What Happened in The Dalles

[Edgedancer he/him]

By now Shiny Sparkle was quite sure that the enemy wouldn’t return.

To make sure she actually killed two of the Epics Shiny Sparkle first repeatedly exploded the area around the corpse of the female earth Epic, until nothing discernable was left of it. Certain that this one could only return with a resurrection power, she teleported over to inspect the rubble remaining of the roof they tried to bunker down on. Satisfied she found the body there in a similar condition.

It wouldn’t do to tell Autumn of what she did only to have those Epics pop up again because she wasn’t thoroughly enough. That’d be downright disgraceful.

Having finally finished her job here, even managing to do so without getting any blood on her clothes, so it was still in pristine cuddling condition, she teleported back to the HQ and Autumn.

She appeared spinning in a shower of magical glitter dancing in the room around her, “Autumn, your lovely Shiny Sparkle has returned!”

Her smile dropped a little when she noticed that Autumn wasn’t here anymore. I suppose I can’t expect her to just sit around and do nothing but wait for me.

Instead she found an older man sitting over some notes and a woman that looked every bit the secretary that got hired because she was competent and not because her boss wanted some eye candy, which made them look rather official, their attention now on her, after her fabulous entry.

“Excuse me Sir,” Shiny Sparkle said, “Autumn asked me to deal with some Epic cultists trying to attack the town and I just killed half of them and got the other half to retreat. Could you please tell me where she is so I can… report to her?” And then snuggle a bit with her.

[Kobold King he/him]

 

 

 

 

"Yessum?" Scribbler responded. She tilted her head and feigned innocence, causing Arsenal to grind his teeth together even further.

 

Never had he hated a single word as much as he now hated 'Yessum.' His eyelid twitched like a flea-bitten cat as the girl continued in her smug little voice.

 

"Oh dear, mix up the laundry? You need to be more careful or it might happen to your pants next time."

 

His temple feeling like it was about to explode, he opened his mouth to lecture her on the proper way to interact with her superiors...

 

And then Reader began to speak.

 

"Arsey, Arsey, Arsey," the trapped man whispered, his tone as mocking as it was amusing."You've been breaking rules yourself, haven't you old friend? By the way, Scribbler, love the new nickname you and Edgey have given him."

 

Reader watched him with a half-smile, smugly superior until the end. "You have gone quite outside your bounds. You've broken the basic rule that our Lord and Commander Vondra has given to us. I can't help it; I can't turn my powers off. But you...  you've taken every possible excuse you can to conjure up some new piece of technology.”

 

Arsenal stared in building fury as Reader grabbed the bars of his crate, rattling them as his rant rose in tempo. "Just now, you've created four pieces of unnecessary tech, and for what? To imprison me? To humiliate me? I've been humiliated today more than you can believe. This is nothing. You're only humiliating yourself Arsey. What happens when I tell Vondra about your plans to start going against his will? You're breaking his rules and thinking of disobedience. You speak of order, yet you yourself are the biggest threat to breaking it."

 

The room was silent, everyone present hanging on Reader's words like a congregation before their preacher. Their eyes flickered from him, to his crate, and to Arsenal himself.

 

"You have nothing on me, Arsenal," Reader finished softly, shaking his chains. "You deserve imprisonment even more than I do."

 

Arsenal stared at the man in the crate for a long while, seeing red with fury and indignation. He somehow managed to maintain a calm exterior, exhaling deeply even as his mind spun with outrage.

 

I deserve imprisonment? I do nothing but protect this town! And Vondra...

 

I have the same goals as he does, even if he can't see it. What Vondra doesn't know can't hurt him, but could save the lives of every soul in this city.

 

Which is why, Reader, I now have to kill everyone in this building.

 

 

He turned his back on the dog crate, heading at a brisk pace towards the door.

 

It would be a tragedy. A great blow to our town security. But so long as anyone even suspected he wasn't fully loyal to the commander, he'd be incapable of defending the city as diligently as he needed to. Sacrifices were to be made, and he for one wouldn't mourn the loss of the foreign Epics and the ones that did nothing but disrespect him at every turn.

 

Once he left the building, he'd barricade it from the outside. Then it would be burned to the ground. He'd gun down anyone who managed to survive himself, and then he would tell Vondra the tale of invading Epics who'd slaughtered some of the city's most important assets. There would be security reform upon security reform; anything to prevent another disaster of this magnitude.

 

He firmly gripped the handle of the exit, intent on putting this plan into motion. There was no turning back now that he'd thought it; not with Reader in the room. It was time to take matters into his own hands...

 

“Sir, if I may.”

 

Arsenal froze, turning back to face the town doctor. Baxter Game stood hesitantly beside him.

 

"Go on," he growled in reply. 

 

 “I’m aware that both Reader and Scribbler have stepped over bounds," Game continued, "but it seems to me that disciplinary methods for them can wait. I know that what Reader says is just meant to aggravate you and that endangering The Dalles or its order is something you would never do, something I’m sure commander Vondra is just as aware of as I am. Meaning that nothing he’s saying right now is of any real consequence.”

 

Arsenal hesitated, as if the wind that pushed his determination along was suddenly dying into a breeze.

 

“The new arrivals on the other hand should be provided for at this moment," the doctor went on, apparently oblivious to how close he'd come to being incinerated alive. "It might also help to actually show them what this town is like, without giving Reader a chance to give them the wrong impression.”

 

Arsenal nodded, lost in thought.

 

Game was right--no one in the room actually suspected Reader's testimony was true. No one in the room knew about his private weapon caches, or the plans he'd formulated for cementing control of the city, or for opening trade routes with Khione.

 

No one here suspected that he'd be willing to kill every single one of them. Except...

 

"Reader," he barked. "You are to be confined to quarters until further notice, and assigned only basic rations. Remain respectful of town authorities, and I promise that is the worst that will happen to you."

 

He met Reader's eyes pointedly, hoping the omniscient Epic would decipher the true meaning of his words.

 

Keep your mouth closed, and I will not bury you in a shallow grave just outside town limits.

 

Turning brusquely from Reader he locked eyes with Scribbler, scowling at her with every bit of fire his eyes could muster.

 

She should be suspended from the Guard until she matured. But seeing her there with her hands on her hips, remembering her defiance from earlier, he set his jaw and decided on a different angle.

 

"You," he ordered sharply, "will be spending the night restocking the city's food and medicine supplies. I will contact your parents to tell them that you'll be late home."

 

As late as I can possibly manage, he added internally. Maybe depriving her of family will remind her that she's a soldier and should learn to act like one.

 

He swiveled his head towards the rest of the clinic, as if daring them to provoke him again.

 

"Is there anyone else that wishes to catch my attention, or shall I have these men escort you to temporary quarters?"

Edited July 12, 2015 by Kobold King

[TwiLyghtSansSparkles she/her]

 

Autumn's apartment was only a short walk from the command station, but Shiny Sparkle could teleport anywhere. 

 

She told herself the Epic had no way of knowing where she lived or when she'd return there. She reminded herself that, for all Shiny knew, she'd be back at the command station, not snagging an armed escort before making her way home. But logic could only go so far, and after the day she'd had, logical arguments were about as convincing as that pre-Calamity web page claiming Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was written in the glorious name of Satan because Harry's eyes were green. 

 

Autumn wished she had a printout of that page. She could've used a good laugh. 

 

Once inside, she locked all four of her locks, then placed a chair beneath the knob. It wouldn't keep out a teleporter, but anyone else would have trouble. 

 

Not a teleporter enraged over Vondra's "talk…." 

 

She doesn't know where you live, and Vondra won't let her find out. 

 

Unless she teleported into every house and apartment in the city, vanishing in a cloud of sparkles before the bullets could strike….

 

Stop that!

 

With a long sigh, Autumn took her hand off the chair and let it fall to her radio. Shiny had no idea where she was. No idea at all. On the off chance she did find her apartment, Autumn had the City Guard at her disposal. Her civilian neighbors would jump to help, armed as they were, even if it was only to protect her TV. Letting the neighbors gather in her living room to watch old movies was not a favor those neighbors took for granted. 

 

Autumn didn't bother with most of the lights. Power shortages were rare now, but that didn’t keep Arsenal from loudly complaining about late-night usage sucking up all the energy, and did they want to have a shortage in the dead of winter? She made her way to the hall light mostly by memory, then left it on as she undid her ponytail and ran a brush through her hair.

