was he just scouting her out to try and recruit her to the Dominion. Could Timeport have mentioned her to Corpsemaker?

Or could he have found her while she was spying on the Dominion and decided to respond?

She wasn't entirely sure how Streetwise's ability worked, she'd even thought he might just be another Astral Projector, albeit one with more limits on where he could appear. But what if he left no visible clue at all as to where he was watching. He could have noticed her peeking out from one of the Dominions walls or perhaps he didn't even use vision to spy, maybe he just knew what was happening.

Either way, it seemed like he was the cause, regardless of what the motive was behind it he was one of the only Epics who could have found her, and the only one at all with a connection to Timeport. Even if he wasn't the one who tracked her down this time, the fact that she was on their radar now meant that he would be tracking her down from now on.

"Just the one." She replied, her expression habitually slipping into a vacant half-smile and tone slipping up half an octave. "Streetwise. Information Epic, capable of finding out what's going on anywhere in the city and I believe the reason that Portlands foremost museum now requires elevator access."

Her mind was rapidly cycling through options, she didn't know Streetwises exact range but from what she'd gathered the museum was somewhere he couldn't spy in anymore so it had some limitations. At the least she had to guess that her range was bigger than his, she could escape the city, blend in with the other refugees fleeing the developing turf war. But she had few places to hide outside the city, and none were as secure as the safehouses she'd setup here. She'd lose her contacts, her suppliers.

But how could she stay in the city? She didn't know of any other Epics who could make her house fly like the museum, Thoughttown was well guarded and had plenty of other Epics but the MEE had already taught her that she didn't work well with a bunch of other people. Lightwards and the Empire were a smaller group but she couldn't begin to trust a faction led by someone leading a dinosaur herd while being manipulated by an insane teleporter capable of and probably willing to turn the entire city into chocolate.

That only left...

She glanced at Nighthound one more time, she'd called him her prince charming in jest but he really had come to her rescue, presumably while on a job for his sister if her presence was anything to go by. Did he actually like her? Or was he just one of those Epics who acted nice to get a better reputation and more followers?

She could hardly stay in a city on the brink of war, with an entire faction of supervillains after her just for the sake of a cute guy with a sturdy chest could she?

Her eyes were drawn downwards to a hole in Nighthounds shirt, the blood stain had mostly dried up with the wind from their fight but it was still a shot straight through his body.

"Oh." She said, voice dropping back to her normal tone. "Um.. I'm sorry I had to, you know. Shoot you and all."

How did you apologize for shooting someone? Did he even feel pain really? And how did you segue from that into asking whether or not you should stay in the city or not.

"Oh to hell with it." She muttered before taking a deep breath. "Can I stay with you for a bit?" She asked tentatively, glancing upwards as demurely as she could manage and batting her eyelashes slightly for good measure.

[Edgedancer]

Apparently it had indeed been unreasonable to expect even the bare minimum of conduct from someone inhabiting this cesspool. The look on Timeport’s face seemed as if he didn’t realize being treated with anything more than contempt by someone as grand as her for the honor it was. It was only the lesser people that refused to acknowledge that one should bow to their betters and thus everyone should bow before Lucentia.

For a short moment Timeport seemed to flicker and his arm was reaching into Lucentia’s chest. It barely deserved a tiered eye roll, seeing how the pathetic little trick would do more lasting damage to her clothes than her body.

“Well, who-“ Timeport’s presumptuous monologue devolved into pained screams as his arm was crushed by the diamonds growing from Lucentia’s wound. Lucentia followed it up with a slap, blades forming on her diamond hand, but the mongrel teleported a small distance, avoiding the strike.

The miscreant still didn’t understand his position and let out a string of profanity. It seems like Lucentia would have to teach him properly before all this worthless noise he made became too much of an eyesore. She turned the diamond layer Timeport was standing on into tiny buzzsaws that ripped into his feet.

His legs buckled with a pained scream and Timeport teleported up into the air. Spears of diamond extended towards him. For a while he managed to doge with further teleporting but then the tendrils surrounded him. Timeport disappeared just before they pierced his body.

That little trick was annoying more than anything. Lucentia created a throne for herself to sit on and gathered more tendrils around the spot Timeport should reappear in. She could only hope this ordeal wouldn’t turn out to be boring more so than anything.

Nighthound watched Neverthere in his arms, as the gears spun in her head. As expected she reached Streetwise in her considerations. He did not bother to inform her that raising the museum into the air had nothing to do with defending against Streetwise, no need to point out that it had been purely motivated by his allies’ whims. With no doubt did they already look deranged enough.

However that was not where she stopped thinking. It would be interesting to know if she was thinking about where she would be save or about what chances she might have to get away from him in the first place. Of course ultimately she had none but what mattered was if she realized as much.

Though, if her way of glancing at his chest was any indication, he wouldn’t have to worry very much about any attempts at independence. Indeed, after a weak apology for shooting him, she did finally ask for his protection. She deserved the extra appreciation for making herself look like the prize that she was and as things were progressing she would have to pay up soon.

“Don’t worry about the bullet wound,” Nighthound said while softly grabbing her chin and lifting her face until it was right in front of his, lips almost touching. “A little wound like that means nothing to me and you did help. With that out of the way, I’d love your company, so feel free to stay as long as you like.” After that I’ll just keep you as long as I want to. “I promise to take good care of you. Now, where do you want our cozy little home to be?”

[Kobold King]

 

Death.

There was a wave of misery, and the raptors felt like death. They'd stood at the ready, snarling at the mammals that were their enemies, waiting for the words of the mammal that was their alpha.

But now everything felt different. Even the alpha felt it, collapsing to its knees as it washed over the place. The mammal that smelled of dozens of other animals stood idle for a moment, but strode forth with a shining claw coming off its hand. In a stroke, the alpha's head came off its body, rolling onto the hard cold ground as flocks of sickly-smelling birds attacked the other mammals.

Death.

Every one of them could feel it. The alpha fell to the ground, dead; that much they all knew. But its mind was still somehow there, still pressing into theirs with blood red authority. The other mammal bodies the alpha ruled looked confused, staring blankly as they waited for the alpha to get back up, as they all somehow knew it would.

The raptors felt otherwise. Their alpha was dead, attacked! A fight was springing up around them! The one that scented of many animals stood tall before them, confident, challenging. There was only one thing for them to do.

As their mammal ruler's head regrow from its shoulders, four raptors leaped over its writhing carcass, barreling towards their alpha's killer with full speed and shrieks of bloodlust.

 

   

 

Lightwards died four times that moment.

A gunshot tore through his chest from the crowd of students, and he collapsed to the ground.

His screams ran out across the desert as he rushed through infinite space, hurtling into the parched earth like a meteorite against Möbius' laughter.

Eleven bullets perforated through his body as he slid against a museum wall, leaving a bloody smear behind him.

And a saber sheared through his neck, his head rolling off his shoulders and rolling on the hard asphalt. For a shaky moment he could actually see his decapitated corpse lying before him, his mouth trying to scream yet pulling no breath from his severed lungs, and then everything went dark.

Once again his old deaths ran through his mind, and he nearly lost himself in the howling pain. The wave of meaninglessness that had struck him before... all the memories... they threatened to undo him, like his life had done to him so long ago before. Back in days when he'd wished for death.

But a light shone before him. That same, blessed light that had greeted him thrice before, and now once again beckoned him into living. The light that promised purpose to all the random demises that threatened him at every turn.

He pushed the traumatic visions out of his mind. He clung to his goals. Though he seemed incorporeal in this empty dark place, he could almost feel his fists clench in determination.

And he moved lightwards.

 

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

 

He gasped as he came back to life, rolling onto his back as the sounds of gunfire and screaming dinosaurs rang out over the zoo. He found his hands moving up to his head, feeling his forehead and temples and hair as if to verify they were still there. Swiftly yet shakily he rose to his feet, squinting as he stumbled backwards and tried to ascertain what was going on through his blurry vision.

Chimera was on the ground, grappling with three raptors at a time--and seemingly on the cusp of winning. His soldiers were half in a panic, opening fire at the huge Allosaurus as it rampaged towards them with its mouth agape.

Bullets soared past Lightwards from behind, and with a glance back he could see Aldo and Cricket fighting back hordes of bird-like abominations that threatened to engulf them. Chicago Joe had revered to statue form.

And laying on the ground, just a yard away from Lightwards' feet, was his own severed head. Hat still fitted upon it, glasses still covering blank and staring eyes on a face contorted in pain and surprise.

Some distant part of him murmured about various existential questions this posed. If this was the discarded remnant of his brain, did that mean he was not the true Lightwards? That he was an identical impostor supplanted on the original's body... that the original Thomas Cardinal had died here and now?

...no. The original Thomas Cardinal had died years ago.

Without another word or moment of hesitation, Lightwards stooped to pick the glasses off of his own dead-eyed face, fixing them on his face. With another swift motion the bowler hat was relocated to his new head, and the new Lightwards stood stiffly with his hand on his pistol.

"Warriors," he proclaimed sternly, voice betraying none of the turmoil he'd felt moments before. "Attack."

His human Warriors raised their rifles and opened fire at Chimera's men. Lightwards drew his own weapon and approached Chimera as the pathetic Epic fought against the last of the surviving raptors.

It was time to make a swift end of this.