 

Flying pigs.

 

Mutant pandas.

 

The return of an Epic cultist.

 

Reader with a broken nose.

 

Enough security breaches to render Arsenal permanently catatonic—or send him on a rampage.

 

And Autumn couldn’t stop worrying about Shiny Sparkle.

 

She won’t come after you; Vondra will make sure of it, she told herself firmly, running a small bit of water into the sink and splashing some on her face. You screwed up, but he’ll still make sure you’re safe.

 

By sticking you with another Epic.

 

It wasn’t ideal. In a perfect world, all Epics would have dirt or flowers or sunshine as their weaknesses, with no powers enabling them to avoid those things. There would be no such power as resurrection, or healing, or Deathwish’s damage reflection. No pesky teleportation to take a sparkly flirt where she shouldn’t go. In that world, Epics would always be outmatched, outgunned, overwhelmed by numbers alone. There would be no need for a bodyguard, because—

 

No. In a truly perfect world, that mysterious force overpowering Epics’ better judgment would be absent. Good old-fashioned empathy would take its place. Maybe the odd Epic would launch a bid for power, but like in the old movies her guests never watched, they would lose to the heroes.

 

In a perfect world, Autumn's job would not exist.

 

Autumn drained the sink. Still, Vapor Snake was by far the best option. The man who poured out his struggles to her as often as he could, who had volunteered the key to his defeat should he ever lose control.

 

And now that he had….

 

She dried her face and went to the bedroom, where she changed into a pair of sweatpants and an old T-shirt. Now that he had lost control—now that his worst nightmare had come true….

 

She wasn’t sure what to expect, now that his loss of control was a reality. Would he spring on her the moment his guards released him? Would he sit sullenly, the way Scribbler did when in the throes of her darker moods, volunteering nothing?

 

Or would Vondra agree to let him out? Train her with his squad, spend as much time with her as Vondra deemed necessary for her safety?

 

Autumn wasn’t sure which prospect unnerved her more.

 

Turning down the sheets, she suddenly felt exhausted. Ready to drop any second. 

 

She was asleep in minutes.

Edited June 8, 2015 by TwiLyghtSansSparkles

[Queen Elsa Steelheart she/her]

Queen Elsa sat in the clinic, biting her finger nails nervously. If the flashback weren't annoying enough, it was that everyone seem to be staring  at her weirdly. Elsa swallowed hard. Had she said too much about her past?

 

I'm never going back. 

The Past is in the past.

Let it go.

 

Elsa felt a sudden rage of frustration through her veins. She got up quickly, knocking the chair over with a large crash. Ice spikes formed around nearby beds. 

 

"Would someone please tell me what is going on?"

Edited June 8, 2015 by Queen Elsa Steelheart

[Comatose he/him]

 

"Glamour."  Definitely an epic then.  That, or the son of parents with a strange sense of humour.  His demonstration with more green light proved the fact.  An illusionist perhaps?  Or can he just manipulate light?  It was impossible to say without a further demonstration, but Taylor resisted the urge to ask for more.  She could assess how useful her new friend would be at a later time.  For now, she still had to earn his trust.  

 

"I'm with the City Guard.  We're sort of the last surviving bastion of civilization in this crazy world now. You happened to wander into the only city that still has running water, electricity, coffee makers, iPods, and all that other cool stuff America used to have. I could get you hooked up, if you want. Get you quarters and a food card."

 

After making his offer, Glamour paused briefly, seeming to stumble over his words.  

 

"Are you... So... are you an Epic, or just epic in general?"

 

Taylor smiled at his bashfulness.  How had she survived so long without her fans?  Brandon tried his best, but he was only one person, and being her boyfriend kind of messed up the whole fan/pop-icon dynamic.  

 

"I guess I should come clean, since you've been so nice to me and all."  She would have to be careful.  Revealing too much could lead to dangerous questions, but revealing to little might seem like she was hiding something.  "The truth is, I guess I am an epic, though I don't really use my powers much.  They aren't really all that useful anyways, and they totally mess with my emotions, which kills my song-writing ability.  I've had to use them a couple times, out on the road, to get by, you know, or other times when I haven't been able to control them, but other than that I've been avoiding them."  Taylor wrapped her arms around herself, pretending to just then begin feeling the chilly night air.  "I've heard about the Dalles, it's the only place I know of where epics and humans are living together."  

 

Taylor paused again, as if unsure of what to say next.  Hopefully Glamour would buy her ruse.  "I actually came here with someone, a friend, and he's... he doesn't have any powers or anything.  We figured the Dalles might be a safe place for us.  We got separated though.  Do you know where I might find him?"

[Kobold King he/him]

 

 

 

Arsenal took a deep breath.

 

Calm yourself, Dewhickey, a deep part of him whispered. The situation is under control. Save your rage for when you need it.

 

He'd once lived by that maxim. It seemed he was needing his rage more and more of late to keep the city from spiraling into its own destruction. But for now, at least, the day's hardships were over and it was time to face the night with calmness and dignity.

 

Breathing in and out again, Arsenal turned away from the room and prepared to walk out of the clinic--this time without the intention of burning it to the ground once outside.

 

And then there was the crash.

 

A heavy pistol spawned in his hand as he whipped around, face contorted into a snarl as he faced the newest disturbance. The blonde Epic had destroyed a chair in her rage, spreading spears of ice around her. 

 

"Would someone please tell me what is going on?" she demanded petulantly.

 

Arsenal took another deep breath.

 

"What is happening," he growled, his voice getting guttural as his anger snuck back in, "is a lesson on respect."

 

In a single smooth motion he had his pistol raised, blasting a shot through several ice spears. The bullet shattered them on contact, sailing smoothly through them and connecting with the ice princess's leg.

 

As the woman dropped to the ground, screaming as she clutched her shattered shin, Arsenal tossed aside the gun and raised his hands. The ceiling sprouted with a dozen tiny nubs--a rudimentary sprinkler system. Though that blasted dress and Scribbler's blasted tattoos made it difficult, he managed to work past his limitations to fill the sprinklers with a special substance and set them off.

 

Still clutching her bleeding leg, the girl winced as she was suddenly bathed in a shower of purple antifreeze. Arsenal remembered seeing the same stuff used to grease jet planes in freezing weather; at the very least, the woman's ice would be significantly harder to conjure when she was soaked to the skin in the stuff.

 

"Doctor Game will do what he can for your leg," Arsenal grated, glaring at the medic as he gave the order, "As soon as he stops you from bleeding to death, these guards will take you into custody. You will spend the night in a holding cell--rein in your impulses by then, or I swear I will burn you alive and hang your scorching skeleton outside the city. Maybe that will tell newcomers what we do not tolerate in this city."

 

The sprinklers fizzed out, but he conjured another gallon of antifreeze and dumped it on her on principle, smacking her head with the empty jug for good measure.

 

With that done, he once again glared at the remaining Epics. "I ask again," he barked furiously, "Does anyone else have anything to add? Threats to administer? Boasts to give? I think you'll be surprised how many powers can be countered by a little ingenuity."

Edited July 12, 2015 by Kobold King

[Queen Elsa Steelheart she/her]

Elsa lay on the ground, clutching her leg in pain. The blood spurted from her pale skin, dripping down onto her blue dress. She looked down in sheer horror as another flashback hit her.

Anna. Anna! Why does this happen to me. Without you. Anna!

Elsa suddenly felt her entire body become paralyzed as the antifreeze embodied her. The pain was excruciating and Elsa winced as Arsenal towered over her. She didn't dare to say a word, for she heard Anna's calm voice in her head. Elsa trembled as her hands began to shake and her eyes widened when Arsenal said he would burn her if she stepped out of line.

Burn me? Intense heat. No.

The clinic began to spin as Elsa was hit with a final blow on the head with the jug of antifreeze. The room seemed to go blurry. All Elsa could do was lay on the floor, still too shocked to move.

Anna. If only you were here.

Edited June 10, 2015 by Queen Elsa Steelheart

[mail-mi he/him]

 

As Reader Read Arsenal as he left, he realized that he had been spot on.

 

And he had never been more afraid of being spot on in his life. 

 

Arsenal is going to kill us all! 

 

He stared, wide-eyed, as Arsenal reached for the door handle to open the door and end Reader’s life...

 

...and then Dr. Game came. 

 

Reader had never loved a vanilla more in his life than he loved Dr. Game right at this moment. 

 

Arsenal turned around and barked at Reader. “Reader, you are to be confined to quarters until further notice, and assigned only basic rations. Remain respectful of town authorities, and I promise that is the worst that will happen to you."

 

Reader Read his meaning perfectly clear: Provoke me once more, and you will be killed violently and painfully. And so, instead of ranting out loud to Arsenal, he rambled in his head, becoming oblivious to everything around him. 

 

That storming Arsenal! He’s worse than any of us! Worse than Scribbler, worse than me--heck, he’s worse than Deathwish, and Deathwish wants to take over the town! If I wasn’t on a death sentence right now I swear I’d march right up to Vondra and tell...

 

Reader grinned, unnoticed by any one else as Arsenal shot Elsa in the leg. Or maybe I’ll have Vondra march right up to me.... 

 

His plan formed, Reader waited for Arsenal to stop ranting and raving. “I ask again. Does anyone else have anything to add? Threats to administer? Boasts to give? I think you'll be surprised how many powers can be countered by a little ingenuity.” 

 

When no one answered, all of them too afraid to annoy Arsenal any more, Reader spoke up. “Um, sir, if I may, how am I going to get to my quarters while I’m locked up in this dog crate? For that matter, how am I going to get my nose fixed and set while I’m in here?” He reached up and rattled the cage door one more time. “Could someone help a guy out and unlock this and get these weights off my arms?”

[Queen Elsa Steelheart she/her]

Elsa still lay on the floor in pain. She winced, room spinning more. She sighed and closed her eyes, thinking about Anna.

 

Anna's reassuring voice flooded through her head and rung in her ears.

 

"Sure you can. I know you can!

'Cause for the first time in forever, you don't have to be afraid.....

We can work this out together, change this winter weather,

and everything will be alright....."

 

Elsa slightly smiled as she curled into a ball slowly and clutched her leg. 

[Edgedancer he/him]

The poor girl shouldn’t have shoot out spikes of ice. Arsenal overreacted like one would fear and shoot her into the leg. From what he could tell the bullet hit straight through her leg, which gave him hope he at least didn’t hit any bone.

 

As soon as it came apparent that Arsenal wouldn’t kill anyone that so much as moved the doctor rushed to the supplies Scribbler created not long ago, grabbed what he needed and put on a pair of gloves.

 

He stepped over to his new patient, slowing his step so he didn’t frighten her even more. She had curled up and smiled slightly. The eyes in her eyes seemed like she wasn’t quite there anymore. Shock. Not a good sign but better than her trashing around in pain.

 

“It’s going to be alright,” Baxter said softly, “I’m going to look at your wound, so I’ll have to move your hands, alright?”

 

Gently he pried her hands away from her wounds so he could treat it properly and pulled her leg up a bit, so the wound was higher positioned then her heart. Luckily, the bullet should have been effectively sterile, given that Arsenal just created but he had no idea what exactly was in the anti-freeze he drenched her in. To be safe he disinfected the wound and then bandaged it with sterile compresses and bandages.

 

Once he finished treating the wound he told the soldiers to get her a stretcher, even ignoring the shock she was in she wouldn’t be in any condition to walk with a hole in her leg, and gave them some instructions on how to carry her.

 

He slumped back a bit, keeping her here instead of letting Arsenal put her in a prison cell would be optimal but right now that seemed as good as asking him to kill both of them. At least the cells were clean enough to keep her from getting her wounds infected immediately.

[Queen Elsa Steelheart she/her]

Elsa's eyes opened slowly as she felt someone leaning over her. Was Arsenal coming back to finish what he started? Elsa's heart began to race as she looked up, but breathed a sigh of relief as she saw a man that didn't look terrifying at all, leaning over her. She guessed it was Dr Game. 

 

“It’s going to be alright,” “I’m going to look at your wound, so I’ll have to move your hands, alright?” He said, his voice was gentle and soft and Elsa relaxed slightly, allowing him to move her hands away. As the bandages were placed around Elsa's leg she smiled slightly at him as he then placed her on a stretcher. 

 

"Thank you so much for your kindness." She said with a smile as they lifted her up. Elsa had relaxed, but was not ready to be put inside a cell. Her heart began to race again as she was worried for her incoming fate. 

Edited June 15, 2015 by Queen Elsa Steelheart

[Mckeedee123 he/him]

 

Jameson, screaming as he was torn into bloody chunks by a twitching mass of squirrels, his comrades powerless to assist him.

 

Prior to Calamity, Mason would have sworn that he would never have to fight an army of feral, bamboo-eating mammals intent on turning his hometown into a wildlife refuge.

 

Hiroto, impaled through the lungs with a bamboo spear, coughing up blood as she tried to gasp out her final, desperate, dying breaths.

 

Sometimes, Mason wished he actually had been killed by that energy-manipulation Epic three years ago. Resting in the earth would surely be preferable to reliving the battles of the past, regretting the moments of indecision that cost comrades their lives, and picturing the nightmares that his squad faced on a daily basis.

 

McCandless, twitching on the asphalt, termites crawling into his mouth and exploding again and again, pasting his brains over the glass display case of an abandoned shop.

 

As tempting as death was, however, Mason had a duty to the people of The Dalles. He had sworn to protect the town from the myriad of forces that sought to destroy it, and sparks if he wasn't going to do it. The world needed people who were willing to fight back against the Epic Scourge with their heads held high.

 

The Reckoners were ridiculously ineffective in that regard. They struck out against random Epics from their hidden bases, never taking the initiative to actually be a force for good. Mason respected their cause, but the true heroes of the Age of Calamity were the men and women serving in National Guard units across the country.

 

A good portion of those men and women had died today. The squad currently piled into Mason's Transport Vehicle was only about half the size of the one that had struck out that morning, if you didn't count the mutilated corpses piled into the back of the truck's cab. With Jameson, Ahura, Chandler, McCandless, Gonzales, and Hiroto among the dead bodies, Private Mason Rubio was hardly in the mood to pick up another passenger.

 

That didn't stop Central Command from sending a transport request to his commanding officer, Lieutenant Fawkes. One of the "City Guard" Epics, Deathwish, had been arrested over on West 13th, and she was supposed to bring her squad over and schlep him back to base.

 

It was a testament to Rubio's solemn mood that he didn't outrightly cheer when he heard that the infamous nymphomaniac was finally going to get what he deserved. As it was, all that Rubio could ponder on the way over was how he was going to break it to his friends' children that one of their parents wasn't going to be coming home.

 

Fawkes' radio buzzed to life again. "Deathwish should be handcuffed to a streetlamp two blocks away from your current location. If he appears to be resisting arrest in any way, activate the siren inside your vehicle and then shoot him." Mason winced at that. Central Command was hinting at Deathwish's weakness pretty hard. From what he knew of standard operating procedure on Epic weaknesses, he'd probably be taking training classes for nondisclosure within the next few weeks. How annoying that the Commander pandered to the needs of the Epics in the City Guard at the expense of those of the real soldiers.

 

The vehicle rumbled to a stop, and Fawkes hopped out of the truck's canvas-lined back. The rest of the squad, Rubio included, grabbed their rifles and followed.

[Kobold King he/him]

     

 

 

Explosions.

 

Things exploding.

 

Booms.

 

Backtrack prided himself on his composure, but the sudden chain of explosions in the distance made him squeak in spite of himself and hunker down to the pavement, where he sat shaking for a minute as the flashes of lightning continued.

 

He shook for a moment, surprisingly not being blown to smithereens, and started to regain control of himself. He stood back up, chuckling nervously as MV gave him the same look his mother used to give him when she caught him eating candy off the floor. As with his mother, it was a peculiar cross between protectiveness, exasperation, and maybe a little bit of disgust.

 

"I was just, uh, checking our bearings," he started to lie, before MV took him softly by the hand and looked at him urgently.

 

"Come on, we need to get out of here before we get blown up," she told him seriously. "Can you find one of the Epics from the city?"

 

"Yes," he said immediately, relieved. "Absolutely. No problem. Let's do that."

 

He turned away from her, trying to examine the dark surroundings. Now, uh, how do I find one?

 

Fortunately, a small squad of armed men was trooping down the streets, slower than was to be expected with explosions and Epic fights all over the city. They were probably on patrol, as was evidenced by their purposeful marching and suspicious glances at the two hand-holding Epics.