[Voidus]

Breathing a mental sigh of relief Neverthere shifted her gaze from Nighthounds face to their surroundings. Where could they go in this forsaken city. Nowhere in the city was safe, especially not for someone who'd attracted the attention of Corpsemaker and his minions.

But then safety was a relative concept, so somewhere had to at least be safer than her old house. The museum? She tossed the thought aside instantly, Lightwards might have barely tolerated her actions previously but if he knew he could reach her physically she suspected their relationship would become less co-conspirator and more Warden and prisoner, if not master and slave. And Lucentia, well Neverthere got the feeling that Lucentia had barely managed to restrain herself from sending out some of her own minions to track Neverthere down after their interaction.

So a safe house then? But which one? She'd already had two compromised in as many days thanks to the MEE and Corpsemaker. None of her other houses were correctly set up, but then if she had Nighthound for protection that was less of an issue, her safety measures had proven woefully inadequate last time. Maybe somewhere that was just better hidden? It was probably pointless to try to blend in to hide from Streetwise but there was a chance.

"Well I do have a lovely little cottage near the museum." She mentioned. "White picket fence, doghouse with two mastiffs. It's unfortunately occupied at the moment, I usually have this couple tend to it in exchange for not telling a certain notoriously angry Strength Epic where the people who keyed his car are. But I'm sure you could help me convince them to vacate immediately. Or I suppose we could share and let them live in the basement, there's some interesting equipment down there for them to play with."

Neverthere had been quite surprised when she'd first entered the basement, she'd guessed that pre-calamity some people with some very interesting hobbies had lived there but nowadays she just used it as a dungeon on the very rare chances that she needed to physically intimidate anyone.

[Edgedancer]

It was unexpected that Neverthere had a safe house this close to the museum but Nighthound was not about to complain, it would make it noticeably easier to juggle taking care of her with his other work in the city. It didn’t hurt that it was actually a rather nice place to stay from the looks of it, he considered as he approached the building with Neverthere still in his arms.

On his way to the door he noticed the doghouse empty. Better keep those in mind, before they show up out of nowhere and end up attacking Neverthere. Then he opened the door, as Neverthere anticipated it was unlocked, rather foolish given the neighborhood, and carried her over the threshold.

In their new home, Nighthound set down Neverthere, taking one of her hands and gently stroking it. “Home sweet home,” he said as he moved further in. All it took was crossing a short hallway, not furnished particularly fancy but clean of dust and the like, to find the cottage’s current occupants. He spotted the two mastiffs sitting next to them upon noticing the Epics, or maybe it was just Neverthere’s presence, the two of them stood up from their seats. Nighthound shushed them with a hand gesture.

The two of them were uneasy, afraid even but not panicked yet. It was likely that their prior dealing with Neverthere, which they survived thanks to keeping up their side of the bargain, gave them some hope in surviving this time again, even if Epics appearing physically was a bad sign. They should start screaming while they still could.

“I have wonderful news for you two. From what I can see you did a wonderful job with taking care of this house.” Nighthound let his glance wander over the room. It was clean but also barren, a minimum of furniture and lack of anything that might have given this place more of a personality. If Nighthound had to take a guess, their care of the house was more motivated by wanting to avoid angering Neverthere than whatever they felt for the cozy little cottage itself.

“And seeing how dedicated you were you get to live,” Nighthound said as he was standing in front of them, a small smile on his lips. He grabbed both of their heads and rammed their faces into the ground, smashing them into bloody pulps. Exerting some of his regeneration powers he lifted their faces from the ground, the bloody mess of their faces reknitting itself, while Nighthound’s powers made their bodies lay limb in his grip.

The mastiffs started growling and jumped at Nighthound. He let go of the couple and swatted the dogs away, again transferring his powers to them. Not that it stopped the wet sound of their bodies breaking as they hit the ground. At the same time he loosened his grip on the man. It let out a panicked scream and rushed towards the dogs, which Nighthound promptly caused to maul their own master.

Again he dragged up the head of the woman, unmoving but still perfectly aware of what was going on. “That is a rather pathetic man you got yourself there but don’t worry, we’ll take much better care of you. I promise.” Nighthound shortly caressed its cheek before tossing it to the side.

Letting them lie as they were, Nighthound stood up and made the dogs follow him, giving a short whistle just for the sake of it. He positioned himself behind Neverthere, laid his hands on her waist and made the dogs rest besides her feet, black lines of mist coiling through their fur. The vanillas he made grovel in front of them, clouds of black mist rising from the man as its wounds closed, slowly, the pain having all the time it needs to seep into its mind.