 

Sucking in as much confidence as he could muster, Backtrack patted MV's hand and smiled. "Don't worry, sweetheart. I'll handle this."

 

With a determined stride, he walked towards the soldiers and opened his mouth, ready to explain to them exactly what they needed.

 

"Hi, I--"

 

"What are you doing out?" a guard snapped bluntly, not stopping as they passed him by. "It's still dangerous out here. Go back to your homes and stay indoors."

 

"Yes sir," Backtrack squeaked, walking backwards away from them. "I didn't mean--uh, wait. We actually don't have homes."

 

The head guard stopped, eyeing them suspiciously. "Newcomers?" he asked curtly.

 

Backtrack nodded his head hesitantly. "Kind of. We just got here this afternoon. Could you maybe tell us where Ms. Glass is? She was nice. I bet she could help."

 

"She's probably asleep," the guard responded flatly.

 

"Um... Dr. Game?"

 

"Probably busy with the wounded," the guard said, exasperated. "Besides which, he doesn't have any authority over newcomers. Tell me what specifically you need and I'll tell you who to talk to."

 

Backtrack frowned, and then gulped. "Um... we need someone in charge. It's important. It's about a missing person."

 

"There are a lot of missing people today, son. You'll just have to file a report like everyone else."

 

"It's a missing Epic."

 

The guard's eyes widened. "Well in that case, you'll need to talk to Arsenal. He was at Game's clinic last I heard. You know where that is?"

 

"Yes sir," Backtrack answered truthfully. "We, uh, just spent the last hour walking up from there."

 

Instead of replying, the guard reached to his side and pulled out a radio, speaking into it with authority. "Samson? We have a pair of civilians who require escort to the Game clinic. They're at the junction between 6th and Pentland street. Pick them up."

 

The guard at the other end affirmed the order, and the radio was put away. "Stay put until your escort arrives," he told Backtrack solemnly. "Don't run off."

 

"We won't," Backtrack promised. "Thanks for--"

 

He trailed off, as the guard was already back in the truck and the convoy was in motion. He shuffled back over to where MV was standing, and managed to flash her an awkward smile.

 

 

"Totally nailed it," he boasted. "Told you I could take care of it."

 

 

 

 

 

"I guess I should come clean, since you've been so nice to me and all," said Taylor Swift, pop star extraordinaire. "The truth is, I guess I am an epic, though I don't really use my powers much. They aren't really all that useful anyways, and they totally mess with my emotions, which kills my song-writing ability. I've had to use them a couple times, out on the road, to get by, you know, or other times when I haven't been able to control them, but other than that I've been avoiding them."

 

The woman wrapped her arms around herself, shivering in the cold. "I've heard about the Dalles, it's the only place I know of where epics and humans are living together."

 

Glamour nodded in understanding. If the furious drive to slaughter hordes of sentient panda bears counted as 'messing with emotions,' then Calamity had given him the same problem.

 

"I actually came here with someone," the pop icon went on. "A friend, and he's... he doesn't have any powers or anything. We figured the Dalles might be a safe place for us. We got separated though. Do you know where I might find him?"

 

Glamour beamed, projecting a little flash of light from his teeth as he did so. "Miss, I'm your man."

 

With a flourish he clapped his hands over the pavement, and warped the moonlight into a luminous map of The Dalles spread out over the sidewalk.

 

"We're here," he explained, marking a street with a green arrow. "Your friend might have been assigned to our public housing here or here. If he was injured or looking for someone in charge, he'd have wound up in HQ here or in Game's clinic here."

 

As a final touch he formed glowing lines along the streets of his projected map, showing the routes she could take to any of them. 

 

"Personally though, I'd recommend getting yourself some quarters and getting some sleep. If he's in town looking for you, he'll still be here in the morning when it'll be easier to find him."

Edited July 12, 2015 by Kobold King

[Comatose he/him]

 

Taylor frowned as she surveyed Glamour's conjured map, noting the locations of the public housing, headquarters, and the clinic.  Where would Brandon be?  As much as she hated waiting, Glamour had a point.  Besides, perhaps a night without her would show Brandon what he was missing.  She could let him sit, alone and afraid wherever he was, and think about how much he loved her.  Then, when she found him the next day, she would have him right where she wanted him.    "That... that might be a good idea."

 

The new decision left her with a different problem, however.  Like Brandon, Taylor had nowhere to go.  She would also have to be careful.  There were ways of picking out epics, and if Glamour or anyone else found out that she had not been screened properly, then she would have a lot of explaining to do.  "Look, you've already helped me so much that I hate to ask for another favour, but I don't really have a place to stay the night.  Even with Calamity and everything, finding my own way around isn't really something I'm used to.  You mentioned public housing... would it be safe for me to stay there?  I don't want to cause a fuss."  Taylor eyed the glowing map thoughtfully.  "Also, I need to get myself a copy of that map!  Your powers are brilliant!  Too bad I can't just take you with me when I go looking for my friend!"  

[Mckeedee123 he/him]

 

A quick collab between me and Kobold. My parts, of course, are in orange. 

 

 

 

So there he was. Cuffed to a lamppost. Giving a few vile slurs offhand to the orange Epic that was strutting around like he owned the place. Sound of a Guard truck coming up around the corner.

 

And this guy wouldn't shut up.

 

"I'm an Epic," said Captain Obvious. "I'm guessing you're an Epic, too. One who's chained to a lamp post and has apparently been left for dead. Now, I don't know who the Epic who rules this city is, but I want to meet him. Or her, and I'm guessing you know how to get me in on that sort of action."

 

Deathwish opened his mouth to retort, but the orange guy just kept yammering on.

 

"I'm perfectly willing to help you, Convict. In fact, I'll free you right now. Just make sure to thank me later."

 

Oh you'd better not.

 

In a single swift strike, the Epic formed a glowing orange blade out of thin air and sliced the cuffs cleanly off the lampost. Deathwish was free.

 

The orange guy stood there smirking, as if expecting a thank you. Deathwish took only a second to glare, as the convoy sent to retrieve pulled into the street.

 

"You're an idiot," he informed the orange guy matter-of-factly. Then, he tackled him to the ground.

 

 

Orange Crush was no expert on interpersonal relationships. He hadn't really had a whole lot of friends during his stint in public education, and he murdered most of the ones he did have shortly after graduation.

 

But he knew some things about social cooperation. One of them was that when a guy "helped a brother out," it was pretty darn rude for the "brother" to attempt to beat the "guy" into a piece of street pulp.

 

In other words: Convict's reaction caught him off guard.

 

Crush cheerfully leaned forward, took a second to summon a wedge-shaped forcefield behind Convict, then smashed through his cuffs.

 

Aaaand... Convict tackled him.

 

Crush's intitial surprise was the only reason the man was even able to make contact. As it was, Convict's attack made him topple backwards and smack his head against the pavement. His extra durability was probably all that kept him from getting a concussion.

 

Okay. Crush didn't know what in Calamity this nutcase was thinking, but he wasn't about to let him get away with humiliating him right in the middle of the sparking street. Were people watching? He heard the screech of heavy brakes close by.

 

Convict shifted from on top of him, then hastily made a motion to stand up. That was a mistake. Crush rolled to the side, tripping him, then punched him in the gut and slammed a steel-toed boot directly into Convict's face. It was a blow that would have most foes dropping to the ground, screaming in righteous agony.

 

And suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere, Crush's face exploded with pain.

What the Calamity did this guy do to me? The pain was so demanding, so intense, that for a few seconds, all he could do was squirm on the ground and howl. The irony of the thing was sickening. No, worse... it was humiliating.

 

Crush gritted his teeth, trying to find the mental concentration to summon a forcefield and tear Convict's worthless head off his shoulders. He was vaguely aware of the sound of booted feet stomping across the asphalt, Convict speaking in a conciliatory tone...

 

 

"Oh yeah, I was following the old arse's commands," Deathwish explained, wiping some of the blood off his face. He smirked as he spat a broken tooth out, and gave the orange Epic an extra kick in the rib as the man squirmed on the ground.

 

The City Guards looked skeptical, especially the hottie lieutenant who was heading them. Deathwish walked as close as he dared to her, giving her what he considered his most charming smile.

 

"So there I was, waiting patiently for you to show up, when this jackchull shows up and starts ordering me to take him to HQ. Of course, I said no, then he cut me off the lamppost and tried to force the issue."

 

He shook his head with an exaggerated sigh. "Let's get to Vondra so we can get all this sorted out. I'll buy you a drink once we get this piece of crem taken care of."

[Kobold King he/him]

 

 

 

With Autumn gone and Rhonda too sullen to chat, there was nothing for Vondra to do but wait and plan for the future. He immediately set to thickly bound maps of the city, poring over them with a hand on his brow and a tired hand rustling their pages.

 

The Dalles was, so far as he knew, the last bastion of strength of what had once been the United States of America. In the early days, when Epics were new, the nation was still as strong and resilient as the eagle it chose as its symbol. It had weathered invasions and depressions, world wars and civil wars. When other countries fell or slipped into tyranny, only America had remained strong enough to thrive under the flag of freedom.

 

Until Capitulation. Cities fell one by one, taken by monsters who had turned on their country. The land of the free was ripped asunder, and congress had the gall to order the armed forces to stand down on their country's hour of need.

 

Vondra had come close to mutiny the day Capitulation was passed. But now, there wasn't even a congress to be disloyal too. America had fallen. The eagle was dead.... or at least, so the world thought.

 

That brought him back to the map. Here in The Dalles, the tiny Oregon town that once had nothing but cherry trees to offer the nation, America still held on to its dying breath. Some would look at the maps of The Dalles and see nothing but dry notes on buildings and produce reports from the surrounding farms. When Vondra looked at the same map, though... he saw the last speck of liberty in the Fractured States.

 

And that speck had to be preserved at any cost.

 

 

It was then, as he traced a finger along the Columbia River looking for the best patrol routes, that an explosion filled the room.

 

From the very beginning, it was clear an Epic had entered the room. The explosion was loud but did no damage to the room--the most prominent part of the whole affair were the sparkles that went everywhere. As colorful as a 4th of July fireworks display with none of the attached patriotism, the explosion cleared away to reveal a colorful woman with sunglasses on her face and a smile over her mouth.

 

“Autumn, your lovely Shiny Sparkle has returned!”

 

Lovely is relative, Vondra thought dryly, as the woman looked around the room for her infatuation. He supposed he would have found her pretty enough in his younger days, but now he had the clarity to see her as she was.

 

Everything about her screamed of a monster. Her self-assured, lazy gait. The colorful clothes she wore, better than any vanilla could come by honestly these days. That turquoise jacket alone could feed a family for a week in one of the more desperate cities. Worst of all was her smile--the teeth she bared said many things, but their ultimate statement was 'I'm looking for what I want. Don't get in my way.'

 

Rhonda looked to him in alarm, doubtless wondering if the intruder should be frozen, but Vondra gave a subtle shake of his head. Best to keep Ms. Sparkle happy until he was absolutely sure whether she should live or die.

 

“Excuse me sir,” the Epic said with saccharine politeness. “Autumn asked me to deal with some Epic cultists trying to attack the town and I just killed half of them and got the other half to retreat. Could you please tell me where she is so I can…

 

A pause.

 

"...report to her?”

 

That last part had enough innuendo in it to do Deathwish proud. Whatever Shiny Sparkle had planned for the night, it likely didn't involve the restful night's sleep Autumn deserved. 

 

Pursing his lips and clasping his hands together, Vondra leaned across the table and fixed the woman with a stare.

 

"Please," he said, politely but firmly, "Sit down."

 

Frowning, the Epic nonetheless did what he asked and pulled up a chair. Good. Maybe she could be reasoned with after all.

 

For the next minute, Vondra did nothing but watch her.

 

Sometimes silence spoke volumes that words could never touch. He kept his mouth closed, eyeing the sparkly Epic's every move. Every twitch. Every awkward eye movement. Every impatient tap of her foot against the carpet. He stared long enough to make her uncomfortable but not angry. Long enough to make her realize she was in trouble without hinting at how much he wanted to kill her right now.

 

Then, abruptly, he stood up and spoke for the second time.

 

"You know," he told her thoughtfully, "You remind me of a sweet cherry."

 

The Epic blinked in surprise. Whatever she'd expected, this wasn't it. Vondra gave her a tight, insincere smile and went on.

 

"Before I came to power here," he explained quietly, "The Dalles was very well known for its sweet cherries. There were thousands of acres all around the city. They were beautiful, beautiful trees that bore wonderful fruits. Farmers shipped them down the Columbia River to folks all across the nation."

 

Vondra walked to a window, pulling up the blinds and staring at the dim lampposts shining over the dark city. "By the time I got here," he continued, his voice solemn. "Epics were wreaking havoc all over the nation. Food lines were cut. People were starving. Pretty much all The Dalles had was cherries, and you can't live on cherries alone."

 

Shiny Sparkle continued to stare at him in confusion, and Vondra chuckled mirthlessly. "Can you believe a lot of cherry growers still wanted to take up land with their trees? They still thought the economy would go back to normal soon, and they'd need their livelihood when it did. They didn't realize what I'd already concluded. The USA was finished. The Dalles had to learn to take care of itself from then on."

 

His bones creaking, he put himself back in his chair and leaned towards the sparkly Epic, clasping his hands and fixing the woman with a serious expression. "The hardest thing I've ever done in this office," he stated calmly, "was ordering those cherry trees destroyed. I had Dewhickey summon up bulldozers, and I had thousands of acres' worth of priceless cherry orchards pulled out of the ground and destroyed. If the growers resisted, I had the City Guard arrest them until we were finished."

 

He let out a long, tired sigh as he remembered that day. Every cry as family livelihoods went up in flames, every outraged shout that went up among the crowd of farmers... well, it was all in the past. Time to focus on the future.

 

"The reason I'm telling you this," Vondra finished quietly, "Is because I'm about to ask you the same question I asked those growers when I told them to plow over their orchards and grow the vegetables the city needed. Are you willing to serve the people of this city above yourself? Are you willing to do what I say, when I say it, putting aside your wants for the good of The Dalles? Are you willing to put aside all the things you love most just to keep this city going another day? If you are, then you're welcome to stay here and enjoy our security for as long as you like. But if you're not... if you intend to put your own selfishness first and let the city suffer for your own benefit or amusement...

 

"Well if that happens, I'll send you the way of the cherry tree. Now Ms. Sparkle--what will it be? "

Edited July 12, 2015 by Kobold King

[Edgedancer he/him]

On Mr. Bigshot’s request Shiny Sparkle pulled over a chair and tried to make herself comfy. For a good and long amount of time Shiny Sparkle was starred at, not that she would blame him of course; appreciating beautiful women was a wonderful past-time. Spending the time sitting in Autumn’s lap would be much better than in an uncomfortable chair like this though.

 

Shiny Sparkle let out a wistful sight; maybe she should simply go and ask around where Autumn lives. With a rather small town like this everyone should know the most wonderful women it has. Just as she was about to start her search the official, maybe that commander Vondra she heard about, stood up and broke the silence.

 

"You know, you remind me of a sweet cherry," he told her, sounding like he was away in thought.

 

Was he trying to flirt with her? A pity that he isn’t a bit younger.

 

He went on telling a story about taking those sweet cherries away from the people that loved them, which clearly had symbolic character… and made Shiny Sparkle want to eat some cherries; did she still have some at home and if not where could she get some? Between her sunglasses hiding her eyes and the serious consideration in her mind, she managed a very convincing impression of listening to him as he droned on.  

 

"Well if that happens, I'll send you the way of the cherry tree. Now Ms. Sparkle--what will it be? " And the speech was over.

“If you’d excuse me for a moment, I’ll be right back. It's only going to take a couple of seconds,” Shiny Sparkle said and she was gone.

 

She reappeared into her own apartment. Searching through her fridge she found them in a few moments and filled them into a nicer bowl to take back with her. Meanwhile she thought about what exactly Vondra meant. Clearly she herself was the sweet cherry, he said that much himself, a comparison she wasn’t opposed to, the red of the fruit for her luscious hair, the sweet taste of the fruit for her own lovely personality and the fruit itself was rather valuable nowadays. Autumn was the cherry farmer, bringing joy to the people and having a close relationship to the cherries- in this case Shiny Sparkle herself. That left Vondra as himself, the tyrannical ruler that equaled himself and the town, if she understood the meaning of his story right then what he meant was that he had, fully understandably, fallen for her natural charms and now they were in a classical “If I can’t have you no one can” scenario in which he would take Autumn hostage and drive Shiny Sparkle out of town, should she not submit to him.