Leaning slightly forward he said to Neverthere, “Consider them a present, honey. We might have to restrain them from time to time when I need my powers elsewhere but otherwise they should make for nice meatshields when you need them or whatever else might suit your whims. Now, it seems like it would be appropriate for their mistress to inform them just what exactly their fate will be.”

[Voidus]

MV was still shaking, her face was slick with sweat. It had only been a moment but being forced to relive that and now Impact wasn't even here to help her, to stop her. There was no one to stop her from doing it all over again. Only Backtrack and some stupid vanilla from the Dalles. That stupid town that had imprisoned them, threatened to kill them and then conscripted them into their military. The stupid town that had stolen her sister.

A cold glaze came over her vision as she stared the man down, a sudden, violent impulse to stop the mans heart, to steal the momentum of a car and crush him into a wall.

Her gaze drifted to the only witness she'd need to take care of, the Epic with no combat abilities at all. The Epic who was useless to her other than as a tracking device to find her sister. Well she could find another tracker.

But Backtrack had helped her. He'd taken her away from that creepy guy in the museum, helped her move through the Dalles without getting shot, helped her try to find MV, and then he'd helped her try to get in with Lightwards so that they could find her again.

She took a deep breath, calming herself slowly. The blood that pumped through her veins drowned out the sound of the two speaking but it seemed that the Dalles man had finally gotten around to his offer, protection in exchange for service. The same deal that was offered everywhere nowadays, the only difference was how trustworthy the one offering it was.

Megan Pierce did not trust the Dalles as an institution, sure a couple of people there had seemed tolerable, but there was that Reader guy, and the termination squad who more than balanced it out. But this wasn't an institution, this was one person. Did she trust the man before her.

She stared at his face as silence descended again, Backtracks scared breathing the only noise.

"Why should we trust you?" She asked bluntly. "Your town was nearly demolished by a bunch of panda bears, what makes you think you could handle Epics on this level?"

She folded her arm, forcing her breathing to continue steadily. It had been quite some time since she'd felt that kind of anger, and she hadn't felt it on that level since the day she'd become an Epic.

[Comatose]

Altermind stood, suddenly standing alone in his office.  His projection froze in place at the desk; with no observers present, there was no need to keep a facade that the thing was living and breathing, but he left it in place just in case someone burst in unannounced.  He almost wished he could say that he was surprised that Funtimes had abandoned him, taking her retinue and Voidgaze with her a whim, but the move was all to characteristic of the mad matter manipulator.  Invisible to any potential observers, Altermind moved over to look outside his window to check on the work that Funtimes had managed to complete.  As per his instructions, the U-Shaped school building and the attached wings were hovering about a meter off the ground, making the surrounding school buildings and the houses across the street seem shorter by comparison.  At least she didn't add glitter.  Despite his irritation, Altermind felt himself relax slightly.  Though he was reasonably certain Streetwise's abilities were not able to see through his illusions, Corpsemaker's unfetterred ability to spy on HQ had been wearing on Altermind, and having a space that was free from Streetwise's observation provided a small amount of comfort.  Now he could focus on eliminating the considerable threat Corpsemaker posed without worrying that the Basilisk epic's spy was tracking his every move.

Satisfied, Altermind moved back to his desk, pulling the chair out from under his projection with his telekinesis and replacing it with an illusory one.  Always wary of the danger presented by snipers, standing in the same spot as his projected self was not a risk Altermind was willing to take.  Instead, he worked at the side of the desk, keeping his real position hidden with his powers.  Taking out his mobile, which had been buzzing repeatedly since Funtimes worked her magic, Altermind began responding to his immediate underlings, telling them that the sudden rise of HQ was a planned collaboration with Thoughttown's Allies, not an attack.  He instructed his subordinates to arrange for rope bridges and ladders to be made and fastened to facilitate easy movement from HQ to the ground.

 While he was impatient to get Funtimes working on the rest of his list, he did not enjoy the idea of chasing after her from location to location trying to get her to cooperate.  His aids were already instructed to ask Funtimes to return to his office if they saw her, so that would have to do for the moment.  Once the pandemonium ceased, Altermind took out his notes and turned his intellect towards figuring out how he was going to deal with Corpsemaker. Lucentia's idea--to encase the Basilisk Epic in diamond, was a good one, but Altermind did not like how much the plan relied on the Diamond Queen's cooperation.  What was to stop Lucentia from holding Corpsemaker's imprisonment over them all afterwards, threatening to release him if they did not succumb to her wishes?  Why had the Diamond Queen chosen to leave her own city and come to Portland in the first place?  Taking his mobile again, Altermind sent a message to the coordinator of his intelligence network, asking for an update on the Diamond Queen's movements and activities since her arrival in Portland.  If he could obtain information, Altermind was confident he could puzzle out Lucentia's motives, and make a more informed decision of how he wanted to use her against Corpsemaker.  

As he waited for and update from Funtimes or his spies, Altermind's thoughts unintentionally slid towards thinking about the Trattner girl, and her unfortunate activation of his weakness.  He would need to watch her closely--if she discovered how she had triggered his weakness and then disclosed it to Lightwards or Funtimes, he would have no choice but to abandon Thoughttown before they came to destroy him.  Normally a mere vanilla would present no danger, but as long as the goth was under Funtimes's protection and Altermind continued to need the matter manipulator's services, he would need to find a different way to keep her under control.  If only he had some form of leverage.  Offering to accept her mother into Thoughttown, despite her intellectual ineptitude, might have worked, but Altermind's pride would not allow him to compromise Thoughttown's integrity, and Samantha Trattner's rejection of everything he had worked for still stung.  

Altermind's spymaster proved to be more punctual than Funtimes, and the report on Lucentia's activities arrived before any news of Funtimes did.  Before he opened the report, Altermind sent a quick text to Voidgaze, requesting that she instruct Funtimes to return as soon as possible.  The report was short, and was of little assistance in determining Lucentia's motives.  Much of her observed activity since arriving in Portland was tied to assisting Lightwards.  Most of the reports were varying descriptions of the Diamond Queen fighting off attackers with ease during the previous night's invasion.  While the accounts of her creating diamond constructs out of thin air, trapping epics, and encasing houses in diamond were informative about the extent of her abilities, they shed little light on any hidden motivations.  Altermind sent another text to his agents, telling them to see what else they could dig up.  If only he could catch her doing something other than defeating attackers or cooperating with Lightwards--something that she didn't have to do that would reveal her plans to Altermind.  Something like...

Like encasing a house in diamond?  That certainly was odd.  Altermind re-read that section of the report.  While no one had seen Lucentia there, one of Altermind's agents had reported a single house on a residential block whose doors and windows were coated in diamonds.  It was possible the diamonds had been set there by another epic.  Funtimes, for instance, likely would have been capable of creating diamonds with her powers, but it was too much of a coincidence not to be looked into.  Who or what was the Diamond Queen trying to trap inside that house, or. alternatively, what was she trying to protect?  

Altermind jotted down a list of requests--mostly weapons (including paintball guns with white ammunition for Voidgaze's squad), food, and medical supplies--and left it with his assistants in case Funtimes returned.  Once he was alone again, he moved to a back exit and climbed down from HQ, dismissing his projection and leaving himself completely invisible.  After arming himself and retrieving his bullet bike, Altermind, still invisible, set off towards the coordinates from the report.

All right Diamond Queen, let's see what you are hiding.  

[Voidus]

 

As expected of a High Epic, Nighthound took care of the current residents of the house in just a few seconds. She'd barely followed him through the door and he already had both the tenants and the dogs in hand.

It was certainly more efficient than her usual methods but she felt something was a bit lacking, there just wasn't as much of a thrill from success when it was gained so easily.

"Now, it seems like it would be appropriate for their mistress to inform them just what exactly their fate will be.”

Her assessment of his resolution methods went up, seemed they weren't done yet after all. Neverthere smiled sweetly at the couple, unsure of how much they could see or understand in this state, but she enjoyed herself nonetheless. She took a moment to enjoy the aspects of the situation that she usually couldn't in her astral form. The faint smell of blood, her own rapid breathing, the atmosphere of the room itself.

"Well I'm quite fond of these two." She said, reaching down to scratch one of the dogs around her feet. "Such good dogs. The other two however might need more... training." Her smile slipped from sweet to sinister as her gaze flipped over to the two grovelling humans.

"They've kept the house relatively clean I suppose but their manners leave something to be desired. Perhaps we should chain them outside for a while. I think there's a muzzle in the basement somewhere too if you need to release them at any point. We do have to make sure they don't keep whining all night just because you're not giving them your affections." Her eyes switched to Nighthound directly now.

Pleased though she was to have such control over the two humans, Nighthound was a far more useful piece, if she had to chose between taking this chance to gain two loyal followers for herself or gaining Nighthounds approval then tactically the latter was far more prudent.

"But you know." She said, switching back to her sweet-and-smiley voice. "A good dog does deserve a reward every now and then, so perhaps if she's a good dog you could show this one your affections some time."

In Neverthere's experience all Epics gave into one sin or another, one pleasure that they had been denied when they were ordinary that they now indulged in abandon. Epics like Lightwards who wanted recognition, Epics like Funtimes who wanted approval, Epics like Lucentia who wanted respect. Nighthound's desire seemed to be more base than those if his growing collection of women was anything to go by. She'd known Epics of that sort before, though most contented themselves with normal people, not Epics.