       

Simply giving up her lover was not an option, however, so for now she could do nothing but play along with him, maybe she could persuade Autumn to elope with her. Resolved, she pulled down her blouse a bit, making it show a little of her cleavage, grabbed the cherries and teleported back into the office.

 

Putting on her best smile she placed the bowl of cherries on the table and leaned towards Vondra, pushing herself up from the table that her arms pushed up her chest, “I hope I didn’t make you wait too long. Now, I Shiny Sparkle swear that I will pour my entire passion and love into this city,” especially Autumn, “even if that means risking my life again by fighting even more Epics for you or other sacrifices I may have to make.” Once she finished she put a cherry into her mouth.

Edited July 13, 2015 by Edgedancer

[Kobold King he/him]

 

 

A lot of folks responded well to metaphor.

 

Shiny Sparkle was not 'a lot of folks.'

 

No sooner had Vondra finished than the woman had excused herself from the table, exploding in a flash of sparkles.

 

She was gone for about a minute--a minute in which Vondra felt his blood pressure spiking dangerously. Just when he was about to send a directive to the Guard to be on the lookout for a sparkly sociopath who might be targeting Autumn Glass, the signature sparklesplosion struck again.

 

Ms. Sparkle appeared once more in the room, a smirk in the face and a bowl of sweet cherries under one arm. She leaned against the table, pushing her feminine assets far enough out that he worried she'd pop out of her blouse.

 

“I hope I didn’t make you wait too long," the Epic said smoothly. "Now, I Shiny Sparkle swear that I will pour my entire passion and love into this city, even if that means risking my life again by fighting even more Epics for you or other sacrifices I may have to make.”

 

She finished by popping a cherry into her mouth, chewing slowly as she stared at him with an almost sultry expression.

 

Vondra blinked, torn between anger and bemusement.

 

Seduction? That's a first.

 

Whatever was going through the sparkly Epic's head, it wasn't acceptance of her new role in life. She was saying what she felt would get her out of this office and back into her infatuation's arms as quickly as possible. Unless drastic action was taken, it was clear that her behavior wouldn't change in the slightest.

 

Vondra met the Epic's eyes through those opaque glasses of hers, and then spoke softly but firmly.

 

"Rhonda," he said to the woman beside him, "Shall we make our position clear?"

 

"Clear as day," the secretary replied, a half-smile on her face. With an evident amount of satisfaction, the woman raised one hand towards the other Epic, and showed why she was called Redlight.

 

Shiny froze perfectly, unnaturally still, a second cherry halfway to her wide-open mouth. She didn't sway, budge, or fidget, not even to breathe. Like a film character paused in a single frame, she was as still as stone.

 

"I do not believe," Vondra said, voice stern, "That I made my intent quite clear with that metaphor. Let me start over."

 

There was a creaking sound as he pulled open a drawer, pulling an old revolver out from beside a notebook and a Bible.

 

"This evening, this town's finest counselor came to me nearly in tears," he informed Shiny, casually loading bullets into the revolver one by one. "She told me that you, an Epic who could kill her in a heartbeat, took advantage of her fear and dragged her around town, lavishing unwanted attention upon her. If you don't believe me, ask her yourself tomorrow when you're both on equal footing. You'll find an angry, violated woman who wants nothing to do with you."

 

He loaded the last bullet into the revolver, and flipped the cylinder back into the gun with a clicking sound that echoed through the silent room.

 

"The rest of the world gives you whatever you want, whenever you want it, whenever you ask for it. Not so here. If you stay in this town, you'll not be a free woman. You'll be my soldier. If I tell you to stay at least six feet away from Autumn Glass at all times--which I am--then you'll follow that command or take a bullet to the back. If I order you to refrain from using your powers unless the situation expressly warrants it--which I am--then you will follow that command or take a bullet to the back."

 

Gingerly, he pulled the cherry out from Shiny's frozen fingers and pointed the revolver's barrel directly into her open mouth.

 

"In this town," Vondra told her with cold calm, "Humans lead and Epics serve. You can accept that and act accordingly, or you can spend every waking hour with guns and daggers pointed at your back."

 

His point made, Vondra took the revolver and placed it flatly on the table. If Shiny acquiesced, he wouldn't have any need of it. If she decided to kill him the second she was released... well, he still wouldn't need it. Fortunately, this town's future didn't depend on his survival.

 

"Kill me and half the Guard if you think you must. But if you don't accept your lot in this town, this city will chew you up and spit you back out again. Now is your answer still the same, or would you like to find a town more conducive to your whims?"

 

 

With that he snapped his fingers, and Rhonda unfroze the Epic.

Edited July 12, 2015 by Kobold King

[Mckeedee123 he/him]

Crush hated Epics. Well, excluding himself, of course.

 

Vanillas he could deal with. You walked up to them and they would cower or bow or whatnot, and then you could ask them for directions... or food, money, their firstborn child, anything else you could conceivably want from them, and they'd give it to you.

 

Epics were not the same. Try ordering Soulcaster to give you one of his Doritos. See? It doesn't work. You'll wake up imprisoned in a small, dark, room for a few weeks until his annoyance wears off and he sees fit to bring you back out into the arena

 

In this case Crush had wanted something very, very, simple. The identity of the town's ruler, and a place he could report in to him from. He had ended up being goaded into attacking some slontze and then having the incident be used to curry favor with said slontze's superiors. Probably at the cost of Crush's reputation and/or life.

 

Well... sparks.

 

Crush tasted blood, and the pain was so bad that he was afraid of falling unconscious. The same wound I just applied to him, transferred back at me, He guessed. Can my fields bypass his power, whatever it is?

 

I hope nobody on the street is watching me right now. I'd probably have to kill them.

 

He tried to focus on his surroundings again. Convict was trying to pass off the incident to a squad of soldiers surrounding the pair. "...for you to show up, when this jackchull shows up and starts ordering me to take him to HQ. Of course, I said no, then he cut me off the lamppost and tried to force the issue." He sighed. "Let's get to Vondra so we can get all this sorted out. I'll buy you a drink once we get this piece of crem taken care of."

 

Crem? Crush planted a palm on the ground and slowly forced his way up to his knees, trying to maintain a shred of dignity. Several of the soldiers pointed weapons at him, but he molded his face into a look of disdain. "Guardswoman," he said, "your mutt here has just made a very big mistake."

 

 

To see that Deathwish had managed to free himself wasn't surprising. It was incredibly stupid of him, but hardly surprising.

 

No. What was surprising was the man he had managed to pin underneath him. Every stitch of clothing he wore, as well as his hair, sunglasses, and earbuds, was a shade of eyebreaking, neon orange. It looked absolutely ridiculous; a crime of fashion to the highest degree.

 

Mason was pretty sure he recognized him.

 

Salem Epic Battling Arena. SEBA for short. Mason had followed it half-interestedly on the barracks television for years. Hadn't there been a similar Epic on there? A weak force field caster who had spent a few months dominating the powered-close-quarters brackets? What was his name?

 

Crush. Orange Crush. One of the few things Mason remembered about him was that he had murdered most of his graduating class during his rending, then had the gall to use simulated versions of some of those girls in a Dreamstate harem years later. Mason didn't like the man much, but Crush hardly stood out among Epics, slontziness-wise.

 

As the squad filed out of the truck, Deathwish stood up to explain himself. Before the soldiers could react, however, Crush threw the man off balance and slammed his boot directly into Deathwish's face. Crush immediately fell over again, crying out in pain. Mason carefully edged around the pair, surrounding them. He didn't know about Deathwish, but Crush was a lit fuse. If he decided to go berserk on this little squad, there was a decent chance he could manage to kill each and every one of them.

 

Directly on the other side of the ring of soldiers, Fawkes spoke up. "Deathwish. I was informed you would be restrained and contained when I arrived. Is there any reason I shouldn't follow Arsenal's orders and terminate you?"

 

The explanation that followed was... interesting. Let's just say that Mason had never expected someone to be able to do a half-decent job of begging for their life and hitting on someone at the same time.

 

"...I'll buy you a drink once we get this piece of crem taken care of." Deathwish finished, trying to turn Fawkes around and lead her back to the truck. She ignored him and turned her attention to Crush, who was unsteadily pulling himself up to his knees. 

 

"Guardswoman," he said spitting blood, "your mutt here has just made a very big mistake."

 

"I didn't come here to destroy this place. I came here for recognition... and stability. A place where I could get the fame I deserve without having a sadistic, dream-inducing Epic breathing down my back."

 

"But let me tell you something. I could destroy this street. I could reduce the town to rubble with a flick of my mind. I could kill each and every one of you before you'd have time to pull your triggers. And I do not like the treatment I've received from this city."

 

Mason snorted softly. Crush was dangerous, yes, but he was no High Epic. Fawkes glanced at Mason, who waved his gun at Crush's back and nodded. He's lying. I can shoot him in the head right now. Just give the order.

 

Crush spoke again, apparently still deluded enough to think he had the upper hand. "You have about five seconds to convince me not to turn this city into a clean slate and start over."

 

Mason watched Fawkes carefully, looking for the signal to shoot. She avoided eye contact with him entirely though, simply drawing her handgun, locking her gaze with Crush, and crossing her arms.

 

Five seconds passed, and nothing happened.

 

Ten seconds, and still nothing.

 

Crush was obviously getting impatient. "Well?"

 

"Let me get this clear. Your only request is to be taken back to base?"

 

"I want a meeting with the Epic who rules this place too."

 

Fawkes paused, then shrugged. "That can be provided. Just know that we'll keep a spare cell empty, in case 'reducing the town to rubble' doesn't work out for you."

[Edgedancer he/him]

Most folks responded well to her cleavage.

 

Apparently, Vondra wasn’t most folks.

 

Shiny Sparkle delightfully chewed on her cherry; it was a very tasty fruit, her fruit merchant deserved a good long hug. Just as she was about to pop the second one in her mouth, Vondra signaled his assistant and she gleefully raised her arm. Shiny Sparkle’s entire body froze up, she couldn’t move her limbs, nor wiggle her charms, wasn't able to talk and not even capable of teleportation. So that’s what that secretary was for… this doesn’t bode well. Shiny Sparkle was quite sure that if she could she would be swallowing right now.

 

"I do not believe that I made my intent quite clear with that metaphor. Let me start over," Vondra said as he reached towards a drawer in his table. What he pulled out was a revolver. Causing… not causing her to sight in relief. And for a moment I thought I was in trouble but it’s only a gun, harmless.

 

At this point maybe it would be best to simply blow it up in his hand and his smug assistant right along with him. On second thought, no, at this close a range that would get blood on her clothes. Plus, she wasn’t quite sure if Autumn would approve.

 

As he loaded his puny gun, he started telling lies about how Autumn didn’t want her attention. Blatant lies. Just the idea that Shiny Sparkle would so much as scratch one of Autumn’s wonderful hairs was absolutely outlandish, so she wouldn’t have had any reason to be afraid of her and Shiny Sparkle made sure to ask before she started showering Autumn with her attention, so it couldn’t have been unwanted either.

 

Blowing him up became extremely tempting.

 

From there Vondra went on went on a rant, almost as ridiculous as trying to threaten her upfront with an revolver, over controlling Epics and them not using their powers freely, best case they were pretending to follow orders and just used their powers anyway. He also stole her cherry, which was just petty.

 

Ultimately, he laid his gun down, as if he realized just how useless it was and finished his speech, "Kill me and half the Guard if you think you must. But if you don't accept your lot in this town, this city will chew you up and spit you back out again. Now is your answer still the same, or would you like to find a town more conducive to your whims?"

 

Having just about enough from this Slontz’s crem Shiny Sparkle threw her head to the side, “You…” the remainder of what she wanted to say caught in her throat and she teleported away.

 

She reappeared just a bit to the site, crouching right in front of the pink sunglasses she gave Autumn. They just laid there like Autumn never cared enough about them to pick them back up after they shared their kiss. With shaking fingers she picked them up, she saw right, those really were her pair.

 

Dread slowly set into her, as she starred at them. Given how Vondra didn’t care about her well-rounded breasts, her original interpretation of the cherry story didn’t seem that valid anymore, which means he didn’t have a reason to lie to her.

 

No. No. No!

 

“Was…” Shiny Sparkle’s voice was shaky as she spoke, “was Autumn really afraid of me?”

[Kobold King he/him]

 

 

The second she was unfrozen, the Epic's face went from a vapid smile to mask of indignation. 

 

"You..." she began dangerously, raising her head upwards. Her mouth opened as if to continue on a rant, but abruptly she stopped, her head tilting towards the other end of the room.

 

There was a flash of bright sparkles.

 

Vondra clenched his eyes shut, expecting to feel his desk blast him into a thousand shreds. When a second passed and he found himself still very much alive, he opened his eyes and glanced around the room.

 

The Epic had not yet killed him, nor had she left the building. Instead she knelt on the floor, holding a pair of pink sunglasses and cradling them as if they were a dying child.

 

Slowly, she began to shake.

 

"Was..." her voice caught in her throat. "Was Autumn really afraid of me?"

 

Vondra, for once, was speechless. He expected her to either bring down the HQ or storm out in a tantrum--instead, she seemed... hurt.

 

Perhaps there was some tiny shred of decency left in her, buried under the delusions of grandeur. Perhaps she was genuinely shocked that anyone would turn down her affections.

 

Perhaps that tiny shred of decency would spiral into unbridled Epic rage. A single misplaced word could set her off, if she really was as emotionally vulnerable as she seemed. This would have to be handled delicately.

 

"Listen," Rhonda broke in sharply. She was fixing Shiny with a stare that doubled as both piteous and contemptuous. "Rainbow Sparkles, was it? You need to get it through your head that everyone's afraid of you and no one likes you."

 

Shiny's expression turned to shock--a shock that Vondra shared. Not knowing whether to silence the secretary, he merely kept his mouth shut and waited for her to finish.

 

"No one's happy to see you," Rhonda went on. "So you can get that idea out of your head right now. Whenever you walk into a room, the only thought that goes through a vanilla's head is whether or not you're going to kill everyone in front of you. If anyone smiles, it's only to appease you. If anyone compliments you, it's only to dodge your wrath. And if anyone kisses you, in an active war zone, after you've just blown up half a street, then you can bet your life on the fact she's only doing it so you don't turn her into a fine spray of Autumn pulp."

 

The room was cold and silent for a moment, before the secretary decided to get one last sting in.

 

"The world hates you, Sparkles. Your only choices are to hate it right back or prove that you're better than it. You'll be alone either way, but at least if you try to help a few people they'll start looking at you with a little fear instead of complete terror."

 

 

[Edgedancer he/him]

Everything was wrong.

 

And then that sparking assistant began to talk, "Listen, Rainbow Sparkles, was it? You need to get it through your head that everyone's afraid of you and no one likes you." Shiny Sparkle flinched under her harsh voice.

 

She was wrong, she couldn’t be right there were people that liked Shiny Sparkle and she had happy relationships and-

 

“Whenever you walk into a room, the only thought that goes through a vanilla's head is whether or not you're going to kill everyone in front of you,” the assistant keep on talking.

 

And they weren’t Autumn. Actually, most of the time they were Epics but… but that shouldn’t matter with love and that assistant kept talking and talking and it hurt and then there was silence.

 

Shiny Sparkle let out a whimper and began to rock back and forth, taking refuge in the silence. She-

 

"The world hates you, Sparkles. Your only choices are to hate it right back or prove that you're better than it. You'll be alone either way, but at least if you try to help a few people they'll start looking at you with a little fear instead of complete terror."

 

Complete terror.

 

Autumn in complete terror.

 

And it was because of Shiny Sparkle, even if she wanted to help she just made her suffer more.

 

Her whimper erupted into heavy sobs, “I’m sorry Autumn.”

 

And then her voice was drowned under her sobs. She rocked heavily back and forth, hugging her knees. Her tears stained her glasses.

[Queen Elsa Steelheart she/her]

Inside the cold and stone covered cell, Elsa patiently waited for her fate. She stared at her bandaged leg and played around with icicles she created out of her hands, every so often, throwing them at the cell wall.

 

Elsa sighed and covered the cold stone floor with snow. At least that felt more natural.

 

"Anna. I miss you."

[Mckeedee123 he/him]

Vanillas are like pipe cleaners. You just have to be firm with 'em and they'll bend any way you want.