So, stroke his ego a little, let him know she didn't care if he used a plaything every now and then. Then, most importantly, make herself indispensable. She had no intention of becoming just another plaything to be used and thrown away, Neverthere's own vice was quite simple. She craved security.

[Edgedancer]

Nighthound meet Neverthere’s gaze. He found himself wondering, was she actively attempting to divert his attention from herself or was she trying to cater to his lust by adding another body to his collection, as if he needed more for the flesh's sake.

Well, there was an easy way to find out and seeing how well she reacted to him until now he could afford applying a bit of pressure. After all, getting her to work with him was a successful first step but not what brought the joy from owning a woman, there needed to be dominance. Should she choose something else than to submit, the least she could do was sweat a little.

“You know, I just found another thing to like about you,” Nighthound told her, “Just the right mix of cruelty and putting them to use, watching alone was enough to make me excited. That and appreciating dogs, those animals deserve better than having to live under such miscreants.”

And that was more than enough vapid talk to set her up. Nighthound kissed Neverthere, just a soft peck on her lips. She responded with a coquettish giggle, just the kind of flirtation she had been teasing with all along. Behavior that was mostly lost, once women realized that society would no longer protect them, at least not from Epics.  Time to pull in the leash she’d been attempting to lead him with.

Nighthound hugged her close, arm low around her waist, “Just look at that beautiful smile of yours. As generous as you may be, I can hardly spare any affection for a lowly little dog when I have such a wonderful woman right in front of me… maybe I could use her as a replacement when you aren’t in the mood.”

Another kiss, this time ever so slightly more insistent. “What do you say honey? We could test out the dungeon first, if that helps you get in the mood or do I have to content myself with the pets for now?”

[TwiLyghtSansSparkles]

The carpet was flying. 

It was a carpet and it was flying and it was a flying carpet and Funtimes was on it.

Nathan said "Woah." Suki barked. And barked and barked. Funtimes giggled, and the giggle became a laugh as the carpet rose up, up, up above the broken floor. 

"It's a flying carpet!" She laughed and wrapped her arms around Blueberry. "It's flying and we're on it and this is so cool!" She shook Blueberry a little because she was so excited. "This is so cool! Go higher!" 

Blueberry laughed, and the carpet rose, and she sang. Funtimes laughed with her. She was on an actual flying carpet and Blueberry was happy and everything was so good—

And then it hit her. 

A sudden wall of despair, like the one from last night but not as strong. It hit her and she couldn't hit back. 

She had to leave before everyone saw. Before they knew. 

Funtimes jumped off the carpet. "I don't want to play anymore," she called over her shoulder. Where she was going, she didn't know. 

She was just going. 

[Voidus]

There was a certain pleasure in dealing with matters personally, Neverthere mused as she wandered down the street with Nighthound.  After the two had finished in the house, he had mentioned that he needed to go shopping for someone, in a tone that practically made the air quotes around shopping sound audible.

Though briefly compelled to stay in the house now that she had another safe place she opted to stick with the High Epic rather than the walls of concrete that would barely be a deterrent to Epics from the MEE, let alone Corpsemaker.

A bird flew down from a nearby roof, perching itself on her shoulder awkwardly as she shied away from it, the physical sensation making her uneasy. It cocked its head at her, seeming to wonder what on earth she was doing before flying back off into the sky.

"So, anywhere in particular you had in mind?" She asked her companion. "I don't think any of the shopping malls are still open but I'm sure I could find something if I knew what to look for."

Her first point of tactic when accompanying a fellow Epic, make yourself immediately and obviously useful. It was practically an automatic response to her at this point.
Her second tactic was usually to either discover their weakness and blackmail them or else try and get someone to kill them for her but hopefully that wouldn't be necessary this time.

[Edgedancer]

Nighthound wasn’t quite sure how he felt about Neverthere accompanying him in person. It wasn’t that he minded the company, he was now without a doubt that a picked himself a fine woman, and it was easier to keep her from competition like this but it wouldn’t do him any good if she became too clingy. Sooner or later a moment would come when he wanted to take a stroll on his own. It didn’t matter who, no one gets to bind him down to their presence.

That moment hadn’t yet come. It was all under control, his control and nothing but pleasure about that fact bleed through to Neverthere.

For now Nighthound could simply enjoy the beauty of her flinching away from something as harmless as a bird. He laid an arm around her shoulder in a comfortable hug, before answering her question. “A clothing shop actually. Even ignoring the bullet holes in my clothing, this is a good occasion to give out a carrot. You’ll see what I mean in a moment.”