 

It had taken only a few threats to spook the City Guards into taking him back to base, and as Crush mounted the back of the truck, he felt victorious. Never mind that the guardsmen insisted on pointing weapons at him the entire time. He was finally, finally, getting a ride to HQ! This is what respect looks like. This is the kind of deference that a personage such as yourself deserves.

 

He was consumed with pride for the remainder of the journey. The soldiers ignored his questions, so he spent the time imagining his meeting with the city's ruler. He must be pretty lax, to allow his troops to treat an Epic the way they treated me. Or... or maybe he's just weak, and these Guards don't fear his wrath. If that was the case, Crush would probably just kill the guy and rule the town himself. There was no point in working for some sap whose powerset was too weak to control even his own soldiers.

 

The truck rumbled to a halt, so he hopped out of its canvas-lined back to find that they had arrived at a large church. Behind him, the squad was filing out, revealing a pile of... were those body bags? Huh. These guys must've been at the front lines of the action I witnessed from the outskirts of town. I wonder how many-

 

Ka-click

 

Crush whirled around, confused, to find that his wrists had been handcuffed together. The soldier chick was standing right beside him, looking at him as if daring him to argue. 

 

"Hey, what?" He asked indignantly. "Why?!"

 

Her eyes narrowed further. Man, she's intimidating. Did I really only realize that just now?

 

She turned back to her squad. "Alright everybody. I'm going to be stuck doing paperwork for the next few hours, so I'm putting Mason in charge until I get back."

 

She nodded to "Mason," a hispanic-ish looking guy with a sweet goatee. Crush waved at him in respect (which was hard with handcuffs.)

 

"Shapiro, Jones, and McKay. You three drop off Deathwish. As for everyone else... well, I think we can all agree that it's been a terrible day. Even so, I'm going to have to ask you all to remain in good form until you get back to the barracks. Drop off the bodies, turn in your equipment, and we'll clear out the empty bunks in the morning. I'll see you then."

 

The soldiers seemed to take that as a dismissal, and the ones who weren't shoving "Deathwish" inside of the building (good riddance!) somberly reentered the truck and drove back the way they'd come.

 

"And you are coming with me."

 

Sweet! Deathwish was gonna get "processed" in the facility (which sounded painful) while he, Orange Crush, spent time with the hot soldier chick! What a great day! He barely even minded when she grabbed him by the neck and wrists, perp-style, and hauled him into the church through a set of double doors.

 

"Oh, by the way," she said to him as they walked in, "please pretend as if I've been screaming at you this entire time, drill-sergeant style. We're supposed to treat Epics like they're villainous toddlers or something, but I've never prescribed to that philosophy." He gave her an odd look, so she shook her head and added "you'll see what I mean."

 

The building was filled with soldiers, buzzing about as if they had nothing better to do. The girl set him on a metal folding chair and walked over to the front desk.

 

"Liutenant Fawkes, reporting a new Epic to the church as per First Contact Procedure section 2.1" Wow. That was a mouthful. How long did it take her to memorize that?

 

The receptionist eyed Crush nervously, then responded. "We'll probably just have to incarcerate him for now. Both screeners are unavailable."

 

"How?"

 

"Autumn's asleep, and the Commander has specifically ordered that she not be disturbed. Reader got caught up in the action today and is-"

 

The soldier girl snorted at that. "Reader? Seriously? How'd he end up on the front lines?"

 

The receptionist didn't even skip a beat. "A pack of ninja pandas invaded the church and kidnapped him."

 

Awesome.

 

"Last I checked, he was at Game's clinic, along with a heap of new Epics." The woman paused. "I'll radio Arsenal before I do anything." She pulled a walkie-talkie from out of her desk.

 

This was getting real boring, real quick. "Uh, hey," Crush said from behind, "am I going to-"

 

"Quiet, Epic!" yelled Fawkes, turning around. "Don't speak unless specifically addressed by a member of the Guard!" Crush stared at her, agape, then remembered what she had told him just outside the building. Had he caught a hint of sarcasm in her voice just now?

 

Either way, the desk worker nodded appreciatively as she called in the situation to the commander-guy-person on the other end of the line

 

Well, this is rather anticlimactic. I hope the fellow she's calling turns out to be nice.

Edited July 16, 2015 by Mckeedee123

[Kobold King he/him]

  

 

 

For the first time that night, there was true order in the clinic.

 

The princess in the blue dress was curled up on the floor, bleeding and obviously aware who the true authorities in this town were. Game seemed to remember his job was tending to the wounded, not meddling in his superior's plans, and was wrapping the woman's calf with a bandage. Ozymandias was clever enough to keep his mouth closed, and Scribbler hadn't pulled any more pranks that he could see.

 

Finally, this long day was starting to brighten up.

 

"It seems some of you are beginning to realize how things are in this town," Arsenal said with approval. "Follow orders and refrain from causing any chaos, and you'll do just fine here."

 

He turned to leave the building, but halted as a sniveling voice came through a certain dog crate.

 

“Um, sir," Reader began, more cautiously than usual, "if I may, how am I going to get to my quarters while I’m locked up in this dog crate? For that matter, how am I going to get my nose fixed and set while I’m in here? Could someone help a guy out and unlock this and get these weights off my arms?”

 

Arsenal sighed, but signaled for a standing Guard to release the caged Epic. "Take him to his quarters. He can have his nose looked at in the morning."

 

The Guard helped Reader out of his cage, and the man--for once--didn't say anything asinine as he was escorted out of the clinic. Another set of Guards volunteered to bring Ozymandias to spare quarters, and soon the clinic was empty save for Arsenal, the doctor and his patient, and Scribbler.

 

Scribbler. Lucy Lockser. The girl looking at her shoes, almost trepid. The only Epic in town whose powers were a match for his own in versatility, but who wallowed in her own uselessness rather than serve her town.

 

"Lockser," Arsenal growled, his tone disciplining. "You should call your parents and inform them you won't be home tonight. You'll be spending a while here restocking the doctor's supplies. And when you are finished with that, you'll be restocking ammunition and weapon depots across town. Take ten minute breaks if you need to, but I want this town fully prepared for whatever tomorrow has in store for us."

 

The girl's face was the picture of dismay, but Arsenal turned away and strode out the door before he could hear any pleas or complaints. The clinic was in order. That was all that mattered. Now to move on and regulate the rest of this dysfunctional city.

 

Outpost by outpost if he had too. This city was too important to be killed by anything as easily preventable as incompetence or disorder.

 

He clambered into his ambulance, and was inserting a ready-made key to start the engine when his radio flared to life.

 

"Nesbit to Commander Arsenal. Fawkes just brought in in a new Epic, but Glass and Reader are unavailable for screening. What are your orders?"

 

Arsenal suppressed a groan, leaning back in his chair with his eyes closed. Another Epic? And the only town operative fit to process him was Nesbit, a woman whose chief usefulness to the town was the ability to pound keys on a computer?

 

Why the blazes were there so many new Epics today of all days? Were they all connected to the Panda? Were they all in league? Was God tired of the town's staleness and actively trying to shake the city into action?

 

Whatever the reason, he simply couldn't deal with another Epic tonight. He was too old and tired for this, and he could hardly demonstrate the city's might in his current condition. Besides, it'd do the newcomer good to be made to wait on the city's pleasure.

 

"Have him taken to temporary quarters for the night, Nesbit," Arsenal ordered tersely."Put the quarters under armed guard. If he resists, terminate him if possible or contact me if not."

 

And if he survives attempted termination, he'll wish he hadn't if I have to get involved.

 

"Yes, sir," came Nesbit's chipper reply over the radio, and she cut out the transmission.

 

With that out of the way, he picked up the key again and revved on the engine...

 

...Only to halt as the bright headlights of a Guard truck pulled in front of the clinic. A couple of Guards themselves came out, escorting a squirrelly young man and a blonde woman in a plaid skirt.

 

"Commander," a lieutenant saluted, approaching the ambulance. "This pair of Epics here asked to speak to you. Name's are Backtrack and MV, but other than that we couldn't get much info out of them."

 

Stifling a sigh, Arsenal clambered back out of the car and strode towards them. The man looked sheepish, maybe even scared; the girl looked only scarcely more likely to cry than he did.

 

The two of them were probably the least Epic pair of individuals he'd seen all day.

 

"For what reason," Arsenal snapped tiredly, "Have you come here to speak to me? What need of yours is so urgent you require a Guard commander himself to attend to your whim?"