They rounded another corner and came face to face with his sister and his girls. After gesturing towards his sister, who looked like she wanted to be asked what had happened since they split up, soley so she could make him regret asking, as a greeting, Nighthound crouched next to C4, who was still obediently staying down on all fours. He laid an arm around her shoulders and slung it back under her chin, lifting it so that she was looking at Neverthere. “Remember this fine dog you played into my hands? She did some good obidient work today in rescuing you, so she deserves a dog treat.”

Drawing his pet Epic a bit closer, so she couldn’t flinch away, and breathed into her ear, “Who’s a good girl?”
Still forced to look at Neverthere, C4 let out a miserable imitation of a bark.
“That’s my girl,” Nighthound said and kissed her on the cheek.

 

 

 

For a moment everything was awesome. Then everything went wrong instead. The excited laughter cut off and was replaced by a clamp feeling in her stomach. Before she had a chance to ask the others, if anything was wrong, Funtimes jumped off the carpet.

“Wait! …What?” Voidgaze called after Funtimes.

Without much care, Voidgaze sat down the carpet with the others, keeping herself back just long enough to make sure they are alright, and hurried after Funtimes. She just barely managed to keep up enough to see her friend disappear behind one of the doors in the blank white floor.

Slightly out of breath, Voidgaze slithered to a stop before the door. After much consideration and gesturing to herself, Voidgaze softly knocked on the door, “Um, Funtimes is everything alright? I mean, I apologize if I did anything wrong or something like that. Do you want to talk about whatever is wrong? Probably not, that’s what the door is for I guess, as like a symbol for you wanting to be left alone and it wouldn’t really be more of a symbol, because this door wouldn’t stop me if I really wanted to get to you, but if you want to be left alone right now, I respect that. Just, you know, if you do want to talk, I’m right here for you.”

[TwiLyghtSansSparkles]

“Um, Funtimes is everything alright?

Funtimes heard Blueberry say it, even though she had her hands over her ears. Hands over ears never blocked out everything. 

 I mean, I apologize if I did anything wrong or something like that. Do you want to talk about whatever is wrong?" 

No, Funtimes thought. No no no no no talking I don't want to talk, I just want….

"Probably not, that’s what the door is for I guess, as like a symbol for you wanting to be left alone and it wouldn’t really be more of a symbol, because this door wouldn’t stop me if I really wanted to get to you, but if you want to be left alone right now, I respect that." 

I want it to go away. The sadness. The creeping darkness she thought she'd killed, but it was there and it followed her and she wanted it gone. 

"Just, you know…" 

She wanted it gone. 

"….if you do want to talk…." 

She wanted it gone. 

"I’m right here for you.”

She wanted it gone. 

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

Wasilla, Alaska
Six months before Annexation

 

Kevin Delancey did everything by the book. A second phone call to Theresa informed her of his coming, and a third, hours later, announced his arrival. Theresa said little as she drove Jade to the tarmac, and nothing at all as they climbed out of the car.

Jade ran to him, and he caught her up in his arms. She’d thought all her tears were gone, that she’d sobbed them all out hours ago.

She was wrong.

He held her even tighter and kissed her hair. “It’s okay, Jadey,” he murmured in his warm Wyoming twang. “I’m here.”

When not running supplies and passengers during springs and summers, Kevin Delancey taught at one of the flight schools in town, so he often rented a small room. But he didn’t go there for the night. Theresa drove him to their house and said he could sleep on the sofa. He thanked her when he knew Jade was listening.

“Theresa, are you sure?” he said quietly, when Jade was just out of the room.

“You flew all the way from Kodiak because Jade made one phone call. She obviously needs you close.”

“If you don’t want me here, I’ll leave.”

“It’s not what I want, Kevin, it’s what she wants.”

“All right.” He more sighed than said it, and heaved his duffel bag onto the sofa. “I’ll be outta your hair tomorrow.”

If Theresa said anything, it was too soft for Jade to hear it.

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

Breakfast the next morning was a quiet affair. Jade got up early and tiptoed past the living room to make it. She tried to do the cooking quietly enough to wake each of her parents with a plate, but she must have failed. Both were sitting at the kitchen table before she was done.

“Great pancakes, Jadey.”

Her mother wiped her lips. “I was just about to say that.”

Jade thought they tasted dry. Maybe she’d cooked them too long, or not added enough milk. “Thanks.”

Forks scraped across plates.

“How long will you be in town, Kevin?”

Months. Please say months. Until we find Courtney, and then long enough to visit her and bring her back here.

“Don’t know. Told the company I’d be up here at least a couple days.”

“How long is that?”

“Three. Five, maybe. Could be longer.”

“You weren’t more specific?”

“Courtney’s gone, Theresa. I said I’d call, and they said ‘Fine.’”

Theresa let her fork clatter against her plate. “Jade, go to your room.”

“She didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I never said she did. Go to your room, Jade.”

“She can stay, Theresa.”  

“This isn’t your house anymore.”

Jade pushed her plate away and got to her feet; then, recalling the many lectures she’d received for leaving her dishes out, took her plate to the dishwasher.

“It’s okay, Jadey.” Her father sounded tired. “You can sit down.”

Jade knew she ought to say something, but there was nothing for her to say. It’s okay was a flat-out lie. I’ll just go to my room sounded like something that would earn her a lecture for sarcasm, even if she didn’t mean it that way. I don’t want to sit and listen to you argue was the truth, but Jade knew that too much truth was even worse than not enough.

She closed her bedroom door and sat with her back to it. They were still arguing, but quietly, and she couldn’t make out their words.

She shouldn’t have brought him here. She should have told him not to come. Rephrased her message—I need to talk to you or Please call me back so we can talk. Stopped crying for the ten seconds it took to leave a voicemail.

Jade reached for her iPod—but her fingers brushed her phone instead. She pulled it from her pocket.

Don’t do this.

She pulled up the contacts list and pressed the name.

You shouldn’t do this.

She let it ring. She knew no one would pick up, but she had to hear what waited for her at the end.

“Hi, you’ve reached the voicemail for Courtney Delancey. I can’t take your call right now, but if you leave your name and number—or you happen to be my little sister—I’ll call you right back.”

Jade buried her head in her knees and cried.

Edited November 4, 2016 by TwiLyghtSansSparkles

[soyperson]

 

Jude was tired of walking.

 

He’d been walking for what seemed like his whole life. Always moving on. Never staying in the same place for more than a month.

 

He’d been walking so long he almost forgot why he walked.

 

Then a song popped into his head: “Mr Tambourine Man”, by the poet himself, Bob Dylan.

And then Jude remembered why he walked.

 

Jude stopped to rest at a sign alongside the roadway; after dusting it off, he could see that it read

“MULTNOMAH COUNTY WELCOMES YOU”

 

Standing in the afternoon haze, Jude decided to take a rest. He found a sprawling oak, and took a seat in the shade.

How fitting.

 

A tear rolled down Jude’s cheek. And another. And another.

He took a shaky breath, and allowed the memories to flood back into his mind.

 

~

 

“Come on, Jude, let’s go on in. It should be starting in just a minute!”

Jude smiled and picked up his pace. Chris’ voice could make a cinder block blush.

 

They passed a sign advertising the concert they were attending at the Natural Sciences Museum; some band from Southern California as the headliners. It was a free concert, so it made the perfect date opportunity.

 

Jude looked up and saw the stars. Well, the stars and the moon. Well, the stars and the moon and that weird red comet-thing NASA had spotted the previous year. Last he had heard, it was still under investigation.

“Jude? Hello, ground control to major Hale?” Chris said, concerned. “Jude, are you alright? Do I need to call an ambulance?”

“No, no.” Jude blinked and tore his eyes from the sky above. “I’m good. Just… just a little chilly.” He felt the late autumn air bite against his pale skin.

Chris smiled and shook the blond curls from his face. “Good. Here---I’ve got your jacket.”

 

 

 

The opening act’s encore ended, and they stepped off the stage. The audience was ready for the main attraction.

The guy in the hat stepped up front stage, with his guitar and his denim jacket, while the drummer took his place behind the set.

And then the wall crumbled in with a boom.

 

The room filled with smoke, and everyone was screaming, and something was burning. Jude took Chris’ hand.

“We need to get out of here.”

Chris coughed and nodded.

They pushed past the crowd and stumbled out of the doors.

A man in a garishly green suit stood there, with bodies at his feet.

 

The man turned towards the two and smiled. Jude felt his stomach lurch.

The man in green raised his hand into the air, palm up, as though presenting something.

A faint buzzing came from the distance. Jude could only watch as a plague of insects began to eat the flesh off of the dead.

Jude could no longer watch this. He lowered his head into his hands. Beside him, Chris choked back tears.

The man laughed. And kept laughing. And… he stopped.

Jude looked up to see the man in green turning his head in confusion. A faint sound came from midtown.

He heard a terrible noise, like the popping of a giant spring, and looked up to see the man in green bounding off into the distance, with strength that should not be possible for a human being with normal leg muscles.

The man in green kept jumping away into the distance, until something intercepted him mid-flight. Jude didn’t look long enough to see what it was.

 

“Jude! Jude!” Chris.

Jude looked over, and saw Chris running toward an empty car. He followed after, fearing for his life.

“Do you know how to drive a stick, Chris?”

“Yes? Well, maybe.” Chris was a full year older than Jude, so he had the requisite knowledge to drive them away. He kicked the car into gear, and gunned it down Jones Street.